Join in the fun; The Calorie-Count Cycling Club...

Welcome to all who have an interest in anything cycling of any kind.( road, mountain, commuting, stationary, whatever).

This is the place to come to ask that question you have been wanting to ask,

or tell that story about your latest adventure riding your bike,

find out how to use cycling to get in better shape, or anything else you can think of.

So, to start, tell us, what you ride, where you ride and what type of riding you enjoy.

Come back often too check out what's going on and see what's on everyones mind or add your knowledge to the group. 

 

I would like to join. I am heavy 250+. I have a goal of losing 20lbs by the 24th of Augst. I am down 6lbs in a little more than a week. I have a running bet with a coworker to lose the most weight (percentage). On the 25th I am riding the Hotter'n Hell Hundred in Wichita Fallas, TX. I need to lose that 20 lbs...I can do 70 now comfortably but 100 will be tough with the heat on high. 

Welcome instepcco. Way to go on being able to do 70 miles. I am still stuck at 40 but hoping to do more once my son is in school (can't wait for that one, lol).

I am sure the heat wave has hit Texas too so be careful out there.

Jane

Instep:  Those are 2 pretty tall orders -- dropping 20 pounds in less than 3 weeks and getting ready for a heavy duty endurance event in less than 3 weeks.  Ideally you would like to have at least 4 weeks to get ready for the big ride.  And you would like to taper off the last week.  Dropping 7 or 8 pounds a week is almost impossible, if you are talking about actually getting rid of ugly fat at 3500 calories per pound.  That means essentially that your energy output has to exceed your energy consumption by about 3500 calories per day from now until 24 August.  In the meantime, you need to be building your strength to get through that century.  My bet is that you will do fine on the  ride but you will weigh more than 230 the day before the ride.

My first suggestion is that you consider the possible outcomes carefully and decide which is really more important the bet or the ride.  My second suggestion is that you consider two-a-days for the next two weeks -- actually you need a little longer because you should rest every third day or so.  Third: dedicate a couple of works outs a week to intense speed-power intervals -- push as many watts as you can at as high an RPM as you can manage.  Finally, look into Creatine.

Good luck, Joe

Slampe:  Welcome to the club.  Hills are a relative thing.  They all seem tough until you come up against something bigger and badder.  They are also a blessing in disguise -- they make everything else easy by comparison.  To clarify one point, my new drive train consists of a compact double (50/34) up front and a 10 speed 12-27 on the back.  So I am giving myself a little bit of a break.  But I have been taking on a lot of the hills with the 53/42 portion of my triple crank.  So Saturday, when I got out there and did the same hills with the 34T crank, I felt very comfortable.  If you can do the hills you are talking about with a standard 53/39 and 12-23 combo, you are in very good shape.

Thank you for the replies. I am fairly consistent on having my calories stay around 2000/day (now).

I know I have the power to make 100 miles. On rides I find myself in higher gears because it is easier but I can get into trouble with my feet aching because of such a high gear. I know I need to spin at a higher cadence, I am just not there yet. I just don't have the high cadence to make it like I want.  I use coach Troy's Videos (Spinervals) to get my cycling in on a Fluid trainer. I have rollers I haven't used this season. I guess I should try to get an hour on the rollers at a high cadence. They do take a lot of concentration.

I will do the double duty (2-a-days). Do you have any preference on which I should do morning (possibly 2 hours) or evening (possibly 1.5 hrs? I usually have less time in the evening because of the hours I work. 

As much as I would like to lose 20lbs before the ride, I will be glad to sacrifice the weight loss to get  into better cycling shape.  15 years ago I completed centuries in 5:35 to 5:45.. That now is my 70 mile time.

Thanks for your assistance... Neil S>

This post is to document that on August 6th, 2007 I installed my Ruffy Tuffy tires, with SpinSkins tire liners, on my LeMond. This is a test, to see how long this rather pricey setup lasts me without getting a flat. I'm hereby deputizing all of you (and Tagging this post so I can reference it again) to remind me of this when/if I come back here posting that I'm having flat tires again. The Ruffy Tuffy's didn't go on easy, so if I do have flats, I will NOT be happy about having to change them on the side of the road - it was hard enough last night at my house.

New tires (Panaracer T-serv 28s) installed in January worked well for a while, but I've had a rash of flats in the last couple of months, including one on each of my last 2 rides. So I've implemented a potential solution & will keep you posted on how the experiment goes!

Hey, gang. Been on vacation with the family, visiting my dad down near Athens, GA.

I got a wild hair on Sunday, and rode to Stone Mountain and back. 109 miles, ~6000 calories burned. This is my first solo century! I left at a quarter to six in the morning, and got back a little after 1PM. The ride out wasn't bad, because it was still relatively cool, but the ride back was like being in a convection oven. I went through about a gallon and a half of Gatorade and water during the ride, and I ate four Clif Bars. My on-bike average was 17.5mph, and the ride had a cumulative altitude gain of about 6300 feet (which surprised me).

