pepperbelly

I’m 63 and retired last summer. Quit smoking 3 years ago and started adding belly.
I have a route through my small town that I have been doing laps on. It’s about 1.7 miles per lap and I had been only doing 2 or 3 laps-mostly because it’s boring.
Today I did one lap then took my life in my pedals and ventured out and circled my town and a nearby neighborhood. It only totaled about 6 miles and I averaged 12mph.
There is one long, 3/4 mile stretch that is up geade-not really a hill. It almost kicked my butt.
I read about y’all doing 15 mile, 20 mile and longer rides averaging 15mph and I realize I have more work to do. I think my speed and distance will probably improve as I lose my “aerobelly” as someone here called it. I kind of like that description.
I plan on riding everyday when possible. I gave up sodas months ago. I know the beer is not helping but dang I like beer.

Edited to add: Now that it’s finally cooling down in north Texas I can ride during the day in addition to mornings.
If I do 2 or 3 5 mile rides does it still count as riding 15 miles, or is it better for fitness to do the distance in a single ride?

gobicycling

Ride, ride, and ride some more. It all counts. The important thing is to enjoy it. Are there others there you could ride with?

CAT7RDR

"Keep On, Keeping On!"

“It doesn't get easier, you just get faster.”

pepperbelly

No. I plan to look into riding groups once I get in better shape. At 12mph I will be bringing up the rear.

gobicycling

In the past, I have been able to find a person to ride with who rides at my speed which is very very slow. We stop and look at things and just take our time and don't worry about any average speed. Just for fun. There are a lot of people in this group who don't post much and who are much slower than those who post frequently and expound about their speed and distance.

big john

Don't worry about speed or mileage, just get out there and get some saddle time in. Don't forget to take rest days when you get tired.
Try to figure out how to get comfortable on the bike, change the saddle, your shorts, handlebar position, whatever.
Mostly try to keep it fun and it will help keep you fit and sane.

caloso

You're doing awesomely. Keep going.

gthomson

"Rome wasn't built in a day" It's a dumb cliché but it is true. You are on the right track and will get er done. Maybe consider a small weekly goal to set and then go from there?

Eric F 

Keep in mind that people generally don't hop on a bike and start doing 20, 30, 50...miles their first time. It's a progressing of improved fitness and body adaptation that happens over time. Set goals and work towards them. Most of all, be consistent. That doesn't necessarily mean riding every day, but keeping a regular schedule that you put as a high priority helps it become a new lifestyle, not just a task to accomplish. Also...have fun!!

Dudelsack 

I feel your pain.

No, I honestly feel it. Right now.

I finally got my knee arthroscopy 2 weeks ago, and I just rode my bike for the first time a total of 2 miles.

It hurt like a b!tch…not the knee, but my legs in general.

So, just know that you have lots of company.

Digger Goreman

Started 8 years ago @ 52. Couldn't pull a hill with a tow rope attached to a car! Today I am 8 inches less in the waist, 90 lbs less weight, and all on about 40 miles a week. Also helps I'm a vegetarian

It gets better, even if it yo-yo's sometimes. You're worth it!

pepperbelly

I have torn meniscus in my right knee. 20 years in public works will do that.

pepperbelly

I have the saddle close enough for now. The biggest pain in my butt is the weight sitting on it. I was about 230 when I quit smoking. I’m around 265 now. I really want to pedal 70 or more pounds off.

Bald Paul

It's not about how fast you go, or how far you go. You're going, and you'll get better as you get more fit.
I used to compete in road racing, and even tried a couple of crits. Of course, that was 50 years and one heart attack ago. When I got back on a bike, I averaged 12 mph and rode about 6 miles. Now, I can ride 35 miles here in hilly country and average around 14 mph - not far or fast by any means, but my cardiologist loves what I'm doing.
I am a member of a club, but 95% of their scheduled rides are too far, too fast, or too steep for me. I reached out to some of the newer/older riders, and we formed the SORE group. SORE stands for Shorter, Older, Relaxed, Easy. Our rides are 20-25 miles at 13.5-14.5 mph average speed, and try to find routes that avoid the hard climbs.
We also hold group meetup rides on Zwift, using short loop courses with relatively flat terrain. Last week here, it rained every day, all day. All the regular club rides had to be cancelled, but we still did our SORE virtual rides. Oh, the Zwift meetup rides are configured in such a manner that everyone stays together, no matter how fast they are actually 'riding' on the trainer. A true "no drop" ride!

big john

Good luck and come back here often and let everyone know how things are going.

wolfchild

The most important thing is to start and be consistent, It doesn't matter how out of shape you are, just be consistent and continue riding and fitness will come.

