Why is biking so hard?? <whine>

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

So, some background: I have been running on a fairly regular basis for the past five years or so; right now I try to do 12 mi/wk, which usually ends up being 2 6-mile runs/wk. I am a very slow runner (10 minute miles), but I think I am in decent shape and cardiovascular health. I also probably walk 45 mins/day, just getting around DC.

Recently, I started biking 5.5 miles to work, through northwest DC, so a fairly urban area. I thought I would save subway money and get a workout at the same time. Everyone seems to think that biking is sooo not strenuous when compared to running and is in fact relaxing and fun, a sport for little old ladies. And that the whole thing should take me about half and hour.

Liars!! Fie on thee, says I.

Biking is so much harder than running, particularly uphill, and I get way sweatier, and it tires me out so much more quickly. And, because I have shitty balance, it can get stressful as I try not to bump into things constantly. And, I tend to look pretty stupid on a bike (cf. the balance thing). And, how does one deal with the farking traffic? Or, pedestrians?

And worst of all, it takes me twice as long (1 hr!) to get to work, than it should. I could flipping run there in the same time.

So why do I suck so hard at biking? Do the biking gods hate me? I think they do.

Whiningly,

Gestalt.

2

Perchance your bicycle is not all that it could be? Having the proper bike for your size and needs and having the seat correctly placed will do wonders. I can chug my way through an occasional 3 mile run and survive, but just barely. On a bike 30 miles is a pleasure. They are not comparable systems.

3

It takes about 2 months to adapt to new activity.
What kind of bike are you riding and what kind of terrain?
Given your running speed you should be able to do at least twice your running speed.
Check around for a local cycling club, they might be able to pinpoint what might help.

4

Funny, I’ve been having a similar problem in the opposite direction, only without the commute angle.

I’m a regular cyclist, but I’ve been trying to start running lately to help lose weight. (A short run burns off a lot more calories, AFAICT, than a much longer bike ride.) And my body just hate hate hates running, at least nowadays. (It was OK with the idea when I was on the cross-country team in HS, but that was nearly 40 years ago.)

Even though both running and cycling use the leg muscles, ISTM that there’s far less overlap as to which leg muscles they use than you’d expect. You just don’t get that much carryover.

When it comes to commute time, I’d guess that another factor is that you’re probably stopping and starting a number of times along the way. In addition to slowing you down, that takes more out of you than you might realize. And of course getting used to traffic jamming on a bicycle takes some doing, and you’re doing that at the same time as getting used to riding on a regular basis. I don’t envy you.

5

I agree, the bike makes all the difference. Are you riding a mountain bike with big knobby tires? It’s a lot harder to ride road on a mountain bike then on an actual road bike.

Do you have toe gates? It might be beneficial to get some until you get good enough to buy clip-in’s. That way you can pull up and well as push down, making your pedal stroke more efficient.

The only other suggestion I have is to make sure you’re using the right muscles. Use your glutes to go up hill, meaning lean back instead of forward, if you can. And try not to use your upper body. You really shouldn’t be using it that much, but if you are, I can see how it would tire you out a lot quicker.

6

I’ve taken to biking about 9 and a half miles a day, to and from work, and I too have found that it is not getting any easier, at all. It’s exactly the same today as it was a month ago. I don’t really do any other exercise. Maybe I need to wait another month…?

7

Wow, maybe you guys have solved my biking woes . . .

I’m riding a bike that is really too big for me (bought it second-hand from a girl who is 5’8" and I’m 5’5" on a good day), and I can’t really even put my feet on the ground while sitting in the seat.
Also, it’s a mountain bike, not a road bike.
In addition, I’m riding city streets and so there is a lot of stopping and starting, as well as sometimes just pulling the heck over so that cars can get by.
Also, I am a bad judge of this, but my roommate said my tires were flat, in addition, it’s squeaky, so it needs grease, which I will take care of ASAP.

So really, could it just be that I have a shitty bike? I really can’t afford a new one right now, particularly as road bikes are so expensive, but maybe in 2 months when I get better at this. Anything I can do now to improve things with my current bike?

Oh, and I agree the muscles used for running vs. biking are totally different . . . biking is much more quads and glutes, while running is calves and hamstrings.

jjimm , were you active before you started biking? Your body may have to get accustomed to that much aerobic activity, as well as to the specifics of biking.
Loving the ever-informed Dopers,

Gestalt

8

Can you lower the seat so your feet can touch the ground? That’s probably your biggest problem.

Find out what your tires should be inflated to and get them fixed. Or, get slicks (tires with little to no knobs) and put them on the bike. It’ll help a bit.

9

I think the biggest reason is, you’re assuming just because you’re fit for one activity, that you’ll have no problem with another. Cycling and running don’t use all the same muscles, so it will take some time to adapt.

