zilspeed
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 posted on 27/5/09 at 04:42 PM |
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Cycling
I haven't cycled since I were a lad and pretty much haven't done any serious exercise since then either.
Early 40s now and thinking of my own mortality, I've got my hands on a bike and have been enjoying getting out there and doing a bit.
Couple of thoughts occurred to me.
I'm a total weakling !
My legs ache after even a short ride. Where I live, there is a relatively safe route which I can do which avoids major roads, so I'm doing that.
It's only 4 miles, but see above, I'm building up to more miles.
I think in that short period since I started cycling, I might have become a better and more considerate car driver. I find myself going round blind
corners and anticipating there being a cyclist or other slow moving vehicle or pedestrian there and want to make sure I give them plenty of space. I
wasn't this good before.
Anyway, there you go - that's my new hobby.
No pictures - you really don't want to see that...
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hellbent345
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 04:53 PM |
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haha i generally consider myself fairly fit, i can do the army general fitness test (read RUN! lol) in the passing time, and just about do the
pushups, situps etc (im a bit weak!) but i do find cycling annoyingly difficult - apparently its something to do with the unnatural action, and the
continuous strain on the quads particularly,
what bike do you have? when i was younger and a lot fatter my dad and i used to go out on a sunday, and it helped a lot when he gave me his racing
bike to use, thin smooth tyres are a lot easier to pedal around!
Al
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zilspeed
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:00 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by hellbent345
haha i generally consider myself fairly fit, i can do the army general fitness test (read RUN! lol) in the passing time, and just about do the
pushups, situps etc (im a bit weak!) but i do find cycling annoyingly difficult - apparently its something to do with the unnatural action, and the
continuous strain on the quads particularly,
what bike do you have? when i was younger and a lot fatter my dad and i used to go out on a sunday, and it helped a lot when he gave me his racing
bike to use, thin smooth tyres are a lot easier to pedal around!
Al
I'm no expert so obviously anything I say, take with a pinch of salt.
Not to worry though, that's what the internet's for.
So, on that basis and according to the internet, my bike - a Diamondback Lakeside is totally the wrong thing.
Apparently.
Not that I intend doing anything about it.
If it's a bit more like hard work, then I'm not sure that hard work is actually such a bad thing for me.
Cheers
JF
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keith2lp
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:05 PM |
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Cycling
Keep at it and it will get easier. I cycle twice a week (20-25 miles mid week and 30 -40 at the weekend) mostly of road and my legs still ache after a
long ride but it is the only form of exercise that I enjoy.
If you can go with someone as it makes it much easier and even fun.
Make sure that you set our bike up to suit you (look on the web for info) as this will make a big difference.
Hope this helps.
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hellbent345
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:26 PM |
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ill second the going with someone, but everyone is lazy buggers these days! i have to wait for my sister to come home from the navy before anyone will
do any exercise with me!
good on you for getting back into excercise now, i know my parents either can't or won't now ( 50 and 53) i suspect a little of
can't and a lot of won't lol
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82 Locost
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:32 PM |
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I'm getting into road cycling after a few years of MTBing. I'm regularly doing 100-120 mile per week with no major problems afterwards.
It's just case of getting your body used to the effort.
Last weekend I did a club ride with the Lincoln Wheelers and it was so much more interesting than riding alone. Really boosted my interest levels.
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Fred W B
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:34 PM |
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I haven't cycled for years, but the best advice I was given when I started out was:
Get the cadence up
Concentrate on pedalling smoothly in circles, don't just push down, drop the heel at the start of the down stroke and pull it up after BDC to do
this. You need clipin pedals or straps to do this
Cheers
Fred W B
You can do it quickly. You can do it cheap. You can do it right. – Pick any two.
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zilspeed
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:41 PM |
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I'm in the fortunate position oh having long term borrowed a bike from someone who knows way more than I do about such things.
Important bits I am told are.
Clip in pedals.
Don't go for too high a gear.
Have the seat at the correct height.
I'm sorted with all of these.
Anyway - that's another of my little circuits in.
Couple of minutes quicker than last night.
Recovery time a tiny bit shorter too 
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iscmatt
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:43 PM |
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one piece of advice i would give is it doesn't easier, you just get faster!!! You have been warned!! You don't see top cyclists like hoy
and armstrong getting off there bike thinking it was easy, they are just a lot faster than us!!!!
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macspeedy
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 05:44 PM |
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I had to cycle to work due to loosing my licence for 6 months was a round trip of 36 miles 4 days on 4 days off. Got me back into cycling as i was
quite keen as a kid. I have now spent a lot on a cross country/ downhill mountain bike which i ride as often as possible uses different muscles and i
ache but the more you do it the easier it gets.. jumping a bike between trees going 20 mph is great fun! but i am told "trees hurt" and
"trees dont move" keep it up!!
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roadrunner
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 06:49 PM |
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Hope you are wearing a helmet. I've had two accidents in two years and the last one was a head on with a Picasso. My head went through his
windscreen, AR****LE , apparently i would have been killed if not for my £15 Asda helmet.
But dont let me put you off. I have changed jobs now and i still try to get on the bike a couple of times a week even though it's twice the
distance and three huge hills to deal with.
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zilspeed
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 07:12 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by roadrunner
Hope you are wearing a helmet. I've had two accidents in two years and the last one was a head on with a Picasso. My head went through his
windscreen, AR****LE , apparently i would have been killed if not for my £15 Asda helmet.
