16 Tips for Increasing Your Annual Cycling Mileage

By Coach John Hughes

I just got an e-mail from Ed. Ed lives in California and has a goal of riding 4,000 miles this year by riding 11 miles a day. With the torrential rains he hasn’t been on the road in two weeks, is 154 road miles behind and bummed out.

Ed had written a several weeks ago he’d lost his mojo. I suggested he establish some reasonable goals and work toward those. He responded with seven different goals, one of which is:

“Aim for 4,000 miles: For my 54th year and training for 5,500 when I turn 55 in 2024. I rode 3,500 miles last year.”

I wrote two columns responding to Ed:

• Anti-Aging: 4 Tips for Winter Blues and Lost Mojo
• Anti-Aging: More on Winter Blues, Motivation and Goals

Here’s how I responded to his recent e-mail:

1. Don’t try for daily mileage.  Eleven miles a day doesn’t seem like much. Less than an hour of riding. But things like rain happen.  Family and work obligations will crop up. You’ll risk burning out.

Ed asked, “What about miles on my smart trainer?  I’ve ridden it for seven hours in January and it says I’ve logged 117 miles.”

I told him it’s his goal and he can decide whether to count trainer miles toward annual miles.  If he chooses to include trainer miles, then instead of using the miles his smart trainer tells him he rode, calculate miles based on his average speed on the road.  Ed averages 14 mph on the road so an hour on the trainer counts as 14 miles. He can count his 7 hours X 14 mph = 98 trainer miles toward his goal.

Annual plan

2. Create a plan. The great Yogi Berra said, “If you don’t know where you are going, might end up some place else.”  Ed’s plan was 11 miles every day. Now he needs a new plan.

3. Ramp up the miles reasonably. In creating the plan I suggested Ed follow three rules of thumb:

• Year to year increase annual volume by 10-25%.
• Month to month increase monthly volume by 10-25%.
• Week to week increase weekly volume by 5-15%.

Ed’s been riding for 20 years, perhaps one of the reasons he’s lost his mojo?  Because he’s been wearing out cycling shorts for 20 years, I suggested he probably could ride 25% more miles this year, which would be about 4,500 miles. Then it would be just a 20% increase to ride 5,400 miles next year.

Note:  A 25% increase is probably okay for Ed because he’s a veteran.  If you’re new to the sport increasing by 10% more than last year would be safer. If you’ve been riding for five or six years, then 15 – 20% might be possible.

4. Plan in phases. I suggested Ed plan the year in four phases:

• Base – start ramping up his miles and build his endurance base.
• Build – incorporate intensity and cut back on miles.
• Main season – have fun!
• Off-season – taper down his miles.

5. Plan monthly totals now. I suggested Ed look at his records from last year and then create a monthly plan for this year. Because the future is unpredictable, he shouldn’t plan weekly mileage now.

6. Include non-cycling events. Ed knows the dates of family birthdays, their anniversary, his daughter’s wedding, and his annual professional meeting. Rather than viewing these as impediments to his 4,500 miles, I suggested he plan not to ride as much around key dates.

My eBook Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process includes:

• The above plan to increase annual volume.
• Annual plan to incorporate intensity while increasing volume.
• Annual plan combining endurance, intensity and strength training.

Motivation

In January riding 4,500 miles this year seems like a good idea; however, this will be mentally wearing. To increase the fun and to help with ongoing motivation, I suggested Ed:

7.  Incorporate other goals. I suggested Ed incorporate two of his other interesting goals:

• “Try self-supported riding trips: Riding inn to inn locally and maybe driving to a few two- to three-day routes. I need to test the bags that I’m just acquiring. My club has weekend adventure rides, but they’re camping trips and I want a bed and a shower.

• “Target some iconic new climbs: Maybe visit my family in Portland, OR and climb to the nearby Mt. Hood ski area.  I could climb Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta in Northern California near the Oregon border. In the fall in Colorado when the aspen are turning color, Cottonwood, Guanella and Berthoud passes would be spectacular.”

He shouldn’t try to decide now on specific trips and climbs, just think about the possibilities as he lays out his months.

8. Include organized rides. Ed’s club offers several rides every weekend. I suggested he digitally pencil in a couple of club rides every month, which would be fun and motivating.

Uncertainty

The future is uncertain. In building his plan Ed should:

9. Allow for unexpected events. Ed can’t anticipate new family activities, work obligations, medical issues and activities of daily living that will affect his time to ride. Some months he won’t be able to ride the planned amounts.

10. Plan to finish with excess miles.  I suggested he plan for 4,750 miles, which would give him a 250-mile cushion. He shouldn’t try to ride 4,750 miles — just know that if he is short a few months he can still reach his goal.

