Anything and everything is appreciated. Even trolling to stoke the fire.

Junkyard £10
hmanchester £10
Zokes£10
bobfromkansas£5

I think that means we’re upto a retro rigid from the back of someone’s shed.

Who else is in?

I got some of the Bolle cycling/safety glasses from Ebay. More than happy with them and better than cheapo Decathlon ones I’ve previously had as the anti fog seems to work.

Little risk if you don’t like them

Cheers Junkyard, that’s got things started, let’s see where it goes:

Junkyard £10
hmanchester £10

Now that Edukator has left the thread let’s try our best to turn it round!

Let’s make it an example of where a thread all goes right.

All the best, it’s not how much the bike cost, it’s how much it’s worth. 6 months saving is a lot of worth. Gutted.

Also…. You can have a full time job, uni and kid. I’ve got a friend in the same situation. Loads of help from the family, but needed whilst she gains her independence after a couple of honest and trusting mistakes.

Sounds maybe a bit silly but willing to chuck a tenner into a pot. 15 people do the same and a judicious classified purchase will make her summer, and we’ll all feel a lot more worthy.

Rorschach – that may well be the case!

My point is just give it a bash. Keep trying to get better at your hobby whatever your level. Challenge yourself, improve and try to get more out of it.

I’ve always seen climbs as a bit of a personal challenge. The only time I’ll get off and push is if I’m physically or technically incapable of continuing.

I may well collapse in a sweaty asphyxiating lump at the top though!

I’m not saying go all hardcore about it, but at least give it a fair bash. Then the next time you try the hill aim to get a bit further up. Just don’t get to a hill you know you can’t get up and don’t even bother…

I’ve got a Rockrider 8.1. Ridic value for money and very good customer service.

For £500 of the peg you really can’t complain. Clearly a good spec, but also the finishing kit all seems to be well thought out, light and tough. Only thing I changed were the rubbish OE Michelin tyres that came with it.

Not necessarily DarrenH, it depends on what you’re aiming for!

If it’s increased performance then although that’s by no means great recovery food, it’s still not all your good work undone.

If you’re looking for weight loss then, yes, you can’t out train a bad diet. This guy ran 10 marathons in 10 days. Pastabelly.

They don’t have to be new Stu!

To be fair I’m just trolling. Wouldn’t mind one myself and will probably go there with my next purchase.

Joke: How do you know if someone owns a 29er? *

Punchline: Because they will f*****g tell you.

* Variations include vegan, fat bikes, just bought an Audi, etc.

Cheers 154, I might have to request this liquid painkiller….

My GP referred me straight to a scan (rather than seeing a specialist as it seems an obvious diagnosis) with surgery to follow. Is that how it’s worked for everyone else?

That all sounds fairly positive.

I’ve not got any pain with lifting at the moment, but it looks as though I’ll be resting up from everything for a little while afterwards.

Just looking forward to being able to side step properly for the first time in months!

101 is for anything that’s not an emergency so is spot on for this. They’ll put you through to the right person at the switchboard.

Thanks guys.

Were any of your op’s for sports hernias repaired with mesh?

Thanks Mac

That’s pretty much what I expected. Keyhole would be nice, but if they have to do it properly then so be it. I’ve been advised that either way I’d be in and out in a morning, it’s just the recovery time that’s affected – keyhole being better.

Having had a bit of a scout about on the webternet it looks like I have a 2-3 month wait until I go under the knife. Not too bad I suppose and I’m still able to play sport in the meantime as I’ve caught it reasonably early.

Did you have to do much rehab work, or was it just a case of rest and recovery?

On the cranks….

I’ve just bought some of those Sturmey Archer (blatent Sugino copies) cranks and I’m very happy with them. Just don’t forget to rub the SA branding off!

http://www.highonbikes.com/sturmey-archer-single-speed-fixed-track-crank-black-10.html

Do you know what the word vigilante means Conan257?

This discussion is overkill. Just ride it.

How about one of Edinburgh Cycles own brand Revolution bikes. They seem to have a few options at this price point :

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/categories/bicycles/commuter-hybrid-bikes

Are you on Virgin Media cable or are you using a BT line?

My Ex is 5’6″ and has a 16″ Aggressor XCR that fits perfectly. The 18″ would also have “fit” but been a bit more cumbersome feeling. I’m assuming they have the same geometry. Defo 16.

I think he gets that GW.

The OPs posted in a self depreciating and entertaining way about how he stacked it painfully, and isn’t trying to make excuses.

Euro: Nice one, if there wasn’t any danger it wouldn’t get the adrenaline flowing!

Yes whole milk!

Whole milk is only 4% fat and actually has more carbs than fat in it, and loads of protein.

If you want to lose weight then the thing to play around with is your carb intake. Keep your protein and fats at a good level to maintain lean muscle and cut back on the cake!

