Originally Posted by
girljen
I have been bike commuting for about a month. My commute is only three miles each way; mostly downhill on the way to work and mostly uphill on the way home. The only riding I do right now is my commute. I usually work four days a week, sometimes five.
So...when will it get easier? I'm tired and my legs hurt at the end of every ride. Should I throw a few long rides in there on weekends? Should I hurry up and get a trailer so I can pull my daughter around?
I read about these people who can ride centuries and randonees and have absolutely no idea how they do it; I'm ready to fall over after three miles. An errand on the way to work nearly kills me!
Am I a wuss? Am I just not being patient enough? Is there anything else that could cause a rinky-dink little three-mile ride to kill me every day?
I feel your pain.
I recommend a different approach. Instead of thinking about exercise as, "the more I do, the stronger I get," think of it like, "the less I do, the stronger I get." Sound ridiculous?
Well, I never would have believed it myself, but it's not exercise alone that makes us stronger. It's the rest period after the exercise that causes muscle growth. I made this mistake once, and it took a month off the bike before I realized I had overdone the workout.
Just because some people can ride 100 miles without a problem doesn't mean you can ride 3 miles without a problem. The key is exercise, then rest (or easy exercise for a while,
until your muscles stop hurting,) then exercise again. Athletes use that same principle on a larger scale.
It's during recovery that you gain strength. If you're riding and riding, but not getting stronger, but more exhausted, you might be skipping those valuable recovery days when your muscles rebuild themselves to be stronger than before.
I also recommend shifting to an easier gear. It' sometimes better to pedal fast and easy than it is to pedal slow and hard.
In the long run, it will get easier. But as one cyclist put it, "It doesn't get any easier, you just get faster." But that's the perspective of competetive athletes. I enjoy my commute, and I rest when I get too sore.