figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Non-alcoholic beer may be isotonic but traditional beer is not.
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Non-alcoholic beer may be isotonic but traditional beer is not.
Anything carb when riding, if its tastes nice. I did a recent sportive , made a school boy error trying to hang with young riders on a windy day, not enough fuelling also.
First 37 miles into a headwind, we averaged 19.5mph, I couldn't hang on for any longer and legs went pop at mile 40.
Bike had serious mechanical at mile 60, was pleased to limp back to the finish with 74 miles in my legs, not completing the 100.
Serious leg cramps that evening, with slight muscle pulls from the cramps. Took several days to recover.
DogmaStu
Senior Member
In Portugal, some of the locals I ride with have a dark beer at the cafe stop.
Chislenko
Veteran
A bottle of Sagres works wonders on a long ride!
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
Book into a bed and breakfast or setup camp for the night. The leg muscles need that overnight stop to recharge and repair.
midliferider
Guru
- Location
- Northampton
This is my opinion.
It is absolutely normal to feel the way you feel when you cycle the distances that you described. You are not a pro cyclist, you have no support services usually associated with pro cyclist. This includes nutritionist, physio, power out put analysis etc. You are as you describe, on your own. This is normal.
Think carefully whether you really need to cycle these distances. I am not saying don't. Just reflect.
When I tour, I may do 100-130 Km a day. I always take regular breaks irrespective of tiredness. I prefer 3 X 10 minutes break to longer 30 minutes break. But you may not like to rest but carry on.
But you must eat and hydrate every 45 minutes to one hour.
General rule for me is eat before you are hungry, drink before you are thirsty.
It is absolutely normal to feel the way you feel when you cycle the distances that you described. You are not a pro cyclist, you have no support services usually associated with pro cyclist. This includes nutritionist, physio, power out put analysis etc. You are as you describe, on your own. This is normal.
Think carefully whether you really need to cycle these distances. I am not saying don't. Just reflect.
When I tour, I may do 100-130 Km a day. I always take regular breaks irrespective of tiredness. I prefer 3 X 10 minutes break to longer 30 minutes break. But you may not like to rest but carry on.
But you must eat and hydrate every 45 minutes to one hour.
General rule for me is eat before you are hungry, drink before you are thirsty.
raleighnut
Legendary Member
- Location
- One of the 'Elite'
How come after a couple of pints I pee like a racehorse then
midliferider
Guru
- Location
- Northampton
Because beer is a diuretic.
figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Because isotonic doesn’t mean diuretic.
OP
OP
Deleted member 121159
Guest
I think this makes a lot of sense. Also riding solo, there's no benefits from drafting which makes it harder. My reasons for wanting to do longer distances is just that it gets me to more new and interesting places which is a big appeal of cycling for me. If I only did 20-30 miles I would quickly run out of places to go. When I design a route trying to explore new places, it often ends up becoming 60-70 miles long. I think I'll work on nutrition, stamina and pacing this summer, just want to be able to do this distance more comfortably.
midliferider
Guru
- Location
- Northampton
It is important to be clear what you want to achieve by cycling. If you want to see places by bike, there are other ways to do it. For example, you can drive to a place, then do a 30-40 mile loop, and drive back home.
matticus
Guru
[1st bold]: hoorah! One of the best reasons to cycle1
[2nd bold]: Simples; go a bit slower. Rough estimates show knocking 10% off your speed/effort in the first hour, you will double your distance before collapse. It's a VERY simple approach. In theory, some find it hard in practice!
a.twiddler
Veteran
Hmm. Go a bit slower. I like that. Now I've got something to reply to all those roadies who pass me on those sunny days. Just pacing myself. Saving myself for later. Actually, I like that a lot.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
As I cycle along thinking of this and that I come up with all kinds of nonsense. One of which is a mechanical analogy for fueling the body. I've never written this down before, so it's probably more stupid than I think it is.
The body is a hybrid car.
It has a small petrol engine for fast accelerations. This has a small fuel tank that it can be refilled quite quickly. Unfortunately the spark plugs don't last all that long and once they burn out you can't use it any more.
Most of the power comes from the battery. This lasts for a long time but it also takes a long time to recharge. You can recharge it on the road by only a small amount. A full recharge can only be done in the garage.
However the battery system does have an efficient battery-saver mode. Once charge gets down to a certain limit you can still carry on for quite a while but at greatly reduced power. Also unimportant peripheral systems like your brain and ability to navigate properly might get shut down.
Then there's the lubrication system. Unfortunately the engine slowly leaks oil. Once the bearings seize up a visit to the garage (ie a good night's sleep) is needed.
The body is a hybrid car.
It has a small petrol engine for fast accelerations. This has a small fuel tank that it can be refilled quite quickly. Unfortunately the spark plugs don't last all that long and once they burn out you can't use it any more.
Most of the power comes from the battery. This lasts for a long time but it also takes a long time to recharge. You can recharge it on the road by only a small amount. A full recharge can only be done in the garage.
However the battery system does have an efficient battery-saver mode. Once charge gets down to a certain limit you can still carry on for quite a while but at greatly reduced power. Also unimportant peripheral systems like your brain and ability to navigate properly might get shut down.
Then there's the lubrication system. Unfortunately the engine slowly leaks oil. Once the bearings seize up a visit to the garage (ie a good night's sleep) is needed.
OP
OP
Deleted member 121159
Guest
It's really hard somehow to do the 2nd bit. I'm going out tomorrow so will put this theory to test.
