Bike?

[bauerrules]

I am going to start getting in shape and quit slacking off and get in the Sheriff's office this year. I need some of your great advice. I am 6 feet 2 inches tall and weigh 290lbs. When I go out and run my knees are killing me because of my weight and for not running in so long. I can still dunk a basketball but can not run as great as I should be.
So I have decided to get a bike and do some riding to start off dropping some weight and saving my knees and joints some unneccessary wear and tear. I went to a few places to look at some bikes, but I do not know the first thing about getting one.
I am not sure about what weight limits they can handle and what type to get. I will mostly be riding on trails or flat land, going pretty slow to start off until I progress. I heard that aluminum is okay for my weight but like I said I do not know what to choose. Any help on picking out a bike would be greatly appreciated.
-Thanks

[livestrong6]

Shopping for a bike is like shopping for a new car. There are so many options it is hard to pick and choose. For one set up a budget. How much you want to spend will limit your chooses quickly. The options on a bike is as long as a car now. Also, each style of bike has there own catagory. Hardtail(mountain bike), is a bike with only one shock on it. That is a front fork shock. A full suspension(mountain bike) is just that, It has a front shock and a shock built into the frame. Where it is located is determined on that bike manufactuers traditional design. Now depending on the company there are many different names for the hybrid bikes. They are a cross from a mountain bike and road bike. You will see urban bikes, hybrid, trail bikes and what not. Some of these bikes are fine for the average riders. However, if you get serious about riding I highly suggest not even looking at these types of bikes. Then you have your cyclocross bikes. these type of bikes are built on beefed up road bike frames and have thicker wheels. these bikes can be used in off road applications however, Not ever off road environment is good for this type of bike.
On bike materials it really doesn't matter what the thing is made of. Only professional riders need the lightest and stiffest materials. Can you tell the difference riding a carbon fiber bike and aluminum sure can. However, will the benefits of spending 1000's of dollars more on the carbon fiber bike help you get into shape faster then the aluminum bike? Not at all, go with the aluminum bike. They are stiff can take wear and tear better and, if you crash (believe me if you ride enough you will crash) you wont have to worry about destroying your frame.
Also, Bike set up is the most important thing you have to do. This means where your seat is. If your seat is to low YOU WILL GET KNEE PAIN. Im not talking a slight soreness, I'm talking pain on every pedal stroke. Another thing is to pedal correctly. Pedalling with your knees bowed out from the bike frame is wrong and you will get knee pain. Your knees have to be over your feet in a straight line. the knees can be pinched in a bit but shouldn't hit the bike frame. Also, the distance from your seat to handle bars have to be correct for your height. You don't want to be leaning to far foward. Many adjustments can be made with different size bars and stems. Which is why i would highly recommend going to a bike shop to get fitted. Now the bike seat is every beginners biggest problem. Now with the right seat height. the type of seat you have will benefit you the most. The seats that come with most bikes are usually pretty hard. There are many after market seats that you can find one that you like. However, I would caution you on going for the biggest thickest gel filled seat. Usually those are more uncomfortable then the thin ones. I ride off road alot and on trails and having to get out of the seat alot you don't want to have to worry about getting stuck on your seat. Thin is good. Now look at the seats the pro bike riders use and they are thin. very thin. They may know something us normal folks don't. Also, bike shorts with the butt pad in them will give you a few minutes or hours more of comfort before your butt will start to hurt. The only cure for that is riding. The more you ride the tougher your butt will get.

[HailStorm]

Anecdotal evidence.
I rode my bike to school every day (10 miles one way, so 100 miles/week plus groceries, and work, and etc).
I ate a LOT of food, we're talking almost 5k calories.
I still managed to lose a little bit of weight.
Cut the calories down, and the weight will fall off. DO NOT EAT TOO LITTLE, or else you'll not make it as far.
I had a hard time motivating myself. Start out small, work your way up. Eventually you zen out. MP3 player is fine, only one earbud. Otherwise just think.

[DinoTX]

Bauer, I have no issues with bike riding for fitness, I love riding, but I have to tell you, you won't be doing much bicycling in the Academy. In other words, don't depend on bicycling to get you in shape for running, it aint gonna happen.

The only way to get better at running is to run. I know plenty of overweight guys that run alot and they have no problem with their knees, know why? because thet go invest in a pair of good purpose made running shoes and just do it. Get you some shoes with some extra cushion, go to one of those running specialty stores and have them analyze your gait and fit you for a pair of shoes.

