You signed up! Congratulations!! Seven days of riding. Some 448 odd miles.
Are you ready? How about your legs? Your butt? Your attitude?
By following these training suggestions, you will be well prepared. Just remember that we can’t ride the bike for you, but we can tell you how far or how long to ride it and how often in preparation.
First, we all know that training with someone else is always helpful. So we strongly encourage you to find some riders in your community. Snoop around at your neighborhood bike shop; there’s a riding club that would love to have you join them. It may seem daunting if you’ve not done this before, but the pay-off is incredibly important. We want you to be healthy and happy the week of the Ride!
There are a number of riding clubs in Boise, but one that is focused on tour training, Ride Idaho specifically, is Community Bicycle Rides (www.communitybicyclerides.org). Its fearless founder and leader, Jeff Larsen will host weekly training rides in the Treasure Valley. Check out his website for the ride schedule – Saturday rides begin in mid-March and Tuesday after work rides start in mid-April.
When you’re training, pay attention to your body (mind, butt, legs, and hands) and your bicycle (shifting, braking, handling). If you encounter difficulty, consider a visit to the bicycle shop or a bicycle specialist to ensure your bicycle is tuned properly and fits you.
During your training, be mindful of the road, traffic, and other cyclists. Learning to handle your bike in these situations is key for a weeklong tour. The Treasure Valley Cycling Alliance provides safe cycling classes free to the Boise community throughout the year. They focus on providing the knowledge of exactly where cyclists and motorists get into problems, and HOW to stay out of these situations. If you are interested in attending one of their classes, use the ‘contact us’ section at www.biketreasurevalley.org. Additionally, TVCA will be working with the YMCA to hold a special session for local Ride Idaho riders prior to the event in August.
Think about how your clothes feel. If they’re not right, make some adjustments. I have a friend who says there is no such thing as bad weather- only the wrong clothes. This could make the difference between a comfortable ride and a miserable one. Also, think about food. Think about it in terms of fuel and ability to digest easily. Your body is going to operate differently with different types and amounts of fuel. Gauge what your body (mind, butt, legs, and hands) needs. Again, this could make the difference between a comfortable ride and a miserable one.
Below are two training calendars. The first lays out a calendar based on a weekly mileage goal and the second focuses on your Maximum Heart Rate. Choose the one that feels right to you!
Training Calendar 1
This calendar is based on miles. How many and how often, building up to just before the Ride. Structure a training schedule working backwards from the week of Ride Idaho (August 8-14).
The last week before the ride (Aug 1-7) you want to “taper off” your regimen, not riding hard at all the 3 days prior to the first day of Ride Idaho. Tapering allows your body (mind, butt, legs, and hands) to relax, meaning you can show up to the Ride ready to ride!
The month prior to your ride (July) should be the buildup in terms of distance, progressing from 125 to 185 miles a week. This month should feature two consecutive long-ride days (weekends work well for this). Doing so will get you (mind, butt, legs, hands) familiar with the sensation of riding a lot of miles day after day. Taking a hot shower, a nap, a couple of ibuprofen, and a good night’s sleep on a cot will help some too!
Two months prior to your ride (June) should be about getting the base miles in. “Base miles” is a euphemism for butt conditioning in the saddle time. Getting comfortable with 100 miles per week is key. This is also the time to make fine tuning adjustments to bicycle fit and overall equipment performance.
Three months prior to your ride (May) should be about ramping your miles. Start slowly. There is no need to push if you start by May 1 with your training. Think of increasing your total mileage 10% per week. Getting started slowly in May is more important than thinking you can cram all your training into June and July.
Four months prior to your ride (April) should be about getting the bike tuned up, finding some riding partners or a local club, getting your calendar cleared for the summer months of riding, and getting that first ride of the season under your belt.
Now let’s talk about hills. We have them in Idaho. You will even have to ride up a few of them. The toughest day is day 5 with two climbs of 2000+ vertical feet of climb with grades ranging from 5-7%. A positive spin is that we’ll have you ride down a few too! So be sure to incorporate hillage in your training. Live in Florida or Kansas? Well, then you should move to Idaho!
