eml1909
Active Member
Hi all,
I haven't been on a bike since I was a kid, but I started commuting to work in January this year. I'm 37 years old (male), 5"8 and almost 15 stones (so very overweight). I have a Spcialized Sirrus Elite 2011 (hybrid). I'm trying to get fit and lose weight.
I didn't ride at all from mid-Feb to mid-May as, unfortunately, I had a serious accident when I used clipless pedals for the first time. The bike store (Evans) hadn't set the clips up properly - they were set to the *tightest* setting, rather than the *loosest* setting which made it impossible for me to unclip ... so I fell off my bike with a major THUD! I fractured my hip and, after the insertion of 3 screws, I spent 3 months on crutches.
But undeterred I got back onto my bike ... and I wanted your advice about how I'm doing. Thankfully, the broken hip (although not fully healed) doesn't seem to affect my cycling (so I can't "blame" my performance on my hip).
I'm now riding approx. 3 or 4 days per week (i.e. 6 or 8 journeys) - I'm not fit enough to do it every day (rest day in the middle of the week and no riding at the weekend). It's an 8 mile commute. I'm really enjoying it, which is the most important thing. Last night I did the commute in a record time (for me) of 40 mins (riding time), averaging just under 12 mph. There's one relatively steep climb in the middle of the ride (1.6 mile stretch with an increase of 250ft), but it's downhill after that. Further details of the route can be viewed here: http://www.mapmyrun....s/view/43343446 . My start elevation is 94 ft; my maximum elevation is 423.0 ft and there is an overall gain of 387.0 ft.
I certainly feel as though I have improved over recent weeks, but I really don't know how much room there is for further improvement - I feel like I'm reaching a peak and don't think I'll be able to do it much fast than that. Of course, there's room for *some* improvement, but I find it hard to believe that I could do the ride in less than, say, 38 minutes.
I thought I was doing quite well, but when I read other threads on here, it makes me feel that I'm going at a snail's pace! Don't get me wrong, I'm not looking to enter next year's Tour de France, but I'm wondering whether this is really slow - judging by other people's experiences, I'm doing it very very slowly. I do realise that speed is a relative concept, but I'd really like to know what more experienced cyclists make of my stats.
I'm also wondering whether I should have bought a road bike. I love my hybrid but wonder whether a road bike would have been better. It's hard to imagine that it would affect my overall speed very much ... after all, the speed comes from the legs (not the bike!) and the extra weight is to be found on my stomach (not the bike!). Also, the thought of dropped handle bars does't hugely appeal to me - I like the riding position of my Sirrus (although, to be fair, I haven't tried a road bike so perhaps I would like the riding position). The truth is, having spent almost £700 on my bike (including all of the extra bits and bobs), I'm not keen to get rid of it. Also, I use panniers, which may not be suitable for a road bike...
I'm pleased to say that, having cut down on my calorie intake and alcohol consumption, my trousers are slowly but surely beginning to feel a bit looser, but I wish that the changes to my body were a bit quicker and more noticeable!
Anyway, any thoughts/suggestions/advice you could give me would be great. in particular: how do you think I am doing and should I be aiming for a much faster time? would I benefit from a road bike? any tips about weight loss?
Thanks for reading and thanks for any advice!
I haven't been on a bike since I was a kid, but I started commuting to work in January this year. I'm 37 years old (male), 5"8 and almost 15 stones (so very overweight). I have a Spcialized Sirrus Elite 2011 (hybrid). I'm trying to get fit and lose weight.
I didn't ride at all from mid-Feb to mid-May as, unfortunately, I had a serious accident when I used clipless pedals for the first time. The bike store (Evans) hadn't set the clips up properly - they were set to the *tightest* setting, rather than the *loosest* setting which made it impossible for me to unclip ... so I fell off my bike with a major THUD! I fractured my hip and, after the insertion of 3 screws, I spent 3 months on crutches.
But undeterred I got back onto my bike ... and I wanted your advice about how I'm doing. Thankfully, the broken hip (although not fully healed) doesn't seem to affect my cycling (so I can't "blame" my performance on my hip).
I'm now riding approx. 3 or 4 days per week (i.e. 6 or 8 journeys) - I'm not fit enough to do it every day (rest day in the middle of the week and no riding at the weekend). It's an 8 mile commute. I'm really enjoying it, which is the most important thing. Last night I did the commute in a record time (for me) of 40 mins (riding time), averaging just under 12 mph. There's one relatively steep climb in the middle of the ride (1.6 mile stretch with an increase of 250ft), but it's downhill after that. Further details of the route can be viewed here: http://www.mapmyrun....s/view/43343446 . My start elevation is 94 ft; my maximum elevation is 423.0 ft and there is an overall gain of 387.0 ft.
I certainly feel as though I have improved over recent weeks, but I really don't know how much room there is for further improvement - I feel like I'm reaching a peak and don't think I'll be able to do it much fast than that. Of course, there's room for *some* improvement, but I find it hard to believe that I could do the ride in less than, say, 38 minutes.
I thought I was doing quite well, but when I read other threads on here, it makes me feel that I'm going at a snail's pace! Don't get me wrong, I'm not looking to enter next year's Tour de France, but I'm wondering whether this is really slow - judging by other people's experiences, I'm doing it very very slowly. I do realise that speed is a relative concept, but I'd really like to know what more experienced cyclists make of my stats.
I'm also wondering whether I should have bought a road bike. I love my hybrid but wonder whether a road bike would have been better. It's hard to imagine that it would affect my overall speed very much ... after all, the speed comes from the legs (not the bike!) and the extra weight is to be found on my stomach (not the bike!). Also, the thought of dropped handle bars does't hugely appeal to me - I like the riding position of my Sirrus (although, to be fair, I haven't tried a road bike so perhaps I would like the riding position). The truth is, having spent almost £700 on my bike (including all of the extra bits and bobs), I'm not keen to get rid of it. Also, I use panniers, which may not be suitable for a road bike...
I'm pleased to say that, having cut down on my calorie intake and alcohol consumption, my trousers are slowly but surely beginning to feel a bit looser, but I wish that the changes to my body were a bit quicker and more noticeable!
Anyway, any thoughts/suggestions/advice you could give me would be great. in particular: how do you think I am doing and should I be aiming for a much faster time? would I benefit from a road bike? any tips about weight loss?
Thanks for reading and thanks for any advice!
