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Completed First Sprint and Questions
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 2013-10-15 9:13 PM |
 18 |  Subject: Completed First Sprint and QuestionsHello All, I am not sure if this belongs here or in the training session. Admin please move if it is in the wrong location. I just completed my first Sprint Tri this past weekend. It was a blast. I cant wait to do the next one, actually thats all i have been thinking about but winter is upon us and i dont see any races for a while. A little background on my Triathlon journey. I have never been a runner, i am 33 years old with a desk job. I was in great shape when graduating college but when i started working i pretty much did no form of exercise and gained about 50 lbs. I started exercising this year in March and have lost about 35 pounds. I have never been a runner but started that and have been working my way up. My wife purchased me a FELT S22 for this past fathers day (great wife) and i have been riding about once a week since between 10 and 20 miles. Back to the race. The race was a 1/3 mile swim, 16.5 mile bike, and a 3 mile run. The race was in Hattiesburg Mississippi and was the Mighty Magnolia Triathlon. I finished 169 out of 268. I was happy with my 11:08.4 swim, 1:02.9 T1, 10:04 Pace on the run. I was very dissapointed in my 16.9 MPH average speed however. I live in south Louisiana and really dont know what a hill is and have a 19 to 20 MPH average when i ride on the weekends. This race had tons of hills. Every hill i hit i was exhausted by the time i got to the top. Here is a link to my Garmin data from my bike ride of the race. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/389403563 So my question is: How does one get faster, get better at hills? Just more riding, serious leg weight lifting, find hills and ride them, technique? Any advice is appreciated. Edited by mudhog79 2013-10-15 9:14 PM |
| 2013-10-15 9:28 PM in reply to: mudhog79 |
72 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Ride more, ride more ride more. Btw did I mention Ride more. The best way to improve biking is saddle time. You said you ride 10 - 20 miles per week, on average I do 20 miles when I do my daily ride or on the trainer. I am just lucky I work from home so my lunch hour ride is actually a decent training ride. For some on the forum my daily ride is even on the light side. From your garmin data it looks like you are understanding the concept of spinning instead of grinding and that is a good thing. But more time will be good, also finding some hills will be beneficial. Finally glad you have joined the CULT, this is a ton of fun, and I too used this for weight loss (this weekend I just passed the 80lb mark). |
| 2013-10-15 9:40 PM in reply to: mclousing |
| 18 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Congrats on the weight loss and thanks for the input. Yeah i work pretty long hours and have a two year old daughter that i spend as much time as i can with hence the weekend riding only. I am starting to look into purchasing a trainer however. Thanks again. Originally posted by mclousing Ride more, ride more ride more. Btw did I mention Ride more. The best way to improve biking is saddle time. You said you ride 10 - 20 miles per week, on average I do 20 miles when I do my daily ride or on the trainer. I am just lucky I work from home so my lunch hour ride is actually a decent training ride. For some on the forum my daily ride is even on the light side. From your garmin data it looks like you are understanding the concept of spinning instead of grinding and that is a good thing. But more time will be good, also finding some hills will be beneficial. Finally glad you have joined the CULT, this is a ton of fun, and I too used this for weight loss (this weekend I just passed the 80lb mark). |
| 2013-10-16 8:01 AM in reply to: mudhog79 |
553  St Catharines, Ontario | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Awesome weight loss. I am a desk jockey for my job and have dropped a similar amount this year. I think cycling rule 5 applies to your problem  I find long sessions grinding away on a big gear helps. Joking aside. Some of the effort at the top end of cycling will set your lungs and legs on fire in a way that is hard to replicate while running. Different muscles, different load and lots of repetitions. Time in the saddle is needed, as well as any interval/hill work you can find. |
| 2013-10-16 9:21 AM in reply to: mudhog79 |
Veteran 1384  Panama City, FL | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Ride more and then some more. Good off season training/bike specific bike plans on BT here. DVDs like Sufferfest are good as well and incorporate intervals etc. Do hill repeats etc. |
| 2013-10-16 9:29 AM in reply to: mudhog79 |
Veteran 274 State College, PA | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Just repeating what others have said: Ride more. Time in the saddle is the best thing you can do. As for getting better on hills your best bet is to ride hills. Seeing as that is geographically dependent it's easier said than done. If you don't have any near you to actually ride on your next best option is using a trainer to simulate climbing. High resistance, steady cadence is the key. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination but it is an option. |
| 2013-10-16 9:32 AM in reply to: taylorz13 |
Veteran 2842 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Congrats on the race! That's terrific. As for the bike, T.I.T.S. (time in the saddle) helps the most at the outset. For hills, riding hills helps. For starters, though, going from 1x10 or 20 miles per week to a larger volume would be a good first step... Of course, it's all up to you and what you want to do/how you like to work, but starting with more volume is a good first step. Then add in intensity to taste! Good luck and welcome! Don't worry, your next race will be here before you know it (and always before you get in as much training as you'd like!). Matt |
