qcpmsame 

You survived the ride, my first rides were all in the two mile range, and I was tickled to complete those two miles, and I was knackered, too. I agree with everyone about seeing your doctor to get everything checked, out as bad a shape as you put your self in to. And, see that LBS about a proper fitting, they should do that as a part of your purchase. Someone said that you spent a long time getting in that bad a shape, above, and do not expect to recover your fitness during the first outing. @tsl summed it up perfectly and he is my hero/cycling go to guy, in his reply. listen to what you read from him, and the others above.

Welcome to the forum, the 50+ gang is the most encouraging and supportive group I have even had the pleasure to know. I owe, pretty much, my being alive now to returning to Cycling after a long battle with major health issues, it take some time and dedication, to recover the lost fitness, but its well worth the effort and commitment. I managed to shed over 100 lbs, 278 down to 174 now, and get my blood chemistry numbers in the excellent range, doctor is a cyclist, also, so he supports me 100%.

Best of luck, don't give it up just because you entered the world of hurt for a few hours, it is worth all the time, sweat and cramps, to get through the bad stuff and into cycling as many of us love it.

wphamilton

Yes normal and particularly the difficulty on the hill. I recommend finding a few miles of level road, ride it for a short period every day or two days gradually increasing. Improvement comes steadily, right away if you ride every day. But it does take some determination to stick with it at first. Two months for me, until I suddenly realized that I was enjoying the heck out of riding. I don't mean it was miserable until then - I did enjoy it before two months but as an exercise, the feeling of making gains. After a couple of months, what I was doing became easy, and after that the activity in itself was just fun.

My first ride (at 47) was 2.5 miles to the grocery store, I also had a hill, and I thought it would kill me. Literally. I was just getting there to start the car that my wife stalled, not deliberately out for a ride, and I didn't want to repeat that either. But later, when I did start thinking of cycling, remembering that ride was important to me. The fact was, I did do that ride so in theory I could do it again. We can build on our successes, no matter where the starting point is.

ray.garza

Congrats on your new Bike and 1st effort! Now that you have established your baseline time to make some adjustments.

1st thing I'd do (if you haven't done so already) is get a bike fit. I see several others mention that on here. Spend the money to have a professional to do it at you bike shop. They do it all the time and it will eliminate aches and pains (and possible injury) associated with a poor fit.

2nd thing I'd do is eliminate the hills for now. Find some flat roads to ride out on, even if it means taking your bike in your car to the starting point. Get out there and ride 5-10 miles to get used to riding.

3rd find a large empty parking lot and practice bike handling skills

4th find a social riding group that rides once per week. They will help you with rules of the road and riding with traffic plus all sorts of tips. Plus it fun!

5th after two or three weeks find a hill for you to work on conquering

Keep your spirits up and keep those wheels spinning.

welshTerrier2

Been there; done that. Lots of great advice above. Avoid hills as much as possible; it takes time to strengthen the muscles and build the aerobic capacity you'll need for hills. If you're in a hills-only area, drive your bike to another area.

Another piece of advice I haven't seen in this thread yet is to take a few breaks when you're out for a ride. Just getting off your bike and walking around or stretching can help. Oh, and bring some cookies for those breaks. Cookies can solve most cycling problems. Also, stretch a little after your ride and maybe take a hot shower. If you're really sore after riding, take a day or two off.

It doesn't take long from being an out-of-shape, two-mile wimp to riding twenty miles or more. The trick to "getting into cycling" is to enjoy it ... if it's all about pain all the time, you probably won't stay with it. Don't push too hard in the beginning ... let cycling come to you.

ray.garza

Yes, that right. Get off the bike and plant your two feet on the ground. Really helps alleviate back pain.

Cookies are always a good idea !

fishboy316

Hi and welcome fro a newcomer also. DON'T GIVE UP! When I started I felt the same as you and just new I was an IDIOT! Spent a TON of money and I hated it! I now can't wait to ride the bikes. Remember this. It takes a lot longer to get it than it takes to lose it! At first don't push to hard. Go as far as you can. Don't worry about other folks.(Was one of my problems). Try to stay on the flat ground and trails. You will be surprised how soon you will be doing triple what you started with. Really do get a good fitting done. Spend the cake for a GOOD fitting. when you get it done it will more than likely feel like a different bike. That what I did and it saved me from a making the huge mistake of returning my cervelo. Made all the difference. They had me on the machines and my bike for 3 hours. Now it calls me when I walk by. Just remember it will get a lot better!

