Bike Fit and Clipless Pedals

[KLizotte]

Regarding your average speed, if you are riding in a lot of traffic, dealing with a lot of lights, on trails, around a lot of peds, etc. you will never average more than 12 mph because you can’t (or shouldn’t) go much faster for everyone’s safety. When you have long stretches of road or trail without interference you can ride faster.

I started with straps which I don’t recommend because your foot may become trapped in a fall and they aren’t as efficient as clipless. I then moved to SPD which I found nearly effortless. I use these pedals: https://www.amazon.com/Shimano-A530-SPD-Pedals/dp/B00AAOIAQC This way I can wear clipless or regular shoes. I find the platform half to be invaluable when I need to start on a steep hill and can’t get enough momentum/pressure to clip in at the start or if I’m following behind a group of people at walking pace.

I once tried a generic brand of dual platform pedals and they were awful; the poor weighting meant they never righted themselves correctly when they came to the top of the pedaling circle (this is important when you are trying to clip in). They were also harder to get in and out of. Now I just pay for the Shimanos; the price differential is worth it.

I keep them at a very low tension setting so clipping out is effortless; Shimano has an “M” category which means there are more angles by which you can clip out. I have crashed in them (not because I was riding clipless, rather, because of slippery boardwalk, groove in pavement, etc) and my feet automatically unclipped so I don’t worry about that.

I have only used SPD so can’t comment on other systems. Wearing shoes with a very stiff sole helps a lot when biking; sneakers aren’t good for long rides because your foot is flexing. Any of the clipless shoes will have stiff soles. It is much easier going up hills with clipless because you can pull as well as push; on the flats they make much less of a difference in terms of speed or effort. Personally I can’t stand wearing normal shoes now while biking but everyone has their preferences. If you do decide to try clipless, be sure to ask the salesperson how to adjust them (it’s super easy) and keep them at the lightest tension possible (I’ve never unclipped unintentionally despite the low tension), at least at the beginning when you are getting used to the feeling. The feeling of being clipped in at first is terrifying but once your brain figures out that you can put your foot down like normal it all becomes second nature and very comfortable.

If you decide to go clipless, I would ask the bike shop for help with fitting (this may require going in on a weekday when they are less busy). That way you can sit on a bike in a stand and practice unclipping/clipping and they can check that your knees are lined up correctly (cleats are adjustable). This all sounds more complicated than it really is but it’s good to get the best fit the first time; after that you can self-serve.

But yeah, to echo what others have said, just keep riding and getting used to the bike, terrain, trail etiquette, etc. There is much to learn and enjoy! You should check out the Northern Virginia Casual Biking Group (NOVA-CBG) on Meetup. Lots of casual and semi-casual group rides and events are held with that group. Would be a good introduction to the community and the guy running it is a super awesome friendly guy.

[Subby]

@Sujiro 162268 wrote:

Hi,
I been biking for more than 2 months now. I improved my speed from 5mph to 11mph. However, I been stuck to that average speed for 2 weeks now. And I guess I wont see any improvement soon…

Ride hills.

[TwoWheelsDC]

subby;162332 wrote:

ride hills with people that are stronger than you.

ftfy.

[Sujiro]

I usually bike the whole Arlington Loop 3-4 times a week. It will took me 1hr 40mins to finish it. The problem is almost all bikers pass through me even grandmas and granpas. Lol. Not sure if I’m just really slow and using a fitness bike or the other bikers are all using road bike with clipless pedals. Or probably combination of both. I’m tired of being passed by a lot, that’s why I’m thinking if clipless pedals will help me to go faster. But now I’m scared to use the clipless because I’m afraid to fall.

I also feel completely drained after uphills in custis trails after I pedalled up. Do you have any suggestion on this?

[TwoWheelsDC]

Clipless pedals aren’t going to make you measurably faster, I’m sorry to say. As I think others have noted, they do have benefits like comfort and some added efficiency, but any performance gains really are going to be on the margins. I’d say work on getting much more comfortable handling your bike and pushing yourself harder. As your fitness and bike handling improves, switching to clipless pedals will be a more natural transition and you’ll be better able to appreciate their benefits. For now, however, they may end up being more of an impediment than an improvement.

[Emm]

@Sujiro 162335 wrote:

I also feel completely drained after uphills in custis trails after I pedalled up. Do you have any suggestion on this?

Drop your gears before you start climbing, and bike it more often. It’s totally normal to feel drained though after a big hill. I have a big hill I’ve been doing 3-4x a week for a year, and I still feel drained at the end of it every day. But you will find the more you do it, the faster you get, and the quicker you recover from the effort. It wont be something you notice in a week or two, but over the course of a few months I guarantee you it’ll become evident if you bike more often.

