How to overcome the fear of cycling: 7 tips

Riding a bicycle can become both a hobby and our main means of transport for urban areas. In many cities it can be safely said that the bicycle has more prominence than the car, either due to lack of resources and infrastructure for larger vehicles, or because of awareness of the importance of polluting as little as possible possible.

However, not everyone is able to enjoy using this handy tool for getting around. The fear of riding a bicycle is, for some, an obstacle that prevents progress in the task of learning to master it and maintain balance for long enough.

In this article we will review several tips on how to overcome the fear of cycling, step by step and with some examples.

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How to overcome the fear of riding a bike

If you want to progress when it comes to learning to ride a bike, or you would just like to Lose your fear of the bike and get back on it the way you used to, follow these tips.

1. Set simple and realistic goals

This is very important so as not to get frustrated. The possibility of setting rather modest goals that are relatively easy to achieve makes us want to progress, since in this way we know that we can get a sense of victory almost immediately, or within minutes.

On the other hand, if we only set ourselves the final goal, we will see it as something unattainable, and at best we will progress more slowly, while at worst, we will give up.

So, the idea is to divide our main objective into several sub-objectives, so that in each practice session we can notice that we improve, even if only a little.

2. use protections

Wearing a helmet, knee pads and fingerless gloves (to improve grip on the handlebars) not only offers the obvious advantage of decrease our chances of getting hurt. In addition, it has a powerful psychological effect.

If we feel that we have the "physical" part of the problem covered, so that it is very difficult to hurt ourselves, we can concentrate more on what interests us. That is to say, our focus of attention You will not find yourself so divided into different things that concern us, and this is very advantageous when it comes to losing the fear of riding a bicycle.

3. Assume that it will be time to fall

It is important to minimize the idea of ​​falling, something that sooner or later can happen. However, the bike is designed in such a way that if you are not going at high speed and going over rough terrain, it is difficult to get injured.

Following the advice that we will see, the most frequent accidents of this type will have to do with the possibility of feeling some pain when stepping on wrong, on the ground to get off, or fall and scratch your forearms a bit (which surely won't be important if you wear the protections suitable).

So, unless you are going very fast or going through unsafe areas, you should keep in mind that most catastrophic thoughts that you may have because of your fear of cycling are highly unrealistic, a poor description of how reality works.

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4. Find someone to accompany us

Having someone to help us by being close is very helpful. It can not only help us in situations where we are about to fall due to a loss of balance; In addition, his presence reassures us, and he can take care of carry things that we do not need when practicing and that would hinder our progress.

5. Look for a soft ground, but not too much

For obvious reasons, it is good to choose flat surfaces that are rather soft. However, you should keep in mind that it is better to avoid areas of grass, no matter how short it is, since it can destabilize the bicycle due to the irregular parts that are hidden in its surface, and the poor adhesion to the wheels that it offers, on the other.

Thus, areas of land are ideal, as long as it is not made up of sharp stones and large enough to cause significant scratches.

6. Avoid areas with physical or visual obstacles

When it comes to losing their fear of cycling and starting to get used to using it, many people focus on choosing places to practice that do not have obstacles capable of blocking the wheels.

However, visual barriers are also very relevant. If you practice in a place free of the latter, this will allow you to concentrate with greater happiness, and the fear of injuring yourself will be mitigated, as well as reducing the chances of having accidents.

7. look at a fixed point

This is one of the most important tips. If we don't, we run the risk of entering a state of anxiety by not knowing where to look due to the possible risks of falling, which is significant, because when riding a bicycle, the gaze is very important and the head is one of the few parts of the body that we can move from almost the entire range of its motion.