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Training

It is a good idea for everyone to get checked out by their doctor before embarking on a serious training program to address any current or potential physical problems.

To determine how to begin, ask yourself these questions:

• Do I own a bike that is in good mechanical shape and fits me?
• Do I own cycling gear, like gloves, jerseys, or padded shorts?
• Do I regularly ride a bike?
• What is the longest distance I have ridden?
• What is the longest amount of time I have ridden at once?
• Do I know the pace (speed) at which I ride?
• When I do ride a bike, am I comfortable riding in traffic?
• Do I use nutritional supplements and/or sports drinks (like Powerade)?
• Do I eat 3 to 4 well balanced nutritional meals each day?
• If I don’t regularly ride a bike, am I regularly physically active? (i.e. swimming, jogging, going to the gym, etc.)
• Do I properly stretch after any extended physical activity?

If you have answered yes to any of these questions, you are on your way to having a successful training experience. The information below will help you build on the foundation you currently have. If you have answered no to any of these questions, or are unsure, don’t worry because you are not alone.

If you have not been on a bike for years, regardless of your current physical fitness level, we are here to help you. Very few people have ever ridden 180 miles in two days. Once you have determined what your cycling ability is, you will need to map out a training program to make you as strong as possible. Each person is different. No matter what your cycling ability, you need to plan your training in incremental stages, and your Participant Support Representative can help you with that. You should start by riding mostly flat terrain and very few miles. With each subsequent ride you should increase your mileage in small increments. You need to get your body accustomed to this type of exercise.

Cycling

The Baby Dragon 180 Ride is not a race, but rather, an endurance event. You will enjoy the ride in September if you pace yourself and listen to your body. Injury prevention should become part of your daily mantra while training. Pushing yourself too hard might make you susceptible to injury and will only take the enjoyment out of your experience.

To prepare you for the Baby Dragon 180 Ride, we have experienced cyclists to help. All of them have participated and trained for multiday long distance events like this. The chart below is a sample training program for a complete newbie to cycling. The first three columns are approximately what we will be offering on our training rides over the 14 week training program beginning July 11th. We will offer two rides a week, each with different mileage and terrain levels, but both increasing in length and intensity each week. We hope you come both days, as back to back rides is preferred way to train for multiday events. If you are unable to attend our training rides, or unable to find a similar ride in length or terrain, the last two columns will give you an idea of the minimum mileage and number of days a week you should be riding on your own. If you don’t have a cycling computer to track you mileage, don’t worry. When starting out, most beginning cyclists ride at a 8-10 mph pace. Based on this, a 15 mile ride would be about and hour and half to two hours. Twenty miles would be about two hours to two and half hours, and so on. If you cycle regularly, you are probably 3-4 weeks ahead of the first week of this training. We have had first time cyclists who don't normally cycle jump into the training at the halfway mark and still come out ahead. Remember: everybody's body is different. And the only way to know for sure where you are at is to come out for a training ride as soon as you can, even if you haven't registered yet. Your goal is to train on a regular basis, increasing your mileage each week.

Cross Training

A full training program should include cross training, which means choosing a different physical activity to supplement your cycling. This helps prevent injury you might experience from constantly cycling and not engaging other muscle groups. It also gives you options when you can’t ride your bike. Riding your bike is the best way to prepare your body. However, we all have demanding schedules and the weather is not always conducive to riding outside. Remember, the goal is to gain strength and endurance. Your training should be geared towards this end. Also, you should try to enjoy your exercise program. You are more likely to participate regularly if you like the cross training that you have chosen. Swimming is wonderful for endurance training but if you don't like swimming, you most likely won't do it that often. So choose what sounds and feels good to you.

• Swimming
• Running
• Walking
• Hiking
• Spin classes
• Yoga
• Stairmasters
• Treadmills
• Weight training (use less weight and higher reps to achieve the muscle tone for cycling)
• Skiing/snowboarding
• Aerobic classes, such as TAE-BO and step classes
• Dancing
• Kayaking

Any sport that increases your lung capacity and keeps your muscles toned and limber is a great exercise when supplementing your weekly cycling.

Remember, there is no better way to train your body for this event than spending time in the saddle, on the road. But to alternate and enhance your training, you should add one or more of the above exercises to your program.

Hydration & Nutrition

Training does not just involve physical activity; it also involves training yourself to properly fuel your body. Think of yourself as a car. If you want to keep driving it, you'll need to put proper gas into it. You are no different. The important thing here is to find what works FOR YOU and then stick with it. You'll probably have to experiment, and it's very important that you do. You will burn approximately 30 calories per mile, or somewhere in the range of 3,000-5,000 during a day on our Ride. You have to make sure you have them there to burn! Also, remember that these are general guidelines. The key is to find your own routine...you'll learn how much you need to function and recover well. You'd be amazed at how much properly eating and drinking will make a difference. You'll feel better, perform better, and enjoy everything more!

If you don’t properly fuel your body, you are in danger of bonking. Bonking is another way of describing hypoglycemia. It comes on suddenly when we have not properly fueled ourselves, usually during intense activity. Symptoms of bonking include dizziness, lethargy, confusion, shakiness, disorientation, and poor judgment, headache, and hallucinations. If you don't help yourself in time, you will end up passing out. The whole goal of hydration and nutrition is to avoid bonking. If you successfully do both, you'll successfully avoid a bonk and a potential trip to the hospital. If, however, you do begin to bonk, immediately eat something high in sugar. Ask your Participant Support Representative about good foods to eat in this circumstance.

