{"id":494,"date":"2012-05-23T16:31:46","date_gmt":"2012-05-23T16:31:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cycling.williams.edu\/?p=494"},"modified":"2021-02-01T09:56:50","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T14:56:50","slug":"summer-training-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/cycling\/uncategorized\/summer-training-part-i\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Training: Part I"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey all,<\/p>\n

So ends the collegiate racing season. However, for the interested among you, racing season does not have to end here. I’d recommend doing some summer USAC races, and I’d strongly<\/em> recommend doing the Mount Greylock ITT in September<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Given that we never did any significant aerobic training over the Winter\/Spring, it’s worth getting some in now. The focus for the next few weeks will be:<\/p>\n

– building an aerobic base
\n– building strength
\n– building endurance
\n– riding at tempo pace<\/p>\n

and you will not<\/em> be doing:<\/p>\n

– VO2 work
\n– LT work<\/p>\n

So, a typical training week should look like the following:<\/p>\n

– one long aerobic ride. This is a ride done at aerobic pace, meaning that at no point during the ride should you be sprinting\/straining\/etc. The goal is to maintain a steady output, be it on flats, uphill, or downhill. You might feel somewhat tired at the end of the ride, but it shouldn’t be the type of legs-and-lungs-burning tired– more like a wow-that’s-a-long-ride tired. Pace should feel like you can maintain that level of effort moderately comfortably for the length of the ride, but faster than recovery pace. In terms of length, I’d recommend starting around 2.5-3 hours for beginners and 3.5-4 for more experienced riders. Remember to bring LOTS of food and water.<\/p>\n

– at least two recovery days. These can be taken totally off the bike, or up to 90 minutes easy spinning. These should be EASY. Think about spacing these out, so that you’re never doing too many tough days in a row. Also, note the “at least” part. If you’re tired, sick, busy, or whatever, just take the day off.<\/p>\n

– the rest of the days can be any of the following (each day should start with 30+ minutes warm-up and end with ~15 minutes cool-down):<\/p>\n