geng ta'dak group

Cycling Training Plans and Programs

2011-11-27T22:00:00.001+08:00

Cycling training used to be a case of miles, miles and more miles, now things are a bit more scientific, with the use of pulse rate monitors and power cranks.

Now it is possible to train in your country and have your coach on the other side of the world, you can send him all your daily training data, distance, duration, altitude, speed, pulse and power output in watts, all from your bike via the internet, your coach can tell if you are training properly or going to the coffee for too many cakes.

Pulse Monitors

There are many different pulse monitors, some cycling specific and some only read your pulse, and these are good but are an extra thing to clutter up the handlebars on your bike or wrist.

Cycling specific heart rate monitors give much more information at the touch of a button.

Polar, and specially its triathlon heart rate monitor, the Polar S725x is perhaps the most known brand for fitness rate monitors. Most give you information on how far you have gone and how long it has taken you and what speed you were doing, as well your pulse while doing it.

Spend a little more money and your monitor will tell you your altitude, the steepness of the climb, the temperature, pedal revolutions and will work out approximate power out put and you can download all of this too your computer for you or your coach to analyse later.

Power Cranks
These are very expensive piece of kit; you replace the existing cranks on your bike with this special chain-set.

The read out from these special cranks tells you all that the pulse monitor does, plus your power out put and with somepower cranks the difference between the left and the right leg. It’s mainly used on cycling high intensity training.

How To Train

The old ways of training as much as you could, made you strong, possibly fast, but definitely tired. These days’ people make more of there time training. You still have to do the miles, but after you have the basic fitness you can turn to specialised training methods.

This is where a pulse monitor can come in helpful. Interval training has been around for years, the best way is to go with a group of others and take turns to ride hard at the front and rest behind, the smaller the group the more times you have to ride hard and less places to hide from the wind.

On your own you can do the same, but you have to pick points were to ride hard and when to rest. With a pulse monitor you have it to tell you when to try hard and when not to and when to go home because you have done enough.

The main thing is to enjoy your cycling, when it becomes a chore that’s when to stop and do some thing else until you want to ride your bike. Pulse monitors can take the guess work out of training, but you must listen to what you body says, rest when you don’t want to do it and ride hard when you do, but have fun.

There are also some kind of accessories for warming up and body care.

Warming Oil : If you are racing or going to be training hard you need to prepare the muscles for the coming efforts, the warming oil helps that preparation for physical activity by increasing blood circulation and oxygenizes the muscle thanks to the presence of Ozonides
Reskin BioRacer cycling patches : protecting inner-thigh/buttock areas from irritation and friction

The best way for a successful season is setting a proper training plan. This could be done simply by having afour season cycling training program . However, if you are new on cycling, or have just started riding bikes, and don’t know how to train with some kind of improvement, we HIGHLY recommend reading first ourbeginners cycling program .

We received an e-mail from a reader who feels that his age (48) is slowing him down and what can he do to combat it. Read what we have to say about age and cycling training.

Winter and Indoor Bike Training

Vartan (one of our newsletter readers) wants some pointers on training on rollers, the do’s and don’ts. We give him and anyone else contemplating home training some help with how you should go about it and warn about the boredom and the heat read more here:

Original from : http://www.bikecyclingreviews.com

Adopt a Cat or Dog to save these lives

2011-11-17T21:18:00.000+08:00

Adopt a Cat or Dog to save these lives: The aim of the SPCA is to protect defenseless animals and to alleviate their suffering. Established in 1958, the SPCA provides temporary shelter to unwanted animals in Selangor and the Federal Territory. We try to rehome as many as possible, but with more than 600 animals arriving every month the shelter is constantly challenged by a shortage of space and limited funds.The 6 Key Pillars of SPCA Selangor:

SPCA Animal Shelter & Adoption Centre
Inspectorate
Humane Education
Klinik Kembiri
Government Lobbying
MissionHELP : Helping People Help Animals

2011-10-30T21:38:00.006+08:00

Join SAYS.my

Use your hands to touch the lives of others. Literally!

When finding a new home, we immediately think.. oh lets buy a place there orlets rent this place here. Although these may seem like the average person's options, some Malaysians are not as fortunate to have a place where they can call home.

Due to natural disasters and tight financial circumstances, many Malaysians are forced into homelessness or live in uncomfortable situations for generations due to their lack of education and ability to uproot their families to a greater community.