Start off by walking at a fast pace for about the first two weeks everyday to get use to the shoes and to break them in. Then gradually start running more and more. Don't try to run a marathon your first time out. Switch out, one week just run distance every other day, the next week do sprints to help you work on your speed and endurance. Later on, and this is only an example, do what works for you, do distance on Monday, sprint on Wednesday, Distance on Friday, and rest for the rest of the week. Do this until you can get out and run everyday without risking injury or over training. Your knees may hurt a little at first, but if it's just soreness from being out of shape, it'll eventually go away. Also start taking Osteo Biflex or a similar supplement to help lubricate and strengthen your joints, it helps.

I'm not saying to not ride your bike, that's a great exercise and stress releiver, but there is no substitute for good ole running. Don't make excuses, just get out there and do it.

[bauerrules]

Man I love this forum, Thanks alot guys for all the great info and motivation. I do need to do both. I am going out on sunday and getting a bike and a good pair of running shoes. Also thanks for the tip on the Osteo Biflex.

[livestrong6]

Riding can be a subsitute activity to running. Now a nice ride down and back to the mail box won't do you any good. You have to put on miles and alot of them to get an aerobic benefit out of it. Start off slow. 5-6 miles. Then I would try a bench mark of 10 miles. It might sound alot but you should be able to complete it in an hour the most and 30 minutes is a good goal (you are hauling butt) atleast a 20mph average. Now here is some food for thought. Lance Armstrong one year out of Retirement Ran the New York marathon under 4 hours at his first attempt something like 3:56 something like that. This year he shaved 30 minutes off his time. Now his training for the marathon was almost nothing compared to the 10's of thousands that ran the race. He stated on his web site last year he might of ran 2-3 times a week never doing more then 15 miles at one time. Basically, only training 3 months for the race. Now, I have a friend that runs the Chicago marathon every year and she has started training now in january for an October race. Pretty interesting tide bit there. I now she is not an elite athlete. However, Look at the training time. 3 months to 10 months. Something is different. Lance has stated he rides every day still. Now he doesn't do the training intensity he did getting ready for the tour or his race season. However, he still rode his bike faster then 99 percent of the cyclist out there. His aerobic engine is so fine tuned he was able to use his riding not his running as a benefit to allow him to run the marathon without the time needed to get ready for that race. However, his lack of running did cost him in stress fractures in his shines and major cramping. However, a former new york marathon winner and olympic medalist in lance's frist attempt while pacing him, said lance was so aerobically fit he was talking to people next to him at mile 20 like he talked to people waiting for the start of the race. Lance, also, stated on his web site that his lungs where fine and probably could of run alot faster if his shines were not hurting as bad as they were.

So personally i can give some information to this as well. I logged in 4317 miles riding in 2007. I averaged 120 miles a week. Now some weeks I rode around 200 miles other weeks 10 or 0. It all depend on my mood really. However, I took a few pt test. I ran maybe once a week mid summer. I also was playing baseball every weekend. So i got some sprinting in. I took a test in may ran 13:03 mile and half. I took one in oct. ran a mile and half in 12:50. in sept i did not run at all. However, I averaged 130 miles a week on my bike that month. However, I will admit the may test i didn't wake up sore the next morning like i did in the october test. My shines just killed me and my hamstrings were very tender. Yes I did stretch out. I stretch out every morning and before I do any thing athletic. It basically came down to my muscles were not use to the punishment of running. Aerobically i was fine. Could i of run faster? maybe, but you don't get higher on the list if you can lap everyone on the track. Plus, without running for a month I didn't know if my legs could hold out for the entire run. So I paced myself I set a 2 minute a lap pace and tried to stick to it.

So the moral of the story is ride! Ride all you want. however, when it comes time to do some running you better run. Nothing can substitute running. Riding can help increase your aerobic capacity. however, you need to run to build up that muscle memory.

[charles353]

Riding a bike is a great way to start off. I am a big guy that has started the app process, but I have to lose at least 40 lbs. I find that the bike is far easier on the legs at this time. I would say that you need to push yourself on the bike to make it work, going at least 15 mph to get the benefits of riding the bike. Good luck.

[TCON1834]

I've gotten really into biking as an alternative to running. I ride a road bike and I also have 2 Mt Bikes. I put a trainer on my road bike in the winter to ride inside. I would recommend going to a local bike shop and talking to them about what bike they'd recommend. Most local bike shops aren't like car dealerships (commission sales people). All the shops here are very helpful and will give you some test rides on different bikes to see what you like and what fits you.

I'm a big fan of Trek/Gary Fisher and Specialized. Keep us posted. Also, just as mentioned bike riding can be a great workout, but will not replace running. They can compliment each other, but they are two different exercises.

