After a long bike ride, my abs are sore

[Mucman]

Is that a good thing? Or does it mean my riding posture is bad? My lower abs feel like I did lots of situps! I have no abs, so I sort of like this tight
feeling in my abs though , now I just need to get the flab off of me!

 

[Mucman]

I guess I am asking the wrong crowd

 

[Jfur]

riding does hit the abs, especially the obliques (sides) if you are going uphill

 

[MomAndSkoorbaby]

Yup, going uphill can really work those suckers if you are not a "stand up on the bike going up the hill" rider!

 

[Entity]

How long of a ride? When I go for a 50+ ride, usually I notice it in the abs, but short of that, unless I'm doing hills, I usually don't.

Rob

 

[Pixelated]

also will depend if you use clipless pedals or not. as you can pull on the upstroke, you will use your abs to help your legs pull up on the pedal expecially when you are tired.

 

[Mucman]

ahh... good I have a pretty upright posture, and I rarely stand up. I have my seat high enough so that my knees are slightly bent at the bottom of the pedal motion.

I usually notice it on rides that are over 3 hours long.

Time to get the Mucman in shape

 

[RossMAN]

My thighs are usually sore after a good long ride (1 hour+) but that's probably because they're not used to that kind of a work out.

 

[fatbaby]

dang, after 30 minutes, my crotch starts to hurt when i ride my moms bike

 

[Fausto]

FWIW- I've been riding seriously for years and have never noticed any particular soreness in my abs (it's quads and lower back if anything). You may be tensing them while riding without realizing you're doing it....I know I have a tendency to hunch my shoulders up while riding if I don't consciously make an effort to relax them.

Fausto

 

[amnesiac]

Jeez, I feel like a wuss. I can rarely go for more than a 1.5 hour ride without getting totally exhausted.
But then again I'm trying to keep up with my friend who insists on maintaining a minimum of 15-20mph even on inclines.

 

[waggy]

i dont have my abs hurt. usually my but starts to hurt after about an hour of rideing. I finally got one of those nice padded gell seats and that helped i can now go about 1.5 hours.

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: amnesiac 2.0
Jeez, I feel like a wuss. I can rarely go for more than a 1.5 hour ride without getting totally exhausted.
But then again I'm trying to keep up with my friend who insists on maintaining a minimum of 15-20mph even on inclines.

Patience grasshopper. It takes time to build up your endurance for longer rides....I remember when an hour seemed like forever and now 3-4 on a weekend morning with my cycling buds is pretty normal. Increase mileage by no more than 10% per week and you'll be fine (and don't forget to eat and drink....slight dehydration can make a huge difference in percieved effort).

Fausto

 

[Mucman]

amnesiac 2.0 - My longest ride was 5 hours. I keep a pretty fast pace though... I hate riding in the city or on popular trails because people always get in
my way... If any of you live in Vancouver, the trail from Port Coquitlam to Pitt Lake is very nice

Fausto1 - Yup, hydration is key! Anytime I feel that I am getting tired, I take a swig of water and I am back up to speed! The thing with biking is that you do not realize how dehydrated you are until it is too late... when you sweat the air brushing past you speeds up evaporation so you don't think you are that out of water... I take 2 water bottles for even the shortest rides.

I hope to go from Port Coquitlam to Hope (I think it's ~165km) at the end of this summer... so spend a day biking there, sleep, and then ride back home.
Any Vancouverites want to keep me company?