Cycling For Beginners

When was your last Awesome ride?

Posted by Bryan on Jun 6, 2011 in Blog, Cycling For Beginners, Cycling Tips | 9 comments

Saturday saw me return to the local shop I’ve been riding with for group rides. I hadn’t given the ride too much thought throughout the week but it turned out being Awesome with a capital A. That’s why I capitalized it if you didn’t notice.

Pre-Ride and On the Bike Fuel

Posted by Bryan on Mar 25, 2011 in Blog, Cycling For Beginners, Cycling Tips, Nutrition | 11 comments

On Monday I mentioned that I had a great group ride last weekend that, I believe, was sparked by a change in my pre-ride meal. The change came about because I was ignorant on a couple of things and Kelli at Apex Nutriton straightened me out.

Cycling for Optimal Weight – A Mission

Posted by Bryan on Jan 18, 2011 in Blog, Cycling and Weight Loss Report, Cycling For Beginners, Cycling For Weight Loss, Cycling Tips, Nutrition | 8 comments

A few weeks ago, Darryl over at Lovingthebike.com and Kelli of Apex Nutriton, unveiled a new training program called Cycling for Optimal Weight. Darryl and Kelli released a mini-ebook that covers both the cycling and nutrition sides of getting fit and healthy with the sport of cycling. The ebook (which is totally free by the way) is filled with some great tips and I love the section at the end where they include sample eating plans tailored to when you are riding – morning, mid-day or in the evneing.

I decided to take them up on their offer to track my progress and have already filled out my assessment, taken my starting measurements (rope and choke), and snapped a couple of profile photos. The measurements and photos were an eye opening experience but I kinda had an idea of how bad they would be.

As I work with Darryl and Kelli to get this weight off, I’ll keep you informed of my progress here on Biking To Live. I’ll do my best to relay to you what I’m going through, the riding I’m doing, and what I’m eating. I believe I’m going to learn a lot and it’ll be the perfect opportunity to pass that info along to you, my readers, as you work to improve your health with cycling.

How To Start Road Cycling [Again] Ebook

Posted by Bryan on Aug 20, 2010 in Blog, Cycling For Beginners, Cycling Tips, Featured | 14 comments

As I told you all several weeks ago, I was going to write an Ebook to help new cyclists, or those returning to road cycling after a long layoff, get started in this great sport. I’ve finally completed it and am ready to release it. For free.

As you can tell by the title, it isn’t for the advanced, or even intermediate, road cyclist. It’s basic from the first page and filled with knowledge and tips that I wish I had known when I returned to cycling in 2008.

Will it answer every question? No. But I think it’ll help anyone looking for help in deciding where to buy a bike, find out what to carry in a seat bag, or learn what online tools are available for road cycling.

To get How To Start Road Cycling [Again] just enter your first name and email address below to get access to the cycling tips toolbox.

Thumbnail Photoc: Explore The Bruce

Five Steps To Choosing A Cycling Helmet

Posted by Bryan on Feb 26, 2010 in Blog, Cycling Clothes, Cycling For Beginners, Featured | 19 comments

Thanks to Victor Jiminez of Bicycle Lab (@bicyclelab on Twitter) for his assistance in putting this article together.

As the weather warms up ever so slowly here in North America, more and more cyclists will be leaving the trainers behind and heading outdoors to get their rides in. Before heading out we need to make sure we have all the required equipment and one of those items is our helmet. Of all our road cycling gear, I think the helmet is the most important item as it offers protection for our gray matter in the event we do crash.

Five Steps To Choosing A Cycling Helmet

Find your price point. Road cycling helmets are typically between $60 and $250. Design, materials, retention systems and purpose are what drive the prices. They all offer protection if you crash but features like custom fitting mechanisms, visors, adjustable/removable padding, reduced weight, exotic materials, and extra ventilation will cost more. More expensive helmets tend to have more adjustable fit and retention systems. For around $100 you can get a very good quality and nice fitting helmet.
Check the certification. Cycling helmets have certification? Absolutely. Helmets sold in the U.S. are required by law to meet testing standards as set forth by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC). The purpose of these tests is to make sure that the helmet can handle the impact if you were to crash. With helmets getting lighter and more comfortable every year a standard is necessary to ensure that you’ll be protected. Look for the CPSC stamp or sticker on the helmet.
Pick some helmets. Road cycling helmets often sport very light weights, maximum air flow for good ventilation, and improved aerodynamic designs. All of those improvements are achieved at a cost. Take a look at the helmets available and find a few that appeal to you taking into account your budget and the helmets features. They do make road helmets specifically designed for women that have more feminine sizes, color choices, and space for ponytails.
Find Your Size. This is the most critical step in the entire process. You want your new helmet to fit correctly so it offers the protection it’s supposed to. Some of the lower end helmets may only come in an ‘Adult’ size so you may not need to measure your head size. More advanced helmets typical come in small, medium, and large sizes depending on the circumference of your head. You can measure the circumference of your head, at it’s largest point, with a flexible tape. This will give you a good starting point as the labels on the helmets will list both the helmet size and head circumference it’s made for. This is only a starting point though and my recommendation is that you try on several brands and sizes to find the right one. You may find that a medium in one brand fits more snugly than a medium in another brand while one is more comfortable than another. Most helmets now offer some kind of adjustable retention system that lets you dial in the fit so it’s just right. This is achieved with a ratcheting wheel or mechanism on the back of the helmet that lets you loosen or tighten the fit on the fly.

Four Steps To A Great Fitting Helmet:

Try the helmet on.
Hold the helmet tightly and shake your head like you are saying no ( it should be very snug with little play and generally very comfortable).
Adjust the retention system so that the helmet stays on your head.
Adjust the chin strap so that it’s snug when your your jaw is open.

Get help. Don’t go it alone and ask for help when you’re in the store. The employees know how helmets are supposed to fit and can help you with both sizing and fit. That’s what they’re paid to do so take advantage of it.

Getting Started With Nutrition

Posted by Bryan on Feb 22, 2010 in Blog, Cycling For Beginners, Featured, Nutrition | 19 comments

I’ve made a commitment that today I start counting my calories and eating better (you’ll know why tomorrow). I did buy a food scale this weekend and have messed around with The Daily Plate so that I can start tracking my calorie/nutrient intake on a daily basis.

Right now my daily calorie intake is set to 2013 calories. This takes into account my age, height, current weight, activity level outside of cycling, and my goal to lose 2 pounds per week. I’m certainly not going to bore you with what I’m eating each day but will provide any insight or lessons learned I have.

I Need To Get Smart

I am so dumb in the area of nutrition management as it pertains to cyclists. I know snippets of info here and there but there is so much info out there that information overload can be achieved in about 30 seconds. Stuff like hydration, supplements, when/what to eat before/during/after riding based on what type of ride it was, etc. I’m probably going to do some research and experiment a lot and see what works while keeping track of my calorie intake and losses.

Creating A Meal Plan

I want to move to a point where I plan out my meals a week in advance. That way it will make my shopping/cooking easier. I thought this might be easy but I’ve found out that it isn’t. I’ve found some 2000 calorie/day meal plans on the Internet and may give them a try (or at least portions of them). At least initially, I think I may just stick with weighing/counting what I’m eating and see how that goes right now. Today I have to pick up some measuring cups.

If any of my readers have recommendations, advice, or experience in these areas I’m all ears. That includes book recommendations.