Do I know you?

on the gear shift the left side has 3 numbers only 1 2 3
the gear shift on the right side has 7 numbers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

I ride with the left 1 on 1 and the right 1 on 7

I ride fast with them like that if i change to 2 - 7 it makes me go slower and i have to petal harder

I wont bother changing to 3 cause i feel i may never move lol

My guess is that his shifters have gear indicators so he's probably in the small ring on the front and the small cog on the rear. So aside from being crosschained, he's probably roughly in the middle of the range.

Change the left one to 2 and maybe set the right one at 2 or 3 when you first get on the bike.

During your ride, as you start moving faster you may want to move the right shifter to a higher gear. Basically the lower the number, the easier it is to get the bike moving, even on a hill. However, in a lower gear while it's easier to turn the pedals your bike doesn't go as far in each pedal stroke. So once the bike is moving, to go faster you shift to a higher gear. Now your legs will be spinning slower but having to push the pedals harder.

While riding if you have to slow down significantly or stop, change to a lower gear so it's easier to start again. Also shift to a lower gear before starting to climb a hill then shift to a higher gear as you go down the other side.

modernjess
Where are you from in MN

because if you live close to me il freak out lol

Hope you're wearing a helmet and sturdy pair of pants when you read her response.

modernjess is a she?

in your dreams...

Does that mean 1 on the left (smallest ring by the pedals) and 7 on the right (smallest ring on the back wheel)? Try using 2-2 or 2-3 as your normal setting.

Lower numbers = easier to pedal, but lower speeds
Higher numbers = more effort to pedal, but higher speeds

You want to find the gear combination that lets you maintain a constant pedaling speed, i.e. cadence, so your pedals are going around at the same rate regardless of the bike's actual speed.

I also have a 21-speed and on flat ground I'm usually in 2-5 or 3-4. For hills I'll drop to 2-3 or 1-3 depending on how steep they are (1-1 for the steepest). Going downhill, I can usually get up to 3-6 or 3-7, since gravity is helping me out.

Ouch, a 1/7 combination is completely cross-chained and not advisable for long periods of time. You should be more like in a 2/3 or 2/4 combination for usual riding. My MTB is 3/8 and my most often-used combination is 2/4. My chain stays there probably 60% of the time or more.

As for speed, I'm still slow and usually average between 12 and 13 MPH moving average according to Strava and the bike computer, but I have ridden as much as 44 miles in one ride.

I think you really need to learn how the gears work, and when to change them for climbing vs. descending hills. Move the right shifter (rear derailer) to a lower number for a lower gear to make it easier to pedal uphill, or to a higher number or higher gear to pedal faster downhill. If you get too close to the extreme upper or lower end of the range on the right shifter, then move the left shifter into the next higher or lower gear range. You really want to stay off the 1/7 combination, and also the 3/1 combination. That makes the chain have to bend pretty far and puts inordinate amounts of wear and stress on the drivetrain.

So, he can't bike more that 2 miles, he's been involved in two injury accidents, and wants to paint his tires? And that's what I got from doing a 1 minute quick scan of his posts. Don't feed the troll.

1: i would only freak out because i dont want my real world people who know me finding me on biking sites

2: Jfan before you start trying to troll in my posts you need to learn other stuff then reading snip bits of posts
because if you read more you know i freak out over stuff very very easily and well its affecting my riding

3: I have to stop riding for a bit because my legs arent getting better shin splints hurt

yawn

lol

Shin splints from cycling? That's a new one. Cycling is very low impact and shouldn't cause shin splints ever.

He was trying to cast out a trolling net as wide as he could.

1. the whole bikeforums community

2. an individual poster

3. people who know about shin splints

Anyways, if you need to know..he got the shin splints after he passed out from a brief 100m ride, during which he achieved upwards of 4 mph. His new HR monitor indicating a HR of 235bpm after this intense effort, he passed out, sailing over the handlebars and flying into a nearby ditch. This causing the bike the careen into traffic where it was destroyed by motorists. The motorists upon seeing a riderless bike became like sharks detecting blood in the water and they gunned their engines and steered towards the newly re-painted bike. Needless to say, the bike is now completely wrecked.
Awaking several hours later on the ditch where he fell, covered in cuts and missing his shoes, shirt and his pants completely ripped, he decided to complete the workout and began running home. It must have been the running that gave him shin splints. Asked by friends upon arrival at his house what he was doing, he replied "just out for a brief walk!" (wouldn't want anyone suspecting he was riding a bike). "Just going inside to browse my emails" he said as he quietly closed the door, turned out the light and discreetly opened a private browser window and logged into bikeforums.net.

Today's workout obviously is a FAIL

I would like the useless posters out of this post please.
kmv2 , jfan

I am talking about shin splints from previous times not right now.
so you two stay out of my post if i sound like a troll fine
but your doing the same exact **** so stop being trolls as well.

FWIW, you can get shin splints from cycling. It's caused by muscle imbalance, which is usually caused by poor fit and poor form. Or poor cycling fit and form can certainly exacerbate existing shin splints.


Anyway, I hope the OP continues to ride and ride well.

yeah but i had it for a while hence why i gave up biking and stuff
i did alot of swimming, walking, and weight lifting off my legs because I did kick boxing in the past and when my legs gave out i stopped. I figured they were better but its still very painful to walk and bike i feel.

So troll me if you like people but i am stating nothing but whats happened 2 me in the past and present.

You did a lot of swimming, walking, weightlifting and kickboxing, but you don't have the strength to ride 3 miles at 12 mph without your heart hurting and passing out/falling down. Have you seen a doctor? If what you are saying is truthful, you sound like you have a medical problem. Or at minimum, should be checked out before you start exercising.

I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. I would have responded sooner, but when I type more than 50 words, I get too fatigued to continue. I'm going to backtrack a little and start out with 30 words. Tomorrow I'll do 35, and Sunday 40. Hopefully, I won't have a typing accident like the last time.

not since I was told I had shin splints years ago
i admit i should probally go and see one but i just dont like doctors.
but i may have no choice

Same here.
Time for a nap.

Keep hammering! Stick to the granny cog in front for uphills mostly with the first few gears, for the flats i stay in the middle ring and if i see open road or i'm on the MUP and want to kick it into "overdrive" i flip to the big ring up front.