I did a seven day test ride last fall to test my gear and my body. The short tour indicated I needed to change my sleeping bag to a lighter and smaller form factor when stuffed into a sack. I also realized that I did not experience any major physical issues.
My muscles around my knees became stronger after about 10 days of riding. That was a good thing because at first my knees tended to buckle after the day's riding. In case of experiencing knee pain, it usually means the bike seat is too low and/or pedaling too much in high gear. Pedaling in lower gears with higher cadence is better for the knees and heart. I did not have much knee pain ... just weakness around the joint.
The butt did not hurt after about a week and felt like it became one with the bike seat. I did not use traditional padded bike shorts but used padded bike underwear instead with lightweight nylon sports shorts. Some of the hot days I only wore the boxer style padded underwear. Chafing on the seat can develop into skin rashes and sores even in one day of riding. I had this problem early on and used a vaseline-based lotion every time it started to become a problem. This worked for me and as I added the miles the chafing issue went away. Some bikers use commercial body lubricant products, such as Body Glide. Bike seats can also exacerbate chafe if they are too wide or not fitted properly. Finally, seat pressure may cause perineum (an area between the testicles and anus packed with nerves, male G-spot) discomfort, which is associated with impotence in men. Whether I developed this condition during the course of two months will require further investigation and research.
Even with good padded bike gloves and extra padding underneath the gel handlebar tape, my hands, wrists, fingers and arms still tingled or experienced some numbness now and then, and had to do arm stretches while riding. Moving my hands around the bike also helped, as well as not bending the wrists as I put weight on them.
My head and neck became used to the tilted up forward facing position after weeks of riding and noticed it less and less as the trip went long. I would say it was a good counter stretch to my hours-on looking down position working with PCs.
I was sweating profusely during hill climbs almost every day which is one of the ways the body eliminates toxins (in addition to its cooling function). Some toxins and waste products in the blood are able to diffuse into the sweat glands. Skin pores open and impurities exit, That is a good thing. Did I say that I never use deodorant?
The sun worked its magic and I replenished my stores of vitamin D. Exposed skin areas became suntanned. I used 40 SPF sunscreen most of the time. Sunglasses (polarized) were worn most of the time for sun protection and to prevent bugs, as well as possible flying debris from hitting the eyes. I did not wear sunglasses when grinding slowly up hills because the sweat from the face would fog it up and because I regularly had to wipe the sweat off around the eyes ... otherwise sun lotion combined with sweat would sting the eyes. Some riders used a rolled up bandana or handkerchief tied sround the forehead.
I never had any quadriceps pain (tops of thigh) or back pain of any consequence so that never became an issue. There was a small bottle of ibuprofen in my first aid kit but I never used any.
I carried three water bottles in cages on the bike's tubes so I never experienced dehydration (symptoms: headache, nausea thirst). I made sure to drink plenty of water. I also drank organic Super Green smoothies (Naked, Odwalla, Evolution) when available.
I would think my cardiovascular endurance improved over two months of riding, but I do not have measured stats to report. I did not experience any shortness of breath or chest tightness. You might say that the trip was one big uncontrolled stress test.
I estimate that I burned an additional 1,600 to 2,000 calories each day due to the 'bike riding exercise.' I lost 10-12 pounds since the start of the trip ... a side benefit for one trying to lose weight. I tried to eat as healthy as possible and was successful most of the time. No effort was made to count calories.
My muscles around my knees became stronger after about 10 days of riding. That was a good thing because at first my knees tended to buckle after the day's riding. In case of experiencing knee pain, it usually means the bike seat is too low and/or pedaling too much in high gear. Pedaling in lower gears with higher cadence is better for the knees and heart. I did not have much knee pain ... just weakness around the joint.
The butt did not hurt after about a week and felt like it became one with the bike seat. I did not use traditional padded bike shorts but used padded bike underwear instead with lightweight nylon sports shorts. Some of the hot days I only wore the boxer style padded underwear. Chafing on the seat can develop into skin rashes and sores even in one day of riding. I had this problem early on and used a vaseline-based lotion every time it started to become a problem. This worked for me and as I added the miles the chafing issue went away. Some bikers use commercial body lubricant products, such as Body Glide. Bike seats can also exacerbate chafe if they are too wide or not fitted properly. Finally, seat pressure may cause perineum (an area between the testicles and anus packed with nerves, male G-spot) discomfort, which is associated with impotence in men. Whether I developed this condition during the course of two months will require further investigation and research.
Even with good padded bike gloves and extra padding underneath the gel handlebar tape, my hands, wrists, fingers and arms still tingled or experienced some numbness now and then, and had to do arm stretches while riding. Moving my hands around the bike also helped, as well as not bending the wrists as I put weight on them.
My head and neck became used to the tilted up forward facing position after weeks of riding and noticed it less and less as the trip went long. I would say it was a good counter stretch to my hours-on looking down position working with PCs.
I was sweating profusely during hill climbs almost every day which is one of the ways the body eliminates toxins (in addition to its cooling function). Some toxins and waste products in the blood are able to diffuse into the sweat glands. Skin pores open and impurities exit, That is a good thing. Did I say that I never use deodorant?
The sun worked its magic and I replenished my stores of vitamin D. Exposed skin areas became suntanned. I used 40 SPF sunscreen most of the time. Sunglasses (polarized) were worn most of the time for sun protection and to prevent bugs, as well as possible flying debris from hitting the eyes. I did not wear sunglasses when grinding slowly up hills because the sweat from the face would fog it up and because I regularly had to wipe the sweat off around the eyes ... otherwise sun lotion combined with sweat would sting the eyes. Some riders used a rolled up bandana or handkerchief tied sround the forehead.
I never had any quadriceps pain (tops of thigh) or back pain of any consequence so that never became an issue. There was a small bottle of ibuprofen in my first aid kit but I never used any.
I carried three water bottles in cages on the bike's tubes so I never experienced dehydration (symptoms: headache, nausea thirst). I made sure to drink plenty of water. I also drank organic Super Green smoothies (Naked, Odwalla, Evolution) when available.
I would think my cardiovascular endurance improved over two months of riding, but I do not have measured stats to report. I did not experience any shortness of breath or chest tightness. You might say that the trip was one big uncontrolled stress test.
I estimate that I burned an additional 1,600 to 2,000 calories each day due to the 'bike riding exercise.' I lost 10-12 pounds since the start of the trip ... a side benefit for one trying to lose weight. I tried to eat as healthy as possible and was successful most of the time. No effort was made to count calories.
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