Chad Rides

For the last four months my view has been staring at a TV, sweating buckets, and burying myself in my paincave and why do we do it? It’s not about winning races. It’s about having the fitness to actually enjoy the outdoor rides, chat on the climbs, and earn that coffee stop.

Let’s look at my cycling plans for the next few months;

• Why I’ll still be cycling indoors even though I’m excited to get going outdoors through the spring & the summer
• What I think the benefits that cycling indoors brings to my outdoor rides and can for you as well
• and at the end of the video I’ve got some exciting news for the channel that I hope you’ll look forward to as much as I am. More on that in a few minutes

Indoor cycling is great

Let me start by saying that I love cycling indoors and if you’re a regular viewer then you’ll know that.

I love the racing, the challenges, the friends I’ve made in the teams I ride for.

I love it when new routes come out, the improvements I make in my performance and fitness and exploring the different platforms I ride on, like Zwift and Rouvy.

And it’s not all been plain sailing of course, my fitness has crashed and my weight has gone up, due to work or illness, in fact this has happened a few time this winter and I know we all experience this from time to time.

But I do love knowing that I can reset, get my mojo back and start again and that indoor cycling is always there ready to go when I need it.

Fundamental to all this, at least for me, and I’ve spoken about it before on the channel, has been the Zwift Ride.

I bought it with my own money more than a year ago and it has made all the difference in keeping me consistent in my indoor training and quest to keep fit and healthy. There’s a couple of review videos on the channel if you want to learn more about it.

And I have no doubt that during the spring and summer I will be continuing to ride indoors alongside getting out about in the fresh air. I’ll keep racing indoors with my teams and of course it will be there for me on the inevitable cold and rainy days that the UK summer will no doubt bring.

So indoor cycling will continue for me and the channel all year round, but there’s no doubt I am looking forward to getting back on those open roads, in the fresh air, with some friends.

Cycling indoors makes outdoors better

And there’s real benefits to all of that cycling indoors.

I guess, like me, you’ve probably spent quite a lot of time suffering away on your indoor cycling setup in your garage or spare room, building your fitness, your stamina and just generally getting healthier.

And if you have, we are going to reap those benefits outdoors, that hard work translates directly into more fun when you get outside.

And I’m not talking about racing here, although it would certainly help with that if that’s your thing.

What I’m talking about is that feeling of just enjoying those outdoor rides more, being able to comfortably ride, not having to wonder if you can keep up on the club rides and the fact that you are already saddle ready, so will be comfortable and ready to get more out of the ride in every way.

And all of that means that you’re ready to go further, faster. Visit more places, all while keeping fit and healthy. When the sun’s out and the wind is whistling through your helmet, well, I don’t know if there are many better feelings.

Personally I’ve put together my check list already in preparation for the summer, so let me take you through it

Outdoor checklist

You’ll probably start like I have with digging out last years kit.

And it’s all I can do not to get tempted by the latest cycling apparel out there of course, but in reality I have everything I need already. And then I have tights for those colder days and bib shorts for when the sun’s out. A few different layers to put on or shed as we go, a decent helmet and some waterproofs, I’m in the UK after all.

I’ve got my bike computer for navigation and of course uploading the rides to Strava, because if it’s not on Strava did you even do it! I’ve got my camera’s ready to record the ride so I can share them with you. Some snacks and water to keep the energy levels up and I’m ready to go.

And that’s kind of it.

The next step and just as important and enjoyable for me though, is thinking about and planning where to go. I mean it’s great sometimes to just set off and see where you end up, but I’ve always found that a bit of a plan makes a big difference. I like to find little coffee shops, visit interesting places, like historic sites or pretty towns and villages and just generally do some exploring while keeping fit.

Honestly I cant wait to get going!

Exciting channel news

And this year is going to be even better because …

….Were moving to Cornwall.

Famous for it’s stunning scenery, majestic coastlines, great weather (well, at least as far as the UK goes) and I cant wait to get exploring all of those new places down there and of course trying out all of those new coffee stops! With cake! Obviously!

But not this week, this has been the weather in cornwall over the last few days, not ideal for cycling!

Anyway, I’m sure it’ll be fine when we get there!

And if that wasn’t already exciting enough, just this week my Wife, Wendy, has bought her first road bike. She takes delivery this week.

And I have my new Specialized Roubaix, so we will be riding and exploring Cornwall together. I cant wait for you to see the rides and places that we’ve already started to plan.

And for my regular viewers and readers, thank you to you all by the way, I really appreciate all the support you give to the channel, there will of course be plenty of indoor cycling, fitness and strategy content as well over the summer but I hope you also join us and enjoy the outdoor videos as well.

So that’s what’s coming up on the channel over the next few months, I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I will.

In the meantime while I wait for the weather to improve and the movers to come and take us to our new home, you might still be thinking about doing some racing indoors and if so this video has all the info you’ll need.