Getting back to cycling

I have taken a 4 week break to sort out my work, move into another house and work out what I would do in future. It would take me just as much time to get back fit again (shucks!). Now that I live in a different neighbourhood, I would need another place to do my regular rides in Petaling Jaya. Look at the bright side, at least I would be closer to a bicycle shop in case I need some supplies. I should be getting back into the ride routine within a week or two.

Cycling in the mornings

After just riding for a month, I have lost 2 inches off my waistline from 38" to 36". I have decided to cycle for an hour every weekday and try to loose another 2 inches. Despite taking breaks of 1 - 2 weeks off training, I have found that it would take me at least 1 week to get back to the cycling rhythm after taking that break. The longest break I should take without affecting my ride would be 3 -4 days.

Since I would like to cycle without loosing to much fluid and feeling muscle soreness, I have decided to ride in the morning instead of the evening. The cool morning temperature of 23-26 degrees C would be beneficial to ensure that I can train longer.

Polar CS600 for Cyclists

My latest ride yesterday recorded a distance of 21km, average speed of 18.2km/h, average HR of 144bpm, 87.1% within target zone, burnt 971 kcal and a duration of 1:09:16. It was fairly warm weather at 33 degrees Centigrade. I shall need to plan my rides and my rest more closely as I will be quite busy during the weekend. The Polar CS600 comes in handy to help reorganise my training.

Here are some photos of the cycling computer system which would give you Heart Rate (HR), % Heart Rate Max (HRM), Cadence, Speed, Distance, Exercise Zones, Calories, Heart Rate Variability and Fitness Testing. Just takes some time to read the manual and utilise each item. I am getting some help from the Polar distributor to commission the device. The graphs are really impressive. I like the fact that it warns me if I'm overdoing it with a beeping sound and tells me speed in min/km and km/h.

Progress in Cadence and Endurance

I am still riding 20km five times a week except that it seems slightly heavier on both knees with the Mountain bike tyres instead of road tyres. I will probably improve on my spin at 90-100 rpm with various gear ratios to build on my endurance while picking up speed steadily. The CS600 Polar Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) has been a useful tool providing me vital Heart Rate (HR), Cadence, Speed, Distance and Time information. I have just got the device working after my bike technician Yong fixed the cadence and speed sensors. I just followed the instructions on the product manual and it worked fine.

I realised that I am probably dehydrated during the ride resulting in a higher HR and decreasing preformance after riding for 15km during each session. I shall download the data from the CS600 to have a look at the data before progressing to harder work-loads.

There is talk of doing a double session to mimic travel to work (20km one way). I think that would have to wait as I may need to improve my fitness to ensure that I am fit enough for extra training.

4th Training Session

I did the fourth training session only riding flat-terrain for 20 laps of 1km with very little traffic making a total of 20km. It took me 1 hour and 15 minutes since I had to stop at the Mamak joint to get a glass of 'Limau Ais' and another glass of 'Ais kosong' while I stretched off the calf muscle cramp. I didn't manage to get the bottle holder for the bicycle and survived on 2 glasses of water just before cycling (Don't ask me how I can do that! Just watch my belly!).

Somehow the neighbourhood knows that I am here to cycle daily. So most drivers have started to slow down when they see me coming. A few did try drive me off the road as they would do to a motorbike.

I seem to be catching my breath with less effort and able to push an average of 22 km/h except for the U-turns. I had to learn how to stand on the pedals to relieve the perineal pressure (sore buttocks!) and give my calf muscles a stretch. Cycling has become more interesting day by day.

Some more photos of my calf stretches and my bike.

First Road Cycling Training session

I had my first training session on Saturday evening lasting for 40 minutes and found that it was difficult maintaining 22 km/h even on a flat terrain. I was just getting used to the 8-speed Shimano gears as it had been probably 20 yrs since I've last rode on a bike. My heart rate after the session was 110 bpm even after 5 minutes of rest and at 10 minutes, it was 90 bpm. It was a difficult ride charting a 17-18 on the Borg's Exertional Scale.

I need the Polar Heart Rate Monitor the next time I cycle. It will probably take another 4 - 6 weeks before I get fit enough for cycling to work.