Advice regarding speed, distance etc

Omega28

I've always enjoyed cycling doing 100-200km a week but since the pandemic I've increased my mileage to 450-500km for the last few weeks.

My typical daily spin could be a 50km, 75km or 100km.

I just have a few questions and I was wondering if you guys could help me out.

1. Speed - my average speed is around 22-24km/h - any advice on how to increase this?

2. Should I bring some form of food for my 75/100km spins?

3. I don't have cycling shoes. I just wear old trainers, shorts and an old t-shirt /hoodie. Any recommendations for new clothes /shoes?

Thanks

magicbastarder

generally speaking, many people will bring an item of food for every hour on the bike or thereabouts.
i usually bring bananas.
re increasing speed, just push harder. you'll burn energy exponentially more quickly, which makes fuelling more important, but based on the distances you're doing you're fit enough anyway so will be able to adapt.

re clothing, do you want to go down the lycra route? shorts will definitely help, as will everything else if you start pushing harder to go faster and start sweating more.

Omega28

magicbastarder wrote: »

generally speaking, many people will bring an item of food for every hour on the bike or thereabouts.
i usually bring bananas.
re increasing speed, just push harder. you'll burn energy exponentially more quickly, which makes fuelling more important, but based on the distances you're doing you're fit enough anyway so will be able to adapt.

re clothing, do you want to go down the lycra route? shorts will definitely help, as will everything else if you start pushing harder to go faster and start sweating more.

Is 22-24km/h a poor average speed?

I'll bring a banana or two on my next spin.

Do the shoes help a lot?

Is Lycra the best material? I don't have a massive but would €300 be enough for jerseys, shorts and shoes?

byrnem31

Shoes make a huge difference I think.
Spd Shimano would best best. €60 for a pair and the peddles would be about €60 too.

Omega28

byrnem31 wrote: »

Shoes make a huge difference I think.
Spd Shimano would best best. €60 for a pair and the peddles would be about €60 too.

I have a pair of Look SPD pedals on it already. They came with the bike.

Tony04

Yeh from your post I'd imagine your really fit by the sounds of it. For me on an mtb spin where I'd be wearing old clothes and have flat pedals I'd average about 20-22kph if I'm riding on alot of road to get to trails etc. Obviously if I was just riding trails it be much less. On a road spin, full kit, I usally average between 26-30, traffic lights included, as I record with strava app which doesnt really auto pause.

To answer your question I reckon buying tighter cycling clothing should help with aerodynamics etc. Cycling shoes would also help but not majorly more than toe straps which you are using. Other two things that slow you down are tyres. And bike weight on steep hills.

The biggest difference you can make though is to ride with a club, someone else as you tend to push each other harder, I found I ride much faster riding with someone else than on my own. Same thing with running I find I can run a 5k much faster in a parkrun etc than on my own.

Eamonnator

Omega28 wrote: »

I have a pair of Look SPD pedals on it already. They came with the bike.

If you're wearing trainers with SPD pedals, I'm surprised you're not complaining about sore feet. A pair of cycling shoes with cleats will make a huge difference to you.

Omega28

Eamonnator wrote: »

If you're wearing trainers with SPD pedals, I'm surprised you're not complaining about sore feet. A pair of cycling shoes with cleats will make a huge difference to you.

I seen a pair of Shimano RP1s in Helfords for €72.99 today and the cleats were €19.99.

My feet are okay, it's more my toes that get sore.

Were the pedals on the bike when you got it ? Pedals usually come with cleats supplied.

Just make sure the shoes are compatible with the cleats/pedals, someone will correct me if I'm wrong but I think those shoes will take a cleat for a look pedal.

wheelo01

Are you Dublin based? What size are you?

I ask because I have an amount of tops/shorts/ tights some new with tags, some worn a couple of times that you are welcome to if you are Dublin based and size large.

Omega28

wheelo01 wrote: »

Are you Dublin based? What size are you?

I ask because I have an amount of tops/shorts/ tights some new with tags, some worn a couple of times that you are welcome to if you are Dublin based and size large.

Hi there,

Yes, I'm from Dublin, close to the airport.

I wear XL but I could easily fit in to a Large.

PM your prices

Omega28

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Were the pedals on the bike when you got it ? Pedals usually come with cleats supplied.

Just make sure the shoes are compatible with the cleats/pedals, someone will correct me if I'm wrong but I think those shoes will take a cleat for a look pedal.

I purchased the bike off Adverts.ie about two years ago. The pedals came with the bike but there no cleats.

Omega28

These are the pedals it came with

Omega28

Look Geo Max is the name of the pedals

Omega28

Pedals

smacl

Omega28 wrote: »

Look Geo Max is the name of the pedals

Sounds like Look Keo Max which would be a pain to cycle with in runners. Getting cycling shoes that clip in would give you much better perfomance as would simply changing to a decent flat pedal if you wanted to stay with your runners and not be clipped in. Middle ground would be a touring pedal like the A600

Omega28

smacl wrote: »

Sounds like Look Keo Max which would be a pain to cycle with in runners. Getting cycling shoes that clip in would give you much better perfomance as would simply changing to a decent flat pedal if you wanted to stay with your runners and not be clipped in. Middle ground would be a touring pedal like the A600

Here are the pedals on my bike

Would you know if any road cycling show be compatible with these pedals?

