Originally Posted by
ill.clyde
Me personally, it's taken me a lot of time to get to the point where I could commute back to back to back ... in fact, this week was the first time I've ever gone four straight days commuting. My commute is 12 miles one way, so 24 miles round trip. Today my legs are/were pretty tired no doubt. I probably would try for the full week tomorrow but I have an appointment that's an hour away in the morning.
But, I crossed over 1,400 miles for the year today ... feels pretty good and I'm leaps healthier than I was before
ill.Clyde and I have a very similar story, and his posts have kept me motivated, thanks Clyde. I was 42 and 225 lbs (now 203 lbs) and started commuting a little more than a year ago, 20 miles per day and have commuted (along with some recreational rides) about 2,200 miles since I started. But to this day it still wears me out trying to ride 4 or 5 days in a row (today is day 5 for me and I feel it). And the longer distance, slightly uphill climbs you mention are still difficult on the heart/lungs. Just do them slow and low. In the past few months, I have also gotten into longer group rides of 35-50 miles (on a 19 lb road bike that is 25 lbs lighter than my hybrid commuter with a standard load), and will be attempting my first Metric Century (100 km, aka 62 miles) this Sunday.
I don't think anyone recommended clipless pedals/shoes yet, but they are a great investment, $45 for pedals, $85 for shoes. A good pair of clipless shoes (I recommend Shimano XC30) are very stiff from toe to heel, and will spread the force across your whole foot, especially when pedaling uphill while standing, and they also guarantee your feet stay on the pedals when accelerating hard in wet weather, and allows for a much faster, care-free cadence. IMHO.
Congrats on your lifestyle change, and keep the rubber side down!