Thread: Science question...kinda

Last summer I got into cycling (bike riding, not steroids) because it is very beneficial to my back for some reason. I basically went from laying down as much as possible to being able to lift again. My back is starting to crap out again and I need to get back on the bike or at least I think it will help and I can keep on the iron, either that or the other solution is a fusion which will put me in bed for 2-3 months. I bulked up nicely this winter and am starting to power lift competitively this summer. I'm at 230 @5'11" now and around 15% BF and will compete @ 220. So there is the background.

My question is this, what effect will the "long distance" (basically SS cardio for 1-2 hours)cycling have on my strength and how do I keep my body comp where it is now or better while doing that. During this time I will still be lifting heavy 4-5 days a week.

My concern is that on those long rides I will catabolize muscle and if I am over feeding to compensate for the cycling I will store those calories as fat because of the type of stress I am putting on my body. The ol' case of the sprinter vs the marathon runner.

Would I be better to hit a 5 mile "sprint" ride in the morning and then again after lifting or will it even matter, am I just doomed to waste away to nothing if I have to ride.

yeah I was thinking of treating it like mini bulk and cut cycles. For 2 weeks I can hit the bike 3-4 times a week while keeping my diet in line, then transition to 2 weeks where I do maybe one longish ride but hitting the iron as hard as I can and eat clean but for size during that period. Maybe the transitions will cause me to be more suseptible to my caloric intake and training and I can put on some size those two weeks and then take some blubber off the riding 2 weeks. Of course if I can't go a week in between rides without getting screwed up it will all be for nothing and I'll look like a concentration camp victim.