Taking it Easy, with Training Tips for Non-Bicyclists

In my first posting to this blog I noted that I intended to take it easy on this trip, meandering across the country without concern for speed. I want to elaborate a little about what I mean by "taking it easy." This might be of some informational value to non-bicyclists.

First and foremost, my interest is on relaxing and enjoying the pleasures of sightseeing by bike. I don't want to get into the syndrome of rushing from day to day, from one destination to the next, without stopping to appreciate what's around me.

Second, I mean limiting the frequency of days on the bike. Most bicycling trainers advise to bicycle for no more than five or six days per week, because rest days are vital.

I plan to take a couple of days off each week, at least during the first couple of months (after that I might change to one rest day and one very light day). Depending on circumstances of overnight accommodations and supplies and how I am feeling, I intend to take one "rest day" every third or fourth day. (Note: I violated this rule of thumb slightly by biking for four days straight at the start of the trip, but at least the 4th day was very light work.)

Third, I mean limiting the duration of time spent bicycling each day. Virtually all the experts recommend increasing the weekly "saddle time" by no more than 10%-15% per week, and I want to stick close to the lower end of that range. During the first week (four days bicycling plus probably three days off) I spent about 12 hours bicyling, with the longest ride being about 4 3/4 hours. So my goal next week will be no more than 13 or 14 hours in total, with the longest day no more than about 5 1/2 hours. Being able to "restrain" myself is what I consider my biggest challenge, and what will most likely determine if I am able to complete this trip. Younger people (Mark C?)recover much more quickly from exercise, but I know that I need to be very careful not to overdue it or I'll get sick. But a mere 10%/week increase means doubling my time in 7 weeks, and so I should soon be at my goal of about 30 hours/week.

Note: On a longer-term basis, trainers recommend making every fourth week an "easy" week. But for long-distance rides, like this one, they recommend making every third week an easy week. So I intend to slack off a bit every third week.

Fourth, I mean limiting the intensity of my exercise, as measured by heartrate. For the first couple of months, at least, I want to treat each day's ride as a "long slow aerobic" ride, with a relatively low (in other words unstresed) heartrate. For me that is in the range of 117/bpm to 127/bpm. It will not be possible to keep my heartrate this low on climbs, of course, but generally this will me my goal and I will be monitoring it closely (Oops! I forgot to take my monitor on the first four days of the trip.) After a couple of months of this I should have developed a good "base level" of aerobic training, which is the degree of fitness I should have acquired before starting this trip.

Non-bicyclists sometimes (naturally) assume that getting into shape for bicycling means getting your muscles used to pedaling, especially to the point that you can go uphill. That's a necessary first step, of course, but that is relatively easy. The real key is building a reasonable level of cardio/pulmonary fitness, which can only be done over a long period of time, gradually increasing the load that you are putting on your body and giving it plenty of time to rest.