Another newb!

GrandSoftDay

How ye lads and lassies. I bought a road bike a few days ago to try and keep myself some bit fit. Never really cycled any distance before and although I wouldn't be fit I am not extremely unfit or overweight either. Was wondering what's a realistic distance I should be able to cycle at this stage. Living in the burren where there's basically no flat road. I downloaded the strava app and mapped out a circle 17km long from my house and it says there is 280m of a climb. Don't want to bite off more than I can chew starting off and wondering if I should halve this for the first few weeks and then move onto doing the full circle before going on longer spins etc. What's a realistic target at this stage and should it take long to see an improvement? Have no problem getting out 3 or 4 times a week for an hour or 2.

godtabh

head out and see how you get on . build from there

not yet

As the man used to say on d'telly, you'll never know until you go.

nilhg

Go out easy into the wind, up the pace on the way home if you feel able, go abit further the next day if you want.

The limiting factor at the start may be how comfortable you are on the bike rather than your fitness, you did buy a decent pair of cycling shorts with the bike?

Pinch Flat

I'd say getting your self from scratch to a pace you can enjoy and maintain is going to take 8-10 weeks. Start small - say 20km and then up it by 10% ish a week.

Try to build up gradually - I find being bike fit takes a while. Don't make the mistake (as I did recently) of over doing it - will lead to long miles of misery!

Maybe set a goal - after x amount of weeks to cycle y distance. Or perhaps consider a sportive as a goal? I know the tour de burren is next week but they have 30 - 50km routes. Maybe a bit ambitious given the time

godtabh

consistency is key. A day here a day there wont be much use to you

smacl

The Burren is absolutely fantastic cycling, lucky you! The coast road between Ballyvaughan and Doolin isn't too hilly and great fun. A couple of lumpy bits but nothing too severe. I'd save corkscrew hill until you get more comfy with the ups and downs.

Rather than distance, I'd say cycle for an hour to start off and then add to it as you improve. In the Burren, outside of the hills, the wind will change how hard a given route is from day to day. Absolute joy when it is behind you, but can be tough as nails going into it, so better to start off into the wind and have the push on your return journey. Avoid the cliffs of Moher on a windy day as they can be a bit tricky, Black Head being the better option.

GrandSoftDay

nilhg wrote: »

Go out easy into the wind, up the pace on the way home if you feel able, go abit further the next day if you want.

The limiting factor at the start may be how comfortable you are on the bike rather than your fitness, you did buy a decent pair of cycling shorts with the bike?

No, no I did not but after doing a few miles on it yesterday I know why I need them. I'll get a pair tomorrow.

BailMeOut

I would for a while keep doing this 17km loop and time yourself. Do this every other day for a few weeks and log your avg kms/hour and watch your progress. I suspect you will be close to an hour the first few times and remember there is no shame stopping and walking up hills at the start. For newbs cycling can be very depressing at start as you will struggle but this passes very quickly and before you know it you will doing your 17km loop in 40+ minutes.

GrandSoftDay

Well, got out for a spin this evening, 16.3km in 45 minutes with a nice climb thrown in for the first 5km. A bit better than I expected. Legs like jelly now though and I must have lost a gallon of sweat!

GrandSoftDay

Strava pic

Cee-Jay-Cee

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Well, got out for a spin this evening, 16.3km in 45 minutes with a nice climb thrown in for the first 5km. A bit better than I expected. Legs like jelly now though and I must have lost a gallon of sweat!

Do 5 minutes of leg stretches after your spins, it'll help to overcome the jelly feeling afterwards.

purple cow

Spending your last 5 or 10 minutes easy spinning is a good way to wind down after a spin. Maybe drop down to the small front ring and pedal easy

eeeee

Stretching and spinning down will really help the ache out of your legs. As purple cow and CJC999 suggested have a stretch towards the end, spin down and stretch when you get off the bike. Happy cycling!

