Commuting - Riding Hard on a Commute

I realized this week that I've been getting lazy.

What tipped me off was this: On Sunday I went for a nice, long road ride. During the course of this ride I happened to overtake a young, buff-looking rider decked out in cycling togs and pass him while climbing a hill. I thought nothing of it -- I figured he was testing his bike or between wind sprints or something -- and rode on. But after topping the hill he seemed to be trying to catch me, and I thought, what the hell, and decided to see if I could leave him behind. Which I very gradually did over the next 12 miles.

The point is not that I "beat" anybody. For all I know he wasn't even breathing hard. The point is that for *me* is was a very hard 15 miles, during which I never let up and rode about as hard as I can.

And the next day my quads were *very* sore. Not really suprising, in a 50 year old rider who doesn't race. Now, here's the point:

I did my usual 26 mile RT commutes the rest of the week, and my time and speed were about what they usually were. And despite the lack of a "rest day," the soreness disappeared after a couple of days -- in other words, my commutes were like rest days as far as muscle recovery was concerned!

This all brings home that I really don't ride very hard on my commutes. Granted, it's mostly urban/suburban riding with tons of traffic and stop lights, but I never hammer on the commute the way I did on that ride Sunday.

Does anybody? How many of you "train" on your commutes? Do you have to take risks with traffic in order to do it? Do you detour to clear roads in order to get to a place where you can ride hard for extended miles? Are you lucky enough to have rural roads on your route anyway?

RichC

Commutes tend to wear me down while tough weekend rides exert me. The difference is that I'm weary from commuting at times, but not sore. Just tired overall. When I hammer on the weekend rides I'll be sore but not so tired.

Training (and commuter train avoidance) is really my primary reason for commuting by bike. Still getting to work and then back home alive is also pretty important. With a heavily urban 50km r/t commute three times a week, that's a lot of opportunity for bad things to happen.

Having enough energy left to work is also useful so I keep to a medium fast pace. I only go full out on one or two of the endless hills on the way home. It gets me sore, but nothing like the weekend club sprints do.

My route is a bit longer and much hillier than the direct route and the training benefit is real. I have to say, though, that I chose the route for safety reasons. It has much less traffic.

I know I don't push myself enough on commutes. On the way home that's because I'm tired from work. I think commuting at least exercises the muscles heart and lungs and keeps your bike skills sharp.

No substitute for longer trips though.

If you commute daily, as well as doing any other training you need to factor in your commute effort.

I run on weds, fri and sunday. Weds is a speed session at the track. So I either skip the commute on Wes or take it easy, otherwise I'm burnedout for the track session.

I also find that the daily commute wears me out anyway. On Mondays, even after a long run on Sunday, I can ride quite hard. By Friday tho I'm just taking a bike ride to work!

Stew

Mornin Rich
I commute every day, no matter what the weather. I always carry panniers and a trunk bag that are loaded with the usual stuff that one would need to make it through the day as a bike commuter in new england. I intentionally don't travel light. On my morning ride to work, the bike (loaded) weighs from 45 to 65 pounds depending on the day. I ride along a highway with good pavement and rolling hills, I keep my speed and workout intensity just below the sweat zone, This gets me to work in relatively good shape and I'm not all smelly all day. On the way home I take a back country route that has a number of long winded climbs on it, the traffic is lighter and I don't usually have to stop often. I carry 2 large zip lock bags that I fill with sand, about 12 pounds each, I put 1 in each pannier and head home, I keep my cadence at about 90 rpm and my heart rate at between 150 and 165. I do this every day, the ride is 18.5 miles, I consider this my training workout. An older cyclist told me that as long as you don't baby yourself on the hills nothing gets you the kind of training that you can get from a loaded bike. After doing this for three years I must say, He's correct, when I unload the bike for a weekend ride, I fly and distance is never an issue. (got legs!!!!, got lungs!!!!)

I try to view the commute ride as training. It's about 8 miles to work and this takes somewhere between 25 and 30 min, depending on the traffic. It can be difficult to get a good rythmn going with the stops in town, but the (almost) country section lets me stretch out a bit. Occasionally, the traffic and light stops are so frequent that the ride is more like a series of short sprints - very frustrating.
The computer helps, as a comparison of average speed from day to day shows whether I'm slacking or not. Slower days I usually put down to that headwind ;) The speed readout whilst riding gives a good idea of cruising speed, but can become an obsession that spoils the ride - In the past I have tired myself out trying to keep the numbers higher...
The best thing about the commute is that if I'm mentally tired from work, or just fed up with something, I can thrash it out in a good workout and cheer up before I arrive home.
The only downside is that using a bike all year round, especially in bad weather does push up the maintainance work, and damage bill - but then bikes were meant to be ridden, not admired whilst stationary!

All good fun

Ed

My 9 mi morning commute is pretty much survival, not the ride or traffic, just waking up. I seldom push it. On my 13-20 mile homeward ride I push it a little bit. A couple of days a week I do some sprints and intervals. 4 weeks of travel and vacation over 6 weeks in July and August put paid to my training for the local MS Tour for Cure 150. I just hope I can get back up to speed in time to do it comfortably.

I usually drop the hammer a bit on my commute in to work, but on the way home I'm just usually to tired to maintain anything other than a relaxed pace. The constant headwind on the way home doesn't help my mood, either.

Love hills. Hate wind.

Commute is 15 miles each way; not incredible, but not around-the-block.

This time of year I know what time I'm expected at work but never have any idea what time I'll be able to go home. So I've been leaving early and riding 8-10 miles away from work. A lot of mornings it's a struggle to turn it around and point the wheel towards downtown. ;)

As Matadon knows, mornings in Sacto are usually cool and calm so it's a good time to hammer the big ring.

