Unless you're training at an elite-level, there's very little chance you're over-training. Just under-recovering. If you feel like you're doing too much either eat more, sleep more, or both.

(Or cut back the exercise; but if you enjoy it, why bother running from the problem when you could just try to solve it)

About 230 miles.

About 30 empty lager cans, around a dozen pringles tubes, and a deflated inflatable chair lying in a verge about 5km from the nearest town. Weird place to have a party…

Another recommendation for the Topeak Aero Wedge. Easy to fit / remove – just two straps which go through the rails of your saddle, and a velcro strap round the seatpost. Has compression straps too which stop everything rattling around in there.

There is little point in taking supplements if you don't already have nutrition really dialled in and are training intensely. Stuff like multivitamins and fish-oils have their place, but frankly anything more is just (expensively) convenient. Protein shakes are good if you don't have time for a REAL meal after training, but taking one instead of, say, some chicken, isn't going to magically put on muscle. Some supplements have their benefits, but it's just a very expensive way of trying to make up for shortcomings in your diet.

FWIW that promax thing is exactly what it says it is – a "substitute" for real food. And not a very good one at that.

Just my opinions, no doubt someone will disagree :P

Having only read a couple of issues of ST (need to get the latest next time I'm in Tesco…), what I prefer about it is that it seems to be about riding, rather than just reviews like in WMB et al.

I particularly enjoy the articles about trips away riding. Jen's piece on the Great Divide was awesome.

First time above 0 degrees here in almost 3 weeks, but I daresay it's over – more snow forecast for tomorrow.

You mentioned that you like 2.2 as a tyre size, so it's probably worth noting that Mountain King sizes tend to come up a bit small. I've got a 2.2 which is like a 2.0 for some other tyres, although still has a decent volume. I'd go for a 2.4 if you have the frame clearance for it and don't mind a tiny bit of extra rolling weight.

I've used MKs in the past and I think they're decent if your riding conditions suit them. They're designed for loamy and hardpack conditions so aren't great if you do a lot of riding over wet rocks and roots.

How about a summary for those of us too lazy to register at mtbr? :P

I found it difficult at first but getting better at it now. If only I could stop my freehub freezing… that really makes things more difficult :roll:

Ti29er: Caning it on a workout means you're working anaerobically = not using fat storage.
If you want to have you body use stored fat for energy you need to be aerobic in your exercise.
One way is to have a 45 min aerobic ride before breakfast.

Intense anaerobic exercise burns a significant amount of calories after exercise – much more so than aerobic exercise. This makes it better suited for fat loss because, at the end of the day, it's all about energy expended vs energy consumed. So long as you're burning more calories than you're eating, your body will look to make up that deficit from stored fat.

Was out in the morning – awesome day for it if not a bit chilly. Only fell on my arse once, which was pretty good considering how icy it is here!

Another one for Ubuntu. I've been using it on my computer for a while now. Not the best linux distro out there, but the large community support is the best thing about it; making it easy to solve problems.

Edit: try the Live-CD version of it before installing, just to check it'll work fine on your computer.

Been out on the bike almost every day in the snow. Getting a bit fed up of it now that it's melting and leaving the roads like ice rinks.

trail_rat: alot of the diets i read on this thread strike me as not alot of eating even for sedantry lifestyles … i reckon alot of you guys are having issues because your body is saying **** you im not loosing fat – your starving me ill need that fat ….

I agree with that – but the food choice might make it seem that way. 3000 calories of healthy food is going to seem a lot more than 3000 calories of "normal" food.

It's what you eat that really counts, not how much you eat. Just eat cleaner and you'll be on the right track.

Was out for a quick 15km ride earlier. The snow isn't too deep here, but still great fun!

It's got to be the turkey for me :D