I should know by now! LOL
Moms View Message Board: General Discussion: Archive August 2008:
I should know by now! LOL
Next time I hear myself complaining about my weight I will have to remind myself that I will get nowhere when I go out for a long walk and come home to make monkey bread! LOL
On the exercise subject though, anyone here bike regularly? Apparently I will never get 100% better from my knee injury from running so i'm looking into biking as a low impact alternative to get my cardio back in. I know NOTHING about biking. I think i'll like it but I don't know how to buy a bike and I really doubt I need the thousand dollar ones competitive bikers use.
I don't do it regularly. However, Blake and I went with my sis to Angel Fire, New Mexico 2 weeks ago. While there we took mtn bikes up the chair lifts and rode down the mtn trails. WOW!!!!!!!! What were we thinking??? It was insane and a total blast. lol I think we did 7 miles one day. I would do it again, actually.  I kind of want a bike myself now.
Jeez, I'm trying to GAIN weight! People comment all the time how thin I am and I sick of it!
People never comment how much weight a person has gained because of stressors but they sure comment when a person loses weight....like a compliment?!
Sorry to vent on your thread...
I would love your recipe for monkey bread.
Dh and I used to ride often before we had Natalie. I never had anything fancy, except a cushy seat. All you need is a bike really, and then you just go where you want. We didn't do trail riding, just road riding.
Annie I'm with you! I'm one of the thin ones...5'7 110 pounds and I constantly hear about how thin I am and I must never eat etc. It makes me ill..someone isn't going to comment on someone gaining why do they think it's ok to comment on someone who's thin. 
Now that I've ranted. I don't recommend an expensive bike for just casual get in shape riding. I have a bike I paid about 150 for. It's got gears (not sure how many) and suspension and that's it and it's more than adequate. Make sure you have a cushy seat
Target, Walmart, and I think Kmart now carry Schwinn bikes. Ditto on the cushy seat!!!
I would find a nice one that you like at a bike store and then search on Craigslist or ask when the bike shop has a "used sale". The ones here in Boulder have them.
Here are the tiers of bike frames:
Aluminum
Aluminum with carbon fiber forks
Carbon Fiber
There are tiers of components but I wouldn't worry too much. Just get a light bike that feels good, looks cute, is within your price range, and **SHIFTS ON THE BRAKES**. Totally worth it and safe. Get a cute burley and pull the little guy behind too. ;-) Craigslist is also good for that.
Also, as far as knees go, just make sure you're spinning and not putting too much strain on your knees. Biking can be good for knees, but if you're constantly straining, it could hurt you.
Dh is huge into biking, both mountain and road, racing and pleasure. He actually road bikes to work (40 miles into Boston) for fun.... I think Kym and her dh own a bike store so she would be the one to ask. Ilike to mountain bike and have done downhill which is a total blast (but scary), but I cannot keep up w/dh and his friends. There are a lot of bike groups that welcome beginners or novice riders.
We'll Annie and Catherin, i'll just be jealous for now! LOL I'm 5'8" and 130 but I have a small frame and seem to be carrying all that extra in all "those" bad areas! Grr..... i'm sure the monkey bread today helped! ;)
Recipe for money bread: (It's SUPER easy)
4 packages biscuits (I use the cheapest brand I can find)
1 cup sugar
3 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted
Mix sugar and cinnamon together in a ziploc bag. Open biscuits and break each one into quarters. Throw in bag and shake well then put them into a bundt pan. Do this until there are no biscuits left. Melt 1/2 cup butter and pour over top of biscuits. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.
There are soooo many variations of this recipe and some people add either nuts, raisins or chocolate chips. You just have to adjust it to your liking. (Or leave it plain like me!)
Thanks for the bike help. I saw Schwinn's at Target last night. DH said I should be fine as long as I get a bike that has enough gears. (Whatever that means! LOL)
Melissa - I just have to say that 5'8" and 130 lbs. is NOT heavy! LOL at you, girl! I am 5'8" also, though I weigh nearly 10 lbs. more than you. I am also about 30 years older. LOL
As for bikes, I haven't owned one in years, so can't help much there!
