# Day before century: rest or ride?



## jayz28

Another century newbie here, riding in my first this coming Saturday. I'm not in terrible shape, but not that great either.. currently 169 lbs @ 5'7". I've been able to ride 50 to 60 pretty easily so far without much issue, but it usually makes my legs feel a bit sore the next couple days. Given that, should I take it easy the day before the ride? Or should I go on another 50-60 training ride?

Also, any recommendations for day of ride prep? What do I eat before and during?

Thanks!


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## BicycleBastard

Ultimately that decision is up to you and your body. I personally prefer to ride the day before, a light 15mph ride of about 30 miles just to keep loose. But what works for me might not work that well for you.
Just pay attention to what your body is telling you. If you ride the day before then during your century you feel sore and sluggish then you can be sure that you should rest the day before. Trial and error, try something then see how you feel after and log that in the memory banks for future reference.

As for food. That morning chow down, eggs, oatmeal, bread and butter. Get a good meal to where you are full but not stuffed. If the organizers of the ride dont provide you food then I recommend you pack a few bananas, some cookies, maybe some trail mix or apples. Definitely get some chocolate, whatever your preferred brand is, the sugar will be a welcome snack. You want a good balance of protein and carbs to keep your stores full. Mostly though you want carbs because thats where the energy to continue will come from first. You can chow down on protein after the ride.


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## JimF22003

For your first one you might want to take a day off, or at most a little spin to keep things loosened up. Just beware if you feel a little *too* strong on the day you might be tempted to go out too hard and too fast, so don't mistake being rested after a day off with being ready to charge that fast for the full ride. Sometimes a little soreness or stiffness to start out isn't a bad thing.


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## bradXism

JimF22003 said:


> For your first one you might want to take a day off, or at most a little spin to keep things loosened up. Just beware if you feel a little *too* strong on the day you might be tempted to go out too hard and too fast, so don't mistake being rested after a day off with being ready to charge that fast for the full ride. Sometimes a little soreness or stiffness to start out isn't a bad thing.


I would have to go with taking the day before off for the first one. The eating advise sounds pretty good and I am sure you can find older posts on what to eat if you don't like much of the stuff advised. Al of it is a personal thing.

I would recommend that you ride the day after. Easy gears, good spin, loosen up the muscles and flush out the sludge. 

I wouldn't recommend a lifetime of bursting lungs,burning legs and a heart rate that would kill most people, it has worked for me.


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## brianmcg

I like to give my bike a good wash and tune up. Then take it on a 5 mile ride around the hood to make sure nothing falls off.


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## Fireform

I usually ride but very easy. If I plan to go at the century hard, though, I take the day before off. Even two days sometimes.


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## [email protected]

Take the day off and relax. Have a nice dinner, get some good sleep and enjoy the ride.


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## korbs

Im doing my first bike and camp this weekend. The first day will be a whooping 130 or so down to our camp site. The terrain will be mostly flat with no more of a total of 1000 climbing feet. I know I can do distance, but with gear its a different story. Im currently trying to rest the day before, and a short spin later today to double check how well i packed the gear. Im carrying 95% of the gear because my partners bike cannot. Thats where it gets weary. rest rest rest!


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## tv_vt

Do not, repeat, do not go out and do another 50-60 miles. Are you nuts? Save your energy for your century. Relax the day before, make sure your gear is in order, check over your tires, brake pads, cables, oil your chain, and just get ready for tomorrow. Let your nervousness be that little extra fuel for your century. Your training is done, nothing you do the day before will make you stronger, except resting more.

If you have to ride, make it less than 5 - 10 miles just to make sure your bike's in order, then put it away.

TV


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## eplanajr

brianmcg said:


> I like to give my bike a good wash and tune up. Then take it on a 5 mile ride around the hood to make sure nothing falls off.


We have a winner!


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## CEVIS

Rest.


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## CoffeeBean2

As a previous poster mentioned, what works for them may not work for you. That being said, my advice is to go out for an easy spin with some sprint-type efforts to open up the legs. Every time I've raced or done a century and didn't ride the day before, I've had a bad day.

One thing not mentioned so far - you need to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Rule of thumb - if you don't get up at least once during the night before your century to pee, then you didn't drink enough. Not being hydrated enough will rob you of power.


