Cycling for Health & Transportation

[Nomad]

So this morning, I left the car at home on my daily commute, hopped on my bike, and rode it in to work. 17 miles one way... as I'm sitting here eating my lunch, I'm NOT looking forward to the return trip this evening.

Ongoing knee issues have eliminated jogging from my exercises, and cut way back on my martial arts over the last few months, and a nagging and as yet unidentified shoulder issue made me get back out of the pool when I started swimming to make up for lost cardio. Hopefully the bike thing will work out well, although I must confess that I look nothing like a cyclist at this point (old 2nd-hand mountain bike, old helmet, generic shorts & T-shirt).

I managed to add about 10-15 pounds this summer, mostly because of reduced activity; it's time to pare those down and get back to svelt and sexy.

 

[wushuguy]

should have practiced building up to that distance before committing to riding 17 miles to work. that said, cycling should be really good for cardio and endurance. but pace yourself ;-)

 

[searcher]

Nomad-make sure the bike is setup for your height and that the bike is the correct size for you. I see a great many riders that the bike is incorrectly setup and they are the wrong size for the bike. I teach cycling and I make sure all of my students have the correct setup.

 

[Nomad]

should have practiced building up to that distance before committing to riding 17 miles to work. that said, cycling should be really good for cardio and endurance. but pace yourself ;-)

Well, I did a 15 mile ride on Saturday and felt good... unfortunately, I thought my commute was closer to 12 one way than 17. Oops. Of course, the ride home is mostly a long slant uphill... sigh.

Nomad-make sure the bike is setup for your height and that the bike is the correct size for you. I see a great many riders that the bike is incorrectly setup and they are the wrong size for the bike. I teach cycling and I make sure all of my students have the correct setup.

Searcher - since you teach this, how do I find out the right measurements? I think I've got the seat height right, but am not sure how to know whether the frame is the right size or not. If it helps, I'm 6'1". Thanks!

 

[wushuguy]

some info about sizing a bike:
http://bicycling.about.com/od/howtoride/a/bike_size_hub.htm

from my experience, you want the frame to be like an inch or two below crotch level when standing over the bike, and the seat should be extended so that when you are sitting and the pedal is at the maximum low, your knee is only slightly bended, that way you can have full range of motion, if the seat is too low, you don't get to use the muscles to it's fullest and you can possibly cramp up during longer rides.

some bike frames will have a slant towards the seat, so it will give even more clearance from the top bar and the crotch, like my old parkpre mtn bike.

If you're just riding on the road, for commuting, etc. a hybrid road/mtn bike should be great, a local bike shop can also help you pick one that is right for you.

 

[Xue Sheng]

It has always been a dream of mine to be able to get to and from work by a bicycle but I use to live 40 miles from my office and now I live 20 but the only real way to get to my office from my home is by major highway or going through a rather nasty section of town.

 

[jks9199]

A 17 mile trip is a long one to start with...

A couple suggestions. First -- buy a new helmet. Go to a real bike shop, not Walmart, and get them to help you out; they'll help you get a helmet that fits and is proper for your ride. You only have one brain -- and after I literally broke a helmet in a fall I didn't really notice, I'm a huge fan of helmets.

If you take your bike -- they may even help you fit it to you. For a fairly low price, if they do repairs, they can check it over and make sure it's mechanically sound.

WABA is a bicycle advocacy and support group in the DC area; they are probably similar groups in most areas. Many offer some classes or at least tips pages -- including things like where you can find a shower to clean up. (I don't know about you -- but I couldn't bike to work and not shower... Not if I wanted anyone to want to work with me, at least!)

 

[Nomad]

Thanks for the link wushuguy. From this, it looks like the bike is sized right. Good start.

Xue... this is about at the limit of what I'd consider a reasonable commute. I am helped by the fact that they made a really nice separate bike lane along the highway that's the most direct route. There's also a canyon/dirt trail route that I used to ride home last night... a little shorter and more scenic, but slower with a few considerably steeper hills on the way.

jks9199 - Yes, I do need a new helmet soon, especially if I plan to keep this up for any length of time. I also need to bring the bike in for a tuneup... generally ok, but the gears could use a little calibrating. Oh yeah, and I'm lucky that there is a locker/shower at work, so I'm not subjecting my coworkers to intolerable working conditions!

Thanks for the replies!

So total distance yesterday was 31 miles, in just a touch over 3h (ride home was considerably slower than the ride in). After some good food, a prolonged stint in the hot tub, and a little self-medication, I feel remarkably good today.

I plan to repeat tomorrow, assuming that everything doesn't seize up on me in the meantime... I also plan to do some serious stretching today to help make sure that doesn't happen.