Well, I have officially finished my first week on the bike. Last Friday I bought my Trek 1.1 and absolutely love it. After my latest ride today, I am obviously in need of guidance. I hope you bear with me for the full story because I certainly need some input at this point! I also just finished reading Heft on Wheels by Mike Magnuson, a really inspirational read for those of you that have not read it.
Me:
290 lbs (down from 320 16 months ago), 6'2" and have been out of my gym routine for about 6 months now. I have been Mr. Couch Potato and eating unhealthy again. So, along comes the bike...
Here's what my past week has been like:
Friday (last) - 1st day on bike, 4 miles at a steady pace
Saturday - 10 miles in 58 minutes, a few off saddle sprints, a couple BABY hills
Sunday - Rest (Rained all day)
Monday - 12 miles untimed (about an hour)
Tuesday - 13.5 miles untimed (about an hour), 5 minute rest off bike after 10 miles (was going to quit, but went back for more)
Wednesday - Rest (life got in the way)
Thursday (today) - 7.2 miles in 38 minutes, a few inclines, some wind from the river at my side, no off saddle sprints
At the end of Tuesday I felt like wow, this is amazing... I'm having a blast AND getting in shape. Maybe I can be really good at this once I drop the weight (HAH). Today I take on an entirely new route on the levee. I was not expecting the elevation changes that were there, and I didn't get much sleep last night... but at the end of my ride I literally felt every muscle in my legs and core burning like I had been at the gym for 2 hours doing hard cardio.
I came home and went straight to the sofa. I fell asleep and was beyond exhausted. I swear in all my time at the gym before I never had a workout this hard. When I woke up and looked at the mileage I did in that 38 minutes, I was extremely disappointed. I thought I had gone longer with the way I felt. It was also the first day I faced the inclines like that, and also the first day I had a ride in the wind. Keep in mind that I live in mostly flat New Orleans, and an incline here is more like a bump in the road for some of you. We don't have hills and we don't have mountains. We have bridges and slight elevation changes from below sea level to slightly above sea level lol.
So... I'm awake now and feeling like I can function but MAN does it hurt! That's a good thing, but what I'm bummed about is why was my performance so bad today? I felt like I did 20 miles and didn't even match nor increase my maximum mileage in a day so far. My goal here was to build up to 20 miles in a single ride, and then start going into more proper training. I still need to get my bike computer, which I'm picking up tomorrow, along with a few other things I want... so I have no idea what my cadence has been but I am staying at what I feel is an up-tempo cadence. Another thing I noticed today is that my heart rate was WAY up. I need a heart rate monitor too, which I'll get soon.
What do you guys think about how I felt today compared to my ride? Was it just a bad day? Does that happen so soon? Was it the wind and inclines? I don't think I bonked out, because I still had energy.. but my legs were just on FIRE and I was gasping for air. Another thing I did notice at work today, while going up a couple long flights of stairs... is that my legs were definitely sore as they have been all week (another good thing though, right?), but I didn't ride last night... so what gives?
Where do you guys suggest I go from here? Any plan of attack or strategy? I would love to hear especially from those of you that have dropped serious weight on a bike because in the end that's the ultimate goal.. having a blast on the bike and getting out in the world doing it is just a fantastic perk of working toward the ultimate goal. I have also gone back to healthy eating. I never completely stopped eating healthy since I fell out of my gym routine, but I certainly started making bad choices frequently (snacks, ice cream, etc). I have now cut all of that back out and gone back to the diet that helped me drop so much weight before in the gym.
Me:
290 lbs (down from 320 16 months ago), 6'2" and have been out of my gym routine for about 6 months now. I have been Mr. Couch Potato and eating unhealthy again. So, along comes the bike...
Here's what my past week has been like:
Friday (last) - 1st day on bike, 4 miles at a steady pace
Saturday - 10 miles in 58 minutes, a few off saddle sprints, a couple BABY hills
Sunday - Rest (Rained all day)
Monday - 12 miles untimed (about an hour)
Tuesday - 13.5 miles untimed (about an hour), 5 minute rest off bike after 10 miles (was going to quit, but went back for more)
Wednesday - Rest (life got in the way)
Thursday (today) - 7.2 miles in 38 minutes, a few inclines, some wind from the river at my side, no off saddle sprints
At the end of Tuesday I felt like wow, this is amazing... I'm having a blast AND getting in shape. Maybe I can be really good at this once I drop the weight (HAH). Today I take on an entirely new route on the levee. I was not expecting the elevation changes that were there, and I didn't get much sleep last night... but at the end of my ride I literally felt every muscle in my legs and core burning like I had been at the gym for 2 hours doing hard cardio.
I came home and went straight to the sofa. I fell asleep and was beyond exhausted. I swear in all my time at the gym before I never had a workout this hard. When I woke up and looked at the mileage I did in that 38 minutes, I was extremely disappointed. I thought I had gone longer with the way I felt. It was also the first day I faced the inclines like that, and also the first day I had a ride in the wind. Keep in mind that I live in mostly flat New Orleans, and an incline here is more like a bump in the road for some of you. We don't have hills and we don't have mountains. We have bridges and slight elevation changes from below sea level to slightly above sea level lol.
So... I'm awake now and feeling like I can function but MAN does it hurt! That's a good thing, but what I'm bummed about is why was my performance so bad today? I felt like I did 20 miles and didn't even match nor increase my maximum mileage in a day so far. My goal here was to build up to 20 miles in a single ride, and then start going into more proper training. I still need to get my bike computer, which I'm picking up tomorrow, along with a few other things I want... so I have no idea what my cadence has been but I am staying at what I feel is an up-tempo cadence. Another thing I noticed today is that my heart rate was WAY up. I need a heart rate monitor too, which I'll get soon.
What do you guys think about how I felt today compared to my ride? Was it just a bad day? Does that happen so soon? Was it the wind and inclines? I don't think I bonked out, because I still had energy.. but my legs were just on FIRE and I was gasping for air. Another thing I did notice at work today, while going up a couple long flights of stairs... is that my legs were definitely sore as they have been all week (another good thing though, right?), but I didn't ride last night... so what gives?
Where do you guys suggest I go from here? Any plan of attack or strategy? I would love to hear especially from those of you that have dropped serious weight on a bike because in the end that's the ultimate goal.. having a blast on the bike and getting out in the world doing it is just a fantastic perk of working toward the ultimate goal. I have also gone back to healthy eating. I never completely stopped eating healthy since I fell out of my gym routine, but I certainly started making bad choices frequently (snacks, ice cream, etc). I have now cut all of that back out and gone back to the diet that helped me drop so much weight before in the gym.