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## CEVIS

CoffeeBean2 said:


> As a previous poster mentioned, what works for them may not work for you. That being said, my advice is to go out for an easy spin with some sprint-type efforts to open up the legs. Every time I've raced or done a century and didn't ride the day before, I've had a bad day.
> 
> One thing not mentioned so far - you need to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Rule of thumb - if you don't get up at least once during the night before your century to pee, then you didn't drink enough. Not being hydrated enough will rob you of power.


"open up the legs"....what does that mean?


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## glance2

I like to take a short easy ride the day before. My legs get tight and I find a nice flat ride loosens them up the day before. I remember to stretch the night before and in the morning prior to the century.

I also agree about hydration. Going into the century well hydrated works wonders.


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## rickyscuba

* 15min on the trainer very very easy
* a good dinner like pasta w/chicken.
* check your bike and gears.
* 10hrs sleep....and enjoy your century


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## CoffeeBean2

CEVIS said:


> "open up the legs"....what does that mean?


See glance2 post above. It also means to remind the legs what they need to do without beating them up. Another way to look at it is "priming the engine." 

Typically, especially for racing, you will taper about a week before your event. This means your rides during this time period are shorter, with some intensity - usually all out - with long rest periods between each effort.

For example, my "A" race was on July 17. So Monday was a rest day, Tuesday was 4 x 30 second sprints, all out, with 4 minute recoveries between each 30 second effort. Wednesday was a group ride, Thursday was a repeat of Tuesday, Friday was 3 x 60 seconds, all out, with 4 minute recoveries, Saturday was 2 x 90 seconds, all out, with 4 minute recoveries, race on Sunday.


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## CEVIS

CoffeeBean2 said:


> See glance2 post above. It also means to remind the legs what they need to do without beating them up. Another way to look at it is "priming the engine."
> 
> Typically, especially for racing, you will taper about a week before your event. This means your rides during this time period are shorter, with some intensity - usually all out - with long rest periods between each effort.
> 
> For example, my "A" race was on July 17. So Monday was a rest day, Tuesday was 4 x 30 second sprints, all out, with 4 minute recoveries between each 30 second effort. Wednesday was a group ride, Thursday was a repeat of Tuesday, Friday was 3 x 60 seconds, all out, with 4 minute recoveries, Saturday was 2 x 90 seconds, all out, with 4 minute recoveries, race on Sunday.


Reminding the legs? Priming the engine? There is no scientific data to support your claims. Riding the day before the century is not necessary for either of these items from a physiological standpoint. If anything, the ride the day before will tap into muscle and liver glycogen that could be used during the century. Rest is the best prescription. Sounds more like a psychological massage to me.


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## glance2

CEVIS said:


> Reminding the legs? Priming the engine? There is no scientific data to support your claims. Riding the day before the century is not necessary for either of these items from a physiological standpoint. If anything, the ride the day before will tap into muscle and liver glycogen that could be used during the century. Rest is the best prescription. Sounds more like a psychological massage to me.


I think it depends on the person. The older you get, the more need to stay flexible. Our bodies lose flexibility as time goes on. You can tell by the way a child walks vs. an aged senior. For me, when my muscles are tight, I'm more prone to injury. A pilates trainer told me to keep stretching, even 4 x a day was good. For some, it may be psychological. For me, it's a necessity.


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## CEVIS

glance2 said:


> I think it depends on the person. The older you get, the more need to stay flexible. Our bodies lose flexibility as time goes on. You can tell by the way a child walks vs. an aged senior. For me, when my muscles are tight, I'm more prone to injury. A pilates trainer told me to keep stretching, even 4 x a day was good. For some, it may be psychological. For me, it's a necessity.


The most recent data on stretching suggests that stretching after the exercise is the way to go. Stretching before does nothing and may be harmful is overcooked.


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## CoffeeBean2

CEVIS said:


> Reminding the legs? Priming the engine? There is no scientific data to support your claims. Riding the day before the century is not necessary for either of these items from a physiological standpoint. If anything, the ride the day before will tap into muscle and liver glycogen that could be used during the century. Rest is the best prescription. Sounds more like a psychological massage to me.


