gogo@

Maryks has had great press here - I'd try her program but I also think it helps to understand how periodised training works? That way you get to train to the way you respond to training. Maybe she uses that kind of feedback but if you just try to stick to a generic program it doesn't always work so well... Here's my 2c worth, from reading and experience. First, rest weeks shouldn't mean too much time off the bike. Then, using the principles of periodisation, you can adapt your schedule to how strong you feel. This is what I understand about how periodised programs work, and where rest and recovery fits in: Periodisation works in macro cycles of four weeks so that you build a base (4 to 12 weeks - aerobic) then strength and speed (4 to 8 weeks - tempo, sprints, hills and leg speed drills) and then taper (1 to 2 weeks - cutting volume not intensity)and race. You pick one or two races a season to hit with your best and plan these cycles around that. For the micro cycles within each macro phase, you follow an increase of volume mainly but also intensity over 3 weeks and then drop down to the second week's volume in the fourth week. For the next 4-week cycle you pick up where you were in the third week aiming to build a 10% increase between weeks. I focus my increase mainly on my long rides, going from 50km one week to 55 to 60 then drop to 50/55 depending on how strong I'm feeling. Then start the next 4 weeks at 55 say. Within each week you can do anything from 3 to 6 rides, of 1 to 2hrs, with 4 to 5 being most realistic unless you're unemployed! After your base phase (I build progressively from 60% to 75-80% HR using the max HR minus resting HR [called HR reserve] x % plus resting HR formula) you need to do one hills (tempo 10 min building to 30mins intervals, +-80% HR) one sprints (4 to 8 varying from 30s to 2min as close to max HR and cadence as you can) and one long ride. Best is two longish rides back to back if you're training for multiple-stage races. Even if not, to have a long ride at 80% followed by another at much lower intensity the next day has a huge impact on your fitness. The other thing is to make sure you recover properly between micro and macro cycles. If you're tired or can't get you HR up then you need to rest. As they say, it's when you rest that you're building fitness, which is why periodisation works. And why you need to have more weeks aerobic base training than you do for the power and speed phase... I'm sure you're doing a lot of this already, but it's getting the proportions right in each phase and then using the 3 weeks up, one week down, cycle that really lets you make the most of limited time. Hope I haven't gone on too much. And hope this helps. Now, can anyone tell me what to do about age and weight??

To watch is how fast your HR drops after intense exercise. Yonks ago our judo master used to have us do this. Take your pulse immediately when you stop intense exercise (say your 183) and again 1 or 2 min later. you see this on the bike as well - as your fitness improves, you recover faster from intense efforts which means your heart rate drops faster. Maybe that's the formula your looking for?? Might be something... There's also that heart rate variability thing which you need a HRM/computer to measure. Far as I know all this just helps you see if your training is working and is not about measuring yourself against others...

The question here I think was to have an idea of how what you're doing on a stationary bike compares with outdoor performance... almost impossible to work out which is why I'd plug for using a HRM. Personally I avoid spinning classes and have a specific plan that fits with my outdoor riding. That way you can make use of even minimal time on the bike. Using an IDT might be best but I enjoy (!!?!!) working out in the gym on my own mission. Doing intervals at home wouldn't be the same. For one thing nobody to laugh at you when you fall off a stationary bike **~)

On topic; Looks like you're not going to get a reliable speed value but... gym bikes can be great (when you can't ride outside, or for specific training) because riding conditions are constant. I never really worry about speed and even though it's hard to figure from one session to another exactly what resistance is applied on the bikes I use, they still work well especially for increasing leg speed and interval training. If you use a heart-rate monitor, even better. Then use the cadence meter to do power intervals at 50-60rpm, tempo at 70-90rpm or speed at 100+rpm. So time and cadence is more important to know than km/h or distance cycled... I 'switched' to road cycling recently and have found this incredibly beneficial especially for raising my cadence (and speed) on the road... But you probably knew all that already!

Sharp. Took you 4 minutes to figure that out. Past your bed time??

More fun than editing your own post, don't you think?? *~)

How fast the wheel spins. Duh.

Would depend on gearing - what sprocket you're in and then what speed you're turning at (cadence). But I'm not sure how that works on fixed-wheel spinning bikes where you're using resistance to control your speed?? Don't see how you can work it out 'cos there's no clear relationship between this resistance and cadence that you can use... But gym bikes with speedos are making a calculation, based on what?? I'd like to know as I've wondered how 30km/hr compares on one of those with the real thing...

