Originally Posted by
Carbonfiberboy
Good grief, folks. Try reading the guy's posts. Oxygen is transported by red blood cells. The OP has a lot fewer than normal and no iron to use to make any more. Climbing is totally dependent on oxygen transport. It's aerobic, right?
So sorry, but you'll never climb with this group. Isn't going to happen. All the work in the world won't make it happen. You can get better, sure, but so can they. I.e. you'll always get shelled. So, as it is said, find a slower group of friends. The other thing you can do is change sports: hike in the summer, Alpine ski in the winter. Neither of those are particularly dependent on aerobic ability, though you'll be altitude limited. The High Sierra won't be much fun.
Another thing you can do is forget the group ride thing and just go soloing: explore and have fun riding. That's what I did as a kid. Tremendous fun.
Although you are partially right he can probably get much better and it isn't always about beating others. I'm sure that catching with the B group isn't hard with some training and effort. He's been riding for a couple of months and should be approaching that B level by now. with 400 miles a month he is getting quite a bit of miles. Also I he could be able to take something for the anemic stuff and that should make it better
Originally Posted by
gsa103
Actually, I doubt hes ever going to have a good power to weight ratio. The biggest improvement he could possibly make is fixing the severely anemic part. Its like he's on anti-EPO.
Beyond that I suspect he's pushing too hard on the flats and out of gas in the hills. Aero drag is the worst for lightweight riders. You need to learn just how hard you can push before you pop, then make sure to stay under that on the flats and push when you hit a hill.
Kudos to him no? for being so loyal to the sport with his naturally anti EPO anatomy!
Originally Posted by
vasuvius
Hmm.. Interesting point about red blood cells. I'm severely anemic - very low red cell count and iron. It's genetic so nothing can be done.
I can easily keep my HR in the 160-180 range for over an hour, but likely not getting efficient oxygen delivery. The heart and lungs work well but the blood can't absorb enough oxygen to power the muscles? Resting HR is mid 40s so it's not a heart/lung conditioning issue I imagine.
This morning I was looking at one of the other guys computer and his HR was at 115 while I was at 157...we had just stopped at a traffic light..
I just need to keep working at it and I'll get there eventually.
You have the right attitude. The best way to be good at climbs is to do climbs. Ride solo. I am a lone wolf and have become a fairly strong rider by recreational rider standards. I, however, am a horrific group rider. You know what? who cares when I can ride front of the pack 3 bikes in front and if I wanna have a conversation I just drop to the back.... hahaha tooting my own horn here. (I'm not that of a doosh). See if you can do something about that anemic stuff, that should be your main concern. I am sure that, if you ride with a team, you are dealing with fairly strong riders. Don't feel crappy if they leave you in the dust. Most rides I've seen everybody is hammering most of the time. On the hills they overexert themselves. When going on hills, drop the hammer for real until you feel like you can't handle it anymore. After that, you can vomit, clean it with your jersey and HTFU. Keep going at it, you'll be dropping B roadies in no time
