PACE - What is it & How to find yours?

When we talk about pace or pacing, we are really talking about how fast you are riding or your miles per hour.  For those of you that are using a cycling computer on your bike, this is easy to determine.

So, why should this matter to you?  When you know what pace you ride best at, you become more efficient & use energy wisely.  When you ride above your pace, you tax your body more than necessary.  There are times (when on a specific training program or working toward a specific goal) that you will ride above your pace to improve your speed.  More on that later. 

For the most part, early-on in your training , you should be riding at a comfortable pace.  A good way to tell if you are riding at a good pace for you is: if you are able to talk in a normal manner using sentences of at least 10 words or more, you are riding at a good pace.  If you find that you aren’t able to accomplish this, it’s time to slow down until you can.  As your body adjusts to the increase of miles you ride, you will build strength in your muscles and in your cardio ability.  You will increase your endurance level.  This means that you should be able to increase the pace at which you ride. 

For those more experienced rider’s, who have a built a good mileage base, the key to improving your pace is to have days where you tax your limits & ride harder than you normally would.  This is not to say that you should ride hard every day.  Just the opposite is true.  Pick one day a week to ride above your normal ride pace, then be sure to allow time for your body to recover.  It’s not necessary to ride more than one day a week above your normal pace in order to improve.  Follow up a hard day with an easy day.

Many cyclists wear heart rate monitors to better gauge how their body is responding to how they are riding (more on that later).

Improving your pace takes time.  Be patient, follow a plan and give your body time to adjust to the changes & challenges of your program.