Commuting: building mileage and managing cold

[CorsairMac]

Strangely enough, I feel most cold from my knees to my elbows. It seems more common to be cold at your extremities, but for me it's my core.

Then wear a second pair of shorts and a second short sleeved jersey or wind vest - that should keep the core covered better. Also, the advice of tucking in at least one of those layers is excellent advice.

I don't always eat before the ride. Sometimes I ate a cup of oatmeal before the ride, and sometimes I would pack it with me and eat it when I got to work. I would usually eat something in the afternoon, a couple of hours before leaving work. I did feel like I wasn't getting enough protein, so that could be part of the problem.

Even for a short commute you should have something to eat, and I find when I commute in the cold I need more - at least in the carbo family. Some days I just ate an apple or banana before the ride home but I at least ate something. And I never ride to work without breakfast - particularly when it's cold.

I also think that I wasn't drinking enough during the ride. Because I wore my backpack, I didn't have my Camelbak with me to suck on, and I don't have an easy-to-drink-from water bottle on my bike. I ended up only drinking at stop lights. Also, I bet if I warmed up the water before I leave I would be more tempted to drink and it would help warm me up inside.

Define "not easy-to-drink" from.....is the bottle too tall to fit between the top tube and the cage?? try a shorter bottle or if you don't have any, use a bottled water bottle and bend the cage to hold the bottle in place.
too hard to pull out of the cage?? you should be able to bend out the cage to fit the bottle better.
not comfortable reaching the bottle and drinking while riding? practice by reaching down to your water bottle with one hand while holding the bike with the other. Then practice just pulling the bottle out and putting it back. Next thing ya know - you'll be drinking water like a pro!
I'm asking coz your water bottle should be biker friendly - some days it may be the best friend you've got on your bike!