[Closed] Anyone ever just 'lose interest' in riding for a little while?

get a child, introduce them 🙂

Yeah. Have a few key hobbies and interest in each waxes and wanes eg havent done much climbing this year and cycling is slightly down whereas kayaking is up.

I had to do a bit of "cycle soul searching" this year after illness and then injury stopped my progressive improvements since Jan 2017. Bad weather in August made me sign up for Zwift and as much as I've ridden outside far less than I hoped, I've turned my FTP corner and it's back on the rise again.

yeah. barely rode at all last winter and not much this summer. been running and surfing way more.

I say don't force it. Cycling is supposed to be fun so if I am not having fun then I do something else for a while.

That or buy or build a new bike 😉

yep,

Had that this year. Still love it when I'm out but getting going is tough. I think its come from a few things. The summer has been a bit rubbish, i'm happy to contend with winter weather in winter but not summer. I've also had a year where really stupid failures happen at the worst possible times. and its really frustrating. As a few examples this time last year in the quantocks on a riding holiday, second ride 5 spokes broke on my rear wheel for seemingly no reason, this year a brake lever went whilst in Shropshire, the circlip of my seat post failed and the innards dropped out of the bottom of it, fortunately we were local for that one. I'm also finding the constant maintenance a bit wearing.. I really do try to keep on top of the bikes but just as one thing is sorted something else goes.

Its just a phase though. Its happened before and I'm sure it'll happen again. The up side is having a bit of time away makes me really enjoy myself when I want to be out there!!

Similar, love bikes, love riding bikes off and on the road, love tinkering with bikes but sometimes, especially when right muckiest, I can give them a miss. Also we have lots of hobbies, kayak, canoe, have raced cars and motorbikes, plus others so can get to busy for bikes to get a look in.
Watching the world cups this year and getting ready for and riding a couple of enduros really got me back in the saddle.

Yeah. Have a few key hobbies and interest in each waxes and wanes

This ^ for me too. I'm always keen to ride but life often gets in the way and then I sometimes lose motivation for a while and forget about the whole thing. Sometimes it can be for several years like after our kids were born, but usually its just a seasonal thing. As winter approaches I will typically go into ski mode until spring. I can't be arsed with winter riding anymore.

I did - been about 8 years now! 🙂

Yes. When my sister died I rode to forget. When my mother died six months later I just didn't feel like riding at all. When I'm really miserable riding doesn't do it for me! I found racing brought it back. Adrenaline rush of sitting in the bunch joshing it out with friends took my mind of matters. You an't think about anything else. Off-road riding with small children is also a great way of upping the enthusiasm.

If I don't feel like riding, building bikes is often a good distraction too. As are long walks with the dog and flying my Revolution kite.

1st day out for a blast yesterday for about 3 or 4 years.

House move and other domestic stuff seemed to get in the way.

Spend Sunday tinkering with my flat bar road bike,replaced all the rusty frame bolts with new, de-greased the drivetrain, bought a new computer and went out exploring. Country lanes, gravel roads and a couple of cheeky trails. Really enjoyed it.

Get my fitness back before I get the road bike proper out.

Yep. I used to ride a lot both with mates and on my own. Over the last two years i've pretty much stopped riding on my own and now just ride with my main riding buddy. This means rides are about 1 or 2 a month due to other stuff like family etc. The rest of the time i do other things.

I think being unfit is a huge barrier to going out riding so as long as you are doing something else to keep in good shape then you can skip the whole "beating yourself up for not riding" part and just go out when you want to.

I've just come back from 10-11 years off. Absolutely loving road riding again with a good group after the short break....

Only downside is I can no longer buy spare parts for any of my bikes eg 10sp Dura Ace chain anyone?

I have a CBA moment every year Oct/Nov/Dec time after the constant training and racing since Jan. I feel guilty throughout and eventually get going again to 'earn' my Christmas dinner et al 😀

I've commuted by bike on and off for 20 years. There are times when all I want to do is ride and others where I can't even look at a bike. I'm currently on a peak because I have a new bike (Saracen Levarg) but I know there will be a trough at some point. The thing that gets me back on the bike is looking at my man boobs developing. That gets me back on the bike pretty quickly.

yep, was getting a bit jaded with always riding the same bits of countryside as never had the time to get further afield (but I reckon that was just an excuse - you can always make time) so I stopped riding regularly for a couple of years which led to a rapid decline in fitness as I can't run anymore due to injury.

