Tips for a newbie cyclist?

[Beej]

a good stiff brush and some degreaser should clean your derailleur.

[black2002ls]

a good stiff brush and some degreaser should clean your derailleur.

Good to know. I think I forced some grit and grime into it when I cleaned everything else

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[black2002ls]

Pedals showed up today. Needless to say I couldn't wait to get home and put them on. I went with Shimano 105's. My quads were still a little tight from yesterdays ride, so I went for a quick spin (~3.5 miles). All I can say after this ride is, if you don't have a clipless pedal set up (or toe clips), you need to get them!

I could definitely feel the difference on the up stroke. My pedalling also seemed more fluid than before. Granted some of it could be in my head...

Also, it seems my click may have been in the cheap pedals. It was non existent on my ride tonight.

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[Beej]

Pedals showed up today. Needless to say I couldn't wait to get home and put them on. I went with Shimano 105's. My quads were still a little tight from yesterdays ride, so I went for a quick spin (~3.5 miles). All I can say after this ride is, if you don't have a clipless pedal set up (or toe clips), you need to get them!

I could definitely feel the difference on the up stroke. My pedalling also seemed more fluid than before. Granted some of it could be in my head...

Also, it seems my click may have been in the cheap pedals. It was non existent on my ride tonight.

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If you had cheep flat pedals before the sound very well could have been from the pedals.

Glad you got that fixed up and got your pedals. That will make a huge difference.

[black2002ls]

If you had cheep flat pedals before the sound very well could have been from the pedals.

Glad you got that fixed up and got your pedals. That will make a huge difference.

It has been night and day! I didn't feel like I was pushing any hardr than before and my speeds were up from previous rides. I got some numbness on the outside of my left foot so I need to get the cleats adjusted. I tried to center them under the ball of my foot as a starting point

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[black2002ls]

Another 3 miles tonight. I adjusted the left cleat a bit and that seems to have relieved the numbness I was feeling. It was my first ride averaging more than 13 mph. I can't wait for a longer ride this weekend to see how my speed increases. My legs are tiring out a bit more now (not necessarily a bad thing) and I feel like I am getting a better workout.

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[AnthonyS]

Another 3 miles tonight. I adjusted the left cleat a bit and that seems to have relieved the numbness I was feeling. It was my first ride averaging more than 13 mph. I can't wait for a longer ride this weekend to see how my speed increases. My legs are tiring out a bit more now (not necessarily a bad thing) and I feel like I am getting a better workout.

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Cleat and bike shoe adjustments are not something to be taken lightly. Get it wrong and pain will become your friend leading to injury. Seriously, you are fixing your leg to the bike, you have to have the position and angle right or else.

One tip I learned and firmly believe in is wear those shoes loose! I mean the looser the straps are the better. It will allow you to shift your foot around relieving stress and hot spots. Bike shoes do not flex at all, so this is the only way to relieve foot pain on long rides.

Also know your feet and angles. I have shims under my cleats to put them at a 3 degree angle. Without the shims at zero degrees, I get sharp pain on the outside edge of my feet. Also some riders point their toes inward or outward naturally. I'm a straight ahead guy, but you need to adjust your cleats to fit your natural foot position. You can't make your body conform to how you adjust the cleat without pain. Some riders even point both of their toes left or right (rare). Saddle position too. Some people are more comfortable with it angled to one side or the other a bit.

Getting comfortable is the key to building up your endurance and distance. Speed comes after that. I'm finally starting to work on speed a bit.

[Beej]

Cleat and bike shoe adjustments are not something to be taken lightly. Get it wrong and pain will become your friend leading to injury. Seriously, you are fixing your leg to the bike, you have to have the position and angle right or else.

One tip I learned and firmly believe in is wear those shoes loose! I mean the looser the straps are the better. It will allow you to shift your foot around relieving stress and hot spots. Bike shoes do not flex at all, so this is the only way to relieve foot pain on long rides.

Also know your feet and angles. I have shims under my cleats to put them at a 3 degree angle. Without the shims at zero degrees, I get sharp pain on the outside edge of my feet. Also some riders point their toes inward or outward naturally. I'm a straight ahead guy, but you need to adjust your cleats to fit your natural foot position. You can't make your body conform to how you adjust the cleat without pain. Some riders even point both of their toes left or right (rare). Saddle position too. Some people are more comfortable with it angled to one side or the other a bit.

Getting comfortable is the key to building up your endurance and distance. Speed comes after that. I'm finally starting to work on speed a bit.

