Earlier, I asked for input about what a beginner in their 30's can expect and I appreciate all the helpful information/ideas etc that were provided.

I got a basic computer and for the past week or so I've been getting out roughly every other day and going around 20-30km, averaging around 24km/hr on extremely flat terrain with little to no wind. I've noticed that I'm starting to be able to go longer with slightly higher average speeds and have been feeling good about the improvement.

Today though, I thought I'd try going up a very slight hill. According to Strava, the section of the hill that I stuck to was around 1-8% grade (average around 5%) for 750 meters. I stuck a cadence of around 90 and by the end of that 750 meters, my legs felt like they were going to explode and no matter how much I willed myself, I just couldn't go further.

I know I'm just a beginner, but that still seems really pathetic to me. Does my poor performance on hills mean that I have poor lactic threshold or overall endurance or what? Is it normal for beginners to suck so bad on "easy" hills when they start or do I have extra bad ability on hills? I know that at this stage I shouldn't be focusing too much on specifics and should just be riding more, but I feel like hills really just destroy me so quickly, i can't imagine how I could go on a group ride or anything like that where there are even easy hills.

Also, there was a strong wind on my ride today for the first time and I noticed a massive difference when riding into the wind. I know it's obviously harder to ride into the wind, but it just felt SO much harder... like i had to really really push/pull my pedals and my legs were burning even at a high cadence at a slower speed (around 18km/hr). Will being on a road bike instead of a mountain bike help a lot with this or is it just a slight improvement?

Thanks again for any insight that you can all provide.

Your biggest fight on a bike is against your own body aerodynamically. Goign into a headwind into a mountain bike is going to be much harder than a road bike in the drops.

For hills it kills people quickly if they don't train for climbing. If you do hill repeats you will be shocked how much easier they become. Many riders down here never get to ride hills and they are strong riders but blow up when they travel to a hilly area outside the state. Also if you are even slightly overweight it will kill you on hills effort wise. You have to burn much more energy than the 140lbs stick you might ride with.

5% grade isn't that easy for a beginner. It sounds like you are progressing well. I didn't start road cycling until I was 31 and was on the same path as you are now. Climbs and wind are tough. Riding them more often will make you better. I also just recently switched from a standard triple crankset to a compact double. The compact crankset really helps me in the climbs and I also opted for a longer crankarm which gives me more power in those climbs. Just keep riding and it will get a little easier.

Just how fast were you trying to go up that hill? Cadence of 90 really doesn't mean anything in and of itself.

I'm not sure it's best to try to maintain a high cadence going up a hill. 5% grades kill me too over anything more than very short distances; I'm still bad at hills. It would make more sense to me to slow your cadence and either stay in the saddle or stand up (or alternate between sitting and standing) as you're ascending. I could be wrong, but it helps me.

How does the old saying go? "It doesn't get easier, you just go faster" or something like that...

Thanks for the encouragement AdamSean... good to know that 5% is a struggle for most beginners.
Svtmike, I'm not sure how fast I was going up the hill. I should have checked, I only glanced down quickly a couple of times to check my cadence because I've read that it's good to try to keep pedaling around 90 rpm. I know what gear i was in though, if that helps. I just ran and counted the teeth. Assuming I counted them correctly (it was hard to see in some spots), i was in a 34 tooth front chain ring and an 18 tooth rear "gear?". I'm not sure what speed that translates to though.. guessing maybe 18-20km/h?

As a beginner, you shouldn't even look at speed on hills and into the wind. Rather, look at your distance. As long as your distance is getting longer, you're improving.

The biggest learning is to stay within yourself. That requires figuring out what your limits feel like. When you feel like you're blowing up, back off a bit and keep going. As you continue to practice hills, especially as a beginner, your power will improve and you'll get faster but it won't get easier if you keep pushing yourself to your threshold.

Take your 24km/h speed and run it with default values through https://www.analyticcycling.com/ForcesPower_Page.html

At 0% grade, you need 65W of power to maintain 24km/h.
At 5% grade, you need 310W of power to maintain 24km/h.

