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More Time To Get Fit - 2025

i put the stump jumper on an indoor trainer. no cars can mow me down and time of day doesn’t matter. i’m capable of about 15 minutes before i’m kinda uncomfortable and say “enough!” and i can do about the same out on the street with my three speed. my friend Ben is dropping off a bike frame and lots of components over thanksgiving that will be set up to my liking by my roomie.

cycling doesn’t hurt.
 
More positive benefits from creatine coming out in new studies.
 
two wheel tramp said:
i put the stump jumper on an indoor trainer. no cars can mow me down and time of day doesn’t matter. i’m capable of about 15 minutes before i’m kinda uncomfortable and say “enough!” and i can do about the same out on the street with my three speed. my friend Ben is dropping off a bike frame and lots of components over thanksgiving that will be set up to my liking by my roomie.

cycling doesn’t hurt.
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Fuck yeah!!
 
So Friday night was horrible for ankle area cramps. got woken up like 4 times thank god for Icy Hot but I think I might have figured out the issue.

So a little backstory. I have lower leg cramping issues at night and one way to combat them I have found is keeping my lower legs warmer than the rest of my body so I have used an extra blanket to cover my lower legs at night. It let's my top keep cool and yet keeps my lower legs warm. So my wife has taken to putting the extra blanket between our sheet and top blanket. Well after Friday night for some reason I took a look at the bed and found that the extra blanket had gotten pushed off the bed and had gathered up at the foot of the bed. So Saturday night I got it back to where it was supposed to be covering my lower leg and haven't had an issue with my ankle area the last two nights. Thank god a good nights sleep. I know, I know I am weird for the extra blanket thing but it has worked for me. I am not wanting to rely on this so am looking at some stretching exercises for that part of the body as well.
 
easy wind said:
Mr Sharxfan, These leg cramps sure sound like a circulatory issue which can be checked out by your doc. The warmth moves the blood and prevents and/or relieves the stagnation. GL
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yup but after aforementioned car accident it has been an off and on thing. everything else seems to be fine down there its just a night thing probably because I keep my room at like 64 degrees at night so I can sleep like a polar bear.
 
The cycling is getting a little bit easier. The position on the Stump Jumper is a little aggressive so it's working my arms. I am still on the smallest chain ring on the bike, the granny gear. But it is getting easier.
 
Just stick with it, TWT, it will continue to get better and you get the bonus of working your arms.

You can take protein supplements to improve your recovery, if you aren't already.
 
Climber said:
Just stick with it, TWT, it will continue to get better and you get the bonus of working your arms.

You can take protein supplements to improve your recovery, if you aren't already.
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that's really something i need to do (protein supplements) and also collagen.

like my signature says, consistency is mastery. i want to get to the point (no laughing!) where I can easily do the five mile, moderately hill route around my house. can you believe I rode the 545 miles from SF to LA in a week back in 2011? And now 5 miles is a goal.

I REALLY miss my walks. :x
 
two wheel tramp said:
The cycling is getting a little bit easier. The position on the Stump Jumper is a little aggressive so it's working my arms. I am still on the smallest chain ring on the bike, the granny gear. But it is getting easier.
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You may want to adjust the angle of the bike with something under the front wheel. A front wheel stand, a piece of wood, a thick unimportant book, etc. It could help this issue. Just don't go so high that the saddle angle is uncomfortable.

Also make sure your saddle isn't too high. When it's lower, the bars get closer. And saddle too low is generally A LOT better than saddle too high. Heel on the pedal with a slight bend in the knee (in sneakers) is your upper limit, assuming you pedal with the balls of your feet. If you pedal with the arch of your foot, go like 1" lower.
 
stangmx13 said:
You may want to adjust the angle of the bike with something under the front wheel. A front wheel stand, a piece of wood, a thick unimportant book, etc. It could help this issue. Just don't go so high that the saddle angle is uncomfortable.

Also make sure your saddle isn't too high. When it's lower, the bars get closer. And saddle too low is generally A LOT better than saddle too high. Heel on the pedal with a slight bend in the knee (in sneakers) is your upper limit, assuming you pedal with the balls of your feet. If you pedal with the arch of your foot, go like 1" lower.
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thank you!

i had good weather and daylight and just went for a four mile pedal on the three speed. it’s definitely easier and i’m enjoying it.
 
I hit a small milestone in my fitness journey this week - a 3 YEAR streak of exercising at least once a week. As you can see from the activity count, it's been A LOT more than once per week :ROFLMAO:. Double days of lifting and riding help a bit.

Screenshot 2025-10-16 at 11.18.11 AM.png


Aside from that, my coach is trying to kill me for the next two weeks. The schedule starting yesterday is:

Wed 3hr ride, Thurs Lift & 2hr ride, Fri 3hr ride, Sat 4x20min tempo intervals, Sun 4-5hr ride
Mon Lift, Tues Off, Wed 2x60min tempo intervals, Thurs Lift & 2hr ride, Fri 2hr ride, Sat 3hr ride.

After that I fly to Taiwan for 2wks, which will include 3 days of bike packing. That should be plenty of time to recover from all these workouts.
 
i did the loop!

it’s a decent bit of climbing, about 250 feet over two miles. (hey, i am delicate! :x )

on the downside it has me in HR zone 4 a lot and i dont know if thats the best thing right now. my cardio fitness is pretty poor, aka, a work in progress.
 
two wheel tramp said:
i did the loop!

it’s a decent bit of climbing, about 250 feet over two miles. (hey, i am delicate! :x )

on the downside it has me in HR zone 4 a lot and i dont know if thats the best thing right now. my cardio fitness is pretty poor, aka, a work in progress.
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Your overnight HRV could show if you are pushing too hard. I think you can get this from the Apple Watch. If it drops significantly and stays down for a few days, you are probably pushing too hard and need more recovery. One extra recovery day per week is probably enough to fix a small overload.

If you stay consistent with the workouts and recover well, that cardio fitness should build FAST. Enjoy!
 
stangmx13 said:
Your overnight HRV could show if you are pushing too hard. I think you can get this from the Apple Watch. If it drops significantly and stays down for a few days, you are probably pushing too hard and need more recovery. One extra recovery day per week is probably enough to fix a small overload.

If you stay consistent with the workouts and recover well, that cardio fitness should build FAST. Enjoy!
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my apple watch will show my resting (sleep) heart rate.

when i am on the trainer in granny gear its easy to stay in zones 1 and 2.

thank you for this good advice and info.
 
stangmx13 said:
Your overnight HRV could show if you are pushing too hard. I think you can get this from the Apple Watch. If it drops significantly and stays down for a few days, you are probably pushing too hard and need more recovery. One extra recovery day per week is probably enough to fix a small overload.

If you stay consistent with the workouts and recover well, that cardio fitness should build FAST. Enjoy!
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my HRV was 20 over night. the average for the week was 26, month/year = 29. we’re talking heart rate variability, yeah?
 
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