Going Commando

[redeyedtreefr0g]

Hi there! I'm new here as of this morning, but finding a women's-specific forum for cycling is simply fantastic!

I'm riding without underwear more often than not lately because I need to preserve my poor skin! I don't have real cycling shorts with a chamois, only a pair of Danskin shorts that they inappropriately call bicycle shorts. They are exercise shorts made of cotton with the sewn triangle in them- made to be worn without underwear. My regular underwear is just cotton Hanes I think- a low-rise bikini version and then some regular ones.

I ride my bike for commuting to work. Go to work twice a day and the distance one-way is 4.6 miles (I tend to just tell people 4 and a half). So I go 18 miles a day. Just a few days ago I extended the ride home to be 8.5 miles, so a round trip is 13. I'm working up to trying to be able to do it once a day every day, and then maybe that will become my new route home from work both am and pm.

My poor crotch area simply cannot stand up to the abuse! My regular underwear causes the crease where legs meet genitals to hurt so much. The low-rise versions are slightly gentler on me than the regular ones. My "bike" shorts are even better, but the seams of that stupid triangle even become irritating after a while, just in a different spot. To make matters worse- everything is cotton, so during the summer I was especially concerned, but even now with cooler weather- the slightest bit of sweating I do makes leg creases sweaty and uncomfortable and they stay that way for a while.
So lately I've opted for wearing nothing but my tights and pants. The weather has been chilly in the mornings so this works I suppose, but the tights are just regular stockings, nothing special. They don't absorb anything, but I tend to dry better anyway I guess since they are more breathable. There is still a middle seam through the crotch (and one pair has an oval in that area instead of a triangle) that I suppose could become problematic if I wasn't already wary of the potential issue.

I wear regular clothes on my bike because that's what I have and for the most part I'm comfortable that way, but I really need a solution for my poor seat-area.

I've been told that boyshort cuts might be better, and I obviously need something other than cotton. Most searches for seamless boyshorts turn up results that are NOT in fact seamless. Also I've been seeing some pretty high prices, just for a single pair of undies! I'm still looking.

Do you ladies have suggestions?

[goldfinch]

Looks like your post kind of got lost in the shuffle. I strongly recommend buying regular bike shorts with a chamois. And wear them without underwear. The chamois isn't so much for the padding but to stop the chaffing. They can be pricey but they are so worth it.

[Hartmame]

This conversation hasn't gone there yet but it sounds like a little butt butter might help with some of the chaffing problems.

[redeyedtreefr0g]

goldfinch, that was one of my first posts, and it took forever to be approved by a moderator, so I'm not surprised its out of context.

Update: I've given up on underwear completely. Simply wearing my tights/stockings with my pants or using my jeans without underwear does a decent job of keeping me from getting too uncomfortable. It most definitely helped me discover which pants I own are NOT suited to cycling (most of them, /sigh).

Also goldfinch, I got the bike shorts you sent me!! They fit just fine, and I'm excited to give them a try, tomorrow. It feels very much like I'm wearing a partial diaper, or a very large menstrual pad. But, I've seen tons of other cyclists with no funny-shaped butts to speak of, so it must just feel odd rather than look it too.
Thank you SO MUCH!

[goldfinch]

You are welcome! I got them from another poster here last year when I was in the process of losing weight so I just passed along their gift to me. The idea of padded shorts does take some getting used to but they sure have made riding more pleasant for me.

[redeyedtreefr0g]

I FINALLY got to try out the shorts!
Today I did my first group ride ever. We went 19.05 miles according to my new little computer, my total trip was 26.67 miles if you count there and back, which I do. The wind was a steady 10-12 mph gusting up to 20 or so. At first it was awful, but then I just resigned myself to Zoomie's easiest gear and it wasn't so bad. I was one of three or four laggers, so I wasn't alone. The group was maybe 20 people total. We started and ended at a brewery, and I celebrated not-dying with a rootbeer and some pretzels.


