I have a serious problem with cycling clothes. I have too many! You see, when it comes to my everyday clothes, I purchase as little as possible. But when it comes to cycling clothes, I lose all restraint and just can’t help buying another awesome jersey or fabulous pair of bibs.
Unfortunately, cycling clothes are expensive, so how many shorts, bibs, or jerseys do you actually need?
You should have enough cycling shorts or bibs and jerseys so that you can have a clean set for every ride. This number will depend on a variety of factors, such as how often you ride each week and how often you choose to do your laundry. You also may need different cycling clothes for different kinds of weather.
Let’s break it down and help you spend only what you need to.
How Many Pairs of Cycling Shorts You Need
Cycling clothes are a great way to express your personality, but there’s a big difference between need and want. So what’s the bare minimum you need, and what’s excessive?
The easiest way to figure out how many pairs of cycling shorts you need is to divide the number of times a week you ride by the number of times a week you do laundry. So if you ride four times a week and only wash bike clothes once a week, you’ll want to have at least four pairs of bike shorts.
If you only ride 1-2 times per month, this isn’t a big deal. You can wear your cycling shorts and wash them at your leisure as long as they are clean for your next ride.
Chart Showing the Number of Cycling Shorts You Need
| 1-2 rides per month | 1 ride per week | 2 rides per week | 3 rides per week | 4 rides per week | 5 rides per week | 6 rides per week | 7 rides per week | |
| Laundry 1x/week | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Laundry 2x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Laundry 3x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Laundry daily | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
The chart above gives you a quick idea of how many pairs of cycling shorts you’ll need based on how frequently you do your laundry. There are a few other factors to take into consideration, though.
If you leave your sweaty and dirty cycling shorts sitting in a laundry hamper for a whole week, they may be impossible to get clean. Dirt and grime can stain your cycling clothes if you don’t rinse them out right away.
Also, bacteria in sweat that isn’t removed promptly can leave an odor in your clothes that is difficult or impossible to remove. And frankly, who wants a hamper full of stinky, dirty clothes smelling up your home anyway?
You may want to have additional types of cycling shorts for different weather conditions. For example, you might want to purchase water-proof shorts for rainy weather and fleece-lined shorts for cold weather. However, you probably won’t ride as frequently in bad weather, so you won’t need as many of these.
Cycling Shorts for Indoor Training
If you spend long days inside on the trainer, you might go through multiple pairs of cycling shorts in one day. Therefore, you may want to have a couple of extra pairs of cycling shorts on hand for extra-long events so you can change into a fresh pair to prevent chafing and saddle sores.
Personally, I only wear cycling shorts on the indoor bike trainers such as the schwinn ic3, and I do bike laundry at least two times per week. That means I only need enough to see me through 2-3 days of indoor riding at a time. I ride indoors about six days a week in the winter, but I only need about three pairs of cycling shorts.
Can You Wear Cycling Shorts More Than Once (Without Washing)?
You should never wear your cycling shorts more than one time without washing them. This is because the sweat and heat created by your body make cycling shorts the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, leading to saddle sores and infection. Aside from that, putting on wet shorts is just the worst!
It is really important to wash your shorts every time because wearing dirty, sweaty shorts can cause conditions such as jock itch or yeast infections. Therefore, it’s best practice to wash your cycling shorts every time you wear them.
Can You Wear Two Pairs of Bike Shorts?
There is no need to wear two pairs of bike shorts at the same time. A single chamois should be enough to keep your tender areas well-protected from chafing and soreness. However, if the weather is cold, you might want to layer cycling tights over top of your bike shorts.
How Many Cycling Bibs You Need
Cycling bibs serve the same function as cycling shorts. They have a chamois just like cycling shorts, but they also have shoulder straps to keep the bibs in place rather than a waistband.
For this reason, many people find that bibs are more comfortable than cycling shorts. However, they are also more expensive.
The same rule applies to cycling bibs as cycling shorts. I only wear cycling bibs for outdoor riding; I never wear shorts outdoors.
I personally have enough pairs of bibs to get me through an entire week of outdoor riding, or about six rides per week. I actually have six pairs of cycling bibs, but I have two that are my favorites, and I wash and wear them more frequently than the others.
Chart Showing the Number of Cycling Bibs You Need
| | 1-2 rides per month | 1 ride per week | 2 rides per week | 3 rides per week | 4 rides per week | 5 rides per week | 6 rides per week | 7 rides per week |
| Laundry 1x/week | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Laundry 2x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Laundry 3x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Laundry daily | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
The chart above gives you a quick estimate of how many pairs of cycling bibs you will need, based on how often you ride and how often you do your laundry. Since shorts and bibs serve the same purpose, you don’t need to buy both if you don’t want to: choose whichever style you prefer, or get just a couple of each.
Can You Wear Cycling Bibs More Than Once (Without Washing)?
Just like cycling shorts, you don’t want to wear your cycling bibs more than one time without washing them. Sweaty, hot cycling bibs are a breeding ground for bacteria that can lead to infection and cause discomfort and chafing.
Make sure to wash your bibs or shorts inside out and according to the manufacturer’s directions. If you can’t get them in the washing machine right away, you may want to rinse them in the shower.
By the way, you might want to double rinse them in the machine. Any leftover detergent in your chamois can foam up when you start to sweat…creating a rather embarrassing and uncomfortable situation!
Also, make sure your bibs are completely dry before you wear them again.
How Many Cycling Jerseys You Need
Cycling jerseys are a little bit different than bibs or shorts. While you only need as many jerseys as you have shorts, you might prefer to have more to express your style.
You may need a specific jersey for every club you ride with, a special jersey for racing, or jerseys for events. But in theory, you still only need enough jerseys to have a clean one for every ride.
Chart Showing the Number of Cycling Jerseys You Need
| | 1-2 rides per month | 1 ride per week | 2 rides per week | 3 rides per week | 4 rides per week | 5 rides per week | 6 rides per week | 7 rides per week |
| Laundry 1x/week | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Laundry 2x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Laundry 3x/week | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Laundry daily | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
The chart above gives you an idea of how many cycling jerseys you’ll want to have based on how often you do laundry and how often you like to ride. But, of course, if you’re like me, you’ll have more jerseys than you actually need!
Just like cycling shorts and bibs, if you only ride a few times a month, one good quality jersey should be fine unless you need different jerseys for different types of weather. If you ride multiple times a week, though, you’ll probably want to have a jersey for each ride during the week. You may also want to have an extra jersey or two, just in case.
Can You Wear Cycling Jerseys More Than Once (Without Washing)?
Although there are fewer risks associated with wearing a cycling jersey more than once without washing, it still isn’t a good idea to wear a dirty jersey.
Wearing a jersey more than once can lead to permanent sweat stains and odors in your jersey, as well as ground-in dirt and grime. If you can’t get your jersey in the washing machine right after your ride, you may want to rinse it in cold water to get out any dirt or excess sweat that could stain your jersey.
Final Thoughts
If budgeting is an issue, you certainly could get by with one good set of cycling shorts or bibs and one good jersey. However, the more frequently you wash your cycling clothes, the quicker they will wear out. Therefore, it might be best to have at least two sets so you can easily swap them out when needed.