Everyday commuting? How?

[ian74]

Ok, I’m struggling with my commute and I want to know how you guys can do it everyday! This might just be a Rule 5 thing or psychological but I don’t know. The long and short of it is, I just can’t do it everyday. My week usually starts strong, but by Tuesday’s ride home I’m starting to get a bit tired, my legs are feeling weak, and I’m sore from Mondays ride. If I go for the Wednesday ride, I’m dragging on the way in. By the Wednesday’s ride home I’m not even spinning that much, and usually end up home completely exhausted. Forget about Thursday. If I try again on Friday it feels a lot like Wednesdays ride. Start again the next Monday (maybe squeeze in a short weekend ride) feeling refreshed but still sore.

My legs typically stay sore for days. I’ve been doing this commute multiple times per week for 2 years now and it’s ALWAYS like this. I just have never been able to go the full 5 days. During FS2015 I did a couple of 4 day weeks and it was tough, but due to a baby I didn’t gotten as much riding in during the early spring.

It’s obviously doable, there are a bunch of you guys that go further and do it everyday (sethpo, dcv, vern etc.). I just want to know what I can do to make this easier. Just a bit of info, I’m on a road bike with a backpack, my commute is 17 miles each way, on both the MVT and CCT, I head north to Bethesda (uphill for 6+ miles on the CCT on the way in which someday just sucks, but my rides home are all downhill). I drink lots of water I eat plenty of delicious breakfast meats.

What’s your secret?

Topic

[ginacico]

@ian74 123203 wrote:

The first one was really just a mindset change.

Ding ding! ian74, I think that’s the key.

Just chiming in to say this is a very common struggle. I recently moved to Arlington from remote places and, though I’m not really new to cycling, I’m still trying to find the right balance with commuting. I find opportunities and excuses to bike about 5 times more often than I did about a month ago, and every ride has been its own little adventure. But I know myself all too well; the day it starts to feel like drudgery, or I’m overly tired, or I’m only doing it to beat some metric, I will slack off. My goal is to find some joy in every trip, and do as many of them as possible without injury or fatigue. I just have to believe that cumulatively it will pay off and I’ll get stronger.

Are there any coffee clubs along your route? Meeting people who do this every day is inspiring, but they’ll be the first ones to tell you they had to work up to a daily routine. After socializing, caffeine, and breakfast sometimes I’ll hang with the pack going into work and other times not, and nobody’s keeping score. And you might just learn that they’re not all commuting every day.

Comparisons are sometimes counterproductive. There will always be those who ride faster/slower, longer/shorter, more or less often than you. You just gotta write your own story, it’s the only one that’s meaningful.

[DismalScientist]

@ginacico 123294 wrote:

… nobody’s keeping score.

Yes, we are. That’s what Strava is for.:rolleyes:

[Author]

Replies