45 year old, fat, newbie commuter needs advise please

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  • Nik Cube
    Nik Cube Posts: 311
    Wired looks fine your going to have extra bits on your bike anyway, sorry to hear about he off but as we all know that which does not kill us can only make you more alert to wvm idiots and other nutters in their metal boxes :)
    Fcn 5
    Cube attempt 2010
  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    Sort your discomfort out first. Sod the toys.

    Unless you want to be able to say "hey, I endured 86.3 miles of misery this week".
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • rhext
    rhext Posts: 1,639
    davis wrote:
    Sort your discomfort out first. Sod the toys.

    Unless you want to be able to say "hey, I endured 86.3 miles of misery this week".

    That's nothing. I endured 114.2 miles of misery this week, taking a grand total of 8 hours 14 minutes and 30 seconds.
  • londonlivvy
    londonlivvy Posts: 644
    Stretching really does help. I do this 25 min yoga for cyclists routine after every long ride and it's made a huge difference to how I feel the next day.
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yoga-Cyclists-D ... B000NOIRMQ
    Obviously you're not going to do 30 mins stretching every day, but it'll teach you some of the stretches and it's quite a good discipline (otherwise it's easy to get bored after 2 mins and give up).

    There are quite a few yoga for cyclists sequences on youtube - worth a try I'd have thought.
    http://minxcompendium.blogspot.com/
  • londonlivvy
    londonlivvy Posts: 644
    PS sorry to hear about the off. Hope you're not too sore. Arnica is the answer to bruises from hell.
    http://minxcompendium.blogspot.com/
  • fatboybiker
    fatboybiker Posts: 62
    Thanks for all the concerned comments, I'm fine and dandy now, apart from the achey leg/hip thing.... it is far better this week but is still there niggling away.

    Is it me or has this nice weather brought out masses of peeps on bikes ? I'm new to this but won't be changing my daily commute (maybe only to extend it :wink: ) and I got to wondering if the number of novelty peeps on their 50quid netto specials bikes will dwindle....? is this a seasonal trend ?
    FCN 11
  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    fatboybiker wrote:
    Thanks for all the concerned comments, I'm fine and dandy now, apart from the achey leg/hip thing.... it is far better this week but is still there niggling away.

    Is it me or has this nice weather brought out masses of peeps on bikes ? I'm new to this but won't be changing my daily commute (maybe only to extend it :wink: ) and I got to wondering if the number of novelty peeps on their 50quid netto specials bikes will dwindle....? is this a seasonal trend ?

    :D
    FCN in the signature, complaining about fairweather nodders. You've learnt well.

    It's not the people on the £50 specials you need to worry about, it's the people on the shiny new Carbon C2W bling, but they're prime targets for some scalps. Enjoy
    Rose Xeon CW Disc
    CAAD12 Disc
    Condor Tempo
  • CRAIGO5000
    CRAIGO5000 Posts: 697
    Perhaps it is a trend mixed and brought on by what I can only guess to be seasonal commuters coming out of hibernation, guys like me who have started to commute to get fit and save money by giving up the car and also the odd good weather rider?

    Since Jan, I've noticed that the roads have a few more riders and the closer I get to Manchester city centre, the more I see. I'd be lucky to see one or two riders on my commute back in Jan. Earlier this week I was the sixth cyclist in line at a set of traffic lights.
    Ribble Stealth/SRAM Force
    2007 Specialized Allez (Double) FCN - 3
  • walkingbootweather
    walkingbootweather Posts: 2,443
    It isn't even just the newby cyclist you need to be aware of. Three times this evening I had to take avoiding action to miss pedestrians meandering across shared use pathways. Bring back the cold weather I say (only kidding, glad to see people out enjoying the weather)

    So fatboybiker, how does it feel to be a relative old hand in the presence of these nodders?
    Nobody told me we had a communication problem
  • aldric
    aldric Posts: 161
    I am well impressed, 35 minutes for an 8 mile commute in your first week and on the bike you are using is fantstic!

    I went out this afternoon for a 8 mile blast in the sun on my CX bike and it took me 34 mins according to my mobile app (runkeeper).. There were a few hills, nothing major.... damn I need to get quicker.

    Keep up the good work.
  • fatboybiker
    fatboybiker Posts: 62
    aldric wrote:
    I am well impressed, 35 minutes for an 8 mile commute in your first week and on the bike you are using is fantstic!

    I went out this afternoon for a 8 mile blast in the sun on my CX bike and it took me 34 mins according to my mobile app (runkeeper).. There were a few hills, nothing major.... damn I need to get quicker.

    Keep up the good work.

    So the type of bike ridden makes a difference to speed/time then ?

    I got it down to 30 mins now, although it is hard work and my legs feel like sh!t....