I ride mostly flats myself, which means most "hills" in my area are of the 3%-4% grade at most but can be fairly long. This year I am taking on the Wisconsin Triple Crown, which has hills of a length and steepness that I simply can't find without traveling -- sustained grades of > 10% that go on for a couple of miles. The way I get up those hills -- know my threshold power, and stay within it. A power meter helps me tremendously but it's not a necessity. The suggestion of keeping a lower cadence is a good one -- you can typically sustain a slightly higher power at a lower cadence in a climb (some trainers/coaches distinguish between aerobic threshold and climbing threshold power).

Wind and hills are both going to make it significantly harder to ride. 5% for 750 meters is no small hill for a beginning cyclist, though I can guarantee that if you include that hill in your regular route, you'll be shocked how much you can improve on it in just a month or so. A strong headwind is going to paralyze just about any rider, it sounds to me like you are doing fine. Keep at it.

You're going to be weak as a beginner. It's okay. Just keep riding, don't complicate things with comparisons to random internet bike dorks.

That's right. It's OK to suffer. Everyone suffers. Don't worry about trying to maintain a certain cadence. No need to make it unnecessarily complicated in the beginning. Keep at it and it'll get easier.

It will get easier .... and faster too.

It never gets any easier, you only go faster.

Hills uncover your true ability. It's one thing to feel like the man on a mild downhill going 22mph and it's another thing to climb grades of 10+% on your own power.

5% grades are actually tough for most beginners, so don't despair. It'll be also slightly harder if you're not on a light road bike.

It gets better you jst have to work at it.

Thanks everyone for the encouragement and for letting me know that it's normal for beginners to find even slight hills difficult when starting. I'll try the lower cadence in an easier gear method and practice more hills, more regularly. Thanks again.

Depending on how fast you are going, any hill can be hard for any level of rider. When you see the top pros going at it mano a mano on a finishing climb, they are turning themselves inside out. Get used to it if you want to go fast.

Btw, you live in a great part of Ontario for riding. Check out Sydenham rd in Dundas, and stop in at Café Domestique.

It does get easier, if you don't go faster. That takes a bit of self-discipline though.

Keep hitting that hill. Every day, in every way, you're getting better and better.

Fixed for accuracy.

This is not a troll attempt.. I really don't understand it and I know its because I'm missing something. How do you benefit from a compact double other than a little weight savings? Triple usually: 53 or 52-39-30 and compact double: 50-34?
I can see with smaller cogs on the rear a 50 is fine vs. a 52 or 53, but doesn't a 30 vs. a 34 give you a little more "stump pullin" power on a climb and the 39 give you some fine tuning ability?

-Tom

In my first century, I didn't mind only going up a 7% grade at 6 mph. As I am entering my second here in about a week, I am focusing more on the hills as I know I can ride 100 miles. I want to improve my hills which will mean I can finish faster. Its hard to plan a hill before you actually get to it, but I try to maintain a higher cadence of 95 - 105 RPM if its a short hill. If its a lengthy one than I settle in a small gear and turn the cranks as slow as 75 RPM. It also depends how much I have in the gas tank. My goal is to charge uphill no less than 10 mph, but it does get slower. As in all endurance sports, focus on distance and speed will come up naturally.

If you really want to get fast though, hill repeats are a good way to do. Do 4 - 6 repeats, one or two times a week and you will see the benefits soon enough. And don't forget to just keep spinning.

You guys realize that based on what he was saying he was going at 13mph+ on 5% grade for half a mile?
I am actually impressed! Somewhere between 300-360W for 2.5 minutes. Not too shabby I think.

this.

dont think about 'lactate threshold' or anything else right now. Just ride as much as possible.

Really Bored117? Thanks!

I don't know if it's that good though. I'm guessing at the 5% grade. The beginning of the hill is pretty mild at around 1% and gradually increases in pitch towards the 8-10% range where my legs give out. If you or anyone else is interested, here is the hill on Strava. https://app.strava.com/segments/719471

The part that I'm talking about is from the start until about the 0.45 mile mark. The hill continues but my legs (and lungs, but to a lesser extent) could not.

edited to add: the 90 rpm was for the first 3/4 or so. By the last hundred meters or so, I was probably round 80rpm, but I wasn't thinking enough to look down and check my cadence by that time.