Then the racers in the Tour rest on their rest days? Meaning, no riding? As it's been mentioned, everyone is different. Also, I will point out that every training plan I've seen has the participant riding before the day of the century. Here's an example --> http://www.bicycling.com/training-nutrition/training-fitness/your-training-plans?page=0,0


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## FBinNY

korbs said:


> ..... Im carrying 95% of the gear because my partners bike cannot.


What a great idea, not you, but your partner's.  Make touring easier by getting a bike that won't accept a rack, then buddy up with a mule. Gee, all these years, I've been doing it the hard way.


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## clem91

just have a good chill day, dont tire yourslf but if you feel a ride go for it. just keep it slow. eat lots of carbs and stretch. good luck


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## Oxtox

you should absolutely hammer a 60-miler the day before and then use the century as a recovery ride.

win-win.


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## jayz28

Thanks everyone for your valuable advice. 
I ended up going with the light ride and gear check suggestions, a nice big plate of spaghetti for dinner, but only managed around 6 hrs of sleep due to being nervous as heck! Most of the ride was quite enjoyable, but I started getting leg cramps around mile 75. The sag wagon gave me a ride to the mile 85 rest station where I received some salt pills for the cramps, which subsided about 30 mins later. I'm happy to report I was able to complete the rest of the ride, although really bummed I missed out by 10 miles. Guess I'll have to train harder for my next century!


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## vontress

If I have been training heavy and feel burnt out, I rest for up to 3 days. This comes over from running days but it serves me well. 3 days off in a row usually makes me jonesing for my bike and adds to the fun of the event. Nothing you do in the last days will help your fitness. There is no reason to go into this event sore and with depleted glycogen.


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## nor_cal_rider

I like to go out and "spin my legs" the day before AND the day after. Day before keeps everything loose for the ride, and the day after gets rid of any lingering lactic acid. Nothing too hard or long, but enough to warm up the muscles.

YMMV.


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## Marcus75

I did my best time at Solvang this year. I did carbo loaded for the couple days before the ride. But don't eat heavy for dinner before the ride than you'll be throwing up all over the place at the ride Pasta and vegs are a good source! The key is to stay hydrated and feed throughout the ride (food at the Sag stops). Rest after the ride because you'll be sore afterwords.


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## pigpen

Oxtox said:


> you should absolutely hammer a 60-miler the day before and then use the century as a recovery ride.
> 
> win-win.


You forgot the intervals..


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## glance2

pigpen said:


> You forgot the intervals..


That's for the morning of...


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## RkFast

CEVIS said:


> Reminding the legs? Priming the engine? There is no scientific data to support your claims. Riding the day before the century is not necessary for either of these items from a physiological standpoint. If anything, the ride the day before will tap into muscle and liver glycogen that could be used during the century. Rest is the best prescription. Sounds more like a psychological massage to me.



Well....like some have been saying, YMMV. Case in point, I was sore as heck last Sat AM. Went out for a 20 miles EASY spin. Sat up, enjoyed the scenery. Stood up and pedaled hard once or twice, but a REAL easy effort. Guess what? Got back to the house and for the rest of the day I was pain and soreness free and felt great. The next day, I ROCKED my 40 mile MTB endurance race, until a broken rear mech forced me to DNF.

Whatever energy stores I "lost" on Sat were well worth it becuase it paid off big time in terms of keeping me good and loose for the next day's hard, long effort.


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## gpcyclist25

jayz28 said:


> Thanks everyone for your valuable advice.
> I ended up going with the light ride and gear check suggestions, a nice big plate of spaghetti for dinner, but only managed around 6 hrs of sleep due to being nervous as heck! Most of the ride was quite enjoyable, but I started getting leg cramps around mile 75. The sag wagon gave me a ride to the mile 85 rest station where I received some salt pills for the cramps, which subsided about 30 mins later. I'm happy to report I was able to complete the rest of the ride, although really bummed I missed out by 10 miles. Guess I'll have to train harder for my next century!