I don't want to be rude but this information is not entirely accurate. You want the shoe to be snug, that way you prevent your foot from moving around in the shoe. If you have hot spots the shoe is not right for your foot. You need to address the shoe fitment and insole. Cycling shoes are the complete opposite of running shoes.

Also you should have some float in your cleats, that will allow your foot to move a little side to side during your pedal movement. You also want your feet to be strait forward. If you walk or run with you toes in or out that is ok but when on the bike you need to be as strait as possible. If not you will have ankle and knee issues the longer you ride.

Bottom line if you have any issues with numbness, or pain in ankles or knees you need to go see a professional fitter. Many times there is something wrong with the fit or the cleat placement, and it can be resolved by some adjustments.

Your pedal stroke should be smooth and fluid. It should be smooth and strait like a connecting rod in an engine. The smoother and more in line the more comfortable you will be, the longer you will be able to ride, and more power you will be able to put out.

[black2002ls]

I don't want to be rude but this information is not entirely accurate. You want the shoe to be snug, that way you prevent your foot from moving around in the shoe. If you have hot spots the shoe is not right for your foot. You need to address the shoe fitment and insole. Cycling shoes are the complete opposite of running shoes.

Also you should have some float in your cleats, that will allow your foot to move a little side to side during your pedal movement. You also want your feet to be strait forward. If you walk or run with you toes in or out that is ok but when on the bike you need to be as strait as possible. If not you will have ankle and knee issues the longer you ride.

Bottom line if you have any issues with numbness, or pain in ankles or knees you need to go see a professional fitter. Many times there is something wrong with the fit or the cleat placement, and it can be resolved by some adjustments.

Your pedal stroke should be smooth and fluid. It should be smooth and strait like a connecting rod in an engine. The smoother and more in line the more comfortable you will be, the longer you will be able to ride, and more power you will be able to put out.

That is one reason I am keeping the rides short. I am going to try and get back to RBM in the next week to get my cleats adjusted and to recheck my fit to make sure the pedal set up hasn't changed things. That is the bad part about being out here in Greenville. The closest shop is Rockwall and I haven't had a good experience the few times I have been in there

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[black2002ls]

I took the bike to RBM frisco today while I was in that neck of the woods and had the front deraillure adjusted (they did it at no charge) I picked the bike up used and the front has needed adjusting since I got it, I haven't been able to change chain rings to this point, I have been stuck in the middle ring. I also had them do a quick adjustment to my cleats. I only rode ~3 miles and there was no numbness. I also spent the ride on the large chain ring, it made a HUGE difference in my speed on the flats and downhill. Before I would run out of gear trying to push more than ~21 mph, I would start bouncing pretty bad.

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[Beej]

glad they got your front d fixed up and glad your shoes are giving you less problems.

[samuel642000]

So I assume its "wrong" to ride with hardly shifting?
I normally keep the front gear the same and only switch between two different gears on the back.
My stamina is increasing but been so busy at work and with family it's tough to find time to ride. On a positive note quads still have that good burn but no real pain, knock on wood.

[Vertnut]

So I assume its "wrong" to ride with hardly shifting?
I normally keep the front gear the same and only switch between two different gears on the back.
My stamina is increasing but been so busy at work and with family it's tough to find time to ride. On a positive note quads still have that good burn but no real pain, knock on wood.

Not at all. I use gears to keep a cadence, especially climbing. Use the gears to "spin" up a hill. On the flats, stay on the big ring. There's a lot of range now with 11-23 (or about) 8/9 speed cassettes and a 53 on the front.

[black2002ls]

They help a good bit in keeping a cadence and getting up hills without killing your legs, as mentioned before.

I was topping out and burning my legs up and my speeds were 12-14 mph. Since I got the front fixed, I pretty much stay on the big ring and my speeds are 14-18 mph now. I know most people focus on cadence however since I ride in the evenings after work, I am focusing on increasing my average speed to try and get more distance into he same time frame before it gets dark.

I too have been able to maintain that "good" burn in my quads. My goal this week is 10-11 miles all week and 20 on Saturday and Sunday.

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[samuel642000]

Not at all. I use gears to keep a cadence, especially climbing. Use the gears to "spin" up a hill. On the flats, stay on the big ring. There's a lot of range now with 11-23 (or about) 8/9 speed cassettes and a 53 on the front.

For the most part what you typed is jibberish lol I'm pretty new to all this, all I know is I use the big gear up front(only have two) and stay within two gears on the back(I think there's 5 back there.) then spin my ass off.