But here are some other things you might want to check for:
[ul]
[li]Tire pressure. Improperly inflated tires create a lot of resistance. Get a floor pump from a bike shop and inflate the tires properly at least once a week.[/li][li]Seat position. If the seat is too low, you’ll be stressing your legs more than necessary. The rule of thumb for seat height is: when seated with your leg stretched straight, your heel should just about reach the pedal. (Of course when you’re actually riding, the ball of your foot should be on the pedal, not the heel.) And yes, this means you can’t put both feet down when stopped at a light; you’d probably have to lean to one side and just put your toe down. [/li][li]Gearing. If your bike has multiple gears, try to use reasonably low gears, especially on hills. Your body is like a car engine, it works most efficiently at a certain range of RPM. Between 60-100 RPM for most people. If you’re working hard but pedaling slower than 60 rpm (i.e. 1 rotation per second, or 2 “steps” per second), you need to downshift. It may feel more rewarding to use a higher gear and push hard, but it’s inefficient, as well as being damaging to your knees.[/li][li]If you’re riding on the sidewalk, try the road next time. It tends to be smoother, and there are fewer obstacles. [/li][/ul]

As for dealing with traffic, just remember: A bicycle is a vehicle. You’re not a pedestrian, you’re a driver. Act as you’d normally do on a car.

And if balance is really a problem, there’s no shame in using a tricycle. (I have one of these myself, though that’s probably not the best choice for commuting in traffic.)

10

MTBs typically have a large adjustment range, so I suspect it’s OK. And it sounds like your seat is not too low. (I wrote the above post before seeing your latest post.)

But if it has MTB tires, they may be slowing you down as well. You might try putting slick (smooth) tires, like this. Don’t worry if it looks slippery, it really isn’t. Bike tires don’t need treads even in rain - it’s narrow and round, so it pushes water to the side. (Unlike car tires which can ride on top of the water if it didn’t have treads.)

Just a nitpick: grease is a thick paste. You need a lighter lubricant for the chain. I’d recommend getting an actual chain lubricant from a bike shop. I like ProLink.

Depends on what’s wrong with it. If the chain is rusted, it can be replaced. If it’s just gummed up, you may want to clean it, though spraying/soaking it with lubricant, wiping off the excess, and repeating several times may be enough.

You might want to bring it in to an actual bike shop and getting some advice. A full tune-up can be expensive, but they can probably look over it quickly and fix obvious problems.

11

Good advice scr4 - when I leave work in a minute I’m going to be adjusting my seat position - I think it’s too low.

12

On second thought, you might want something a bit wider than the tire I mentioned (linked) above. That’s a 26x1.25, which is fine but it requires a fairly high air pressure to prevent pinch flats. Something in the 26x1.5 to 26x1.75 range would be more comfortable, and less finicky about air pressure.

13

And keep your tires inflated, check at least once a week. Tires can lose 10-15 psi overnight, so check them often and buy a pump with a built-in pressure gauge.

14

proper fit is a revelation, find a user friendly bike shop, or hit a Barnes and Noble. Seat up and down, front to back and handle bar position.

Have a little patience, it will take time to grow the neuro-musculatur you need to have smooth easy balance, this is something running doesn’t train you for.

Slick, higher pressure tires have a lot less rolling resistance and thus a lot less work

Tune and lubricate the bike so it doesn’t rob you of effort.

Learn to use the gears, spin the bike, ride the bike, don’t wrestle the bike.

AWAYS WEAR A HELMET

15

Hey guys,

Using my one “bump” to say that I love Dopers!!! I tried your suggestions (slick tires, well-lubricated chain, riding in the road) and, like taking the road less travelled, it has made all the difference. It still took me about an hour, door to door, to get to work today, but I attribute that to a few factors:

  1. Chain slipped off gears, and I sat there, sort of incompetantly wondering why the pedals were spinning freely. Then I considered walking it to the closest bike shop, and actually started to do so. Then, on a whim, I put the chain back on the gear and viola! movement again. But it all took rather long.

  2. Lost my way for a brief time; probably at least a 5-minute delaly

  3. My workplace is high security and getting inside the actual campus is a PITA.

So, really, I feel like I should shave ~15 minutes off my time, making my actual commute more like 40 minutes. Yay!

2 new questions

  1. Does going over non-smooth terrain hurt slick tires more than regular tires? I definitely feel it more.

  2. So it looks like there are two gear shifts on my bike. The one on the right goes from 1-7, the one on the left from 1-3. I think the whole nonsense with the chain started when I messed when the one on the left. What does it do?

Thanks!

Gestalt

P.S. I love y’all.

