something more structured, what's your idea for that 200k ITT?

DNF ... if you're talking about the BB200, then there's one route of 200km which everyone will follow. You'll be given a route map but still be expected to navigate it.

There'll be a minimum kit requirement ... nothing stupid, just enough to survive a night out.

More details to follow on the site soonish.

Sorry, I'm thinking what training for it. Are big rides what people are planning or are they thinking some alternative training plans. I've been chatting with a friend over it, her advice was a gruelling training plan which kinda went along with what I was thinking. Currently looking at turbo sessions, functional strength training along the lines of crossfit, when we both said about the Litvinov workout I knew we were on the same wavelength, singlespeed sessions and a longish to long ride every weekend. WRT left a bad taste in my mouth, I've been refining my kit, built a new bike, and need to know when you want the entry fee

Training all depends on the end goal ... I think with the 200k event then time on the bike over something alot more structured is what is in order...

I don't know your background DNF or level of present fitness but I think with these events familiarity with your riding position for long periods of time will be more beneficial than any structured interval based training plan ... you should aim for a fitness that allows your to ride comfortably... indefinately :)

Load the bike up and just steadily increase time on the bike...

I agree with Paul. For a lot of people 4-5 hours is viewed as quite a long ride. What's called for is the ability to ride for 10-12 hours then do the same thing next day ... if your hands, arse, shoulders, etc stop feeling like they belong to you at any point have a fiddle with your set up

The discussion we were having went along the lines of strength training with clubs and kettlebells this would develop the hands and wrists, lower arms and shoulders so they wouldn't tyre so easily, kettlebell snatches for lungs alongside swings for general all over body workout, this isn't about body building. The high intensity stuff would build lungs and help on the climbs. The singlespeed would help develop the legs alongside squats and sandbag training, 'sufferfest' sessions can be fitted in and around the everyday crap. Weekends are for the long rides.

She is currently devising a training plan, will be an interesting attempt at killing me! Last time I watched her train a size 10 female was destroying a 20kg kettlebell

Training? Haven't done any of that for a long time. Riding my bike is a lot more fun - though I'm not as quick as I used to be

Serious comment now - after hauling my ass around the WRT after Aidan, I'm much of the opinion that time on the bike is the most valuable thing you can do for all the reasons that Paul and Stu state above. I've not touched a turbo in years, and don't see how it would add to my fitness edge if I took it up. I find the singlespeed useful and enjoyable to get that high level of exertion that is of some value in your overall fitness and to save all your rides being slow and steady, but long long rides are something I find difficult to do more of with family commitments.

Lots of hours in the saddle seems to work.

200km is only 125 miles though, a training plan with kettlebells and turbo sessions sound a bit extreme to me unless your aiming to do it under 15 hours in one go.

She trained for a 50mile charity ride by supplementing her weight training and mountain biking with back to back spin classes with a weighted rucksack. What can you do with someone who gets you for your birthday the book Convict Conditioning.

The kettlebell will just develop the body, burn the fat, long sessions on the bike I think can only take you so far (no pun intended), the other techniques are pure functional strength training, plus the benefit of weights and running are proven to hit the lungs hard, tabata sessions will be thrown in the mix and don't even think what is going to happen with a sandbag and the big hill in the local woods. So, tomorrow I rise at 5.30 and it's a kettlebell session followed by a run. Tomorrow night the road bike get's a hill session. Now it's Paleo diet time :?

[Thinks someones taking this too seriously]
Ride your bike and have fun. Bivi in a bush shelter and have a few pints.
200k is easily doable in a day (they easily do that in day on the tour divide) and depending on Stuarts start time and lights you could just do it as a twelve hour ride, twenty six at a pootle speed.

Stuarts idea for the WRT was just to have fun, and knowing him the 200 will be on a similar basis.

The moral is never ask a 'crossfit' addict how would you train for this .......... but that 200 is listed as a ITT.

I used to have a personal trainer and that sort of training was great until I gave up running and went back to cycling . . . the two were just not compatible for me. Long distance and time spent cycling was a struggle because my legs were sore and tired from all the other exercises.

On a whim, I entered the End2End in the IoM last year; the furthest I had cycled was 18 miles and that had taken me most of the day; I was super fit from being in the gym, but I wasn't super fit for cycling long days of lots of miles. Three days back to back cycling with Stuart before the race and the occasional ride of 20 odd miles at Cannock Chase helped, but wasn't enough and so I treated the race as a day out. It was a wake-up call for me and made me realise I needed to cut down on the gym sessions and concentrate more on cycling.

An article I recently read about professional cyclists mentioned most of their training came from spending lots of hours on the bike with about 3 hours gym work each week and a lot of that was to build core strength.

Being female and in my 50's I still do weights to keep my bones strong, but I wouldn't contemplate going back to the intensity of before. My cycling has improved massivley since September mainly due to spending long hours, cycling lots of miles and doing back to back days. Riding my SS has improved my leg strength and my speed is improving from racing myself to work and back on my commuting bike.

Also for me after having spent 20+ years in the gym it's much nicer being outside on my bike :D

What gym plan were you doing? That's the debate we had and the reason I quit my gym. Chronic cardio isn't the plan, the plan is continually changing routines, length, intensity, type of exercise, lots of intense cardio with kettlebells which develops core at the same time. Much of this training isn't 'regular' gym training.

Aim is to develop functional strength, with strong cardio for the hills. Grinding out long days will go so far, but specific training has got to help, especially fitting it in around living a life!

Anyway as we worked out over the last few days, I have 15 weeks of misery ahead, and a new pair of minimalist road running shoes to break in.

I did all of what you've mentioned you are hoping to do; always changing things around, which was good, but as I've said I found it hindered my cycling instead of improving it. It might have been due to my age; who knows.

All I know is that since cutting right back and being out more on my bike my cycling is so much better.