GrandSoftDay

gadetra wrote: »

Stretching and spinning down will really help the ache out of your legs. As purple cow and CJC999 suggested have a stretch towards the end, spin down and stretch when you get off the bike. Happy cycling!

Sound, might do the same spin again this evening and will do that after. Need the get the front derailer adjusted in my bike. Had to stay in the small sprocket because it wouldn't shift over to the big one. Planned out a few different routes up to 35km on strava to do over the next few weeks instead of doing the same one every day aswell.

eeeee

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Sound, might do the same spin again this evening and will do that after. Need the get the front derailer adjusted in my bike. Had to stay in the small sprocket because it wouldn't shift over to the big one. Planned out a few different routes up to 35km on strava to do over the next few weeks instead of doing the same one every day aswell.

Ah yeah mix it up a bit. Although seeing how much faster you can do the same route week in and week out as the fitness builds is quite addictive! On the front deraillieur, I had the same but opposite problem on my bike(stuck in big ring). There are little limit screws on your front deraillieur, it's the screw standing out with the flat head on it, screw that over or back until it shifts comfortably between the big and small chainrings on the front. It moves the deraillieur over and back so may not be set to open enough to carry the chain over to the big ring. Can't think now which direction to go with it but trial an error will get that sorted.

Cee-Jay-Cee

gadetra wrote: »

Ah yeah mix it up a bit. Although seeing how much faster you can do the same route week in and week out as the fitness builds is quite addictive! On the front deraillieur, I had the same but opposite problem on my bike(stuck in big ring). There are little limit screws on your front deraillieur, it's the screw standing out with the flat head on it, screw that over or back until it shifts comfortably between the big and small chainrings on the front. It moves the deraillieur over and back so may not be set to open enough to carry the chain over to the big ring. Can't think now which direction to go with it but trial an error will get that sorted.

Nearly sure clockwise moves the outer ring limit and vice versa so screw it a full turn clockwise to get it to shift to big ring

kerryked

Apologies to jump on your thread OP but I'm a newb around here myself, just wondering if anyone has any advice for me. I've only taken up cycling in the last week or two and I think I'm becoming addicted (whether that's a good or bad thing!) Anyway at the moment I just have an old mountain bike that I'm cycling around, not even that far of a distance really. I'm presuming that if I bite the bullet and buy a road bike for myself it'll be a lot easier? I've ridden a hybrid a few years ago and it felt like a Ferarri to ride..my only worry is, seeing as I'm new to this, will it be a waste of money buying a bike and giving it up after a week or two? Is a road bike hard to get accustomed to? I feel like I'll be straining myself to reach the bars..any advice appreciated guys

HivemindXX

kerryked wrote: »

I'm presuming that if I bite the bullet and buy a road bike for myself it'll be a lot easier? I've ridden a hybrid a few years ago and it felt like a Ferarri to ride..my only worry is, seeing as I'm new to this, will it be a waste of money buying a bike and giving it up after a week or two? Is a road bike hard to get accustomed to? I feel like I'll be straining myself to reach the bars..any advice appreciated guys

It all depends on what your current bike is like. If you think the hybrid was a lot faster then chances are your current MTB has big knobbly tyres and that slows you down a lot. You can get slick tyres which will help with the amount of effort required by an amazing amount. For example:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/schwalbe-city-jet-mtb-tyre/

There's no harm holding off a while to see if you keep at it. It would be a waste to drop €500 on a bike and then decide you don't like it after all although you seem to be a step ahead of most people in that you are actually cycling already.

