Yesterday I agreed to join Jackie and her friend Jordan for their 6:30am spin class at PSC. Ever since I met Jackie, she’s been raving about her spin class with instructor Jason, saying he’s a hardass but plays amazing music (AKA the latest pop hits, don’t judge). However, I belong to Sweat so I never had the opportunity to try their class out, until Jackie got a free month promo for PSC in the mail. After a bit of peer pressure, I agreed to check out their class yesterday morning. Now, the only downside for me (besides having to wake up at 6am!) was that the PSC location they go to is at 18th and Market, which is about 2 miles away from my apartment. It doesn’t sound too far on paper, but at 6am, in the pitch black, a 30-40 minute walk was not really on my list of things I wanted to do. I thought about driving, but that just seemed pointless, so I dusted off my bike and Jon refilled my tires and found me his old bike lock (I forgot the combo for MINE ugh) and I committed to biking there.
Now, Philly is far and away a much more bike-friendly city than Columbus is (though I never biked much in Columbus outside of the Olentangy Bike Path), simply based the fact that there are lots of bike lanes and I regularly see lots of bike commuters. However, ever since moving here I’ve been terrified to do much road biking, even with the abundance of bike lanes. To get to the Spruce or Pine bike lanes, I’d still have to ride on the road next to cars and the possibility of getting run over, or getting smashed in the face by someone opening a car door terrifies me, especially since I don’t currently have health insurance :X Luckily, the roads at 6am are pretty much empty, so when I hopped on my bike, I was actually feeling fairly confident about the ride. I’m happy to report that I biked both to PSC and back without any incidents! Also, the spin class was awesome as advertised! Thanks Jackie and Jordan, for inviting me, I may join you again next week! I know this is such a small thing to be proud of, but for me, getting over the anxiety and actually just getting on my bike and doing it was a big deal. Now that I’ve gotten over that initial hump, I really hope to do more bike-commuting. It’s so much more ridiculously fast than walking to places that I can’t imagine not doing it more often now. I’m still slightly scared of accidents (check out Carrie’s great post on safety issues with runners in bike lanes and challenges faced by bikers in general in Philly), but I’m going to commit to trying to bike at least once a week. If any cyclists or bikers have any tips for riding in the city safely, or group rides, I would love to hear it!
And now, a confession. I am having a very hard time finding balance in my training. Last month I was struggling to even get off the couch and run. This month, I am having a very hard time letting my body rest. I officially started to run again on a schedule and then began to incorporate swimming and biking and yoga (and strength training!) into my routine, which is where the problem started. I just don’t know how to train for a triathlon successfully yet without over doing it. I love that I’ve been getting back into yoga, and don’t want to give that up. Neither do I want to let go of strength training, because I’m hoping to stay strong and uninjured this year. However, how on earth to I maintain all of these activities PLUS swim/bike/run and not get burnt the heck out? Right now I have an abundance of free time, so going to all these classes and running hasn’t changed too much of my personal life, however it’s definitely making me a little crazy. It’s impossible to keep up with the level of activity I’ve been doing on a long term basis, especially when you factor a full time job into things. And my body is screaming at me to slow down. Seasoned Triathletes (I’m looking at you, Katie!), how do you train for a tri but still find time to work, hang out with friends/significant others, and not burn yourself out training all the time? HALP.
I commend you for biking in the city. I would definitely be too nervous to try it. Brian and Lou are big city bikers, so they might have some tips for you
And yessss, come to more spin classes!
Promise me you’re wearing a helmet?
I will ALWAYS wear a helmet! What I should have been wearing yesterday morning though was a reflective vest, it was so dark out and I don’t think I was very visible :X
Jackie is right, I ride all the time in the city. Honestly in my mind the biggest threat is other bikers who give the safe bikers a bad name. Get a good, bright flashing light for the rear, and a headlight for the front at night. Stay as visible as possible.
Some thoughts in general:
-You are never as close to a car passing you as you think you are when you’re driving. No need to push yourself as far right as possible to the point where you clip the mirror of a parked car.
-Oh yeah, stay to the right.
-If you’re on a very narrow street, ride in the middle. Bikes have as much right to the road as motorists, and it doesn’t make sense to stay to the right and encourage a car to pass if it isn’t safe.
-Stop at all signs, intersections etc., or slow wayyyyy down.
-Keep your eyes a block ahead 90% of the time. Most potholes/pedestrians/cars not stopping etc. are easily avoided.
-Don’t EVER go the opposite way down a one way street. EVER. It’s rude to everyone but yourself as well as completely unsafe.
-Avoid the sidewalk at all costs. As I mentioned, cyclists have the same rights as motorists, just use the road.
-If you are being threatened by a car (verbally, they just clipped you etc.), knock their mirror off with your bike lock. At this point it is acceptable to ride any and all opposite ways. In fact it’s encouraged.
Jen, maybe you could look around at some of the local running stores or start googling for running groups? They might be able to help you locate a tri-coach or at least point you in the direction of maybe a group tri training program so that you’ll have some guidance along with advice for training. I’m just brain dumping since I haven’t personally trained for a tri before but I would think there would be some groups available.
YEAH girl, thanks for the shoutout. 1st off – congrats for staying motivated through winter. That’s one of the hardest things. Are you following a tri training plan? You’ll totally get burnt out if you go too hard too early. I think my Olympic training program was either 12 or 16 weeks, and with maybe 2 bricks per week. This does require some schedule adjustment, so there is a bit of schedule adjustment, mostly with bedtimes or opting out of that last cocktail. It’s an adjustment that will hopefully pay off in how great you feel! Good luck, enjoy & ask ANY questions!