Moving house, hip injury (now resolved), ill for 4 months (which turned out to be a lactose intolerance), not knowing the area (as a ‘bonkers’ 😛 women I am not always that confident of exploring on my own when p20 isn’t about), and I find myself in a rut. I know I’ve put weight on and I am not fit and as a result I have no motivation to get going again. When I do feel motivated something happens, like on Friday my bad back flared up so my plans of trying to get back to running didn’t happen. Cycle to my (newish) work is 12 miles but haven’t got my head round the route yet and on the days I’ve got time to get lost, the weather turns crap. I know all excuses, but I’m struggling to get out of the hole and I just resort to gin (not helping the weight!). I am managing Pilates class once a week in a positive move!

I know other people end up in this situation for various reasons. How do you get restarted?

Chasing my own Strava segment times back in January, especially up hills within two miles of home, often linked up.

Tomorrow morning I’m repeating my five cat4 hill route to Butser Hill and back home to Bitterne, that I did for the first time on Sunday. 8)

Naproxen from the GP and work towards a goal.

Start sorting one thing at a time. First step make a list.

Weight lack of fitness is a circle that needs breaking. One feeds on the other. You could start with a good diet, no booze? Also no cost solution

Try BMF

https://www.britmilfit.com/

From personal experience a nice friendly group and will hopefully help kickstart your mojo !

Naproxen from the GP and work towards a goal.

Draw full of the stuff. Largely back is manageable, though frustrating at times when it randomly flares up. Goal is a good point as that is what got me running to start with, a charity 10k last autumn. Maybe should sign up for something else.

Start sorting one thing at a time. First step make a list.

Good advice and I am a fan of a list. I have managed to turn my diet round before, cutting out sugar etc and lost a stone. Got back into bad habits over the hassle of moving over the last year. I will look back at the recipe books.

You reset your goals. For a variety of reasons i lost a lot of fitness over a 4 year period after having maintained a good level for the previous twenty. The biggest problem was getting my head around the idea that I was crap at things that i used to be good at. Whatever i attempted it was a disappointment because I couldn’t do it at the level that I expected.

So I started from scratch with the most basic exercise i could think of, just walking round the block, no target time, just walking a set distance every other day gradually increasing the distance. Then started hillwalking to add a bit of interest and then gym sessions. First day back at spinning classes were another massive disappointment but I knew so long as I just kept going back and being a little less crap each time i would eventually get back to somewhere i would be happy with. Still got a lot of work to do but it’s at a stage now where I’m enjoying exercise again and don’t feel like I’m letting myself down.

So the key for me was to reset my expectations, do the exercise regularly (even if its only a small amount) and accept that it’ll take a bit of time but so long as you keep it up you’ll gradually get better.

I always recommend a bit of time planning.
Time X 3-4 days a week is bike/run time, remove as many excuses as possible. If rain stops you, get a rain jacket or an indoor trainer and ride anyway.
No appointments, no visitors, an unmissable appointment in the diary. Might take a month or 2 to get into a routine, but once you are in one it’ll seem normal.

Join a (cycling) club?

A bit of banter and competition can help. You’re also less likely to fall back on an excuse if you committed to riding to others.

The Lance Armstrong Workout: Build a Strong Foundation – Men’s Health

7 Benefits of Strength Training That Go Way Beyond Buff Arms

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/knowledge/training-plans/article/izn20160113-Ask-the-experts-How-to–Top-tips-to-stay-motivated-for-cycling-0

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/knowledge/article/izn20170105-Understanding-training-Beating-winter-blues-0

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/knowledge/training/understand-training

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/knowledge/training/off-the-bike

As others have said, set a goal, enter a low key race, running or biking (or even orienteering, very friendly and good at improving map reading skills). And don’t be too hard on yourself, everyone has dips in enthusiasm or fitness, even if you’ve put some weight on you’re probably fitter than you think and definitely fitter than a large proportion of society.

Also try mixing up sports. I’m doing my fare share of open water swimming at the moment and it’s wonderful. Granted it means I’m riding less than normal but can’t do everything and I’m enjoying it which is the main thing.

Last thing, definitely join a club, it’ll be motivation in itself having others with you and you’ll learn the area much better.

not sure of it helps, but I find routine is crucial for getting and staying fit.

