Tried and Tested Useful Tips on How to Prepare for a Long Bike Ride for Beginners — Bike Hacks

Is it your first time planning a long-distance biking trip? You cannot just pack your bags and hop on a bike if you are a beginner. You need to consider so many factors to be fully prepared for what's to come in your travel. This guide covers everything you need to know for a fulfilling biking experience, even if you are a beginner. We have prepared a complete checklist for you to keep in your mind before setting your foot outside. Read on!

If you’re planning a long ride, check out Global Cycling Network tips on Youtube on how to prepare and finish it in style! Check their video out!

Whenever you plan for a long-distance ride, this question always pops into your head, what to do? And the answer to this question is research. Research where you’re planning to go. Know everything about the place, trail, elevation, time, etc. The best way to do that is by downloading any beginner-friendly mobile app on your phone. There are so many beginner-friendly android and iOS apps like Starve, Bikemap, Google Maps, Ride with GPS, and MapMyRide that make your research easy and breezy. Make sure you’re taking full advantage of them before starting your journey. Don't just download these apps on your phone to use later. Use them NOW to know how they’re working!

The next thing to consider is your stopovers. On long journeys, you have to make a list of all the places where you will be stopping for a nap or drink or just resting for a while. It's equally important to plan your itinerary and study your route as well. For example, if the average cycling distance for beginners is 12 km, you should aim for an 8mph speed. Therefore, the distance between two stops should be 12km for you ideally. We suggest spending some time checking the locations where you will be going on Google Maps. In case you plan on setting up camp, ensure you know all the details about the surrounding areas to avoid any problems.

If you have no idea what essentials to bring along with you, watch some youtube videos on what stuff to pack for the travel. Keep your stuff to a minimum, though. Any useless items will only add to your load. While you may not feel it when you start the journey, bringing along a lot of items can actually slow down your speed. In case you are traveling alone, bring a cooking set gear, a stove, and a lightweight tent. Similarly, a GPS training watch is one of the essentials. It can help you monitor heart rate, and work as a compass as well as a barometer to stay on the right track. Besides, never go out without a waterproof cycling jacket. You never know when it might rain, and shades aren't always available.

Long bike rides can be physically taxing. Think about all the pain you might have to go through on the road. Are you capable of enduring all the hardships that come with a long-distance ride? Experts say setting out on a bike ride is 70 percent mental and 30 percent physical, and we fully agree. If your mind isn't ready and you doubt your physical health, you will carry all the anxiety with you. As a result, you won't be able to fully enjoy your ride. It's best to prepare yourself physically and mentally with a cycling schedule before you start your journey. Getting yourself checked by a physician is also a good option to be mentally satisfied with your good health.

When you are planning for a long trip, assess yourself. If you think you can jump from an hour ride to six-hour without any physical injury, you are wrong. Before taking a big jump, one has to start with baby steps. So, you have to work on your endurance and build it up gradually.

So, the best thing is to add time to your workout slowly. For instance, if you ride one hour a week, add half an hour to it. This technique will help in the building of your stamina. Keep adding hours to your riding, and eventually, you will have the stamina to ride for 6 hours. Your aerobic capacity will develop during this time.

While training, you can keep a power meter to count your lactate threshold. The lactate threshold is a measure of your anaerobic activity. Cyclists achieve the lactate threshold at 95 percent, close to their maximum heart rate.

For building muscle endurance, you have to do strength-building exercises. Squats and lunges can help you in it. Stretch after every workout to develop stiffness and strength.

Food is another important consideration. The human body has the capacity to absorb 60-90 g of carbohydrates in an hour, whereas water requirement depends on the temperature and activity. The body utilizes the energy derived from carbohydrates as fuel.

When riding, you require a good amount of energy. You can add this energy to your body in the form of nutritional supplements such as gums, gels, bars, juices, cereals, jellies, candies, or even liquids. It is of least concern that in what form you are taking them, keep up your stock so that you will not be out of energy during riding.

You can store a good quantity of food on your cycle. However, if you remain on cycle for the whole day, at one point, your stock will eventually end.

Thus, be aware of the food available in the area and what you eat. When planning to have a dine-out, make sure you are not having anything unhealthy. Get yourself used too of eating energy-rich food that may not even taste good to your buds. Any stomach issues will result in delays, can prolong your journey, or even abort it altogether. When you ride, make sure you are drinking plenty of water. Drink as soon as your body tells you it's thirsty. Delaying can weaken your body. Also, bring a hydrate along with you. During long-distance rides, you’re burning a lot of salts and sugar. Therefore a hydrate can help keep your essential body nutrients in optimum amount.

As it is a famous saying: ‘one who fails to plan, plans to fail.’ So if you are not planning well before going on your cycling journey, you are actually failing. There is always a chance of any fault in the equipment going wrong, so prepare well before going.

Ensure that everything is working in the proper order. Check the health of the tires so that there is no tearing. Make sure that the chain doesn't need replacement, and that the gears are absolutely fine.

Keep the spare parts with you that you might need on the ride. Pack some spare brake pads, gear cable, and chainlinks with you. They will aid you if any unfortunate circumstance occurs on the way.

Although it is exciting to go on a solo adventure, if this is your first experience and you are not very sure about it, I recommend you go with the other riders. A pack of riders will keep you motivated, and your chances of success will significantly increase.

Group riding is also beneficial in a way that you will not face any navigation-related issues. If your bike meets any problem, there are people with you to help you out.

When you are riding, consider the signals your body is giving you. If your body is telling you that now you need rest, abruptly take rest as it may impact your health in the long run.

Sometimes your brain may deceive you and wants to give up even before your body gets tired. In such a situation, you have to motivate yourself slightly and give yourself small targets.

Finally, the most important gear is your bike. Make sure you have a good mountain bike if you are hiking on a mountainous trail. Train yourself for the long ride by taking multiple small rides every once in a while. Never go with a bike you aren't already familiar with. You don't want it to break down in the middle of the road and end your journey abruptly.

Comfort should be your first priority. With a comfortable bike, you can cover long distances with ease and convenience. Many adventure and bikepacking bikes come with multiple sections where you can store your stuff easily. Likewise, tourism bikes have racks and water bottle cages to make sure you have all the supplies you need for the ride.

Do people often wonder whether to go for a steel frame bike or an aluminum bike on long trips? We suggest steel bikes over aluminum ones because:

So, that's pretty much all the helpful cycling tips for long-distance biking for beginners. While your rides will mostly be smooth, bad things can happen at any time on long rides. Therefore, you should always hope for the best and plan for the worst. We hope you know how to prepare for a long bike ride with these tips, and you are well prepared if something goes wrong along the way. Besides all the items we suggested above, you should always keep your ID, documents, and some extra cash stashed somewhere apart from your money. That's all for now. Thank you for reading!