in today's video 10 tips that i wish i knew when i started cycling tip number one wear whatever
the hell you want but shorts with a pad sewn in is way more comfortable than normal shorts and
a padded saddle most cycling shorts that you'll see for sale are bib shorts so they've got straps
that go over your shoulders these stop them from sliding down and they're a lot more comfortable
than they look consider giving them a try eat sweets during your ride these are fizzy fish okay
it doesn't have to be sweets but consider eating something during your ride it doesn't have to be
while you're riding although that is a useful skill to learn but stopping by the side of the
road and taking some time to get some fuel in is really important because riding a bike can be very
low intensity the sessions can end up quite long compared to other forms of exercise anchors you
can cover such distances it's very easy to ride quite far away from home and then have to come all
the way back so always having food in your pocket and regularly eating small bits will probably stop
you from experiencing one of the worst things that can happen on a bike ride bonking runners call it
hitting the wall not a nice experience and to be honest it's something most of us have done let me
know in the comment section if you've experienced the bonk and uh what it feels like personally i
find sweets really easy to eat because they're small and you can just have a couple when you're
riding along other good alternatives are bananas or jam sandwiches or even chocolate bars anything
you're gonna crave while you're out on a ride is good if you're gonna be getting clipped in shoes
for the first time then get mountain bike once when i first started i bought road shoes which
look like this they're harder to walk around in as you can imagine looking at that cleat system
whereas mountain bike you've actually got some grip on the bottom of your shoe they
were just kind of unnecessary yes there's a bigger contact patch so where you clip into the pedal
is a little bit more secure the whole system pedal and shoe included is lighter but it's not that
much difference and these you can walk around them it's easier to clip in and out if you're first
starting out and modern mountain bike shoes look like road shoes anyway the cleats on mountain bike
shoes are also made of metal they tend to last much longer they're also cheaper to replace if
you're looking to buy some my recommendation would be shimano spd or something similar i would also
say if you're new to it look at your set of pedals and see if there's an adjustment screw if you undo
that screw as much as possible that will make the pedal easier to clip in and get out of as well
it may save you the embarrassment of getting stuck in your pedals when you're first starting out
most people when they start out riding bikes will be using butyl inner tubes this is what they look
like inside their tires if you get a puncher it's because this has a hole in now let's get real
ain't nobody got time to fix these by the side of the road you can buy patches with a little
tube of glue the ones that work better than the pre-glued ones and you can find the puncture on
the tube and stick a patch on it to fix it doing this by the side of the road can be problematic it
interrupts your ride it can be cold you could be on a main road with loads of cars coming past you
and if you're riding with other people they've got to wait for you to do it the alternative
is to just take a spare tube with you always take one even if you're tubeless just take one anyway
that's how big a 700c road tube is and that's how big a gravel slash commuter tube is they're
not that big they will both fit in a pocket or small saddle bag so that is another one of
my tips that i wish i knew don't waste your time patching things by the side of the road layering
clothing is the best way to do things when you go out cycling the range of temperatures you
can experience is vast often down to the varying speeds that you're doing on a bike you can go from
riding up a hill at five miles an hour overheating to descending at 40 miles an hour down a mountain
in the space of like five minutes when i first started riding i bought a nice thick winter
jacket because it was winter at the time and soon realised that it was a bit too much when i went on
a hilly ride that meant when i did go for a hilly ride i was stuck in this jacket that was just
too hot and then you end up sweating inside and then getting cold as soon as you're on the flat or
a descent afterwards instead of that i would have been better off wearing a thinner layer and then a
jelly over the top so you can unzip different bits of kit and regulate your temperature as you go now
cycling kit is a pretty big topic and i think i'm going to do a separate video with my friends from
atticus going through all the different options but have a look at shoelace basically just a
sleeveless vest with a zip in it and i think it's one of the most versatile pieces of kit
you can get learn to measure your rides in time rather than distance we've all done it convinced
ourselves 50k is a short ride and then got home four hours later having climbed a thousand meters
and desperate for food average speed and distance are not the most relevant metrics when it comes
to measuring performance or to plan your rides by i think of rides based on hours in the saddle and
eventually started using heart rate data and power to measure performance there are so many different
variables to take into account like elevation wind terrain is it off-road or on-road all of these
things can have drastic effects on your speed so try not to worry about your average speed so much
and definitely don't compare it to people's rides on other days it's just not comparable clean your
drivetrain after every ride i was always lazy about this when i first started out when you
get back from a ride the last thing you want to do is start cleaning your bike and that ended up
costing me lots of money when your drivetrain is covered in crap and you keep riding it it
wears out all the parts at an accelerated rate as a perfect example i've had this mountain bike for
three months and ridden in the mud every single ride because that's what happens with mountain
biking and the whole drivetrain is dead i've gotta replace the whole thing and it's costing me lots
of money regular road or commuter riding is not as extreme as that and a little bit of maintenance
wiping down your chain and cassette after riding which takes two minutes will stop
that kind of thing happening and save you a lot of money something as simple as warm soapy water
washing up liquid is a degreaser it will work perfectly fine you might just have to scrub a bit
you can get something a little bit more aggressive like gt85 this is what loads of mechanics use in
the workshop sometimes i'll use muck off as well once you've cleaned all of this make sure you add
some chain lube back on a little bit of effort after every ride will save you loads of money
in the long run if you're going to be riding two days in a row then you want to get calories in
straight away as soon as you get home within 15 minutes of finishing your ride putting calories
in will make you recover better i never realized the full benefits of this but it really does make
a huge difference it's usually a case of just tweaking your routine when you come back from
riding a little bit like the bike cleaning thing it's just forming a habit if you're just starting
out it doesn't need to be anything fancy look for carbohydrates as they seem to do the most good it
doesn't have to be a fancy protein shake or a recovery drink just some regular food can make
a huge difference there are no real secrets and it might sound a bit cliche but sleep and nutrition
are the two biggest things that you need to focus on when it comes to recovering properly by eating
food quickly you're going to be refueling your body replenishing those glycogen stores
replenishing electrolytes which you lose through sweating promoting muscle repair and bolstering
your immune system so you're less likely to get sick if you're refueling properly and fueling
on your ride as well cycling can be a stressful activity already why make it harder for yourself
if you can just tweak a few of your habits and get into a good routine
riding behind someone can be 30 less effort than riding next to them drafting or riding behind
someone is one of the main tactics involved in bike racing and for good reason you save
a huge amount of energy even more so when you're in a group of cyclists so that's why you'll see
people riding very closely together when they're out on longer rides to put it into perspective if
you work with power in cycling you're doing 300 watts to stay on someone's wheel you might have
to be doing up to 400 watts to ride next to them 300 watts is way more sustainable for most people
than 400. if you're riding with a few people consider alternating who's riding on the front
to spread the effort if you're new to it ride as close as you're comfortable to the person in front
ease yourself into it there's no pressure at all lastly the single most important thing that
i wish i knew when i was starting out there are no rules ride wearing whatever clothes you want
whatever bike you want at any pace that you want to ride it the way you set up your bike or the way
you ride it is nobody else's business just do what you want to do and that's the end of my 10 tips
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