Help a new cyclist out please

[TyronLab]

Just go out and ride and take it all in. 

 

You just gave yourself the best advice there is! 

 

Until you've reached a median fitness level (i.e. you can do a 100km road ride in under 5 hours relatively comfortably), the best thing you can do is just ride, ride, ride, and ride some more. By just consistently going out and riding you'll gain fitness, I guarantee you (small disclaimer being that it doesn't really help if you only go out for 30min at a very slow pace every time).

 

To give you context, I bought my bike in July of 2018 coming off literally a zero fitness base (I only broke the 20km distance barrier after my fifth ride, two weeks after my first one). No HRM, no interval training plan, nothing, just going out and riding and trying to ride hard a few times a week and riding with a group that was slightly faster than me saw me get to a 4h06m 94.7 in November that same year. 

 

Enjoying it will keep you coming back for more, which is more valuable than any training plan can ever be at the beginning. 

[Jensie]

When my daughter started (15) the only thing we did was riding 30min out and then back home on a MTB. She said to me she cant even cycle 5km, I told her don't worry about distance, we just ride and play along the way. 3rd week we did 30km. when I told her we did 30km she could not believe me, she said I lied. 

So just ride for 1hr, 3 or more times a week, that's all. Build the engine first then speed will follow. Enjoy weekend rides and try to make them longer with a coffee stop afterwards to reward yourself. 

[Chadvdw67]

But on a more serious note. Since you have a proper HR device, focus on more frequent rides of at least an hour at a time and do not exceed zone 2. Do this for six weeks to build a base and you should start getting stronger (and faster) in no time. And before you know it, you'll be riding further in the hour slot.

 

Try do this at least 3 - 4 times per week. And rest. Rest days are important. You build strength while recovering as well.

 

Pretty soon you'll be in a spot where riding becomes a joy, not just a sore leg.

I wish my heart rate would stay in zone 2, if I pedal on the spinning bike at home, then I can manage, but literally, when I swing my leg over my bike for a ride, my HR skyrockets and refuses to come down till I am finished the ride....

[Spinnekop]

Hi all,

 

I need a little bit of help here.

 

I am new to cycling and have gone out for a total of 2 rides since I got my bike last week.

 

Now on these rides (both about 20km) I can't pedal consistently for more than a few minutes before I need to free wheel to 'catch my breath'. The pain in my quads burns like ****  which forces me to stop pedaling. From a cardio perspective, I am unfit, however when I look at my HR data from Garmin my AVG is about 100bpm, so clearly I could continue, but its just that burn that stops me.

 

I have been for a bike fit so I am confident that it is all setup fine.

 

Is it just a case of me needing to ride more and more to 'get through it' and it will become less, or is there potentially a problem here? It's just the HR data throwing me off, which is why I thought to get a few opinions here.

 

TIA

Okay.

 

Couple of questions.

• 100 HR seems low.  How old are you?  If you are 20 something you are idling.  If you are 90 year old you might be near your max.
• 100 HR seems low.  Do you use a chest HR strap or do you get your HR from your wrist?

As someone pointed out.  Tits.  Tim In The Saddle.

Start with 20min a day rather than going for 20km.  Work 20% more every week.  Until you reach your desired training distance.  With other words.........start slow and work from there.  

[Baracuda]

Its been said above, but just start slow and enjoy. Leave the heart rate monitor etc at home for a while. Take different routes and explore.

 

I started to ride in Stellenbosch 15 years ago. The other morning, I did my usual town to the waterfall at the top of Jonkershoek, down the enduro track, up the other side, down the fire hut track and home. It is a solid ride.

 

But on that ride, I remembered my first ever MTB ride 15 years ago. A mate and I departed out of Stellies, got about half way to the gate of Jonkershoek, probably about 4km from home, breathing like drowning turkeys, thought "juss this is hard" and turned around and went home before it got too hectic. Within a few months we were flying down Jonkers.

 

Just have fun.

[The Ouzo]

Its been said above, but just start slow and enjoy. Leave the heart rate monitor etc at home for a while. Take different routes and explore.

 

I started to ride in Stellenbosch 15 years ago. The other morning, I did my usual town to the waterfall at the top of Jonkershoek, down the enduro track, up the other side, down the fire hut track and home. It is a solid ride.

 

But on that ride, I remembered my first ever MTB ride 15 years ago. A mate and I departed out of Stellies, got about half way to the gate of Jonkershoek, probably about 4km from home, breathing like drowning turkeys, thought "juss this is hard" and turned around and went home before it got too hectic. Within a few months we were flying down Jonkers.

 

Just have fun.

I disagree with the bold bit.

