It seems many of the posts are geared toward racing. This post is regarding a pleasure tour that will be over two thousand miles but which I plan to do in a leisurely fashion.
I'm a 27 year old female, slightly overweight (quit smoking last year and put on 20 pounds) touring newbie. I've done lots of long day trips in the States. Now I'm planning my first tour for the end of July from Seattle, through B.C. and the Yukon to Alaska. My bike and I currently live in Seoul, Korea, which, believe me, is NOT a bike-friendly city. I do go on long rides and feel that it is honestly detrimental to my health to be biking in the thick of some of the worst pollution on the planet.
Instead, I've been primarily hiking and (gasp) weight training (it was news to me that weight training isn't good for the biker but I'm a big fan of how strong and healthy it seems to make me feel). I do two 2-hour hikes during the week and hike for about five hours on Saturdays. I ride my bike two and from work, which is about 20 minutes of hills--but it's hardly what I consider a bike work out. For weight training, I alternate upper and lower body three days a week.
I'm doing this trip regardless--I've got the nothing's going to stop me attitude--but for the veteran tourers out there...what's the deal on training for these big trips? My plan is to start out small in the beginning (fifty or so miles a day) and gradually work my way up. It's going to be a "go at my own pace" journey....but yet, with the lack of long rides thus far, my stomach sometimes does a little drop when I think about it. Am I kidding myself that over all general fitness is going to be enough?
Any advice would be great.
I'm a 27 year old female, slightly overweight (quit smoking last year and put on 20 pounds) touring newbie. I've done lots of long day trips in the States. Now I'm planning my first tour for the end of July from Seattle, through B.C. and the Yukon to Alaska. My bike and I currently live in Seoul, Korea, which, believe me, is NOT a bike-friendly city. I do go on long rides and feel that it is honestly detrimental to my health to be biking in the thick of some of the worst pollution on the planet.
Instead, I've been primarily hiking and (gasp) weight training (it was news to me that weight training isn't good for the biker but I'm a big fan of how strong and healthy it seems to make me feel). I do two 2-hour hikes during the week and hike for about five hours on Saturdays. I ride my bike two and from work, which is about 20 minutes of hills--but it's hardly what I consider a bike work out. For weight training, I alternate upper and lower body three days a week.
I'm doing this trip regardless--I've got the nothing's going to stop me attitude--but for the veteran tourers out there...what's the deal on training for these big trips? My plan is to start out small in the beginning (fifty or so miles a day) and gradually work my way up. It's going to be a "go at my own pace" journey....but yet, with the lack of long rides thus far, my stomach sometimes does a little drop when I think about it. Am I kidding myself that over all general fitness is going to be enough?
Any advice would be great.
