how to train - for commuting to work

[F8th637]

I have knee issues and one of my commutes is 17 miles one way. The way I trained for it was by building up some base miles. I stuck closer to home first. My first ever run was 8 miles. Then I started slowly building up from there. They say to increase your mileage by 10% at a time. Since you have knee issues like me I'd say go for easy-does-it. Use those low gears so you aren't pushing really hard on any hills. If you keep your legs moving at about 80 rpm you should be in good shape. Ice your knees after a long ride. That will help with the swelling. You can also work on speed while working up your base miles but since you aren't exactly racing that is flexible.

[kfergos]

I've been commuting 7 miles each way to and from work for the last year or so, and that's worked out really well for me. But that involves riding to a train, waiting at the train station, and riding from the station to work. This makes my commute 1.5 hours each way, with only 30 of the minutes actually on-bike. Plus these trains are untrustworthy and extremely schedule-limiting. However, a direct ride to my work is 20 miles, significantly longer than my normal one-way ride.

I'd like to work up to riding directly to and from work, but the three times I've made the 20-mile ride, I've had significant knee pain that has now stuck with me since then (making even the previously harmless 7-mile rides iffy). I'm betting that the huge jump from 7 miles to 20 miles caused my knee problems, and I'd like to ease into the 20-mile ride a little more. Any suggestions?

PS - I don't have a car at my disposal.

[onimity]

Hi kfergos,

In terms of easing into longer daily rides maybe try keeping your commute as-is and adding on a couple of miles of errand running or recreational riding a day. I have a bad knee too and the biggest thing I'd recommend is to make sure that your bike fit is correct. If my seat is even a little too low I'll get knee pain, worse the longer I ride. Also, if my knee is bothering me when I get home I ice and elevate it for a while and take some ibuprofen to reduce the inflammation. It works pretty well to get me back on track for the next day as long as I don't totally overdo it.

Good luck!

Anne