getting started.....

[paulw1969]

Hi folks,
It has been over twenty years since i have done any serious cycling but i am aiming to commute to work once i have my bike sorted.
Now i will be the first to admit....i'm unfit and overweight and twenty years older! My commute will be approx 16 miles a day round trip, relatively flat city roads. I am looking at getting a road bike as i may well join a club much further down the line.

The two problems as i see them are:- I know i will suffer saddle wise until the right parts harden up a little and perhaps more importantly i need to get my fitness up.
The question is what would be your advice on how to get back into riding everyday. Would it be best to start off doing small distances every day and build up slowly until i get to the distance required and then commute or go for the full distance but do one day on one day off........or is there another way you have found worked for you and may therefore work for me??

sorry if the above question sounds a little obscure/lame....but any advice would be appreciated

regards
Paul

 

[DCLane]

My suggestion, having done this in the past 8 months, is small distances and build up. I started at the beginning of April and aimed to commute by mid-May, which I achieved. Now I commute 3-4 times a week by bike 10 miles each way.

 

[CopperCyclist]

When I started in March I was a bit unfit and a bit overweight - neither excessively though tbh. I just started commuting in every day, with a 13 mile round trip. The saddle did hurt at first, but that finished quite soon, maybe a fortnight later my commute was pain free? The more I rode, the longer I found - correction, still find - I can stay in the saddle without problems.

Fitness and weight wise, I didn't change my (unhealthy) diet at all, and I now find myself noticeably fitter and two sone lighter.

My advice would therefore be to jump straight in, if you can. If you are very unfit and very overweight maybe you'll need to phase things in a bit slower, but I just went straight at it and don't regret it for a second!

 

[snorri]

I would go for the gently gently approach, but if you do dive in and feel pain then take a break and when you start off again do it at a less intense level.
Welcome to the forum, and good luck!

 

[Brommyboy]

When I came back into cycling and started to commute a 6.5 mile run, it took 48 minutes, more against a headwind. By the end of the year it consistently took under 25 minutes. For such a short distance, no training is necessary. What does come as an initial bother is weather, very cold or very wet. These gradually become acceptable. It would be as well to allow for both at the start, and to arrive early for work having allowed for a long commute time at the start. Maybe a practice run would be a good idea.

 

[G-Zero]

Without knowing just how unfit or how overweight you are, it's a difficult call for anyone else to make. If you come in too hard and too quick, you may cause yourself an injury that's going to knock you back, or you may simply sicken yourself if it hurts too much.

Start off gently and see how your body reacts, but be prepared to ease off or increase your time in the saddle until you build up to where you want to be, and most important of all - keep going.

There are loads of inspirational posts on here, where overweight and unfit riders have made some massive improvements to their lifestyles and health (myself included - I'm 2 stone lighter than a year ago) and finally.... treat yourself to a good quality set of padded cycling shorts for those sore bits that are on the way.

Good luck and keep us up to date with your progress

 

[briantrumpet]

Maybe a practice run would be a good idea.

I'd agree with this - cycle in at the weekend, and take it as slowly as you like - there will probably be less traffic too. If you do find it too far then at least you won't have upset your working day, but if you do get there then you'll have a good idea of how much time you'll need when you do it for real.

 

[biggs682]

same as all the above start gently trying to get saddle and position right first then start to try and lift the pace .

a lot will depend on bike type and set up , some bikes just make you ride in a differant style to the next bike , trust me i know .

try and find another cc er local to you and ask kindly if you could try there bike or bikes out before making a very expensive mistake

 

[BrumJim]

I'd suggest riding in one or two days a week to start with, giving yourself plenty of time to get in, and a couple of days to recover before trying again.
8 miles is a warm-up for some, and an expedition for others, so for the first effort, give yourself plenty of time to get there, recover and have a shower, and brag. Don't forget water and recovery snack. As your fitness improves, you'll see your weight come off and times drop very quickly.

 

[paulw1969]

thanks for the replies folks.
Several options to go for, sounds like i will have to see how i go i guess. I'm 5ft 7 and i reckon i am about 13 stone perhaps a little more, i cannot remember the last time i weighed myself...the wife hid the scales. So i know i am overweight. I wiil definatley sort the scales out though to record my weight loss, as it is lack of exercise which is my main problem, being stuck in front of a PC all day at work doesn't help.
I may well do several of the things suggested, but a practice run will be my first step i reckon to see how i go and take the pace easy after a few short trips of a night time to get my backside used to being in saddle again.
The comment about padded shorts, went looking at some of those today....the wife just gave me one of those looks.........as if to say..........you wont look good in them!! i'll see.
I put a deposit down on a Giant Defy 2 today at my LBS. Got wait for my size to come in though so will take ten weeks, i'd rather give my LBS the business as it is very close and seem friendly and knowledgable. Put my leg over a larger sized one which felt alright but the size down will be better.
thanks again for the advice, it has given me options.

 

[coffeejo]

Nobody looks good in cycling shorts but how you feel in the saddle is much more important!

 

[paulw1969]

Nobody looks good in cycling shorts but how you feel in the saddle is much more important!

I hear you......might just have to take the plunge.......and pedal fast so i appear as a blur

 

[briantrumpet]

I hear you......might just have to take the plunge.......and pedal fast so i appear as a blur

I started by wearing shorts over the cycling shorts, but after one sweaty journey, I decided that comfort had priority over dignity.

 

[DCLane]

I started by wearing shorts over the cycling shorts, but after one sweaty journey, I decided that comfort had priority over dignity.

Yep - did that too until I went below 12.5 stone. Now I don't care since the comments I get are worth it. This year's the first time I've been wolf-whistled since I was 18. Although once was outside a gay bar

 

[mangid]

I got on the bike several years ago now, quite overweight and very unfit, 1-2 miles was all I could do at the start, and it took a while for my hamstrings (I think) to get used to the work, coming down stairs was interesting ...


As I recall it took several weeks to build the distance and frequency up, just go with what feels right, I soon ended up wanting to go further and further.

Stiffer soled shoes are another thing to consider once you do build the distance up, I used to ride in trainers then moved to Shimano MTB type shoes and they were quite a lot more comfortable.

--
Dan