this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2025
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Bicycles

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Where to start? What bike? (lemmy.cafe)
submitted 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) by axEl7fB5@lemmy.cafe to c/bicycles@lemmy.ca
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Where do I start with cycling? I come from a running background and I recently started cycling due to an injury. My longest rides as of now are 15 miles in 1.5 hours. I hope to cycle a century in a few months or so. But I've only been using a random bike that I've inherited.

What bike should I buy? My budget is 600 - 800$ and I only bike on road and flat surfaces. I have no idea on what brands or what parts are good. Should I get fitted at a bike shop? Should I build my own one?

Also, is overtraining a thing in biking? In the running world, injuries are pretty easy to get if you increase mileage too quickly but I'm not sure if this applies to biking aswell. Is there some sort of program that builds you up to ride for longer similar to Couch to 5K (C25K)?

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[–] Showroom7561@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Let me ask you this:

Are you looking for a bike purely for fitness, or do you have plans to get groceries with it, commute with it, go off-roading with it?

There's a massive range in bikes and what they can do... the joke that you always have "N + 1" bikes, isn't really a joke!

I've got a 90s steel mountain bike that is my hauler, bad weather, all-year-round, "it's only rain", "it's only mud", bike... but it's not practical for fitness/training.

I've got a folding bike that turns heads, but it's the slowest bike I've got, and I wouldn't dream of keeping it locked out front of a store for more than a second.

My last bike, however, is a gravel/road bike, and that thing is just for speed and distance. It's got no fenders, no racks, but can take me hundreds of KM at a time for fun.

I'd probably have 5 other bikes if space and money weren't a concern... so many bikes to do so many things!

Also, your goal to do a century in a few months as a runner, should be no problem! I went from ZERO riding experience only a few years ago to a metric century in under a month. A year later, 240+km in a single ride. This year, I hope to break 300km. Riding is fun! Enjoy, and yes, don't overtrain!

If you already use a Garmin device, the Garmin Cycling Coach (free version) works great, and can custom tailor your training to meet your goal, and will even adjust the schedule based on your progress and/or fitness levels.

[–] axEl7fB5@lemmy.cafe 1 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

I plan to look for a bike for fitness and maybe commuting aswell.

Also, your goal to do a century in a few months as a runner, should be no problem! I went from ZERO riding experience only a few years ago to a metric century in under a month. A year later, 240+km in a single ride. This year, I hope to break 300km. Riding is fun! Enjoy, and yes, don’t overtrain!

I'm a pretty shit runner but compared to the population, its above average. About overtraining, how many times in a week do most people bike for fitness? Is cycling everyday pretty normal? I'm planning to do marathon rides 3x a week for now and slowly increase frequency in a week. My 15 mi ride was because I got hungry so I don't know yet my potential.

[–] Showroom7561@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 days ago

About overtraining, how many times in a week do most people bike for fitness? Is cycling everyday pretty normal?

I can't speak for most people, but Garmin's training coach had me at 5 days a week (two rest days). The rest and recovery can be just as, if not more important, than the training!

But you could ride every day, with a few days being at higher intensity or intervals, and the others are either a recovery pace or "zone 2".