Monday wednesday friday at 1pm- 2pm you train , for example. no meetings, other bookings etc, you are not available. you mention ‘when I feel motivated’, but if you organise things so you dont have anything else to do at those times, motivation becomes less relevant. cant help with injures but best of luck

Just get out for 30 minutes on the bike, somewhere from your doorstep and ride to have fun with no expectation of average speeds or distances.

I’m in okay shape at the moment, but ran out of time yesterday and could only manage 30 minutes after the reading the kids stories – about 9pm before I got out. It genuinely was one of my favourite rides of the year, just messing about for half an hour on local tracks.

Do this a few times a week for half an hour each time, and after a few weeks you’ll be feeling so much better.

Get a running dog.

You’ll go out whether you want to or not.

And even a miserable day with lashing rain is fun when your dog is bounding around happy. 🙂

I also go through “cycles” when I lack motivation. Arranging to.go.out with other folk always helps as I hate not showing up, regardless of mood or weather. However I know that can be daunting when you’re feeling unfit as you don’t want to slow folk down or be shown up. Maybe try to find someone else at a similar level.and work at it together?

A couple of short term goals and a long term goal(Cairngorm Loops in 48hrs?) might also help give you some focus. Make them incrementally more challenging so that they are achievable, but on lyrics at a stretch.

Go on a map reading course and explore your new local area. As you get fitter you’ll be able to head further afield too.

I would suggest working out the route to work. Check it out on google maps and select the cycling option. Give yourself plenty of time to get there and enjoy it.

New area? See if you can get some new regular riding partners. Makes all the difference for motivation knowing someone is waiting for you. You’ll also get to know all the best trails, so putting together decent solo routes will be easier too. When I moved from north to south, I posted on here and a stw’er showed me around. Ace knowledge and fun riding – (cheers bugpowderdust!) .

Read up about polarized training.

Matt Fitgerald 80/20 running is a good book to explain it. That type of 80% really easy then 20% hard should help with injuries and also a rut if you are in one.

Can easily be applied to the bike.

Thanks all. Some useful pointers, some of which I guess I already know, but I need spelling out to me! I walk pretty much every day, averaging my 10000-11000 steps per day over a week, so somewhere there is some base fitness.

I love a range of sports, cycling and hill walking first, but also kayaking, swimming, indoor climbing, off-road running etc! I could do with a good multi-sport club in West Yorkshire where I can mix all these things up, but the best one, Swadale is 1.5 hours drive away and I am just not going to manage to fit that in round work.

However, you are right about joining a club to ‘force’ me to join in, but also as a way to meet new people in the area, which really we haven’t done yet. I am not that keen on joining a ‘womens’ club as I’d like p20 to join rides when he isnt working. I’ve looked up kayaking and biking clubs overnight and annoyingly all the ones which appeal clash with my Pilates!! We are right on the edge of Wharfedale, so there are masses of road clubs, but trying to find a mtb club ideally – will see if Chevin Cycles do mid week shop rides (weekends are full for us for the next few weeks!).

Also, the University has now closed for the summer, so the excellent on-campus sports center (which I am yet to visit!) shouldn’t be too busy and could kick start me into the action – I see they are doing a £20 10 day all access pass – might sign up to that next week to get me moving. I need to get a swim a week back into my diary as its good for both my fitness and my back.

Go on a map reading course and explore your new local area

Fortunantly with a PhD in Geography and a lifetime in the hills, this bit isnt an issue – its the motivation of going out on my own and not getting shouted at/run over!

I would suggest working out the route to work.

Yes, I will do this – I work flexibly, so no excuses really!

Right, I am working from home today, so I will go out on the bike locally this evening after work – I have an hours route I know. And then I will try and work out a bit of a schedule in my diary! I tend to work best with a plan! And no more sugar, to try and help with the weight loss!

Thanks for the links paton – will look at those over lunch.

I don’t know if you use Strava, or even record your activities using a GPS but you might want to consider Veloviewer. It uses Strava data for all dort of geeky stats including a thing called an Explorer Square. It’s a great way of encouraging you to explore and would be perfect if you are into multiple outdoor sports.

