Exercise and age

[Green Giant]

We are actually thinking of selling the campervan, as I know we don’t get out in the fresh air as much as when we used to use a tent, I find it so easy to just chill in the van when the weather is unpleasant.. have a drink, read a book, scroll internet, switch the heater on, have some more snacks…
Thinking of going back to cycle touring which I absolutely love, it always seems much more of an adventure, cheaper way to travel too.
Also get back into backpacking which we also used to do before we got a camper,
Am I blaming the van for my lack of motivation..

 

[DXX]

We are actually thinking of selling the campervan, as I know we don’t get out in the fresh air as much as when we used to use a tent, I find it so easy to just chill in the van when the weather is unpleasant.. have a drink, read a book, scroll internet, switch the heater on, have some more snacks…
Thinking of going back to cycle touring which I absolutely love, it always seems much more of an adventure, cheaper way to travel too.
Also get back into backpacking which we also used to do before we got a camper,
Am I blaming the van for my lack of motivation..

No, when you are on foot with a ruck sack you have to keep moving. I do the rough camping with a tent / rucksack and the van stuff, totally different ball game.
Vans definitely don’t keep you fit if you don’t just use it as a base to sleep.

 

[Sasquatch]

I use the van as a base to hike from, or sometimes take my folding bike. I love a good stroll.

 

[CJW]

I’m 50 and after being very active hill walking, mountain and road biking, snowboarding etc with a good BMI I put on quite a bit after our lad was born (long story but wife wasn’t well).

It took me years to figure out which little opportunities I’ve got to exercise without abandoning the family, and am now doing two things - three nights a week I do 20 minutes intensive on the rowing machine and each Saturday morning our 11 year old lad earns his PlayStation time by coming with me on my MTB local circuit which is only 8km and flat but all off road. I’ve been slowly losing weight.

Why rowing? Bike turbo trainers are satan’s work - never been so numb! Hated it! Tedious and painful. Running machines knacker my knees - too high impact. Rowing is a good indoor training experience for me in comparison.

92kg / 6’4”

 

[Green Giant]

I sometimes get dragged into doing the 5k park runs, a painful experience if you don’t do them regularly,.. years ago before I ruptured my Achilles, during a sprint training session racing the young ones,, I was able to get under 20 minutes regularly, although that was also a painful experience, its now 30 minute.
I don’t want to put anyone off Park run as I think it’s an amazing event to take part in

 

[GUMY]

There's a lot of running and cycling going on here, neither of which I do (apart from an occasional gentle bike ride), but I feel OK because I've just finished my 4 km swim which I do three times a week (except when away in the van!) I swam a lot as a kid and cycled a lot, but just for fun. Was never sporty or into exercise, but took up swimming again seriously a few years ago. Now at 59 I'm probably in better shape than ever.

6'2" / 91 kgs

 

[Sackmycook]

Bike turbo trainers are satan’s work - never been so numb! Hated it! Tedious and painful.

Zwift has really good user interfaces allowing group rides and social interaction via message or 'discourse' (a radio channel) you can choose your level, select rides from which you can't get dropped (rubberbanding), or just adopt a training plan and the computer will adjust your efforts. I ride about an hour, have a good chat, look at the virtual scenery....

 

[Sasquatch]

Or, I could just go for a bike ride.

Nipping into town, the doctors, opticians, wherever, I ride my bike. Its easier to fit that into my life than it is to make time to ride a trainer.

Don't feel lile riding a trainer? Id swerve off.

Don't feel like riding to the doctors? Tough, its that or walk.

Saves time, money, and keeps me trim. What's not to like?

 

[Lubrown]

Or, I could just go for a bike ride.

Nipping into town, the doctors, opticians, wherever, I ride my bike. Its easier to fit that into my life than it is to make time to ride a trainer.

Don't feel lile riding a trainer? Id swerve off.

Don't feel like riding to the doctors? Tough, its that or walk.

Saves time, money, and keeps me trim. What's not to like?

I’ve moved garages for the car and van so whenever I have work, service, MOT done etc I now have a longer bike ride home (and back again to collect them).
I do exercise here and there and walk lots but I agree - even doing the chores can be turned into an opportunity.
Great thing about the route to the garage on the other side of the city is there is a new segregated cycle track alongside the road. I’m nowhere near as fast as I used to be but even a casual pedal means I can keep pace with the same car for that nine miles (lots of people drive alongside the cycle route as it also leads to the main hospital- a huge employer with a very expensive car park that can easily take half an hour to get in/out).

 

[Paynewright]

I’m beginning to feel my bit of lugging stuff in the warehouse and 1.5 hours of cycling in 16 bursts isnt enough!

When I first started cycling to/from work, home is uphill all the way and it took me longer to recover than to get home! My recovery rate is much quicker now and can hold a conversation the moment I’m in the door

 

[dubber36]

Has anyone had a bike fit recently? I bought a new bike the other week as as part of the deal had an ID Fit. It's a proper piece of kit. They haven't moved my position all that much, but the difference is remarkable. The first ride on the new bike was about 3 hours and for the first time in years I didn't get any neck twinges at all.

