Southern California - Training for the road

Alright so I'm a noob. Sue me.

I want to get stronger and faster-who doesn't? This morning I took a relatively short ride up a relatively big, steep hill. It totally beat the crap out of me and I went home feeling like I got a good workout.

Is this a good idea? If I take a crack at this hill say, 3 times a week will it help me significantly-or should I be doing different kinds of rides?

I am mostly concerned with getting ready for the i.e. bf ride-its no century, but I wanna get in the best shape I can. It is next Saturday (the 4th) so time is a factor.

Please try to avoid smugness as I will hunt you down and kill you if I feel offended.

I'm kidding, of course.

a relatively short ride up a relatively big, steep hill. It totally beat the crap out of me

Pretty lame. Might want to do it 5-10 times before you go home.


And there is no point training for a ride 1 week in advance. Not going to make a difference.

Might want to consider staying home.

Hill repeats and intervals are the best ways to get faster and build up those leg muscles. Its good to switch it up though to flatter routes on recovery/mellow rides. Flatter rides will work your shoulders and neck more at the beginning because of the body position on the bike. And can also leave the hands sore as well. This is all normal stuff, I went through it on my first few rides.

Pending on how many days a week you plan on riding, 3 days of hills might be hard but if your riding 5 days a week, 3 of those should be fine for building a good base, w/ the other two on the MTB for mellow rides or on the roadie w/ mellow hills and getting good milage in. Don't be worried about miles on the bike, just concentrate on time in the saddle.

Riding hills is a great way to get stronger. You should try doing repeats on the hill. Ride up hard, recover on the way down and repeat. Start off just doing 2 or 3 repeats and work your way up. Not only will you get stronger, but you will train your body to recover quickly from hard efforts. It's best to use a climb that takes around 10 minutes or so, Newport Coast Drive is a popular repeat hill, along with Vista Ridge and Ridge Park up at the top. You're not going to get stronger by the 4th, in fact if you start pushing it hard now, you'll probably do more harm than good, as it takes your body a couple of weeks to fully recover from hard work outs. I'm not saying don't do them, just don't expect results by the 4th. If you start doing hill repeat/intervals, only do them once or twice a week and get a good recovery inbetween, otherwise you're going to trash yourself. Good luck...:)

Pretty lame. Might want to do it 5-10 times before you go home.


And there is no point training for a ride 1 week in advance. Not going to make a difference.

Might want to consider staying home.


I am already in pretty decent shape and the ride involved more than just the one hill. The big hill was the main attraction though. When I say short I mean 1 hour and when I say big I mean 1/4 mile of 10% grade.

Thanks for being smug...

no need to explain to him....he's prolly just tolling....

Hill days are fun, best way to challenge the rides.

One day a week tackle that hill. Ride it three times the first week, four the next, five the week after that. One day a week do a long slow distance (lsd) ride -- 40-50mi, and more or less not breaking a sweat. The mantra that stuck in my head this summer (and worked) was "When going hard, go HARD. When going slow, go SLOW." --meaning you have to stretch your envelope on both ends to get faster and stronger (and more endourance).

You need (and shouldn't) do intevals on that hill more than once a week.

(oh, and junior_in_train is right -- you're not going to change your fitness much in a week, sorry)

i guess i should rephrase this then. what is the best thing i can do to do the most i can to be as ready as i can for the 4th? i am going-that is not a question. i'm not worried about whether i can 'make' it or not-i will complete the ride. i just want to do the best i can.

take this week as a taper week. A couple slow short rides, but NO hard efforts. Enjoy the ride!

i guess i should rephrase this then. what is the best thing i can do to do the most i can to be as ready as i can for the 4th. i am going-that is not a question. i'm not worried about whether i can 'make' it or not-i will complete the ride. i just want to do the best i can.
Eat good and rest good, and ride easy the week leading up to your ride. There's not much else you can do at this point.

would it be safe then to hit the hill tomorrow and maybe saturday and then taper?

Listen to OC Roadie. Not much to do about the 4th. It's too close for any meaningful training. Just relax and enjoy the group ride. For the long term, climbing hills is excellent training.