11. Allow for rainy days. Hopefully Ed won’t have more months like January, but even in California there are weather events. Ed’s lived there for 20 years, knows the weather patterns and can incorporate them into his monthly plan.

12. Include break weeks. Plan several non-riding weeks to ensure he fully recovers both mentally and physically and to avoid overtraining.  He could plan these around some of his important non-cycling events.

Using the plan

13. Plan each month when he gets there.  At the beginning of a month Ed will have a pretty good idea of what else is going on in his life and can reasonably plan weekly totals.

14. Vary the weeks. Instead of planning to ride the same amount each week, plan different amounts.  Plan a couple of somewhat bigger weeks and some lighter weeks so he doesn’t get injured or burn out.  For example, if his four-week goal is 550 miles, he might plan:

• Week #1 – 150 miles
• Week #2 – 125 miles
• Week #3 – 175 miles
• Week #4 – 100 miles

15. Don’t ride every day. Week #1 instead of riding 21.5 miles every day to total 150 miles, ride no more than five days including some longer rides — perhaps club rides — and some shorter recovery rides.

Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process includes examples of:

• Examples of effective monthly plans.
• Examples of more and less effective training weeks.

16. Finally, be flexible.  Former president and retired general Dwight Eisenhower said, “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” The process of planning will help Ed to understand what he should do. As the year goes on, he needs to recognize what is actually feasible.

Here’s Ed’s plan divided into four phases:

Plan to Increase Annual Volume

		Last Year Miles	This Year Miles	Next Year Miles
Base	January	88	220	275
	February	131	265	350
	March	175	325	450
	April	219	425	575
	Cumulative Total	613 miles	1,235 miles	1,650 miles
	1-Week Recovery Break
Build	May	328	350	450
	June	438	400	500
	Cumulative Total	1,378 miles	1,985 miles	2,600 miles
	1-Week Recovery Break
Main season	July	525	500	600
	August	613	625	700
	September	438	775	850
	Cumulative Total	2,953 miles	3,885 miles	4,750 miles
	1-Week Recovery Break
Off-Season	October	263	400	450
	November	175	300	350
	December	109	165	200
	Cumulative Total	3,500 miles	4,750 miles	5,750 miles

Ed’s plan is front-loaded with more miles than early last year to help build to 4,750 miles including his cushion of 250 miles. He’ll also ride more miles building his endurance in January through April so he can ride fewer miles while adding intensity in May and June.

Related columns

1. Why You Need a Training Plan … or Don’t You?
2. 7 Keys to Effective Goal Setting
3. Setting Goals as You Grow Older

My eBook Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process includes:

• 4-month plan to increase riding volume. The plan is written for January – April but could be used for other four-month periods.
• 8-week plans to train for 100K and 100-mile rides.
• An annual plan to meet all of the recommendations of the American College of Sports Medicine on these activities: aerobic, intensity, strength, flexibility and weight-bearing.

I provide sample endurance, intensity and strength workouts. The book includes 53 photos illustrating different exercises.

Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process incorporates the latest research and most of it is new material not published in my previous eArticles on cycling past 50, 60 and beyond. It’s your comprehensive guide to continuing to ride well into your 80s and even your 90s. The 106-page eBook Anti-Aging: 12 Ways You Can Slow the Aging Process is $14.99.

My 71-page two-part bundle Your Best Season Ever will help you set and achieve your goals in 2023:

Your Best Season Ever, Part 1: How to plan and get the most out of your training explains how to set appropriate goals for you. I then show you how to assess your individual strengths and weakness and set appropriate personal objectives. You then use this information to build a plan including personal training volumes for different seasons and months. Based on this plan I explain how to create your personal workouts including:

• Exercising at the right intensities,
• Recovering fully to allow progress,
• Measuring your progress, and then
• Adjusting the plan.

Your Best Season Ever, Part 2: Peaking for and riding your event builds on part 1 and shows how you can develop, test and employ a personal strategy for your key event of the season. I use as examples of key events a hill climb, a time trial, fast club rides, a 100K and a 100-mile ride. Part 2 explains how to:

• Analyze your event to figure out what’s required for success.
• Develop specific training objectives based on that analysis.
• Create and test a personal strategy for your particular event.
• Train for peak fitness for your individual event.
• Learn what you should eat, and when, leading up to and during the event.
• Select the optimum equipment, including how to get the most bang for your buck.
• Learn mental focus so that 100% of your energy goes into your performance.
• Taper so that you are fresh and on form on the starting line.
• Control how you ride your event for best performance.

The 71-page bundle Your Best Season Ever is only $8.98

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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.