I commute eight miles each way on fixie. There are several routes I use, some more hillier than others. I try to push hard on Tuesday and Wednesday; try to get home faster each day. With the weekend coming I push less on thursday and Friday. The advantage is I am fully packed with about 15-20 lbs of gear, that plus the fixed gear makes the ride short but a blast and gets me ready for the weekend.

Originally posted by Matadon
I usually drop the hammer a bit on my commute in to work, but on the way home I'm just usually to tired to maintain anything other than a relaxed pace.

Commute is 15 miles each way; not incredible, but not around-the-block.
I have found that bicycle commuting is a real discipline, nothing to sneeze at. My 28 - 30 mile round trip, complete with tall hills, keeps my fitness level fairly high all year round, especially with the extra weight. I can see the direct results of this whenever I climb stairs or sprint (on foot)--it takes a lot for me to open my mouth and quit breathing through my nose, an indication that bicycle commuting has greatly increased the capacity of my heart.

I usually push it on the way in to work, but on the way home I'm tired and it's often hot (but that doesn't always stop me from sprinting away from a light!)

The real beauty of bike commuting is that you can improve at your own pace, and the regular commitment guarantees a basic level of fitness that often exceeds even that of weekend warriors and seasonal cyclists.

I have never been good at "pushing hard", but I'm quite proficient at "saving myself for the long run".

That being said, my regular commute is 3 km (per direction), in an urban environment. If I have a slight tailwind on my way to work, I'm likely to push it a bit because I may do the entire trip on green lights only. Conversely, if I have a slight headwind on my way home, I know I'll have at least 4 red lights.

I sometimes stretch the ride home by doing a few shopping trips. Some of these imply a few hills, which is good training for the legs.

Regards,

I have a ten mile commute, lately it's been everyday on a fixed gear. I don't always ride the ten miles, I usually add to it. I tend to push myself most days. I've been troubled by my average speed, and want to raise it, which is really dependent on the route, the traffic, and any extra-cirricular journeys a long the way(shopping, the LBS).

I like to get 20 extra miles in every other day, so I'm not pushing as hard everyday, and then I swap between bikes, rather than ride the fixie with 16t opt for 18t, or ride the road bike, the geared commuter, for an easier ride(I don't like those days). I also try to get to work early to cool down and clean up. I don't really have a day off where I just ride. I work 7 days a week, commuting five, and walking two(my part time job is two miles from home, a thrity min walk).

Originally posted by Rich Clark
Does anybody? How many of you "train" on your commutes? Do you have to take risks with traffic in order to do it? Do you detour to clear roads in order to get to a place where you can ride hard for extended miles? Are you lucky enough to have rural roads on your route anyway?

This summer, I was using my road bike to commute once or twice a week instead of my regular commuter. On my way home, I take a route that takes me to country roads (few traffic lights and more hills) which adds around 40 kms to my regular 25 km (one way) commute from work to home. This is mainly to prepare myself for group rides during the weekends.

Since last week however, I find that this is no longer feasible as daylight is getting shorter so I switched to running around a school oval (10 X 400 meters) after I got home commuting on my bike. I'll probably run more and bike less as winter approaches to maintain my fitness.

personally, i seldom push it during my commute. i don't feel the need. i figure the 32 daily miles is plenty enough, and the gear i drag in my panniers makes sure i get a decent workout.

My little 2 mile commute is hardly worth sweating over, I may get there 30 seconds earlier, but it would take me a few mintues to cool down.
It has a big hill at each end, and one very steep bank that i can only pedal up when Im fit. Right now Im using my touring bike with MTB gearing, but when I revert to my commuter Ill have to mash that 28" gear to get over it (so steep, the sidwalk has steps).
I usually take a 5 mile ride along the seafront every evening, and when its empty I like to get a little speed up, but nothing I would call "training".

I make sure to push it every day on my commutes. I only have to go about 2 miles, so if i didnt it wouldnt be much of a workout. I do this about twice a day, round trip, because my classes are about five hours apart. I think of it as sprinting practice.

I leave every day with the intention of taking it easy and enjoying the ride but... once I get going, the race is on! I just can't seem to take it easy, I go about as fast as I can, very little coasting.
I usually have an option of a 12 km short commute or the 27 km long version. Either way, I just can't seem to slow down and smell the roses.
Heavy traffic leads to kamikaze style commuting - There's one road closure and detour on the long commute that results in about a 3 kilometre long section of stop and go traffic on 2 lane roads. Some motorists hug the curb so cyclists can't get by. I take a short detour to the sidewalk to get around them (safely of course!) I also do some "que jumping" and leave the stop bar before the traffic light is completely green. Sorry I may be setting a bad example for the cycling community, but I just can't help it!! I have to get where I'm going!
Amazingly enough, the 2 "closest calls" I've had where when I was cycling along properly the way I'm supposed to. Nothing remotely close during the kamikaze stuff.
I also detest the wind, it always seems to be either no wind or head wind, no matter which direction I'm going!

I'm the same as you pinerider, I have every intention of taking it easy but it soon turns into a race! If I see someone on a bike up ahead I have to sprint and catchup and pass them, while trying not to look like I've been sprinting to catch up and pass them...:p

I'm a recent convert to a road bike but I used to love catching up and passing all the guys on their fancy lightweight road bikes whilst riding my knobby equipped MTB. There weren't many that I couldn't keep up with, especially when I put slicks on the MTB (what a difference that made!).