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Help the Newbie
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My husband has been doing tri races for years and I've always been the spectator who said she would always be WATCHING the race and not actually DOING the race. However, I'm tired of waking up at 5am on Saturdays to watch him race and have all the fun, so I'm declaring this summer as MY TIME to race. He has helped tremendously in terms of setting me up with gear and training tips, however his "male" knowledge only goes so far. This is where I need help from the ladies:

1. I've been trying to find the right underwear to use when running. I haven't had luck with the shorts that have their own underwear because I get chaffing on the bikini line. I tried Pantagonia boy shorts, but the seam is NOT in the right place and I was rubbed raw on the run. I was thinking about spankies, anyone had good luck with these?

2. Cycling Shorts. I bought Pearl's Pro short and I like the cut, however the pad was very uncomfortable. Maybe I'm not sitting on my saddle properly, but there was rubbing on the front portion of the pad. Are you supposed to wear underwear with biking shorts?? I have no idea how I could fit underwear under those spandex...no extra room!

I appreciate your input. Any womanly advice would be helpful!
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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Hi,

My recommendation is to run without underwear. Obviously this will be easier if you have some flat seamed shorts...like lululemon.

So that being said I obviously also recommend not wearing underwear in bike shorts. Finding a comfortable bike short might take some time. And without sounding rude or sharing TMI - it also helps to have a very thorough bikini wax/trim.
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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1. What about shorts with a longer liner inside? I have a pair of Moving Comfort ones that have a loose outer short and a tight inner short that goes ~4" down my leg. Very soft. Otherwise, using something like Bodyglide in the locations where the seams are tends to help prevent chaffing. Bodygluide is cleaner and stays on the skin longer than something like vaseline.

2. No underwear. It may not be your shorts. Your saddle may be wrong for your anatomy. The angle of your saddle may be wrong, like the nose it too high. Your saddle itself might be too high. Your shorts may have too much padding.
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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In Reply To:
1. I've been trying to find the right underwear to use when running. I haven't had luck with the shorts that have their own underwear because I get chaffing on the bikini line. I tried Pantagonia boy shorts, but the seam is NOT in the right place and I was rubbed raw on the run. I was thinking about spankies, anyone had good luck with these?

2. Cycling Shorts. I bought Pearl's Pro short and I like the cut, however the pad was very uncomfortable. Maybe I'm not sitting on my saddle properly, but there was rubbing on the front portion of the pad. Are you supposed to wear underwear with biking shorts?? I have no idea how I could fit underwear under those spandex...no extra room!

I appreciate your input. Any womanly advice would be helpful!
1. For training, I have to wear underwear with running shorts, for comfort. I wear the cycling style spandex shorts (ie no padding). I have experimented with different pairs of underwear and only certain ones will stay in place and not chafe. It's really trial and error. For running races I will wear a thong with those shorts... purely for vanity reasons! For my duathlons, I do the whole race in my lightly padded triathlon shorts - for some reason I am ok running in those without underwear - they are Sugoi.
2. I would never wear underwear with cycling shorts - would be worried about chafing with all those extra seams. You may have to experiment with various pairs of cycling shorts to get the most comfortable for you. It's really personal preference. Unfortunately it will be about $100 per experiment because they usually aren't returnable :(
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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no underwear at all. everyone has their own preference for shorts - i love the sugoi 42k shorts for running, and find that the liner is perfect. you definitely need the right size - i was surprised to find that the medium was too big (liner felt baggy, which would lead to chafing). in size small, i can run forever in those shorts with no problems. the liner fits snug, and doesn't move.

no underwear with bike shorts, either. they're designed to be worn directly on your skin. for chafing, get some chamois butt'r/assos/even a handful of skin moisturizer will do in a pinch. i have some *ahem* exotic piercings, and some manner of lubrication is absolutely necessary!

tri saddles aren't comfortable, period. you have to get used to them, and even quite well padded cycle shorts (i just recently got a pair of giordanas that are very nice) will not totally disguise the fact that you're balancing more than half your bodyweight on something the size of a matchbox. your undercarriage will acclimatize with time in the saddle, though - if it remains painful after hundreds of miles of riding, perhaps think about a different saddle. it's made a big difference for me, going from the stock san marco trilon to a women-specific specialized velo pronto sl-wz1. however, again, the saddle that was an improvement for me might mean agony to you!

good luck finding your "comfort zone" :)

cheers!