Really, though, a hill is just an interval in another form, so you can do the same by riding harder for short time periods during a ride. You want to put bike specific training stress on the legs, which you can do with a combination of volume and intensity. Most people find the big gains come quickly at the start of training with increasing the volume. Once you have that base, and the gains come more slowly, people often then add in intensity to shake things up again.| 2013-10-16 9:38 AM in reply to: mudhog79 |
Member 55 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Congrats on your first tri. The first one is always special. I echo what others have said, bike more. Nothing will replace saddle time. If it's flat where you live, do some intervals in bigger gears to simulate climbing, shift back down and pick your cadence back up. Also, with winter coming on and if you will be riding indoors on a trainer, consider using Trainer Road. I actually found the program from a post on BT and it has been a valuable asset in my personal training. Keep at it and also know, it takes time to build your biking legs. Jerred |
| 2013-10-16 12:13 PM in reply to: puzzlecreek |
| 754 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions I am surprised that no one has said it: hills will slow you down. For someone who rides so little, and isn't used to hills, that speed with that course seems pretty good. You didn't have to get off and push your bike up the hills, did you? In southern Louisiana, your best bet if you want to train for hills is to find bridges or parking garages. I have also heard of people doing a type of workout called stomps when the have to train for a hilly race but live in a flat area, but since flat is hard to find around here, I don't know the details. |
| 2013-10-16 9:13 PM in reply to: happyscientist |
| 18 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Hey Happyscientist, No i didnt have to get off the bike and push it up the hills. One guy in our group did but luckily i didnt. I knew the hills would slow me down i just didnt realize how much. I am just looking to get faster and stronger overall on the bike and it looks like that will require more riding and mixing it up. Thanks for the feedback. Originally posted by happyscientist I am surprised that no one has said it: hills will slow you down. For someone who rides so little, and isn't used to hills, that speed with that course seems pretty good. You didn't have to get off and push your bike up the hills, did you? In southern Louisiana, your best bet if you want to train for hills is to find bridges or parking garages. I have also heard of people doing a type of workout called stomps when the have to train for a hilly race but live in a flat area, but since flat is hard to find around here, I don't know the details. |
| 2013-10-16 10:37 PM in reply to: #4877957 |
| 14 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Congrats on your first tri. Everyone seems to have nailed it already -- more saddle time. One thing I would add is don't discount grinding a slower cadence occasionally. I find that many triathletes spin so much that they fail to climb hills efficiently. Spinning more isn't always the answer. You don't need to spend a ton a time doing it but a few minutes on and off once or twice a week (once you begin riding more) can go a long way to building on-the-bike strength. Good luck! |
| 2013-10-17 9:41 AM in reply to: happyscientist |
New user 205 Athens, GA | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Originally posted by happyscientist I am surprised that no one has said it: hills will slow you down. For someone who rides so little, and isn't used to hills, that speed with that course seems pretty good. You didn't have to get off and push your bike up the hills, did you? In southern Louisiana, your best bet if you want to train for hills is to find bridges or parking garages. I have also heard of people doing a type of workout called stomps when the have to train for a hilly race but live in a flat area, but since flat is hard to find around here, I don't know the details. This is my experience as well. I have a faster average at races on flatter/rolling courses than I do locally, because where I live it's pretty hilly. I do agree with everyone who says more time in the saddle will benefit you, and whatever hill work you can get in will as well, but that's going to improve your riding on both the flats and the hills, and your riding on the flats will still be faster. |
| 2013-10-17 11:51 AM in reply to: paxsarah |
| 32 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions being from southern louisiana i have the same problem as you, however there are some places with what we would call hills around here to train on, such as around covington-bogalusa area. or the kentwood area. even some places in mississippi that you can get some hill practice. dont know where you are located but may not be a bad idea to sneak in a ride around these areas a few times a month if possible |
| 2013-10-17 6:40 PM in reply to: sharkbait! |
| 18 | Subject: RE: Completed First Sprint and Questions Thanks for the info, I am in Madisonville Originally posted by sharkbait! being from southern louisiana i have the same problem as you, however there are some places with what we would call hills around here to train on, such as around covington-bogalusa area. or the kentwood area. even some places in mississippi that you can get some hill practice. dont know where you are located but may not be a bad idea to sneak in a ride around these areas a few times a month if possible |
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