6 BIKE MAGAZINE
FITNESS
MAINTAIN THE BENEFITS OF SUMMER by Tim Ramsden
Tim is an Association of British Cycling Coaches (ABCC) Level 3 Coach and owner of www.blackcatcyclecoaching.com
Although there are still plenty of weekend road riding opportunities left before winter rears its ugly head again, as the days shorten the short sleeved summer evening rides become a thing of the past…and cyclists generally look for other ways to keep their hard-earned fitness. But… how much fitness will you actually lose if you can only complete one ride a week from December through to March? The physiological effect of detraining is an area which has been extensively researched and the good news is that, whilst you could lose up to 10% off your VO2 power after 4 weeks’ inactivity, you don’t need to do too much to maintain the gains you made in the sunshine when the clocks go back. So…make the most of the weekends now. Where you can, try and ride on both days – make Saturday a shorter, faster ride with some hill efforts or sprints – make these
fun, against riding pals or just as the whim takes you if you are riding solo. On Sunday do a longer ride at an easier pace…but don’t leave out some sprints/hill efforts: the key to maintaining fitness as you go through the winter months is to keep the intensity of the effort, even if you don’t ride for as much time in a session. As this month goes on, the days get shorter and unless you don lights and ride after work, you may be limited to a commute, or to no session. If you can ride in the evening, steady but brisk work at around 30-40bpm below your max heart rate will give you a good return, and avoids the risks associated with very hard, fast efforts in the dark. Around 1 hour including a warm up and cool down is perfect. Pick roads that are well-lit, and be aware that if you are travelling at 20mph plus in low-light then it isn’t advisable to look at your computer display for your average heart rate for more than a second or two at a time.