Gonzo Bob

Some clubs are big enough to offer rides for a wide variety of cycling levels. My club (which I just joined this year) has rides categorized for 9-11mph, 11-13mph, 13-15mph, 15-17mph, and >17mph. Those are for average moving speed (i.e. excluding rest stops). The problem I have found is that not all rides are categorized accurately. Due to work commitments, I got a late start on riding this year (mid-July) and started out with rides on the lower end. Those generally went OK even though they almost all were a bit above the listed average speed. The first ride I did was a 9-11mph ride and the average I got was 11.9, the 2nd ride I did was an 11-13mph ride and I got 14.6, the 3rd ride I did was a 13-15mph ride and I got 16.3, the 4th ride I did was a 13-15mph ride and I got dropped after just 8 miles because I could not keep up with the 20+mph pace and so I rode the last 20 miles solo and ended up with a 16.9 average. I think a lot of this inaccuracy is due to the fact that in the Spring, the level rating might be fairly accurate, but it does not change as club riders become more fit and start riding faster. I think another factor is that ride leaders don't want to limit the potential participation and so list the ride at one level less than the likely pace, hoping that if they get enough riders, the group will split into two with the 2nd group riding at the listed pace. Conversely, I've also been on a few rides that actually went the other way. Once I felt fit and confident enough to go to a few 15-17mph rides, I was surprised when the average on some was only around 14.5. Anyway, I think I've learned to read between the lines of the ride descriptions and have not had any issues in the last couple of months.

pepperbelly

I thought everyone rode with perfect cadence at 15-20mph.
I used to be in great shape. I have an idea what is ahead of me-I just don’t like it.
Once I get into it I will feel better, and when I lose weight my butt and the saddle can be friends.

BlazingPedals

It's called an 'aerobelly' by recumbent riders because it's shaped like a Zzipper front fairing. Although I don't think it helps as much as the real thing! Anyway, yeah you have a ways to go, but you're doing good! Keep at it and you'll get there, aerobelly or not.

BTW, after getting a fairly severe case of Covid last year, I started this year pretty low and you could have easily beaten me on my first few rides. I've kicked my own butt all summer, and on my last ride I nabbed a KOM from one of the local 'fast' guys. My doc is amazed at my recovery. The only advantages I have over you are 1. stupidly-fast bike, and 2. my body has the memory of being fast, so it didn't realize how insane my demands were. My advice is to push yourself hard, rest harder, and repeat.

Bald Paul

That issue (faster than advertised speed for the group) seems to be widespread. My club does offer a 'beginner' ride for new riders at 12-13mph average speed. I will sometimes ride that group to help out. "No Drop" to some groups means "We won't let you get lost because even though we dropped you, we'll wait at the next intersection and rest while you struggle to catch up, and then immediately start out again and drop you." I truly dislike that definition of "No Drop", and often find myself hanging back with a straggler at 12 mph that would otherwise have been dropped and riding alone. If you don't, it's highly unlikely that rider will show up again for another club ride.

The other issue is that there always seems to be that rider that is stronger than the rest of the group, and wants to feel like a TdF pro by showing how fast he/she can be. I have led SORE rides, and always announce at the start that the group will ride no faster than the slowest rider is comfortable with, and if someone feels the need to go off the front, they had better know the route, because they are on their own.

pdlamb

Very good point. FWIW, it took me about five years to ride my first metric (62 miles).

pepperbelly

My bike is probably fast enough. I bought it because of the geometry and I really like it so far.
Aerobelly huh? In scuba I consider myself buoyancy enhanced. I’m thinking of starting a dive club. We will be the bobs- buoyant old bastards.

late

Try to add about 10% a week to mileage. Sometimes a new ride will be a lot more, just take off a few days after. Sometimes it will be just the same old same old.

That's where I'm at, most of my rides this summer have been the same 20 mile ride.

I started doing exercises and stretching off the bike this summer, that helps. You can take that as far as you want, I'm trying to be able to shovel the snow off my drive. I haven't been able to shovel a heavy snow for years.

In any case, good luck, if you want to know more about the exercise stuff, let me know.

Iride01 

You didn't get in the shape you were in prior to wanting to do something about it in a short time, so don't think you can exercise your way to better health in a short time.

steine13

This is a good discussion. A couple things to add:

>> I really want to pedal 70 or more pounds off.
Forget it. Not how it works... the (calories expended) - (calories eaten) math is not how you lose weight, unless you go starvation level.

But: your body works so much better when you exercise that you will find it easier to lose weight. Much of it is about what foods you eat. Lose the simple carbs and the highly processed foods. And find out what works for you. I just spent ten days at my parent's house, ate like a pig, drank beer every night (they made me!), exercised little -- a couple 10 km bike rides, daily walks -- and lost a few pounds. Biggest difference to what I do at home: no not much food at night, we ate the big meal at noon. Your mileage will vary; figure out what works for you.. .

The other thing I want to mention is comfort. I used to ride a lot from my mid-20s to early 30s. Always for transportation, the occasional loaded tour, and a longer ride here and there, nothing organized, 2,000-plus miles a year. I was in great shape and loved riding. Then the grown-up job, the house, the kid... I still rode a bit and went on an annual tour, but it got harder and it often was uncomfortable and I'd count down the miles. Not a good thing.

For the last couple years, I started riding a lot more regularly; a lot of 15- to 25-milers, some of them against the clock, and it took four or five months to reach the comfort level I used to have -- where you're tired, so you take it easy to roll the final five miles home -- and you're comfortable. That is really important. If you can just go left pedal - right pedal and let your mind wander, and you're not worried about a stiff neck or chafing, that's when you're a cyclist.

From there you can build, or you just keep riding at 14 mph, but it's a great place to be. And if you keep riding, you'll get there. Good luck!

cheers -mathias