When does it get easier?
 

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?

Hey, girljen--

Is your to-work ride killing you, too, or just the back-home? In other words, I would expect the uphill ride to be challenging (especially if Wheat Ridge is in the mountains), but if the downhill ride is hurtin' too, well it might just be the bike. You might have a bike that doesn't suit you; maybe the frame is the wrong size, maybe it's heavy, maybe the seat isn't right for you or too high or too low, or the handlebars are in the wrong position. There are a lot of factors that help create a good ride. A three-mile downhill should not be hurtin', you know?

Stop in at your local bike shop and ask if someone there can help fit you on your bike. A change of a centimeter one way or the other will make a remarkable difference.

the first month is always rough, it was for me too... keep at it, it will get easier soon enough

I second this -- and also, what kind of gear are you in? This matters a lot, especially on the uphill. I have the "ideal" cyclists body: I'm six three and weigh one sixty, with really long legs. I've been riding/running for years, but I still find that when I hit a hill on an early part of my ride it can throw me into the red pretty quick. To fix that, I just spin a really easy gear. This might be part of your problem, as it usually takes more than three miles to warm up. You should check out the recent thread "Why does the first 5 mins suck?"

And if your bike fits and you are in the right gear, I would definitely suggest throwing some longer weekend rides in.

thebarerider makes good points. Your ride is short enough to keep you from getting properly warmed up. Gearing is key, too. If you're riding a gear too large and your cadence drops below, say, 75 rpm you're putting too much stress on your knees. Slip down a couple gears and spin the pedals.

Also, I don't know how you pedal, but you should try spinning more instead of forcing more. It's much easier this way.

hi!

keep it going!!

do you have gears for the hills? does your bike have extra add-ons (panniers/racks) or single-speed/back-pack?

also, the more you ride, usually the easier it gets (practice)!

please let bf know how you feel/how's it going in the next 2 week progression of your commute!

i look forward to reading your details of routing!

t

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.

:beer:

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.

I first realized improvement not on how I felt at the end of a ride (or hard hill) but on how quickly I recovered. My recovery rate kept improving until the 8miles became easier. I also have a downhill to and up hill from commute. The last bit is quite steep and I find that I can either wear myself out and bike the whole way or stop a 100 yards and walk. I figure the 100 yards acts as a cool down. ;)
Eric

+1

DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) occurs the day after a ride (and can last even longer.) It indicates you've exercised enough to stimulate muscle growth, but it also signals your need to take it easy until the soreness gets less. Take it easy until DOMS disappears, which means you've recovered enough to stress the muscles again.

Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty... I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well."
-- Theodore Roosevelt

It never gets easier, you just go faster.

-- Greg LeMond

There's good advice here... especially making sure your bike fit is good.

I echo the suggestions to JUST KEEP GOING!

And yes.. once you make sure your bike fit is OK and you begin learning proper riding (cadence/gearing, etc.), definitely go out for longer rides. If you ride 10 miles, 3 is a cinch. If you ride 20, 10 is a cinch. If your ride 30... and so on. You do need those rest days though, as somebody else suggested.

When I started out I couldn't ride more than .1 mile without coasting, and a three mile ride had me whipped. It took awhile, but I gradually got better. I now ride 10,000+ a year and go out to ride centuries 'on a whim'. Not saying that you will or should do the same, only that what you think is hard now you will laugh about in the not too distant future.

And don't forget your diet. Make sure you have some carb-rich foods throughout the day to maintain and build up the energy. Fresh fruits, grains, nuts, they're all great. After your ride, don't forget to replenish a bit of carbs and some protein. Proper nutrition also plays a role in how you feel as a result of exercising and for overall performance.

I like that quote, and am stealing it. Yoink!

Thanks for all the advice. I'm definitely going to keep going; the ride to work is beautiful, my bike is a reliable vehicle (my motor vehicle is not), I love the fact that I'm exercising and saving gas and saving money, and my bike commuting makes life easier for everyone else in the house.

I'll start trying to make a conscious effort to spin more and hammer less...and I definitely foresee a trip to the LBS to get fitted in my immediate future.

How are you set up for the ride?

I just did my second commute today, roughly 5 miles in and 5 out for both work and class. Today was much better. I was dressed better from the start, had a new rack and rear basket to carry my back pack off body, knew my route better so I could anticipate hills and intersections. Other than my gearing getting very screwed up, skipping quite a bit and nearly throwing my feet off the peddles, it was actually a better ride. Next thing to change are my handlebars. Flat bars really start to hurt about 6-7 miles in.

Yes, throw in some longer rides on weekends, preferably on a flatter route. I have a 3-mile commute as well, and it would have taken far longer to adjust without those weekend rides to build up the muscles.

I also recommend taking a day off from work commuting each week. Find another way to work and let your legs rest. It will make a huge difference in your energy level the day after. You don't describe in detail how big your ascent is, but if its significant consider taking two days off a week until your body adapts.

Wait awhile longer on the trailer, until you're comfortable with your daily commute, then start with weekend rides and see how it goes.

