How to get fit for summer, before summer

Many cyclists either stop riding, or greatly reduce their riding during winter. Of course, that’s perfectly understandable. After all, it takes a great deal of motivation to step outside and get on your bike when it’s sleeting outside!

However, winter miles are summer smiles, and those who ride through winter are usually rewarded with a far higher level of fitness. And that is so worth it! So what’s the secret to riding through winter?

The right gear

Having the right gear makes all the difference, and can change a ride from torture into fun. Let’s look at your options.

Raincoats

Being freezing cold is not fun, so a solid starting point is the gear you wear when going riding. That starts with a decent, waterproof raincoat. Do not fall for the marketing hype about “breathable” raincoats! The reality is, unless it’s Gore-Tex, “breathable” means the rain will get through.

Alongside that, remember that, unless you’re only riding short distances, trying to stay dry is a fool’s quest. Instead, your priority should be trying to stay warm, and otherwise surrender to the wet. Once you accepted in your mind that you’ll get wet, you will enjoy the ride much more, regardless of the weather.

Gloves

Winter gloves are essential! You want gloves that are waterproof, and windproof, with lots of insulation. I highly rate these gloves, and wear them throughout winter. However, if even those aren’t enough for you, consider getting heated gloves, so your fingers remain toasty warm.

Layer up!

Start with decent underlayers, and go to the top of the class if your underlayer is made out of Merino wool. You see, Merino has some superb qualities: it remains able to keep you warm, even when wet, and it helps wick moisture away from your skin. Finally, unlike many synthetic, Merino doesn’t get smelly.

If you can’t get Merino, your next best bet is polypropylene. Try and avoid polyester, as it will get smelly in a hurry, and absolutely avoid cotton, or cotton blends. Cotton is an amazing fibre, but is quick to absorb moisture, and it takes ages to dry.

The secret to keeping warm is to trap as many pockets of air between your skin and the outside as possible, and having multiple layers makes that easier. Besides, if it does warm up a bit, you can easily adjust by removing one layer.

Warm feet

Especially when riding clipped into your pedals, remember that your pedals are effectively heat syncs. That means your feet can rapidly cool down, and achingly cold feet aren’t fun! The secret is of course neoprene overshoes.

I used to swear by Sealskinz overshoes (and still rate them extremely highly) but recently got these instead. However, if overshoes alone aren’t enough, those that use them absolutely rave about these Shimano winter boots.

Finally, if none of the above keep your feet warm enough, you still have the option of heated insoles.

Knees

You will find many cyclists saying that you must cover your knees if the temperature drops below 10 degrees Celsius. This claim is bandied about with supreme confidence, as if it’s an absolute scientific fact, but the reality is quite different.

By all means, if you feel more comfortable that way, do cover your knees, or your legs. Just don’t make spurious claims about why you do so, as the science doesn’t back up those claims.

Riding

To state the very obvious, if you want to build your cycling fitness, you have to ride more. There really is no substitute for this. If you want to be able to go for longer rides, you need to work on your endurance fitness. The best way to do so is to go for longer and longer rides.

If you wanted to increase your average speed, you need to focus on cadence. Simply put, you need to spin the pedals faster, no matter at what speed you ride, to train your legs to spin the pedals faster.

There are a two shortcuts you can take though, and that begins with sprint intervals. When out riding, and the road (and traffic) allows you to safely do so, stand up on the pedals and sprint as fast as you possibly can for 30 seconds. Simply count down in your head – extreme timing accuracy doesn’t matter here. After the sprint, sit back down, slow right down, and catch your breath. Two minutes later, repeat it again. The more you do that, the faster your fitness will increase, but you will suffer for it.

The second shortcut is to ride up hills (that article also contains a secret* tip about getting faster at cycling uphill). There really is no substitute for this. I have a life philosophy, which started as a cycling philosophy, and it goes like this:

The hill is not in the way, the hill is the way

Simply put, in life, difficulties make us stronger, just as in cycling, hills make us stronger. Once you can easily ride up a hill that used to defeat you, start adding weight to your bike, and go ride it again. And when you’re ready, combine sprint intervals with hill climbing! Summer-you will truly appreciate the effort winter-you put in.
*There are no secrets to hill-climbing.

Turbo trainers

For rigidly-structured training, you just cannot beat the controlled environment that a turbo trainer offers. Combined with your pick of various online services, you could spend winter racing against riders from all over the world.

While there’s nothing wrong with choosing to do your winter riding on a turbo trainer, do be aware the entire scene is pretty much geared towards road cycling, where the need for speed trumps everything else.

Speaking personally, I find using turbo trainers to be an unpleasant experience, and I’d rather be riding outside. Yes, in when it’s sleeting. However, they may work well for you, and allow you to increase your winter miles.

TL:DR

If you want to be fit for summer, you need to ride more, you need to ride faster and you need to ride further. There’s no substitute for this.