Hot Pads

These are an excellent accessory. For me they are a necessity to get through winter. I buy a pack of 40 in October. When temperature is cold, I open a pack and put the hot pad in between 2 layers of socks. The heat generated keeps feet nice and warm! If it is really cold I put a pack in my gloves as well. However, I find in gloves to be less effective, as you can’t get the pads so close to your fingers. But, it definitely  helps.

• Hot Pads for Cold Feet – pack of 40 for £21
• Hand Warmers – pack of 10 for £12

A Heated Cycling Seat

Well, its pretty cold out there, but, I can’t help but think this heated cycling seat is going to be another of those cycling inventions that just don’t catch on.

Related

• Winter Cycling Training 

Training on a turbo is one of those aspects of cycling that can really test our determination and enthusiasm. No-one took up cycling so they could spend hours pedalling in a static position – getting very bored and hot at the same time! Yet, on a wet / icey day, even the turbo can seem more appealing that going out on salty roads. Quite a few people recently asked me about turbo training, but I have to admit that where possible I try to avoid training on a turbo. However, I have been through phases (like very bad weather) where I’ve done quite a bit of training on the turbo – and, like many things, turned out to be not as bad as you feared.

Advantages of Turbo Training

1. Avoids getting wet and cold. A real boon when there is snow and ice or driving rain.
2. Avoids weather related accidents; it is much safer, especially when it is icey outside.
3. You can control the environment and makes very specific interval training much easier to regulate. (e.g. don’t have to worry about dodging cars, whilst also trying to race at 100% of max heart rate.
4. Protects your bike from salty and dirty roads.

The disadvantages  of training on a turbo are quite obvious for those who have ever spent an hour on an indoor turbo trainer – it is pretty boring.

Tips for Getting the Most out of Turbo Training

(or should that be tips for surviving turbo training)

1. Use music or even TV to give your mind something to occupy itself with. I did find a period of winter turbo training a good exercise for discovering all those lost tracks on your iPod.
2. Use a fan (or two) to create an artificial wind. This is almost essential to prevent overheating and excess sweating.
3. Wear at least one moisture wicking vest. You may get hot, but it is better to have at least one layer to prevent that windchill factor. (There have been times on an indoor turbo, when I have needed gloves and overshoes)
4. Give yourself realistic targets of 30 mins or one hour. Don’t use turbo to get your 5 hour base training in. No harm to taking a bit of rest in bad weather.
5.  se a speedometer / power-meter to give someway to measure your output. It can be rewarding to know how many theoretical miles you have done.
6. Even short training sessions can be a big help in preventing your fitness draining away. Just remember how much you will be glad you did a few interval training sessions.
7. Mix up the training. Even in winter you can do some higher intensity training or try riding at a higher cadence to get better at spinning.
8. Make sure the bike set up is exactly the same as your road bike. Any differences in set up, especially saddle height, can lead to injury.
9. Use something to catch the sweat and prevent it corroding a bike.
10. Keep well hydrated – you will lose a lot of water.
11. Invest in a specific turbo training tyre. I use this Continental turbo trainer tyre It doesn’t overheat, but more importantly it doesn’t wear away. If you use a turbo on an ordinary tyre, you will soon see how the tyre surface wears away making punctures more likely.

Using A Turbo Trainer Before a Race

Intervals on Turbo

• Turbo Trainers at Evans Cycles
• Indoor cycle Training

• Continental turbo training tyre
• Best Turbo Trainers

• Winter Cycling Training
• Winter Cycling Mileage

More Articles on Training

• Training for Time Trial
• Interval Training Tips

For the last couple of months I was racing. It was either one hour recovery rides or very hard hill intervals – with nothing really in between. I didn’t go out on long rides because I was always thinking about the next race. There wasn’t so much time to ‘enjoy’ the bike. The end of the racing season is often a chance to take a complete break from cycling. But, at the moment, I don’t feel like taking a break, and have started training already. Training actually feels the wrong word. I would prefer to see it as just riding the bike; at this stage of the year I have no specific training target apart from the good old fashioned ‘get some miles under the belt’. I reckon if you can enjoy the cycling, that’s the best kind of training at this time of the year.

