Mountain Biking? Anyone into it?

[fletcherscustoms]

Well I'm trying to relive my youth! And bought me a bike!! Hell, who am I kidding I'm trying to drop 40 pounds off my fat but and get back to who I once was. Over the last 8 years I've went from 160 to 218.2lbs as of this morning. the wife and I attended a wedding this weekend and after seeing the pics of me beside my fit and trim wife. I was embarrassed and ashamed of myself. So I set out yesterday afternoon on hunt for a bike at the Local bike shop. Picked up a left over Trek Remedy 7. Santa Claus was good to me this year, and thank God for my Christmas bonus. This bike is way over my ability range, but I hope I can grow and get back in shape to were I can really enjoy it. Got up this morning at 6AM , through on some spandex (under neath my shorts and jacket of course) and hit the road. 5.1 miles and boy am I beat!! I almost fell up the stairs trying to climb back into the house after the ride. But boy do I feel good.

This is part of a total life and health change for me. I had hopefully my last cigarette yesterday at lunch. I'm kicking the patch and fighting my way through it. I'm also attending a Weight Watchers as they have the best diet plan I have found. I'll try to keep everyone updated as I progress

[CRCRFT78]

Good luck with it. I just cleaned up a nice mountain bike I found laying in the center divide of a freeway (I do highway maintenance) and have decided to start riding it to work to try and lose some pounds. 5'7" @ 205. Not good and I want to change that. Cellphone pic so its a little blurry. Got to love drivers who leave stuff behind on the freeway.

[fletcherscustoms]

I'm 5'8" and pushing 220lbs. My ideal weight according to my online research is 175. It sure would be nice to be back in that range again. This is a total lifestyle change from how I've been living the last 10 years. Its gonna wip my butt, but the payoff will be well worth it.

[CRCRFT78]

I hear you. With recent health issues nagging me and the last 5 doctors I've seen all telling me I need to lose about 30 pounds I think its time to pay attention. I quit drinking about 4 months ago and started to work on my diet. Now its time for me to do some exercising.

[fletcherscustoms]

yeah I had the same thing with the Docs. I get chronic bronchitus due to my smoking. I eat enough for two people most of the time. Yesterday was hard I started my diet, and had two BBQ chicken breasts, and a cup of green beans for lunch. Dinner was a grilled chix sandwich and plain baked potatoe. My stomach is trying to eat itself

[radrambler]

CHAD

here comes MARTY...lol
YOU STARTED TALKIN BOUT RIDING BIKES....

you havent felt the pain yet
Chads A$$ will really be hurting come tommorrow..gonna need a wheel chair if it hurts now ..:rofl:

:thumbsup:
Tom

[Vegas69]

The key is to have a routine that you can stick with. Don't kill yourself or you're likely to quit. Keep in mind that it's much easier to eat less calories than to burn them off. I eat like a horse but that's because I hit the gym hard. Good luck.......

[GregWeld]

Todd --

You'll have to give him some of your juicer recipes!!

[Sandbagger]

I have a Trec 4900 , just no time and now I have a foot of snow .
Dont even look at a scale , You might even gain weight ...mucsle weighs more than fat . Eventually you will lose the poundage .

[GregWeld]

The only DIET anyone can stick to permanently is to cook exactly what you like to eat -- and then only eat half of it... you have cut your calories exactly by half... and will loose weight - and not be "craving" the things you love...

So... want a steak and baked potato? Go ahead - just share one steak and one potato with your wife... or...

Add some exercise -- and you're in good shape (pun intended).

[70rs]

Good luck with it. I just cleaned up a nice mountain bike I found laying in the center divide of a freeway (I do highway maintenance) and have decided to start riding it to work to try and lose some pounds. 5'7" @ 205. Not good and I want to change that. Cellphone pic so its a little blurry. Got to love drivers who leave stuff behind on the freeway.

That is a dam nice bike to find just laying in the median. Nice! Good luck with your health plan too. You can do it, just pace yourself.:thumbsup:

[fletcherscustoms]

Thats the good thing about weight watchers. You eat what you want but in smaller portions. Went to lunch today at the local mexican place. Had my normal Chicken Fajitas, but with to tortilla shells and no sour cream. Also stayed away from the chips and salsa and rice and beans

[CRCRFT78]

You'd be surprised what is left on the freeway intentionally or unintentionally. This just happened to be a good road find.

[70rs]

You'd be surprised what is left on the freeway intentionally or unintentionally. This just happened to be a good road find.

I found a ladder once. Well, it found me, and the oil pan on my old truck. And it also found part of the exhaust too. But that ladder was so good that it removed all of those items in about a millisecond from under the truck.:rofl:


It fell off a cable installers van (not secured to the roof rack) and I had the option of hitting the cars on either side of me or going over it. I went over and it did some serious damage to the truck. The cable guy had no idea and just kept going. I never did get the name of the company or truck number.