Bought a fat bike last year and immediately started riding more as it was fun in the mud.

That got me fitter and I started cycling to work as much as possible.

Bought a gravel bike to help with the commute and started riding it on the weekend......

......now really back in the cycling groove and fitter than I've been for a while.

Which is great!

There is a lot of habit and also change being good.
I find riding as a habit easy... though don't really like riding alone but gets me out then I feel better.
But equally a change can be good... especially when something becomes a habit or feels stale.

I used to enjoy reading the paper and doing the crossword. (Old days commute by train to London) then changed to driving and enjoyed the change of not getting the train but stopped doing the paper/crossword or sometimes I read fiction voraciously ... other times i end up watching netflics
Gyms ... and all sorts

I think sometimes though you need to give yourself a push and re-start a habit ???

Variety helps. if u've lost the mojo try a little change. different type of ride, join a club and help some noobs, seek out a scout group and see if they need a helper for a ride, trailbuilding clubs always need helpers, simplify your riding etc etc
don't take it to seriously it's just messing about on bikes, try to keep any fitness you have regardless of the biking though :o)

Really just not been all that interested this year in any of it 🙁

Have any of you had an off season where you’re really not that bothered about riding?

Season? Try 3yrs.

I gave up, bikes still hanging in the spare room.. kept most of my gear and am classifying this “off season” as Surfing Season.

🤷‍♂️

Yup, couldn’t be bothered for a good while, my love of cycling has been rekindled with a gravel bike, love the madness that is a relatively light stiff bike off road and the speed that has made hills shorter and the world a smaller place.

Aye, I've been a bit a ambivalent to riding for about 18 months.

First ride in a couple of months yesterday, munro in the morning, Comrie in the afternoon.

Was good, but still not really bouncing to get back out like I used to.

I do plenty outdoor stuff, so not particularly bothered.

Yep absolutely have this.
my interest in all sports varies. Currently less biking, no climbing, plenty of swimming and paddleboarding. Trying to do more snow boarding.
it will all change again soon, I quite like it as it means when I want to do something I really want to do it.
getting my arse kicked at Lee Valley tomorrow as have decided to have a play on moving water again

There are times (days or weeks) when I can't be arsed so I'll go for walks or runs or something instead. Owning a bicycle doesn't have to define who you are 😊 Same with playing guitar, I can go for weeks on end without playing but it's there if I want to pick it up.

Yep, met a woman in 2016 and hardly ridden since. Lap full of warm bum or a cold dual carriageway?
Been doing lots of jiving, now I have dance partner. Paddle boarding we love that.
But the loves just starting to come back, though I'm not getting out of our bed to ride.

We retire and move to Brighton next year, hoping that a new riding patch after the same one for over forty years will help.

getting my arse kicked at Lee Valley tomorrow

Legacy or Olympic? If it helps legacy is pretty tame right now since only two pumps. Although it has resulted in a couple of the eddies being more vicious overall its easier (although physically more knackering since cant use the flow the same so actually have to put paddle strokes in).

Only on legacy, qualified a few years ago, but taken a break so am getting a coaching session.
looking forward to it, I think I'm taking the playboat as it is more amusing than the river boat

I find that when I feel like that I'm off the bike for a few weeks.

Then I force it on an evening when there's nice weather and I remember that I'm being a ****ing idiot and I *always* have a better time on the bike than off it.

I injured myself whilst training for a 4X race back in 2008, was unable to ride for quite a while as a result and sort of fell out of the habit once I was back to fitness.

I got back into playing ice hockey and never really missed mountain biking. Tried to get enthused about it a couple of times but, having drifted away for 'bike people' found it difficult to get myself up for going out by myself, so just stuck with the ice hockey.

Eventually I picked up an injury with put me out of ice hockey too and it never really healed properly, which meant I was often playing either out of shape or carrying said injury. Decided to call it a day with the ice hockey and, after bit of soul searching, decided to give mtbing another try.

I still had a few frames and components from before stashed away so built up a Dialled Bikes Holeshot to just play about on, then brought a NOS Dialled Bikes Love/Hate for longer distance stuff and found a couple of local mtb groups who'd let me tag along.