I agree 5'8 and 130 is not heavy at all!! I know what you mean about carrying weight in "those" places lol I may be a skinny thing but the part of it that's no longer muscle (from having kids) doesn't sit the way I want it too :P
From what I've seen; at my height 125 is considered "normal" who's to say what normal is? For me it's all about how YOU feel and what others think/say doesn't matter. It just gets exhausting hearing people comment on my weight...
Hi Melissa, I just noticed the other post regarding your bike, and checked back here only to realize my very very long post, didn't post!! So I'll send it again since you have not gotten a bike yet, and I really think you should
You are right you don't need a $1,000 bike (but they sure are nice).You are used to having an active life, and excersing at a higher level than casual exercisers, so for that reason
I think you should go with a better quality bike than you can find at Target or WalMart, they are fine for some folk, but I think you will take it to a different level to replace your long runs and needed endorphin level What you need is a bike that fits you really well and that FEELS good. I highly reccomend getting one from a Local Bicycle Store (LBS) for several reasons. I'll pro and con the LBS vs Big Box (Target, Wal Mart)
Big Box
Pros: Low Cost, that's it the only Pro
Cons: 99% of the time the bikes are not built correctly, case in point: yesterday we had a Target bike brought into the shop, the handlebars were put on wrong and would not get tight as they had been stripped, cost the owner $25.00 for a replacement part, the fork was put on BACKWARDS so the front brakes would not work at all, he ended up getting a rebuild tune up from us to the tune of $40.00, he is now only $15.00 away from our lowest priced bike vs the price he paid at Target.
Con: No service after the sale
Con: No help with warranty if there is one
Con: The bikes are very heavy and become "not fun" to ride in a short period of time, and start breaking down a lot faster
LBS
Con: higher priced
Con: sometimes it's hard to get good information if a)they are clueless, b) they know too much for their own good.
Pros: Professionally built and serviced bikes. Professional Fit (very very important, especially if you have an injury)
Service after the sale, many times they offer free service for a year. Assistance in how to ride, where to ride, what to wear, how to improve, can make lots of "tweaks" until your rides are comfortable and enjoyable.
I can't stress enough how much more you will get out of your experience if you have a light weight bike that fit's you well and that is serviced properly....it makes a world of difference.
We have many customers who say they are going to "start" on a Wal Mart bike, and we encourage them NOT to do this, (except for kids), because 9 times out of 10 the riding is so poor that they think it's the sport, when really if the equipment was better, they whole experience is better.
You can find good deals at your LBS, especially now as the 09's are coming out, the 08's will start being discounted. We usually always have a few used bikes as well that we have taken as trade in's when people upgrade. I would caution against Ebay "NEW" bikes, as they are usually stolen or have counterfeit parts, sad but true!
Anyway, I see you have not made a decision, but wanted to give you this info to have as a reference, and of course I'd be glad to give you any other help I can if needed.
None of our bikes, have come from Walmart/Target, etc. Sarah used to have a bike from Sears, but when she needed an adult-sized bike, we went to the local bike store. They have worked well for us. A long time ago, my bike came from a bike store, too.
What I remember about the Sears bike, is how heavy it was, and this was a 24" bike, so the transition between a kids' bike and an adult bike. The bike-store bikes are much lighter and stronger, than the cheaper bikes.
ditto kym 100% on the lbs. Also a lot of lbs's will have group rides for all levels from their shop. nice way to meet people at the same level as you.
Thank you for that info Kym! It's really useful. I guess for now i'm going to get a list of the local bike stores around here and go "window shopping" and talk to a few employees to see what they recommend and then research some more. Hopefully in the next month or two I can actually feel confident in making the right purchase.
I'm at my store right now, and unbeleivabally (sp) I just had a customer come in with her husband and she is looking for a road bike, I showed her three bikes from $660-999.00. She told me she was in a different city yesterday and checked out a LBS there, they had her on ONE bike that was almost $6,000!!!!!!She has never ridden a road bike before, this is what they wanted her to have for her first bike. I'm just blown away.
The point of this story for anyone looking for a bike is make sure you "trust" the people you are dealing with and move on to the next store if you don't have a good feeling or feel they are selling you more than you need. We pride ourselves on being ethical and this is just crazy for a store to do. Granted they are a high end store, but they should have been gracious enough to send this gal to another shop that is more "family" oriented.
And Melissa, my pleasure to help Let me know how the search goes.
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