But dont let me put you off. I have changed jobs now and i still try to get on the bike a couple of times a week even though it's twice the
distance and three huge hills to deal with.
Words of advice heeded.
Helmet on.
Since my last post, I just nipped out again.
Crap on the telly, brain not in garage mode, let's go and find a quiet road.
Did just that.
Another even quieter 4 mile route which has virtually zero traffic on it as it's mostly abandoned B roads with rocks blocking them off and they
are now rural footpaths.
I think 8 miles will do for today now.
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Staple balls
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 08:18 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by roadrunner
Hope you are wearing a helmet.
Absolutely this, I took a header about 9 years ago, through bad luck alone (chain slipped while I was putting my back into it)
Broke my head, damn near died, not had a proper sense of smell since, lots of crappy little side effects. All because I was only nipping to the shop
and didn't think I needed a lid.
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iank
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 08:46 PM |
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Yes helmet is important. Friend at work always wore one (most cyclists in Cambridge don't bother) turned out his missus worked in the brain
injury unit of Addenbrooke's and he'd seen the results of not having one.
I did some cycling last summer* and the first week was horrible, slow, felt like death on the uphill drags and ached every night. After that I was
fine and started getting faster and faster on the trip.
If you are cycling on road and have a mountain bike get some commuter tyres rather than the cheap nobblies it probably came with - makes a massive
difference.
*until I worked out that the train ticket was more money than the diesel AND that regular bikes were banned on all the trains that got to the local
station at a sane time of the morning 
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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82 Locost
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 09:23 PM |
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Just got in from a 10 mile time trial practice. Knackered now! Managed to average 20.4mph over 10 miles and then dragged my tired @rse home. I'm
working up to average 23mph over 10 miles.
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zilspeed
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| posted on 27/5/09 at 09:56 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by 82 Locost
Just got in from a 10 mile time trial practice. Knackered now! Managed to average 20.4mph over 10 miles and then dragged my tired @rse home. I'm
working up to average 23mph over 10 miles.
Well, I won't be doing that any time soon.
I certainly got up to that speed at times, but no way will I ever average that.
If I'm honest, I'm a bit scared of the speed when I get onto the biggest chain ring.
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82 Locost
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| posted on 28/5/09 at 08:19 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by zilspeed
quote:
Originally posted by 82 Locost
Just got in from a 10 mile time trial practice. Knackered now! Managed to average 20.4mph over 10 miles and then dragged my tired @rse home. I'm
working up to average 23mph over 10 miles.
Well, I won't be doing that any time soon.
I certainly got up to that speed at times, but no way will I ever average that.
If I'm honest, I'm a bit scared of the speed when I get onto the biggest chain ring.
You say that now, but you'll be addicted to speed, sweat and endorphines within a month.
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DarrenW
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| posted on 28/5/09 at 08:36 AM |
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Well done Zil. Have you managed to keep all of the weight off that you lost last year?
I should get out on my bike. Its a MTB with road tyres which makes it easier and ability to enjoy the old railway line routes. I find the hardest part
is getting started. Once you can crack a few hills (as fitness improves) it gets a whole more enjoyable. Before i got married i had a 8 mile round
trip route that i used to do, i tried to do it within a certain time. I found that did my fitness and weight a lot of good. It seems like a little but
often on a nice enjoyable route is the way to go at first to get addicted to it.
Ive been walking home a few times lately, approx 3 miles. Start of walk is an uphill section. I find the outsides of both calves start to lock up, get
cramped and hurt like hell - result is very painful legs. Its probs down to carrying too much weight though. Maybe i should do some stretches first as
well but im a bugger for not stretching and warming up.
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Marcus
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| posted on 28/5/09 at 11:53 AM |
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Good on you Zil.
I used to ride a lot as a kid. I treated myself to a nice MTB a few years ago, but it never got used.
Fortunately I screwed my car up changing the timing belt, and was forced to cycle to work, 5 miles each way really is worth doing. I've now
bought a full suspension MTB and 3 road bikes, 1 shopper, 1 commuter and 1 nice ally / carbon framed beast!
I think you could say I'm addicted again!!
I'll be doing the London Brighton next month, not too far, but should be fun
Marcus
Because kits are for girls!!
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zilspeed
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| posted on 28/5/09 at 03:58 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by DarrenW
Well done Zil. Have you managed to keep all of the weight off that you lost last year?
Yeah, prettty much.
Actually, yes all of it plus a smidge more.
The issue now is to try to build a bit more muscle along with a tiny bit more fat lost.
People who haven't seen me in a bit generally notice it, but underneath I know there are still things to sort out - especially around the
middle. Traditionally the hardest area to lose weight I'm told.
I don't want to be an ounce lighter than I am just now, just want to change the composition a bit.
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Simon
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| posted on 29/5/09 at 12:29 AM |
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Bought a cheapish MTB with knobblies(Giant Boulder) back in Feb with same intention for same reasons - over 40, ex smoker, no exercise since
school!
So, bought bike - now done about 60 miles (yes, in three months - it's not quite gone to plan), started swimming (fave sport since I was young)
soon after and now doing about 7500 metres a week. Might soon start running - just shortish runs as I still hate it.
Looks like I'm going to have to start putting the effort into the cycling too
ATB
Simon
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woodster
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| posted on 29/5/09 at 09:32 AM |
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I bought a bike from halfords a few weeks ago mainly to cycle ride with the wife and kids must admit i'd forgotten how much fun it is
....... my chicken legs ache 
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