There was a time when a cyclist was almost measured by the volume of miles he completed. About 15 years ago, I remember getting a free pull-out mileage chart from Cycling Weekly I would love filling in the bar chart to show how many miles I’d done a week. It appealed to the ‘stato’ in me (I also had many volumes of Wisden). I now have a more modern version on my iPhone GPS cyclometer – very convenient but doesn’t quite have the same ‘je ne sais qua’ as a bit of paper and pencil. Modern training methods tend to downplay the role of ‘getting the miles in’ – there is more talk of ‘training thresholds’ ‘power meters’ and target zones e.t.c. All the kind of things which leave my head spinning. Anyway, at least at this time of the year, you can forget all that and just do whatever you want.

November can be a great time of the year to cycle. You get the last of the autumn colour, the roads are relatively quiet. If it is dry, it can be very beautiful. Last Sunday, I went out for four hours towards Burford on quiet roads. It was a very even pace, I just kept turning a high cadence for miles on end; I really enjoyed just riding and enjoying the scenery. I love that almost mantric quality of spinning the pedals for hours on end.

I know these roads in the Cotswolds about 90%, so I just try to keep off the main roads and follow my nose (it’s quite large so I always have something to follow). I barely saw another cyclist and motorists seemed to be surprisingly well behaved. During the ride, the 70 miles felt almost effortless – it’s really given me a taste for ‘getting the miles in’. At the end of the ride I was tired, but it’s that kind of satisfying tiredness that makes you feel you’ve done something worthwhile. The next morning it was more of a struggle to get up – always a good sign you’ve done a good four hour ride. Whilst the weather is good, I will try and keep a steady routine and do as much as I can. In winter, I take the opportunity to visit new roads and places, just enjoying the freedom to cycle around.

The only drawback of November is the shocking realisation that at 4pm it’s getting dark already. I should really get used to it. But, every year, I’m taken aback by the sudden plunge into early darkness. I would love summertime to be made permanent….

Training in Winter

As I mentioned in winter cycling training, I don’t do any intervals or specific training in the three months of Nov, Dec, Jan. That doesn’t mean I have a heart rate monitor which starts to beep if I go over 85% Max HR. I just ride purely on feeling at this time of the year. For me that usually means quite a good steady pace. I never really enjoy pottering along at 15mph. If I can do 18mph that is much better.

Quite a few people have asked about turbo training in the winter. I will do a piece later, but generally I try to avoid it! unless there is a really prolonged period of bad weather or I’m feeling particularly keen to get some miles in rather than go out in the dark / wet / cold / ice.

Hope you can enjoy the winter cycling season!

Related

• The Joy of Cycling
• Good reasons to get a bike
• Women and the freedom to cycle

1. Reflective clothing.

Even during the day, light levels can be quite low. Motorists can easily miss cyclists who are dressed in dark clothes. Reflective clothing can make as much difference as lights. There are many options for purchasing reflective clothing. Usually, it is quite light weight. Also, don’t just buy a reflective top. Reflective strips on your bike trousers can make a big improvement to side visibility. Look how the cyclist with fluorescent jacket stands out.

2. Rain Proof

The only thing worse than getting wet, is getting cold and wet. Whatever the journey make sure you are prepared with a good waterproof jacket. I reviewed a few waterproof jackets here. An excellent value waterproof jacket is this Altura Night vision at only £48.99 (wiggle) It is quite warm, and best for the winter months where you want something reflective waterproof, comfortable to wear and warm.

3. Base layers.

One of the best things to buy is a good quality base layer. This should stick tight to the skin, allowing sweat to evaporate and keep the body warm. As a general rule it is better to have several thin layers than 1 or two big heavy layers. This makes it easier to take off a layer if you are too hot. Base layers I like very much these micro roubaix dhb base layers only £16.99 but comfortable and tight fitting.

4. Overshoes.

When cycling it is easy to experience cold feet. In these circumstances it is good to use a pair of overshoes. These will help keep the feet from getting cold, but, also keep your shoes clean from the winter dirt. I’ve gone through many winter overshoes as they don’t seem to last for very long (1-2 seasons) before breaking up.  Winter cycling overshoes

5. Hot Pads

This is only necessary for someone who suffers from poor circulation. I can’t survive winter cycling without these. These little pads actually provide a direct heat source (upto 60 degrees) and last for 4-5 hours. Hot Pads

6. Mudguards.

Mudguards will keep the worst of the water from getting on your legs and back. They are indispensable for winter riding.  If you do a lot of cycling in winter it is worth putting extensions on to your mudguards to minimise the splash from the road. (these extensions can be a simple piece of plastic from a washing up bottle. On my road bike, I use these SKS race mudguards on my road bike. The new version has a little more length. They are very light and easy to take on and off. For a winter commuting bike, you could get some more standard mudguards which take longer to put on, but offer more extensive coverage, e.g. these crud mudguards

7. Plastic Bags

A little trick I often use is to put plastic bags between my sock and shoes. I then use some garters to keep my waterproof trousers in place. When I get to work, I step out of plastic bags and your socks are dry.Otherwise water can seep into your socks from the gap between your waterproof trousers and socks.

