Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Training & Nutrition
Reload this Page >

Base training minimum ride length?

Notices
Training & Nutrition Learn how to develop a training schedule that's good for you. What should you eat and drink on your ride? Learn everything you need to know about training and nutrition here.

Base training minimum ride length?

Old 11-11-15, 08:06 AM
  #1  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 142
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Base training minimum ride length?

A little info first. My primary rides are MWF 2.5+ hours (working my way up), sometimes I can ride long on weekends sometimes I can't. For the other days where I have time limitations I was wondering if rides are too short to be considered beneficial while riding zone 2? Would a Tues/Thurs 1 hour zone 2 ride be too short? I'm trying to decide if waking up early would be worth it, and if so how early . Should I do z3 or get up earlier and make the ride longer?

Also somewhat related question. Would 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour in the evening work? I know that everything helps, but I would rather spend my time on more efficient training even if that means having to wake up earlier.
lupy is offline  
Old 11-11-15, 08:28 AM
  #2  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Vancouver, BC
Posts: 9,201
Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1186 Post(s)
Liked 289 Times in 177 Posts
In general, more hours are better provided you're getting enough sleep. If you only have an hour you could do 2x20 sweet spot intervals. They aren't too stressful and can be done every day once you're used to them. If you're doing 7.5 hrs plus longer weekend rides you should probably rest on one of those days. Not much point in getting up at 4am to do a recovery ride.

Because I commute, most of my training is in the form of 60-65min rides every 12 hrs. I do very few rides over 2 hrs these days and it seems to work fairly well when I have to do longer 5hr rides. I just mix up the intensity of my commutes. I have a few short hills that I can go all out on for 30 Secs to 3min. I also have a section I can ride without interruption for 30 min which makes longer intervals possible.
gregf83 is offline  
Old 11-11-15, 09:11 AM
  #3  
Banned.
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Uncertain
Posts: 8,651
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 2 Posts
Like Greg, I commuted about an hour each way for years. I found that mixing up the intensity - mostly Z2, bit with the occasional tempo ride and threshold ride - worked well. I'd certainly regard two one-hour Z2 rides, one morning and one evening, to be useful.
chasm54 is offline  
Old 11-11-15, 12:54 PM
  #4  
just another gosling
 
Carbonfiberboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Everett, WA
Posts: 19,486

Bikes: CoMo Speedster 2003, Trek 5200, CAAD 9, Fred 2004

Mentioned: 115 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3866 Post(s)
Liked 1,911 Times in 1,362 Posts
I've found that anything helps, down to 30 minutes. Longer helps more, but hours per week is still what I go by. There's a balance somewhere. 10 X 1 hour is better than 1 X 10 hours for a weekly total. But 5 X 2 hours is probably better than 10 X 1 hour. So ride when you can, that's what's most important. Sometimes I'll get up a little early and just put in 1/2 hour on my rollers. That helps too. I try not to go more than 2 days without riding. Holding it to 1 day off is better even if all I can do is 1/2 hour.
__________________
Results matter
Carbonfiberboy is offline  
Old 11-11-15, 01:11 PM
  #5  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 142
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Thanks guys! Good input and motivation help. I remember reading something about more consistent riding is better than fewer long rides, but forgot about it.
lupy is offline  
Old 11-12-15, 06:16 PM
  #6  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 154
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Originally Posted by lupy
Thanks guys! Good input and motivation help. I remember reading something about more consistent riding is better than fewer long rides, but forgot about it.
Depends on what you're after. Doing mostly long, slow rides will make you good at doing long slow rides. It won't help much if want to do some type of racing whether road, off road or TT. You really need a least 2-3 days of much harder, higher intensity riding/training to make good gains.
kini62 is offline  
Old 11-12-15, 07:32 PM
  #7  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 142
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by kini62
Depends on what you're after. Doing mostly long, slow rides will make you good at doing long slow rides. It won't help much if want to do some type of racing whether road, off road or TT. You really need a least 2-3 days of much harder, higher intensity riding/training to make good gains.
Even during base training? I've noticed that I'm becoming better than I wanted at riding long and slow, but I'm doing it because its supposed to allow me to see greater gains when I do start adding in interval training. I'm really a newb on all of this so please school me if I'm wrong.
lupy is offline  
Old 11-12-15, 07:57 PM
  #8  
OMC
 
revchuck's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: South Louisiana
Posts: 6,960

Bikes: Specialized Allez Sprint, Look 585, Specialized Allez Comp Race

Mentioned: 199 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 461 Post(s)
Liked 116 Times in 49 Posts
What are your goals? Advice would be much different for training for a multi-week tour than for, say, racing crits.

It sounds like you're fairly new to cycling. If so, IMO the best idea is to ride when you can in Z2-3 over the winter. This would give you a base upon which to build your abilities at higher levels. As spring approaches, you can do intervals that target your specific goals.

I recommend you plan to take a day or two off the bike each week. This gives you a mental break and helps your body rebuild itself stronger.

Good luck!
__________________
Regards,
Chuck

Demain, on roule!
revchuck is offline  
Old 11-12-15, 08:09 PM
  #9  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 142
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by revchuck
What are your goals? Advice would be much different for training for a multi-week tour than for, say, racing crits.

It sounds like you're fairly new to cycling. If so, IMO the best idea is to ride when you can in Z2-3 over the winter. This would give you a base upon which to build your abilities at higher levels. As spring approaches, you can do intervals that target your specific goals.

I recommend you plan to take a day or two off the bike each week. This gives you a mental break and helps your body rebuild itself stronger.

Good luck!
I have about 3-4k miles on the bike so far, but that's primarily from tri training so spread out over 1.5 years. I just started focusing on cycling alone for about the past two months, and look forward to racing next season.
lupy is offline  
Old 11-12-15, 08:36 PM
  #10  
OMC
 
revchuck's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: South Louisiana
Posts: 6,960

Bikes: Specialized Allez Sprint, Look 585, Specialized Allez Comp Race

Mentioned: 199 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 461 Post(s)
Liked 116 Times in 49 Posts
Okay, what kind of racing are you planning on doing? Post-base training can vary based on the type of racing you want to do. I'd recommend doing some reading over the winter so you can plan your training year. The usual reference is The Cyclist's Training Bible by Joe Friel. My copy is on the bookshelf in front of me. Most racers have a copy - they may not use it, but they have it. Another useful book is Base Building for Cyclists by Thomas Chapple. One or both will get you started in the right direction.
__________________
Regards,
Chuck

Demain, on roule!
revchuck is offline  
Old 11-13-15, 07:47 PM
  #11  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 154
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Originally Posted by lupy
I have about 3-4k miles on the bike so far, but that's primarily from tri training so spread out over 1.5 years. I just started focusing on cycling alone for about the past two months, and look forward to racing next season.
Get TrainerRoad and use their 3 part plan for whatever it is you want to train for. There is no minimum mileage before actually training for a specific goal.
kini62 is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Flounce
Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling
23
08-26-17 07:36 AM
Cookiemonsta
Road Cycling
63
08-26-13 06:35 AM
TromboneAl
Fifty Plus (50+)
35
03-21-13 07:56 AM
laserfj
"The 33"-Road Bike Racing
13
01-11-13 07:04 PM
cchristanis
Training & Nutrition
6
08-04-11 06:54 PM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.