Earlier this year I brought a Mk1 Cotic Rocket frame and built that up with components brought from on here and FB etc and, whilst I'm nowhere near as fit as I once was nor out 2-3 times a week, I am enjoying myself again. Doubt I'll ever get back into racing, I'm just doing it for fun nowadays.

Yeah, 2011: stripped and cleaned the bike, put the bits in a bike bag - and didn't touch it until 2014, when I spent a day building it back up and went for a ride. It's not a job.

Not sure why people who've lost interest in cycling are still posting about it on forums, though.

Yeah, three years and counting now. Hit a tree going downhill and rolled my neck right over - that resulted in a CT scan and neck x-ray and who knows how close it was to a broken neck. Lost my bottle after that and never found it again and the fun was gone.

must have rode barely a dozen times last year , just couldnt be arsed in general in addition to feeling lethargic from long hours at work during summer.

however my bike was pretty fuk'd so a £500 rebuilt over winter and the mojo returned.

have been out riding more times in first 6 months of this year than the last 2 years combined.

will expect it to drop off during the worst of winter being realistic , not going to ride in the cold wet crap just to prove some point , just have to be more selective in when to ride so as to still enjoy it.

Lost interest in riding probably this time last year - and not discovered it yet this year. I have only done just over 4000 miles this year, which is probably about half the miles I usually do each year.

I am trying to get my legs used to running, which at the moment is painful and difficult. First my calf was seizing up after about half a mile, and now the knee is swelling up after a couple miles ... but I am motivated to start chasing sub 19 minutes 5k times in the local park runs. Just over 3 minutes off at the moment, but once legs are used to running I think I can start chasing it with motivation.

If it gets boring then just find another hobby/interest to keep you motivated.

Since Xmas. Was finding my rides getting a bit repetitive, visited the uk for the week, bought some trail shoes and went running. Saturday was my first ride since then, and that's only because my leg is knackered. Missing the running more than I missed the bike.
That said, I haven't had a MTB for a few years now. If I had room for one (or got round to making room), I'd be riding a lot more.

Very, very rarely

1999 to 2006 and 2017 to August 2019. The 7 yr lay off was a case of basically throwing my GT Timberline in the skip.

Riding is a mental therapy for me. I have to ride even if my mojo has gone. Zwifting in a garage won't cut it, has to be out in countryside. I sometimes may pass for a week or two but I get stuck in a rut then so I do force myself out, even in crappy weather. Struggle at first but then I realise why it's such a benefit. Worse is not being able to ride and I get stressed and a bit depressed but that makes me less interested in riding, yet the riding is the cure for it.

I do have to mix things up though. Same old is repetitive and I may reject rides with some groups just because it really will turn me off if it's just the same stuff. I'll end up going out for an explore, which is what I enjoy a lot anyway. Finding new things.

Riding is a mental therapy for me.

This for me also. It gets tough in HK over summer, you can ride but its the most unpleasant riding ever (97% humidity, 30+ degrees...when its not raining) so I end up forcing myself out for fitness sake. Now looking forward to the onset of winter and my 6am midweek pootles.

Yup. Four years ago I even started a thread about it...

Then I got into bikepacking. Like others have already stated, riding is mental therapy. I don’t ride all that frequently but it’s very important.

Currently on ‘down time’ due to tendinitis in the foot. It’s pretty frustrating actually, I’d planned to ride the northern loops of the HT550 this summer.

All things pass (in the end).

Nope. Not ever really. Usually I'm looking forwards to / trying to work out when I can next ride. Invariably commute by bike 4 days a week, and try to extend that a bit for about half the commutes. Sometimes a night ride. Usually a 2-3 hour ride on a Friday which is my non working day. And where I can, an hour or so over the weekend. I don't struggle particularly with my mental health, but certainly do 'need' it as 'mood therapy', and am noteably more grumpy if I'm off the bike for more than a couple of days.

I do mix up the riding though and have 4 different bikes to choose from (FS, HT SS, Gravel, SS commuter) so take whichever bike is suitable for the kind of ride I want to do, partly influenced by the weather.

Since last November I've been hammering myself 4 or 5 times a week either out on the bike or the turbo trainer for the 2019 XC racing season and come August this year I was almost desperate for the end to come. Since then I've done very little, either on or off road and have spent more time sitting on the sofa eating cakes. At the moment I can't say I'm looking forward to it all starting again at the end of this year and I'm hoping motivation might strike sometime soon. I used to do a bit of running just to change things up a bit but have very little interest in this either. I just can't be bothered...

