How much riding do you do before a century?

[Porter20]

I am curious how much resting vs riding people do 1 day, 3 days, or a week before riding a century or further distances? I rode 30 miles kind of hard yesterday and then today decided to ride 70 miles and absolutely hit the wall at about 45 mile mark. I pushed myself through the rest of the route (and am hurting now) but it got me thinking on some of my longer rides planned this summer, what should my pre race week riding schedule be?

[Godwin]

I ride the few kms to work and back every day like it's a TT then really back off in comparison for longer rides. In the on season I usually get out for long rides every week to two weeks and centuries are much easier then but otherwise I'm just riding to work.

[mattm]

my training for the local double-century last year:

(8 months before, start doing 50-70 mile rides every weekend until the "big day")
1 week before: do 125 miles, solo (not fast, probably 14-16 mph avg)
3 days before: 32-mile commute (a few days a week)
1 day before: rest, maybe do a bus-bike commute of 3-5 miles instead of the full one. eat lots. well i eat lots anyway i guess.

building up to my first century (on a fixed gear, no less) i did a bunch of 50 mile rides, then some 75 milers, then 101. usually separated by a week.

it sounds like you maybe should have rested a day before doing the 75-miler, but i wouldn't feel too bad about it. since you actually finished the ride i'd say you've got a good future in long-distance cycling!

this might help too: http://www.cascade.org/EandR/stp/stp_mileage.cfm (scroll down)

[bobbycorno]

For me, the week before any big ride is all short, easy stuff - enough to keep the legs loose and the lungs working, but no more than that. No point in showing up at the start feeling wasted, and if I'm not in shape by then, a week's training isn't going to make any difference.

Scott P
Bend, OR

[Machka]

It depends for me ... sometimes I do lots of riding before a century (like another century or two or three), and sometimes I don't do any riding for a while before a century ..... but then I've done over 125 centuries or longer rides so I have an idea of what to expect.

For you, I'd recommend gradually building up your distances in general, and in the week before the century you might want to taper off a little bit.

[Bacciagalupe]

You should increase your weekly mileage no more than 10% per week, mostly to avoid overuse injuries.

Typically, you will want to taper before your century. E.g. the weekend before you're probably going to do a 70-mile ride, then some shorter rides during the week, and take 1-2 rest days before the big event. Among other things, this ensures you're recovered and have lots of blood glycogen before the century.

[supcom]

It depends for me ... sometimes I do lots of riding before a century (like another century or two or three), and sometimes I don't do any riding for a while before a century ..... but then I've done over 125 centuries or longer rides so I have an idea of what to expect.

You know you're a randonneur when you catch yourself thinking, "Only one more century to the finish."

[Machka]

You know you're a randonneur when you catch yourself thinking, "Only one more century to the finish."


Exactly! :D

I have a small celebration when I hit the 1 century mark on a ride ... and small celebration when I hit the 1 century to go mark on a ride. :)

[znomit]

what should my pre race week riding schedule be?

Are you racing or just riding?
If you are just riding it doesn't matter too much. My first century was after a month mostly off the bike (I think I got 20km in 2 days before and I hired a bike in china for an afternoon somewhere in there).
My last century had another each side of it(had to ride there and back, 170km).

[sch]

Muscle glycogen stores are depleted in 45-60mi so if you don't begin to eat something
on a next day ride at the 20-30mi mark your legs are going to go flat. You can train to
the point where you can restore muscle glycogen in 24 hrs to full levels and to where
you can metabolize fat and protein more efficiently which is where a good bit of the
energy is going to come from on rides of 100+mi. Attention to hydration is equally
important.

[Richard Cranium]

I am curious how much resting vs riding people do 1 day, 3 days, or a week before riding a century or further distances? I rode 30 miles kind of hard yesterday and then today decided to ride 70 miles and absolutely hit the wall at about 45 mile mark. I don't think you'll learn much from other people about your own need for rest before a Century.

Face it, the whole point of riding long distances is to discover your own strengths and weaknesses. The kind of info you want is really only available to "ride partners" who share similar life styles, train together and attend identical rides.

For those people, they can genuinely rely on each other as to how "hard" or how "easy" a ride is and whether or not they should or shouldn't be hitting the wall.......

With out a partner to measure yourself against, you'll have to learn your strengths and needs as you gain experience -by yourself.