Tag: winter training

RIDE RESOLUTIONS.
As we begin the new year, conversations turn toward resolutions whether it be saving money, ditching bad habits (or starting up great new ones), and most often – weight loss. Many of us want to ride more in the upcoming year without the focus on losing weight. Here at Terry, we put together some alternative ride resolutions designed to keep you riding without weighty worries.
- Put more miles on my bikes than my car
- Due to my knee injury, I resolve to follow my doctor’s order and get back on my bike to get my knee strong again!
- Find a safer bike route to work.
- Start riding with a new group.
- Plan my cycling schedule while my commitment is strong!
- Get a trailer and take my puppy for a ride.
- Plan more adventures on the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail.
- Ride around Grand Isle with my wife – all summer!
- Spend time spinning before heading to the climbing gym.
- Learn how to build my own bike.
- Register for a community ride that benefits a local organization (Click here to check out our 2016 ride calendar).
Share your ride resolutions below and tell us where you hope 2016 takes you!
January 5, 2016
GEAR GUIDE: WINTER RIDING GLOVES.

Any rider who has braved snow covered trails, icy winds and side blowing sleet know that cold hands can ruin a ride before it even begins. So, let’s give a hand to arguably one of the most important pieces of equipment necessary for cold weather riding, warm and wearable winter gloves.

Here are our top picks for warm digits into single digits:

Road Riding 20° and Up:

Power SO Lady Road Glove.

These Power SO Road Gloves pack a punch, with reflective and hi-viz details that also serve as a beacon on the road. A WINDSTOPPER® membrane makes them completely impervious to wind and acceptable in the wet. The addition of a thermal lining, women-specific fit, foam padding on palm and silicone forehand gripper give these gloves just the right balance of warmth, grip and finger sensation in the just-below-freezing temperature range.

Road Riding 20° and Below:

Road WS Thermo Lobster Glove.

We have several women on staff with Reynaud’s disease, making it nearly impossible to ride in cold/wet conditions without fear of frostbite. Then we found this option from GORE®. If you’re taking your road riding to the extreme, the Thermo Lobster is about as warm as it can get without a battery. This glove features all of the benefits found in the Power SO Lady Road Glove above, but in a 2-chamber design that keeps the fingers even warmer while still allowing you to shift and brake.

Cold Condition Mountain Biking:

MTB WS Thermo Lady Glove.

This women-specific MTB glove by GORE® is new to their line and true to its name. The insulated glove comes complete with WINDSTOPPER® technology offering the unparalleled warmth riders have come to expect from Gore gloves but with the added benefit of strengthened lining between thumb and forefinger for an improved, MTB-specific grip.

Crazy Cold Commuting and Fat Biking:

45NRTH Cobrafist.

This insulated fat biking pogie is weather resistant to the extreme and unbeatable when it comes to cold weather gear options that maximize dexterity. The Cobrafist is protective enough that you can wear pretty minimal gloves in extreme conditions and still have full range of motion for braking and shifting.

Let us know what gloves you reach for as the temperature drops – we’re always on the lookout for the next hot thing.

Stay warm and happy riding.

January 4, 2016
WINTER GEAR GUIDE.

What to wear and when to wear it.

One thing that you will hear often in life, and more often in the world of cycling, bodies are different. This is especially true when discussing winter weather gear because everyone has different comfort levels when it comes to freezing temperatures. These recommendations are coming from my experience, commuting year round in New England, and they all follow a very basic layering rule that almost anyone can use to stay comfortable:

Base layer + insulation + wind protection.

50°F-35°F

This is still a pretty sane temperature range for riding and commuting therefore, not a lot of extra gear is required. In this temperature range, I find a vest to be the most comfortable outwear choice in variable weather that is on the warmer side. This particular outfit is the pinnacle of urban cycle chic, and still abides by the layering formula. The piece that makes this outfit is the Technique Dress, made with DWR weather-resistant fabric, this is one dress that can weather a storm as well as a board meeting.

Outfit:

NTS Pattern Crew base layer by Smartwool

Terry Coolweather Tight

Technique Dress by Nau

Down Stole by Nau

Contour Headband by Choucas

GBW Universal GT Thermo Gloves

35°F-20°F

In these temperatures, you will start to want gear that is made for cycling and specifically for cycling in cooler temperatures. Wind and water resistance in these conditions are key, especially for extremities like ears, hands and feet. The boots pictured here are made by Giro, they are a down, clipless boot created for men (but worn fabulously by women) and are consistently warm. However, toe and shoe covers are a great option for riders not looking to fully invest in a winter specific riding boot or who are looking to reduce the weight of their gear.

