Ride prep for the body

My weekday after work rides are good, as in no problems with the old body and almost no warm up needed. Swing the leg over and get to the grind. My normal loop is ~25 miles and I can finish without being too tired.

My weekend morning rides are a different story. It takes more than a few miles to get warmed up, I don't have the power or endurance during the ride as my afternoon rides. I'm basically slower and having to put so much effort into it I am totally beat 1/2 way thru the ride.

I did a test just to see whathehay. I did the same route one in the morning and once in the afternoon with a day rest inbetween. Except for the time of day, everything was the same. The afternoon ride was more enjoyable and easier. Funny thing is I am a morning person.......

What to you do to prep for a morning ride? Is there something you do in the morning or the night before ? I know, getting older doesn't help.....
I have noticed this situation in the last year.

 

I just try to get adequate rest the night before a morning ride and I generally don't eat breakfast. Just coffee.

Even though it's harder to ride early, before your body has had hours of routine activity to loosen up, I still prefer it.

I have an issue with heat so there is no afternoon riding for me at this time of the year but I know what you mean. In the Fall/Winter, I feel loosened up on afternoon rides.

 

I have my coffee in the morning, a protein drink, bannana, and maybe a bagel about an hour before my ride.
I'm outside feeding the animals, watering the garden, checking for eggs in the hen house about 2 hrs before my ride so I have activity and hopefully warmed up.

 

I typically ride early and follow this routine:
Eat a banana, gel with 50mg caffeine, coconut water.
Foam roller on the legs for 10 minutes to loosen up and send the message to my brain that I'm riding. Listen to some good music or podcast to get mentally ready. If you have never listened to David Goggins, he will help light a fire.
Put on compression briefs for improved blood flow--I like the 2xu brand. Not cheap, but great quality.
5-10 minute active stretching at the trailhead--this is key and something I learned from a trainer who works with olympic athletes. These active routines get the muscles ready to fire and really help. Easy to find examples online.

 

Slugging water the day or two before makes a big difference for me. That, eating and resting. A light pre-ride breakfast with more water, plus Tailwind, Emergen-C and food for the ride. Hard to have an off day with all of that.

After decades I've finally accepted I can't perform optimally and be a regular user of diuretics caffiene and alcohol. Fitness peaks and goals are easier to hit without it; YMMV.

 

Interesting. I'm the opposite, late afternoon rides are usually a slow grind. I've found that if I'm planning to ride aftrwork then lunch needs to be small. Or it causes issues.

Morning rides, oatmeal with Vermont Maple syrup, strong coffee, wait an hour and go. Have never considered warming up, just start riding slowly and in mile or so I'm good.
But then again a very long/hard mtb ride for me is 25 miles and 3500 ft, so there is that.

 

I was thinking about ditching the coffee, but the after ride silver soda is too good to not.

 

I don't know how good decaf is or isn't these days, but maybe it's possible to just ditch the caffiene. Blasphemy to some, I realize. I stopped coffee altogether many years ago and went to green tea. I swapped that a couple of years ago for no-caf herbal tea. One of the benefits is, when you truly need a boost, caffiene absolutely works. I thought riding without post-ride beer would be a bridge too far, but I've found it's not.

I think I've become more sensitive to these things with age. During/after my first Great Divide ride ('13?) was the first obvious sign that booze inhibited my performance. Since then it's been a strained relationship. The harder I want to ride, the less alcohol works for me. I basically had/have to choose between new athletic goals and booze, so it's an easy choice. Thankfully ganja hasn't been a problem. If it becomes one, it's gone.

It's all very personal. To each her own. Good luck finding the right balance.