I wore the bike shorts underneath my jeans. I thought it was too cold for bare legs. Turns out I was only partially wrong- I warmed up quickly but I still don't think I'd've liked that wind on my skin. My nose is very sore from dripping constantly and my lips feel funny.

I'm not sure I like bike shorts at all.

The padding was odd, but I can and did get sort of used to that. What I'm not thrilled with is how HOT I felt. My seat area was sweltering, and then I was wet. Hot and clammy doesn't feel that awesome. By the time I got back home, my jeans were even damp in some places, it was weird. The good news is that I wasn't bothered by any seams or anything, but with damp padding I'm not sure if simply pressure might cause an issue over time. I can't even imagine trying to wear those things in summertime- I think it was 60F today with nearly constant wind so it felt even chillier.

I wonder how I would have done on that ride with nothing on under my jeans??

[murielalex]

^ This.

[goldfinch]

When I first started wearing bike shorts I wore then under nylon capris I got from Target in their workout clothes area. These worked fine, as do baggy "technical fabric" shorts which I sometimes wear over bike shorts, especially if I am riding around doing errands. Running tights over bike shorts work when it is colder but I did that yesterday and was too warm. I needed thinner tights or just leg warmers.

[Sky King]

Ditto, the jeans don't breathe, glad you didn't get any chafing ON another note - way to go on the ride!!

Maybe get some leg-warmers to go with the shorts, and forgo the jeans?

When I mentioned wearing shorts under non-cycling specific attire earlier, I was thinking of athletic attire, like yoga capris made out of something other than cotton. Jeans would cause chafing and other problems from the stitching and stiff fabric. Cotton tends to create a lot of moisture, and cotton over a chamois would seal in that moisture.

Still most comfortable to wear the cycling shorts with other cycling gear.

[redeyedtreefr0g]

I finally got boyshort underwear!
The weather is starting to warm up and suddenly I realize that soon it will be too hot to wear my wool tights. I've LIVED in my tights all winter without havign to deal with pesky underwear, and I've loved being able to wear skirts- much less restricting than jeans and somehow warmer too.

I need something that I can wear under skirts so if a gust of wind blows along, I'm not going to get a ticket for indecent exposure during the summer.

I love these! They are George boyshorts from Walmart. I don't know what the fabric is, but its 91% nylon, 9% spandex. At least I won't have clingy cotton when it gets warmer and I sweat a little. They don't even fit properly- it's like wearing a thong but halfway up it becomes a normal panty. My problem with thongs is in the tailbone area anyway, so that's fine by me if half my butt hangs out the bottom of these. At least I got an idea of how properly-fitting boyshorts would work on the bike.

SO. Does anyone know any other boyshorts which are not cotton that I can try? I still need something in the relatively cheap category, but if you know of some really good ones, feel free to link to them so I can save up later. I guess I have a big butt too, so if they have lots of room that would be awesome.

[goldfinch]

When it is hot I like wearing skirts on my hybrid bike. I wear regular bike shorts underneath. I then discovered that it is nice have shorts under skirts for for just knocking around. So, I bought some compression running shorts (which have no padding) and a pair of tri shorts (which have basically some fleece in lieu of padding) and I wear them sans underwear with my skirts. Very comfy plus if I want to hope on a bike for a short ride they are nice for that too. Bike shorts have given me an aversion for underwear.

[Crankin]

I've always had an aversion to underwear. That's why I like bike shorts!

[thekarens]

I've always had an aversion to underwear. That's why I like bike shorts!

Thanks for the chuckle

[MollyJ]

Took me a while to get chamois biking shorts. Then it took a while before I went commando. And then I was so embarrassed about Chamois Butt'r that I bought it through the mail instead of at the LBS.

The moral of the story: Don't *suffer* from embarrassment. Just do what others before you have found that works. And each of those things have helped with the comfort.