Outfit:

Warm Half Neck Base Layer by Craft

Thermal Tights by Terry

Wanderer Jersey by Terry

Glide Beanie by Choucas

GBW MTB WS Thermo Lady Gloves

0°F-20°F

No matter how brutal the weather, this outfit is my go to for commuting in the coldest conditions. With wind protection from the Power 2.0 Jacket, insulation from the Mandarin Thermal Jersey, extra coverage and warmth provided by the insulation skirt – there are so many amazing elements that make this work and when they come together, I may just say it is a masterpiece.

Outfit:

Active Extreme Crewneck Base Layer by Craft

Coldweather Tight by Terry

Mandarin Thermal L/S Jersey by Terry

GBW Power 2.0 SO Lady Cycling Jacket

Insulation Skirt by Craft

GBW Road WS Thermo Lobster Glove

As Terry Customer Service maven, Casey, always says “there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad outfits”, so stay warm and keep riding!

Tailwinds,

Whitney McKiddy

December 5, 2015
OFF SEASON

FALLING IN LOVE AGAIN.

My job as a Derailleur is to support you on your journey. Both your journey in-season and off-season. Your in-season journey may include becoming a stronger rider on hills. Your in-season journey may include mastering sneaking out of your house to get your ride in so you have “you time”. There is no judgment either way. There is an ebb and flow to your journey and that includes allowing yourself an off-season. For both your body AND mind. So what is your off-season journey made up of?

For those of us who call New England home, the off-season is a forced break from the treacherous, icy roads when we instead spend countless hours on our indoor trainer. Off-season for some in more “more temperate” climates may mean that their competition schedule is over and they are just “riding to ride” – mileage gets lower and training less intense. Or in the example of my friend in Florida, her off-season is in the dead of summer when temperatures and humidity force a counter-seasonal off-season for her. She claims her best rides are in the winter. So be it.

Either way, we all have to face the off-season. This means the foam roller may make its initial debut or that we head to the much needed Chiropractor or Functional Movement Screener. But this year, I challenge you to focus on what is and isn’t working during your off-season in your body AND mind.

Some of us work all year so we can have an off-season, while others dread it; afraid of slowing down, losing strength, gaining weight, etc. But you don’t have to be an Olympian to feel the “off-season blues. It is normal to feel fear around “slowing down” or “throttling back” when we have been pushing ourselves to move forward. Perhaps another way to look at this time is as a “Transition Period”. This to me means we are transitioning from a yearlong season of races or hard training into something less taxing and less “traditional”. Much different than the usual thought that an Off-Season means that you just stop what you are doing.

I prescribe off-season time for my athletes as a chance for them to reflect, recoup, recharge and regain. And to fall in love again. It benefits both their bodies and mind. An intentional well-executed transition period puts one in a better position to perform in the new season when it’s productive and enjoyable. A poorly planned/executed off-season leads to not being as fresh, or a potential dead battery far from recharged. So I ask my athletes to fall head over heals in love again during this transition period with their sport. As an athlete, you must rediscover why you fell in love with your sport in the first place. We often lose the “whys” during season. By taking a step back so that you can reflect will give you back that perspective. And one heck of a recharge.

I have never claimed to be a trainer of the body, but more of a trainer of the mind. However, I would like to offer some examples of how my athletes use their “off-season” to recharge their body ultimately increasing their mental conditioning.

For some of my athletes, they stay strong in the off-season by reducing volume, not intensity. Study after study reinforce the idea that it is possible to reduce the volume of training by more than two thirds without a drop in conditioning levels as long as the intensity level was sufficient. My athletes use general, not specific training during this time period. They do something different than being hunched over their bikes. These new activities invigorate them. Try a sport that makes you stand upright or an activity that is counter to the one you have been doing in-season. For some, that might mean developing the weaker muscles that gets underutilized during the season but when strengthened, adds to the overall conditioning of the athlete. My athletes find that “playing” in the off-season more than training is the key. Make it fun. But most importantly, make it different that what you would do “in-season”.

Amy Magyar is a Derailleur. She helps her clients across North America change their gears, their pace, and their direction. She is the essential piece of equipment to get you where you need to move forward at a different pace and with a different power. As an industry veteran and a Certified Performance Coach, Amy works with individuals who are athletes, were athletes, or wish to be athletes, on navigating change.

December 12, 2013