So long as you get the correct size you won't have a problem stretching to reach the bars on a road bike. Your position will be more leaned over than on a flat bar bike and it might take a bit of getting used to but if the bike fits you then there will be no issues. Watching racers gives a somewhat extreme impression, here's an article about hand positions on road bikes, most of the time you will probably be on the hoods which is a relatively upright position not too far from what you'd get on a MTB.
http://lovelybike.blogspot.ie/2012/06/drop-bar-hand-positions-introduction.html

My brother recently got a Giant AnyRoad to replace the MTB he had for years and it seems like quite a good bike. It has most of the ergonomics of a road bike but you have extension levers on the tops so you can ride it like a flat bar bike (that's slightly harder to steer mind). He doesn't seem to have had any issues changing over.
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/bikes/model/anyroad.2/14819/66152/

kerryked

Firstly, thanks for a great response. I've been doing a little bit of research myself in the mean time and I certainly wouldn't be dropping €500 on a bike (I'm doing the leaving cert at the moment) the 'muddyfox pace' bike is on sports direct at the moment for €140..i know it's possibly the worst bike you can buy in terms of quality for that price but I think it might be suitable just to see if I do really have the cycling bug. My only worry would be that I'll be playing hurling and working over the summer so I mightn't get a chance to go out that often, but honestly even if I got out to do an hour or two on a Saturday and Sunday morning I'd be happy to buy the bike. To sum it up I think I'm just a very indecisive person :P


Just another quick question, bike size? I'm around 5'9"-5'10"...would a 21" frame be suitable do you think?

HivemindXX

What size is not as easy to answer as it used to be. The shape of the frame makes a bit of a difference. Your inside leg measurement is probably the most important put arm length and torso length count too.

Here's the first web page I found that gives you a size based on inside leg and height:
http://www.bikesizing.net/calculator

GrandSoftDay

Got to adjust the gears and did a 23km spin last night in an hour. Have done over 50km now in 3 days!

Bloggsie

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Got to adjust the gears and did a 23km spin last night in an hour. Have done over 50km now in 3 days!

well done GrandSoftDay, i am envious of you, the ability to get out a couple of times a week is something I would love to be able to do, family & work commitments mean I cant. I try to get out every weekend for a few hours. All the advice you have gotten so far is spot on, when I get back from a spin I go for a ramble, normally to the shops or the playground with our son this helps to avoid cramping or stiffening up.I too struggled to begin with but the more you get out the better you will feel & the further you will be able to travel.

happy trails.

GrandSoftDay

Bloggsie wrote: »

well done GrandSoftDay, i am envious of you, the ability to get out a couple of times a week is something I would love to be able to do, family & work commitments mean I cant. I try to get out every weekend for a few hours. All the advice you have gotten so far is spot on, when I get back from a spin I go for a ramble, normally to the shops or the playground with our son this helps to avoid cramping or stiffening up.I too struggled to begin with but the more you get out the better you will feel & the further you will be able to travel.

happy trails.

Thanks, I have plenty of time on the long fine evenings at the moment. I only stopped once for a minute to take a drink so don't think I'm doing too bad. Hopefully over a few months I'll be able to build up my speed and distance. 23km an hour seems a bit slow. A lot of lads seem to be able to do 30 but my legs aren't able for that!

Bloggsie

my average over the spins I do is 20-24kmph i have a 49 km route I usually do, my quickest was 26km when I got a great drag from 2 other cyclists, my slowest was 17km, I got a really bad cramp & basically went on one leg for 25 or so kms. It just depends on you did you get enough sleep, are you fed & watered, weather also plays a part, headwind tailwind etc.

GrandSoftDay

Bloggsie wrote: »

my average over the spins I do is 20-24kmph i have a 49 km route I usually do, my quickest was 26km when I got a great drag from 2 other cyclists, my slowest was 17km, I got a really bad cramp & basically went on one leg for 25 or so kms. It just depends on you did you get enough sleep, are you fed & watered, weather also plays a part, headwind tailwind etc.

Ah ya, I find on a lot of hill I'm going in the lowest couple of gears and spinning like mad to get up them, if I had a bit more power in my legs I should manage these in a higher gear I'd imagine and speed things up a lot. Rome wasn't built in a day anyway, it'll come with time!

eeeee

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Ah ya, I find on a lot of hill I'm going in the lowest couple of gears and spinning like mad to get up them, if I had a bit more power in my legs I should manage these in a higher gear I'd imagine and speed things up a lot. Rome wasn't built in a day anyway, it'll come with time!

