What kind of a pace should I be going at when putting in those first 500-1000 miles before really hammering intervals? I've been training with HR as I don't have the dough for a PM, and have been putting in a number of 42 mile rides at maybe 90-92% of max perceived effort.
I've seen my average speed during these rides increase significantly over the last 3 or so weeks (the extent of my training), from ~20.3 MPH on the first one, to 21.9 MPH yesterday (time includes a 2-minute nutrition break each time), at similar heart rates, though part of that is just increased handling abilities (the course has a ton of switchbacks over about 12 of those miles, and I'm also finally learning how to gear shift correctly).
I'm also seeing an increased ability to run off of the bike, and generally not physically bonk for the rest of the day, though that is still more of a problem than I would like it to be.
Am I doing things right? How much longer should I consistently get miles at an aggressive-but-not-suicidal pace in before looking to actually refine a plan? Every time I've asked this before, people have just said "get out and ride", but now that I'm doing that, when should I look to make things more specific?
I've seen my average speed during these rides increase significantly over the last 3 or so weeks (the extent of my training), from ~20.3 MPH on the first one, to 21.9 MPH yesterday (time includes a 2-minute nutrition break each time), at similar heart rates, though part of that is just increased handling abilities (the course has a ton of switchbacks over about 12 of those miles, and I'm also finally learning how to gear shift correctly).
I'm also seeing an increased ability to run off of the bike, and generally not physically bonk for the rest of the day, though that is still more of a problem than I would like it to be.
Am I doing things right? How much longer should I consistently get miles at an aggressive-but-not-suicidal pace in before looking to actually refine a plan? Every time I've asked this before, people have just said "get out and ride", but now that I'm doing that, when should I look to make things more specific?