Good luck!

[Chit2001]

+1 on the Gary Fisher.

Have owned a hybrid for 3 years now..... will never go to anything else.

[TCON1834]

+1 on the Gary Fisher.

Have owned a hybrid for 3 years now..... will never go to anything else.

Biking can be come addictive. At least it's healthy though. :D

I test rode different bikes for almost a full year. haha. My most recent purchase was my brand new leftover 07 Gary Fisher Rig (single speed, 29er). I got a great deal on it. For those of you that don't know where to find Gary Fisher bikes, they can be found at most Trek stores.

www.fisherbikes.com

There's something so simple about riding this bike (you don't have to think about shifting), but the nice big tires soak up a lot of the road and have great rolling momentum.

http://www.fisherbikes.com/img/bikes/2007/640x400/rig.jpg

My other bikes...

07 Specialized Stumpjumper Comp

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l220/OmahaSS/SJ_HT_Comp_Sat_Blk.jpg

05 Lemond Big Sky SL

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l220/OmahaSS/LemondBigSkySL.jpg

[bauerrules]

I know it bikiing will not substitute. All I feel I need is kind of like an appetizer(fat boy talk) to work up to the main course of running. I got a treadmill today because man it is cold outside right now. Tomorrow I go to the bike shop to get a feel of what I want and a good pair of shoes from my fathers friend who owns a shoe store with a doctor that works there. He is going to give me a consultation to reduce my knee pain.
Thanks again for all the help.

[TCON1834]

I know it bikiing will not substitute. All I feel I need is kind of like an appetizer(fat boy talk) to work up to the main course of running. I got a treadmill today because man it is cold outside right now. Tomorrow I go to the bike shop to get a feel of what I want and a good pair of shoes from my fathers friend who owns a shoe store with a doctor that works there. He is going to give me a consultation to reduce my knee pain.
Thanks again for all the help.

Good luck and keep us posted. PM me if you want to talk bikes.

[livestrong6]

the gary fisher 29er's are very nice I test rode a few. Bigger wheel more traction in off road applications. However, for newbies on the bike I would stay away from single speed bikes. The freedom of shifting gears is a nice luxury when riding up an incline or mountain and being able to turn over the pedals all the time is a benefit. A single speed can discourge an new bike rider just on that fact. If you can't ride up the street or path because in the middle you have to turn around what benefit will that do for you. shifting gears is tricky for newbies and once you get the hang of it then you'll never stop pedalling. it will become fluid and you will never notice the change in cadence.

Now on the bike's Gary fisher is the grandfather of mountain biking. Basically he design the first ones. I bought a hardtail fisher a few years ago and I have a 5.2 trek madone. Trek Bought Fisher a few years ago I think 5 or 6 to give a time line. That's why you will see alot of same components on each brand. Most come with Bontreager wheels, steams, Handle bars, seat post, cranks, and seats. Bontreager now is much better the 8-10 years ago. The difference in alot of the bikes is this. The components. A bike that cost 200 dollars more then another bike has the same frame geometry. (all Gary fishers, Hardtails are identical frame wise. The only difference is the components.) So you can upgrade components whenever you want. Trek on the other had have two different hardtails Carbon fiber frame hardtails, and their aluminum frames. Like I said before stay away from the carbon fiber and stick with the aluminum frames ones. Trek carbon fiber is called OCLV which is a high end carbon fiber frame. Most companies have tried to copy and have failed. Ok On components, Shimano is high end Bontreager is the lower end stuff. Components will drive you crazy. I have changed out my cranks twice now and breaks once, handle bars, 3 seats, and two sets of rims. One set of rims handle bars was from a crash I had with a maple tree this spring.

On road bikes that's a hard one. Every company is different then the other. Trek in my opinoin has some of the better road bike on the planet. However, Cervelo, and specialized is high up there as well. I road both of those bikes and I would say cervelo is stiffer then the specialized bike. However, I liked the style of the specialized bike better. I tested road the Roubaix specialized and the s-works specialized. These bikes are what the professionals ride. Very stiff and very responsive. However, in the area of 8000 dollars. Specialized does have those bikes in cheaper versions however, they are still the same frame design however it may be in aluminum. Cervelo is high end road racing bikes. However, they do offer cheaper version of their racing heritage, but they are still out of my price range. Cervelo, may have the most aerodynmic frame in the world and thats why you will pay big money for those bikes. A frame set( frame and forks only) go for 3800 dollars for the carbon fiber race bikes and maybe 1800 for their cheaper frame sets.

