Improving Fitness To Cycle To Work — keep it simpElle
There hasn’t been a better time to be a bike owner than right now… it’s currently one of the best, if not the best option for getting to work with as little human contact as possible. Cycle commuting was how I rekindled my love for two wheels some years ago now so it will always hold a special place in my heart…
I’ve loved seeing all the content being created around commuting to work by bike — including this post which I contributed a tip to on what to pack in your saddle bag.
But, I dunno if I’m alone… I live in Essex, or Greater London if we count the fact I’m just about within the M25 boundary. So commuting to Central London would be a 15 mile each way trip, which I’m just not fit enough for right now!
It got me thinking about how one would get fit enough to commute to work by bike so I reached out to a few cycling coaches to ask for their best tips I could share with you. I spoke to Alison, Veloqi Founder and Cycling Coach and Holly, a Performance Cycling Coach.
Whilst I caught up with Holly over social media and emails, I got the chance to chat with Alison on Zoom. During our chat, Alison basically broke what we need to know down into three distinct areas of focus: DISTANCE, TIME & INTENSITY and FREQUENCY.
Planning Your Route To Work
First and foremost, you need to know the distance that you will be cycling to get to work and make that your goal. So my goal is a 30 mile ride, broken into 15 miles there and 15 miles back.
You’ll figure out the distance by scoping out possible routes. Get on Strava, Komoot or ask a cycling buddy or local community cycling facebook group for recommendations.
Alison then suggests that once you have a potential route, you need to think about whether the route is hilly, if there will be lots of stop starts with traffic lights and/or if cycle lanes are available. All of these factors will play into how easy and how long your ride will take.
