APRIL TRAINING HINTS

 

THE TIDE IS TURNING!

            We have reached a vital point in training for the Etape. The clocks have gone forwards! The weather is warmer! The evenings are lighter!

 

THOSE MILES

            Up till now we have been concentrating on general fitness. In particular, we have been building up the mileage to 75 miles. A few folk will have exceeded that by now, but if your longest ride is still much less than 50 miles, you have a bit of catching up to do. I’ve only done a 73 miler, but I made up for it in the evening by cycling to the pub and back!

 

MONITORING

            It is encouraging to monitor your progress. Hopefully you will have found a 5, 10 or 20 mile circuit conveniently near you (preferably fairly traffic free!) for the shorter training sessions. These circuits will be ideal for evening training, as convenient. If you measure and record your average speed the circuit, it is encouraging to see improvements as the weeks go by.

 

SPECIFIC TRAINING

            Now is a good time to start looking at the challenge ahead of us in more detail. In this year’s Etape du Tour we will be tackling a 125 mile ride with five mountains: each of these climbs is substantial – they range from 3.6 to 12 miles long!

With three and a half months to go before the Etape, it is time to start to focus on these objectives.

 

DISTANCE

            The sensible approach is to build up your riding distance in easy stages. If you have already completed a 75 mile ride, a good target would be to beat the 100 mile barrier in April.

 

            You may already have found that having done a few 50 mile rides, that distance becomes fairly easy. Your training plan will depend on how much time you have available.  For example, if you have not yet done a 75 miler, you could plan a 75 mile ride in mid April and a 100 mile ride at the end of April.  On your first ride of a particular distance, in is perfectly reasonable to take a coffee stop, a lunch stop and an afternoon tea break! There are feeding stops in the etape du Tour after all!

 

CLIMBING

            Climbing requires endurance and power. If you live in a mountainous area, training is no problem! However, most are not so lucky! If you live in the UK, why not join us in Snowdonia for the early May Bank holiday and get some mountain training? Email me: Ron@etape.org.uk to join in. You don’t need to be super fit – that is the point of a training weekend!

 

Endurance

            Typically you will be climbing at a power of around 150 - 200W on a long gradient when ascending one of the climbs during the Etape. A similar power is required to propel a racing cyclist at 18mph to 22mph on the flat on a windless day. Cycling on the flat at speed is therefore another way to build up your endurance ready for tackling the mountains. At this stage this May be a tall order – but it is early days yet!

 

Power  

            Climbing requires powerful legs – or to be more accurate the ability to apply high forces to the pedals. This is easily practiced on local hills if there are any, or in the gym on an exercise bike, with the resistance set to a high level. During this year’s Etape the climbs are not as steep as in some previous years. The total amount of climbing is however high this year.

            Sensible riders will have a good range of gears, minimising the need for high pedalling forces, though they may want to train using higher gears in order to build up their strength. A compact chain-set may furnish a ratio of about (1.5):(1) , though most triples have better bottom gear with a lowest ratio as low as (1.1):(1)

 

DESCENDING

            Descending at speed needs practice, particularly on bends. The normal approach is to brake as you approach the bend, lean well into the bend, and accelerate away from it. A relaxed approach with keen concentration seems to work well.

Keep your eyes open for hazards such as pot holes, loose gravel, debris etc on the road while descending - descend like a falcon, but have the eyes of a hawk!

             

ECONOMY

            Few people have nothing in their lives but cycling, and most of us want to keep the rest of our lives going! Observations show that the more training miles you do, the better your results in the Etape will be, but you will need to fit your training in with the rest of your life! Cycle commuting is a possibility for some people, and most people are able to find time for a ride at the weekend and a free hour or two on a weekday evening. Cycle commuting may not seem possible if you work a long way from home, though some people do a long cycle commute once a week, using other transport the rest of the time.

            In general, a good ride once a week will maintain your fitness, but two or more will improve it. Training at that frequency at this time of the year should be sufficient to complete the etape without putting undue stress on the rest of your life!

 

Some people prefer a more intensive regime. If you like to build exercise into your routine each day, you may want to make life more interesting by rotating between different types of training on successive days. This does not suit everyone, and I have not tried it myself, but some Italians train for Gran Fondos with a daily training pattern such as:

 

MON

Threshold

TUES

Strength

WED

Rest day

THURS

Intervals

FRI

Strength

SAT

Distance

SUN

Recovery

 

Threshold refers to riding at your lactic acid threshold, which generally equates approximately to the maximum speed you are comfortable riding at. Strength training would involve hill climbing in a fairly high gear, or on an exercise bike in the gym with the resistance set to a high level. Interval training involves cycling at high speed for typically a minute, then slowly for five minutes, then repeating. Distance training involves increasing your distance as the months go by. Such programs should include an easy week about once every month.

The pattern should be adjusted to suit you. It is a bit intense for most people though (including me!)

 

 

To Sum up:

Training for April should aim to get you closer to that 125 mile goal, and improve your strength and endurance for the mountains. After your hill climbs – enjoy the descent and practice your descending technique!

 

If you have read this far – you have plenty of endurance! Enjoy your training!

 

Don’t forget to email me – Ron@etape.org.uk if you want to join us in Snowdonia!