Noonievut

In an effort to maintain the fitness I've worked hard at developing, and to prevent long term cycling-only related issues (neck, shoulders), I'm wanting to add a quiver of activities, while continuing to cycle--though less frequently--but I'm struggling to find the right ones.

I've been an avid cyclist for over 10 years. In this time I've increased annual riding, added great gear and accessories to expand when I can ride (lights for dark, warm clothes for winter, etc), and while I started with road cycling, I now dabble with gravel roads, mountain bike, and have toured. In the last few years I've also dabbled with running and swimming.

I feel that I'm at a point, in part due to some cycling related, nagging injuries (nothing serious), that I want to do more activities, but I'm struggling to find the right ones.

The factors I look for (i will use cycling as the basis):
- convenience (with lights I can ride my bike at any time, and with the right seasonal fear I can ride most days of the year...I'm in Canada and do ride in the winter)
- ease (I can ride from my front door, and for variety when time permits I can take the mtn bike to the trail head)
- fitness (I can leave the house for 2hrs and get a great workout)
- lack of boredom (every ride is different...the bike I I've, the route I take, when I stop...)
- passion (there is a great recreational cycling culture, with access to so much information to fuel the passion)
- trips (time permitting, you can plan multi-day excursions)

I'm currently toying with:
- running (developed some foot issues a couple years ago and even though I took a long break from running, the sensations are still there and I don't want to do further damage)
- swimming (good, but the neck and shoulder issues I've had from cycling may not be helped from swimming...but this is probably something I can do once or twice a week)
- hiking (currently trying this out...with a wife, kid and full time job it's hard to get in long hikes, and I'm not sure yet about hiking in the dark)

Any other activities you all do? How do you fit it in to your schedules?

alcjphil

There is nothing wrong with some downtime in the winter. A friend of mine who spends time in Florida every winter says the locals who cycle year round don't seem to reach the same peaks of fitness that the snowbirds who go down there after a couple of months of inactivity are able to attain. Hiking is a good late season activity, but what really gets us going in winter is cross country skiing, it has the big advantage of building upper body strength. Another friend of ours does a lot of short track speedskating during the winter months. Works for him, he kills us all in our early spring rides

GravelMN

Swimming is an excellent activity to round out just about any other sport. There are numerous stroke and kick styles so that you can work different muscles through a wide range of motion, or accommodate joint issues. The water supports your entire body and makes it the ultimate low impact activity, so it is great for rehabilitation of old injuries or recovering from a hard training season. In addition to swimming, you can try other pool activities such as water aerobics or water polo/volleyball. I've seen runners get in the shallow end of the pool and "run" in waist deep water in the later stages of recovery from knee or ankle injuries.

Consider some kind of resistance training. Body weight, machine, and/or free weights 2-3 x weeks can help develop not only muscle, but also connective tissue and bone. You don't have to be a body builder or put on a lot of mass to strengthen, tone, and stabilize. Focus on core and multi-joint movements rather than isolation exercises that work one specific muscle or localized muscle group. The exception is isolation exercises designed to work the smaller stabilizing muscles of the hip and shoulder joints.

While you are at the gym, try some HIIT training on an elliptical trainer or some balance ball exercises. Racquetball is a good sport to build explosiveness and lateral stability in the legs but be careful of your ankles and knees.

There are also fitness programs like Insanity, P90X, CrossFit, and others that you can mix and match. Not as macho, but Pilates and yoga have benefits for cyclists and provide a lot more workout than you might expect. There are some yoga classes that forgo the soft meditative music and soft spoken leader in favor of rock and a more drill sergeant like leader. Perhaps not the path to spiritual enlightenment, but still a great workout.

Mix it up, try new things, and don't forget to have some fun.

Machka 

Join a gym ... run on the treadmill, do some rowing, swim, spinning class ...

Do some winter sports ... cross-country skiing, snowshoeing ...

trainsktg

I've been using a bodyweight program called 'Convict Conditioning' and supplementing with kettlebells for the last couple of years. My strength and joint health are so improved that I sold all of the weight equipment that I had been using for about 35 years previously (started with freeweights at age 11).

Keith

rydabent

Besides cycling, I lift hand weights twice a week for upper body and arm strength.

hyhuu

I started cycling because of knees issue from running but as I found out after more than 4 years of cycling exclusively (7-8K miles/year), it made my legs weak. Putting on a pack and climbing a mountain would turn my legs into jello. Fortunately, at about the same time I happened to read the book "Born to run" so I went back to running with a change in my stride using minimalist shoes and to my surprise, it works. It has been 4 months running and there is no pain whatsoever. I now a day ride a bit less and on days I run, I also incorporate burpee (with push-up) session into the workout. Overall, I'm in a much better shape for other outdoor activities than before.

Elvo

Rock climbing

Jack Lorington

Totally agree

berner

My feeling is that the best exercises are the ones you find the most rewarding and are therefor, the ones that will be maintained year after year. In your situation, since you have children, I'd find something you and the kids enjoy doing together.

fietsbob

2 years short of 70..

Ride to the Pub, watch sports on the Tube, with friends , and ride home, Does that count?

Noonievut

The pub part counts, but I would have to walk, run, or ski there to make it a true multi-sport day!

rumrunn6

I had a great routine a while back
biking
running
swimming
weight training

it was a challenge to work them all in but I was able to use before work, lunchtime and after work hrs to do so. yes, there were some days I was seen at the gym twice or 3 times. rule #1 is do no harm, get your reps in and gradually build intensity. just don't tweak anything otherwise it will set you back and that will annoy the heck out of you, well ... it did me so, be cool and crank it up as you can safely

Keith99

Swimming is an excellent way to stay fit when banged up.

I swam for years before hanging it up my Senior year in College when I went from Rugby part time to my main athletic focus.

Within a couple of years I got banged up enough that fitness training was an issue. back in the pool even though only 1 limb out of 4 was fully functional.

And once you have a pool swimming still works when things like hiking are out of the question due to weather.

jwarner

Got Snow? XC-skling. Low impact, fairly intuitive, diverse communities, similar output as cycling, and don't have to break the bank getting set-up unless you want to.

Wilfred Laurier

The obvious cross-training sports for cycling are obviously curling, trap shooting, and dressage, or if there are no curling rinks in your town, a close second set of sports is ball-room dancing, fencing, and base jumping.

Anyone who suggests otherwise is just messing with you

RatMudd

Weight lifting. Bulk up with heavier weights, low repetition. Tone up with lighter weights, higher repetition. Bench presses, curls, wrist curls, ect. Sit-ups, push-ups, pull-ups, jumping jacks, squats, etc.

Weather permitting, kayaking the river or a lake.