You’ve just bought your new bike, your new gear, and you’ve been reading up on how to bike like a pro. However, what you may not have read yet was those little mistakes that many beginner cyclists make. They aren’t necessarily debilitating to your training but avoiding them will keep you comfortable as you transition. Also, avoiding beginner cycling mistakes may just save you a little embarrassment.
Wearing Underwear Under The Bike Shorts
It may seem like a good idea at first, but it isn’t. Not only will foregoing the underwear simply be more comfortable but you’ll also be allowing the bike shorts to do their job. Most bike shorts come with specially built padding and absorptive fabrics that don’t work correctly when you wear underwear. In fact, bike shorts are designed with the presumption that the wearer isn’t going to have underwear on.
Overeating Before A Big Event
The last thing you want to do is overeat. New cyclists often think that eating a big meal will give them more fuel later on when in fact the opposite is true. Eating a huge meal before an event will make you feel bloated and tired while you cycle. You may even run the risk of throwing up because your body can’t stand the combined stress and food intake.
Unclip Your Shoes
Biking shoes have special clips on them that attach you to the bike pedal and keeps your foot from slipping while you ride. However, new cyclists sometimes forget that they are attached to their bike in this way and try to come to a stop before they have a foot free. If you do forget, you will face plant on the ground. If you hope to avoid the face plant then always twist your foot and unclip yourself as you begin braking to a stop.
Improper Bike Fit
Beginner cyclists are notorious for low saddle heights, which can make for some interesting form! Do yourself a favour and get a professional bike fit, or at least have the local bike shop take a look to get you in the ball park.
Getting Lost
The most fun things to do on a bike is to explore new routes. Just don’t get lost. When you find a new trail that you really want to try, make sure you take a map and cell phone with you. If you do get lost, you’ll hopefully work yourself back to home soon enough and if you can’t you can call for help. Lastly, don’t leave yourself too little time to complete the trail before nightfall. The last thing you want to risk is being on an unfamiliar trail at night without the proper safety gear.
Over Training
At first it may seem like a good idea to pack in training times and really push your limits but you can actually seriously injure yourself doing so. You want to up your training schedule very gradually in order to give your body time to adjust without risking exhaustion. Pushing yourself too hard, too quickly will make it more difficult to reach your goals instead of giving you a nice short cut.
Not Eating Or Drinking Enough
It takes years to nail your nutrition and understand the demands of your body, but please, for your sake at least bring something! Not eating or drinking anything is far too common. You have to put gas in the tank if you expect to get anywhere.
Mechanical Failure
When you’re riding outside of your home’s immediate vicinity always prepare for the possibility of mechanical failure. Usually this problem presents itself in the form of a punctured tire but anything is possible. Keep a kit of tools in your saddlebag that includes two spare tubes, a pump, tire levers, a key set, and a chain tool. Also take spare cash for a cab and/or a phone so you call someone to give you a ride home.
Perhaps even more important than having the proper tools to fix the flat tire or problem is knowing how to actually use the tools. It is a critical step and a common overlooked issue. Don’t expect that you will magically know how to change a tire when you get one, practice changing a flat before you get one and are stranded out in the middle of no where with the necessary tools. Now that would be embarrassing.
Helmet backwards
Seriously? Yes, seriously. Just ask someone… or use common sense to determine which way the helmet actually belongs. If there is one rookie move that you absolutely want to avoid, it is putting your helmet on backwards.
New cyclist mistakes are easy to make and can even make you feel a little stupid. Many of these mistakes are things that most experienced bikers might forget to mention so take your learning experience into your own hands and avoid these common new cyclist mistakes.