Mountain Biking - A Fat Guys Blues

So, I'm out for my Friday night ride, (Long Island, NY) and I come up on this guy with his back wheel off and cursing and all. He's got a flat and doesnt have levers. So I stop, being a nice guy, and give him some levers and my pump to use......WELL, 30 minutes later the guys done and askes if I want to ride with him.....well, yeah I do, cause you just killed my ride. So He offers me the lead, but I know I'm a clydesdale (275) so I let him lead. He then proceded to take off like lightning.......stopping to wait for me enery 1/2 mile or so. Finally at one of his stops, he says "I dont want to be rude, but I have to go ahead....." I understand of course, I'd rather ride by myself and he takes off again.

Towards the end of the ride, I find Mr fast pants again cursing at his bike over a broken spoke....again chews my ear off, and then takes off. My chain sucked right at the end of the ride, and Bigshot was in his car pulling away (I could see him through the trees).

So I ask, why am I so damm slow...Is it my stamina, maybe my choice of gears(I'm staying in the middle ring the whole time)? Besides riding, duh, are there any good ways to get faster? should i do sprints or something on an easy section of trail......Please Help???

So I ask, why am I so damm slow...Is it my stamina, maybe my choice of gears(I'm staying in the middle ring the whole time)? Besides riding, duh, are there any good ways to get faster? should i do sprints or something on an easy section of trail......Please Help???
The only thing you can do is ride more and push your self a little harder each time. Take a consistent approach rather than concentrating on short sprint bursts. Like I said the only way to last longer at something is to do it more often. Also ask your Doctor. He may be able to reccomend a program of diet and exercise that will help your stamina as well

Are you an in-shape 275 or just a fat 275? There is a BIG differance. If most of your weight is fat then do what Raiyn suggested. Ride at a higher pace and push your self to go a little farther at that pace each time you are out and try to ride more often. As your weight drops your speed will increase as well as your indurance.

As far as consulting your Dr. for a diet, I would say unless you have health problems, other then your weight issue, then try and find a good registered nutritionalist that works with athleates. They will/should be able to get you on a proper meal plan that will help you to loose the weight as well as give you the energy you need for your rides/workouts. Plus what they will give you is a meal plan rather then a diet. By this I mean, it will be a way of eating the rest of your life and not just a quick fix for weight loss.

:beer:

I found this difficult as well, i know for a fact i have good stamina but it seems like on the bicycle i would wear myself out. I shifted to a lower gear and got a higher cadence- that is the key. I think i average 70-80rpm now, because of this higher cadence and a little lower gearing i am able to go much farther than i ever thought and it improves my speed too. So you want to keep the same general cadence all throughout, adjust your gearing to the terrain so you try and keep the same cadence. You might even try riding for 10-15 miles on the road and just practice keeping that cadence steady

I'm 6 foot, 185 pounds. I'm rather skinny at that. I can ride for 10 miles without stopping, however if I sprint and try to get a nice jolt going, about 20 feet later I just downright NEED to stop. So you wonder, how can someone that dies after a 20 foot solid sprint be able to do 10 miles without stopping? You just need to pace yourself, and take advantage of downhill slides.

Just about anyone can "putt-putt" along letting the bicycle (gears) do all the work. However, when you're in a all-out sprint, it's you doing all the work thus revealing how good a shape "you" are really in....

Mileage alone doesn't say much about your endurance. If it takes someone 10 hrs. to ride 20 miles, what does that prove?

If you ride that same 20 miles in 2 hrs., then you might be impressive....

Many people I see riding are simple out there "cruising", which is great if that's what you want. Those same people stop at the top of every little incline to rest & drink. Just don't be surprised when you get passed by a rider that's actually in better shape than you are....

Sorry to piss anyone off, but that's the truth & sometimes it hurts....