[awr68]

On the way to work, I once found a really nice metal Coleman cooler. It was just laying on the side of I5 so I pulled over and grabbed it! The job I was doing was at a hospital, so my cousin and I figured we were safe to eat the picnic someone had packed...and then lost! I'm talking fried chicken, potato salid, the works! It was JUST what a couple hungry teen age kids needed! This was 20+ years ago and we still have the cooler! :D

[70rs]

You ate what was inside of it? Man, that is BRAVE! The fact that it came from a hospital would only make me more nervous!:rofl:

[GregWeld]

You ate what was inside of it? Man, that is BRAVE! The fact that it came from a hospital would only make me more nervous!:rofl:

Hey Eric -- You've met Anthony! That chicken was sprinkled with shrinking dust... it was a failed experiment they were doing down at the U of O...


:rofl: :rofl:

[70rs]

Hey Eric -- You've met Anthony! That chicken was sprinkled with shrinking dust... it was a failed experiment they were doing down at the U of O...


:rofl: :rofl:




:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Oh man!!!

[fletcherscustoms]

Talk about sore!! I really over did it yesterday!! I got up this morning in pure misery!! Drug myself outside got on the bike and struggled off. I only managed 2 miles this morning. And they were pure out miserable. God I'm out of shape worse than I thought. I'm sitting here at my desk in misery, legs still burning.

[awr68]

You ate what was inside of it? Man, that is BRAVE! The fact that it came from a hospital would only make me more nervous!:rofl:

No, I found the cooler on the interstate on the way to the Hospital....it wasn't Hospital food. I was doing a remodel at the Hospital.

[awr68]

Hey Eric -- You've met Anthony! That chicken was sprinkled with shrinking dust... it was a failed experiment they were doing down at the U of O...


:rofl: :rofl:


Feel the love! :rofl:

[radrambler]

Talk about sore!! I really over did it yesterday!! I got up this morning in pure misery!! Drug myself outside got on the bike and struggled off. I only managed 2 miles this morning. And they were pure out miserable. God I'm out of shape worse than I thought. I'm sitting here at my desk in misery, legs still burning.

:dance:
come on.. YOU CAN DOOO IT....GET UP AND DANCE...:rofl:
Ok WAIT A COUPLE DAYS TILL THE PAIN FADES AND RIDE AGAIN.DONT DO SO MUCH...IT GETS EASIER

Tom

[70rs]

No, I found the cooler on the interstate on the way to the Hospital....it wasn't Hospital food. I was doing a remodel at the Hospital.

Either way, Found On Road Dead. Cooler full of food on the side of the freeway just sounds scary to me. Of course, I could just be giving you a hard time for the fun of it too. :D


I am sure I would have ate it too at that age.:rofl:

[70rs]

Talk about sore!! I really over did it yesterday!! I got up this morning in pure misery!! Drug myself outside got on the bike and struggled off. I only managed 2 miles this morning. And they were pure out miserable. God I'm out of shape worse than I thought. I'm sitting here at my desk in misery, legs still burning.

You have to pace yourself or your new program will never get off the ground. Start in smaller steps and work up to a level that you can maintain daily. That is the only way you will feel good enough each morning to want to go do it again.

[syborg tt]

Okay since my degree's are in Personal Training I am going to offer some advise.

Rule Number One: Don't put all of you nuts in on basket.

Simple Explination: There are 3 Stages to any good Fitness Program

Stage 1: Health
Are you healthy enough to start an exercise program ?
Learning the importance of Breakfast and what to eat

Do you know how to use the equipment correctly ?
Trust me your High School Coach was an Idiot in most cases.

Maximun days training 2x per week.


Stage 2: Fitness
Now that you've learned the basic foundation for Safe Resistance training we can add an extra day.
Increase training to 3 x per week
Increase your Cardio Activity to 35 / 45 minutes
Flexibility - Post Exercise Stretching and how to perform it safely
Active Stretching
Passive Stretching
Static Stretching
what that heck does all of this mean

Stage 3: Goal Specific
Most commonly mistaken as where to start on your program
Generally used for Sport Secific training

Yep, I almost forgot. My first love is Mountain Biking. Actually rode 2 hours last night on the single track trails with 3 to 4" of snow on the ground. It was awesome

[syborg tt]

I almost forgot

I bring out the chains when the snow get's real deap

[70rs]

I almost forgot

I bring out the chains when the snow get's real deap

Now there is some serious dedication to riding!:thumbsup:

[NOT A TA]

Once you're up to the front axle in snow it gets reeealy hard to ride!

[70rs]

Once you're up to the front axle in snow it gets reeealy hard to ride!

That is why i enjoy things with engines. :D

[syborg tt]

Now there is some serious dedication to riding!:thumbsup:

We rode a week ago and the temp dropped to 2 man was it cold. Everything was good till i realized my facemask was frozen to my head.


So new rule - temp must be above 10 any lower and it's time to go inside and train.

But the good news is my new studded tires are going to be in tommorow.

Can't wait !!!

ps - Next Year after Sema we are going to go ride Boy's

[Roger M]

Hey Marty
I noticed that you arent running disc brakes. Is there a reason for that?

[syborg tt]

Hey Marty
I noticed that you arent running disc brakes. Is there a reason for that?

Hi Roger,

Actually that bike has become my cadence bike (crushed lime trails). It's been replaced by a full suspension rig.


