Lack of motivation? I spend more time building and searching info. On new bikes than actually ride them.
I often makes plan about riding, but am quick to find excuses (kids, work, house work etc.) to stay home insted
How do you keep the motivation to ride more, and stay fit?
Btw, am 43, been riding since age 13, mainly bmx but nowdays mainly ss mtb..
Im the only guy with one gear when riding with the mates, everytime i go for a group ride i regret not taking my geared bike, but when riding alone i really enjoy singlespeed, any of you feel the same?
Cheers
Do you smoke?
I think the trick is not to make a deal of it (motivation). If you want a break take one. You'll come back when you are ready.
Yes i smoke, regular cigerettes that is..why?
When getting on my bike i often enjoy it, but dont do it often enough to ride well..
Last time I wheeled my mtb out it had snowed! I commute daily by bike so have ridden but fun riding has been at a bare minimum this year as a result of work pressures and 'other' stuff getting in the way.
As mattjq says, give it a while you'll suddenly find a bit more time opening up and get out more, but yeah might be worth going geared if you get left on group rides.
"If you want a break take one. You'll come back when you are ready. "
unfortunantly me and the mrs seem to be polar opposites - when i want a break she wants to go out on the bike and when she wants a break i want to ride.....
how ever she is always determined to drag me out when i dont want to go out and i end up hating the ride.
i always enjoy riding to work though 😀
Do something (cycling related) that you haven't done before. I wasn't lacking in any motivation to ride but signed up for the British Heart Foundation London to Brighton night ride earlier this year. To emphasise that I wasn't going to treat it as a competition I took my SS commuter and it turned out to be the most memorable ride I've done for a long time. But then there's also been Mayhem in the mud with a Sumo suit, a trip up country to Innerleithen, last Thursday's ride and wade through a flooded river locally.................
Just get out there. Every ride gives you something that you wouldn't have had otherwise, even road rides.
Stop smoking.
It's not going to make your motivation any worse, but it is likely to improve it considerably.
You Can Do It!
Dufresneorama - Free and Healing for Fourteen Days, 3 Hours and 37 Minutes, while extending my life expectancy 17 Hours, by avoiding the use of 212 nicotine delivery devices that would have cost me £68.18.
I'm the same, but the shit weather is my excuse.
I am fed up of getting soaked
I commute daily on my 29er ss and love getting as much Mtb time in as possible
( I refuse to commute by roadbike due to the state of the roads and you can have more fun on subway steps and the small bits of woodland on the way into work on the Mtb)
However due to the rainy season I have found myself sinking lower and lower
I have tried building a new bike and had a blast yesterday around Cannock in the sunshine with renewed mojo, but after another soaking this morning I decided to get a lift home and bring the car into work
I normally find a day out to somewhere new or you having been to for a while works
I was buzzing yesterday after Cannock, and admitted it's not the raddest or most technical but I had not been there in over 12 months and it is the nearest trail centre to me relatively
Plan a big day out and you'll be fine
Start bike commuting.
Buy a cheap SS/fixed roadbike, add some mudguards and get out in the rain.
Ride with your kids.
Ride to the shops.
Sign up for a Sportive (on or off road).
Enter a race (off road)
Join a club.
...
Go ride something that will push you.. something a bit scary and lairy. Lifes too short to be moping at home. Get some adrenaline pulsing round you before you really are to old and decrepit. Scaring yourself is good for your soul too and give you more mojo to get out there.
I enter races, that means I have to practice......I even won one.
I'm 54, stopped cycling at 18. Took it up again at 42....
I hear you. How did I get out of it? I signed up for a Sportive - something I'd never done before - earlier this year. It was 100 miles where the previous biggest ride I'd ever done (on or off road) was 50 miles, so I had to get the miles in. The thing is, I loved it. Granted my MTBs are largely gathering dust since I always reach for the road bike now, but at least I'm getting out and enjoying cycling. I'm no longer that bothered that I'm not riding the mountain bike and I know I'll go back to them at some point.
ive just found motivation - my mates asked me to enter a downhill race at my old local - my first for 6 years :d
Thanks for all your point of views.
Think i just gonna MTFU and start riding regularly, i commute on bike every day and gonna start putting on the pace on my way home..
I plan to ride the local forest 2 times a week.
Today im going to the local park..
And mainly im gonna quit smoking 😀
Have a nice day..
Wow - hope it goes well 🙂
Check your local woods for some new singletrack potential ,not talking jumps and berms ,just rack out some new lines ,repair some old single track,try get rid of puddles
Start taking pics when your out,makes you appreciate the woods more ,a slow wet muddy ride is better than staring at crap on the tv
Don't set any new goals to high cause it will piss you of more if you don't achieve them
Enjoy life my friend
Every ride gives you something that you wouldn't have had otherwise, even road rides.
Like.
Well if you're commuting via bike you are getting plenty of miles in, can you do a longer ride on the way home occasionally taking in some trails ? How about a day trip to a new riding venue, just planning those rides is fun. Take an afternoon off work and go on a long ride.
I prefer variety in my leisure time, I tend to do a lot of walking (helps as we have a dog who loves to be out, the wetter the better !), mix things up a bit.
I quite like riding alone, I'm always the slowest in a group and trying to keep up so I'm more relaxed on my own. If you enjoy riding your singlespeed alone do just that, embrace it.
As noted above don't "stress it"
I'm always the slowest in a group and trying to keep up
The quick lads forget that it's the bloke at the back who's working hardest. It's character building tho. I have lots of character!
i commute on bike every day
There you go. You're just knackered and your body doesn't want to do any more.
Past a point, you don't get fitter with more riding, just tireder.
And mainly im gonna quit smoking
best of luck to ya!
I've used this a few times, it does help a little.
[url= http://quit-counter.en.softonic.com/ ]quit counter[/url]
Don't beat yourself up tho, remember you're not giving up anything.