    Missed the commute today though, no access at all, to bike shed today, and no other place secure to leave the bike, so had to get the bloody train and walk.....every step was a real effort. :shock:
    Now, I thought the walk would have gotten easier with all this biking? How wrong I was... my walking in general is odd at the minute and my stride is shorter. I assume that this is due to muscle tightness/ aching.


    :D
    FCN 11
  • walkingbootweather
    walkingbootweather Posts: 2,443
    So to recap you are a 45 year old 17 stone mountain bike rider that has improved your 8 mile commute from 45 mins to 30 mins (that's an average of 16mph) in about a month.

    I reckon you should be getting yourself a racer. There's still time to make the 2012 olympics :)
    Nobody told me we had a communication problem
  • slowfox
    slowfox Posts: 7
    Only just catching up with this thread, didn't realise you too were battling Hull's traffic, not to mention the fine quality tarmac on offer post winter snows.

    Sorry to hear about the off - glad that it wasn't a busy time of day; which cycle lane were you using?
  • Kieran_Burns
    Kieran_Burns Posts: 9,757
    fatboybiker wrote:

    So the type of bike ridden makes a difference to speed/time then ?

    :D

    Yep. :)

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-TJduefimA&hd=1

    That's my carbon road bike, the CX which is the best commuter I know, just ain't as easy to get to illegal speeds.
    Chunky Cyclists need your love too! :-)
    2009 Specialized Tricross Sport
    2011 Trek Madone 4.5
    2012 Felt F65X
    Proud CX Pervert and quiet roadie. 12 mile commuter
  • Agent57
    Agent57 Posts: 2,300
    As I recall, speed limits apply to motorised vehicles; so you were fine at 34. :D
    MTB commuter / 531c commuter / CR1 Team 2009 / RockHopper Pro Disc / 10 mile PB: 25:52 (Jun 2014)
  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    fatboybiker wrote:
    I got it down to 30 mins now, although it is hard work and my legs feel like sh!t....

    Good work on the time. Now that you've been at this a month, your body will be starting to become accustomed to the workload. If you're still finding it painful and your recovery slow, then I'd take a really good look at bike fit again; it's not enough to just "feel ok on the bike" when you get on - you've got to be in the correct position, and most people simply don't know what that is. Also, are you stretching? It really could help.

    P.S. rhext was bang on with his prediction:
    rhext wrote:
    Good stuff.

    I'd guess that within four to six weeks you'll be doing it in 30 minutes, if not too hilly and not too many traffic lights.
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • fatboybiker
    fatboybiker Posts: 62
    walkingbootweather wrote:
    So to recap you are a 45 year old 17 stone mountain bike rider that has improved your 8 mile commute from 45 mins to 30 mins (that's an average of 16mph) in about a month.

    I reckon you should be getting yourself a racer. There's still time to make the 2012 olympics :)

    45.....almost
    17 stone :( sadly...... might have to start a diet now to shift some tubbies, biking by itself ain't doing jack
    Yeah 30 mins if I 'go for it'......

    steady effort is about 34or 35 minutes.
    FCN 11
  • fatboybiker
    fatboybiker Posts: 62
    davis wrote:
    it's not enough to just "feel ok on the bike" when you get on - you've got to be in the correct position, and most people simply don't know what that is.

    Thats a problem then really..... how do I know?

    It feels OK, but I don't know if it is correct?
    hhmmmmm difficult one that..
    FCN 11
  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    fatboybiker wrote:
    davis wrote:
    it's not enough to just "feel ok on the bike" when you get on - you've got to be in the correct position, and most people simply don't know what that is.

    Thats a problem then really..... how do I know?

    It feels OK, but I don't know if it is correct?
    hhmmmmm difficult one that..

    Start here: (I think you're on a mountain bike)

    http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/technique-perfect-mountain-bike-fit-29498/
    http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/article/technique-how-to-get-your-seat-height-right-14608/

    For starters, most people have their saddles too low.

    It's a bit of an art form, and you'll get people tweaking by tiny amounts, and sitting in front of cameras to look at/document their position. You don't need to go to such lengths, although if you've got no shame you can always post a picture of your position on your bike here :twisted:

    I still think it's a bit odd that one leg hurts more than the other -- are your legs significantly different in length? Are your feet in the same positions on the pedals?
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • fatboybiker
    fatboybiker Posts: 62
    davis wrote:



    I still think it's a bit odd that one leg hurts more than the other -- are your legs significantly different in length?

    only the middle one... :D boom boom

    seriously though.... My seat is quiet high I think, I'm on tiptoe when I stop at any lights etc with my arris still on't seat.

    I will check out the links you posted though and see if I'm doing anything wrong. Not time now..... the pub is beckoning me :D
    FCN 11

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