Commuting in regular clothing?

[GLC1968]

Does anyone commute in their regular clothing? I have a question for you.

I've recently started riding to work on a bike that has me fairly upright. I am using a wider saddle than on my road bike just for this purpose. I'm commuting in my work clothes instead of 'cycling' clothes/shorts. Unfortunately, my sit bones are KILLING me. I know the saddle is a pretty good fit as it's only the actual sit bones that hurt...but I've never ridden so much without padded bike shorts.

DH has gotten used to it, but I'm still really, really sore. Will it go away? Or am I just asking too much of my poor sit bones??

[mimitabby]

didn't you just tell us you have like a 2 mile commute? If it's hurting that bad, i wonder what kind of saddle you have.
I ride in my street clothing on my brooks saddle on my commute, it's 4 miles each way. I could easily ride 20 miles without a chamois.

[Voodoo Sally]

I also commute in regular "street" clothes. I really don't notice much of a difference in how my butt feels between wearing jeans and wearing cycling shorts. If your area is very sore, I suspect the saddle, not your clothes.

[GLC1968]

Yep, 2 miles each way X 4 times a day (I go home for lunch)...plus we've done two evening rides to get dinner down the street this week. I'd say I've ridden about 25 - 30 miles this week so far... And this is after 2 months of no biking at all.

BUT, this is my first time EVER not using bike shorts...so I'm sure it'll take more time than usual to adjust. I just want to be sure that I WILL adjust. The only people I know who ride without bike shorts (or liners) are men. It IS possible for a woman to adjust, right?

The saddle is a Terry liberator X. On my road bike, I ride Terry's in the men's version because the ladies's saddles are too wide (I have narrow sit bones). On the upright bike, those saddles were definitely too narrow feeling.

OK, here's another question... it is possible to get used to riding with no bike shorts on any saddle other than a Brooks? (Mimi rides a Brooks, my husband rides a Brooks....maybe there's a trend here?)

[7rider]

Yep, 2 miles each way X 4 times a day (I go home for lunch)...plus we've done two evening rides to get dinner down the street this week. I'd say I've ridden about 25 - 30 miles this week so far... And this is after 2 months of no biking at all.

Maybe you just have to (re)build up the appropriate butt callouses???

[Veronica]

Get a Brooks.

I also commute in my regular clothes, on a Brooks.

V.

[Trek420]

I've commuted in regular clothes (no Brooks ) about 2 miles each way.

I pretty much work in jeans. Seat comfort was fine. I was not comfy with my rolled up cuffs getting caught on the pedal

Now I wear cycling tights or capris but regular shirt on a commute with screaming yellow vest etc.

[kiwi girl]

I usually commute in bike gear, but ride my bike lots of other places in regular clothes. I find the seam on jeans a little uncomfortable, but most other clothes are fine

[Crankin]

I think everyone is different. I can't ride the .99 mile jaunt to our community pond without having a severe hurting butt, if I am not in cycling shorts. And this is with a good saddle. It's crazy to put cycling shorts on over a bathing suit, but I do. I couldn't imagine riding anywhere in jeans. If I am going to do errands (3-6 miles away), I have more "street like" cycling capris and mtb shorts that I can wear with various sports type shirts that are not cycling jerseys.
My commute is 15 miles, so it's definitely cycling clothes for that, although a couple of times I wore my cycling capris. However, after wearing them all day at school, I felt icky and sweaty. I need to change out of my riding clothes after riding 15 miles!

[Melalvai]

I commute 3.5 miles in my slacks. I wear a t-shirt and change into my shirt when I get to work, even in winter. I think I sweat more under that winter coat.

I do have a brooks saddle now, but the year before I got it, I did not have any discomfort. It was the 100 miles on that old saddle that made me get the brooks. (Or tell my parents to buy it for my birthday, anyway.)

[KnottedYet]

OK, here's another question... it is possible to get used to riding with no bike shorts on any saddle other than a Brooks? (Mimi rides a Brooks, my husband rides a Brooks....maybe there's a trend here?)

I'm *no* help here, cuz I ride up to 40 miles without bike shorts.... like everyone else: on a Brooks!

[uk elephant]

I don't have a brooks and I ride to work in jeans (or whatever other type of pants or skirt I happen to be wearing). I always take a couple of days to get comfortable if I've been off the bike for a long time, but other than that I'm fine. My commute is 2.5mi each way and this week I've been doing the return trip twice a day for a total of 10mi a day and one day I even had to do the trip three times. The only problem with wearing jeans on the bike....the saddle shaped wear on the bum of my jeans. They all wear out pretty quickly in the crotch area, but I do ride my bike every day so it is only to be expected and a good excuse for buying new jeans every now and again.

[madscot13]

I usually commute in casual clothes- no one at Georgetown would be caught dead wearing their biking clothes, well maybe if it was very expensive and said hincapie on it or Gucci or....

I use the Terry Liberator X also. I feel the sit bone pressure for the first few days of riding and then I either become null to the pain or it actually goes away. Either way I'm not feeling it. Also I avoid taking a load on my back. I'm on a touring bike and so it may be less upright than yours, however.

[Geonz]

Don't need a brooks here... but I've always had a bionic butt.

I would think if your bones were aimed just wrong, though, you'd simply need something between them and the seat, or else put on an extra 20 pounds ... think I'd stick to the removable padding myself

[Voodoo Sally]

No Brooks here, either. Just an ancient model of the Terry Liberator (probably the first year they made it). Everyone's different. Jeans are fine for me. You might want to go ahead and try a different saddle. Sometimes I see no rhyme or reason between how one saddle can feel so different than another one.