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John W.
John W. Sendmail

Where is the stamina?

posted 5 months ago | Report

I've been cycling now since late August, although I did have two 3 week "breaks" in there (one in September for a back issue, one in November due to a broken spoke that Dick's took forever to get fixed, but that's another story). During the 2nd layoff I did go to the gym a few times.

So now I've cycled 240 miles in that time. I figured by now I'd be noticing some changes. My cycling has definitely gotten better; I can go longer and faster than when I started.

However, I thought this would translate to better general stamina. Last night I was playing Just Dance Kids with my kids. After 3 dances I was seriously done. This morning I ran up the steps to find something and was already breathing hard.

Am I doing something wrong, like going too easy or going to hard? Or does it just take a REALLY long time to build stamina?

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  • Alex J.
    Alex J. Sendmail

    Nice job so far -- it's great that you're biking! You should definitely expect cardiovascular improvements to carry over to your other activities.

    To me it looks like you're building up mileage very slowly. Almost all your rides since the beginning have been 35-45 minutes. Try adding a long, easy ride every week or so, even if it means shortening your other rides a bit. I bet you could do 90-120+ minutes if you take it easy and/or take breaks.

    And how hard are you going?

    posted 5 months ago

  • John W.
    John W. Sendmail

    Depends on the day, but I'd say moderate to heavy. When I hit 14Mph average I'm suffering quite a bit. Trouble is I do this at lunch time, so longer rides really aren't on the menu. Changing both ways+grabbing something to eat only leaves around 45 minutes to ride.

    Two young kids (7 and 4) means if I go out riding on the weekend, they want to ride too, and their little short legs means it would be really, really SLLLOOOWWW.

    posted 5 months ago | edited 5 months ago

  • Alex J.
    Alex J. Sendmail

    I don't have your time constraints, nor do I use cycling for fitness, but here's my 2c:

    Try some intervals (a few minutes hard followed by a few minutes easy). Make sure you can do your last interval just as fast as your first.

    Take it easier on your other workouts. You can get really good benefits from spending time at a level where you can still comfortably breathe through just your nose.

    And as a former kid, I highly recommend taking your kids out riding on the weekend :-)

    posted 5 months ago

  • John W.
    John W. Sendmail
    in reply to what Alex J. said:I don't have your time constraints, nor do I use cycling for fitness, but here's my 2c: Try some intervals (a few minutes hard followed by a few minutes easy). Make sure you can do your last interval just as fast as your first. Take it easier o... read more

    I do take my kids out riding, but my daughter is 4, she's on a bike with like 12" wheels plus training wheels, so she's just slow and because her cranks are so short she gets tired quickly, especially on hills (it's not her fitness as she can sprint around a soccer field until I'm ready for a nap just by watching her). She's also getting tall and the bike just doesn't fit her anymore, but I'm reluctant to upgrade her till she loses the training wheels (which might start this weekend). So going biking with the kids doesn't get my heart rate much past 120 or so.

    Where I ride is hilly (for me at least, I'm sure most real cyclists would call it rolling at best) so I do sort of do intervals naturally.

    Who knows, I might just be congested this week given the crazy back-and-forth the weather's been doing (one day I'm riding in shorts and a T-shirt, next day I'm on a sweatshirt, sweatpants, and light gloves).

    posted 5 months ago

  • Michael D.
    Michael D. Sendmail

    Don't measure how much you're doing in how many miles you go, measure it by how much time you're spending in the saddle.

    As for your kids, get a trailer or one of those attachments that turns your bike into a tandem.

    posted 5 months ago

  • Ray G.
    Ray G. Sendmail

    Hey John,

    You have many options to choose from. You can do your Intervals during lunch, longer rides on the weekends or after work (need lights) or super early (Ride to work if possible). Riding with your kids is going to be a fun family event, nothing more. Have fun riding with them and have another time to ride by yourself or with a group. Mix and match as needed.

    posted 5 months ago

  • Greg S.
    Greg S. Sendmail

    It does take some time to build up stamina. It's no surprise the improvements in riding don't translate to dancing. Different muscle groups from those you use riding.

    Keep at it. Do some cross training. How about some treadmill, swimming or running.

    Oh, and learn how to fix a broken spoke as it only takes a few minutes. A couple of bikes ago I had one that broke spokes all the time. I eventually learned how to fix them. Well worth the effort.

    Good luck!

    posted 5 months ago

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