Again, bonking is avoidable if you take the time to eat and drink properly pre-ride, during your ride, and post-ride.

Pre-Ride

Hydration

• The day before you ride, stay away from caffeine and alcohol as much as possible. Caffeine inhibits the absorption of iron (a vital nutrient) by 50%.
• Hydrate with water throughout the day. Try to drink 3 or 4 bottles (700ml each).
• Consider this: the next day, you want to maintain your hydration level on the ride, not have to build it up first!

Nutrition

• You will use carbs stored from 2-3 days before your ride, so make sure they're there!
• Eat a good dinner the night before a ride and be sure to eat breakfast the day of the ride. Ideally, you want to eat at least 3 hours before you start riding, but realistically, eating anytime before you ride is better than not doing it at all.

During the Ride

Hydration

• You should always have electrolyte replacement drink and water with you and drink at least a 1/2 bottle of each between rest stops (every 15 miles or so).
• Consistently sip your beverages rather than intermittently gulp them (about every 10 minutes).
• A good rule of thumb is if you can't remember the last time you took a sip, take a sip!

Nutrition

• Make sure you that you have snacks with you.
• Don't wait for the first rest stop to start eating. Eat one of your snacks within the first 40 minutes of riding, and then every 20 minutes thereafter.
• Consistently nibble your food, rather than intermittently gobble it.

Post-Ride

Note: Post-ride recovery is very important, more than most people think. This can mean the difference between being able to get up the next day to ride and not being able to move. The first 60 minutes following your activity (riding) is known as the "glycogen window." This is the time period when your body will turn nutrients into muscle glycogen (stored energy from carbohydrates). During this time this process happens up to 3 times faster than normal. It is the time most crucial to your recovery.

Hydration

• Immediately after your activity, refuel yourself. A bottle of recovery drink (like Endurox, Gu, Cytosport, etc) is the best because they have the right ratio of carbs to protein (4:1). We don't supply this on the Ride in October, so if you use it, bring it yourself! Other options: regular electrolyte replacement drink, "Emergen-C," instant breakfast drink, or chocolate milk.
• Before you go to bed, make sure your bottle is filled with water. Take a few sips every time you get up to use the bathroom (if you're well-hydrated, it'll be at least a couple of times).

Nutrition

• If you prefer to recover using food instead of liquids, eat something high in carbs immediately after you get off your bike (within the glycogen window). Suggestions are: granola, energy bars, brown bread, brown rice, bananas, juice or bagels.
• Within two hours after your ride, you should have a 500-1,000 calorie meal (the meals on the Ride will have this). You might need to eat twice to get that many calories, and that's okay! Make sure your meal is made up of 65-70% carbs, 15% protein, and 15-20% fat. This means having the salad, some extra pasta, adding salt to your meal, and having dessert.

Other Things to Consider When Training

Group riding—Some of you may be experienced cyclists already and might prefer to train on your own. That’s great! Even if you have basic, intermediate, or even advanced cycling skills, we still encourage you to join our group rides. Riding in a group is very different than riding solo, and on the Ride in October, you’ll be riding with 150 others. For your safety and others’, we’ll want you to have some experience in group riding. Nothing is more important to us than safety. And we are all responsible for doing our part to make sure we know how to ride safely in a group.

Stretching—Stretching is the best way to prevent injury caused by extended physical activity. Commit to stretching 5-10 minutes or longer before a ride. Start by warming up slowly — either on your bike or walking, then spend at least 5-10 minutes stretching. It is very important to warm up before you start stretching — to prevent injury, do not stretch while your muscles are cold! Make a habit of stretching for 1-2 minutes each time you get off your bike. This will help keep your muscles loose throughout the ride. At the end of your ride, plan on spending 15-30 minutes stretching. When your muscles are nice and warm, you'll find you can stretch your muscles more deeply. We will have stretching workshops at some of our training rides, and we also have a detailed stretching guide. Please let your Participant Support Representative know if you would like that sent to you.

Bike Fit—You should be comfortable on your bike, whether you're on a 20 mile easy ride, or a challenging 100 miles. You should not have any of the following: saddle sores, hand or foot numbness, neck or back pain. If you are having any of these symptoms, you need to look at your bike fit. Remember, you will spend many hours in that saddle, and in one position. It's imperative that the fit is correct. We have a quick cheat sheet to help you with improving your bike fit, but ultimately this is something that only a trained professional can properly do. Make sure you ask your bike store if they have trained bike fit professionals and ask them to do your bike fit. If they don’t, seek out a professional. We have information to help you find the one for you. Often you will need to make an appointment, so allow plenty of time to do this. If you're having even the slightest discomfort (which will probably get worse as you start to add on the miles and eventually keep you off the bike for good), we would advise that you seek out such a professional.

Equipment—The following are items that you will find beneficial to your training. In some cases you will see there are mandatory items you must have to participate in official training rides. Mandatory items are: a helmet (ASTM, Snell, ANSI or CPSC approved), water bottles (2 highly recommended), portable pump, patch kit or extra tubes, and tire irons. Recommended items are: small bicycle tool kit, Band-Aids, hand wipes or hand sanitizer, hydration pack, under seat bag to carry extras, pedal cages or clips, lip balm with sunscreen, sunscreen, sunglasses, bike computer, and cycling gear (including padded cycling shorts, cycling jersey, cycling gloves, and cycling shoes).

Remember, everyone’s training is different, so make this experience your own! We are here to help you get the most out of your preparation so the Ride in October is safe, exciting, and rewarding.