Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - I said I wouldn't do it ..... but

today I bought some padded biking shorts . I'll give them a try tomorrow morning . I'll most likely be wearing a pair of shorts over them at first. Can't get over the way I look in them . LOL I hope they help. kirby

Once your buns hit the saddle, you'll get over the way you look in them quite easily.

pad or chamois?

your ass will thank you...

The tag says: padded chamois " molded to achieve great fit and comfort " kirby

The shorts are so worth the money. Makes a huge difference.

i am going to go out on a limb here and guess that everyone on this sub-forum didnt plan on getting them when they start either. I know i didnt...

i am going to go out on a limb here and guess that everyone on this sub-forum didnt plan on getting them when they start either. I know i didnt...

I'd say that you're on a pretty safe limb. Three years ago I know I would never imagined myself (other than is some B horror movie) wearing cycling clothes.

Wear some kind of shorts over them as mentioned above and you'll be OK

The first time I rode with my bibs i put shorts over top...I ditched the shorts for the second ride. I don't care how I looked cause comfort is everything!

hah when i first started riding again i swore i wouldn't wear em ... i now own two pairs of baggies ... and refuse to go riding if i can't find them haha ...

i still can't do the tight ones w no covering tho ...

hah when i first started riding again i swore i wouldn't wear em ... i now own two pairs of baggies ... and refuse to go riding if i can't find them haha ...

i still can't do the tight ones w no covering tho ...

You know, it really doesn't matter, what other people think. If your comfortable, you will ride more, if you ride more then you get more well defined leg muscles, and lose some flab, and then you look better in the shorts.

You know, it really doesn't matter, what other people think. If your comfortable, you will ride more, if you ride more then you get more well defined leg muscles, and lose some flab, and then you look better in the shorts.

i have the defined leg muscles now ... just flab on my belly and upper body ... and i guess it isn't really what others think ... i just don't feel comfortable in them ... they feel to restrictive to me ... but the baggies i have don't ... /shrugs

i am going to go out on a limb here and guess that everyone on this sub-forum didnt plan on getting them when they start either. I know i didnt...

From another thread....

The discomfort for me lasted 2 days. I also started out riding with these (http://www.aerotechdesigns.com/bigsize.htm#baggy)
I also have a high pain/discomfort tolerance.

today I bought some padded biking shorts .

Congratulations on having gotten out of your own way.

Now you have to get comfortable with the thought of going "commando".

Now you have to get comfortable with the thought of going "commando". Yea I tried the shorts on that way. It felt sort of weird down there with the padding .LOL kirby

Yea I tried the shorts on that way. It felt sort of weird down there with the padding .LOL kirby

Well, that's how you have to wear them, or there's not a whole lot of point to it.

i am going to go out on a limb here and guess that everyone on this sub-forum didnt plan on getting them when they start either. I know i didnt...

I got them at first, but wore them with underwear until I learned better. After I lost feeling in the, ahem, for two months, I learned to go commando and adjust saddle height carefully.

The first time I rode with my bibs i put shorts over top...I ditched the shorts for the second ride. I don't care how I looked cause comfort is everything!

I no longer understand objections to "how I look" in bike shorts. Let's face it, fat is unattractive period. I don't look any worse in bike gear than I do in business causal stuff at the office.

First report : Well I did my normal 10 miler this morning and ........; Did the padded shorts work ? Well , in all honesty , I'm still a little sore from riding before , and I did experience some discomfort , even with the shorts . But now that I'm out of the saddle , I'm feeling much better afterward than I have before . So they did help some. I've got one of the E3 Form Gel seats from Performance on the way . We'll see if that helps too. kirby

So....this topic got me to thinking of a conversation I had with a soccer-mom at one of my sons' soccer games last fall. We had both just returned to cycling and were discussing issues like spandex, jerseys, clipless pedals, etc. She had just bought a new road bike and I was riding an old MTB. At the time, I couldn't imagine myself on a road bike and both of us agreed the thought of riding in anything other than shorts, T-shirt and tennis shoes was beyond our comprehension. Now, after 2,500 miles.....

....this seems normal.

