Got my butt (and ego!) kicked by biking lol
buffalogal42
Posts: 374 Member
I recently moved to a place that is steps from the start of a 50ish mile bike trail that is supposed to be awesome. I have read all about it and people say it is relatively flat once you get a couple miles out and that it is good for beginners or leisure riders.
All summer I have been pushing hubby to ride it with me. I had it in my head that we could ride it all one way, stay over at a cute B&B and ride back the next day. He kept telling me I was insane. So I said ok we’ll ride 20 miles to a winery, have lunch and come back. He still said I was insane but finally caved yesterday on a beautiful fall day. So we went and rented a couple bikes and ...
Ok, first, I left out a key detail. Lol 1) Hubby and I have been on a bike exactly once in the last 25 years (I am 42 now) and that was for a 6 mile ride around an island. I just assumed that since we are both fairly fit and well, since riding a bike is like ... riding a bike ... that we could hop on and go.
Wanna guess how the story ends? Whoever described the “little hills” going out of the city really undersold them! Lol - I was huffing and puffing and ready to die after about 5 miles. I caved and told hubby he was right and we headed back.
On a positive note, I rode 10 miles! Lol But my butt today is paying the price.
Cautionary tale against over confidence!
But it was fun and maybe I can work my way up! (Also, I had no idea how bike gears worked 😂😂😂)
All summer I have been pushing hubby to ride it with me. I had it in my head that we could ride it all one way, stay over at a cute B&B and ride back the next day. He kept telling me I was insane. So I said ok we’ll ride 20 miles to a winery, have lunch and come back. He still said I was insane but finally caved yesterday on a beautiful fall day. So we went and rented a couple bikes and ...
Ok, first, I left out a key detail. Lol 1) Hubby and I have been on a bike exactly once in the last 25 years (I am 42 now) and that was for a 6 mile ride around an island. I just assumed that since we are both fairly fit and well, since riding a bike is like ... riding a bike ... that we could hop on and go.
Wanna guess how the story ends? Whoever described the “little hills” going out of the city really undersold them! Lol - I was huffing and puffing and ready to die after about 5 miles. I caved and told hubby he was right and we headed back.
On a positive note, I rode 10 miles! Lol But my butt today is paying the price.
Cautionary tale against over confidence!
But it was fun and maybe I can work my way up! (Also, I had no idea how bike gears worked 😂😂😂)
22
Replies
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Oh dear. Sounds like a great advertisement for cross training!! You've got a new fitness goal! I commend your enthusiasm (and optimism). You couldn't get me on a bike for love or money. Well, never say "never" but I reeeaaally don't like bikes. When I started swimming, I could barely go 25y (1 length... as in "down" but not "back") but I could easily run 6 miles on the trail. Cross training is hard. Think how great you'll feel a year from now. Sooner, probably! Good luck!!2
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Ouch! Cycling butt happens. Even experienced riders who jump up in mileage too quickly after a layoff can pay the price.
With that said, I REALLY like your idea of a 50 mile ride, B&B visit, and return. Sounds like a great goal to work towards. Building up your biking muscles, getting some cycling shorts (if you aren't wearing them now) and getting some bike handling practice will make this a fun event!
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Cycling is wonderful exercise, but riding up hills gets everyone the first time they do it. Flat ground riding is fine, but once you hit an incline, it all gets very real.
Still, the great thing is that you know it can be done now, even if it was "only" 10 miles. That's 16kms, and it's nothing to be ashamed of at all, in fact, I'd be really proud of myself.
If you want to try again, remember that you can always get a gel bicycle saddle cover. A lot of "serious" riders disparage them, but I think they're an excellent option, especially for a woman riding a bike designed for the male anatomy (it's to do with the bones in your posterior; the ones that stick out from your hip bone, called your "sit bones" colloquially). If you end up buying a bike later, you can get your own female-specific saddle for it, and ride in greater comfort.
A ride of 50 miles (that's 80kms) to a B&B and a ride back the next day is a very obtainable goal. Now that you have a realistic idea of what it will take, that's great, because you can work towards it at your own pace. Hills still destroy me at times, and I have been riding for a decade or longer. Still, I manage to get up them, even if it takes a while, and I enjoy the view from the top, before the reward of riding down the other side. You do get an amazing feeling of accomplishment after riding up a hill successfully and knowing you can do it. I'm sure you can tame those bike path hills and enjoy a nice night in a cute B&B.5 -
Being fit doesn't mean knowing how to use the gears, and they make a world of difference. Seriously, that's probably the #1 thing to make riding easier, especially if you're in the wrong one going up a hill.
The idea of doing a half century to a bed and breakfast and then back the next day is a great one. You should work up to it for next summer.5 -
That’s awesome you’re so close to a great bike trail! I have to drive well over an hour to get to one, and not that long. 10 mi is great after 25 yrs. Just keep working at and you’ll get up 50.4
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That's a fab distance for someone who hasn't ridden in years - be proud! My first ride was about 3 miles and nearly had a heart attack lol (I was doing half marathons at the time so was stunned)
+1 for the gel saddle cover, it takes a while for your nether regions to get used to it and gawd it can ache
You will have so much fun, on a bike you go places you haven't been to before and feel great
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buffalogal42 wrote: »I recently moved to a place that is steps from the start of a 50ish mile bike trail that is supposed to be awesome.
