Cycling gets you very fit

magicbastarder

ideally, you really should combine swimming, with cycling and running, in that order.

Bigjimdawg

GreeBo wrote: »

Like most activities if you only do that you get conditioned to do that.
I cycled daily for years and was still really only cycle fit, ask me to run 5k and Id be in a heap, also +1 on the upper body dimension, it doenst serve much purpose during cycling so it will naturally dwindle if you just focus on cycling.

I think rowing is without doubt the best bang for your time spent.

To be fair if you have developed excellent aerobic fitness through cycling it's not going to instantly translate into being an excellent runner. But with some specific training (running) you will probably see improvements very quickly and you will be at a huge advantage in comparison to someone starting from the couch.

Bigjimdawg

magicbastarder wrote: »

ideally, you really should combine swimming, with cycling and running, in that order.

Why though? Op isn't trying to be a triathlete as far as I know so what's the rationale for doing all of those activities in that order?

Macy0161

byrnem31 wrote: »

Buy some resistance cords and tone up your arms with them. €15 in declathon. Push ups, chins ups etc. You don't need expensive training equipment. Unless it's a bike of course.

I look at them gathering dust, along with my TRX set and some kettle bells, every time I do the turbo!

magicbastarder

Bigjimdawg wrote: »

Why though? Op isn't trying to be a triathlete as far as I know so what's the rationale for doing all of those activities in that order?

was just a joke.

Bigjimdawg

magicbastarder wrote: »

was just a joke.

My bad.

magicbastarder

OT, i once read that no matter how fast you run a marathon, that the calorie burn is pretty much unchanged; it's fairly linear at abuot 100 calories per mile (for an average male, i would guess).
i wonder for what range of speeds the same would apply in cycling? obviously the big difference there is air resistance becomes much more prominent.

Bigjimdawg

magicbastarder wrote: »

OT, i once read that no matter how fast you run a marathon, that the calorie burn is pretty much unchanged; it's fairly linear at abuot 100 calories per mile (for an average male, i would guess).
i wonder for what range of speeds the same would apply in cycling? obviously the big difference there is air resistance becomes much more prominent.

I think organising your training purely based on what burns the most calories (I know that's not what you're suggesting) is misguided.

Higher intensity activities burn more calories it's that's a simple concept to understand. So maybe we should go out and cycle, jog, row etc as hard as we possibly can for as long as we possibly can. Well yes that will be fantastic for burning lots of calories in the short term but it will inevitably lead to overtraining, injuries as well as being extremely unenjoyable.

The best thing would be to pick an activity you enjoy, train sensibly using a structured plan and focus on improving your fitness (simply training more and harder as you get fitter will handle the weight loss aspect provided your diet is in check).

Ideally some combination of CV training and strength training would be ideal as they both have unique benefits when it comes to maintaining health and aging well.

ted1

magicbastarder wrote: »

OT, i once read that no matter how fast you run a marathon, that the calorie burn is pretty much unchanged; it's fairly linear at abuot 100 calories per mile (for an average male, i would guess).

With marathons I always say speed and weight is linear. 25kg = 1 hour
50kg runner = 2 hour marathon
75kg runner = 3 hour marathon
100kg runner = 4 hours marathon.

Could allign with calories burn which really is the effort to move the mass

magicbastarder

Bigjimdawg wrote: »

I think organising your training purely based on what burns the most calories (I know that's not what you're suggesting) is misguided.

ah yeah, i just thought it was interesting that doubling your speed doubled your calorie burn, you might have expected a non-linear relationship there. (that's assuming what i read was accurate)

eeeee

dahat wrote: »

Did press ups at home on Monday & only managed a pathetic 8, i was hugely embarrassed given my exceptional aerobic fitness.

Thinly veiled 'I can do 8 push-ups' :P

magicbastarder wrote: »

ideally, you really should combine swimming, with cycling and running, in that order.

Can we de-mod someone? :P




Cycling is a really broad and varied sport. I do track for example, and do 2 gym sessions a week with that, lots of power and strength work, work on rollers, mainly riding fixed etc. so lots of core work on and off the bike.

I'm not a long distance person, I lose the will to live at it.



Road cycling where you're going out at a moderate pace for ages is a different thing.


MTB is different again, sprinty, lots of upper body, strength, core etc, BMX even more so.


There are different kinds of fitnesses within cycling, even within the same discipline - I'm an endurance track rider, and I do **** all strength and gym work in comparison to a track sprinter. I also don't do enough endurance on the road but that's a training failure from me

byrnem31

Simon on gcn on YouTube is fit as a fiddle with litte t Rex arms.

The kickboxing is great for helping the cycling fitness levels also. It's all about core strength which is ideal for when cycling too. Loads of upper body workout also. It's a good mix to have.

You need a day that pushes you hard followed by a recovery day, ie. cord band resistance on the easy days at home, both on the arms and legs. You are still getting a workout while stretching the muscles that are sore from a heavy workout ;as opposed to a hard day straight into nothing the following day and be in bits on the 3rd day.

fat bloke

byrnem31 wrote: »

Simon on gcn on YouTube is fit as a fiddle with little t Rex arms.

This is definitely a problem. Cycling indeed gets you fit (for cycling at least) but I find I can hardly open jars anymore and am frequently shamed and embarrassed by flimsy plastic packaging.:o

silverharp

I feel a bit sorry for that guy who has the well known over 50's cycling channel in the UK , he doesnt seem to be getting too much bang for his buck

cletus

What the majority of people refer to as 'fit' seems to be cardiovascular fitness. That's one component of "health related" fitness (as opposed to fitness for sport/performance)

The other components are muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition.

Ideally your training would address directly the first four, and this training then indirectly affects the fifth, body composition.


Once you move past these general health components, you move into performance related components; agility, coordination, balance, power, reaction time, and speed.

Something that's worth thinking about - very often the types of training we do for performance, we do at a risk to our general health.

Wishbone Ash

byrnem31 wrote: »

...You need a day that pushes you hard followed by a recovery day, ie. cord band resistance on the easy days at home, both on the arms and legs. You are still getting a workout while stretching the muscles that are sore from a heavy workout ;as opposed to a hard day straight into nothing the following day and be in bits on the 3rd day.

....or just get out and ride the bike and forget about all the science.

magicbastarder

i did not get out on the bike on sunday because i spent the day moving a ton or two of firewood around. i guess that will serve me for upper body workouts for, i dunno, six months?

Taxuser1

Anyone see training affect sleep or food? the more I train the less I need of some basics like sleep and food. Getting older of course so I know sleep is less needed but I’d get by with 5 hours generally on a set 5 day training week. Energy is generally boundless mid summer at a high.

07Lapierre

I’m not taking any chances. I’m terrified I’ll overtrain and burn out. That’s why I have a beer every Friday evening. You can’t be too careful!

smacl

magicbastarder wrote: »

i did not get out on the bike on sunday because i spent the day moving a ton or two of firewood around. i guess that will serve me for upper body workouts for, i dunno, six months?

I think it was Lumen who said here a couple of year ago that the only reason we have arms is to stop our head hitting the handlebars :pac: