Jump to content

Base miles, how much?


Recommended Posts

Starting to ride after some three years off the bike.

How much base miles must one do before getting into interval/high intensity training?

Also training for the 94.7 both MTB and road events.

The year before I stopepd I rode both.

Can't remember the MTB time but road was 3h20.

 

This time the MTB will be taken slower as I cramped a lot with the road race.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would guess that you would need at least 2 months of rding. It would really depend on your expectation in terms of race times though.

 

To start though you will need to build up your base miles by completing longer rides on the weekend and then doing back to back rides (Sat&Sun) to improve endurance. The best intensity training will be to actually start racing the smaller events of which there are a few every month..there is no substitution for actual racing. This will also help build your seeding which is also key in competing...

 

To give you an idea we ride about 80-100km on a Staurday and then 100-160km on Sundays...but that you need to build up to...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Dont think it is about exactly how much miles but rather the Level of Intensity and the duration, so 4hrs at between 60%-65% or some say 65%-70% is better than just 150km. So the measurement here is intensity and time not distance

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Agree with Wheelsuck above.

 

I would think at least 2 x 4week cyles of progressively more volume each week with the 4th week a rest week (1/2 the volume of the 3rd week). If you have serious intentions you could add another 1 4week cycle.

 

Also keep in mind with the period you stopped cycling, you probably lost all cycling related fitness. You will however still have a cyclist mind which should help you gauge intensity, etc. and reduce the overall learning curve.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You should do at least 4 weeks of base and threshold interval training (about 2 hours 4 times a week at 75-85%). From there on you can slowly but surely begin with more intense intervals where you go all out.

 

Contact me if you want info on training programmes:

 

Maryke

[sport Scientist

Email: maryke.verster87@gmail.com]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Maryks Base and Threshhold at 75%-85% is race pace for me...have I been doing it wrong? I do about 3hrs-4hrs at between 65%-70% with a 30 second all out effort every 10 minutes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

depends what you train for and you fitness level when starting off.... stage racing you will nee alot of base miles and working it up progressively. single day events the base miles could be covered in around 4 weeks with another 3-4 for intensity and speed work. (this is for longer events 3-4 hours)

 

if I train for a single event with my expected completion time around 3.5-4hours then your base miles should work progressively up to 4 hours... depending on my body condition when starting i will take every 3rd/4th day a rest day and then up the time ie. (2.5hrs, 2.5hrs, rest) - (3hrs,3hrs,rest) - (3.5hrs,3.5hrs,rest) - rest day - (3hrs, 3hrs, rest) - (3.5hrs,3.5hrs,rest) - (4hrs,4hrs,rest) - rest day

 

after 4/5 weeks of this boring crap you move to power/intensity : this is race specific, little use in training 30min steady climbing all the time if the biggest climb is 300m - this is where you teach your body to take the kind of abuse you expect in the race

 

no substitute for a sport scientist - they know what signs to look for when your body react/complain

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with Mellow accept that everyone does not have that much time to train every day. This is why the intensity is higher for shorter time. The interval training pushes your body beyond its limits and thus, when race time comes your body will think it's on a vacation!! Intervals force your body to work through the muscle soreness and to perform optimally in tough conditions. If you have the time to train 3 hours a day, I'd say 65-75% is about the right intensity for base miles.

 

But if you are like me, who can only train an hour and a half 3 times a week and 3 hours on Saturdays, then you have to make the best of the time you have. I also feel that it is not neccessary to train for hours and hours on end when you can effectively train for less than half the time. In my own training I do for example 8 or 10 reps of full out pace over distances shorter than 1 km with long rest periods (1-5 min). After this I'm usually very tired. This is when I do my medium intensity intervals (for example 3 x 5 km 85-90% with 30 sec rest between reps). This teaches my body to cope and perform even after it has been partially exhausted.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Settings My Forum Content My Followed Content Forum Settings Ad Messages My Ads My Favourites My Saved Alerts My Pay Deals Help Logout