On a positive note, I rode 10 miles! Lol But my butt today is paying the price.
But it was fun and maybe I can work my way up! (Also, I had no idea how bike gears worked 😂😂😂)
A 50ish mile bike trail would be awesome!! The longest one we've got around here is 13 km (one way).
And yes, you can work your way up.
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That’s awesome you’re so close to a great bike trail! I have to drive well over an hour to get to one, and not that long. 10 mi is great after 25 yrs. Just keep working at and you’ll get up 50.
Have you done the Elwha road? It's been on my list for years. I think it's closed to cars and open to bikes.1 -
Definitely something you need to build up to. A 1/2 century untrained would be pretty brutal I think...hell, even when I was training for them, they left me pretty wiped.
Learning to use your gears will help a lot on the hills...a lot of novice cyclists don't properly use their gears. I'd also recommend padded cycling shorts2 -
Is there a training program for biking like a C25K type plan? Or just try a bit more in increments? I am going to defeat those hills and get to my B&B some day! 😃0
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buffalogal42 wrote: »Is there a training program for biking like a C25K type plan? Or just try a bit more in increments? I am going to defeat those hills and get to my B&B some day! 😃
Adding 10% distance a week works but if you like a plan then The British Heart Foundation give a load of great beginner cycling advice and plans as they run quite a few charity rides that attract new or leisure riders and them up to 50 (and more) miles.....
Drill down from here
https://www.bhf.org.uk/how-you-can-help/events/training-zone/cycling-training-zone
PS - to get better on hills, use the rights gears so you are leaning primarily on your CV system not your muscle strength, ride a lot of hills and try hard.
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I love that story, it demonstrates an adventurous spirit!
I hope you try some more. It gets better!
If the open trail is a bit to hard right now, you can start with a "spin class." It's a good option if the trail is not passable in winter. You build up the muscles on the stationary bike (where you control the resistance) then hit the trail in the spring, by which time, you'll be a monstah!2 -
I have ridden in the MS150 for 10 years and it kicks my butt every year. I HATE riding in the cold so I don't ride during the cold months and every year it is like starting over. Every year my beginning ride is 10 miles and wonder how I ever ride 80 in a day, but I do because I work up to it little by little and add in weekend rides with a team.
Don't give up! If I can do it, anybody can do it! I LOVE riding and going down hills is the pay-off of going up them! Zoom-Zoom!!!! 2 -
Also look at Breeze rides for women in your area, they are good fun. LetsRide are mixed gender groups.
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Never believe what the cycling web-sites say or the reviews by cyclists. I can only assume these people are nutters! I took on my first real ride in September after a couple of months commuting 7 miles twice a day. "Avoids the big hills" they said on the route I chose. Oh my word! What were these hills compared to? Mount Everest? They were steep and long.
I haven't been out on anything that isn't flat since but one day...1 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Definitely something you need to build up to. A 1/2 century untrained would be pretty brutal I think...hell, even when I was training for them, they left me pretty wiped.
Learning to use your gears will help a lot on the hills...a lot of novice cyclists don't properly use their gears. I'd also recommend padded cycling shorts
Speaking of butt kicked on half centuries, I did a hilly one a couple years ago, went by a house with an aggressive unleashed dog at mile fourty-something. Talk about motivation for a sprint when the tank is running low!! Cujo came up snarling behind me, faster than I was at that moment. I threw my water bottle at the dog and missed by a country mile, but it ran off chasing the bottle instead, giving me time to open a gap and book it out of there.3 -
TheMrWobbly wrote: »Never believe what the cycling web-sites say or the reviews by cyclists. I can only assume these people are nutters! I took on my first real ride in September after a couple of months commuting 7 miles twice a day. "Avoids the big hills" they said on the route I chose. Oh my word! What were these hills compared to? Mount Everest? They were steep and long.
I haven't been out on anything that isn't flat since but one day...
Road cyclists are masochists. I like riding up mountain passes. Sometimes I wish I could ride up and then get a lift back down, the uphill part is the most fun.2 -
buffalogal42 wrote: »Is there a training program for biking like a C25K type plan? Or just try a bit more in increments? I am going to defeat those hills and get to my B&B some day! 😃
@buffalogal42
I can't find my exact training plan I did for my first 1/2 century, but it was very similar to this, only modified for a 1/2 rather than a full century in terms of time in the saddle.
https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/training/cycling-training-plan-beginner-153317
Most of my block 1 (first 4 weeks) rides were 30-45 minutes...my long rides were 60 minutes...this got me comfortable in the saddle and got my *kitten* used to riding.
Block 2 was mostly 45-60 minute rides with my long rides being 90 minutes with one long ride being 120 minutes.
Block 3 was mostly 60-90 minute rides with long rides of 2 hours and 3 hours.
I didn't really bother with the zones and all that stuff as my goal was just to be able to do the mileage relatively comfortably and I was just doing a charity ride.3 -
haha many of us have been there. I have found when the terrain is flat, you can literally take a few years off and find a suitable place and as you mentioned, it is like riding a bike. Add hills, or a strong headwind..oh boy what a game changer.
The seat problem can be minimized with bike shorts or a decent padded seat but I definitely know that sometimes it takes a week to get over that pain! ouch0
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