Not there, but I've had bikes buzz me the same way, well over 120 as they're overtaking cars and leaving them in their dust. Seem to think it's funny - or maybe I'm prey?? If oom tjops clips me can't see how he can avoid coming down at that speed. Maybe the thinking part of "think bike" IS the bike??

Going to see you there... no way can I afford that. Make my own rides, take my chances.

Def going for 2nd... 1st was an absolute blast... Had to go careful cos of cramps from Smits (no surprise, no distance in training) but overtook LOADS after Chappies. and Boyes Drive wasn't such a big deal (no wind tho!) Did my first LSD yesterday and already further. Also in for Die Burger... If you haven't done the Argus before, don't listen to the yawns... it's really worth it, even/especially at the back! I've heard so much moaning but then I wonder if those peeps actually enjoy cycling anymore??

Sorry, no... not even a bicycle... I've had countless bad experiences of shopping for a bike with small frame - small, not extra small!! If it's not on the floor, you can't have it, the don't stock it and probably don't make it anymore... being a woman makes it worse. Talking gear ratios, sprockets and spokes helps a bit, but they still think you're so dumb you'll just try out the medium in bike X when you want Y. Easier to use sizing charts and buy blind from hubbers!! Cheaper too and I got basically a brand-new bike at 2nd hand price. Don't know how shops survive with that attitude.

To add to the above, self as guinnea pig shows cycling is waaaay easier but needs more time for similar cardio benefits... even short shuffles have major benefits... This winter I decided to try a bit of running since we had so much rain. I had a good cycling base but no running since age, uhm, ten??? So... long story short, after just 2/3 months of mostly 20min 'runs' 3x a week and the occasional hour (like 2/3 times) I got on the bike last Saturday and couldn't believe how easy the hills were! HRM proves it: didn't once go near 80%max which I would normally exceed and ave speed as good as when I left off??? Also did 2hrs where after a break like that an hour would be enough. So monday went for a run with HRM and was astonished at what it showed: basically i think i was doing intervals all winter and probably increasing lactate threshold or something like that?? It's seriously worth doing as you get more for your time. Using a treadmill also helps you concentrate on stride and foot placement. Strengthening leg muscles like this also protects your knees. I also found out I can hop on one leg at 10km/ hr (!) and that you WILL strain calf muscles if you try too much too soon!! I'm curious to see now what happens if I keep that up while getting back to normal cycling routine. AND it's great to do something you thought you couldn't...

You could have mine - not unpacked from CRC. I bought two and only use one.

OK... but I'll still be cycling to the right! :- fewer punctures, less dodging pot holes & debris, and room to move left when an idiot passes too close. AND more likely to be seen on bends, believe it or not. 1+ with FRAIL

A dumb question... this shop has to have a 2nd hand goods register - why not ask to look at it?? Is this confidential, and if so, why? How about a 'public spirited' spot-check? And if there's something special about the register then maybe just go through a couple of suspicious looking bikes to check origins. I would love to look further into this. If his register is cooked it would show up. And the cops are supposed to check it now and again. Where there have been issues like these with cops being taken to the shop to retrieve a stolen bike surely he should be checked more often. Shhhhurrrely. Or are the cops only interested in paperwork (aka personal banking)? Which is why it might be worth asking for info on where goods come from and following up...?

Why is everybody so interested in this? Not because of a set of minutes that may or may not have been accurate, or because of one meeting that may or may not have been called to 'manage' the market to certain people's advantage. Personally, I picked up on this thread because, from my limited experience of trying to afford basic cycling costs and to get access to stock that I need, it seems clear that there's something wrong (with pricing?) in the industry. Our LBS was run by some brave/mad independents and nobody got rich before they went out of business. The surviving shop could hardly be called 'LBS' as they take so many shortcuts, and I know what lengths they go to to order parts that customers can afford. So who's making all the money? And why doesn't common sense apply here - that lower margins support an expanding market and more customers buying more goods more often equals better business? There's an attitude that cycling is for the elite who have big bucks, and don't bother with the rest. Personally, with my limited knowledge, I am SURE there is a case here. So anyone who tries to show me what the facts are so we can see how it adds up gets my vote. And anyone questioning where the 'authority' to do so comes from should ask themselves deep questions about their ability to think and behave ethically. And that includes people who spends millions on lawyers to find technical loopholes in legal procedures. If you're not guilty, what's the problem with putting it all out in the open? This type of 'authority' is the right hand of fascism. Is it possible to do business ethically in this country - and if not, why not? I don't want to service my own bike and buy my own parts from overseas. I'm a customer looking for a reasonable deal and when I can see what your markup is, and that it's the same as every other large distributor, and that my local shop which doesn't have a market for 100 can't get it in, then I'll draw my own conclusions like lots of other folk have. Big vote to Tumbleweed and others like you. Here's to the next round - or do we have a 'self-regulated' market first???

