thegravestoneman
three wheels on my wagon
- Location
- Castleford, Yorkshire
How do..
Oh! My aching legs!
- Thread starter Jeffrey4670
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Frood42
I know where my towel is
- Location
- Magrathea, Horsehead Nebula
Hi Jeff,
I have the same bike from Halfords.
I started off slow, 10 mile round trip to work, then I slowly increased that to a 20 mile round trip, and now I am doing a 42 mile round trip (21 miles in under 1hr 40mins, never thought I would be doing that!).
I can get up the hills, but I am very thankful for the "granny" cog on the front set of gears, which gets regular use on some of the hills around me in Epping, but the uphills are worth it for the downhills
.I only average around 13-14mph
Enjoy your rides, have a bit of an adventure on the bike, doesn't matter how slow you go, but that you get out there!
Have Fun!
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
15mph average, thats fantastic! Keep it up.
Over The Hill
Guru
- Location
- Ridden off into the sunset
All sounds fine as far as the time and distance you are doing.
If you legs just ache the same as they would if you walked a long way then that is probably just a matter of you using them more than you have (probably the reason for the bike).
But if it is in a particular area then it may be down to your riding style. Most common thing I think is trying to ride like a professional cyclist up a hill. They stand up and shove in lots of power. If I did this then I would struggle and get pain in the front of my thighs.
Certainly while building up it is best to take the hill slowly and use both front and rear gear. On approach to a decent hill drop front ring to smallest and then as you get to hill and it starts to get difficult drop down the back gears to biggest. Then you are using lots of revs rather than lots of power to get up the hill.
Hope that helps.
If you legs just ache the same as they would if you walked a long way then that is probably just a matter of you using them more than you have (probably the reason for the bike).
But if it is in a particular area then it may be down to your riding style. Most common thing I think is trying to ride like a professional cyclist up a hill. They stand up and shove in lots of power. If I did this then I would struggle and get pain in the front of my thighs.
Certainly while building up it is best to take the hill slowly and use both front and rear gear. On approach to a decent hill drop front ring to smallest and then as you get to hill and it starts to get difficult drop down the back gears to biggest. Then you are using lots of revs rather than lots of power to get up the hill.
Hope that helps.
jonny jeez
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chislehurst, Kent, UK
Hi Jeffrey.
as OTH has mentioned, you may want to look at your cadence. Cadence is the RPM that your legs spin at. watch some pro/tour riders and you'll notice that their cadence is pretty regular regardless of what incline they are riding, they simply drop their gears to keep the RPM the same.
They do this as the build up of lactic acid in your muscles is more efficiently dispersed when you contract your muscles less...or something like that. Either way its the acid that makes your legs ache and which makes for slower recovery
Thing to do is find a cadence (not speed) that you are comfortable with (probably a little quicker than you might imagine) and use all the gears to maintain that at all costs. Dont let pride keep you away from those lower chainrings, this is what they are for.
make small regular changes to your gears to keep the flow, don't find yourself standing or straining as the terrain shifts, just shift the gears to accommodate.
It will hurt a little at first and may even seem counter-intuitive as it takes a little out of you and to start with, can feel like you are spinning and getting nowhere but stick with it.
Converserly, don't allow your cadence to go up so much that you spin to the point of bobbing in your seat, keep it even. Perhaps Hum "Flash" by Queen in your mind, that feels like about 90 rpm to me.
dum-dum-dum-dum-FLASH--boom -ahh- ahhhhh
Oh and 15mph average is a cracking speed....Welljell (or other appropriately youthful expressions)
as OTH has mentioned, you may want to look at your cadence. Cadence is the RPM that your legs spin at. watch some pro/tour riders and you'll notice that their cadence is pretty regular regardless of what incline they are riding, they simply drop their gears to keep the RPM the same.
They do this as the build up of lactic acid in your muscles is more efficiently dispersed when you contract your muscles less...or something like that. Either way its the acid that makes your legs ache and which makes for slower recovery
Thing to do is find a cadence (not speed) that you are comfortable with (probably a little quicker than you might imagine) and use all the gears to maintain that at all costs. Dont let pride keep you away from those lower chainrings, this is what they are for.
make small regular changes to your gears to keep the flow, don't find yourself standing or straining as the terrain shifts, just shift the gears to accommodate.
It will hurt a little at first and may even seem counter-intuitive as it takes a little out of you and to start with, can feel like you are spinning and getting nowhere but stick with it.
