Getting training value out of city bike rides

[niq]

Does anyone have any tips on this? I feel I spend so much time and mental energy dealing with car traffic, bike traffic, etc., that getting 25 minutes of good steady-state cycling out of an hour-long ride feels like a win.

There is a decent bike trail not to far from where we live, but it takes about 30 minutes for me to get from home to the low traffic part of the trail, and even then I have to slow down to yield at street crossings about every mile or so.

[Susie]

The only tip I have is that (before I was pregnant) I would take hilly routes home when I bike commute so that at least I was getting some hills in to get my HR up. (My commute is significantly net downhill in the AM and net uphill in the PM.) I also figured out pretty quickly which were the cross town streets that have fewer stop signs and longer green lights. One might be better than another that's one block over. The downside is that drivers in cars tend to pick those streets out too, so there is more traffic. But if you combine those tips, you really do want to be on a cross town street when going up hill so you are not starting from a stop going up hill every block of two!  Especially if you have panniers, etc. with any weight on your bike.

Realistically though, I never really used commutes as tri "training" rides, more as good fall cross training on non-run days. Good for fitness, less useful for actual cycling training.

[ktzmoh]

I have the same problem. It takes me 20 minutes to get through town to the open road, and by then it's almost time to turn around . I was wondering if it was legit to not really count the time it takes to reach the open road, and just start timing my ride when I get through the last light? I want to stick to my plan and resist the temptation to do more than my plan calls for though, so I'm unsure.

[mrs.jacinthe]

May 20, 2015 18:13:45 GMT -5 ktzmoh said:

I have the same problem. It takes me 20 minutes to get through town to the open road, and by then it's almost time to turn around . I was wondering if it was legit to not really count the time it takes to reach the open road, and just start timing my ride when I get through the last light? I want to stick to my plan and resist the temptation to do more than my plan calls for though, so I'm unsure.

I think in your case, I'd definitely count the time with continuous riding versus start/stop in town.  Can you drive to a bike trail and do your longer rides there?

[Susie]

ktzmoh, that's why most people in my area drive to the park & ride lot and leave for rides from there. It's "the" group ride meeting spot since it has ample parking and is on the outside edge of town. For bonus points, there's a portopotty!

[sadlebred]

Do you have a road bike? Can you do some group rides?

[woowoo]

We either have to A) get up SUPER early to be on the Chicago Lakefront trail by 6:30 am or B) get out of the city if we want to get any real riding in. The Lakefront path is wide and beautiful but even that gets super crowded and dangerous on the weekends by about 7:30 or 8 AM. I don't bother riding my bike to/from work as I'm too scared to leave it locked up anywhere.

I bought a bike trainer to get my mid-week riding done indoors, then on the weekends we take a 30-60 minute drive somewhere out of the city to do our long rides.

[joenali]

Stay off the Burke for training! Lol! I use the Burke only to get out to places like Woodinville and then hit the hills! Winery hill, Norway hill etc. the Burke is so crowded and busy,

[niq]

May 21, 2015 8:40:00 GMT -5 joenali said:

Stay off the Burke for training! Lol! I use the Burke only to get out to places like Woodinville and then hit the hills! Winery hill, Norway hill etc. the Burke is so crowded and busy,

Eh, north of 50th or so it's not so bad.

sadlebred I do have a road bike, which is what I try to ride for long rides. I've been trying to find a group for training rides but life keeps getting in the way, sigh. It will be easier in July & August once church choir is over. Hopefully I'll be able to do 3-4 long rides every 2 weeks.

Susie I do go uphill on the way home (with the bike trailer!) so I'm at least getting something out of that ride.

ETA but mostly I think I am going to end up investing in a bike trainer and doing night workouts, or going to Seattle Multisport or something. grrrrr.