Even just comparing the number of miles/hours/calories on a weekly or monthly basis might be a good target setting/motivation tool.

Thanks Scotroute for the veloviewer link – that appeals to the geek in me! Yes, I do use Strava – but I tend to avoid it when I know other people have been out but I havent 🙁

Ride your bike for a purpose other than “fitness”. Commuting is the ideal reason for riding a bike. Even three times a week will provide six hours of gentle moderate exercise. Cycling is not load bearing. Work on that route, set a goal of three times a week. Invest in some mudguards. An increase in fitness is assured, then you might join a club for the social aspects of rides.

If all else fails, invest in a E-bike for the commute and do it five times a week. After three months you’ll be amazed at your outlook.

“melancholy is incompatible with bicycling” James E Starrs

Crossfit has changed my meaning of fitness and helped me recoup from a long term injury. It is constantly varied and constantly challenging.

Google it and see what you think.

Agree that getting the commute sorted sounds like an excellent step in the right direction. It gives a base threshold fitness that is always there, all the other benefits are really clear, and you have to go to work anyhow. I find that if I hit a bad patch with the ‘proper’ riding, injured or not getting out enough etc, it’s never too hard to get back into things with the commute turning over.

120 miles a week would be solid commuting – as others have said do 2 or 3 days a week at first if you’re coming back from a period of no cycling.

Crossfit has …

Brave man mentioning CF outside the safety of the Box 😉

Why??

Ferris-Beuller – Member

Why?? The franchise system of crossfit means the coaches are hit and miss. And you don’t really want miss when it comes to dynamically throwing weight around, as injury is guaranteed.

OTOH I know personally a couple of people who have been transformed by crossfit, like you say you have – no injuries or problems at all. They never shut up about it, like, but clearly it works for some folk.

As mentioned above, making sure that you enjoy at least some of the exercise that you do is really important if you’re working towards a fitness goal. I know for me that the regular cafe rides with mates in the winter are what keeps me going through all of the grim turbo sessions.

Also re: clubs. In every road club there are a few mountain bikers, so may be worth trying a club out to see who you meet.

Well it took a lot of self coaxing to get out the door, but eventually I did and I am pleased I did. It was a massive 8.5 miles (though round here that involves 1000 foot of climbing!), but thoroughly enjoyable, despite the endless sweat!!! Maybe the start of breaking the bad habits was just talking about it! I even managed to avoid sugar too with a salad for lunch and a salmon stir fry for dinner!

I even took a picture to prove to you all I went out
[url=https://flic.kr/p/UMcWPz]IMG_20170621_202137_758[/url] by Tasha, on Flickr

Turns out it is hard to take a selfy, holding a slippy phone, whilst riding on cobbles!

The one sad moment was when I realised the QoM I got (as a result of getting a bit lost), I took from Jenn Hill and she isnt here to take it back 😥 😥

Life is lived forward, don’t look back 😉 well done

#humblebrag 😉

I’m a (female) otley cc member. We don’t do too much off road stuff – I did go on a MTB ride a couple of years ago with them but they fell away a bit. Some of the social rides end up a bit more cross style as one of the people who leads them has a tendency to divert down tracks. I’m more of a roadie though anyway so haven’t really explored the off road side of things since I got into time trialling!

We do Wednesday evening rides and Tuesday/Thursday “mountain goat” rides and I think the chevin shop rides are Tuesday evening (or at least it was this week).

Let me know if you need more info.

Thanks hjghg5. That’s useful to know. See the blue jerseys everywhere, it’s clearly a keen club. Don’t tend to ride road that much but wondering if it is a good way to meet people and get some fitness. Unfortunately we can’t make the social Sunday rides for the next few weeks 🙁 but I think we might try and come along. Neither of us could hold onto a B pace at the moment.

Scotroutes… Ops – not thinking 😯

We seem to have grown really fast – when I joined a few years back there were only really the sunday rides and one social option every fortnight – the other rides have started up because people say “does anyone fancy this” and it takes off from there
So just because there isn’t much off road at the moment it doesn’t mean there never will be and doing a few road rides may help you meet the people who would be up for it.

B pace isn’t too bad. I rarely do the group rides these days because I always seem to be racing but they are essentially a long social ride rather than properly pushing on.