130 I fall off the indoor bike; 120/35 off the road bike. Anything between's great!

GoreTex works best... with a wicking baselayer in winter it can handle sweat build up nicely. Works ok in summer but not if too humid. I used to use my hiking jacket, until it was lifted by monkeyburglars out of my upstairs room while my dog snoozed downstairs... If I could afford it, I'd go for a 2-ply replacement. Paramo is a nice alternative, but gets a bit hot. www.paramo.co.uk

It's really worth watching your resting HR. if that goes up+- 5bpm or more, you really should be careful, go slow/ take time off. Also, watch your HR while riding cos if that is higher than it should be then something's going on. All kinds of viruses can affect your heart but not all cases of flu will and you don't even have to be that sick for it to happen. It's your immune system that gets confused by a virus so that it starts to target heart cells which leads to myocarditis. It's possible that you don't realize how badly your heart has been affected and if you exercise the result could be permanent damage, or worse. I went riding with a 'mild' dose of myocarditis and managed a new HR max on an easy ride but I was REALLY lucky. it's like having a strained muscle (your heart is muscle!) but it literally flattens you. I'm not sure what factors affect your chances of your immune system and a virus interacting like this, but in my case I also rode when I started feeling a bug coming on But went home early cos i wasn't up to it. I'm almost sure that had something to do with it, but nothing I've read makes that link. Take this seriously cos even if you're 'lucky' and don't land up in hospital it's not fun. And my last 2cents, this stuff about head or chest cold doesn't mean much. That might affect your breathing, but a sore throat is enough of a sign of the kind of virus that can affect your heart. The only way to have an idea of what's going on, rather than being completely neurotic is to watch your heart rate and if you have the aches, don't ride! A long post, but I still can't believe it did happen. And when it did, I struggled to find good info on what was going on or how to handle it. It also stuffed up my training but, really, there is (??) always next year. Hope this helps!

Cold I can handle. Rain I can handle. Wind (u guessed). But dark? Never had a problem with that either until Thursday evening coming back from a stunning ride only to get squeezed on fast traffic and blinded by oncoming headlights on a bend... could NOT see where I was or how far from the drop off and couldn't slow down either! Yay. I love winter. great sunset, specially as it was nearly my last!! Mantra: those who cycle know when they get to outpace the bad stuff. Mostly. I think? Corollary: cycling at night in traffic is not the place to find new mantras.

Envy your commute! Thanks for advice - I hadn't thought of keeping to 8 speed because the shifters (integrated) is where the problem begins. Bike is 10 and even though well looked after, it's time for a change. Will reconsider but do like the cruising possibilities on Deore along with the rep for durability. What wheels work well with your Vs? Is there anything special about the braking surface on Mavics??

Thanks - useful advice! I've found with the 9 spd cassette I hardly use gears in the lower range for same reason but wondered just how much I'd lose. But easy enough to correct later. I'm really not sure where the 'disk only' issue comes from - I get cynical & wonder if these guys think you're a sucker until you prove otherwise! Will buy local if price is reasonable but have found online shops seem to be targeting high-end gear at related prices. Looking at CWC now. Would support LBS more but have had too many problems there.

Advice/experience requested on this? I want to replace wheels & 8spd drivetrain with robust long-life components so thought to go for Deore. Not sure +- wheelset. Considering Mavic crossride but want to stay with v-brakes. Any suggestions for a value wheelset and where's best to buy? I would prefer to do this thru LBS but they still use 3-in-1 'lube'... plus next closest BS told me as my frame won't take disk brakes i can't use Deore shifters cos they're being made for disk now??? Doesn't look that way to me from specs online. How difficult is it to do this upgrade yourself? or should I find a mechanic? how much difference is there between 22:32:44 and 26:36:48 chainrings? and if you go for the higher gearing what for the cassette? 11-32 or 34? I'm going to use the bike for L(S)D on dirt roads and jeeptrack mainly and for touring. Finally, where's the best source for parts, and what's the etiquette for working with a mechanic on this (assuming I don't do the LBS thing)? Thanks to anyone who can share advice Gogo@

I used the calculator on competitivecyclist.com which requires a range of measurements including to sternal notch, forearm, arm besides the usual. If you use the results of the calculator and check the frame geometry, stand-over height & all that carefully for whatever model you're looking at, you really can't go wrong. Minor adjustments for comfort follow!