How to ride bike to 6 figure job and not freak people out?

I have a 6 figure job (not tooting my own horn because I'm still pay check to paycheck) on Madison Ave in NYC and I live in NJ so I take the train to work. I am becoming a fat slob because I sit in meetings all day. I Have always been active (Bike, Surf, Snowboard) but now I am a desk jockey.

So all I want to do is ride from my home to and from the train station about a mile 1 way. I can rent a bike locker and I have a nice single speed to do it but need advice on how to pack work clothes and not freak people out at the office if I show up in tights or bike shorts?

If you have any experience I would like to hear from you.

Thanks

My opinion is that 1 mile isn't worth suiting up for. As others have pointed out, the health benefits will be minimal. Why not just invest in a pair of running shoes, and walk to the train station? When at work, change to your wingtips. You'd get more of a health benefit and between changing, locking your bike, etc. it would probably be as quick as cycling.

-c.

If you can just keep some clothes at the office but if that is not possible then you can pack your work clothes in the reusable vacuum space bags and pack the portable steamer that takes wrinkles out of clothes. Keep some hangers in your desk. When you get to work you unpack your clothes and hang them up in the rest room and steam them nice and fresh. Your good to go.

make a little changing room in your office drive once a week and leave some clothes their and take the dirty ones back. good luck hope you get off that chub on your bike.

My 2 cents - A one mile trip does not necessitate any bike clothing. If anything, get some "liner shorts". They are like underwear with a chamois pad. Then wear your normal getup, and get a strap to keep your pants out of the chain. Get a messenger bag or backpack for anything you need to take with you. If you find the liner shorts uncomfortable when not on a bike, change into some reg. underwear in the bathroom at work. Google "liner shorts" or "cycling brief"; you can get some for around 30 bucks.

I guess it would depend on your work environment. My bud works at NASA in DC in a high salary admin. job. He rides to work and showers and changes there (about 8 miles one way I think). He has no problems at all.

I'm with the answer that stated it's 1 mile, a couple minutes on the bike. Just wear your work clothes. Protect your pant leg and all is good. Sorry to say though, as you know, <5 minutes of slow riding on a bike won't be any exercise really.

You don't need tights and bike shorts. They do make the spandex padded undershorts that you can wear under any pants. If you are going only one mile you may just get pants clips for your street clothing and forget the cycle specific stuff.

You will get a much MUCH better workout by just power-walking the mile from the train to your office. Cycling is too efficient for this purpose. You won't lose any significant weight by increasing your exercise alone. You also have to manage what you eat.

HTH

they're probably already used to it - cycling is the new golf, they say.

just throw a change of clothes in a backpack, and you're good to go.

if they ask why you're on a bike, just say "the jaguar's getting a tune-up."

Much as I love my bike, it hardly seems worth the hassle for only a mile. I live a bit over a mile from the train myself, and generally walk it.