Cycle Cross-training?

Basically, 1 hour of running = 3 hours of cycling roughly

So 30 minutes of running is about 1.5 hours of cycling for example. I find this to be extremely accurate. Pace for cycling? Just focus on spinning at 90+ rpm to engage slow twitch fibers. u need them for base building this sumer

dont pass on the hills. see a hill go up the hill

This is good, Thanks!

Sam G wrote:

Hi, I am a 16 year old high school runner from New York. This track season I ran 10:34 in the 2 mile and now I'm training again for cross country. This week I ran 54 miles but It is really draining both in time and energy. I really want to start cross training with cycling on one or two days but I have no idea how. How fast and how far should I go to replace an easy run? If anyone could help me out that would be great. Thanks so much.

Cross training on the bike will NOT be less draining in terms of time. Cycling is the biggest time suck in the history of man, and I say this as someone who bikes more than he runs these days. First there's all the stupid gear and equipment, which you have to buy and fix repeatedly. Then there's the ride itself, which takes twice as long as a run in the first place (I think twice as long timewise is an equivalent effort, not three times), and you're risking your life five times a day because some a$$hole drivers aren't paying attention.

In terms of energy, sure, it works different muscles for the most part and yeah, it'll mix things up a bit.

Just listen to your body and see what you think.

Cyclocross is the enemy of Cross Country in our area. The cyclocross people are like locusts, and most are arrogant douchebags who act like their spandex outfits give them Spiderman-like powers. I'd go queer before I took up cyclocross.

wellhere... wrote:

Basically, 1 hour of running = 3 hours of cycling roughly

So 30 minutes of running is about 1.5 hours of cycling for example. I find this to be extremely accurate. Pace for cycling? Just focus on spinning at 90+ rpm to engage slow twitch fibers. u need them for base building this sumer

dont pass on the hills. see a hill go up the hill

My college team used a 3:1 rule. Also, avoid coasting as much as possible. This isn't a leisurely ride, it's training. On a run your legs have to work for the whole time, try to mimic that on the bike.

cycling does not equal running.

facticity of da sitchiashun wrote:

cycling does not equal running.

way to point out the obvious dipweed.

norphxc wrote:

My college team used a 3:1 rule. Also, avoid coasting as much as possible. This isn't a leisurely ride, it's training. On a run your legs have to work for the whole time, try to mimic that on the bike.

In a one hour spin class (w/speed and strength intervals) seems a lot harder than a leisure ride.

cycling is not going to do for you what you want it to. the muscles work very differently and the bones are stressed minimally. because it's so different than what you are used to it's likely to make you even more tired if you are trying to get a workout with it.

if you want exercise and simply need a break from running, then the bike will be fine, but don't think of how long, how fast, etc. because they don't correlate.

adfawdsf wrote:

Cross training on the bike will NOT be less draining in terms of time. Cycling is the biggest time suck in the history of man,

+100

MIC ITW wrote:

cycling is not going to do for you what you want it to. the muscles work very differently and the bones are stressed minimally. because it's so different than what you are used to it's likely to make you even more tired if you are trying to get a workout with it.

if you want exercise and simply need a break from running, then the bike will be fine, but don't think of how long, how fast, etc. because they don't correlate.

It's not about stressed the bones and muscles. It's about working the aerobic system solely. When running gets to the point where, say 60 minutes daily is too hard on the muscles/ligaments and on the verge of getting injured, a few hours a day of cycling will relieve the stresses on the muscles, flush out lactic acid efficiently, and help the legs recover.

I XT with cycling 15 hours a week, running 5-6 hours. It's the best. My aerobic system has gotten incredible strong the past 2 weeks of doing this so far and will be continuing it until XC comes. I add more and more running in replacing cycling time when I feel like I can.

This is all straight gold. So many great posts in here. First of all, the 3 to 1 rule is just ridiculous. There is no comparison.

Yes you can cross train with cycling, but it's not the same. It will help you aerobically but that is about it.

I've said it a a few times on these boards and I will say it again. When I was in good running shape, I could hop on a bike and do relatively well. I didn't have the power but I could go on hard rides, climb and suffer pretty well.

When I committed to cycling full time, adapted my muscles completely (I now race professionally); I lost all of my running abilities. I couldn't run within 1 minute of my old mile pr at this moment. I am in the best shape of my life, and I couldn't run a sub 5 minute mile.

To the guy who wrote about cyclocross. It's actually a super chill and fun environment. Come watch a big UCI pro race before you completely hate. Spectator friendly and lot's of beer. (road racing not quite as inviting)

To the guy who is cross training 15 hours a week on the bike and running 6- Good luck with that, while I find it hard to believe you're biking 15 hours a week. You're not setting yourself up for a good season. You should be running!!

Oh, well if you've been doing this for 2 weeks I guess I'll defer to you since I only raced professionally for 4 years.

You guys are full of BS. Professional? Really? Then you should put yourself out there and tell us who you are. I mean, if you are professional, it would only make sense for us to see your USAC stats, etc. unless, like many of the posters here, you are full of BS

MIC ITW...you are professional too?? LOL This is why I love letsrun. You get so many wannabe's and fakes here, it is just funny to watch.. Dude you never acknowledged that you were pro apparently, in your original post. I am not trying to "one up" you with my training man, hell no. I am out of college for the summer and have nothing better to do. I love training and riding my bike and running.

All of this is nonsense wrote:

You're not setting yourself up for a good season. You should be running!!

Ive ssaid it before, you cannot possibly train enough ONLY running to get the aerobic abilities as cycling. YOu just cant. NOBODY long term is able to run 20 hours a week. You just cant, you'll break down. Cycling comes into play here because it is virtually no impact and you can just go, day in day out, and reap the aerobic benefits that running would NEVER be able to do.

And yes, I AM setting myself up for a good season. I said, if you reread my post Mr. Professional, each week I am slowly adding in more running and taking away cycling time as my muscles and tendons become more and more able to take the pounding of running

Sorry for not reading thoroughly. I just believe that it is possible to run enough without having to add in the cycling. That's just my opinion.

Here ya go for USAC results page.

http://www.usacycling.org/results/?compid=217193

Also, your turn to show us your running results! So we can see how much the cycling helps you!! And for the record, when you are cycling that much, your muscles will begin to adapt. Muscles that you don't need. Unless you're cycling at super high RPM's and on flat ground. But I highly double that is the case.

Again, everyone is different and this is strictly my opinion after doing both sports relatively competitively.

If you want to be the best you can be, you've got to put in the time. What you now consider "draining in both time and energy" will be nothing for you if you stick with it long enough and don't build up too quickly. If I can work 50 hours or more a week and run 70 miles and enjoy it, it shouldn't be too hard for a 16 year old to hit 50 miles each week. If you stay consistent, you'll be in great shape by cross season. Just be smart and don't over do it.

If you spend more time cross-training, you won't see the kind of results you will see running, and you will still be "wasting" the same amount of your time doing something other than running.

So, tell us, what is the apple to orange ratio?How many good cyclists are also good runners? How many good runners are also good cyclists?

wellhere... wrote:

facticity of da sitchiashun wrote:

cycling does not equal running.

way to point out the obvious dipweed.