(More!) Base Miles on the Trainer

The importance of long steady distance (LSD) training for endurance athletes early in the season has been well-documented. Several years ago, I began organizing my training around a periodization model outlined by Joe Friel in The Cyclist's Training Bible that combines base miles with interval training in the early season to lay down a strong foundation for endurance and speed later in the season. The trouble is, at the exact moment that LSD training would be most useful, the temperatures plunge into the single digits (or worse!), the snows kick in and black ice covers the surfaces of many of the local backroads. In other words, it's just about impossible to get out safely in February to lay down the kind of base that would be most helpful to a strong endurance engine come July. This is where a good indoor trainer is essential in upstate New York where I live.

It's pretty easy to get onto the trainer for an hour or so here and there, but while interval work is critical for early season training, these short rides don't do much to lay down a mileage base. That's where Troy Jacobson's Spinervals series has been a godsend. Each winter, these DVDs have enabled me to extend my time on the indoor trainer significantly and as a result, establish base miles while the roads are still too hazardous. The discs I find most helpful for this purpose are the "Virtual Reality" DVDs that essentially follow Troy, and in some cases a few friends, over assorted iron distance courses filmed in mild weather. Staring at my laptop on the card table in front of the trainer is surprisingly absorbing as Troy barks commands regarding gears and levels of exertion. The courses and lengths of each of the discs vary, but each typically clocks in at about three hours and covers 50-60 miles. Today I rode in Madison, Wisconsin whereas last week it was Lake Placid, New York.

Nothing compares to simply riding on the open roads, but when the thermometer doesn't rise above 30F for weeks on end and snow storms blanket the roads, other strategies are required. While I'm carefully watching the forecast and hoping to get out to ride a 100K permanent next weekend, it's good to know that my training won't suffer if another storm heads into town (which is more than likely).

Laying Down Some Base Miles (in my dining room).

It's hard to believe that it's been over three weeks since my last post. While I wish I could say that it's because I've been riding outdoors so much, that would just not be true.

The unseasonably mild weather during this year's Festive 500 gave me the illusion that accumulating base miles would be a piece of cake this year. Not so fast. Despite my interest in logging long, early-season rides, recent arctic temperatures have held the northeast hostage over the past several weeks and show no signs of abating. I know, I know, it's winter. There's really no surprise that it's cold and snowy in late January, but when the thermometer doesn't climb above 20F for several weeks in a row, it tends to take the wind out of your sails as far as early training goes.

In order to build a strong base, I'd like to log a minimum of 10 hours on the bike each week including at least one 50+-mile ride. In the context of limited sunlight, ice, snow and work, this is not as easy as it appears. So indoors we must go. This Saturday, I dragged my trainer, my laptop, my speakers and my bike into the dining room and rode with Coach Troy Jacobson through one lap of the Michigan Ironman bike course and, despite my whining, it was a pretty good workout.

Lake Placid Training Ride (with Coach Troy)

18 degrees with 4 inches of fresh snow on the ground? Sounds like a perfect morning for a 56-mile spin over the Lake Placid Ironman course . . . on my trainer. Coach Troy to the rescue. Knowing the storm was on the horizon, I set up the studio last night and rolled out of bed before 9:00 this morning, brewed a pot of coffee and clipped in for a 3-hour training session. Living in the cold and snowy Northeast, I love the Spinervals Virtual Reality Series of training DVDs, each of which follows a loop of an Ironman bike course. So far, I've got Lake Placid, NY, Louisville, Kentucky and Madison, Wisconsin. It's pretty hard to keep up the motivation to get on the trainer for a one-hour workout, but 3-hours - forget about it. These DVDs make all the difference and really help build aerobic endurance over the winter in order to hit the spring in good form.

Well, I wasn't able to meet my three trainer session workout goal this week, but I did get to the gym for a good strength workout and managed to hit the trainer once mid-week before this morning's ride. I hope for better results with a few hour-long interval sessions and at least one 3-hour session per week to get my muscular and aerobic endurance up.

In ultracycling news: Bryce Walsh just posted a stage win in his Cairo-to-Cape Town race. Go Bryce! More on that here.

The Indoor Season Begins

With all the dry, mild weather we've been having, who wants to ride indoors? I sure haven't. Today, as temperatures dropped into the single digits over night, though, it was time to dust off the machines and give it a go. I had originally planned to try out my new Spinervals "Virtual Reality" DVD (this one in Louisville, KY) but didn't quite have the 3.5 hours today that it would have required. Good thing, too, as it's probably wise for me to lay down a bit of a base before getting all epic on the trainer. So instead, I did an hour. Time to go into the pain cave and build a cardio base.

Up next: intervals on the trainer 3 nights this week and a 3-hour session on the weekend.