At the moment I can’t say I’m looking forward to it all starting again at the end of this year and I’m hoping motivation might strike sometime soon

Switch to riding just for fun?
Thinking back to my interest levels waxing and waning I think I do start to lose interest once I have taken something to seriously for a while and so it becomes less a hobby and more a required activity.

This is me at the moment.
Been riding for years, every Thursday pretty much without fail, plus weekends, trips away and other evenings when I could. Last winter I started to lose motivation, but put it down to the fact I'd started training for a marathon and that was taking over my time, so my usual Thursday night ride became an easy recovery ride, and then just felt like a core.
But since the marathon the enthusiasm just hasn't some back, and I seem to have lost interest in any sort of exercise and have struggled to get any consistency in my running or training classes I been attending for years. Had a biking trip to Bulgaria in the summer which was great fun, but didn't re-spark the excitement once back home, running in now a couple of runs one week and then nothing the next, and I'm looking for any excuse to not go to my usual training. Monday I didn't go because it was raining. The training is indoors.
Tried to plan myself a bike-packing weekend recently to do something new, but bailed out last minute, because it was a little bit drizzly for part of the day. Regretted it after but just couldn't be bothered.
Really hoping I can get back into it. My fitness has dropped lower than it's been for years and I know the longer I leave it the harder it will be to get it back.

Yep,
Ive been off the bike for about 2 years, but recently back on it.
Some of that was undiagnosed health issues, Achillies tendonitis in one foot and plantar fasciatis in the other.
BAsically i couldnt weight bear, or walk properly, been in constant pain etc.
So any excercise has been the last thing on my mind.
As others have said, i have other hobbies too, a caterham for trackdays, Canoes, Paddle boarding, windsurfing and now getting back into Scuba Diving as well.
But I am loving being back on the bike again, and the 3rd ride out this weekend was easier so the diet and excercise are definately helping.

Yep Indeed I do ! For the last few years my "season" goes a bit like this -
3 months of CBA getting out maybe ride once a week at most
3 months of riding my ass off, getting out 5-6 times a week & loving it !
6 months of dwindling rides & losing fitness until I hardly get out again...

Yeah, happens to me.
This year I've done 2 big events, Ride London and Velo Birmingham, but very little else and very little training for them. Turns out you can do a fast 100 miles on the back of a lot of running. Last year was the same, Mancheter to London was really the only event I rode and I didn't train for that either.
Running is the other thing I do and the conclusion I have come to is that I love training for a running event but don't enjoy the events as much (to much pain pushing myself), but I love the cycling events and don't enjoy the training (to many long, solo rides needed generally).
I still commute a lot so it's not like I don't get on the bike but at the moment, running is the preferred option

Thanks for all the responses. Seems like I'm not alone on this one!

In summer I play a lot of golf and I've also been getting back into the gym for weight training etc. over the last few months so I suppose it's inevitable that the bike has been neglected.

I do absolutely love it though. Nothing better than winter rides with your mates, getting caked in sh*t then calling in somehwere for a brew afterwards.

Here's to hoping the spark reignites in the next few weeks.

Thanks everyone
JB

I dip in and out all the time, can literally go months without even looking at my bike then have a stint with loads of riding.
Same goes for my trials bike, wife says I should sell it but then I'd just end up spending a fortune building another one up as something to do!

I can't actually remember the last time I wanted to ride a bike 😥

yes... the last 4, almost 5 years. i had 2 severe breakdowns in fairly quick succession and that killed any desire to take part in any sports. i am, however, just dipping my toes into bikes again.

It's not that I've lost interest as such ..I'm just too bloody knackered to be bothered ..
I'm working 3-4 days a week as a multi drop courier doing 150+drops per day to mostly residential ..but some business accounts and my time off is spent on my own business & recovering..two of those days are Saturday & Sunday so I've pretty much become the forgotten man as far as my riding buddies are concerned ..to the extent that I've also bowed out of a 3 nighter in Fort William ( happening now) ...
Hopefully my mojo will catch up with me somewhere down the line ..but in terms of sheer exercise the job is more than enough at the moment..