Keep the HRM recording, but dont look at it while riding. Keep it as a log for later to see how you have progressed.

But first things first, like the others have suggested, make sure the HRM is giving the correct readings.

 

My HR shoots to 100 before I even leave the house.

[CAAD4]

Okay.

 

Couple of questions.

• 100 HR seems low. How old are you? If you are 20 something you are idling. If you are 90 year old you might be near your max.
• 100 HR seems low. Do you use a chest HR strap or do you get your HR from your wrist?

As someone pointed out. Tits. Tim In The Saddle.

Start with 20min a day rather than going for 20km. Work 20% more every week. Until you reach your desired training distance. With other words.........start slow and work from there.

Don't worry about it. Some of us have been here a long time and we don't know who Tim is either...

[Amberdrake]

When I started out I did like 5km. Its nasty how insane tired I was after, after few weeks I got better and it was easier. Then I started training more/harder and it went back to pain cave era. I have been off bike/run for a long while and now only way to get back is start at bottom. Even now I do max 10km starting out riding, it does take less riding to get into easy riding space now though.

[Quagga]

Seems your cadence is way low. Do you a cadence sensor ?

Most new riders grab a big gear. Use 60-70 rpm

Try to stay above 80. That is min 80 rpm.

Aim for 90 at least. So when going uphill drop gears to maintain high cadence.

 

Also check that you saddle has not slipped down.

 

Measure your inseam, then x 0.883. That should give you the saddle height above CRANK AXEL.

 

Just use this formula to check that your saddle height is close to what your bike fit set it at. Don’t adjust the saddle rather go back to bikefit if way out.

[Quagga]

Using a wrist watch is not always accurate. ESP with avg hr. It might take 5km to read properly. Borrow a hr strap and compare again

[Mojoman]

Hi all,

 

I need a little bit of help here.

 

I am new to cycling and have gone out for a total of 2 rides since I got my bike last week.

 

Now on these rides (both about 20km) I can't pedal consistently for more than a few minutes before I need to free wheel to 'catch my breath'. The pain in my quads burns like ****  which forces me to stop pedaling. From a cardio perspective, I am unfit, however when I look at my HR data from Garmin my AVG is about 100bpm, so clearly I could continue, but its just that burn that stops me.

 

I have been for a bike fit so I am confident that it is all setup fine.

 

Is it just a case of me needing to ride more and more to 'get through it' and it will become less, or is there potentially a problem here? It's just the HR data throwing me off, which is why I thought to get a few opinions here.

 

TIA

Are you able to walk/lightly run/trot without your leg muscles tiring so easily?

I used to run up to 15km cross country....

Haven't really done that for a few years...recently started again but I am spending a few weeks just walking (5km) and running for a few hundred metres at a go till my legs and their moaning muscles get accustomed to it ...even though I am quite fit cycling wise. Slow and steady and get some easy Km's in is my advice....especially if you are getting on in years...

Enjoy the riding and being outdoors to begin with....make it too painful and intense and you will soon lose interest....

 

Edited July 8, 2020 by Mojoman

[porqui]

Forget the numbers

 

Just go and ride

[DREDDY]

Lol, this sounds like me, i also started out about 3 months back. My first ride i didnt even do 2 kms. Quads burnt like hell, breathing was through the roof. But that is more due my self inflicted smoking. Smokers lungs.

 

I'm 45, i use the Samsung watch heart rate monitor, I have Samsung Health loaded on my phone so i could review my ride after. My heartbeat went up to 180bpm -185bpm at some stages. Had to stop and bring it down again. 

 

On my 2nd ride, i did about 5kms, on high gear, very slow pace. Each day, i kept it at this 5km mark, just to get used to it. I cycled in my neighborhood. Since then, the cycling has gotten better as the days went by. For my longer rides on the weekends, I had a few days break before going out. rest is also needed, don't push every day. 

 

The uphill's still get me, but it is getting easier. Just keep at it and give the body some rest before going out again.

 

One of my buddies recommended i take some supplements also, like Cramp Ease and Slow Mag. Not sure if this is also recommended by the forum here. Maybe i should start a topic on this and see what the bigger audience says..

 

My 2 cents worth....

[MudLark]

Hi all,

 

I need a little bit of help here.

 

I am new to cycling and have gone out for a total of 2 rides since I got my bike last week.

 

Now on these rides (both about 20km) I can't pedal consistently for more than a few minutes before I need to free wheel to 'catch my breath'. The pain in my quads burns like ****  which forces me to stop pedaling. From a cardio perspective, I am unfit, however when I look at my HR data from Garmin my AVG is about 100bpm, so clearly I could continue, but its just that burn that stops me.

