Cycling · Endurance
How to ride further
How to ride so the distance comes easily, the ladder from ten kilometres to a hundred, and how to add distance without burying yourself.
The movement
How to do one properly.
Every rep the same shape, so the numbers mean the same thing on day thirty as on day one.
- 1
Saddle height so your knee is slightly bent at the bottom of the pedal stroke.
- 2
Spin a lighter gear at eighty to ninety turns a minute rather than grinding a heavy one.
- 3
Relax your grip and drop your shoulders; tension costs energy over hours.
- 4
Eat and drink before you feel you need to on anything over an hour.
- 5
Ride most of the time at a pace where you could hold a conversation.
The way up
How to ride further
Rung 1
10 km
Thirty minutes at an easy spin. Learn to sit on the bike.
Rung 2
30 km
An hour and a bit. Add five kilometres a week to one ride.
Rung 3
60 km
Two to three hours. Food on the bike becomes part of the ride.
Rung 4
100 km
A long day out. Pace the first half as if you plan to ride it twice.
One long ride a week, lengthened a little each week, with two shorter ones that stay easy. The long ride is where distance is built; the others keep the legs turning.
Cycling forgives volume better than running does, so you can add more sooner, but the same rule holds: every fourth week, ease back and let the previous three sink in.
How it is counted
On the board, however it got there.
Your watch or phone sends it. Garmin, Fitbit, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health, and Health Connect all report cycling on their own, so it lands scored without anyone typing. No watch? Say it out loud in the app instead.
Worth 15 points per kilometre in the app, so a challenge can weigh it against anything else you count.
Questions
Asked about cycling
Does an indoor trainer count?
Yes. Rides on a trainer or a stationary bike arrive as cycling from Garmin, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health and Health Connect, and from Fitbit as a bike or spinning session.
Distance or time, which should I track?
The app counts kilometres, and kilometres are honest about progress. Time is useful on the day; distance is what the board scores.
Does it count from my watch?
Your watch or phone sends it. Garmin, Fitbit, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health, and Health Connect all report cycling on their own, so it lands scored without anyone typing. No watch? Say it out loud in the app instead.
Is it free?
Yes. The athlete app is free: logging, challenges and every guide on this site. Coaches pay for their workspace; the people they coach do not.
Other exercises
Everything else we count.
Push up
How to do more push ups
Pull up
How to do more pull ups
Squat
How to do more squats
Plank
How to hold a plank longer
Sit up
How to do more sit ups
Dip
How to do more dips
Burpees
How to do more burpees
Lunges
How to do more lunges
Jumping jacks
How to do more jumping jacks
Skipping
How to skip rope longer
Extensions
How to do more back extensions
Battle ropes
How to last longer on battle ropes
Running
How to run further
Swimming
How to swim further
Rowing
How to row further
Steps
How to walk more steps every day
Hiking
How to hike further
Football
How to get fitter for football
Basketball
How to get fitter for basketball
Tennis
How to get fitter for tennis
Dancing
How to build stamina for dancing
Yoga
How to make yoga a daily habit
Do more cycling.
Let someone see it.
Get the app, log what you did or let your watch send it, and hand your friends the code.