 

[Lubrown]

Has anyone had a bike fit recently? I bought a new bike the other week as as part of the deal had an ID Fit. It's a proper piece of kit. They haven't moved my position all that much, but the difference is remarkable. The first ride on the new bike was about 3 hours and for the first time in years I didn't get any neck twinges at all.

I looked at a proper bike fit but the price (and potential knock on costs if new cranks, saddle, stem etc. were needed) put me off for now.
If I used the pedal bike more I’d reconsider as I’ve heard nothing but praise for them.

 

[Sasquatch]

Has anyone had a bike fit recently? I bought a new bike the other week as as part of the deal had an ID Fit. It's a proper piece of kit. They haven't moved my position all that much, but the difference is remarkable. The first ride on the new bike was about 3 hours and for the first time in years I didn't get any neck twinges at all.

Not recently, but I have had one. It wasn't my idea but a good friend had already paid for it but couldn't go on account of being unwell so he gifted it to me.

I've two issues with it;

I've a bit of restricted mobility in my right arm with is held together with titanium, and I was quite uncomfortable after the fit. Little point in some hyper efficient riding position if I was so uncomfortable I couldn't use it for any length of time - nothing but nothing is more important than being comfortable. Apparently I'm not alone in that, a lot of pro riders wait until no-one is looking and rack the sest up half an inch or rotate the bar a few degrees to suit them.

And the main reason id never booked one myself - Cyclefit, Performance Bikefit, Retul, etc - all differ and disagree with certain points of biomechanics. They cant all be right, so which one, if any, is optimum?

 

[Bigsidavies]

Just remember when you dust off the 1990 Specialized downhiller that you won’t bounce like you used to 35 years ago…….but it’ll be fun while it lasts.

I’m 57 and currently massaging a large grisly lump from my shin that I acquired the other week while tear-arising down drum mountain in wales and exiting the mountain bike on a bend. Don’t bounce like I used to, but still ride like a dick.

 

[DXX]

I’m 57 and currently massaging a large grisly lump from my shin that I acquired the other week while tear-arising down drum mountain in wales and exiting the mountain bike on a bend. Don’t bounce like I used to, but still ride like a dick.

I can guarantee that we reached our peak ability at about 32, from then on the brain deteriorated and we still think were as good.

 

[Frigo110]

Or, I could just go for a bike ride.

Nipping into town, the doctors, opticians, wherever, I ride my bike. Its easier to fit that into my life than it is to make time to ride a trainer.

Don't feel lile riding a trainer? Id swerve off.

Don't feel like riding to the doctors? Tough, its that or walk.

Saves time, money, and keeps me trim. What's not to like?

Not everyone has the luxury of riding whenever they want, especially during the week when daylight is limited and schedules are tight.
I get up every other mornign at 5am to ride my bike - it´s fine to drive 20min in the dark but today I came home in the dark 90min later.
Then walking the dog and having a shower, after dropping the kids of, work, picking up the kids and prepping dinner it´s again dark outside.

A turbo trainer really is an alternative. Zwift makes it engaging, and it’s a much safer option when it’s dark or icy outside.
The other challange is that I do 25miles when I´m on my weekday rides - I don´t want to do that on my way to Aldi and stop every 2min for traffic.

Plus, having it set up under the pergola with sliding doors sounds like the perfect hybrid — fresh air when you want it, shelter when you need it!

It’s all about finding what works best for your routine and keeping the momentum going

 

[Sasquatch]

I have lights for riding at night. Discovered them some years ago and they've been a revelation.

The bike also works in the rain too!

The danger of avoiding poor conditions such as ice is that your fundamental riding skills never develop to deal with them - when you do encounter something dicey out and about you risk not being able to deal with it and, kerblammo! Down you go.

Look at the first tour following covid. They'd all done a lot more time on the rollers than normal, some hardly any actual live tarmac time, and they were all over the place as their spatial awareness and control skills had degraded. They were a dangerous mess and quite a few went down.

Use or lose it!

Indoors is better than nothing at all by a long margin and id never denigate anyone for getting off the sofa, but its no substitute for actually riding a bike.

 

[Bigsidavies]

I can guarantee that we reached our peak ability at about 32, from then on the brain deteriorated and we still think were as good.

I was up at Kirroughtree a few weeks ago and I don’t have the concentration for trail centres anymore. I went into dream mode and rode off the trail about 3 times.

 

[Sasquatch]

I used to teach MTBing to the dibble, trumpton and SAR, bjt I wouldn't do it now. I still have the technical ability, but my reactions have gone - id be on the ground unconscious before I had the chance to act now, so I stick to mild trails and gravel rather than full-on MTBing.

Old pilots, bold pilots, and all that.

 

[Paynewright]

We have Hicks Lodge near us which is a fairly mild meander through the woods. Also Cannock Chase, where I understand the air ambulance lands on a regular basis!