BikeErg Workouts and Training

[Dutch]

Training has been hit and miss last couple of weeks. Yesterday I did a 10k in 21.49, nothing special just a gentle plod along. I am going to do 30 mins sessions until xmas now just to get the miles back in.

10023m, 21.49, watts 157, rpm 73, av 2.10.4, df 83.

[Dutch]

I have now started to try and nudge down my training average by 0.2 secs every session. I have settled on 84 df for most distances of 1k and upwards. Rpm is very much the control regulator.

30 mins, 14420m, watts 180, rpm 77, av 2.04.8. df 84.

[Dutch]

I have now started to try and nudge down my training average by 0.2 secs every session. I have settled on 84 df for most distances of 1k and upwards. Rpm is very much the control regulator.
A sprint start of 300m is a great way for me to gain some early ground I have found as well. Not flat out but cruise at about 1.36 then settle on pace.

30 mins, 14420m, watts 180, rpm 77, av 2.04.8. df 84.

[Dutch]

New years training is intervals. Both at cycling and rowing. On the 26th of November I did 6x20 secs 20r intervals and only managed to do 4 over 200m. Today I did 7x20 secs and did over 200m for all 7 over. I did not have much left mentally but should really have done an 8th even if I did not make 200m. It only dawned on me when I had stopped lol.

1415m, 7x20 secs 20r, watts 361 rpm 96, av 1.38.9, df 83.

My aim is to do 10x 20 secs 20r all over 200m, then bring down the rest time to 15secs and then 10, eventually. My thinking is that a month of intervals will have a very strong mental effect. It will be interesting to see what it does fitness wise for me as well.
I will break it up now an then with just a 30 min session instead of intervals, if it get too much mentally.

I am going to try for 10 rounds Saturday but on a df of 78. If I don't make 200m in all of them it does not matter, as I will eventually.
200m seems to be the distance for me that has become the target because of timings, for others it could be 210m or 220 or less at say 165 to 170m. There is no right or wrong distance it purely comes down to what is your barrier for 20 secs.
The whole journey for me is about the mental effect of positivity.

[johnlvs2run]

My fall and winter so far have been good, bettering my 40k, 60' and 20k pbs paces by 2.8, 2.3, and 1.8 seconds respectively. Most recently I managed to better my 30' pb pace but only by 0.3 of a second, and not quite as fast as the previous one at 20k. This points out an issue with my training, which I think over the last 6 months has been the lack of faster speed training which has finally caught up with me.

Thus I am working on this with shorter, faster repetitions. I'd been doing 5x1' with 30" recoveries after longer and harder event paced repetitions which received the primary emphasis. So I'm backing off on the longer paces, and giving the 1' reps more emphasis with 1' recoveries.

Last summer I occasionally did 4x30" with 2' recoveries for speed, which was way out of distant event range, so I'm changing that to 6x30" with 30" intervals. I've done these 3 times so far, twice moderate, and the 3rd time yesterday relatively hard close to 1:50 pace, which is plenty fast enough for upcoming events.

Coincidently, Dutch, these are close to what you're doing as well!
My plan is to keep combining these faster sets with event pace practices, and to see what happens.

[CaseyClarke]

200km - 6:01:52.2 - 1:48.5 - 80

Df 113

Longest ride to date.

First three quarters around low/mid 1:49s. Final 50km in the low 1:46s.

Screenshot @ Instagram: caseyclarke43

[Dutch]

Coincidently, Dutch, these are close to what you're doing as well!
My plan is to keep combining these faster sets with event pace practices, and to see what happens.

They are good to do john, I find my over all cruising speed on a 30 min cycle is coming down. It seems to fortify my muscular endurance somehow.

I do one session intervals then one session distance. Too many intervals otherwise, considering I am doing them on rowing as well and also doing weight training.

[Dutch]

200km - 6:01:52.2 - 1:48.5 - 80
Df 113
Longest ride to date.
First three quarters around low/mid 1:49s. Final 50km in the low 1:46s.

Wow casey, thats pro bike distancing lol. Cracking pace as well, I would be lucky to attempt a 10 k at that pace.

