From: tjensen@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (todd.r.jensen)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.triathlon
Subject: Bike training
Date: 4 Sep 92 19:05:39 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: AT&T


> Todd,
> 
> Having read several of your race reports and having made no progress
> in reducing my bike split, I ask "How do _you_ train for the bike? 
> Where did you start (in terms of performance, training) and how
> did you end up where you are?"  This may be of general interest to
> the newsgroup.  If you've got time, drop me a note.  
> 
> Mike Gilson
> iccgcc.decnet.ab.com  (new address!)

Mike,

I'm posting this to the net as I've been getting a few requests for the
age old question, "What do _I_ need to do to go faster (on the bike)?"

Well, you asked for my background in training.  First, I never swam or
ran in junior or senior high school.  (OK, I ran a few years of track in
junior high but I was a sprinter and ran a 1 or 2 max per day.)  I started
riding my Schwinn Traveler in high school and just enjoyed being on the roads
out in the sun.  It wasn't until college that I was really exposed to cycling
as a sport and started training with some of the local studs (Cat 1-3s).  Of
course, by now I had a semi-good racing bike and shaved legs.

Training then consisted of riding every day, usually in a group.  My fitness
went from about 1 to 7 (on a scale of 10) in a few short months.  Just trying
to hang on was hard enough.  I learned a lot about training from the guys
who had been racing for years.  The main thing I learned was you need
different types of workouts during the week.  Sundays: long.  Mondays: easy.
Tuesdays: sprints.  Wednesdays: hammer.  Thursday: intervals.  Fridays: easy.
Saturdays: hard paceline work or race.  Consistency was key, slack off a few
weeks and everyone would be dropping you behind.  Also, you always ride
faster and harder in a group.

Another thing I learned was to vary the terrain you work out on.  Up in
Madison, we were surrounded by hills, and for really hard days we would
seek out the steepest and longest.  I think riding hills almost every day for
five years has helped me get to where I am now.  If I didn't live in the
flatlands of Illinois now, I might even be faster 8^).

After graduating I discovered the pain and pleasure of multisport events
and have had to change the way I train.  No more riding every day and putting
in 400 mile weeks 8^(.  Now it's one of balance.  I try to make do with
four rides a week, any less and I don't get the types of workouts in I
want (1 day long, 1 day hard group ride, 1 day intervals, 1 day spin easy).
I've been getting away with 100-150 miles/per week during racing season and
my bike splits are still getting faster.

I try to split up the season.  Winter (December - mid-February) is for recovery
and fun.  I ride when I can and the weather permits and do some turbo
training sessions.  I don't worry about mileage at all, just try to get 2-3
rides in per week.

Spring (mid-February - May) is the time to rebuild my base and turn up the
intensity.  I start with longer weekend rides and some hard interval sessions,
usually on my turbo trainer if the weather is cold.  Some days I'll do
timed intervals (e.g. 15x 1:00 hard, 1:00 easy), other days I'll use my heart
rate monitor (e.g. 10x hard until HR=170, easy until HR=140).  I'll get in
group rides now if possible.

Summer (June - August) is the time to race lots and attempt to reach a peak.
Until this year I trained too hard in the Spring and peaked in May.  (Sounds
early, but by June I usually had 4000 miles in.  Last year I won 3 out of the
4 road races I entered before Mother's Day.)  This year I backed off hoping to
peak in August when all my big races were.  The problem was I backed off too
much.  I think the key is consistency.  I'm going back to my college program
and setting aside certain days of the week for certain types of training.  I've
been doing this for the past few weeks and I can already tell the difference.
So, don't be haphazard about your riding.  If your races are usually on Sunday,
either race or do a hard ride on Sundays, Monday rest or ride easy,
Tuesday do intervals, ect.  You don't have to do the same exact workout
every week, but do similiar things.  I thinks this carries over to swimming
and running, too.

Fall (September - November) is my favorite time of the year for riding.  I
can just go out and do long rides, enjoy myself, and not worry about speed
or my next race.  I try to do a few centuries and a lot of LSD - long, steady
distance 8^).  Think of the fall as a time you can put a lot of miles in the
bank for next year.  Ride hard when you feel like it but take time to enjoy
the scenery.

I've been riding a few years (over 10) now, and feel like I get stronger
every year.  This year I improved my 40K P.R. by 1.5 minutes, and this year 
the 40K was in a triathlon in May (yes, the course was accurate).
It may be all the running, though, as when I'm riding I can never acheive
the pain I do while running and so it's easier to push hard on the bike.

For some specific workouts, I recommend the following:

1) HILLS!!!  Seek them out, ride them hard, don't stop until you get _over_
the top.  I think hills about a mile or two long work best.  Climbing a
mountain just becomes a time trial, and hills shorter than a mile are over
before you acheive the real quad burn.  No hills in your area, ride
hard into the wind or do a two-minute sprint.

2) SPIN!!!  Ride easy in a small gear (42x17).  Stay in that gear your whole
ride, even if you have a big tailwind.  You'll work on your leg speed and
won't fatigue your muscles, just your heart.  Try some small gear intervals.
In the spring, while I'm working on my base miles, I'll throw in a few intervals
in a small gear (42x16).  Just spin as fast as you can until you start to
rock in the saddle and then keep going for a few minutes.  I can easily
go anaerobic doing this, but keep from injuring my knees because I'm not
pushing too big a gear.

3) GROUP RIDES!!!  Find a group ride to do, preferably one you can keep up
with but one that makes you work and feel tired at the end.  I ride with
some local USCF talent on the weekend and usually have a few moments where
I'm hanging on for dear life.  A few rides like that and I'm whipped into
shape.

Good luck and happy riding.  Now, I just need a way to squeeze 10 years of
swimming into 3 months...

Todd Jensen            X  X             o
AT&T Bell Labs        ___^o_    __o    <|\   Why swim?  It's duathlon season!
(708) 979-1254          XX    _ \<_     \
tjensen@ihlpe.att.com  X  X  (_)/(_)    /
Newsgroups: rec.sport.triathlon