Why I struggle to go easy alone
Left to my own devices, I tend to drift into that “feels like training” heart rate space, somewhere between zone 3 and 4. The place where I get sweaty, feel fast, and come home tired and convinced I did a really good ride. If there is a climb, I go up hard. Why? When I feel good, it’s because I start thinking about my PR, and when I feel bad, I just want to get it over with quicker. Or if someone faster overtakes me, I suddenly feel an unexplainable urge to keep up or even beat them to some made-up finish line.
It is not intentional arrogance or competitive spirit gone wild. It is more like instinct. Effort feels like progress. Coasting feels like wasting time. Riding easy feels suspiciously like being lazy, and, honestly, it’s just not as fun as going fast.
But here is the problem. Riding like this every time is brilliant for feeling accomplished, but terrible for actual progress.
Why is that a recipe for burnout
Consistently hovering around threshold output without proper recovery is a fast track to stagnation. Intensity comes with a cost. As an amateur with a full-time job, I simply do not have the luxury of recovering like a pro. Work does not count as rest, even if it is done sitting down. Stress is cumulative, whether it comes from deadlines or chasing someone down the bike path.
The result? My poorly recovered and tired body has a hard time shaking off a cold. And that niggle in the knee mysteriously keeps getting worse. A feeling of grinding gears physically and mentally becomes the norm. Suddenly, I am off the bike for a week or two, and fitness slides backwards anyway. Hard rides are fun. But too many of them, without balance, quietly steal progress, despite the feeling of so much hard work being done.
What about you? When you ride alone, do you go faster than you planned? What flips that internal switch for you?
The group ride solution… sort of
Naturally, I thought the solution was riding with others. A social tempo. Conversational pace. A group can keep you honest, right? In theory, yes. There’s usually a set average speed, and people wait at the top of bigger climbs. In reality, every public group ride I have joined seems to be populated by people who ride bikes that cost more than an average car and look suspiciously fresh at 35 km/h. I often find myself the weakest link and have to work pretty hard just to stay with the group.
So, what about riding with friends? My girlfriend is my most regular cycling partner. She is roughly my level and, like me, enjoys competition and a bit of friendly chaos. Before we know it, we are sprinting to a road sign, leading each other up for a climb PR, or time-trialling a Strava segment because the wind direction is good – and why not? It is great fun; but it is not zone two.
Am I the problem?
Do you have riding buddies who genuinely help you go easy? Do you have a group where chatting, not chasing, is the point? If so, congratulations. You have found what might be the rarest resource in amateur cycling.
I am still searching. Maybe this article is less of an insight and more of a quiet plea. My problem is not pushing too hard in groups or solo. My problem is pushing too hard everywhere. Maybe it’s not so much about the number of participants but rather about personality and habits.
If you have cracked the secret to steady, easy rides, please share. Until then, I will be out there doing what I always do: trying to go easy and somehow sprinting to the next lamp post anyway.
Send help.
