Loochie

Hi everyone. I've been lurking around this site for the past few weeks. I've picked up a lot of great tips! I'm 6' 255 lbs. It was really nice to see a community for us bigger guys and gals.

So today was the day. New bike came in and was assembled (Kona Big Rove)

I bought all the stuff I thought I would need; tools, water, food etc.

I set out and did 40 miles. I'm not going to say that all of them were beautiful. There were a few times I wasn't sure I would make it and a few hills that I had to push the bike up but I made it!

My nether regions are painful in a way I didn't know they could be!

Excited to be here and needed to share my victory.

Cheers everybody!

TrojanHorse

Well, there's nothing quite so fine as going out on day 1 and overdoing it. Well done.

Your butt will gets used to it. PS I hope you were wearing bike shorts / bibs.

dbikingman

Fantastic job! Doing 40 miles for a first ride or any ride is respectable. Something tells me it may have been a decade since your last ride, but you have my long rides in your past.

Hope to read more success stories from you.

Loochie

I go out on stupid long (20+ mile) hikes from time to time. I'm not fast but I have weird endurance.

My legs are fine but my butt and believe it or not, my palms are really sore.

Street Pedaler

Welcome and welcome back to cycling. 40 miles for a first ride in a decade is awesome. I'm just coming back from a three year absence and have three rides under my belt for just barely over 30 miles. Legs feel good but, like you, the butt is not happy. Nor is my lower back. Just a matter of getting back into bike shape. Keep on truckin'!

dr_lha

I can easily believe you have sore palms. For one, inexperienced (or out of practice) riders tend to grip the handlebars too hard. Padded gloves may help, or may not (they make my hands go numb). Padded shorts are a definite, if you find yourself not getting used to your saddle, you may need a wider/different one. Give it time though!

Loochie

My hands were going numb quite a bit, probably as a result of the death grip I was keeping on the handle bars!

I'll look into getting some gloves and learning to relax a little.

How long did it take before you stopped getting saddle soreness?

10 Wheels

"How long did it take before you stopped getting saddle soreness?"

Stand up and pedal some.

Took me 47,000 miles to find the perfect saddle for my rear.

dr_lha

I never really suffered from it that bad, but I can say it does get better with time. I did recently (due to my wife having a baby) not ride for about a month, and when I started again I did notice my butt hurting more than it did before. A month later it's all back to normal.

zowie

Enjoy. When I come back after a long layoff I'm careful to UNDERdo it. I want biking to be psychologically associated with fun, not suffering, or I won't get back out there during the uncomfortable period. After I'm trained up a bit, it's another story.