Creatine supplementation and dynamic high-intensity intermittent exercise – Article first published online: 30 JAN 2007 Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports

P. D. Balsom*,
B. Ekblom,
K. Söerlund,
B. Sjödln,
E. Hultman†

Two intermittent high-intensity exercise protocols were performed before and after the administration of either creatine or a placebo, and performance characteristics and selected physiological responses were studied. Each exercise protocol consisted of 10 6-s bouts of high-intensity cycling at 2 exercise intensities (130 rev/min [EX130]: ?820 W and 140 rev/min [EX140)]: ? 880 W) so that in EX130 the same amount of exercise was performed before and after the administration period, whereas an exercise intensity in EX140 was chosen to induce fatigue over the 10 exercise bouts. Sixteen healthy male subjects were randomly assigned to the 2 experimental groups. A double-blind design was used in this study. There were no significant changes in the placebo group for any of the measured parameters. Performance towards the end of each exercise bout in EX140 was enhanced following creatine supplementation, as shown by a smaller decline in work output from baseline along the 10 trials. Although more work was performed in EX140, after vs before the administration period, blood lactate accumulation decreased (mean and SEM), from 10.8 (0.5) to 9.1 (0.8) mmol·l?1 and plasma accumulation of hypoxanthine decreased from 21.1 (0.4) to 16.7 (0.8) ?mol·l?1, but there was no change in oxygen uptake measured during 3 exercise and recovery periods [3.18 (0–1) vs 3.14 (0.1) l·min?1]. In EX130 blood lactate accumulation decreased, from 7.0 (0.5) to 5.1 (0.5) mmol·l?1, and oxygen uptake was also lower, decreasing from 2.84 (0.1) to 2.78 (0.1) l·min?1. A significant increase in body mass (11 kg: range 0.3 to 2.5 kg) was found in the creatine group. The mechanism responsible for the improved performance with creatine supplementation are postulated to be both a higher initial creatine phosphate content availability and an increased rate of creatine phosphate resynthesis during recovery periods. The lower blood lactate and hypoxanthine accumulation can also be explained by these mechanisms.

We could probably go tit for tat on these for a while…..

Not for me, I like the slightly free form feel of it all. I get to browse other topics I might otherwise miss and weigh in on things you know nothing about.

First thing is to check out your credit report, you can’t do anything without this. As Flaperon says, checking your own report as no negative effect.

They have to provide you with the reports for £2. Just get these statutory ones and see what they say:

http://www.equifax.co.uk/Products/credit/statutory-report.html
http://experian.co.uk/consumer/statutory-report.html

Then have a look at the date that things were settled. If they were 4-5 years ago as you say then the best thing is to wait until they drop off your report at the 6 year mark. Most mortgage companies will not touch you or charge extortionate rates with an IVA or default on your history.

Things you can do in the meantime are to make sure you’re on the electoral roll and try to pay your bills on time.

As to buying a house, I’d get looking before the 6 years are up. Get an idea of the market in your target area, see a few places, talk to a few people. Do this without the time pressure of actually having to buy, then when you do have finance you will be a lot more clued up and confident which will speed the process up.

molgrips: I was being a bit flippant, but they do have a massive amount to answer for. What I was trying to say, very bluntly, is that the advice and support given by governments and major health organisations like the WHO have contributed hugely to our current problems:

A classic example is the cholesterol hypothesis shown in the youtube clip below. Hands up who thinks that high cholesterol intake causes heart disease! They have the information, but don’t get it out there because it disagrees with what they’ve said previously for years.

Don’t even get me started on “healthy whole grains”……

Or perhaps they don’t know about these things…..

Another way of looking at the WHO is to say that since their inception in 1948 they have overseen the greatest increase in obesity, heart disease, lung cancer, diabetes and mental health problems in human history.

Altaz: Totally agree, but it’s a nice side effect that adds to the experience. Especially nice if I enjoy MTBing more as well.

Taff: Another good point.

Yunki: Again a good point. I know some people like the “time to think” aspect of road cycling, but for me the more social aspect of MTB riding is far more beneficial to mental health and well being.

I guess it depends what you see as your ideals when it comes to health and fitness. If it’s super low bodyfat, a skinny power to weight ratio body and a high VO2 max as the ideals of health and fitness then you have a point. I however don’t, I prefer an more all-round fitness, skill development, and not having to mess around with my system and insulin levels by eating endless carbs.

I think for the average bloke out there this favours MTBing.

Cynic-al: Loads of other variables, absolutely loads, totally right. I’m dealing in generalisations here and think for the average person they will get better health benefits from mountain bike style riding than road.

Thomthumb: Well argued.

I’m going to watch Horizon tonight, but I expect it to muddy the already murkey waters for the layman.

From what I’ve seen the iDave diet will do a very good job of regulating insulin and is a good dietry starting point. Body recomposition is 80% nutrition and 20% exercise.

Doing HIIT will also have a postive effect on hormone levels including insulin.

Combine the two (preferably for more than 3 mins) for even better results.

In regards to the 3 minute thing……

That 3 minute thing that’s floating around at the moment is more to do with the deficiecy of most weight loss exercise regimes, rather than 3 mins being the ideal amount.

It’s just that 3 mins of high intensity interval type training is more effective for body recomposition than endless hours of steady state running/cycling. Ergo, HIIT training is a good way to go, just don’t limit it to 3 mins!