Although most rural communities do get by with self-built homes, issues likesafety and security are not prioritized. This will only result in a dangerous cycle of home calamities that could, in fact, be avoided.

With Habitat for Humanity Malaysia, homeowners who need a hand up can now get the support they need if they are also willing to put in their own effort (termed as "sweat equity") in their future homes.

Having a record of building homes all over Malaysia, Habitat is well known for being "hands-on" with the construction of homes involving thousands of volunteers every year. Anyone who can hold a hammer, bucket or paint brush is welcome to volunteer in this noble and life-building cause.

Find out how you can contribute locally or abroad under Habitat for Humanity Malaysia today!

"Of all the building blocks that a Habitat house requires, the most important is you." - HFH Malaysia

Pedaling Secret from cycling-secrets.com

2011-10-07T14:56:00.000+08:00

There’s is more to pedaling than just turning them. This seemingly simple action has far more subtlety to it that you would expect if you’re just beginning. To be clear here we are talking clipped in pedaling with cycling shoes and a cleat system – if you want to get the most out of those legs this is the only way to do it.

Put simply the most efficient pedal stroke is one that applies a constant pressure right around the pedal stoke in the direction of the stroke – a smooth consistent spin around the crank or ‘pedaling the full circle’ – what is called the ‘souplaise’ in France. While this my sound straight forward the bio-mechanical action is in fact very complicated taking in multiple muscle groups and joints all needing to co-ordinate in an efficient way. It is only after extensive experience and awareness that an really efficient pedal stroke can be developed.

First you’ll want to just bring your attention to your pedaling and exactly what your legs are up. If you haven’t spent some tiome on this or are new to cleated riding your legs will be doing whatever default, habitual action seems to work – you can no doubt improve it. The full pedal stroke is usually divided into four parts for the purposes of talking about the stroke -

The down stroke – Your foot pushes the pedal down in the front part of the stroke. Typically it is here where most of the power comes from – your large gluteal and thigh muscles are fully engaged and you have the legs weight and gravity on your side.
The under stroke? – The underside of the stroke – your foot finishes the down stroke and pushes backward.
The upstroke – The foot lifts up at the back of the stroke.
The overstroke? – The foot travels over the top part of the pedal action to reengage with the downstroke.

While we divide the pedaling action into these four parts to more a easily talk about them the action we’re trying to achieve is a seamless integration of these – a circle not a square.

There are various pedaling techniques which are said to improve pedaling efficiency. For many of these the jury is still out about their effectiveness when matched against metabolic cost – yes it does get geekier.

Ankling is a pedaling method that seeks to better engage the calf muscles in the stroke ( see video). The foot is angled slightly upward to the front of the bike in the down stroke and then slightly downward in the up stroke as the foot is pulled up to the top of the stroke. It has been shown that this very deliberate pulling up stroke increases the power through this section of the action however their is also much evidence to show that the metabolic cost of this does not justify it. The action of pulling up the foot engages the muscles on the underside of your thigh which are not nearly as strong as your gluteals ( the largest muscle in your body)- these tire easily with this kind of demand put on them and use vital resources that may be better spent getting you over the next kilometres. That said obviously if you’re sprinting to the finish then it is time to use everything you have – practicing ankling will give you the ability to do this when it will count and will also give you a greater awareness of the movement your leg and foot in enagaged in.

If you want to explore this movement further and develop a smooth souplaise you can try unclipping one foot and pedaling – this will force the engaged foot to apply pressure right around the circle and give you a greater awareness of how that feels, which muscles are enagaged when and where to bring your attention to turn your stroke into a habitually efficient movement.

http://www.cycling-secrets.com

Building your own Touring Bike

2011-08-28T13:14:00.000+08:00

COST OF BUILDING A TOURING BIKE?

KAREN

– FEBRUARY 9, 2011POSTED IN: BIKE BUILDING, FEATURED

Well at least what it cost us.

At first, the idea to build our own touring bikes was both exciting and daunting. We researched for days (ok, weeks) to find out what would work for us. We found lists compiled on other tourers’ sites to be a valuable resource along with their reviews of various parts. We gathered all the information we could to pick and choose the components that have worked well for others while building a bike that suited our demands of our touring transportation.

So now we have our own list to add, detailing all the parts we used, specific specs. and the price we paid (including tax and shipping where applicable). We hope that the information and cost breakdown provided below can provide some insight for other aspiring tourists.