| Week (Sat-Fri) Beginning: | Total Miles for Week | # of weekend rides / total miles for rides | # weekday rides / total miles for rides |
| 25-Apr | 40 | 1/15 | 2/25 |
| 2-May | 50 | 1/20 | 2/30 |
| 9-May | 50 | 1/20 | 2/30 |
| 16-May | 60 | 1/20 | 3/40 |
| 23-May | 70 | 1/20 | 3/50 |
| 30-May | 80 | 1/30 | 3/50 |
| 6-Jun | 80 | 1/30 | 3/50 |
| 13-Jun | 90 | 1/35 | 3/55 |
| 20-Jun | 90 | 1/35 | 3/55 |
| 27-Jun | 100 | 1/40 | 3/60 |
| 4-Jul | 125 | 2/65 | 3/60 |
| 11-Jul | 140 | 2/80 | 3/60 |
| 18-Jul | 160 | 2/95 | 3/65 |
| 25-Jul | 185 | 2/140 | 2/45 |
| Aug 1-7 | 90 | 2/55 | 2/35 |
| Aug 8-14 | 448 | Ride Idaho! | Enjoy!! |
Training Calendar 2
A little bit about Maximum Heart Rate Training. Some consider it the best way to get the most out of training while minimizing your training time. Basically, it’s about conducting your training within certain zones of your maximum heart rate for a certain amount of time. It’s not about how far you ride, it’s about how you most efficiently train during the time you’ve got.
We’ve all got two energy systems: an aerobic system and an anaerobic system. Aerobic- think about aerobics class, you’re pushing it hard for a while. This system utilizes stored fat and oxygen. Anaerobic is different in that it utilizes stored sugar for shorter periods of activity. These two systems are always working within us- making us go. What changes about these systems, is the ratio in which they operate, based on what our activity is at the moment. At higher activity levels, we mostly use our anaerobic system; at lower levels, the aerobic system is kicking it more than the anaerobic. The key to training efficiently is in the ratio, and how do we measure said ratio? There’s a formula!
It’s a little teensy one: 220 minus your age. This is the estimate. So let’s say you’re 55 (220-55=165), 165 is an estimate of your maximum heart rate (MHR). From this rate, we identify 4 distinct heart rate zones, see below. Our training will incorporate 3 of these.
Zone 1 (Z1) is 62-70% of your MHR (lower-end aerobic training)
Zone 2 (Z2) is 71-81% of your MHR (higher-end aerobic training)
Zone 3 (Z3) is 82-84% of your MHR (middle zone)
Zone 4 (Z4) is 85-90% of your MHR (primarily anaerobic training)
Again, you’re 55, and we’ve already determined that your maximum heart rate is 165 beats per minute (BPM). This means your heart rate should be operating within the listed range for the following zones:
Zone 1 (Z1): 102 BPM to 115 BPM
Zone 2 (Z2): 117 BPM to 134 BPM
Zone 3 (Z3): 135 BPM to 139 BPM
Zone 4 (Z4): 140 BPM to 149 BPM
These will vary cyclist to cyclist, being the unique individuals that we all are. So, perform a mini, a 15 minute time trial wearing a heart rate monitor. You should perform this test in a flat area. Warm up for 10-15 minutes and then cool down after the trial for 10-15 minutes. If you give it your all and cycle at an even pace, your heart rate should be above 90% of maximum (above the bottom of Zone 4) within the first 5 minutes, and you should reach your MHR in the final 5 minutes. If your results differ from the estimates, then just adjust your heart rate zones to reality.
The following calendar has training dates that focus on different cycling within the different zones. For example: February 1 says “Z2 / Medium,” what does this mean? Well, basically, take a medium length ride and keep your heart rate within your Zone 2, ie, if you’re 55, then keep your heart rate between 117-134 BPM. If there’s snow and ice outside, then spin indoors.
There are 3 different distances within this calendar: Short, Medium, and Long. Below are some basic guidelines as to how to gauge what a short ride may mean to you. Look them over, and decide what’s best for you. Again, this is a guide, and we don’t know you and your ability. Flex this to your own ability.
