7 Columns on Winter Riding Outdoors

By Coach John Hughes

There’re no such thing as bad conditions, just bad gear!

I. Can I Bicycle in the Winter?

Will asked, “I started riding this year and really enjoy it. I’d like to keep riding this winter but a trainer sounds boring. Is it reasonable to ride outside in winter?”

I responded “Yes you can ride outside and with proper gear you can enjoy it.” I offer detailed advice on:

• Clothing for different parts of your body.
• What nutrition to eat and drink, how to carry it and how to eat and drink in the cold.
• 11 tips on winterizing your bike.

II. Anti-Aging: Is Winter Endurance Exercise Important?

Yes, base endurance training increases:

• The endurance of your cycling muscles by increasing both the size and the number of mitochondria where aerobic energy is produced in your muscles.
• The efficiency of your heart so it can pump more blood to your muscles.
• The amount of carbohydrates you can store in the liver and muscles.
• The capacity to burn fat during long rides.

You can’t exercise as much in the winter so what should you do? In this column I review the physiology of less training and offer practical suggestions on what you should do:

• Consistency
• Frequency and volume
• American College of Sports Medicine’s recommendations
• Three sample weeks
• Mixing moderate and intense exercise
• Exercise snacks

III. 8 Tips for Endurance Training This Winter

I go into more detail about the benefits of endurance training and describe ways to do endurance training:

1. Have a motivating goal
2. Ride tempo
3. Ride laps
4. Ride outdoors then indoors
5. Split up your rides
6. Cross-train aerobically
7. Practice good nutrition
8. Dress appropriately

IV. 8 Tips for Effective Winter Training

This column describes in detail eight ways to train this winter:

1. Set specific goals for a ride
2. Train for endurance
3. Add appropriate intensity
4. Train in the sweet spot
5. Clothing for exercising in the cold
6. Eating and drinking in the cold
7. Ride the trainer effectively
8. Cross-training

V. 12 Tips on Dressing for the Cold from a Coloradoan Cyclist

I wrote this column when I lived in Boulder, Colorado and would do rides up to 100 miles when the temps were in the 20s. I thought I was tough until I moved to Tabernash, Colorado so I could cross-country ski in the winter.  On Friday it was in the single digits and windy when Carol and I skied.

VI. Choosing the Correct Cycling Clothing is Key to Enjoyable Cold, Winter Riding

Elizabeth Wicks describes in detail how she dresses to ride in Massachusetts.

VII. 9 Tips for Eating and Drinking During Winter Bicycle Rides

1. How to guestimate how many calories need while riding. If your computer gives you a different burn rate, use your computer’s estimate.
2. How much fluid you need.
3. Importance of breakfast
4. Snacking before a ride
5. What to eat
6. What to drink
7. How to carry food
8. How to carry nutrition
9. Eating and drinking regularly

My two-article Cycling Past 60 bundle includes sections on off-season exercise:

1. For Health I discuss the physiological changes of aging and give you comprehensive fitness programs that address these changes:
2. Training principles
3. Aerobic exercise
4. Resistance training
5. Weight-bearing exercise
6. Flexibility

I combine these into three balanced, full-body exercise programs for different seasons:

1. Off-season
2. Base training
3. Main season

For Recreation I cover training fundamentals and add four new training principles. I explain how to gauge intensity and describe 10 different types of rides of different intensities. I provide three balanced, full-body exercise programs for the off-season, base training and the main season.

The 47-page Cycling Past 60 bundle is $8.98

As we age, consistency becomes more and more important. My eArticle Off-Season Conditioning Past 50 applies to roadies in your 50s, 60s, 70s (like me) and beyond. Whether your goal is long-lasting physical health, the joy of physical activity or continuing athletic performance, this eArticle will teach you what to do in the off-season. It includes:

• A circuit resistance training program with 18 different exercises you can chose.
• A 12-week off-season training program including the resistance exercises.

The 26-page Off-Season Conditioning Past 50 is $4.99.

My Cycling Past 50 Bundle includes:

• Off-Season Conditioning Past 50 – how to best work on your off-season conditioning given the physiological changes of aging.
• Healthy Cycling Past 50 – what happens as you age and how to incorporate cycling and other exercise activities into your daily life to stay healthy and active for many years.
• Healthy Nutrition Past 50 – what to eat and drink to support both a healthy lifestyle and continuing performance.
• Performance Cycling Past 50 – how to train to achieve more specific cycling goals given the physiological changes of aging.

The Cycling Past 50 Bundle totaling 93 pages is just $15.96.

My eBook Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process describes in detail different strength training programs depending on your goal(s): 1) increase endurance, 2) address atrophy and increase power, 3) improve for hard riding, 4) build stronger bones. I include 30 illustrated exercises for lower, upper and core, which require very little special equipment. I explain how to combine resistance exercise with endurance and intensity training, which varies by season.  My 108-page eBook Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process is $14.99.

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Coach John Hughes earned coaching certifications from USA Cycling and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. John’s cycling career includes course records in the Boston-Montreal-Boston 1200-km randonnée and the Furnace Creek 508, a Race Across AMerica (RAAM) qualifier. He has ridden solo RAAM twice and is a 5-time finisher of the 1200-km Paris-Brest-Paris. He has written over 40 eBooks and eArticles on cycling training and nutrition, available in RBR’s eBookstore at Coach John Hughes. Click to read John’s full bio.