Training after 9 years of not cycling

[arandre]

Hi everyone, I used to cycle for 12 years and was very very fit. I bought a motobike in 2012 and stopped cycling. Now 9 years later I want to start up again. I'm extremely unfit , I can cycle about 3km comfortably. I used to cycle over 30km without a problem and often would ride longer than that. I want to know how I can build up to 30km again?

 

answers to possible questions, i would use a mountain bike on the road and then moved to a road bike and then back to a mountain bike. Currently i have a giant 24 speed. Only now am i considering going into the forrest onto trails for training just to bring the fun into training. At the moment I will ride for fun as i build up some fitness then I'll start training properly.

[ChrisF]

WELCOME back.

 

Many of us had a good number of years of bicycles .... almost 20 years in my case.

 

Take it easy .....  dont rush, hurt yourself, and then put the recovery back by months.

 

 

Just go for a ride as often as possible.  A "long ride" over the weekend helps, but many shorter trips during the week helps a LOT more to get back in shape.

 

 

ENJOY.

[arandre]

Thank you , it's great to be back. I can't believe how much i missed being on a bike. Thanks for the advice, it's pretty good. I'm currently riding about 3km for 3 days during the week and trying to ride longer in the weekends. Last Saturday i couldn't ride longer but I'm hoping this Saturday I will. i have already noticed I'm stronger on the bike so that's a plus.

[ChrisF]

What is your ride of choice ?  Road ?  MTB trails ?

 

Where are you?

 

Sure some Hubbers can point you to nice routes in your area.

[lechatnoir]

always remember, the first few rides result in sore sit bones. Give them time to ease up after each ride before riding again. after a few rides, all will be well once more. also, it's meant to be fun, so enjoy it!!

[porqui]

For the 1st month just go out there and enjoy yourself.

After that do the same.

The rest will come.

[arandre]

1 hour ago, ChrisF said:

What is your ride of choice ?  Road ?  MTB trails ?

 

Where are you?

 

Sure some Hubbers can point you to nice routes in your area.

it's always been roads but I'm trying to get into MTB trails as i used to run them so I'm trying to find fun in doing trails again. I've found the trail i want to be in and trying to find one i like. At the moment i'm sticking to road to get fit again.

43 minutes ago, lechatnoir said:

always remember, the first few rides result in sore sit bones. Give them time to ease up after each ride before riding again. after a few rides, all will be well once more. also, it's meant to be fun, so enjoy it!!

Thanks yeah they sore. I can't wait to get fit again then they'll stop being so sore.

41 minutes ago, porqui said:

For the 1st month just go out there and enjoy yourself.

After that do the same.

The rest will come.

Thanks yeah I hope so. That's why I want to do the MTB trails.

Edited August 25, 2021 by arandre

[FirstV8]

Just do your 3km ride as often as possible but keep a  mental record of your times from week to week . Then double up and so on untill you can do a comfortable 20 km in a hour . The rest will come naturally as you said you rode and were fairly fit so you know your own early limits .  

[arandre]

1 hour ago, FirstV8 said:

Just do your 3km ride as often as possible but keep a  mental record of your times from week to week . Then double up and so on untill you can do a comfortable 20 km in a hour . The rest will come naturally as you said you rode and were fairly fit so you know your own early limits .  

Thanks, i kind of just rode for fun not caring about training. Then randomly i started pushing harder and got fitter and fitter and just tried to beat my time over and over until i ended up being able to ride 100km in durban for a race without breaking a sweat

[Steady Spin]

Stop measuring distance and focus on riding for half an hour to an hour at a time. 

The rest will fall in place all by itself. 

[DIPSLICK]

Yip welcome back

slow and steady pal the fitter you get the longer u go and remember it never gets easier you just get faster????

as you get your fitness back I pretty much started again in January 

never underestimate the value of a decent pair of bibs

and remember rubber side down, it will come back ????????????????

[Help.Me.]

12 minutes ago, DIPSLICK said:

Yip welcome back

slow and steady pal the fitter you get the longer u go and remember it never gets easier you just get faster????

as you get your fitness back I pretty much started again in January 

never underestimate the value of a decent pair of bibs

and remember rubber side down, it will come back ????????????????

Welcome back Dipslick, nice to hear from  you again , just keep on riding!! 2013 J2C sounds long gone..... 

[Robbie Stewart]

Welcome back to cycling, and welcome to the Bikehub.

Time out riding will accumulate and before you know it you're fit. Starting is a win already, so whatever you ride matters less than that you're riding again. Regular rides, 3-4 times per week at an easy pace at first, for around an hour to start per ride, will build up muscle memory and fitness very rapidly without leaving you wrecked. At this point in time, it is not about how far you ride as much as it is how long you ride that counts.

[DIPSLICK]

2 hours ago, Help.Me. said:

Welcome back Dipslick, nice to hear from  you again , just keep on riding!! 2013 J2C sounds long gone..... 

true seems like a life time, but slowly getting back into it, must say one forgets Faaast 

 

[Vetseun]

7 hours ago, DIPSLICK said:

true seems like a life time, but slowly getting back into it, must say one forgets Faaast 

 

You are way too humble Dipper.

Okes this man has made a phenomenal  turn around and comeback.

Well done SON.

[arandre]

10 hours ago, Steady Spin said:

Stop measuring distance and focus on riding for half an hour to an hour at a time. 

The rest will fall in place all by itself. 

Thanks I'll try. I'm worried about distance because I've always focused on distance. Even when not training i used to ride everywhere. I think you right though , when I start out i just need to focus on time for now.

10 hours ago, DIPSLICK said:

Yip welcome back

slow and steady pal the fitter you get the longer u go and remember it never gets easier you just get faster????

as you get your fitness back I pretty much started again in January 

never underestimate the value of a decent pair of bibs

and remember rubber side down, it will come back ????????????????

I always thought it was rubber side up? nowonder it's been uncomfortable all these years. I remember it does get easier but just really slowly.  One is able to handle a lot more the fitter you get.

9 hours ago, Robbie Stewart said:

Welcome back to cycling, and welcome to the Bikehub.

Time out riding will accumulate and before you know it you're fit. Starting is a win already, so whatever you ride matters less than that you're riding again. Regular rides, 3-4 times per week at an easy pace at first, for around an hour to start per ride, will build up muscle memory and fitness very rapidly without leaving you wrecked. At this point in time, it is not about how far you ride as much as it is how long you ride that counts.

Thanks , at the moment i'm riding around half an hour but I'm trying to focus more on how i'm feeling. The first few times i couldn't go further than around the block, then i kicked the block back under the bed. I'll try focus on time over distance until I'm more fit.