This is a good link, with references, to explain why: http://chriskresser.com/9-steps-to-perfect-health-7-move-like-your-ancestors

Mon: 45 mins weights
Tues: 30 mins sprints/hill sprints
Wed: 45 mins weights & 2 hours hockey
Thursday: 2 hours hockey
Friday: 45 mins weights
Sat: 70 min hockey match
Sun: 2-3 hour mountain bike ride or 70 min hockey match

Total mins: 500+ish. But then I do very little steady state exercise, most of that 500+ mins is work/rest/work/rest. Actually working minutes is probably 200-250ish.

I agree with Bagstard. You’re not eating enough and your body is using your muscle mass as well as fat stores to provide your energy.

At the moment you are at slight cross purposes. Cutting back the carbs to lose weight and training for endurance require different things. Effective endurance training requires lots of carbs (as well as protein, good fats, etc) and you should see that amount that TdF riders eat at 4-8% body fat as an extreme example.

At the moment your body will be going into starvation mode, it will lower your metabolism, reduce recovery ability, and actually hinder your weight loss.

Eat more to match your training goals and get your body firing on all cyclinders as a first step. Then alter your diet accordingly so you are in a slight calorie defecit each day after taking exercise into account. 1500-2000 kcals + all that exercise is going to run you down.

I wish you hadn’t posted that Kenny.

I love a challenge and that’s an impressive benchmark. I’m thinking where I can aim for a PB. 7.2 miles, where did you do that?

Hate doing this…. On a boring safety note, in my car the engine needs to be running for me to have power assisted steering and braking, so neutral it is for me. Different cars are available and may vary!

edit: McGreedy already beat me to making the old man health and safety comment.

Southern Yeti:

I take creatine for two main reasons:

1. I play hockey which like football involves lots of sprinting and recovery.

2. I weight train to help my hockey and because I like being strong and the way it makes me look. I take creatine to help me increase the volume of my training, and again recover in between.

I’ve never had any problems with creatine. When I take it I tend to be a kg or so heavier on the scales which is no major problem as I’m already over 90kg anyway. I notice the effect on the last rep or two when doing a few sets, the main thing for me is that my recovery seems to be better. Not much at all, but noticable. That’s the thing about creatine for me. It works. A bit. Not much, but for the effort of bunging some in your whey protein once every couple of months is worth it.

Flow: I think you may be right!

Organic: Whey is a constituent part of milk and can be sold in powder form that’s 80%+ protein. It mixes easily with water and milk and is essentially a food ingredient that is useful for getting protein into your diet quickly, cheaply and easily. The stuff I use is: http://www.myprotein.com/uk/products/impact_whey_protein

As a narcissitic, body-building, ‘look at me’ cretin and show off I do use creatine myself.

It’s primary use is in explosive movements and muscle recovery, but that doesn’t mean it should only be used by weightlifters and sprinters. For example it’s a commonly used supplement in team games where speed and sprint recovery is balanced along with endurance such as football and rugby.

Creatine is a naturally occuring substance that is found in red meat and is already present in our muscles. If you eat bacon or steak you already take creatine! It’s simply been found that our muscles can utilise more creatine than is naturally found in our diet and so taking extra in pure form can have a beneficial effect.

As to protein shakes:

Ideally you will be able to get all your nutrition from whole foods, eg meat, milk, eggs, fruit, veg, root veg, etc.

Protein shakes are useful (and one that I use myself) because they provide a quick, cheap, and convenient way of ingesting a good balance of nutrients.

The best way to approach them is to get your ingredients seperately so you know exactly what you’re eating rather than the pre-mixed and expensive maximuslce type tubs. Go to myprotein.co.uk and get some unflavoured whey powder and ground oats and use a blender. The shake I tend to have is:

1 pt whole milk
1 banana
handful frozen berries
2 scoops whey powder
0-2 scoops oats (varied depending on exercise)

As for when I take creatine? I mix it in with the whey protein in the tub so two scoops of whey gives me 3-5g ish. Some days I have two scoops, some days 1, some days none. You’re supplementing the creatine you get in your natural diet anyway, it’s not about taking precisely 5g a day accurate to 0.00001g.

Edit: Krypton, you beat me to it. All meat eaters already take creatine!

One question for Organic355, what is the aim of your exercise regime?

Are you looking to increase cycling fitness, running fitness, training for a particular event (triathlon, marathon, etc), lose fat, gain muscle, the joy of exercise itself, or a bit of everything?

Yes, the big BIG advantage is that it’s designed for purpose compared to a smartphone/Ipad which I’d used before for reading.

– The screen is as good as, if not better than ink and paper.
– It’s thin and lightweight compared to a book which make things like reading in bed whilst lying on your side/back far better.
– The battery lasts for ever compared to backlit screens.
– I can’t see it being overtaken by technology in the short or medium term. The bits that are important are the screen, battery life and size, and these are nailed already.

I was unconvinved before I got one, can’t recommend enough now. It’s also worth looking at the Sony offering as well, but the main thing is to get a specific e-reader.