exercises to help build up endurance for bike riding?

-Devil-

-Devil-

New member
after picking up a bike to start riding as well .. i have noticed something .. after about a mile or two (dont have a computer on the bike yet so estimating) the upper part of my leg starts to get to the point where it does not even want to push down at all ... and i have to force myself to continue ...

i know the bike is setup properly (right height etc) ... so i know it is mostly me being out of shape ...

what are some exercises i can into my 3x a week workouts at the gym that will help with this? ...

the machines i currently use are these (that focus on my legs)

Glute isolator (65 - 70lb 2 reps of 10)
Leg extension (65 - 70lb 2 reps of 10)
Seated Leg Curl (65 - 70lb 2 reps of 10)

along with about 15 min on the treadmil with an incline and average speed of about 2.5 mph
 
It sounds to me like you're not using the correct gears. If you're wanting to get into road racing or triathlons, trainers recomment to be working at 80-100 rpm, 90 being a good average. So your muscles should be able to comfortably pedal at that rate, and not get the lactic acid buildup that stops them from working. You may have to build up to this cadence, but even if you have to pedal slower your gears should be lower to allow for that. If you're pushing really high gears, you're using up all of your muscle's anaerobic fuel and causing a lactic acid buildup early, and that will cause your muscles to fail long before your cardio would fail. Similar philosophy to weight lifting, you can lift a really heavy weight for 6-8 reps and be done, your muscle exhausted (physiologically speaking) and that be it, or do 40 reps at a lower weight, be tired at the end of it but able to continue right to the end. That's not to say working at higher gears every once in a while isn't a good thing, try doing some intervals at high gears as that would simulate hill work and you'll get stronger. Eventually you'll be able to do 90rpms at higher gears, cause your muscles are getting stronger.

Sorry if this got long and jumbled. Moral of the story, if you're looking to do long rides go with lower gears. If you're wanting a sprint or to really give your legs a more strength-based, rather than cardio-based, workout, go with intervals of higher gears.

And when all else fails, join a local cycling club and ask for advice there.
 
along with about 15 min on the treadmil with an incline and average speed of about 2.5 mph
Click to expand...
You might want to bump up the speed on the treadmill... or at least bump it up for intervals.. try going higher for one minute intervals -then back down to 2.5 or a bit lower foro the rest interval...

I've noticed that depending on what speed I walk - I use different muscles -it might be all in my head but I get abetter workout by varying speeds
 
jojoluvsu2 said:
It sounds to me like you're not using the correct gears. If you're wanting to get into road racing or triathlons, trainers recomment to be working at 80-100 rpm, 90 being a good average. So your muscles should be able to comfortably pedal at that rate, and not get the lactic acid buildup that stops them from working. You may have to build up to this cadence, but even if you have to pedal slower your gears should be lower to allow for that. If you're pushing really high gears, you're using up all of your muscle's anaerobic fuel and causing a lactic acid buildup early, and that will cause your muscles to fail long before your cardio would fail. Similar philosophy to weight lifting, you can lift a really heavy weight for 6-8 reps and be done, your muscle exhausted (physiologically speaking) and that be it, or do 40 reps at a lower weight, be tired at the end of it but able to continue right to the end. That's not to say working at higher gears every once in a while isn't a good thing, try doing some intervals at high gears as that would simulate hill work and you'll get stronger. Eventually you'll be able to do 90rpms at higher gears, cause your muscles are getting stronger.

Sorry if this got long and jumbled. Moral of the story, if you're looking to do long rides go with lower gears. If you're wanting a sprint or to really give your legs a more strength-based, rather than cardio-based, workout, go with intervals of higher gears.

And when all else fails, join a local cycling club and ask for advice there.
Click to expand...

that makes sense ... i have been in a fairly high gear trying to do it .. and do wear out much quicker .. (still getting used to a multi-speed bike) will try different gears for where i am riding ...

haven't found a local cycling club yet, so having to stick to online forums.
 
maleficent said:
You might want to bump up the speed on the treadmill... or at least bump it up for intervals.. try going higher for one minute intervals -then back down to 2.5 or a bit lower foro the rest interval...

I've noticed that depending on what speed I walk - I use different muscles -it might be all in my head but I get abetter workout by varying speeds
Click to expand...

i have been doing a constant speed on the treadmill .. will try to bump it up and give the intervals a go ... maybe even a little longer time .. (20 min instead of 15)
 
will let you find a cycling buddy in your area if they exist -otherwise i'm sure there are a lot of cycling clubs in your area... or you could always start one :) post a sign in the local grocery store :)
 
i just called the local bike shop (that i got the bike from) .. they say there are no 'clubs' in the area .. but they gave me a web address that several people frequent for this area ... so posting on it.
 
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