Thanks

magicbastarder

lots of different road cycling shoes would; it's a fairly common standard. however, that style of shoe & cleat would have you walking around like a duck, many people prefer SPD because it's easier to get shoes where the cleat is recessed and it makes them much easier to walk around in.

Omega28

magicbastarder wrote: »

lots of different road cycling shoes would; it's a fairly common standard. however, that style of shoe & cleat would have you walking around like a duck, many people prefer SPD because it's easier to get shoes where the cleat is recessed and it makes them much easier to walk around in.

Quack Quack 😊

Would the Shimano RP1 fit those pedals do you know?

shaveAbullock

Omega28 wrote: »

Quack Quack ��

Would the Shimano RP1 fit those pedals do you know?

Yes even though it's Shimano it works just fine with Look pedals, you would just have to buy the correct cleats. Look Keo Cleats, I'd recommend the grey ones as that's the float that most people find comfortable.

saccades

I'm a big lad and I have "raced" club A4 and regularly do big spins up to 100km.

On the Wicklow 200 I average 23km per hour.

On my short 25km commute home I'm around 34km.

On my long 125km commute I average 26kmph.

Best way to increase speed is flatter routes and riding in a group.

I think you would benefit from proper shoes/pedals and probably some other proper kit to reduce drag. After that something structured although I'm a big fan of the theory of losing weight.

Omega28

saccades wrote: »

I'm a big lad and I have "raced" club A4 and regularly do big spins up to 100km.

On the Wicklow 200 I average 23km per hour.

On my short 25km commute home I'm around 34km.

On my long 125km commute I average 26kmph.

Best way to increase speed is flatter routes and riding in a group.

I think you would benefit from proper shoes/pedals and probably some other proper kit to reduce drag. After that something structured although I'm a big fan of the theory of losing weight.

Losing body weight?

I'm 93kg myself, hardly a lightweight myself.

shaveAbullock

A t-shirt or hoodie will cause loads of drag at anything above 20 km/h.

I wouldn't worry about the weight for now. At 93kg you should shed a fair bit of it without trying just by doing regular long distance cycles.

Omega28

I was in the gym hitting the weights hard up until the pandemic hence the body weight.

I found since I've increased my mileage my appetite is through the food and I'm craving junk foods as well with sugar like jellies, biscuits etc..

saccades

Omega28 wrote: »

Losing body weight?

I'm 93kg myself, hardly a lightweight myself.

Aye, you said you were XL, I'm over 100kg, it's a lot of extra effort to lug that weight up hills and anything over 6% and I really start to notice it.

I know I would be faster for longer if I lost 5kg, would also be cheaper than trying to lose 5kg off the bike.

If you keep the weight you'll be a demon on long flat spins but we don't live in Holland.

shaveAbullock

Still you don't have to lose the weight if you don't want to. If you can continue to do some gym work you could be a strong sprinter.

Your body will be depleting all your glucose reserves while cycling longer distances. Eating while cycling will take the edge of that while improving performance.
The gels you can buy are mostly sugar you're better off eating something you like if you not in a race and have more time to eat, fruit or even soft sweets like jellies are fine.

Omega28

I'm 6ft 1 and I'm more a L than XL. L fits way better.

I don't carry any food with me but after about 40/50km I start to get tired and I really feel it. Doing 75km/100km with no food isn't a nice feeling with no fuel. I always presume my porridge will be enough in the morning and off I go.

So, Look Cleats are required and shoes. I also require a jersey and a new helmet and perhaps some form of bike computer.

magicbastarder

porridge in and of itself is not a high calorie food. cycling for four hours would burn through way more calories than the porridge gives you.

shaveAbullock

Omega28 wrote: »

I'm 6ft 1 and I'm more a L than XL. L fits way better.

I don't carry any food with me but after about 40/50km I start to get tired and I really feel it. Doing 75km/100km with no food isn't a nice feeling with no fuel. I always presume my porridge will be enough in the morning and off I go.

Yup that's what most would call 'the knock' and it can be soul destroying. You defiantly want to avoid it because torturing yourself like that is counterproductive to your training.
When you get a jersey you can put food in the back pocket. Eating a little every 30km or so should do the trick.

As for cycling clothes, I've heard good things about DHB on chinreaction and wiggle.

Omega28

shaveAbullock wrote: »

Yup that's what most would call 'the knock' and it can be soul destroying. You defiantly want to avoid it because torturing yourself like that is counterproductive to your training.
When you get a jersey you can put food in the back pocket. Eating a little every 30km or so should do the trick.

As for cycling clothes, I've heard good things about DHB on chinreaction and wiggle.

I start to really feel weak and shaky then when I go over 75km with no food.

I've been looking around my local bike stores and for €70 I could get a Jersey but it doesn't even look that nice.

