infvr4

Hi. I'm new to the forum and new to cycling. I had a bike as a child but i recently decided to revisit one as an adult mainly for the purpose of strengthening my legs doing an activity I wouldn't hate. I've always had weak legs and an extremely strong upper body and this has been something I should have fixed a while ago because I box and fight in mma and a strong lower body is important in those sports, but I've always hated every activity that strengthens legs from running to squatting. So I decided to give cycling a try just for that reason and I fell in love with it instantly. I went out and bought a miyata 710(which I hope is a decent bike) for 75 bucks on craigslist, and have been using that for about 2 weeks now as a commuter. Well more like walking stick/commuter because my legs haven't been strong enough to get me up hills so I end up walking with it a lot, but aside from that I thoroughly enjoy riding. Hopefully soon I'll be more proficient and be able to take longer rides but until then I'll enjoy learning.

OTS 

Welcome to the forum.
Stick with riding and don't get discouraged, you won't be walking up hills long.
Your Miyata 710 is a good model, you should get a lot of miles out of that.

peugeot mongrel

Welcome! If you found you love it just keep it up! It will only get to be more fun.
You got a good bike!

I'm 61 and hadn't ridden since a kid until 2 years ago. Wife said "Wouldn't it be fun to ride bikes when the kids come visit" so I started building a small fleet. I found right away, to my surprise, I love riding! The 3 1/2 mile ride to work seemed daunting and an almost impossible thing at first. Now I commute every day, most days take the 15 mile long way and on a good day, if I get up early enough, I'll ride 25+ miles before work and it just feels great. As an added bonus I lost 60 lbs and can keep up with my son-in-law (if he waits ) climbing all over the hills around Sausalito when we go visit!

Keep it up! It will make your legs stronger.

brianinc-ville

Welcome! You got a nice bike there. Just keep riding, and before you know it you'll be charging up those hills.

Stevensb 

Welcome infvr4. I've had good luck using Photobucket to upload a photo to and then using the IMG link to post to BF. Look forward to seeing your 710.

infvr4

Thanks for the advice i posted a few pics..

Velognome 

Welcome and nice Miyata!

Pars 

Welcome! That is a pretty nice mid-range bike.

It appears that you have the seat rather low; normal starting rule of thumb would be that your leg should be straight or nearly straight with your heel on the pedal and the crank in line with the seat tube. If that is your proper saddle position in the pics, then the frame is probably a bit large for you.

Proper seat height will help you produce more power as well, so might make some of those hills you are currently walking a bit less daunting

infvr4

Thanks for the info. I was measured before i got it and was told i could go up to a 58 cm frame and this is a 58 but i'm still trying to get comfortable on it so i'll try and raise the seat and see if that works.

The Golden Boy 

I started riding again pretty much so I wouldn't get all fat after I quit smoking.

It turns out that I love riding, I love the "gear" aspect about the bikes, I didn't get fat, and one day, while humping a big ol' guitar cab up a flight of stairs- I realized my legs were much stronger than they had been in years.

DiegoFrogs

Welcome, and great bike!

The rear freewheel looks a bit "corncobish." You can probably get a slightly wider range freewheel for not too much scratch that will help level those hills a bit. Although it looks like one or both of the wheels is a replacement, and it may have a more modern-style cassette type hub.

kaydub

Nice bike! I picked up a road bike myself because I wanted to do something that would help keep me fit without feeling like a workout. I don't even know why people bother with things like treadmills. And there's just something about classic bikes... simple, elegant, less time spent worrying about weight and speed and more time enjoying the ride

Side note, have you thought about trying ice skating as well? Not sure if you're lucky enough to have an indoor ice rink near you, but it's a great way to build lower body strength and also helps your balance, which would probably be beneficial when doing MMA. Not to mention the fact that few things are more refreshing than stepping into a 45-50 degree ice rink in the summer when it's 90+ degrees outside.

eschlwc

if you're riding a 58cm frame, your leg inseam is at least 32", and the seat post will be raised at least 2" above the seat tube, not slammed down like that, which is an obvious sign the frame is way too big for you.

the above is just a rule of thumb. i'm 5'11" with a 32" inseam, ride 56-57cm seat tubes (when measured c-c), and have 4" of seat post showing above the frame.

hope this info helps.

Tulok

nice bike, and welcome to the forum! If you're in california, let me know when you're ready to upgrade, I like the banana yellow.

infvr4

thanks for all the welcomes and the advice. i raised my saddle up a little and it has helped tremendously. i'm just about 5'10 and have a 33 1/2'' inseam ( which i rounded up to 34'' for conversation) if that means much in relation to my frame size. i think ill be better at the hills also when i start to get comfortable using the downtube shifters because as of now i ride solely in the "hill" gear because i find it hard to let go of the handlebars to shift. i did tell you guys im new so don't laugh

The Golden Boy 

By the way- I also have a brown Avocet Touring II saddle.

I'm very conscious of riding with it- as I'm sure the brown nose of the saddle makes it look like my johnson is hanging out.

408mopar

Gotta get that seat where it should be, for sure. My knees hurt just thinking about a too-low seat. I wonder how many people lose interest in cycling because they never get comfortable on one? It's always the same story, "But I'll fall off with it that high". That's my number one pet peeve, followed closely by underinflated tires.

RobbieTunes

Welcome, and a good bike, especially for $75. To build your legs, especially for MMA, keep the bike heavy and ride it with flat pedals. You may still need to do some lunges, as the ex-NCAA wrestlers are still going to try to get in on you and give you a stiff challenge with their strong lower cores. I'd probably try carrying cinder blocks up flights of stairs or something if you need improvement rather quickly. The bike will help, but longer term and in a more balanced approach.