23kmph is not too shabby, especially as four only at it a couple of weeks! Don't think about gears, it's actually better to spin, it makes your legs fitter than grinding/mashing a high gear. Power'll come, spinning is good. And it's pretty hilly out your way so it's not like you can hammer it on a straight.

Silage must be made so if your evenings are free;) or did you go for hay? We got haylage down home, baled and wrapped yesterday.

GrandSoftDay

gadetra wrote: »

23kmph is not too shabby, especially as four only at it a couple of weeks! Don't think about gears, it's actually better to spin, it makes your legs fitter than grinding/mashing a high gear. Power'll come, spinning is good. And it's pretty hilly out your way so it's not like you can hammer it on a straight.

Silage must be made so if your evenings are free;) or did you go for hay? We got haylage down home, baled and wrapped yesterday.

Retired from that gig 2 years ago, spent. 6 summers slaving at it and if I never seen the seat of a tractor again it would be too soon! Have nothing closed yet, restricted at the moment with way too much stock so we will be buying in bales I'd say. Everything's out wintered though so we won't need too many to be honest. Ya plenty of hills alright , if your not going up your going down but I find it hard enough to hammer along the flats. Was thinking myself that's a gradual thing that develops over time.

eeeee

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Retired from that gig 2 years ago, spent. 6 summers slaving at it and if I never seen the seat of a tractor again it would be too soon! Have nothing closed yet, restricted at the moment with way too much stock so we will be buying in bales I'd say. Everything's out wintered though so we won't need too many to be honest. Ya plenty of hills alright , if your not going up your going down but I find it hard enough to hammer along the flats. Was thinking myself that's a gradual thing that develops over time.

Ah we have the opposite problem, not enough stock and land too soft to outwinter them, no soakage. grass gets too strong from not being grazed off enough, too many bales out of it. It's why we go for haylage type stuff instead of silage, fewer bales. Nicer stuff too handle too I think, sweeter. Less of a stink off ya from it!
Nothing like a hot, sweaty, dusty cab to kill good weather for ya The bike's an infinitely more enjoyable place to be!

Yeah if you are a spinner the 'flat hammering' maybe isn't so pleasureable. I'm a masher and the sole and only reason I grind up hills is to hammer down/air dry down the other side! In the process of becomming more of a spinner though. Climbing ability is infinitely more useful I think anyway.

GrandSoftDay

gadetra wrote: »

Ah we have the opposite problem, not enough stock and land too soft to outwinter them, no soakage. grass gets too strong from not being grazed off enough, too many bales out of it. It's why we go for haylage type stuff instead of silage, fewer bales. Nicer stuff too handle too I think, sweeter. Less of a stink off ya from it!
Nothing like a hot, sweaty, dusty cab to kill good weather for ya The bike's an infinitely more enjoyable place to be!

Yeah if you are a spinner the 'flat hammering' maybe isn't so pleasureable. I'm a masher and the sole and only reason I grind up hills is to hammer down/air dry down the other side! In the process of becomming more of a spinner though. Climbing ability is infinitely more useful I think anyway.

Might get to cut 9 or 10 acres out in August yet, we'll see how it goes. Only need silage for weanlings anyway . Cows just get a few nuts from the middle of January on in the winterage. Yip the bike is definitely a nicer place to be in this weather. I don't think I'd last a km grinding!

Bloggsie

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

Might get to cut 9 or 10 acres out in August yet, we'll see how it goes. Only need silage for weanlings anyway . Cows just get a few nuts from the middle of January on in the winterage. Yip the bike is definitely a nicer place to be in this weather. I don't think I'd last a km grinding!

ahh here lads, Im a city boy, all this haylage, silage talk is confusing the bejaysus out of me!

GrandSoftDay

Bloggsie wrote: »

ahh here lads, Im a city boy, all this haylage, silage talk is confusing the bejaysus out of me!