| Short Ride (min. minutes) |
Medium Ride (min. minutes) |
Long Ride (min. minutes) |
||
| Beginner | Base 1 | 20 | 40 | 60 |
| Base 2 | 40 | 80 | 120 | |
| Build 1 | 60 | 120 | 180 | |
| Build 2 | 80 | 120 | 200 | |
| Short Ride (min) | Medium Ride (min) | Long Ride (min) | ||
| Average | Base 1 | 30 | 60 | 90 |
| Base 2 | 60 | 90 | 120 | |
| Build 1 | 90 | 120 | 200 | |
| Build 2 | 90 | 150 | 200 | |
| Short Ride (min) | Medium Ride (min) | Long Ride (min) | ||
| Advanced | Base 1 | 40 | 80 | 120 |
| Base 2 | 50 | 100 | 150 | |
| Build 1 | 60 | 120 | 180 | |
| Build 2 | 70 | 140 | 210 |
Synopsis of larger calendar:
| Base 1 | 2/1/2009 |
3/18/2009 |
| Recovery 1 | 3/19/2009 |
3/302009 |
| Base 2 | 3/31/2009 |
5/5/2009 |
| Recovery 2 | 5/6/2009 |
5/17/2009 |
| Build 1 | 5/18/2009 |
6/22/2009 |
| Recovery 3 | 6/23/2009 |
7/4/2009 |
| Build 2 | 7/2/2009 |
7/31/2009 |
| Taper | 8/1/2009 |
8/8/2009 |
| Ride Idaho | 8/9/2009 |
8/15/2009 |
Here is the calendar:
| Heart Rate Zone Training Calendar | |||||
| 1-Feb | Z2 / Medium | 1-Mar | Z1 / Long | 3-Apr | Z4 / Medium |
| 3-Feb | Z1 / Long | 4-Mar | Z2 / Medium | 4-Apr | Z1 / Short |
| 6-Feb | Z2 / Short | 7-Mar | Z2 / Medium | 6-Apr | Z2 / Long |
| 8-Feb | Z1 / Medium | 11-Mar | Z4 / Short | 8-Apr | Z1 / Short |
| 10-Feb | Z2 / Long | 12-Mar | Z1 / Medium | 10-Apr | Z2 / Medium |
| 12-Feb | Z1 / Medium | 14-Mar | Z2 / Medium | 12-Apr | Z1 / Long |
| 15-Feb | Z2 / Medium | 18-Mar | Z4 / Short | 15-Apr | Z2 / Medium |
| 18-Feb | Z1 / Short | 19-Mar | Z1 / Short | 17-Apr | Z4 / Short |
| 20-Feb | Z2 / Medium | 22-Mar | Z1 / Long | 18-Apr | Z1 / Short |
| 22-Feb | Z2 / Medium | 25-Mar | Z2 / Medium | 20-Apr | Z1 / Long |
| 24-Feb | Z1 / Long | 28-Mar | Z2 / Medium | 22-Apr | Z2 / Medium |
| 27-Feb | Z2 / Short | 30-Mar | Z1 / Long | 24-Apr | Z4 / Short |
| 29-Feb | Z2 / Medium | 25-Apr | Z1 / Medium | ||
| 27-Apr | Z2 / Long | ||||
| 29-Apr | Z2 / Medium | ||||
| 1-May | Z4 / Short | 1-Jun | Z1 / Long | 2-Jul | Z4 / Medium |
| 2-May | Z1 / Medium | 3-Jun | Z2 / Medium | 3-Jul | Z2 / Medium |
| 4-May | Z1 / Long | 5-Jun | Z4 / Medium | 6-Jul | Z2 / Long |
| 7-May | Z2 / Short | 6-Jun | Z2 / Short | 8-Jul | Z2 / Short |
| 9-May | Z2 / Medium | 8-Jun | Z1 / Long | 10-Jul | Z1 / Long |
| 11-May | Z1 / Long | 11-Jun | Z4 / Medium | 12-Jul | Z2 / Medium |
| 14-May | Z2 / Medium | 12-Jun | Z1 / Medium | 13-Jul | Z1 / Long |
| 17-May | Z1 / Medium | 14-Jun | Z2 / Medium | 15-Jul | Z4 / Short |
| 18-May | Z2 / Long | 15-Jun | Z1 / Long | 16-Jul | Z2 / Medium |
| 21-May | Z2 / Medium | 17-Jun | Z4 / Short | 18-Jul | Z1 / Medium |
| 24-May | Z4 / Short | 18-Jun | Z2 / Short | 19-Jul | Z2 / Short |
| 25-May | Z2 / Medium | 20-Jun | Z2 / Short | 20-Jul | Z1 / Long |
| 27-May | Z1 / Short | 21-Jun | Z1 / Medium | 22-Jul | Z1 / Short |
| 28-May | Z2 / Medium | 24-Jun | Z1 / Short | 23-Jul | Z2 / Long |
| 30-May | Z2 / Medium | 26-Jun | Z1 / Medium | 24-Jul | Z4 / Medium |
| 28-Jun | Z1 / Short | 26-Jul | Z4 / Short | ||
| 29-Jun | Z2 / Long | 27-Jul | Z1 / Long | ||
| 29-Jul | Z1 / Medium | ||||
| 30-Jul | Z4 / Short | ||||
| 31-Jul | Z1 / Long | ||||
| 2-Aug | Z1 / Long | ||||
| 3-Aug | Z2 / Medium | ||||
| 6-Aug | Z4 / Short | ||||
| 8-Aug | Z1 / Short | ||||
Training Calendar 1 was adapted from the training regimen for Ride the Rockies.
Training Calendar 2 was created by Erik Selekof, formerly at the Downtown Boise Family YMCA, who utilized “beIRONfit: Time-Efficient Training Secrets for Ultimate Fitness” by Don Fink.