-mistress k

__________________________________________________________
ill advised racing inc.
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Re: Help the Newbie [mistressk] [ In reply to ]
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bodyglide is your new best friend. I don't know that I ever do anything without bodyglide.

I agree with the others, you have to experiment to figure out what clothing will work best for you. I have found, though, that if I chafe somewhere, for the next bout of exercise, if I put on bodyglide ahead of time, no chafing.

The bike shorts are an experiment too, as well as saddles. I was able to find a local bike shop with a good saddle selection that let me try the saddle out on my bike in their parking lot, swapping them out until I found one that I thought would work. I was fortunate in that the saddle that felt good right away was the same one that felt good after 100 miles.

You might like shorts with more or less padding. I am a more padding on the cycling shorts kind of girl.
For some ladies they need to remove a lot of the 'bikini area' hair, some (like me) only remove what would stick out of a bathing suit.

Trial and Error, Trial and Error. Hang in there, and only change 1 thing at a time when you are experimenting!!!
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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First of all Congrats on getting off the sidelines and joining in the fun. Super cool. I know that (well when my husband would race) it was awesome knowing he was out on the course with me; and you never know he might just become your rabbit (my husband was mine). I worked my tail off trying to catch him somewhere on the course (usually the run).

I was a devoted Bodyglide follower UNTIL I found Sport Shield. This has been the end all to any chafing I've ever experienced in the past. Works awesome on ALL parts of the body. And the thing I like the best (over Bodyglide) is that it lasts for hours and hours and hours. The stuff just hangs in there despite water, sweat, etc. It goes on ultra smooth (almost like an oil but it definitely isn't oily)..


In finding my saddle I went through 5 to find the one that felt just right. Same thing with shorts (cycling). You'll find that the more you train you'll be able to ignore a lot more and you'll also find the products that work for you.

I ditto everyone else here though: leave the panties at home for all 3 sports.

Best of luck to you.

____________________________
Life is Short...Run Long
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Re: Help the Newbie [determination] [ In reply to ]
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not for lack of trying, but i haven't been able to get bodyglide everywhere i needed it to be...it seems to be too substantial to apply to some of the, errh, softer spots that need it ;) for neck, underarm and thigh chub rub it's fine but my "saddlery" regions need a cream instead, and there's no such thing as "too much" :p

cheers!

-mistress k

__________________________________________________________
ill advised racing inc.
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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Have you tried the Chamois butter? A big glop of that on the chamois in your tri suit (or cycling shorts) with no underwear and minimal padding should help.
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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>>Maybe I'm not sitting on my saddle properly, but there was rubbing on the front portion of the pad.<<

Are you riding a tri bike in the aero position? Or a road bike? I've found that regular cycling shorts have way too much of a pad for the aero position. You should try some tri shorts. I prefer DeSoto.

clm

clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com
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Re: Help the Newbie [trackie clm] [ In reply to ]
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Hi there,

I too have lots problems with my cycling shorts, so if anyone has any cycling shorts the have found particularly comfy please, please let me know.

Bodyglide is great.

The only shorts I have found so far that are good for long rides are made/sold by a company called Skinfit (They can be found on the internet). So far I have only used their Tri Shorts which do not have a padded chami in. However they have been good for cycling 50+ miles.

The rest of Skinfits apparell is great too.

Hope this helps

Ironbaby x
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Re: Help the Newbie [SLM] [ In reply to ]
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Hi!

I don't use any glide, stick or anything other than my De Soto Run short without underwear (which is key!) Same for bike shorts- I wear the 400 mile bike short on longer rides (great than 65 miles or so), the micro or carrera tri short on shorter rides (less than 65 miles) without rubbing or chafing- again NO underwear!

Feel free to email me directly...and good luck!

Tracy M. De Soto
Femme Designer/CFO/Attorney
De Soto Sport
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