Thanks for the advice regarding fuelling every 30km or so.

magicbastarder

€70 is at the upper end for a jersey. call to sports direct for a cheapo option (will not be skintight, but better than a t-shirt for about a third the price) or to decathlon.

as i mentioned, a few bananas and a bottle of water will make a big difference to your cycle. eat the less ripe ones first, and the riper ones after; if i understand correctly, less ripe ones are more starchy and starch takes a bit longer for your body to use as fuel, so are more long term fuelling, but ripe ones are more sugary and are available as fuel more quickly.

Tony04

If you want good price good quality clothing order of galibier cc online. Based out of Lurgan so deliverys/ returns are easy. I used to go to dhb but wiggle crc use seasonal pricing so it's not at a good price when you think of buying it, I never end up buying summer kit in winter. Other than that club kit offers good value if you join a club or you can get some nice castelli, assos, ale etc. stuff on sale. I've found replica kits of pro teams can usally be relatively good value for money also.

wheelo01

Omega28 wrote: »

Hi there,

Yes, I'm from Dublin, close to the airport.

I wear XL but I could easily fit in to a Large.

PM your prices

You are welcome to whatever I have, free, let me look in the press, then I'll tell you what I have.

Omega28

wheelo01 wrote: »

You are welcome to whatever I have, free, let me look in the press, then I'll tell you what I have.

I couldn't take them for free. I would rather give you what they are worth.

wheelo01

As my mammy would say - "you can light a candle for me"
It's not top end stuff, it is just something to get you going.

It's a few bits I have left from this thread https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=110074926 and if you insist on a payment, buy a homeless person a sandwich.

Omega28

wheelo01 wrote: »

As my mammy would say - "you can light a candle for me"
It's not top end stuff, it is just something to get you going.

It's a few bits I have left from this thread https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=110074926 and if you insist on a payment, buy a homeless person a sandwich.

There's still some decent folk left out there. I appreciate that.

dominatinMC

Hi lads, apologies for hijacking the thread, but I have a question that is related to the OPs query which I hope you can shed some light on.

Compared to some on here, I'm a relative novice, as I only stated cycling with any real intent last year. I regularly cycle up to 200k/week and my average speed varies between 24-26 km/hr on my cycles. I have a Giant Contend SL1 but with flat pedals. So my question is, how much of an improvement could I expect to see if I got clipless pedals & cleats, or even pedals with straps? Would it be reasonable to expect an improvement in speed of 1-2 km/hr, or am I thinking about it all wrong!

Tony04

I couldn't be sure exactly but definitely makes a difference as you can pull up aswell as push down, especially going uphill

secman

Tony04 wrote: »

I couldn't be sure exactly but definitely makes a difference as you can pull up aswell as push down, especially going uphill

Much more efficient cadence as stated above pushing and pulling more effective than just pushing.

smacl

dominatinMC wrote: »

Hi lads, apologies for hijacking the thread, but I have a question that is related to the OPs query which I hope you can shed some light on.

Compared to some on here, I'm a relative novice, as I only stated cycling with any real intent last year. I regularly cycle up to 200k/week and my average speed varies between 24-26 km/hr on my cycles. I have a Giant Contend SL1 but with flat pedals. So my question is, how much of an improvement could I expect to see if I got clipless pedals & cleats, or even pedals with straps? Would it be reasonable to expect an improvement in speed of 1-2 km/hr, or am I thinking about it all wrong!

I've recently moved the other way from SPDs to pinned flat pedals with a big platform and am seeing only marginal difference. I've previously had cheaper flat pedals and found clipless were a big improvement, notably descending and also in terms of general comfort on long rides.

Omega28

I bought myself a pair of cycling shoes yesterday and I'm half tempted to try them out today on my 75km spin but I'm also very uncomfortable with clipping them out especially since I've never used them before and coming up to lights/built up areas.

I tried them on and cycled around the block and felt anxious in case I couldn't clip out fast enough

magicbastarder

perfect timing, GCN uploaded this yesterday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXgqsQlFDsA

lissard

Clipping out will become second nature in no time but the first few spins will take a bit of getting used to. I still can't belive that you managed to do 100s of kilometers on look pedals without cleats. Being clipped in should be a million times more comfortable! As a start try unclipping your left foot while slowing down well before coming to a junction. Say 30m out from where you stop. If you unclip too late there is a really good chance of falling over. The other thing that takes a bit of getting used to is clipping in while moving and not looking down. Practice makes perfect and it doesn't take too long. Best of luck with your new hobby!

Omega28

Thanks very much everyone for the advice.

Today I went out and did around 86km on my trainers but tomorrow I'll wear the shoes.

Also, I'm still having problems increasing my average speed. Could this be because of my routes? A lot of built up areas and lights like the city centre, Malahide, Portmanock, Swords etc

Omega28

If anyone would like to follow me on Strava, just search Dylan McCann.

wheelo01

Omega28 wrote: »

If anyone would like to follow me on Strava, just search Dylan McCann.

I sent you a PM about what stuff I gave here if you want it. Sent a few days ago.
Just followed on Strava