There are also a few points to keep in mind to help explain why we chose what we chose:

The goal of our bikes is to have the ability to not only function as a fully loaded touring bike, but also as one that was still fly down a wicked single track when the opportunity presents itself and as low maintenance as possible;
We chose to build our own bikes because we are both bike geeks, wanted the challenge, and wanted to learn how to piece a bike together;
No we are not rich, but felt it was worth spending a little more upfront on really good parts that in theory should last us longer;
We are fortunate to have a good friend of ours who is a skilled bike mechanic to help us;
We were able to get many of our parts at cost rather than at retail to make this process more affordable; and
Yes, you can build your own, high quality touring bike for a lot less (see GoingSlowly’s Gear Page), just have to keep in mind what you personally want out of your bike.

Keeping the above points in mind, some key investments we have chosen include the following:

Rohloff Speedhub: this internal hub allows one to shift on the fly (yes, even when stopped, ideal for when you forget to downshift at a light in traffic), also very low maintenance and eliminates the need front and rear derailleur and cassette.
Fox Vanilla Front Suspension Fork: to absorb the bumps of the road and trails rather than being relayed to our bodies and wrists. This model is a higher end coil fork versus an air shock which requires less maintenance and has lock-out capabilities.
Chris King Headset: are hands down one of the best headsets available on the market and the company believes this as well by offering a 10-Year Warranty.
Brooks Saddles: I honestly can not find a bad review of these saddles from anyone who has given them an honest chance, since we are on these bikes all day, a good saddle is essential. Interested in a giggle, check out this review.

If we were to pick a touring bike on the market right now that is similar to the ones we built it would have to be the Thorn Sterling (actually if we lived in the UK, we’d likely have purchased this bike). The Sterling retails for £2,999 which converts to $4,635 CAD (and doesn’t include shipping across the pond). We built our bikes for roughly $4,575 each which includes a few extra parts, and hand built wheels. Our total is around $10,830 which includes tools, racks, panniers and a few spare parts.

Category	Item	Brand	Part Description	#	Review	Total (CAD)
Frame		Kona	Explosif 18”	2		$1,050
Steering	Fork	Fox	32 Vanilla RLC	2		$1,330
	Headset	Chris King	1 1/8” Threadless	2		$386
	Stem	Race Face	Evolve XC	2		$42
	Handlebar	Evo	Double butted riser bar	M		$19
	Handlebar	Truvativ	Stylo World Cup Riser Bar	K		$36
	Grips	Ergon	GC3 *	2		$158
	Bike Labour	-	Installation of headset	2		$108
Drive Train	Pedals	Evo	Alloy MTB (SPD Clipless)	K		$10
	Pedals	Time	Allroad Gripper (Clipless)	M		$68
	Chain Ring	Race Face	40 tooth DH Chainring	2		$50
	Speedhub	Rohloff	500/14 SpeedHub Threaded Spindle	2		$3,202
	Cranks	Shimano	SLX 104/64 mm	2		$315
	Chain	SRAM	PC 890 Speed Chain with Power Link	2		$46
	Bike Labour	-	Installation of Rohloff	2		$0 (donated)
Seat/Saddle	Seat Post	Race Face	Evolve	M		$23
	Seat Post	Race Face	Deus XC	K		$80
	Saddle	Brooks	B17 S Imperial	K		$152
			B17 Standard	M		$143
			Proof Ride Wax	2		$39
Brakes	Brakes	Avid	Disk Brake BB7	2		$220
	Brake Levers		Speed Dial SL Brake Levers	2		$84
	Brake Pads		Avid BB7 Brake Pads	8		$105
	Brake Rotors	Rohloff	160mm 4 Bolt (Avid/Hayeys Compatible)	3		$294
Wheels	Wheel Part	DT Swiss	Centre Lock Adapter	2		$49
	Rims	DT Swiss	X455	4		$152
	Front Hub	Shimano	Deore XT 32H Centre Lock	M		$35
	Front Hub	Shimano	SLX	K		$27
	Tires	Maxxis	Mountain Bike Tire: Ignitor Tire, Foldable	4		$131
		Schwable	Marathon Kevlarguard Tire	2		$50
		Schwable	Marathon Plus Smartguard Tire	4		$147
	Bike Labour	-	Wheel Build (incl. spokes, rim tape…)	4		$584
	Tube	Kenda	Presta 26×1.5/1.70	4		$9
*Sub-total*						$9,145
Tools	Tools	Rohloff	Tool – Cog Removal	1		$58
	Tools	Rohloff	Tool to Indicate Sprocket Wear	1		$40
	Multi-Tool	Topeak	ALiEN II (26 tools)	1		$0 (gift)
	Pump	Lezyne	Micro Floor Drive HGV	1		$29
Panniers	Rear	Ortlieb	Back Roller Plus	K		$273
	Rear		Bike Packer Plus	M		$274
	Front		Front Roller Plus	2		$333
	Handlebar Bag		Ultimate5 Plus (M)	K		$133
	Map Case		Map Case (M)	K		$24
	Camera Insert		Camera Insert (M)	K		$33
Racks		Old Man Mountain	Rear – Red Rock	2		$219
Racks		Old Man Mountain	Front – Sherpa	2		$269
*Total*						*$10,830*
M = Item for Mike’s Bike \| K = Item for Karen’s Bike

