Since January 4th I have been doing 1 hour Monday through Friday keeping my HR at 150 bpm-160bpm. My plan was to do this for 5 weeks straight to get in 25 hours of base.

Is only an hour a day even useful for base training. If so, is 25 hours enough or should I really be digging deeper?

I live in Boston and work M-F getting home as it gets dark. I'm on my collegiate squad so I am preparing for races to begin March 4th.

what about sat and sun?

what is basis for 150 bpm to 160 bpm?

what is basis for 25 hrs.?

what is basis for 5 weeks?

imo, if you only have 1 hrs/day to train and only can do it 5x/week, do it as hard as you can go for an hr.

150-160 bpm was a suggested HR for base training with a max HR of 205.

I do an hour a day 5 days a week because I can only stand being on the roller for an hour at a time. Sat-Sun are devoted to skiing and enjoying college life.

I figure that my base pace on the actual road would be between 17-18 mph which correlates to around 400-450 miles of base if done for 25 hours.

um, the OP is about BASE TRAINING, going as hard as yu can, ie tempo, sub-theshold workouts negate the positive aerobic effects taht base training have, this is the whole point of base traing.

to the origional postet, if thats all the time you have then thats all the trainig you can get in, period. base training should progress at a fixed intensity, increasing legth as you go in three week intervals with the fourth being a reconvery week. do that for as many months as you need, 3,4 ,5 whatever

I am very new to all of this (training to race, not riding in general), so I can't answer most of your questions, and take what I have to say with a grain of salt, but it looks to me like you could benefit from a little more variety in your training plan rather than just doing the same thing day after day. Even if you're at an overall low intensity right now some days should still be easier than others. This might help with the boredom factor too (I'm stuck on rollers most of the time so I feel your pain).

I'd also suggest picking up some of the Spinervals DVDs to help with the boredom. I got the 'Aero Base Builder' series for Christmas, and they really seem to help the time pass quickly and keep me focused. Mostly I'm focused on wondering why they are having a spin class in a museum or whatever weird space they're in, but it's working well so far.

Also, where did you get that MHR number from? My understanding is that LTHR is a much better way to set your HR training zones, so you might want to look into that.

Here is the Cliff Notes version:

Conventional base training requires 15 to 25 hours per week on the bike. If you can't do that, then ride hard but not so hard that you cannot ride the next day. Lather, rinse, repeat.

The former is better off-season training, but to tell you why is a whole 'nother thread.

if you're serious enough about improving to ask the question regarding base, I would suggest waking up early on the weekends and doing 4-5 hour rides and enjoying the college life from noon on. most college festivities don't occur during the am hours anyway...Ze mentioned in a previous thread about the benefits incurred 4+ hours into a ride that can't be obtained during shorter efforts. one hour per day/5 days per week at continuous lower HR doesn't seem like "base" training as much as it does recreational riding to stay healthy.

Good luck with that. You're just asking to get dropped.

If you were actually serious about getting in shape to race, you'd get set up so you can ride at night or early morning, and you'd ride on the weekends. But since you're not, no answer is really going to help you.

15-25 hours a week isn't possible for everyone, but it sounds like you have more free time than many of us.

Riding > Not Riding

However, understand that you are more likely to be doing "transition" than base - that is, preparing your muscles, tendons, ligaments etc for the real work.

I know what limited time is. Rollers are also an excellent way to develop both skills and mental toughness. However, if you only hit that HR zone, you will have next to no real training and you will be spit out of the pack faster than lightning can strike. You are going to need to get tempo time, you are going to need some shorter intervals, and you are going to need some natural talent.

I am not saying that you should start intense intervals now, but you really need to be prepared to work SOME stuff in over the weeks.

i dont think you know what you think you know.

while riding > not riding, doing 5 hrs./week in Z2 is not very likely to prepare someone for the demands of recovering from introducing intensity in training, nor will it prepare one for the demands of racing a bicycle. if the OP has just 5 hrs./week, he should be doing them in a structured fashion, focusing on threshold development, not riding along at an all day pace.

Yes the OP is asking about base, but what the OP is asking about doing is not base. 5 x 1 hr/day easy is not base, it's just not much of anything.

OP,

either nut up and devote more time, or buy the time crunched cyclist, and be a bit more intense and structured with the time you're devoting.

Just riding around for an hour a day isn't getting you anywhere.

...

i did 3 hours base in the dark tonight no problem

Trust me. I devote 15-20 hours a week once there is sunlight and temperatures above 32 degrees F. I was very successful in both my past seasons. Going from Cat 5 to 3 in one season and being fairly successful in last season as a 3.

My issue is finding it tough to really motivate myself past an hour on the rollers every day for pre-season workouts while it is piss cold in the morning and at night (Like you all I'm busy working from 7-5). Thus it is dark and cold and I do not trust Boston and surrounding areas when the lights are down low.

My season starts March 6th with collegiate starting back up. Either way I bet the 4-5 weeks of hour rides M-F have been beneficial. I will most likely sack up Saturday morning and go for a 4 hour ride.

Thanks for the tip. This is the first time I am really starting this early. Past two years I've just hopped on the bike a week before our first race and got into shape as the season went along, focusing on USAC races.

Why do people ask questions and then come back and say they know better than the answers they get?

Never said I knew better than the answer I got. Actually took what Doc said and understood what I have been doing hasn't been base, but like he said has been more transition work. I plan to work in some more weekend rides starting this weekend. The saeson is longer than just collegiate, but also beyond.

Dont be so quick with your tongue.

oh yeha also it was 20 degrees this morning and 35 tonight

Then you are more devoted than I am at this time.

If the shoe fits...

Is it better for the mind to think that 5 weeks of any riding has been useless and were better spent watching tv and eating potato chips

or

Is it better for the mind to think that the short workouts have had their benefit and it is time to actually do some base building?

I choose the latter. I don't know about you umd but I guess I remain a bit more optimistic.

Of course short workouts are better than nothing but you seem to have ignored the advice from several people to go harder if you have limited time. I read your post as dismissive. If that wasn't the case then I'm sorry but that's how it seemed to me.

I don't understand this thread. Why did you make it?

I'm not even touching this one