12 Newbie Tips for Riding Rollers

Getting on rollers for the first time can be intimidating, we know! But these tips can help ensure your first experience is a positive one.

Once you get started, we can guarantee you'll be hooked.

1. Three words: Positive Mental Attitude. It goes a long way. Don't psych yourself out—you can do this.

2. Make sure the rollers are on a flat surface. Carpet can interfere with the drums or roller belt, so avoid it if possible.

3. Put the bike in a middle-of-the-road gear before hopping on. Not too hard, not too easy.

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4. Set the rollers up in a hallway or a doorway so that you can use the walls as bumpers. If you start to veer off the rollers, just push off the wall gently with your shoulder. This way, you never have to let go of the handlebars.

5. Once you're on and you start pedaling, don't stop! The general tendency is to ride very slowly out of uncertainty; however, this makes the bike even harder to control. Pedal at a decent speed, and push and pull all the way through the pedal stroke to keep an even cadence.

6. Focus on a point a few feet in front of you instead of looking down at your wheel. Trust us, this helps a ton.

7. Relax your shoulders and loosen your grip on the handlebars. Instead of trying to steer the bike by tensing your upper body, focus on pedaling as smoothly as possible and you will automatically ride in a straight line.

8. Don't forget to breathe.

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9. As soon as you get the hang of riding rollers without needing the doorway for balance, get out of the doorway! Challenge yourself to just use a wall for mounting the rollers, and then abandon the wall altogether. You won't know what you're capable of until you get out of that comfort zone.

10. Want to know what happens when you ride off the side of the rollers? Well, if you stop pedaling, then your wheels will stop spinning and you can just put your foot down. If you keep pedaling, then all bets are off.

11. Make sure there is nothing nearby that could hurt you if you do fall off. Accidents happen.

12. Whatever you do, don't give up!

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