Holy Catfish! It’s SPRING!

Getting Strong and Building Endurance

Last week we teased this.  Most cyclists are looking for the following three things:

1)   Speed

2)   Climbing ability

3)   Endurance

(A close fourth would be the desire to lose weight.)

We’re going to focus on that third one, Endurance.  Without the necessary endurance, all the rest is just about pointless.  So how does one build endurance for cycling?  The answer is through a calculated and carefully applied program of higher intensity cardio-vascular work.

Before we go on, there are several cautions that need to be addressed.

1)   Before beginning any program of increased physical stress, consult your doctor!  Be sure that you are cleared to undertake high effort exertions.

2)   Understand that the high effort exercise entails some risk.  Always work with a partner.

3)   Know the following:  Intensity work is like a powerful drug.  It is best taken in small doses and in extreme moderation.

4)   Start where you are.  Work gradually up to higher effort levels, allowing your body to adapt.

5)   Plan to increase resting time to compensate for increased fatigue.

One of the many counter-intuitive aspects of cycling is the relationship between cardio-vascular intensity, and performance.  Intensity intervals are used to build strength and stamina.  (We will discuss speed work in the future.)

How does one go about this kind of training?

To begin with, the basic tools are a heart rate monitor, and a watch.  (It is best if the watch has a stop-watch function, but this is not absolutely necessary)

There are several ways to ride the bike and get an interval workout.  A stationary trainer is a superb instrument for this kind of work, but it has the drawback of being indoors, and being somewhat boring.  Higher efforts can be sustained by using higher gears and simply riding faster, but this has sever drawbacks.  Speed is harder to control, and room is difficult to come by.  That leaves Hill Intervals.

Work on hills is possibly one of the best methods of interval training.  The speed is lower, and it is quite possible to find a hill that is three, to five minutes “long.”  Scout your regular ride routes for such opportune terrain.

Doing Hill Repeats:

Once you’ve located a suitable hill.  Pick one day a week for the first three to four weeks.  Use your ride to the hill as a warm up.  Then, start climbing the thing.  Keep your heart rate in the lower middle aerobic zones.  (Deep breathing, but not distressed.)  Ride the hill in this fashion for about four to five minutes, and turn around and coast down.  Now Climb again, this time raising your heart rate and breathing rate to a high-mid zone.  (Conversation is still possible, but difficult, breathing begins to be labored.)  Hold this rate for two to three minutes, then turn around, coast down and recover riding gently for two minues.

Repeat this exercise two more times, then warm ride back home, using the return trip as a warm down.

After doing this once a week for four weeks, add a second hill repeat day, and add one more interval to the program.  This last interval is a very hard effort for one minute, followed by a recovery.  Repeat this program for another four weeks.

Be sure to allow more rest time during these weeks.

This will develop a lot of stamina, the ability to go longer without fatigue.

Next week:  Developing Speed