Converserly, don't allow your cadence to go up so much that you spin to the point of bobbing in your seat, keep it even. Perhaps Hum "Flash" by Queen in your mind, that feels like about 90 rpm to me.
dum-dum-dum-dum-FLASH--boom -ahh- ahhhhh
Oh and 15mph average is a cracking speed....Welljell (or other appropriately youthful expressions)
OP
OP
Jeffrey4670
Regular
Thanks very much for the advice. Must agree about the cadence and try to get use to the gears. I tend to use only the mid (2) chainring and adjust the back accordingly.
What gets me is when I am flying downhill and can see the road sharply rise uphill, is how quick I lose speed and find myself coming to a stop and killing my legs. Find it hard to understand why I lose speed so quickly! I could make it much easier for myself if I could understand the gears better. I understand the logic of cadence, just need to practice more.
One good thing today! I managed to beat the bus into Leeds this morning. The bus takes an hour into Leeds. Getting easier each day. If I take a day off from cycling, my legs recover.
jonny jeez
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chislehurst, Kent, UK
I suspect its just unfamiliarity that is catching you out but its worth checking 3 things...just in case
Do the wheels spin ok when you lift the front or take the back wheel out are your bearings are running freely?
are your brakes rubbing.?
what pressure are your tyres?
OP
OP
Jeffrey4670
Regular
Hi, The wheels spin just fine and the disc brakes are fine. Tyre pressure is 50psi as recommend. The the rider is the problem!
Jen5656
Active Member
- Location
- Bonnie Scotland
Hi Jeff
I had an old Townsend mtb which was a great bike..however despite having carrera for 2years I still struggle with gears and hills, I need to work harder to achieve the miles so thinking about changing it next year
I had an old Townsend mtb which was a great bike..however despite having carrera for 2years I still struggle with gears and hills, I need to work harder to achieve the miles so thinking about changing it next year
mfc1876
Active Member
Hi Jeff, pretty new here myself. I'm 35 (til next month), started riding fairly regularly about a month ago and my average speed was about 9/10mph lol! My last 2 rides have been over 11mph and I was chuffed with that so you're fitter than you think! I've already noticed a change in my fitness though and that my trouser belt instinctively wants to slip to the next hole although it's still a bit too tight yet to stay there yet.
Also gained a lot of valuable new information by reading through this thread. The cadence and not being afraid to use the granny gear, spinning like mad on inclines and feeling embarrassed to be hardly moving is me. I'll just go with it from now on. Thanks everyone and welcome aboard Jeff
Also gained a lot of valuable new information by reading through this thread. The cadence and not being afraid to use the granny gear, spinning like mad on inclines and feeling embarrassed to be hardly moving is me. I'll just go with it from now on. Thanks everyone and welcome aboard Jeff
jonny jeez
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chislehurst, Kent, UK
Then the only other thing I can suggest is lower profile tyres, I don't know how knobbly yours are right now. My impression of the crossfire is that its more of an MTB than a hybrid so its possible the stock tyres are pretty gnarly.
Clearly slicker tyres offer less rolling resistance.
if that's not the case them I'm afraid you are right its down to the rider.
Don't worry though, at your speed that shan't be an issue for long.
- Location
- Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Just a thought, I don't think anyone has mentioned saddle height yet. If it is too low (very common with newbies) it will make the legs ache quite badly, especially around the knees.
An easy way to get it about right is to set the height so that with the heel on the pedal your leg is straight at the bottom of the pedal stroke. The leg will then have roughly the right amount of bend when the ball of the foot is on the pedal and you can fine tune it from there.
I hope this is of use.
An easy way to get it about right is to set the height so that with the heel on the pedal your leg is straight at the bottom of the pedal stroke. The leg will then have roughly the right amount of bend when the ball of the foot is on the pedal and you can fine tune it from there.
I hope this is of use.
mfc1876
Active Member
Just a thought, I don't think anyone has mentioned saddle height yet. If it is too low (very common with newbies) it will make the legs ache quite badly, especially around the knees.
An easy way to get it about right is to set the height so that with the heel on the pedal your leg is straight at the bottom of the pedal stroke. The leg will then have roughly the right amount of bend when the ball of the foot is on the pedal and you can fine tune it from there.
I hope this is of use.
That's of use to me if no-one else. I wasn't sure if my seat was the right height. Thanks mate!
Mad Doug Biker
Just a damaged guy.
- Location
- Craggy Island
Hello!