I no longer understand objections to "how I look" in bike shorts. Let's face it, fat is unattractive period. I don't look any worse in bike gear than I do in business causal stuff at the office.

I totally agree. Contrary to popular belief, you are usually not hiding a darn thing. People look at each other all of their lives, and lots of baggy clothing on somebody just telegraphs to people that they are not comfortable with how they look.

You would think that we were talking about wearing skimpy race swimming trunks, or g-string bikinis. :roflmao2: Bike shorts cover everything that needs to be covered, in my opinion.

The only reason that I did not wear them in the early 1980s, was because they were just too damn expensive for my budget back then. Back then, I made do with baggy poly/nylon workout shorts and synthetic underwear, for rides that lasted more than an hour.

For rides that last less than an hour, I just wear whatever I have on at the time, as long as that is not dry-clean only dress slacks. ;)

When I go swimming I wear a swim suit.

When I walk I wear walking shorts and good shoes

When I play tennis I wear tennis clothes

When I bike I wear bicycling clothes - bibs, jersey, shoes with cleats, helmet.

Ballet dancers wear ballet clothes.

'Nuff said!

^^^
So does that mean I am not supposed to wear my tutu with my bike shorts???? Next your going to tell me handlebar tassles dont make you faster heheh

If the saddle doesn't work for you then no short will make much difference. My first bike came with a saddle that was way too soft (stock Giant Cypress seat) and no short would make it bearable. When I did find a saddle that worked better (Serfas Rx, and now Specialized Avatar), then I really came to appreciate good shorts (I prefer bibs). I'm surprised no Brooks afficianados have chimed in yet. :-) I've never tried one, but they have a loyal following.

If the saddle doesn't work for you then no short will make much difference. My first bike came with a saddle that was way too soft (stock Giant Cypress seat) and no short would make it bearable. When I did find a saddle that worked better (Serfas Rx, and now Specialized Avatar), then I really came to appreciate good shorts (I prefer bibs). I'm surprised no Brooks afficianados have chimed in yet. :-) I've never tried one, but they have a loyal following.


I'm just waiting for my stock saddle to die before going with a Brooks B17. :)
If you are self-conscious, try these (http://www.aerotechdesigns.com/bigsize.htm#baggy), they do the job and allow for a bit more "modesty".

Did the same thing recently - bought a cheap pair @ Nashbar. Ordered 2 more last night after using them a week ;)

The shorts I ordered just came in and I can't wait to ride with them...

Admittedly, I did get the slightly looser MTB version...

I tried the E3 Form Gel Saddle , on two different bikes , a couple adjustments for different positions and .......I sent them back . Even with the padded shorts . Without the padded shorts; OUCH!! I'm able to ride longer with my heavily padded comfort seat . I've got a Brooks B17 on the way , I'm not sure that's going to do it either . I think I need something with springs . About half of my riding is on cart paths and sidewalks with multiple driveways entering making for a bumpy ride . I've tried to ride "light" but it's almost like standing for most of my ride. I need a narrow front saddle with springs and padded rear . kirby

Not to hijack this thread, but I used to lead beginning rides for our bike club. Had a old guy show up at one of our rides on an old single speed schwin in a tee shirt and cutoff jeans. He didn't want to ride with us, but said hs jeans rode up his crack and it was driving him crazy. What could he do? I told him he needed to get him some bike shorts.

He says 'no way', that he was retired, lost his drivers license, and had to use his bike to ride to the bar everyday, and no way he way going in that bar with bike shorts on. Tore that bar down a few years ago, and up to then, every time I passed I saw his old bike parked outside.

Wasn't parked next to a John Deere riding mower was it? LOL Might have been a friend of The "possom" kirby

So....this topic got me to thinking of a conversation I had with a soccer-mom at one of my sons' soccer games last fall. We had both just returned to cycling and were discussing issues like spandex, jerseys, clipless pedals, etc. She had just bought a new road bike and I was riding an old MTB. At the time, I couldn't imagine myself on a road bike and both of us agreed the thought of riding in anything other than shorts, T-shirt and tennis shoes was beyond our comprehension. Now, after 2,500 miles.....

....this seems normal.

If I may say so, you look really good in those.