* Note regarding Ergon: We found out that only the large size of these grips are distributed in North America (no thanks to the horrible customer service we received from their North American Marketing and Sales rep.) so we ordered them from an on-line bike store based out of Europe (Chain Reaction Cycle) to get the smaller size.

More photos can be viewed here.

Original website:- http://twowheeledwanderers.

Boardman Hybrid Team

2011-07-10T15:44:00.002+08:00

Lately, I must confess, I became much more curious about urban, fitness bikes than I was before. I love road bikes and for me urban bikes lacked the power and the finesse of their road cousins. Having recently reviewed the Giant Rapid and being impressed I decided to look for other urban/fitness bikes to try. My search led me to the Boardman Hybrid series and after a careful investigation I decided to give a try to the Hybrid Team instead of the Hybrid Pro.

Boardman has always made an impression of being able to create great bikes with reasonable prices and this was the main reason I chose the Team instead of the Pro, the Team gives a lot for its price.

The Hybrid Team is a wonder to ride. It’s great for road and out-road riding, it’s light and handling is superb. Those looking for a fitness bike will find in the Hybrid Team a very good and reliable friend because it will invite its rider to go faster, making him sweat, lose weight and achieve peak physical condition must quicker. It is also a very nice bike to ride in the traffic because it is fast, light and agile, responding very well to any command making turning and dodging a very natural thing.

Because in a traffic environment stopping is very important the Hybrid Team uses the Avid Juicy 3 breaks which are very reliable and powerful and will give the rider much more confidence on the road. The bike is also very comfortable and will make longer rides much more fun and easier.

This is a very good solid bike. Those who are looking for a bike to use in an urban environment or for fitness should definitely have the Boardman Hybrid Team on the top of their list.

Memory Map i Phone application

2011-04-11T08:02:00.000+08:00

Today, iPhones are everywhere and apps developers are creating all kinds of apps making the iPhone one of the most useful pieces of technology in the world. So why not using for cycling? In fact there are several iPhone apps out there for bike riders. Along the next few weeks we will review some of them, giving our readers new uses for their iPhones.

The first app we will be reviewing is theMemory Map. The Memory Map is a useful application that turns the iPhone into a GPS. With it you can create a route and run it on your bike. The app will track where you are and will show the way to go, just like any normal GPS. But what makes this app great for bike riders is that it can show you the distance you ran, at what speed and for how long. It also displays average speed.

The app comes in two versions, a free version with all the basic functionalities and a paid version with access to advance features like printing, GPS programming or using Memory Map on a pc. The free version is perfectly capable of delivering what most riders might need while the paid version is especially useful for those who would like to connect it to a computer.

There is only one downside to the Memory Map app, the battery use. In order for it to be working while you’re riding it must be always one which consumes a lot of battery. Otherwise, if you have an iPhone what do you have to lose? After all the Memory Map is a great free app that lets you program your rides and assures you’ll never get lost.

There are several iPhone apps out there for bike riders. Along the next few weeks we will review some of them, giving our readers new uses for their iPhones.

The first app we will be reviewing is the Memory Map. The Memory Map is a useful application that turns the iPhone into a GPS. With it you can create a route and run it on your bike. The app will track where you are and will show the way to go, just like any normal GPS. But what makes this app great for bike riders is that it can show you the distance you ran, at what speed and for how long. It also displays average speed.