I'd also recommend mixing it up with a longer ride on the weekend, but you may also want to consider picking a couple of other routes to and from work. They may take a little longer, but it's good for you to break up the routine a bit to prevent it from getting too stale.
The #1 thing that makes my commute better is leaving early, taking it easy, and arriving early. If you're constantly rushing to get to work, it stresses your body and your mind before you've even started the day. Make sure you're out the door with lots of time to spare, use those gears and don't be afraid to just coast along. You'll arrive in a much better mindset, with your heart and head ready.

I'm not sure if this was covered already, but how well maintained is your bike? Does it squeak when you pedal? Replacing a rusty chain or adding a little extra lube can make all the difference in the world.

I'd definitely recommend going to a LBS to have your bike looked over and your fit checked. Keep it up! :-)

No improvement at all in a month? There's either something definitely wrong with your bike technique (wrong saddle/handlebar fit, not eating/drinking before a ride and/or wrong diet in general, wrong pace for your current level of fitness) or that "uphill" is much more uphiller than most uphills.

I ride shorter distance (about 3.5-5 mi/day in commuting and errands on average, exploring neighborhood on weekends, for another 10-20 mi), and I definitely improved after a week. Not that I became as fit as I used to be when I walked/jogged 2 miles daily without noticing, but I was definitely not as winded after rides and recover faster. (currently 3 weeks commuting)

I have a 19 mile commute each way, and given the time commitment, I really only do it once a week. Each time I do the ride it gets a little bit easier. Climbs that were slow and steady used to kill me - now I find that I have the energy and can push myself a bit to get up the hill faster than I used to. Where I had downhills, I used to coast to conserve energy, but now I can pedal to push the speed up a bit higher. The recovery time seems to be going down too - I am no longer as stiff and sore after a ride as I used to be. And I am noticing that the overall time to get to the office is slowly going down as I can ride in higher and higher gears.

My first commute like this was last summer - I didn't ride much over the winter (except on a trainer), so I felt like I was starting out at scratch when I started riding again in March.

Other people's comments about warming up are important. The first 3 miles or so I take really easy. When I have to climb, I will pick a low gear and spin. In my commute, I hit a MUP at mile 2.6, and then I have about 2 miles of slow gradual downhill. By the time it levels out and turns up again, I feel completely warmed up.

My own take on this is that the 3 miles you have just aren't long enough to really build up much strength and endurance. Longer rides on the weekend would help a lot, I think.

Keep it up! It took me about 6 weeks before my legs didn't ache and sore almost to the touch. I jumped in at 20 miles RT on a 1977 Schwinn 3 speed. I should have thought that thru better but you start with what you have. As others have said, check how your bike fits, spin the pedals and just have fun. If you need to take a day now and then do it.

And I'll second ericy on the longer weekend rides. That would help alot.

Some of things that newbie cyclists often do that make it harder than it should be:
-- They mash their pedals rather than spin. You should aim for spinning your pedals at 90 rpm or higher. Mashers -- that is, cyclists who push big gears at a low cadence -- tend to tire out quicker and injure their knees. There are always exceptions, but in general spinning is much easier on your body and will improve your endurance more.
-- They ride bikes that aren't set up properly for them -- that is, saddles too low (rarely too high); handlebars too low (rarely too high); stems too long; saddle too far forward or back. Have an experienced person at a bike shop check out your fit. That could be the source of some of your problems.
-- They don't warm up enough. You should pedal easy for at least the first 5 minutes of riding. Hammering as soon as you get on your bike is a great way to get injured (and tire out), particularly if it's cold outside.
-- They don't wear the right gear. Cycling shorts, shoes, jerseys do make a difference. They are more comfortable and aerodynamic, and dry quickly.

Also, it might just take time to get into shape. You didn't say anything about your level of fitness. Many new cyclists are former runners or swimmers who already have the aerobic conditioning, so they can work up to faster and longer rides fairly quickly. However, if you seldom excercised before you started bike commuting, you probably are just out of shape.

Three miles of hill climbing is not trivial! Use the lowest gear and ride slowly, particularly in the morning. After a month of what seems like hard commuting, I'd suspect that you are in some sort of reasonable shape. I wonder whether your saddle is set too low. If it is a fitness issue, I can attest that hauling a child uphill in a trailer is one of the toughest workouts on the planet.

Paul

LittleBigMan nailed it. Your muscles don't develop while you are using them, but while you are resting after you use them. Exercise tears muscle fibers, and it takes around 48 hours for this damage to repair, and the result of this repair is increased strength. So exercising every day does not allow development - just exhaustion and delayed development.

Taking this in mind, you could even try NOT riding two days in a row for a couple of weeks, maybe three. Maybe ride on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for two or three weeks, and see if that helps. At least give yourself a few days off here and there.

Maybe find a couple of books on bicycle race training - I know you're just commuting, but you'll find the basic information about training and exercise in there. I am a distance runner and marathoner, and I found that I did the same thing when I got my bike. I jumped on it and didn't treat it like exercise - just like transportation and something to ride like mad, and I wound up injuring myself within a month - tenidinitis - from overdoing it.

Or just ignore this. :p