Life's Too Short To Freewheel

I often use mantras in my training and coaching

No Ride Matters, But Every Ride Does... Ride Like A Pro...  Simple sayings that mean more than they first appear - little phrases that can be read in different ways. I like them because they make people think. They can inform, inspire and motivate.

My latest seems to be, Life’s too Short To Freewheel...
On the face of it very simple, but I use it in different ways for different riders at different stages of their cycling journey. It can even be used philosophically for life not connected with cycling - whatever that is.

Think about how you ride your bike.

Often, when people start cycling they don’t really think about how they ride the bike, there are so many other things to contend with: your route, your clothing, the bike, your fuelling, fitting it all into a busy schedule. The list can be immense and the last thing you think about is the ride itself.

I suggest that you should and the best place to start is your pedalling - Life Is To Short To Freewheel…

If you had the luxury of being able to see your pedalling stats from a usual road ride you'ld be surprised how much freewheeling there is. Without consciously thinking we all tend to freewheel down little hills, stop pedalling way before we have to at junctions, coast at a very slow cadence when the wind is behind us. It's natural and quickly adds up. Riding like this can often end up with more than 20% freewheeling or very slow pedalling - at the most basic level, that is just a waste of time.

Layer 1: Time

The next time you go out, consciously think about your pedalling. Try to keep the pedals turning for as much of the ride as possible. On gentle descents - keep pedalling, through twisty lanes - keep pedalling, with the wind behind you - keep pedalling.

Just actively thinking about it will make a huge difference. Your two hour endurance ride will truly be a two hour ride. You will be doing more work in the same riding time, and so without adding any more hours to your week, you'll be building fitness faster. I mean, why waste your precious time?

Layer 2: Pedalling Efficiency

I run a junior women’s cycle team (Liv CC Halo Films) and over the years have coached many young riders going from youth to the senior ranks and this is one of the key skills we develop early on.

It is amazing how many people waste so much of their riding time by not riding.

Young riders, and people new to cycling are not the most efficient pedlars, they haven’t had the time to build that superb pedalling style and efficiency that the pros have. The French have a word for it, Souplesse. Hard to describe but easy to see, a smoothness and fluidity even when the effort is high. It’s an elegance you can’t quite put your finger on, but you know it when you see it. I can dream on… but there is a serious point.

Part of fitness on a bike is our efficiency, or how much of our work is wasted by not riding smoothly. The only way to build efficiency is to practice pedalling.

Actively trying to pedal as much as you can in every ride makes a massive difference and the sooner you start building that smooth, consistent and effortless pedalling style, the sooner you will reach your goals. So, think about your pedalling, as Life’s To Short To Freewheel.

Layer 3: Deep Endurance

The most valuable thing you can when trying to build endurance fitness is develop the habit for consistent, and frequent Zone 2 Endurance rides. Even a cursory hunt will bring up many references to it being the basis of a sound training plan, countless coaches extolling its virtues and hundreds of scientific papers explaining the physiological and metabolic reasons behind it.

But proper Zone 2 riding is a skill that needs to be learnt. You must ride at a pace that isn’t too easy, while at the same time resisting the temptation to batter up the climbs and end up riding too hard. Consistent pedalling is the perfect way of getting the sensation of Z2 riding right.

If your goal is to maximise the impact of your training time you should spend as much of your endurance rides in Z2 as possible. Keeping the pedals turning and chain tight is key. It’s something the professionals do effortlessly and something I have written about in a another blog here: Ride Like A Pro

For now though the message is that the first skill to develop for any of this is to keep the pedals turning all the time.

And the philosophy?

The Stoics would have understood this concept perfectly. They taught that life is short, that time is the one thing we can never get back, and that the only thing we truly control is our own action.

Freewheeling in their eyes would be the ultimate missed opportunity - moving but not really doing. It chimes perfectly with the idea of mindfulness too - being fully aware of what you are doing, while you are doing it. To keep the pedals turning, you must be fully aware.

So there it is, a simple mantra and way of riding that has many benefits. It will save you time, build essential skills and is the basis of being able to train more effectively: Life’s Too Short To Freewheel - on the bike and everywhere else.

An Invitation to Better Rides

My goal with this blog, the website and my personal coaching is to help you get fitter, ride stronger and enjoy cycling more.

Ride on and never lose the fun in cycling.

Interested in more personalized guidance? Feel free to reach out - my goal here is to help you find the enjoyment and benefits from cycling that I do.

I know that when preparing for a challenge ride it can be confusing to know what rides to do, and when. That is why I created the Cent-Soulor. It's designed specifically for new and returning riders, and builds your fitness, skill and confidence. 

To find out if it could help you, check out the info page here: CENT-SOULOR 

Or if you feel more one to one coaching could help, my personal coaching information is here: PERSONAL COACHING