Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling - First century, not much distance training. Mistake?

So I'm a 32-year old male that has always liked riding a bicycle at least in principle, but have a perhaps irrational fear of overuse injuries. I'm neither exactly fit nor really sedentary. I'd been doing a 20-30 mile ride every 2-3 weeks. It always made my knees hurt, so I didn't do it any more often than that. The used MTB I've been riding for a few years was probably badly fit.

So a few weeks ago I finally bought a road bike in my size. The difference has been amazing.

Week 1: Commuted every day. Found a Saturday group ride. Could not keep up. Bailed. Limped home. 30 miles round trip. No leg pain, but I felt like a whipped puppy. Went out Sunday anyway for about the same distance as a solo ride. Still felt like a whipped puppy.

Week 2: Commuted every day. Found a slower group ride. Rode 40 miles. Felt fine. Went out for a solo ride on Sunday, 30 miles. Felt fine.

Week 3: Commuted less regularly due to rain. On Saturday rode 60 miles with same slower group ride. Felt like I had used my legs strenuously, but no discomfort.

Week 4 (present): Commuting every day. Legs still feeling it a little bit from Saturday. No pain.

My slower group ride is planning a century in two weeks. I want to do it, but am concerned about hurting myself. Is going on this ride categorically a mistake, or something I could go for and at worst be sore for a few days?

Hi PB Rider,

Those are good numbers. Try doing a 75 mile ride slowly next weekend. If you feel well when finished, you should get through a century event.

Michael

Sounds like you are fitted pretty well to your bike if you have done 60 miles on it already with no major pains, other than being tired from all the miles. I'd second Michael's advice, but even if you can't fit in a 75 mile ride, it sounds to me that if you take your time with adequate breaks and nutrition, you would be able to finish a century without any major troubles during the ride or after. Let us know what you decide.

If you can do 60, you can do 100. The only difference is: nutrition. First-time century riders are most likely to eat too little, and bonk late in the ride. So make sure you eat your gels, fig newtons, bananas, etc.

If you do a century 2 weeks from now, you may well end up with a minor overuse injury. But it's not like you will blow out your knees or do permanent harm.

Of at least equal importance is that you need to stay hydrated & keep eating during the ride. 500ml / hour and 250 calories/hour are good starting points.

Sounds like you have it made in the shade. Just pace yourself though the first 60 or so miles, don't do anything to radical. Then take it easy thru the next 20 miles. Maybe a bit of suffering on the last 20 and your finished! Two days rest and you'll be ready to go again. Being 32 years old puts you in a much better position then us older guys....

Sounds like you have it made in the shade. Just pace yourself though the first 60 or so miles, don't do anything to radical. Then take it easy thru the next 20 miles. Maybe a bit of suffering on the last 20 and your finished! Two days rest and you'll be ready to go again. Being 32 years old puts you in a much better position then us older guys....

+1

If you do the ride at a nice, relaxed pace you should not have any problems. The advice about eating is also important, as is taking in electrolytes if the weather is warm; plain water won't cut it for 100 miles.

I'd agree with others here. If you can ride 60 miles without too much trouble, then you're probably good for 100. However, with the schedule you described it looks like you're not giving yourself many rest days at all. I'd suggest giving yourself two days a week off the bike. You'll actually increase your fitness faster if you give yourself more rest and recovery time. Also make sure you take it easy the last few days before the century. It's not a time for cramming, it's a time for resting.

+1

If you do the ride at a nice, relaxed pace you should not have any problems. The advice about eating is also important, as is taking in electrolytes if the weather is warm; plain water won't cut it for 100 miles.

...but at many century rides, riding at a "nice, relaxed pace" ain't so easy, what with all the "fast kids", and everybody trying to show off how fit they are. Ride your own ride, and don't get sucked into riding over your head.

And don't forget to eat and drink. A lot. And not just at the rest stops - you won't be able to take in enough calories that way without risking some significant "digestive issues". If you're not comfortable eating "on the fly", stop every hour or so and have a couple hundred calores: an energy bar, some fruit, a pbj - just about anything works, as long as it's easy to digest. My own personal fave on really long rides is your basic mini-mart cheeseburger (no lettuce, tomatos, onions, etc: just meat, cheese and a bun). Some kind of energy drink instead of water in your bottle is a good idea too. That way you can keep the calories coming in, get the electrolytes you need and stay hydrated - all good things.

Anyway, enjoy your century, and let us know how it turns out.

SP
Bend, OR

I want to do it, but am concerned about hurting myself. Is going on this ride categorically a mistake, or something I could go for and at worst be sore for a few days? I don't know, I guess whatever you answer you want -you'll follow.

The only thing we know for sure - you have knee problems - and don't know how to seek professional advice with respect to exercise and joint health.

Richard,

I read that his badly fitted MTB caused the knee problems. He states that has ended since he began using a road bike.

Michael

The ride fell 2.5 miles short of a full century, so I still haven't done one.

It was a small, very social ride, and stopping to let the stragglers catch up was more important than actually completing the century. All stops included, the party averaged about 8 mi/hr. At the halfway point (it was a two-loop affair) two of the slower riders called it a half-century, but this didn't improve overall speed much. When 2.5 hours of the 11 hours of daylight we had to work with were left, it was obvious the ride was not going to make a century before dark, and we changed the route for a shorter way home.

At this point, one other rider and I who wanted to try for 100 miles took off at our pace, took the abbreviated way back, and then doubled back to catch the main party and rode back to our starting point a second time together. Google maps and the other guy's cyclocomputer agree that our total route was 97.5 miles.

I feel fine, and it was a good time.

Thanks all for the nutrition tips. I would have underpacked food without them. Hydration was important, electrolytes not so much. The day began with the fall's first frost, and by noon had turned into fall's first snow flurries. Even after the sky cleared to mostly sunny in the afternoon, sweat was not a limiting factor.

Congrats.

You did very well. Try a well orginized event next time. So much easier than what you did here.

Michael

I've found that distance anything has little to do with physical conditioning and everything to do with mental preparation. A rider who knows how to climb hills efficiently, use down hills to their fullest potential, and can maintain their own pace rather than bolting the first 30 miles to keep up with the peloton and then not having anything left. Distance is all about knowing yourself, and being honest about your abilities, and having an absolute ton of fun!