Now for something completely different.

instepcco, I think the goal of losing 20 pounds by 24 August is ill-advised. Your body will not like losing that much weight that fast, and you'll have to do a bunch of stupid things to get there. At your weight and activity level, 2000 calories per day is a starvation diet.

As for completing the century, I don't doubt you can do it, if you simply pedal one or two gears easier than you think you can manage. If you can't manage a higher cadence, then just turn your usual cadence, but use an easier gear than usual, to save energy. Be sure to eat something at least every hour, and hydrate enough (both with water and with an electrolyte drink) that you'll have to stop and pee (clear!) a couple of times along the way. You know how much you sweat, so you should have some idea how much you need to drink. Drink whenever you're thirsty--several swallows each time.

Sunscreen is your friend.

Steel vs. aluminum. I have a lot of trouble believing that people can notice a difference in ride quality between steel and aluminum, given that in the total system that is a bicycle, ride quality is going to be dominated by the flexion of the tires and the saddle. I recall that in blind tests, when the riders aren't told what frame material they're riding, most riders could not tell. Give me a stiff frame every time--I don't want pedaling energy being wasted by twisting the frame from side to side.

behanna, that is exactly what I want to do when Christopher is back in school - do a century ride solo. i have the route mapped out and all. Here's a question for you. Should I keep all that extra liquid with me or should i just stop by a store a couple of times on the way (since I have to make restroom breaks anyways). I don't want to carry too much stuff with me.

Is it the 22nd yet? School needs to start. My child is burning through my pay checks as if it was monopoly money, lol

Jane

Carrihound

I found Vittoria Rubino Pro tires to be very good at not puncturing. Now they are a little pricey but you get what you pay for. They are also directional meaning that they are supposed to be installed in one direction. I also use a little baby powder in between the tire and the tube to keep friction from tearing the tube. Any talcum powder will do. 

Jane, I did my first solo century a couple of weeks ago.  There was no way I was going to carry all the fluids I would need so I planned a route with several places I could stop.  I stopped twice, first at about 45 miles and again at 80.  It was a great ride.

jc343:

thanks, i'm looking at getting a 12-25, but i definitely enjoy the challenge of the 12-23 with a 175mm crank--it requires me to stand and climb more often then triples/or compacts. i'm a collegiate rower, so i've got some leg muscles, and i have 220+ (as of now) pounds pushing down on those pedals, so i suppose that helps; then again, you don't see to many 6'3 220 pounders on the Tour, allegedly we're not designed for hills. ha.

instepcco, the installation of the SpinSkins calls for use of talcum powder (which we did last night), so you're right on the money on that one. and thanks, i'll keep those vittorias in mind.

behanna is right that ride quality is most impacted by tire flexion & pressure and saddle; however, i know i feel a difference between steel & aluminum; and i wouldn't have even mentioned it if Jane hadn't mentioned that she felt her new bike was banging her around more than her old one did (al vs. her old chromoly). the metals react to impact differently and do feel different to me. perhaps i'm not a good test case because i'm not in a blind ride test & am projecting my expectations on my perception of the ride. can't say for sure.

trhawley, that is exactly what i was thinking. Dragging a couple of gallons of gatorade or the likes around does not appeal to me because that means some kind of thing to carry it in. I am still having problems with having to carry a backpack with my clothes when riding to work. Between shoes and clothes, it gets pretty heavy which means I get to sweat a lot on my back. If I am to do a century ride, I want to pack as little as possible. A couple of bucks for gatorade is not as heavy as a big bottle, lol.

Steel vs aluminum, this one is beyond my technical knowledge but I am indeed being thrown around a lot more on the new bike. Whether it is because of the weight difference (and there is one - I can lift the new bike with one arm; no way I could do that with the old one) or if it is due to the narrower tires, is something that can be discussed. All I know is that there is a difference and I definitely, without a doubt, prefer the new bike. I may get banged up when I hit a pothole but I fly over those hills as if they weren't even there. I have learned the hard way to lift my butt off the seat just a little when hitting a rough spot on the road and it is not that big of a problem anymore. Hitting rocks is a problem as they can cause me to lose control of the bike - sensitive little thing!

Had my first race tonight. Not against a human being but rather a big thunder storm. The storm won and I was soaked when I got home. Oh well, I only got 20 miles in but it is better than nothing. I really didn't want to be out there in the rain as I just cleaned and lubed the chain but I guess I will just have to do it again.

