PMC Tips #3: Training
This is the third post in my weekly series of hints, tips, pointers, and advice for other Pan-Mass Challenge charity riders. These are the things I've learned during more than a decade of participating in the PMC.
The full list of posts will be compiled and permanently available online at http://www.ornoth.com/bicycling/hints.php
Whether you're a first-timer or a longtime veteran, may you find these ideas useful, and I hope you have a wonderful PMC experience!
This week I address the core of your PMC prep: Training!
- Train for the ride. You'll be much happier if you do.
- Gradually increase your mileage until you're comfortable doing about 60 percent of the ride's distance. That'll build up your stamina sufficiently to complete the event without putting undue stress on your body.
- Also do a few long back-to-back rides on consecutive days, to get your body used to getting back on the bike a second day in a row.
- Pedal at low resistance and rapid cadence to save your knees. Beginners usually select a gear that's too big/hard, which can damage your knees and makes cycling more work than necessary.
- Make sure that some of your training is on big hills, which will dramatically increase your strength. Hill repeats will provide the biggest training benefit of anything you can do.
- Although hard training is the trigger that tells your body it needs to get stronger, remember that it can only get stronger while you're resting. Get plenty of it, and rest just as diligently as you train, if not more so. If you don't feel like a slacker on your recovery days, you're doing it wrong!
- Begin your season with long, easy, aerobic base miles, then, once you've achieved your basic fitness level, move on to shorter, more intense hill repeats and interval training. Don't focus your training on mileage alone, because beyond a certain point more miles yield no benefit at all.
- Don't train so much that you lose your desire to ride or your performance starts trending downward. That's called overtraining, which happens when you're not getting enough rest and letting your body recover.
- Experiment incorporating basic stretching into your pre- and post-ride routine, especially hamstrings, calves, quads, IT band, and neck.
- Wear sunblock. Serious sunblock. It's much easier to apply to shaved legs, by the way.
- Practice eating and drinking on the bike, and test the foods you plan to ingest on the ride to make sure your body will tolerate them well. Don't make significant dietary changes on the day of the event!
- Practice grabbing your water bottle with a reverse grip, with your thumb toward the bottom rather than the top. That makes it easier to squeeze the bottle and drink from the side of your mouth, so you don't have to raise your head and take your eyes off the road to drink.
- Learn how to ride comfortably in a pack with other riders. Don't let the PMC be your first group ride. This is my most important safety tip, because the first time you ride in a big pack of mixed riders can be both dangerous and harrowing.
- Postride stretching and self-massage are also great aids to recovery.
- The ideal training diet is very low in fat, very high in complex carbs, and moderate in low-fat protein (most Americans get more than enough protein, so you don't need to increase it). On the bike, even simple carbs (sugars) have a role in providing quick energy. Don't be afraid of eating, because a cyclist working hard can burn over 1,000 kcal per hour.
- The Charles River Wheelmen's seriously hilly "Climb to the Clouds" century usually happens two weeks before the PMC, and makes a great test of your readiness. If you can do CttC, the PMC will be no problem at all.
Next week's topic: Fundraising!