2 Ways to Make Your Bike Faster

There is great cycling talent in America. Bike racing here on a professional level is extremely competitive, but why is it that when an American pro goes to Europe, he’s often fighting hard just to stay at the front of the race.

A few years ago, a trainer from a European pro cycling team came to New York and I had the chance to do some fitness testing with him. After my testing, he told me that the American pro racers aren’t on the same level because they all need to be lighter, even as much as 10 pounds.

Dropping some weight is one of the best ways to become a better cyclist. That’s why guys are so obsessed over having a lighter bike. Even just 5 pounds more or less makes a huge difference. But taking 5 pounds off of your bike? That can cost you a few thousand dollars. Taking it off of your body won’t cost you anything but your morning donut.

Here are 2 ways you can drop a few pounds and go uphill like you’ve got a motor on your bike:

Low Carb

We’ve all heard the craze about low carbohydrate diets, but they are not the way you want to lose weight. Carbs are to you what gas is for your car, and you don’t want to get stuck 20 miles from your house with no carbs in your tank. A low carb diet is well known for being extremely low.

That’s not what we’re going for. What we want is lower carbs, because most of us simply go way overboard when it comes to carbs. About 1,000 calories worth is enough to get you in the 50% range of your total calories.

Take your breads, pasta, cookies and ice cream and skim a little off the top. The small cut in calories will add up in the next 5 months.

Track it

If I can give you one thing to do that will guarantee you to lose weight, it’s this. Keep a food journal. This doesn’t have to be a fancy book that you keep on your nightstand. Just write down what you eat and how much of it.

This works in two ways. One, after seeing everything you eat in a day, you’ll be surprised by how much it is and try to curb it. Two, the simple act of writing it down will make you think twice about what you’re about to put into your mouth.

With these 2 strategies in place for the next 5 months you’ll be riding your best Bike4Chai ever. On last year’s ride, Ike Massre, who lost 20 pounds from when he rode into Camp Simcha the first year, rode stronger and faster. Take even 5 pounds off of your body, I guarantee you will feel the jump in horsepower.

If you have any questions on this, please leave it in the comments below. Any questions on other topics can be sent to MarkIzhak@gmail.com

Mark Izhak, RD

Bike4Chai Coach

P.S. If you want to lose 10 pounds in the month of March alone, check out my March Madness Transformation program at http://marineparkfitness.com/programs/march-madness-transformation-program

What cadence should I be riding at?

To many people, riding a bike is riding a bike. There are little things that you can do that will help you go faster or longer. The average person only rides their bike for a few minutes or an hour at a time. But, they’re not on a mission to cross town and state lines and end up in the Magic Kingdom of children’s camps. You are.

No matter how strong you are. Your cadence can make or break your ride. Your cadence is your RPM, the number of times your legs pedal for each minute.

Have you ever hit a hill so hard that you had to push with all your might on each pedal stroke; the bike inching it’s way up the hill; your thighs BURNING so much you can’t push any harder? You’re probably at around 50 RPM’s at that point.

Let’s focus on riding on a flat road for now since most of the miles of Bike4Chai are just flat roads (even if all you can think about is the hills). There are two parts of your body that are working to keep you riding. One is the muscles in your legs and the other is your cardiovascular system, which is a fancy name for your heart, lungs, and blood vessels.

If you tire out either of these two systems on a long ride, your speed will drop and you’ll be praying for that finish line. I saw this a lot on last year’s Bike4Chai ride; riders pedaling at a low RPM and tiring themselves out unnecessarily.

Riding on a flat road at a low RPM, around 75-85, will tire out your muscles much quicker than riding at 90 -105 RPM. To understand it better, think about lifting weights. If you have very heavy weights, you will lift them slow and your muscles are working very hard and burning. Now, if you made the weights lighter, you can lift them quicker and you can lift them longer without getting tired.

Same thing on a bike; if you ride at 90-100 RPM on a flat road (going up hills is a different story that we’ll talk about later), the brunt of the work is coming from your heart and lungs, which can work longer without getting tired. Your muscles are not pushing at a crazy resistance that is tiring them out.

I’m bringing this up now because if you ride and train with your RPM’s in the 80’s then that will feel comfortable to you and you won’t be able to ride at a higher RPM. You need to start riding NOW at 90 to 105 RPM’s so that it becomes automatic and you can cruise your way to Camp Simcha.

If you have any questions on this, please leave it in the comments below. Any questions on other topics can be sent to MarkIzhak@gmail.com

Mark Izhak, RD

Bike4Chai Coach

Is it better to ride indoors or outdoors during the winter time?

Most cyclists I know can be put in one of two categories. The first guy will never go for a ride in anything less than 40 degrees. The second guy will ride his bike down to 7 degree weather even if it’s snowing and the only body parts he can still feel is in complete agony.

So is it better to ride indoors on a stationary trainer or outdoors? What will give you the best training results and prepare you best for Bike4Chai?

90% of the time, the better option will be to ride outdoors. Hills, wind and other variables mix up your outdoor ride and better prepare you for real riding conditions. The main thing is to dress appropriately (we will cover this in a future post). With the right clothing you can ride comfortably down to 25-30 degrees.

There are times when riding outdoors isn’t the best option. You might think you’re tougher than Lance by riding in 7 degree weather, but getting a flat  or being absolutely miserable on a ride is not going to end up well. Dangers on the road like snow or black ice is also a bad idea.

Riding indoors can have it’s upside. If you compare a one hour bike ride outside versus on the trainer, your indoor ride is 100% riding while your outdoor ride has some coasting on flats and downhills, plus some stops at intersections. On your trainer you can ride uninterrupted, which is very beneficial.

It’s also a great alternative if you are short on time and just want to get a quick ride in (let’s face it, dressing for the winter can sometimes take longer time than the actual ride)

If you can ride outdoors, go for it. If you’re stuck inside, put on your favorite Tour de France DVD and pound those pedals.

Mark Izhak, RD

Bike4Chai Coach

Hello Bike4Chai Riders!!