[Dutch]

Plan tonight was to do a 400m in 33secs and see when the tiredness kicks in. It kicked in about 330m, but I had my lowest average for a distance over 200m. In fact is was only 0.4 above my best 200m tt average and it was double the distance. But the df was too low, 92.
I did another run of 350 and did that in 30.1 seconds, again drag was too low, 85, pedalling like a nutter but making no ground, the first 100 was 9.6. I was trying for 9.2 to 9.0 secs.
I then decided on a sprint start 100m tt and put the df up to the highest drag I had ever done any tt at, 120. I recorded my fastest ever time over 100m, 9.3.
The plan is to take the df up by 10 each time in a series of tt over the next couple of weeks.

386m, 33.0 secs, watts 560, rpm 109, av 1.25.4, df 92.
350m, 30.1 secs, watts 550, rpm 109, av 1.26.0. df 85.
100m, 9.3 secs, watts 435, rpm 91, av 1.33.0. df 120.

I lack power in my legs at the moment I feel, but it is getting better. Interval training is making small increments of improvement.

[Dutch]

12 minute ride today with the df upto 121. I am sure a higher df will result in stronger legs with a bit more stamina. A alot of guys on here doing it for up to 40k and more so there must be something in it !
My reasoning is that if I can do 5 to 10k rides on 120 df I should have better stamina in the legs for sprints up to 1k.

5847m, time 12.01, watts 187, rpm 68, av 2.03.3, df 121.

[Dutch]

Was meant to do a 30 min ss cycle but nearly everything that could go wrong today did, so was left with about 15 mins. So I decided on a warm up with a sprint. I was going to do 1k and get a ranked event, but decided 500m would be better. So did the warm up, then the bike wanted a full calibration and then the blooming phone call I was waiting for. So 20 mins later I just did it.

Warm up 1117m, This really should have been 2k minimum.
500m, time 43.4, watts 535, rpm 99, av time 1.26.8, df 110.

This ended up being my seasons best by 6 tenths, it moves me to third in UK rankings and 6th in worlds. Df was too high, I was dehydrated and not warmed up enough, also phased and tired!!
I am starting to realise I am not an all out sprinter, I was quicker last season over the 500, ok we are only talking half a second, but I am more powerful strength wise, but I am slower this season, lol. I also think I seem to peak for sprints in the winter, rowing and cycling both.

[Cant Climb]

In the spring I purchased a 2nd BikeErg. Now have one upstairs and one in the basement cave.
On the newer one have been doing lots of one legged pedaling - seems to have really benefited me outside on the mountain bike.

Started with set of 35 work/10 second rest X 26. Switching legs.
Now up to hour-long sets sometimes. 80 seconds work/10 second rest.

Was very difficult at the beginning. Was shocked how weak some of the muscles in different parts of the pedal stroke were.
I think the support muscles are more efficient now and the main muscles can do more.
If anything I do feel benefits and it's nice protocol to switch things up.

[mattrecc]

Just got my bike erg last week. Not following a training plan at the moment, just doing the WODs that are posted and some sub-threshold stuff.

Ranked workouts so far:
500m TT: 39.3
200M TT: 14.7
30MIN TT: 17,467m

Goals: a 14 or sub 14s 200m, sub 39s 500m.

Today was probably my best overall result, 250cal workout done in 9:52, 5941m, power 353w, drag 89, rpm 94.

[zij]

Just got my bike erg last week. Not following a training plan at the moment, just doing the WODs that are posted and some sub-threshold stuff.

Ranked workouts so far:
500m TT: 39.3
200M TT: 14.7
30MIN TT: 17,467m

Goals: a 14 or sub 14s 200m, sub 39s 500m.

Today was probably my best overall result, 250cal workout done in 9:52, 5941m, power 353w, drag 89, rpm 94.

Well done on those - although I guess you have previous training as those aren't just "get on a bike and get those results in a few weeks".

[Dutch]

Just got my bike erg last week. Not following a training plan at the moment, just doing the WODs that are posted and some sub-threshold stuff.

Ranked workouts so far:
500m TT: 39.3
200M TT: 14.7
30MIN TT: 17,467m

Goals: a 14 or sub 14s 200m, sub 39s 500m.

Today was probably my best overall result, 250cal workout done in 9:52, 5941m, power 353w, drag 89, rpm 94.

Great times and distances matt. Have you road cycled before?