Try to enjoy the little Gaines you will get and Kick Butt!
Bill

Little Darwin

In 2003 at the age of about 46 I got on a bike for the first time in about 20 years, and my first ride was 0.6 miles, around my long and flat block. I then laid (dropped might be a better term) the bike in the front yard to go rest before I could even put the bike away.

Slowly, over the coming months I got to where I could ride 20 miles by doing several loops in my neighborhood, and then started venturing further. In the intervening years, I have done a few metric centuries, and enjoy riding more than almost any physical activity.

I am soon to turn 58, and regularly ride 15-30 mile rides during "the season" (defined as temps greater than 50 degrees) and the guy I ride with most I got interested in the sport a couple of years ago. He was 75 at the time, and I loaned him a bike. His daughter thought he was crazy, but he loved it and we rode several rides of 5 to 20 miles. His daughter, and other family members bought him a bike for Christmas. Our long ride together last year was 36 miles, and he loves it.

Another friend retired a couple of years ago, and he hasn't advanced quite as well, but with some patience and ample breaks he has gone for 20 miles with us.

So, all I can say is take your time, the love of cycling you are seeking to recapture will emerge. Push yourself, but not so hard that you lose interest... I think it is beneficial to remember that you are doing this for fitness and fun, that way, you have two different aspects to use for motivation. Sometimes one works, sometimes the other, and once you are in the groove, often it is both.

Rick@OCRR

Lots of good advice above esp. concerning checking with yoru doctor and getting a proper fitting. You will find the folks on this forum to be very helpful and supportive, esp. since many of them have gone through exactly (or pretty close) what you're experiencing.

Reading your post just reinforced my feeling that I'm very glad that I never stopped cycling and consequently didn't have to go through what you did.

Rick / OCRR

BlazingPedals

Some of us sicko-s actually don't mind being in the pain zone. It's the endorphines.

dalameda

Congrats on making it 2 miles! You will look back on that in a few months and laugh at how easily you can do that same route. Lots of really good advice above. One thing I would add is that you are using different muscles and muscles differently when you walk and when you ride. I'm having the opposite effect now - I regularly ride 50-100 miles without soreness, and just started taking up running, and I can barely finish 2 miles and am sore as heck the next day.

02Giant 

I am going to go against the grain and say to keep attacking that hill, even if you only gain 50' each try, before you know it you will top it. Beat the hill don't let it beat you, it is easy to give up and ride flat ground.

scrming

There is good pain and bad pain.... and I love to suffer as much as anyone... I'm all for pain do to a tough workout, however if the pain is due to a improperly fit bike, than that is a very bad thing and needs to be corrected ASAP!


I have no issues with him attacking the hill... however OP needs to make sure he is in the proper gear to keep a nice high cadence... mashing a big gear at this point, just starting out, would be ill advised... needs to get some miles on his legs first...

Rick@OCRR

I agree with 02Giant but I didn't say that earlier because I love climbing and so didn't think that comment applicable. But since you (02Giant) said it, yes .

But then I also agree with BlazingPedals; gotta love the endorphins! However, that said, I don't think you're ready to go there yet. You seem to be having enough natural pain to not want to go out of your way for induced pain !

Rick / OCRR




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Blanchje

Congratulations and welcome to the start of a you that you can only imagine. Keep after it and the progress will come. I remember when I first rode 5 miles. I thought I was going to die but I was proud of myself that I did it. Then I rode 10 miles and I thought I was going to die. Then I rode my first 20 mile (seriously? I thought, 20 freaking miles?!!!) and I thought I was going to die. Then I rode my first metric century and I thought I was going to die, and then my first century and I thought I was going to die. Know what? I'm not dead yet! In fact, I'm more alive and in better shape at 57 than I've ever been. You can do it. Listen to your body, learn about your body, and push to go just a little further each time. Stay with it. Your future you will thank you.

StephenH

Something else I'll mention. When I was a kid, I rode a bike. It seemed like a LOT. But, for example, one of the longer rides was to my high school. Well, that's about a mile. So it seemed like I was riding a lot, but just to go out and ride 20 or 30 or 40 miles- never would have occurred to me to do that. So your perspective changes.

Alleycatdad

Dude. I was 13 years old when I rode my first mountain century. I've never known a time when I couldn't just jump on a bike and crank out as many miles as I wanted to do.


I last rode a bike almost 14 years ago when I crashed in front of my new wife and ended up in the ER speaking Chinese. Hung it in the garage, got back on the motorcycles, and planned on getting back on "any day".

"Any day" turned out to be two weeks ago. The kids got mountain bikes and it was time. I caved in and took my old Klein into the bike shop for a tune and jumped onto it expecting some hardship, but nothing near what I got.