8. Hat / cap.

A significant amount of heat is lost through the head. When the temperature goes below 5-6 degrees, I usually wear something on my had. I like this dhb skull cap (£16.99 – wiggle) because it fits snuggle under helmet and keeps ears and forehead out of the icey wind (nothing worse than starting a winter ride for ears to burn with cold)

when it’s cold, you need warmth.

9. Winter training top.

I have a couple of fleece lined winter training tops from Impsport. Note these fleece lined tops are not the waterproof ones. The biggest clothing mistake was to buy some waterproof heavy goretex type training top. Despite costing nearly £80, I never wear it because you literally sweat buckets and can get a chill from the cold. However, these zip up winter training tops. I just carry a waterproof jacket to put on when it rains.

10. Gillet.

A gillet is a light weight small jacket you can keep in back pocket. It is great for days when you get showers.  Easy to put on and off. It keeps light rain showers off. In heavy rain, I wear as a second layer. Cycling Gillets

Related

• Winter Cycling Gloves – suffering from cold hands, you wouldn’t believe how many different types of winter gloves I’ve tried over the years.
• Winter Cycling training
• Best winter tyres

To make a much repeated observation around these parts – it’s cold, and with many layers of snow. On Monday morning it reached – 17 degrees in Oxford. After spending a week off the bike, apart from one short perfunctory training session on the turbo, I felt slightly concerned about my lack of training. In a fit of off season enthusiasm, I turned off  the ventral heating and ran up and down my stairs a few times. I then tried some very energetic situps. The training session lasted all of about 15 minutes, but at least gave me a feeling of having made an effort.

Rather embarrassingly, the 20 situps seemed to give me back ache for the next four days, showing how little upper body strength I have. But, at least, with the back ache, I now had a good excuse not to make an effort with turbo or training on icey roads.

This has been one of the worst December’s on record. But, am glad to say the bike still comes out pretty well in the snow.

On Saturday morning, it snowed very heavily – about a foot. I was still able to cycle back from town on a mountain bike. It was hard going in that depth of snow, but, I could make it. Unfortunately, the city centre became a log jam of gridlocked cars. I heard even Jeremy Clarkson, of Top Gear fame, had to abandon his car.

The only downside to cycling in the snow is so many car drivers lost their Christmas spirit. Snow effectively narrows a road, and car drivers just pass you much closer or, as in two cases, shout at you forbeing on the road; perhaps they had been stuck in the logjam and got jealous of a bike making quicker progress.

Anyway, I’m hoping the snow will melt. In the meantime, my training will consist of about 5 situps per day, and running up escalators in shopping malls.

Sit up and begs are very popular in Europe, and increasingly popular over here. They give a very different feel to a more sporty bike. This looks a classic Dutch style frame, in a rather nifty blue and gold style sit up and beg.

Almost looks like you’re standing with this set up.

Winter has also brought a worrying proliferation of earmuffler style hats. (I’ll probably get one for Christmas now, as my mother occassionaly reads this blog.) – very sensible, I hear her saying…

Tricycle may come in useful with all this ice.

That’s what I call ‘wrapped up well.’

Related

• Oxford cycling photos

Cold weather gives a chance to see the variety of winter hats worn by cyclists.

My last post was over last week. It was entitled ‘Grey Weather‘. Well this post could be titled ‘white weather’. Actually Oxford has escaped the worst of the snow but it is still very cold.

So I’m not doing much cycling. I know the weather is bad, when my biggest cycle ride is a detour up a small hill, to make the 3 mile commute home seem like training.

I guess there is always a bright side to cold weather. So look forward to future articles on:

• 1001 Things to do On A Turbo Trainer before you Die.
• The Art of Excuses. How to justify a three month winter break.
• How To sell your new Carbon Fibre Bike and live in the Madeiras Island

Of course, if you happen to be a reader from Chicago, you can just smugly enjoy the record breaking November temperatures 61 F – or (16 degrees in Napoleon’s money) All I can say is, if your living in Chicago, I hope you are doing 400 miles a week training.