 

I have been for a bike fit so I am confident that it is all setup fine.

 

Is it just a case of me needing to ride more and more to 'get through it' and it will become less, or is there potentially a problem here? It's just the HR data throwing me off, which is why I thought to get a few opinions here.

 

TIA

 

Juddman, I bought my first bicycle in February 2018 after sitting on a couch for the previous 20+ years. And I took my first ride a few days later. Maybe – maybe – 5 km around our neighbourhood. And it was tough. I don't think there was 50 m of ascent in that ride. Anyway, I persisted with the short rides, sometimes twice a day. Gradually I found that I was able to make slightly longer distances and a bit more ascent. But my heart worked like heck on the slightest climb. I rode every morning through the winter of 2018, sometimes in sub 0° (-2 or -3 was not unusual). I suffered but I held on. I remember one day going up a bit of an incline and three runners came past me.    But I kept plugging away. The end of that year I rode my first 94.7 – and I thought I was going to die near the end because it was a heatwave as well as. By May 2019, I was able to participate in Race to the Sun and I finished well enough without embarrassing myself. Today, I have a coach and I do structured workouts five times a week. Sticking with it has been the best thing I have ever done.

 

A few things I learnt along the way: (A) chest strap heart rate monitors are generally more accurate; (B) not all bike fitters are made equal (my first fitter made a real hash on my mountain bike; I was much better off after I had been to see somebody who actually knew what they were really doing). © Some days it's tough to stick with the program but it's all about consistency. (D) It's really worth it from a health perspective in the long run. I learnt many other things as well as but probably not for here and now.

 

Stick with it! And good luck!

[Robbie Stewart]

I wish my heart rate would stay in zone 2, if I pedal on the spinning bike at home, then I can manage, but literally, when I swing my leg over my bike for a ride, my HR skyrockets and refuses to come down till I am finished the ride....

 

I had the same. Back when I started using HRM, I was permanently riding in Zone 5. I would start a ride and within 10 minutes I'd be hitting the red zone. That became my normal for just about a year. My riding then was mostly confined to weekends, most of which consisted of Tygerberg trail variations with tons of climbing. My HR would spike and stay there, even after peaking.

 

Then I started a more focused training regimen including a solid base block of around 7 weeks (which I did in the gym on the spin bikes due to injury). When I started riding my mtb's again I noticed my HR would spike, but then come down very quickly after. Now, I can ride for hours on end and not hit red once, even after some hard climbing efforts thrown in.

 

I ride more consistently (at least 4 rides per week, averaging around 1h30 ish per weekday session) and then on weekends I average around 3 hour rides on Sat and Sunday's.

 

From my experience, if you ride more, your Ave HR will come down.

 

[edit] - I also realised when I ride and ignore my HR monitor, and just ride according to perceived comfort my HR stays lower. Sometimes I even end up generally faster when doing this, without pushing myself according to HR. I ride by 'feel' which I find a very good barometer for performance. Now I just use my HR to monitor progress over time. I hardly look while riding anymore.

Edited July 8, 2020 by Robbie Stewart

[Robbie Stewart]

Juddman, I bought my first bicycle in February 2018 after sitting on a couch for the previous 20+ years. And I took my first ride a few days later. Maybe – maybe – 5 km around our neighbourhood. And it was tough. I don't think there was 50 m of ascent in that ride. Anyway, I persisted with the short rides, sometimes twice a day. Gradually I found that I was able to make slightly longer distances and a bit more ascent. But my heart worked like heck on the slightest climb. I rode every morning through the winter of 2018, sometimes in sub 0° (-2 or -3 was not unusual). I suffered but I held on. I remember one day going up a bit of an incline and three runners came past me.    But I kept plugging away. The end of that year I rode my first 94.7 – and I thought I was going to die near the end because it was a heatwave as well as. By May 2019, I was able to participate in Race to the Sun and I finished well enough without embarrassing myself. Today, I have a coach and I do structured workouts five times a week. Sticking with it has been the best thing I have ever done.

 

A few things I learnt along the way: (A) chest strap heart rate monitors are generally more accurate; (B) not all bike fitters are made equal (my first fitter made a real hash on my mountain bike; I was much better off after I had been to see somebody who actually knew what they were really doing). © Some days it's tough to stick with the program but it's all about consistency. (D) It's really worth it from a health perspective in the long run. I learnt many other things as well as but probably not for here and now.

 

Stick with it! And good luck!

 

My first time out on a mtb trail (koeberg nature reserve - which is generally regarded as being flat) I hit a 'hill'. I made it up about 1/3 of the way before having to dismount. I huffed and puffed to the top.

 

Now I hit that hill at an average speed of around 32 -  33 kph...