Holy crap. I turn 50 this year, and you describe my experience perfectly, except for the puking at two miles because I'm too stubborn to stop sooner. I knew I was in terrible shape, but I walk 4-6 miles a day at a good pace at work and felt I had a pretty good baseline fitness state.

Nope.

Not even close.

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, from here is UP. And I do mean UP. After two weeks of riding nearly every day, sometimes just the 2.8 miles to work and back, I'm finally starting to feel like I can push just a little to try to get stronger. It's mortifying to admit to anyone just how far I am from anything remotely called "fitness". But. I get on the bike in the 25 deg f temps in the morning and grind out what I can. Evenings are usually in the 30's and I've been trying to get some longer miles (OOOOoooohhhhh.....five miles! Big man!) on the way home; however, call obligations at work are problematic at best.

A coworker said it best: "Start at the start. Do one pushup until you can do two."

It hurts but at the same time feels very, very good. It's been a very long time since I owned the only pair of bike shorts in the county....Opened my mouth and told everyone I was going to do a half-century for my 50th birthday in May. Haven't decided yet if it's gonna be kms or miles....

Keep at it. Address the easy stuff--seat position, bike fit, etc--and just do what you can do, but do it as often as you can. Dig deep. Put in the 15 or 30 minutes in the evening if it's all you've got. It gets better.

Steve

...headed out for another 2.8 miles...

CCND1

wow, thanks for all the great advice. I certainly wasn't expecting all the excellent responses. I hit it for a couple of more miles today. I kept it mostly straight road with a couple of small inclines. I must say, going down the inclines was much more enjoyable than going up. I stayed away from that monster hill that kicked my butt yesterday. I've coped an attitude about that hill and its day will come. My thighs still burned during periods of pedaling and I got winded quickly, but another day is in the bag. The LBS did raise the seat a little and I think that will help. Otherwise, they stated the fit was good. Thanks again to all. Great place you have here.

LongT

An old rule of thumb on cadence, before electronics gizmos were around to measure the rpm, if you are running out of breath - shift to a higher gear (large chain wheel small cassette gear). If your legs are hurting shift to a lower (smaller gear - small chain wheel - larger cassette gear). I guess when you are out of breath and your legs are hurting you are in the right gear

Bill

OldsCOOL

Wait until you see what it's like at our age to ride way beyond where you dreamed. And you will.

CliffordK

Good to hear you're back on the bike. Make sure you use the gears on the hills. Also, it is not uncommon to get a bit saddle sore after the first few rides, that will get better.

Also, if you've packed on a little extra padding... it doesn't help with going up the hills (although it may be of a benefit for going down). Anyway, the bicycle can be great to augment a fitness program.

Good luck, and keep at it.

K100Fran 

A lot of good advice from some very experienced folks. The only thing I'll add is...even though it hurt, wasn't it fun? Something attracted you to buying that new bike, maybe memories of great times. Take it easy, don't do too much too soon and you'll be making new great memories in no time.
And welcome aboard the 50+

avidone1

Another thought.
I have found that when it comes to padding, less is more. I mentioned that I replaced my sprung, deeply cushioned 'comfort' saddle with a leather selle anatomica which has zero padding. Surpruse!! the no cushion selle is way more comfortable than the plush seat. I have further discovered that replacing my 'gel' padded shorts with regular chamois bike shorts has also increased my comfort. It may be too early in the game for you to consider these changes. It's clear that your first order of business is to get into shape. But there are many, many things one can do to increase comfort levels and some of them seem to defy logic.

bruce19

Lots of good advice and insight here. Not surprising. I would emphasize making sure you are fitted to the bike and keeping the perspective that this is a marathon not a sprint. Be patient...progress will come slowly but it will come. Good luck. You are on the right path.

Wanderer

Hey Steve, keep at it - it can be 50 MILES in May, if you plan and achieve stepped goals. If you can add 5 miles to your riding every day, once a week, it will become (shall we say) EASY to do the longer miles.

Once you need 5 miles to warm up, and feel better pedaling, it will amaze you...... just don't try to ride harder than you can, and rest when you need to.

digibud

Just another "yeah, sounds normal" comment. If I had not been a cyclist years ago I would have been very discouraged when I got my 295lb self back on a bike. I rode less than a mile out and had to return. Everything hurt. Arms, hands, butt, legs, ego. I knew, however, from experience, that the next day I'd probably ride just a little further and I could count on that pattern. Keep it up AND keep an eye on the food you eat and the miles will start to add up as the weight begins to diminish. Try to extend each ride and challenge yourself with fun, making it a regular part of your life.