Related

• Cycling accessories for winter

It’s the end of December and it’s getting pretty close to the shortest day of the year. Actually it’s still about 4 weeks a way, but, it feels pretty grim even down south here in Oxford. Sometimes I finish work at 3pm, but, it’s already starting to get dark.

Cycling is taking a bit of a backseat at the moment. But, when I can I’m trying to get the miles in. Training at this time of the year is nothing spectacular – just trying to get out as much as possible. Generally, I aim to go out 4-5 times a week. If I can cycle 150 miles, I’m pretty happy. But, this weekend I was in Germany so it is a bit more difficult.

If I miss a few days, its easy to justify it by saying it’s good to have a break at this time of the year. But, the problem with this attitude is that it is easy for a week to pass by and you haven’t done any training. However, I’m conscious of the fact I will be in Malaysia for 3 weeks. If I stopped cycling now, I could be looking at a break of 2 months – which is far too long.

When I do go out I generally enjoy it, unless it gets cold and miserable.

I’ve noticed that between 9.30pm and 3pm, traffic is much lower. I blame the school run. It increases traffic so much! Now when I was a lad, there was no question of getting a lift to school – it was walk, bus or train. Them were the days!

Winter cycling conjures up fighting through the dark mist trying to get the winter miles in, – despite the fact that your hands and feet are freezing.

But winter cycling is not all doom and gloom, desperately holding out for spring. These are some of the brighter aspects of winter cycling

• When it rains, you don’t feel guilty in taking a day off training.
• You don’t have to clean your bike, because you know it will get completely muddy the next day anyway.
• You can spend hours developing a training plan for next year on the pretext this is as good as training.
• Battery operated socks are an excellent way to avoid the cold feet syndrome
• In winter, the cafe seems even more inviting than usual. I remember some winter club runs, where the time in the cafes was almost as long on the bike.
• By cycling over Christmas, it is much easier to justify eating all those mince pies and Christmas puddings.
• By cycling through winter you can avoid that sinking feeling of getting on the bike after a 3 month break and being dropped by everyone on the hills.
• There’s no need to race up any hills or do any interval training. If clubmates start being too fast and sprinting from road signs, you can just scornfully refer to them as ‘winter racers’. – People who win imaginary races on winter training rides only to disappear once the real racing season begins.

• It can be very beautiful in winter. True, the sun is rarely out, but, on a clear, cold day, a cycle ride is more invigorating and inspiring than watching the 27th rerun of some James Bond film or visiting your relatives.
• You don’t need to worry about putting on the suncream and dehydrating.

These photos are actually taken from an Irish cycling holiday in the middle of summer. But, you could just about pass them off as winter photos.

• Cycling Through Winter
• Winter Cycling Training

Tips for Cycling in the Rain.

Be Prepared

I always carry around a lightweight waterproof cape. Even if it looks fine when you leave the house, British weather can be tempremental and quickly change. I actually leave a waterproof in a cut down water bottle, in a bottle cage. Note some of these lightweight cycling capes are not thoroughly waterproof. In a heavy downpour, water can soon start to creep through.

Goretex.

A cycling cape made from Goretex or similar material offers the best choice for cycling in the rain. It offers breathability combined with pretty good rain resistance. If it is combined with other base layers it can leave you feeling mostly dry, even during long periods of wet weather. Cycling waterproof jackets

Be Seen

When it is raining, it often becomes quite dark, especially in winter months. Therefore, if you purchase a waterproof top, make sure it is a highly visible colour. I don’t understand why people sell black waterproof tops. On its own, rain reduces the visibility of drivers.

Be Careful.

Cycling in wet weather is, as you might expect, more dangerous. Water can make some surfaces very slippery and if you are not careful, it is much easier to be brought to the ground. For example, when it is raining be especially careful of:

• Man hole covers – anything metallic becomes very slippery
• leaves – Leaves plus water equals loss of balance
• Farm manure – Unfortunately on country roads, farmers often leave a trail of animal muck. This can become lethal when wet, be especially careful on roads like this.

Overshoes.

In the winter when it is permanently wet on the roads, I like to wear neoprene overshoes. These not only help to keep my feet warm and dry – they also help keep my shoes clean. Overshoes are much easier to wash than cycling shoes.

Avoid Colds.

Maybe its a bit of an old wives tale, that if you get wet then you will catch a cold. But, getting wet certainly doesn’t do you any favours and can lower your immune system. Some cyclists like Miguel Indurain were particularly susceptible to chest colds in the wet. It is worth keeping dry as much as possible.

Related

Cycling Rain Gear
Do You Go cycling in rain?