One Last thing do research before you go and shop. Each bike company has dealer locators on their websites. So you can pinpoint were those particular bikes are sold. Have fun riding.

[Furbetto]

@TCON1834 and LIVESTRONG6:
My best compliments for your bikes (and yours mileage too!), a special applause for the Lemond... a true jewel! Nice to find other into cycling.

Here my littles::p

http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/2640/toscana022rh3.th.jpg (http://img207.imageshack.us/my.php?image=toscana022rh3.jpg)
Trek Fuel 90, Shimano XT (..but less used, usually I ride the road one)
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/2020/img9003av3.th.jpg (http://img87.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img9003av3.jpg)
Bianchi 928 Carbon L, Special Edition paint for the 120 years, Campagnolo Centaur, Crankset FSA Megaexo Gossamer Pro and Zefiro 58mm wheels. :D

[stlcopper]

I rode a Trek police model while doing bike patrol last summer, and highly recommend it! The suspension was great, which is very important if you're a big guy. If you don't want to feel every little bump that is... Make sure you get a comfortable seat if you're not used to riding! If not, after the first long ride, you'll never want to see that bike again! LOL

[Muldoon54]

Please go to a bike shop for your bike. They will not only not steer you wrong, but most bike shops offer a fit kit to properly fit you on the bike. This measures everything (seat, seatpost, stem, frame, handlebars, etc.). You can get the best, most expensive bike on the planet but if it doesn't fit you properly you won't ride it. Please stay away from Walmart, Target, Academy, etc for the bike. The bikes are horrible and the people who assemble them have no idea what they are doing. I've seen plenty floor models with the forks on backwards. You'll pay a little more at the bike shop but you are paying for quality and service. Also, after a month or so of riding the bike will need a tune up because the cables will stretch. Bike shops usually provide this free if you purchase the bike from them. Become friendly with your local bike shop and they will become friendly with you.

+1 on the Lemond!! As a racer (both road and track) I LOVE my Lemond Zurich. Anyway, with your weight and lack of riding, IMO you might want to look at a good hybrid bike. The frames are a little beefier as well as the tires. Plus you will have a flat handle bar which means you will sit up more on the bike instead of hunched over like the drop style bars. If you aren't used to riding drop style bars it may take a while. As far as the frame material it's your choice. They all have their pros and cons. What I've found is that Alum frames tend to be pretty rough on the road. Shocks and padded seats will help you. Carbon fiber is the way to go IF you have the money to shell out. I wouldn't go w/carbon fiber until you've put a few miles in and graduated to a racing type of frame. My favorite phrase about steel frames is "Steel is real because nothing rhymes with carbon fiber." Steel is old skool, but I LOVE my steel frames. I've been racing and riding since 1987 so I am old skool. You don't give up a lot of weight (I'm not a weight weenie) and you get the strength, comfort, durability, and looks. Basically your choice (I have seen pics of a bike made from bamboo though). Also, don't worry about getting the race type of seat (narrow) just yet. Get something that you will be comfortable on. Not too big where it will rub against the inside of your legs though. The bike shop can help you with that.

Once you purchase the bike, you aren't done. You have gear you need and gear you don't need. Basic needs - helmet, bag to strap under your seat (to keep tools, tire irons, patch kit, a tube, money, id, cell phone, etc.), frame pump or CO 2 cartridges. You don't want to get stuck in the middle of nowhere with no tools and no way to fix a flat. And don't forget water bottes and cages. Your secondary items you can get after you put a few miles in - shorts (with padding), gloves, jersey w/pockets in the back to store food or whatever you want in addition to the bag under your seat, cold weather riding gear, and don't forget cycling shoes. Cycling shoes are important because they will help you with the comfort of your ride. They don't bend like tennis shoes and this helps more than you think. However, along with shoes you have to decide what pedal system you want. That is another topic you can discuss with your local bike shop.

Also, if you get a hybrid or mountain type of bike and you plan on riding mostly on the road, get road tires, and not the knobby type. You will find it easier to pedal on hard surfaces. Again, another topic for the local bike shop.

I know this is a lot of info. That's why i recommend a good bike shop. Good luck with it and keep us up to date. Happy riding!!

[brownj21]

I started another bike thread, but livestrong referred me to this one. Thanks for all the info guys. I want to get into biking some, and am looking at as much info as possible trying to get a bit educated and all-this thread has helped. I will be getting sized this weekend at a bike shop to see what will fit me. Unfortunately, I dont have much $, so it will either be a lower end bike or a used one of craigslist.