16

Your chain needs adjustment to keep it from falling off. It may also need replacement if it’s old and stretched out. You shifted gears (see below) and since the derailer is out-of-adjustment, it moved the chain too far and dropped it off the rings.

It’s fairly easy to do if you’re mechanically inclined. If not, take it to a bike shop. It should only take them a couple of minutes to do this. Here’s a couple links explaining the process (you can Google for more also):
http://www.bicyclemania.co.uk/fixitrearmech.htm
http://sheldonbrown.com/derailer-adjustment.html

Gears:

It will take a while before you can do this smoothly, and before you know what gear you need. I wouldn’t worry about it yet for your commute - you need to be paying attention to traffic and the road. Just pick a middling gear that seems fairly comfortable and stick with that for a while. Practice shifting when you’re not in traffic and not in a hurry, eventually you’ll get a feel for it.

Look where the chain goes 'round your pedals. There should be three chain-rings there. The 1-3 gearshift should move the chain from one ring to another. You have to be turning the wheels for this to happen, so have someone hold the rear wheel off the ground for you while you change gears and turn the pedals by hand to watch what’s happening. First gear (#1 on the shift, the biggest ring) is the easiest. You want to be in first gear when you’re starting out. Third gear (#3 on the shift, smallest ring) is the fastest. In the higher gears, one pedal rotation causes more wheel rotations, so you go faster.

The other shifter (1-7) does the same thing on the cog rings on the back wheel, except #1 will be the largest cog and #7 will be the smallest. It works the same way, though - small numbers for easier pedalling, high numbers for going faster.

So theoretically, you’d start with both gears at “1”. Start pedalling and as the bike gets moving, shift the rear gear up to “2”. Keep shifting up as you get faster and when you run out of gears, shift the rear gear back to “1” and the front gear to “2”. And so on. If you slow down or stop, shift back down.

In real life, there’s some overlap on the gears, and you generally don’t shift through all of them. It mostly takes some practice - go out on the weekend to a big parking lot where you can get up some speed and play around with the gears.
Have you checked the fit on your seat? Seat adjustment makes a HUGE difference in how comfortable/easy/efficient your biking is.

Most important - are you wearing a helmet?

P.S. Answering other posters / asking for more info doesn’t count as a “bump” so I think you’re clear on that.

17

No that’s not a bump, that’s a legitimate follow-up post, you can post as many of those as you want…

Possibly - they do have less rubber than off-road MTB tires. But I haven’t had any tire damage riding on the road, even on the worst of roads. I wouldn’t worry about it unless you’re riding off-road, over jagged rocks.

What you really need to watch out for is pinch flats. If you hit a ridge (e.g. edge of a pothole) hard, the tire can squash completely. The tube inside gets pinched, causing a puncture. This can also cause damage to the rim. To avoid this, inflate the tire to a proper pressure, and top it off every few days. Also try to avoid potholes (or at least take them slowly), and don’t try to climb up a curb by riding straight into it.

18

Please wear high-vis clothing. Don’t worry about it making you look like an utter prat: it will save your life. And don’t stop beside lorries: they can’t see you and you’ll get crushed if they turn when the lights change.

19

And for the love of little green apples, USE LIGHTS and assume every car on the road is out to get a bit of cyclist in its grill. I always wince when I see some cyclist pedaling away well out into the road with no lights at twilight or evening – it’s way too easy for someone who’s tired or impaired to hit a cyclist.

I haven’t hit one and hopefully will never do so, but some people make it too easy IMHO.

(I live not too far from UW and Seattle Pacific, so cyclists are common both ways)

20

Girl bike commuter here. I’d like to second/third some things.

  1. Keep your tires inflated! And don’t worry about the road tires-- they’re meant to ride on roads. You might think about carrying a spare tube, small pump, and knowing how to change your tube. My flats when I have them are always because my tires aren’t inflated enough.
  2. Your ass will get used to it, really. DON’T get a big squishy seat-- they’re terrible for you. Your ass will get used to it.
  3. On the hills, switch that left hand gear shift and spin away-- better for your knees. You don’t need to get up the hill fast;get up it sanely.
  4. Don’t ride as far right as possible. Give yourself some negotiation room, and that impatient fucker can just wait a goddamned second until it’s really safe to pass. If you’re on a narrow road with no shoulder and things are sketchy, claim the whole lane for a moment if you wish. Ride safely.
  5. Be careful with the railroad/tram tracks and the gutter grates. . .
  6. Watch the parked cars most of all. If there’s a driver in there-- beware, whether they’re coming (they’ll door you) or going (squish).

Where do you live? We can put together another list of things concerning commuting in rain.

Since it’s a machine, little things mean a lot. Lubricated drivetrain, inflated tires, smooth tires, handlebar length, how much your knee is bent, etc.