Million dollar question, how to go faster?

[MrGrumpy]

I think I just have too many competitive colleagues and family members who cycle which has led to a bit of self doubt when I now realise that I am cycling at a fairly decent pace and needn't worry about trying to go at race speeds as I have no intention or desire to race. I guess the burning question I had in my head was 'are these guys quicker because they have carbon bikes and better wheels etc?' but now I realise that they are quicker because they have been cycling for longer and in clubs so they have the fitness and experience behind them.

As mentioned already losing some lbs will help more than a lighter bike, however after losing the weight, get yourself fit and what better way is to lug a heavy bike around up and down hills . After all that it is all about this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diminishing_returns

 

[smutchin]

hot brown energy gel

Wow, great point, I've never thought of it like that. Next time I go out for a ride, I'm putting Bisto in my bidon.

 

[smutchin]

I agree that 18mph average on my rides is decent and nothing to complain about but I keep getting told of club riders averaging 20-21mph and I'm thinking how can I get to that level when I'm struggling to maintain 18mph over a journey.

Just to echo what others have said, if you're doing 18mph on solo rides, you'll easily manage 20mph on group rides - especially if you avoid doing your turn on the front.

 

[Cyclopathic]

Try not to worry so much about going faster. It might be better for you just to set off a few minutes earlier and enjoy the ride more.

 

[jdtate101]

It depends doesn't it. You say 18mph over some hilly terrain, but just how hilly? Give us the total ascent and distance figures as that will give a rough benchmark to compare against. I can avg 22-23mph on flat rides and 19+mph on rolling. For hilly that goes down to 18+mph. As an example the recent Dragon ride in Wales (133miles and close to 12000ft of ascent) I did at 16.8mph avg, but that's super hilly.

 

[400bhp]

You have to hurt to get the average up. In my personal experience if you are generally fit then (because you're not *bike fit) you're probably running below your aerobic capacity. It might feel like you are but a heart rate monitor is likely to tell you different.

*bike fit is a loose term, but being generally fit will mean you have a good base for cycling.

A more technical way of putting it is you need to increase your lactate threshold.

I could harp on but @gam001 and @Rob3rt will put it better than me.

gam001 especially (from personal experience) has ramped up his average speed significantly.

I have also increased my moving average in the last 3-6 months.

 

[Nebulous]

I think for most of us getting more miles in would make a difference. I started almost 3 years ago in my late 40s (now 51) and have made a fair bit of progress by riding a lot. If I can knock out 150+ miles a week I notice a difference within a month.

I'd also take a lot of figures you see or hear even from your friends with a pinch of salt. I measure my rides door-to-door. I have traffic lights, roundabouts, a cycle path etc for about 4-5 miles until I get out into the country. I'll then do most of my ride in rolling terrain with few breaks until I head home and have the same again before I get to my house. Most of the time I'm comparing myself against myself and not against others. The only time I'm really up against others is doing a TT!

 

[smutchin]

That wouldn't be a problem if I was just out for a gentle cycle every weekend but I expected improvement from a non cycler to a regular cyclist who goes out 3 times a week and does around 25-30 miles each time.

Just re-reading the OP again, this bit sticks out - I think the simple answer is that your rides are too short and you're not pushing yourself hard enough. Sorry if that's not what you want to hear but there is no magic wand. Even if you took EPO, you'd still have to do the legwork to take advantage of its effects, and 25-30 miles three times a week doesn't cut it.

If you want to improve, try sustaining the same effort over double the distance. For a start.

Remember, there's a big difference between "doing a bit of exercise" and "training".

Edit: cross-posted with @400bhp but basically: what he said.

 

[gam001]

You have to hurt to get the average up. In my personal experience if you are generally fit then (because you're not *bike fit) you're probably running below your aerobic capacity. It might feel like you are but a heart rate monitor is likely to tell you different.

*bike fit is a loose term, but being generally fit will mean you have a good base for cycling.

A more technical way of putting it is you need to increase your lactate threshold.

I could harp on but @gam001 and @Rob3rt will put it better than me.

gam001 especially (from personal experience) has ramped up his average speed significantly.

I have also increased my moving average in the last 3-6 months.

You could write a book on this (oh, wait, loads of people have ), but if you are short on time then hard interval training will give you the most "bang for your buck" IMO. It's all about starting at a level that's hard for you and slowly ramping it up week by week with an easy week every 4 weeks or so, so that your body can recover and grow stronger than before. CONSISTENCY is also key - 3 or 4 sessions a week EVERY week - it's all about keep turning the screw bit by bit - you won't notice the difference over a few weeks, but a few months later you look back and bang, you'd have come a long way

As stated above, there's loads of books out there, but the book below is quite short and will be a tenner very well spent - it explains everything really well IMO and has sample interval workouts in there to increase your "Lactate Threshold" and "VO2 max" - 2 indicators that will make you a faster cyclist than before if you increase them...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-li...&keywords=time+crunched+cyclist&condition=new

Best of luck, and more importantly, stick with it and enjoy it

 

[gam001]

Also, see this thread...
http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/am-i-training-right.128907/

 

[CycloneCharlie]

For what it's worth, I would spend time on the hills, just going up and down them. Hold off on the power till you start to crest them, that way your legs don't burn out. Holding the handle bars in a very loose jelly-like way, as you go up hills, helps with rhythm, so does music, this increases muscle efficiency. After that, just enjoy the cycling! It doesn't need to be torture.

 

[Skipper]

Try strapping a bungy cord around the next car that passes you ..............

 

[Cyclopathic]

I found that an aerodynamic faring over my handlebar basket really helped improve my speed on the downhill bits. Also, tassels may look like the dogs and give one a feeling of gay abandon but again they play havoc with the old aerodynamics.

 

[Irishrich]

I'm going to find a few more routes further from home in an attempt to spend some more time on the flats rather than going up and down hills every week. I do think all the hill climbing has improved my fitness as I can notice it in the other sports and exercise I do so it's not been all bad. Many thanks for all input and I'll let you know in future if I have made noticeable progress.

 

[CycloneCharlie]

Have you considered just cycling downhill? That's known to work a treat!