I also have a bike that hangs out a my shop for when the weather sucks. I've set up some obstacles to screw around on.

ps I've attached a pic of my favorite trail network in Brown County Indiana

[syborg tt]

I almost forgot this is what happens when my buddy Kris brings his Wife and son along.

Lets See

1. Guy named Steve
2. Digital Scale
3. Baby wearing overalls
4. Priceless

Thankfully Mommy is a great gal.

[CRCRFT78]

Now thats a good pic of a father & son.

[syborg tt]

Now thats a good pic of a father & son.

What's better it's a best friend and the best friends son

[OLDFLM]

Talk about sore!! I really over did it yesterday!! I got up this morning in pure misery!! Drug myself outside got on the bike and struggled off. I only managed 2 miles this morning. And they were pure out miserable. God I'm out of shape worse than I thought. I'm sitting here at my desk in misery, legs still burning.

Hang in there brother!! Stick with it for 30 days and it will become a habit that you'll miss if you don't get your workout in!

You saw me before and after my 30lbs and know how much better I feel! :theresa:

Go Chad Go!!!! :woot:

[GregWeld]

We rode a week ago and the temp dropped to 2 man was it cold. Everything was good till i realized my facemask was frozen to my head.


So new rule - temp must be above 10 any lower and it's time to go inside and train.

But the good news is my new studded tires are going to be in tommorow.

Can't wait !!!

ps - Next Year after Sema we are going to go ride Boy's


I think I just figured out why I'm fat... I was thinking that after SEMA I'd go WATCH someone race.... EEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAA:cheers:

[eville]

I lost over 75 pounds with diet and exercise.
I rode about 100 miles a week on a road and mountain bike.
I stopped riding for a few years and found about 50 of it back.
I started riding again. Here's my Santa Cruz Superlight...
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d143/sej275/bike/CIMG0335.jpg

[89 RS]

I've got a Gary Fisher - Hoo Koo E Koo. It's a hardtail, but I've had it for about 6 years. I used to be hardcore into mountain biking, but kind of got away from it couple years ago with work and everything. We got our son a Haro Z12 BMX bike with training wheels for Xmas, he's only two, but I can't wait to see his face. He loves cars and pretty much anything with wheels. Buying that bike for my son got me motivated again, to get out and ride. Seeing all these posts has motivated me also.

[Blitzwing]

Did the mountain biking thing for about 4 years. Last year I switched to a road bike and started riding around town and hitting some paths. I kinda like the road bike much more. I picked up a new Specialized Rockhopper disc about a year and a half back and probably didn't put 100 miles on it. Anyone looking for a nice MB?:D

[billscamaros]

I just got a Gary Fisher Piranha mountain bike for Christmas/anniversary. I've been a runner for many years, and wanted to spend a little time biking over the next years. This bike just rocks!!! I plan to pick up a road bike this coming summer. There is a bicycle club that rides several nights a week during the spring and summer, and I'd like to try to hang with them a bit.

Christmas was cool this year. My sister and I bought a new bike for my dad, who turned 73 this year. He likes to ride on the rail trails, so this is another way for me to get to spend some quality time with him. It's a little cold for him to ride now, but we're looking forward to the spring.

[syborg tt]

I just got a Gary Fisher Piranha mountain bike for Christmas/anniversary. I've been a runner for many years, and wanted to spend a little time biking over the next years. This bike just rocks!!! I plan to pick up a road bike this coming summer. There is a bicycle club that rides several nights a week during the spring and summer, and I'd like to try to hang with them a bit.

Christmas was cool this year. My sister and I bought a new bike for my dad, who turned 73 this year. He likes to ride on the rail trails, so this is another way for me to get to spend some quality time with him. It's a little cold for him to ride now, but we're looking forward to the spring.

That's pretty awesome.

One of my riding partners is in his late 50's and he still kicks everyone's butt.

Your never to old to ride.

Remember Riding doesn't make you old - Not riding makes you old !!!

[cdushane]

Chad, i have to agree with Todd (Vegas69) as it does get easier and don't burn yourself out to quickly in the beginning. i've been training for 20 years and still to this day it hurts, but it's putting your body through it that makes it worth it and when your all done you feel much better about yourself. if you need any help with the diet give me a call, i'd be glad to guide you through a few things.

[ricer]

i am a hardcore MTB'er (ride a fully customized Moots Ti) and have seen many people come and go into mountain biking. For most people there are all into it in the beginning then the novelty starts to fizzle out and you don't feel like driving to your favorite riding spots.

To curb this, assuming you still want to ride, get yourself a road bike as well. On the days you don't feel like driving or motivated, just jump on the road bike and ride directly from your house however far you want to go. Road bikes you can go much faster on so you would almost have to double the distance you would go on a MTB to get the same "burn". Invest in a good computer and when you ride try to keep the same MPH or cadence regardless of hills/decents and set a realistic target.

For instance when i MTB i try to average anywhere from 10-15mph depending on the trail with a minimal 10 mile ride. On the road bike i shoot for 20-22mph average with a minimal of 30-40 mile ride.

[syborg tt]

So Mr Fletcher how is the riding ??