Post edited 6:29 am - October 24, 2009 by Mark G

mike scott said:

What about training on a turbo trainer in bad weather, how long should I warm up and down and how long should I be on it for.

Mike all depends how hard you are working in the session.  However generally 10 mins warm up fast easy cadence before you start the session.  The cool down again around 10 mins - 5 mins easy spin and bringing the HR back down then some stretches would suffice.  Generally I find most riders can only do around 60mins at the most including the warm up and cool down although I met one triathlete who did 4 hours one afternoon……but he was an exception to the rule and I dont think he rushed back to do that again. 

If you want to do a turbo session I would recommend the chris carmichael training DVDs which you can watch whilst doing the session and just follow the instructions makes it a bit more interesting. 

Keep turbo session as hard sessions and generally with intervals around zone 4 82-89% of Max heart rate or zone 5 89% - 94% of max HR.

What about training on a turbo trainer in bad weather, how long should I warm up and down and how long should I be on it for.

mike scott said:

Well done on your level 3, what are your plans from level 3 how far can you go.

Anyway for a ride about 80 miles, what food would you take with you if you was not planning any cafe stops.

Hi Mike

Good question especially with our 80 mile hilly ride on 14th Nov.

Two things to consider when out on the bike hydration and nutrition.  With regard to hydration I would recommend:

On the ride consume 100ml or 150ml of water every 15 - 20 mins so around a 500ml or 3/4 of a 750ml bottle per hour would be a good guide.  

Remember dehydration results in poor performance as much as 20% for 2% dehydration.   So you may need to top up at the cafe stop!

With regard to nutrition

This will give you your energy and anything over 60 mins and therefore your 80 mile ride you will need some carbohydrate with the water.  This will boost energy levels.  You should look for a drink or powder supplement that is isotonic that will provide some salts to help absorpton but also aim for around 5-8% carbohydrate.   There are plenty of commercial products available from Torq or SIS.  You can also make your own up using glucose or maltodextrin with squash.   If you need the exact details on this homemade version let me know.

You should drink on the bike and start within the first 20 mins of the ride and take a drink little and often which will maintain hydration and energy throughout the ride.

On the 80 mile ride I would also supplement your hydration with some solid food.  The amount you will require is dependent and different for each rider it is also dependent as to the pace of the ride as different levels of fat and carbohydrate is consumed at different paces. 

To give you an idea a 3 hour ride at steady state effort (around zone 3 HR) will exhaust your reserves of carbohydrate in your body and it can take 36 hours to regenerate them.  This gives you an idea of the importance of the carbo drink but this carbo drink will not give you enough for our hilly 80 mile ride.  So my suggestion would be something like - bananas, dried fruit, cereal bars (low fat ones) or commercial energy bars. to supplement the carbo drink.  Again little bites and often start taking small amounts within the first hour and continue throughout the ride dont wait until you are hungry to eat. 

On your return home  eat some carbohydrates and protein on a ratio of 4 parts carbohydrates to 1 part protein.  Make sure you eat about 50g (average) within 30-60 minutes of your return home.  This 50 g would be equivalent to three slices of toast or two slices with jam or honey or  2-3 bananas.

Thanks for the question and your congratulations for the level 3.  I cannot do anything else at the moment this course is the highest level offered by British Cycling but eventually they will go up to level 5.  My plans are just to get as much experience as I can and I hate to think what a level 4 course will be like.  To give you an idea level 3 took 9 months and took 8 days instruction, assessments and plus a portfolio and evaluation of my training which took 3 months for British Cycling to mark.    

Post edited 9:11 pm - October 22, 2009 by Mark G

As you will have seen in the recent club news on the website -  I have finally been awarded the level 3 British Cycling Coaching Qualification - Road and Time Trial Award.  I am your club coach and I do offer personal coaching for riders or one off consultations.  This consultation can be formal testing or a ride out.  Prices and details are in the website under the 'training' section.

However as club members if you have any general  questions about training then you can post them on this forum and I will answer your questions and give you some general advice.