Jane

Instep: I don't have the time or the energy to get seriously into two-a-days.  The last time I did anything like that I was on the track team in college.  I suppose my commuting amounts to a two-a-day a couple of times per week.  The workout is partly determined by where I live and where I work and partly by time.  The morning route is (generally) shorter but it is more challenging in terms of hills.  The evening ruoute is longer, flatter and faster.  I like to push for speed on the way home.  Unfortunately, that can leave me with pretty weary legs when I have to climb over the last couple of miles.  Anyway, the answer to your question is that, if I were going to get into serious two-a-days, I would do a pace/distance ride in the morning and get on my trainer in my basement in the evening.
Here are a couple of articles on speeding up the process of getting ready to ride a century:
Crash course century training
Build your base fast

Steel vs Aluminum:  Okay that's not a fair title.  I have never ridden an aluminum bike or a bike with an aluminum frame.  But my Quest has some carbon components, it is lighter, stiffer, etc., etc. than my Aurora and the Quest passes more of the road on to me than the Aurora does.  The difference isn't enormous.  It is enough to take some getting used to.  So I think that is probably more the issue for Jane going from a heavy, steel bike to a light, aluminum bike.  The heavier bike is going to dampen the vibrations more.  But from a metallurgy perspective, steel bends.  Aluminum will break.  Steel is virtually immune to metal fatigue.  Aluminum has definite limitations.  That probably shouldn't persuade anybody to go out and buy a steel bike but I certainly think about it when I am shopping for bikes.

I've been doing the spinning class at my gym, and I love it.  I've been thinking about becoming more serious, and purchasing a road bike.  Does anyone have any suggestions of a bike I should get?  I'm looking for a bike that I can have for a while.  I'll be riding on the road and I'm going to try and build up my mileage. 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks or the resources JC343!

Yupitslauren

Buy what you can afford! Figure out what you can spend on a bike. Get that number and shop around and read about the choices you have. Sometimes you can get a better bike used than you can new. Once cycling gets you.. Save up for the bike you want. Some cyclists get a little upgrade happy (I know I did). When you find that you want to upgrade your bike parts and or wheels it may be time to splurge and just upgrade to a better bike. So the call is about how much actual time you want to spend on the bike vs. the $$ you want to spend on it... I have one bike I bought with a loan from a finance company in 1989 and paid $2800 for it. I had no excuses about speed or components after getting that bike but I also never got out of the bike all that the bike was designed for out of it either. I enjoyed the heck out of it though! I hope that helps.  ...Neil S>

autismtjm, I stopped twice for replenishing water and Gatorade: once at about 45 miles, and again at about 70 miles. Having started at 5:45AM, I found that it was cool enough that my initial stint was a little longer. As the day warmed, I started going through liquids faster. It was pretty easy, however, to keep the Clif Bars and a small ziploc bag of money in my jersey pockets.

Steel vs. aluminum: comparing a discount store bike to a bike shop aluminum bike is probably not a fair comparison. Discount store bikes are made with very mild steel and thick-walled tubing. Bike shop steel bikes are made from high-quality chrome-moly steel, and will be stiff and lightweight by comparison. Aluminum will be a tad stiffer.

Yes, aluminum WILL flex (I've seen my bottom bracket move side-to-side when I stand up on the trainer), though its properties are going to be different than steel. For what it's worth, the only frame that broke in a scientific torture test was made from steel, and every reputable bike manufacturer provides a lifetime warrantee for their frames, no matter what the material.

Lots of manufacturers are making aluminum frames with carbon fiber seatstays these days, and advertise that the seatstays "soak up vibration." I don't know about that. It's hard to separate the marketing BS from reality; however, a friend of mine works with carbon fiber in the aerospace industry, and has a wide knowledge of materials properties, so I could ask him.

For my money, aluminum is the best bang for the buck in terms of weight, stiffness, and durability. You can get lighter, stiffer bikes, but the cost goes up fast.

Well, I think I may have started this Steel vs. aluminum thread a while back, but I am happy to say that I ordered my bike Sunday.  So, soon I will be the proud owner of a 2008 Specialized Dolce Elite, which is an alumnium bike with carbon fork, seat post, and seat stays, and it has these little gel inserts in the tubes to help dampen vibration.  Honestly, I found that since I need a tiny bike (44 cm in a woman-specific geometry), I didn't have as many options in a reasonable price range.  The steel bikes I tried just didn't feel right.  But the Dolce felt like home right away.  I've also been told by many petite female cyclists that if you go aluminum or steel, make sure to get carbon for the fork and seat post at least because the tubes are so short on little bikes.  They just don't give like a big one.

I just have to get the rest of my gear, get my bike all set the way I want it, and then, I RIDE!  I'll let you know how it goes.

I have an old Trek that was built the opposite of the newer bikes, the main tubes are carbon fiber but the fork, seat stays, and chain stays are aluminum.  I have an al seat post and bars as well.  But having owned an all aluminum Trek prior to this bike, I can say that this bike is much more complaint while remaining stiff where it needs to be and responsive. 

Manufactures have come a long way in engineering all materials these days so I think as long as you start with a good fit you can achieve comfort no matter what composition you chose.

I agree with behanna on the comparison of bikes. Now that we are talking about this, I want to take my Schwinn out for a spin, lol.

My son is driving me absolutely nuts today. He firmly believes that we are going to get hit by a tornado just because of a power outage. My sister-in-law is coming to town tonight and all day (every 5 minutes) he asks "is aunt Denise here yet". I need some alone time and a bike ride sounds sooo appealing right now. Unfortunately I have to go to work - ugh. Rain or not, I am riding my bike to work!!!!!!

Jane