[EDIT] Feel free to keep training in the meantime at least until middle of next week if you so choose. Just don't expect much change by next weekend. And whatever you do, have fun. :)

Hill days are fun


... I knew there was something wrong with you... ;)

for one week turn....

I'd prolly do something along these lines (using 20 as a number)
Day 1 20 miles 10/26
Day 2 20 Miles 10/27
DAy 3 rest- No riding 10/28
Day 4 25 miles 10/29
Day 5 20 miles 10/30
Day 6 Rest- no riding 10/31
Day 7 30 miles 11/1
Day 8 25 miles 11/2
Day 9 Rest 11/3
Event Day 11/4

would it be safe then to hit the hill tomorrow and maybe saturday and then taper?
That should be fine, just don't push things too hard after this weekend. What ride are you doing? Solvang Metric? Don't worry about how you'll do, it's so nice out there, the miles will just fly by. Everyone will probably be hyping about the "Wall", it's nothing, you'll be over it in a few minutes.

I think he's doing the IE group ride

I think he's doing the IE group ride
couldn't pass it up-the start point is right down the street from my house. wish i was going to solvang though. I hear it is indeed beautiful up there.

btw-thanks you guys. i know a little about fitness but have never really looked into cycling specific training.

Just take it easy this week, follow the plan jsigone listed above. If the first ride works you, then just do 15 miles each day. Be sure not to over do it.

Pretty lame. Might want to do it 5-10 times before you go home.


And there is no point training for a ride 1 week in advance. Not going to make a difference.

Might want to consider staying home.


either you're joking or you're just a troll. i thought we didn't have those here.

either you're joking or you're just a troll. i thought we didn't have those here.
i have to admit that pissed me off just a little.

i have to admit that pissed me off just a little.


i wonder if he talks like that to his mom.

i have to admit that pissed me off just a little.
Heck that even pissed me off! Bikers don't tell biking buddies nasty things. As for Junior in train, you might not want to offend people with more power than you :D.

Pretty lame. Might want to do it 5-10 times before you go home.
Might want to consider staying home.

Wanna join me and my buddy in the san gabriels tomorrow for 3-4 hours of climbing? If u wanna talk ish you better back it up... :mad: Or you could consider staying home... :)

Don't worry about that guy. As acknowledged here (http://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.php?p=3167943&postcount=13657)...


And I don't come off as an arrogant prick. I am an arrogant prick.

Just ignore him.

oh, he's just another R600DuraAce.

Intervals, as many as you can handle..

How long / steep is this hill??

Alright so I'm a noob. Sue me.

I am mostly concerned with getting ready for the i.e. bf ride-its no century, but I wanna get in the best shape I can. It is next Saturday (the 4th) so time is a factor.

Please try to avoid smugness as I will hunt you down and kill you if I feel offended.

Hey, Oleanshoebox (what's your name, by the way?). I'm glad you're joining on the Solvang Prelude, and you have nothing to worry about. It really is a great ride for any level and you just have to go at your pace and enjoy the scenery! I personally can't wait, as it is one of my favorites even though it's short in miles. :) Oh, and why would anyone want to sue you for being a noobe? We all were at one time ourselves. :rolleyes:

Hey, Oleanshoebox (what's your name, by the way?). I'm glad you're joining on the Solvang Prelude, and you have nothing to worry about. It really is a great ride for any level and you just have to go at your pace and enjoy the scenery! I personally can't wait, as it is one of my favorites even though it's short in miles. :) Oh, and why would anyone want to sue you for being a noobe? We all were at one time ourselves. :rolleyes:
My name is Billy-and I wish I were going to Solvang. I'm doing the Inland Empire ride around Riverside on the same day as the Solvang Prelude-which should be cool-I'm not too sad about it. The start point is conveniently close to my house, too. Thanks a lot for the words of encouragement-and hopefully I'll see you at a ride soon. I'm down as a maybe for the post-holiday bloat ride on Dec 30th and might try to do the burrito century, too.

Intervals, as many as you can handle..

How long / steep is this hill??
I haven't measured it-but it is quite long-maybe about a mile-and starts very gently but is at least 10% when you get near the top. Isitis would know it-it is Grammercy Street here in Riverside.