FIRST TIME GARMIN USER

listrybabe

I have just got to use my garmin for the first time (love it) and i am going to post some details of me and my cycle and am maybe looking for some constructive criticism please, i am not cycling too long since christmas and love it. age 48, height 5 10, weight 16 st ( i know too heavy but is down from 17 st 2
lb and still losing some ), anyway my cycle : 41 km, 1hr 42min,av sp 24.1, high of 48km,el gain 166 metre, av hr 152 , max 174, av bike cadence 75 rpm, max bike cadence 210 rpm (thats what it says), calories 1143, strokes 6936, hopefully someone will help me make sense of all that, thank you.


ps,,, no idea how to upload from strava/garmin to boards..

Wishbone Ash

listrybabe wrote: »

no idea how to upload from strava/garmin to boards..

Copy the Strava details from the top of the Strava page (e.g. www.strava.com/xxxxxxxxxxx etc.) and paste onto your boards.ie post. That will give a 'link' which others can click to open.

quozl

Good on you. That's really not a bad average speed for that distance at all.

What kind of input do you want? You seem to be doing really well. Keep doing what you're doing and gradually extend things if that appeals to you.

Consider a cycling club. Funnily enough you're already easily fit enough for the beginner spins in my club. It's unfortunate timing in that most clubs only do beginner spins over the winter and they're ending now but I've read here that at least some clubs do them all year round, and it's something to keep in mind for September.

Maybe consider entering a few Sportives over the summer for some motivation and because they're fun.

Really stretching for something from your figures to work on - your average cadence is a bit low. People vary in their ideal cadence but you won't see anyone recommending a cadence as low as 75. An average of 90 would be a more typically suggested figure, 85+ for sure. Something to work towards bit by bit maybe and see how it works for you, as again, everybody is different. Higher cadence means your leg muscles will get less tired but your cardiovascular system has to work a bit harder. However it's got much better endurance so you should be able to maintain it for longer and more easily.

listrybabe

quozl wrote: »

Good on you. That's really not a bad average speed for that distance at all.

What kind of input do you want? You seem to be doing really well. Keep doing what you're doing and gradually extend things if that appeals to you.

Consider a cycling club. Funnily enough you're already easily fit enough for the beginner spins in my club. It's unfortunate timing in that most clubs only do beginner spins over the winter and they're ending now but I've read here that at least some clubs do them all year round, and it's something to keep in mind for September.

Maybe consider entering a few Sportives over the summer for some motivation and because they're fun.

Really stretching for something from your figures to work on - your average cadence is a bit low. People vary in their ideal cadence but you won't see anyone recommending a cadence as low as 75. An average of 90 would be a more typically suggested figure, 85+ for sure. Something to work towards bit by bit maybe and see how it works for you, as again, everybody is different. Higher cadence means your leg muscles will get less tired but your cardiovascular system has to work a bit harder. However it's got much better endurance so you should be able to maintain it for longer and more easily.

thank you for your input, so i presume to increasemy cadence i would have to cycle in slightly lower gear ? for the first 3/4 of my cycle my av speed was 25.5 but it was very windy for last section (plus i probably tiring) which brought my av down. so would getting cadence up be more value to me than speed up ? thanks again

quozl

listrybabe wrote: »

thank you for your input, so i presume to increasemy cadence i would have to cycle in slightly lower gear ? for the first 3/4 of my cycle my av speed was 25.5 but it was very windy for last section (plus i probably tiring) which brought my av down. so would getting cadence up be more value to me than speed up ? thanks again

If you want to raise your cadence you'll probably need to actually deliberately work on it. Your speed should raise by itself for some time anyway.

To do it you just run a slightly lower gear and maintain speed. It'll take a little while but it'll become natural feeling. You can do slightly more complicated things like short sprints at 120 RPM while maintaining form but if you just want a cadence of 90 or so then you'll get it by conciously working on it. Just don't allow yourself into your higher gears

Lots of cyclists retrain themselves to up their cadence. If you're only starting out then it's the perfect time to do it.

disco1

Bot bad at all.

as you loose weight everything wil come together. Both cadence and ave speed.

keep up the good work.

listrybabe

disco1 wrote: »

Bot bad at all.

as you loose weight everything wil come together. Both cadence and ave speed.

keep up the good work.

Thank you. It's the weight primarily I want to shed. Want to get the most out of my spins. Don't really need high average speed. Maybe raising my cadence is my best option of that. Thank you again

listrybabe

quozl wrote: »

If you want to raise your cadence you'll probably need to actually deliberately work on it. Your speed should raise by itself for some time anyway.

To do it you just run a slightly lower gear and maintain speed. It'll take a little while but it'll become natural feeling. You can do slightly more complicated things like short sprints at 120 RPM while maintaining form but if you just want a cadence of 90 or so then you'll get it by conciously working on it. Just don't allow yourself into your higher gears

Lots of cyclists retrain themselves to up their cadence. If you're only starting out then it's the perfect time to do it.

Thanks very much for your input I will try this evening to do as recommended

Wishbone Ash

listrybabe wrote: »

It's the weight primarily I want to shed..

I cycled a lot in the 1980's and early 1990's and then drifted away from it (cars/pubs/girls etc.). I went back to it again about 4 years ago when I was 110kg (about 17st). I'm now 75kg. You wish to get the most out of your spins but don't get too bogged down in technical stuff as it may take away from the pleasure.

(I don't bother with recording cadence or HR as I've no interest in them but I do spend a fair bit of time in the saddle which I prefer.)