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170 Miler--Training Tips

lisapr123
lisapr123 Posts: 863 Member
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So my husband is signing up for a one day, 170 mile ride across the state of Illinois. Anyone have any solid training tips for him? He's an avid cyclist and has completed a few centuries, but he could use some help since he'll be nearly doubling the distance.

Replies

  • Cyclink
    Cyclink Posts: 517 Member
    Even at a moderate pace, that's 10 hours in the saddle.

    There's a lot to worry about:
    - building up the endurance (at all levels: heart & lungs, hands, back of the neck, butt in the saddle)
    - the core strength to keep your body stable for that long
    - figuring out how much to eat and drink (to keep you fueled up, but not get sick)
    - keeping the bike in good shape so it can work for that long without issues
    - decent clothing (shorts, gloves, glasses, and shoes) to minimize fatigue

    And probably a bunch more I'm not thinking about.
  • uboom
    uboom Posts: 69 Member
    When is the last time he road a century? What is his weekly volume now? If he is riding centuries and his volume is already high right now, then all he has to focus on is nutrition as he will be able to ride 170. I would have him do a 125 mile ride as a training ride.
  • lisapr123
    lisapr123 Posts: 863 Member
    His last century was late November, the 170 ride is late June so he will be back at a 60-80 mile ride each weekend plus a few 30-50 milers each week. I'll schedule a 125er for late May.

    Right now we've got 9 inches of snow on the ground so the rides are several spin sessions a week plus strength training. And we swim too.

    Thank you, I'll definitely set up a 125 ride!
  • uboom
    uboom Posts: 69 Member
    Great... Sounds like you will be breaking out the Trainers today like me.
  • Evachiquita
    Evachiquita Posts: 223 Member
    Just ride, ride, ride! Sounds like you guys know the basics, and probably lots more than most. I'm training up for a 130 mile ride, with 16,000 feet of climbing....in one day!! It's in late July. One thing I'm working on is training my body to be a fat burner. Right now I think I am mostly a carb burner so it's going to take some time for my body to adjust but I think I'll be a better, and hopefully lighter, cyclist. I'm doing this by decreasing my carb intake and increasing my fat intake. Fortunately I live in California and I can ride all year so right now I'm riding a large volume at a low intensity. I've added in 1-2 workouts a week first thing in the morning in a fasted state. I am also competing in some races so I do some interval work a few times a week too and will be adding more of that in later in the season. It's only been about 2 weeks and I can feel changes in my body so we'll see how it all plays out.
  • dfquigley
    dfquigley Posts: 186
    I did exactly the same thing for my double centuries as I did for my centuries, except I started out just a touch easier.

    Otherwise one day, I just decided to make the jump and did it :p

    Be conservative on the hills...... Make sure you don't miss a gas station if you're not going to see another for a refill for a good hour or two ;)

    Honestly the WORST part was that after 150 miles, my sitbones would start to feel raw :p
  • dfquigley
    dfquigley Posts: 186
    Just ride, ride, ride! Sounds like you guys know the basics, and probably lots more than most. I'm training up for a 130 mile ride, with 16,000 feet of climbing....in one day!! It's in late July. One thing I'm working on is training my body to be a fat burner. Right now I think I am mostly a carb burner so it's going to take some time for my body to adjust but I think I'll be a better, and hopefully lighter, cyclist. I'm doing this by decreasing my carb intake and increasing my fat intake. Fortunately I live in California and I can ride all year so right now I'm riding a large volume at a low intensity. I've added in 1-2 workouts a week first thing in the morning in a fasted state. I am also competing in some races so I do some interval work a few times a week too and will be adding more of that in later in the season. It's only been about 2 weeks and I can feel changes in my body so we'll see how it all plays out.

    I went through similar changes myself. I recently did a 4 1/2 hour workout with no nutrition but an apple :p

    I can run 25 km on empty too, just gotta go easy.


    16,000 feet is HUGE Best I did last summer was a 13,000 or so feet climbing. :p

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