After last weekends ride/push/carry on the downs, I'm not gonna bother until the trails dry out a bit. My bike was in a right state and it was completely unenjoyable.
Playing 5-aside football was always my alternative, but last time I played I really buggered my knee and it meant I was off the bike for around 2 months.
So I'm after suggestions of something I can do to keep/get fit, where I can turn up as and when I feel (only want to do it when conditions are poor), and that I can do of an evening when the kids are in bed.
Please help before I turn into an even fatter, grumpier mess.

GET OUT

🙂

Run.

Whatever you do stop moaning!

I love martial arts, or get some weights in the garage…great stress refief!

Get some skinnier tyres. They won't pick up quite so much mud.

Buy an MX bike.

Can you ride bikes on the road? Would be ace if you could! You could leave from your house and do a few hours in the evening! You should totally start one of those prime minister website petition to allow bikes on the road! We could have races and everything. I'm gonna call it 'road cycling' and see if it catches on! 🙂

cynic-al:

Whatever you do stop moaning!

My Irony Detector just blew up. Weird.

Go to the gym or ride your MTB on the road or pathways

MTBation?

Dmiller. Your idea sound shite. It'll never catch on.

Post on internet forums.

I've taken to the roads for the first time ever and rather enjoying it!
Akin to some resistance training, decked out with mud guards, lights front & rear, I've been exploring the local villages.
Managing I've been doing 3hrs and 42 miles at a ride and feel great for it.
It's really surprised me how hard it is, just pedalling pretty non-stop for that length of time with winter tyres f&rear

It's very sound base-training and really good for my aeoribic fitness levels.

Indeed, you still need to mtfu with the weather. Says david, posting from his phone on the bus as i just couldn't be arsed cycling to work in the snow again today! 😉

edtied as I was being an ar5e…

edtied as I was being an ar5e…

Spoilsport.

What's this MTB you're talking about?

Roadbike!

Guitar?

Something social.

After actually your post OP, i would recommend finding your local climbing wall or go swimming. Both should be easy-ish on the knee, can be done in the evenings and are weatherproof.

Deffo road bikes for winter!
Climbing, Gym for cross training but they wont keep the weight off.

get with winter and take up Ice skating, makes loads of new friends and all in a swich air conditioned environment

I find staying in and burning a stack of 5 or 10 pounds is almost the same as riding at the mo… pads, cassettes, bearings, chains…….

Got to have the bad days to appreciate the good ones.

yoga

http://www.britmilfit.com/

turn up for a free session copy their routines/ideas and off you go on your own.

swimming is another alternative, not quite as exhilarating as mtbikes but keeps yer fit and it don't matter on the weather.

Kev

Soory – my post might have mislead you to believe I have a road bike!
I take the mountain bike with 2.0f and 2.2r winter tyres on the road.
That's why it's like resitance training & it's hard graft!

all of above but add fell running, the down bits are akin to moutain biking especially if you are with real fell runners, legs and arms whirling really good fun.

girlfriend! sorry 😉

Build a cheap 'cross/road/ss/fixed – up from the bits in your shed/someone elses shed.

Get cross tyres or skinny 26-ers that roll nicely.

Ride to work the long way (different routes all the time)

Ride home the long way.

Weekends and longer evenings – put together some routes that invovle small country lanes/hardpack green lanes/bridleways/cyclepaths/towpaths/

Do big loops,all over the place.

Get your mtb out and ride the nearest city/town/village/urban area :- play on steps,street furnature,parks, small backlanes – link them together with local cyclepaths. You will find stuff all over the place.

Get some rollers and practice riding one legged,one handed,no handed…..

>My bike was in a right state and it was completely unenjoyable<

Awwww, you wee lamb…..

+1 for running and it'll build heart and lungs and burn off fat to make you're riding better when the trails improve.

you tart!

It's more to do with the fact it was so muddy that the wheels won't turn. I'm not into carrying my bike round a route. Those tough guys that say mtfu good for you, if you do stuff for the sake of it and not because you enjoy it then you'll make someone a great wife.

Thanks for the tips. Been down the leisure centre this morning and they have circuit training of a Wednesday evening which sounds like it might be good.

Are you by any chance one of the posters' who advocate running the same tyres all year-round?

It's more to do with the fact it was so muddy that the wheels won't turn.

and

Are you by any chance one of the posters' who advocate running the same tyres all year-round?

if the wheels won't turn then there must be plenty of grip or if jammed then the tyres are irrelevant ?

Circuit training is great, quite addictive once you find the right level of effort to keep going for the whole session.

Personally, I reccommend road cycling. Especially if you can get a cheap road bike. Not only does it keep you fit, but you are keeping your cycling specific fitness up so when you get back on the MTB you will be a god.

Fit people sweat more for a given level of (power) exertion.

Turbo trainer? Comedy motivation for you in this thread from a while back. 😀