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Conditioning

1233 Views 8 Replies 7 Participants Last post by thePINKster, Jun 22, 2006

Betty Cannondale

Discussion Starter · Jun 19, 2006

SO..I heard from a friend that riding street a couple times a week can help in conditioning for off road riding. Does anyone out there agree with this or have any other suggestions?? Thanks...

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stepchild

· #2 · Jun 19, 2006

Betty Cannondale said:
SO..I heard from a friend that riding street a couple times a week can help in conditioning for off road riding. Does anyone out there agree with this or have any other suggestions?? Thanks...

I am a relative newbie, so this is just based on my experiences and experimentaion...

If I'm lucky, I get one off road ride in a week. Other than that, I ride lots of dirt roads, paved bike paths, and roads (all on my mtn bike b/c that's all I have) and I hit spinning class about 2 times per week. I usually do one hill climb (1-1.5 hours climbing) and one workout of hill repeats (short intervals w/ some recovery in between) a week. I do this mostly for fun and to stay in shape (I have only one race under my belt) but I find this type of training works great for me! I started riding more b/c I have an injury that is preventing me from running (my first and true love sport) but cycling has really kept me fit. I find that as long as I'm out on my bike a bunch all week, I can make progress and challenge myself with my weekend off-road rides.

I really am in no position to be advising anyone on riding since I'm new; I'm mostly posting b/c I am excited about the progress I've been making...maybe it would work for you too!

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rt

· #3 · Jun 19, 2006

Betty Cannondale said:
SO..I heard from a friend that riding street a couple times a week can help in conditioning for off road riding. Does anyone out there agree with this or have any other suggestions?? Thanks...

yes, road riding (either with a road bike or with a mtb) will help with conditioning. most competitive mountain bikers do 80-90% of their training on the road rather than on trail. road offers the opportunity to go longer distances at a steady rate. it also allows you to focus on specific aspects of training such as intervals.

you might want to do some research on the best approach to training on the road. there are a number of books available or you can do a quick search of the posts over on the Racing & Training board. lots of discussion about training on the road.

rt

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dirtmistress

· #4 · Jun 20, 2006

I have a buddy that does great on mountain bike rides and can hang with all of us that ride road unless a climb kicks in,then she falls back a bit. On the flip side, when she rides road with us,she suffers terribly and doesnt hang nearly as well. She really lacks in the endurance department. Take to the road if you plan on racing or want to really kick it up a notch in the endurance area. And you don't need to buy a road bike, throw some slicks on your mtn.bike and go that way. An extra set of wheels with slicks is cheaper still and works well.

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SuperKat

· #5 · Jun 20, 2006

All of the above advice is good advice. A road ride every now and again will help your cardio level.
Have fun!

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Betty Cannondale

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jun 21, 2006

Uphill is the issue...

stripes said:
'kay, you've got me thinking: what type of conditioning are you referring to? Your ability to ride uphill, or your ability to handle downhills and technical riding.

They both require different muscle sets, and uphill is a lot of cardio (not my strong point), but I love to bounce through a technical flat or downhill and that's usualy my strength.

I've found carrrying a smaller camelbak has helped my overall fitness as opposed to trying to carry everything on my back (I use a saddlebag and a smaller camelbak now), and that has helped too.

So depending on what yer answer is, kinda depends on mine

Although spinning class is definitely a good thing, either way.

My main problem is uphill. Downhill and technical is no problem...in fact that's my favorite part

But uphill is not my strong suit. I think I should prolly work more on my upper body, but I need to get those legs going and pedal pedal pedal...

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Betty Cannondale

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jun 22, 2006

Thanks for the tips!

stripes said:
You sound like me

Upper body helps with both downhill and uphill, but it sounds like spin class or road biking would help for overall conditioning.

It amazes me how many people I've seen who are great climbers and wait for me at the top, but I beat them down every hill. The two skills are definitely very separate.

The things I'm doing to help:
- Spin class once a week (it's about all I can stand.. I need to be outside on the dirt )
- Interval training, either on the bike or on the elliptical
- Lightening my camelbak (believe it or not, it's like losing weight)
- Losing weight (yeah, that too )
- Trying to go on longer and more challenging rides (it makes the other climbs that seemed harder MUCH easier)

The interval traininng may sound lame, but it's made quite a difference in my aerobic capacity as a whole.

I really appreciate the sound advice...and it's great to hear about regiments from other girlies...

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cribton

· #8 · Jun 22, 2006

...riding gives me the kind of relaxation i want for it is one of my hobby. I just see to it that i am up for a great adventure! :thumbsup:

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thePINKster

· #9 · Jun 22, 2006

road riding is great for conditioning, but its not mandatory...

dont get me wrong, whenever i sit on the trainer, and do it consistently, i can tell the differenece between my cadences and my spin when i'm off road.

but in mountainbiking , especially for DH women, a lot of the win is based on if you have the guts and skills. for men, a lot of them already have the guts, and gain skill so more of it is based on conditioning....

so what i personally reccomend is listen to your own body, and try riding road consistently, and see how your body reacts. if it helps a lot with your DH, then thats the way to go. or if you notice spending time on the trail is better because you're more comfortable with the crazier stuff, then do that.

everyone is different, so do what works best for you. experiment

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