And don’t feel bad about getting passed. That’s TOTALLY normal. Even now I have days where I think I’m seriously going fast and I still get passed by tons of people on bikes I would swear should be slower than mine…

[lordofthemark]

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?10962-How-To-Ride-Faster

[Subby]

@Sujiro 162335 wrote:

I also feel completely drained after uphills in custis trails after I pedalled up. Do you have any suggestion on this?

Suggestion: always do the Arlington loop counter-clockwise. The good news is if you feel completely drained you are doing it right.

[rcannon100]

@Sujiro 162335 wrote:

Do you have any suggestion on this?

Just enjoy ride.

If you enjoy riding the bike, ride. The human body is an amazing thing. It always strengthens with what we demand of it. Do what you enjoy because you enjoy it – and the rest will come. And never worry about people passing you – there will always be someone who can pass you.

If you want to race, yeah, you have to train and suffer. But then you find yourself with idiots doing hills at 5 am. And what normal person wants to do that??

[dkel]

@Sujiro 162335 wrote:

I’m tired of being passed by a lot, that’s why I’m thinking if clipless pedals will help me to go faster.

Keep in mind you only see the people that are passing you or that you are passing. You’ll never see anyone behind you who is going slower than, or the same speed as you. Even if more people pass you than you are passing, there could be a whole army of people that never have a chance to catch you. So don’t sell yourself short! You’re probably not as slow as you think. Also, 11 mph average is not slow, in my book.

[vvill]

@Sujiro 162335 wrote:

I usually bike the whole Arlington Loop 3-4 times a week. It will took me 1hr 40mins to finish it. The problem is almost all bikers pass through me even grandmas and granpas. Lol. Not sure if I’m just really slow and using a fitness bike or the other bikers are all using road bike with clipless pedals. Or probably combination of both. I’m tired of being passed by a lot, that’s why I’m thinking if clipless pedals will help me to go faster. But now I’m scared to use the clipless because I’m afraid to fall.

I also feel completely drained after uphills in custis trails after I pedalled up. Do you have any suggestion on this?

When you say “fitness” bike it could mean a bunch of things. After the first time I rode the Custis on a 30lb 26″ MTB I swore off trying to bike to work. Something in the range of 18-23lbs will actually make a pretty big difference on hills, especially if you’re not heavy yourself, and a lot of the “gains” you can make are based on gaining confidence and positive feedback as opposed to being passed by old folks.

I wouldn’t worry too much about clipless, and I’d also second the flat pedals with pins as a good in-between option (I have a pair I used in the winter with boots, and also for intermittently practicing certain skills that I’m still terrible at). A half-decent bike fit is probably more important – make sure you have your saddle up high enough to get leg extension.

[Sujiro]

@Subby 162341 wrote:

Suggestion: always do the Arlington loop counter-clockwise. The good news is if you feel completely drained you are doing it right.

I done this like 3 times already and always I need to dismount at least twice on some uphills. I feel like I would die after the uphills. Lol. I dont know, but I guess its mental that I’m always hesitating if I could make the uphill or not without dismounting. The problem is after I mounted again, I feel drained.

[n18]

Could you post your height and weight?

Without a bike fit, try adjusting seat height, one inch or 3/4 at a time, then measure the time it takes a certain segment. Preferably a segment that is a slow steady uphill. I found that by raising the seat, I got more efficient, up until a certain point, then efficiency drops. So that would be the sweet spot. Also, if you consistently find yourself sliding forward on your seat after cycling for a while, then slide your seat forward. This is assuming that the seat was level to begin with.

[vern]

@Sujiro 162347 wrote:

I done this like 3 times already and always I need to dismount at least twice on some uphills. I feel like I would die after the uphills. Lol. I dont know, but I guess its mental that I’m always hesitating if I could make the uphill or not without dismounting. The problem is after I mounted again, I feel drained.

Sometimes I literally tell myself, “you can do this”, like when I’m riding uphill in the winter into a 30 mph headwind, and I’m tired and cold and it would be SO easy to just get on the Metro. But as others have said here, the body is an amazing thing, and sometimes you’ll feel drained, and you’ll feel pain, and if you talk yourself into pushing through that, you discover that you’ve got one more level of energy and strength that you didn’t know you had. And it can be fun to make that discovery; to learn that you can push through the hard.

I’ve been back on the bike for about 4 years now. Even though I’m old, I get stronger and faster each year. I’m a gear faster than I was last year. It’s the doing that matters. Have fun with it; alternate hard days with easy days so your body can recover. Some days there’s no there there, and you just have to push through that. And those days make all the better the other days when everything is in sync, and you’re in this sort of Zen space, where you discover you can do things you hadn’t imagined.

[Steve O]

@Subby 162332 wrote:

Ride hills with people who are stronger than you.

@TwoWheelsDC 162333 wrote:

ftfy.

ftfy

[Author]

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