Congrats. I did my first century last weekend, which went reasonably well. My longest training ride had been 70 miles solo, so riding occasionally out of the wind in paceline during the century and taking liberal advantage of the rest stops made it work okay. Miles 50-80 were the worst as the tail end of those miles was around noon, and I managed to run out of fluids around mile 70 or so. At mile 80 was the last rest stop, where I stood under a hose hung on a tree branch, drank a lot of gatorade, and sat down for a good 15 minutes.

The net result was 105 miles in slightly under 6 hours moving time, total of 7 hours including rests.

I've never ridden a supported event so it was interesting both seeing how I reacted to having so many people around, as well as gauging my fitness against others. The net effect was that I probably hammered a little too much during the first 50, which I paid for later. The other thing was that once I posted it on Strava, I saw my rankings for segments which I didn't know existed prior, obviously, which is sort of a weird way to see them. One guy ranked ahead of me and managed to finish the course in 4:45, which I found fairly amazing. That said, I don't know if he was doing it in paceline the whole time or on a tri-bike, etc. Nevertheless, interesting to see comparative data.

I'm signed up for a hilly century this weekend, and a Gran Fondo 3 weeks from now. This last century was essentially flat, the next one will have 5000 ft of climbing, and the GF will have 8000. So I have some work to do.


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## ArmySlowRdr

Best that you stopped until the cramps stopped. my last ride in Sunday i got cramps without 10 miles to go and pushed on through it. Big mistake; i had the biggest bout of delayed onset muscle soreness ever (for me). The tenderness has finally almost 96 hours about completely resolved.





jayz28 said:


> Thanks everyone for your valuable advice.
> I ended up going with the light ride and gear check suggestions, a nice big plate of spaghetti for dinner, but only managed around 6 hrs of sleep due to being nervous as heck! Most of the ride was quite enjoyable, but I started getting leg cramps around mile 75. The sag wagon gave me a ride to the mile 85 rest station where I received some salt pills for the cramps, which subsided about 30 mins later. I'm happy to report I was able to complete the rest of the ride, although really bummed I missed out by 10 miles. Guess I'll have to train harder for my next century!


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## Undecided

CEVIS said:


> Reminding the legs? Priming the engine? There is no scientific data to support your claims. Riding the day before the century is not necessary for either of these items from a physiological standpoint. If anything, the ride the day before will tap into muscle and liver glycogen that could be used during the century. Rest is the best prescription. Sounds more like a psychological massage to me.


But there is at least some lab data that suggests that racers' common use of "openers" the day before a race may support increased muscle glycogen storage.

I have talked about that use with a national team coach and an exercise physiologist who consults to top-tier pro cycling teams and triathletes, and they both believe in using "openers" for that purpose. Just grabbing the first link I found that can serve as a starting point for this: The Evolving Art of Carbo-Loading | Page 2 | Active.com


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## JasonB176

I recommend no riding. I usually do my last hard ride one week before the century and then do a moderate effort ride 3 days before it and that's it.


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## tednugent

rest and carb load good.

don't carb load like I do... getting drunk with beer the night before


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## MadRussian

rest...


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## ChazMan428

*rest or ride before a century*

Because my weekday rides are in the evenings, I won't ride the day before a Saturday century and my last ride will be an easy hour or so on Thursday night. However, if it's on a Sunday, I'll take that Friday night off, (which is my normal night off anyway) and ride an easy 10 miles or so on Saturday. I always taper down 3-4 days before a century to rest up, you want to go into it feeling fresh.


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## martywoodman

I personally like to take it easy the few days prior to a century. Do double up on liquids and carbs, and I especially agree with the sentiment of going over your bike by washing and lubing. Check and double check your gear, lay out your clothes and pack a change of clothes for after. That'l help calm your nerves a bit. I never sleep well the night before an event, but that hasn't seemed to be a factor as long as I've had good sleep the nights prior. Get a real good breakfast early and have a bagel to "top off the energy stores" on the way to the event. My last century was done in less that 5 hours including rest stops at an average speed of 21.1 mph. My secret? For most of the ride I drafted 5 tandems and a triple! BTW, I'm 55 yrs. old.


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## Touch0Gray

hadn't seen this thread before.....but here's my take. Do what feels right, I have done plenty of rides where I rode a century then HAD to sleep on the ground and get up in the morning and do it again.......and again......and again....565 mils in 6 days doesn't leave a lot of options


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