Trying to get back on the bike...

[Pedal Wench]

Milkbone, I don't get why you would want to leave your bike computer off the bike if you are recovering from an illness.
<<>>
This forum has a lot of negativity regarding bike computers, <<>>

Don't get me wrong - I typically don't leave home without my 705, and been known to double-up with that and a Cateye double-wireless to make sure I've got everything covered.

BUT... if someone is unmotivated and discouraged about where they are, going out the first few times, without a blatant reminder of how far back they might have fallen, is a great way to just get back on the bike. Tracking fitness comes later, once you're back in love with the joy of just being on the bike.

[marni]

been there done that several times and will probably repeat myself.

Speaking just for myself. Each time I start up aagain after a pause whether for injury or just for life, I leave my computer at home- I don't need to be riminded of where I am vs where I was, I just want to fall back in love with the whole experience first and remember why it is I ride, and train and track statistics. I wait until I find myself counting pedal strokees between points and working out rough distances before I put the computer back on the bike. I also leave my watch at home because I want to learn to listen to my body and not worry about when I have to get back or what I have to do when I get there.

Either way, I hope the joy returns soon.

marni

[DarcyInOregon]

BUT... if someone is unmotivated and discouraged about where they are, going out the first few times, without a blatant reminder of how far back they might have fallen, is a great way to just get back on the bike. Tracking fitness comes later, once you're back in love with the joy of just being on the bike.

The reason I disagree is because I went through it, the injuries and regaining the fitness. It is like someone is trying to lose weight, fell off the wagon, and the advice is to say, hey stop keeping a food diary. It makes no sense. Regaining the fitness is a time of joy. The bike computer is just a tool to track data like the food diary. The cyclist doesn't have to look at it. But the data is extremely helpful. Telling someone not to use the computer is like saying, hey something is really wrong with you, your data will be bad, and that is going to make you feel terrible. Now why should it? It is merely data, and shows how the first ride back on the saddle went. The fitness level decreased due to illness, therefore the data will be different, so why should that be a terrible thing that makes a person feel bad? And the first ride is awesome. So what if the speed is slow and the distance is low or the cadence is out of whack. Regaining the fitness brings back all of the joy of that first year on the bike, except now the cyclist has the knowledge and wisdom of experience. It is an exciting time, having a bike ride that is only 8-10 miles instead of 50 miles, and experiencing the joy of that first ride again, even if the average speed is only 10 mph. Regaining the fitness isn't a bad thing; it is awesome and exhilerating and incredibly fun. Take the bike computer, just like you record to the food diary, and then use the data or don't use it, but don't leave the bike computer at home. Getting back on the bike and regaining the fitness is a matter of the heart and has nothing to do with a tool that records the data of the ride.

[Crankin]

Marni, I am totally in agreement with you. It's not negativity; when I have been trying to "regain" fitness, I don't need the computer to tell me that I suck. I also don't need it to know when I am moving in the direction I want to go. While I have never taken the computer off, i simply don't look at my average when I am done, or I keep it on clock, so I don't see my rolling speed. I only look at total miles completed.
Three years ago i lost a huge amount of fitness/speed when i was sick. Every time I saw my average the next season, it was painful for me to accept. I still rode my usual number of miles, but it made me want to quit. Last year i changed my way of looking at it. Instead of trying to improve, I just rode. I did lots of farm stand and errand rides on my hybrid, about 300+ miles of my total. I really got into the winter sports I do. When this season started, I felt I got my mojo back. My speed still isn't quite what it was, but I really don't care anymore. I can still climb like I used to, I weigh the same as I did when I was 16 and I feel fit, and I enjoy riding, so I am happy.

[hirakukibou]

Milkbone,
I can really relate to losing motivation and mojo. I find that when that happens, I have to find the joy in riding again. How to do that is a personal journey, I believe. Personally. when I am trying to get back my joy I disregard the speed and the distance and focus on going some place beautiful, often with a friend or riding buddy. My goal becomes "to have fun." Hope you find your way back to the joy soon.

[jessmarimba]

I don't even wear a watch when I'm recovering from something mental or physical (running/biking). It's good to learn to listen to your body and I find that really difficult if I have any source of "numbers" around me, whether I'm trying to use them or not.

Good luck - you'll be back where you were, and I hope you find the fun in it while you get there!

[DarcyInOregon]

I am the kind of person who doesn’t go through life fearing the possibility or potential of getting bad information that will lower my spirits. It is best to lead life in a way that you confront fears. The easiest path through life may not be the best path through life. If I were to give in to my fears, my life would be nothing but “might-ofs” and “what-ifs” and I would never know what could have been.

I went back through my training log. It was January 2 I got back on my bike, not January 1. Because I had the bike computer, I kept up with the training log. I was expecting to do maybe 6 miles that day and maybe have an average speed of around 10-11 mph. Nope, with a healing lung that labored with each breath and healing broken ribs, I biked 23.11 miles (no hills) with an average speed of 13.52 and an average heart rate of 143 and an average cadence of 76. Maybe these numbers are poor for a racing professional, but I am 56-years-old, will never race, and I was delighted with my ride and my joy in the ride was high.

Because I faced my fears, I was able to keep up the training log. And yes, I was scared to get back on the bike. But on the scale of what is really scary in life, tragedy and extreme sorrow is at the top, and getting back on the bike is just getting back on the bike and way down on the ladder of scary things that can happen to you.

I refuse to let fears rule my life. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems and as I just showed, can be much better than expected.

[ShubieGA]

Hey Milkbone, I am in the same boat. I have been off for a year due to medical as well. Just getting started again. I have been taking short rides with no computer on my hybrid. But am looking forward to getting on my road bike (Pearl) again. I just signed up for a shorter ride (20 miles) on Tour de Pink to give me a goal. Baby steps!!!

[buffybike]

When I'm feeling my motivation slip I change the way I think about the ride. Instead of thinking, "I should ride", I think, "I'm going to do something nice for myself and go for a ride." The experience then feels like a gift to myself rather than a chore.

[Pedal Wench]

It is like someone is trying to lose weight, fell off the wagon, and the advice is to say, hey stop keeping a food diary. It makes no sense. <<<>>>Take the bike computer, just like you record to the food diary, and then use the data or don't use it, but don't leave the bike computer at home. Getting back on the bike and regaining the fitness is a matter of the heart and has nothing to do with a tool that records the data of the ride.

Not what I was really saying...

It's more like staying off the scale. If you've gained weight, and you're feeling bad about it, you don't need the numbers on the scale to know that, yup, you've gained weight. For many people, that's even more of an impetus to give up entirely. I was thinking that she doesn't need the bike computer (and I'm pretty sure I said for the first ride or two...) to tell her, yup, you're slow.

If you're dieting and fall off the wagon, I would imagine it's best to wait until you've got your eating back under control and have the scale moving in the right direction. A food diary is a tool to do that. I equate the bike computer more to a scale than a diary. Most people know about how far they've ridden, but don't need the slap-in-the-face that a slow average speed can be to someone just getting their mojo back.

Go and ride just for fun, and then when you're ready to get serious about it, start looking at numbers again. What could be most wonderful is if your numbers aren't as bad as you think they are!