Month: September 2022

What to Bring When Cycling Long Distance

You might ask this question. What should you bring when you go cycling? To some, this is a big question. For professional cyclists, they do not want to burden themselves with an array of tools and equipments when cycling to reduce weight and increase performance. But what if you are cycling in a touring mode? You need to stop at multiple places to rest now and then. Therefore, you would be more prepared when you cycle.

Bottle cages

You need to drink water now and then. Don’t tell me you can cycle all day without drinking water? You could place a 500 or 750ml water bottle underneath the long tube while you cycle.

Bicycle pump

This pump will be small enough for you to place it on the bike itself. This type of pump is so light that you would not notice the difference cycling with it. However, make sure you have bought the right type of pump for your tire valves. There are the ‘presta’ and ‘shrader’ valve types.

Lubricants

What is this for? It is primarily for your bicycle chain. You would not want a dry and noisy chain every time you cycle. You will find that there are so many types of lubricants, ranging from dry to wet and lubricants with wax and so on. Different people might prefer certain lubricant types. Therefore, you have to experiment and find out.

Repair kit

This is also known as a survival kit. You really need to prepare for flat tires in future. This will always happen due to the small width of bicycle tires, especially the road bikes. What do you need? You will have to keep a stock of spare tube, tire patch, tire lever and a bike pump (that can be mounted on your tube). These equipments are least required. In fact, you should have more.

You should also have a small bag. This bag can be placed beneath the bike seat. The bag is very useful for putting your tools and accessories.

As for the inner tubes, it is advised that you get at least two of them. You should never rely solely upon tire patches. Often times, a tire patch is not sufficient to repair a heavily-damaged bike tube.

If you have to use tire patches, then you must know that once the tube of glue is opened, the glue will dry out. Therefore, you have to always check it yourself.

You have to bring another important tool, the tire lever. This tool is used to separate your tires from the rim. Otherwise, repairing your damaged tube with patches or tube-replacement is impossible.

Consider also a first aid kit. You will never know what will happen on the road. It can be handy to save someone else too.…

Three Apps for Fitness Freaks

If your new years resolution was to get in shape, and if that said resolution is still going strong then you might want to take a look at these apps to help you continue your journey.

All of these apps are available on the iPhone. Android devices unfortunately do not have GAIN Fitness

Endomondo

Endomondo is a really neat app. You can track pretty much anything outdoors in there whether it be a nice leisurely stroll through the park or an intense bike ride in the mountains.

The app will track your journey via GPS and save it using Google Maps so that you can look over it later. You can also take frequent workouts and try to beat your personal best. Also, using the GPS, the app can track your speed and uses it to create mile long splits to tell you if you slowed down towards the end of that bike ride.

All of the data is stored on your profile online where you can look on a calendar to see what days you worked out on and how good you did. The online portal also compiles some useful statistics on your workouts and you can even compete against others in your area on trails that they have set up.

I highly recommend this app, there is a free version which should be all that you need.

GAIN Fitness

This is for replacing that costly personal trainer. The app will customize the workout based upon what it learns about you. The workouts are customized based upon your age, weight, goals and earlier workouts. Don’t have a full set of workout equipment? Don’t worry, the app will only customize to what you have.

There is, once again, a web portal for the app that allows you to see data on a bigger, expanded screen.

The app is five dollars and is not available on Android.

Calorie Counter by MyFitnessPal

Input your goal weight into this calorie counter and it will do its best to figure out how much nutrition you’ll be needing each day. Unlike traditional calorie counting methods though, there is no real work once you get started. All you have to do is snap a picture of the barcode on the food you eat, input a portion size and watch those calories pile up. If you input your workouts too then the app will calculate if any more calories are needed.

This app is available on iOS and Android so you have no excuses.…

Lance Armstrong’s Battle With Cancer

Lance Armstrong fought with cancer and won! Being a great cyclist did not exclude him from other challenges. Just as his cycling career was picking up speed and he was becoming more famous all over the world something disastrous happened! He could have simply let go and gave up the fight. And yet, Lance Armstrong chose to fight cancer!

In the year 1996, Lance won the World Cycling Championships and became the first cyclist ever to win with the widest margin the United States National Race Championship. He also signed a contract with a French team for a very big amount of money. And yet, when the time came for him to ride his bike again for the Tour De France, he was diagnosed with advanced stage testicular cancer. To make things worse, the cancer cells had spread to his brain and to his lungs. He needed an urgent operation to remove his swollen testicle, is which had grown to the size of good-sized orange! Doctors told him he only had 50% chance of survival.

Lance Armstrong showed the world that you have to be strong and you have to fight for your life. That is why, he did not give up. Even if the doctors were pessimistic about his recovery, he never kept his fighting spirit up. Such fighting spirit was developed in his mind since childhood and that is why he did not give up easily. By using his athletic spirit, he simply considered cancer as another challenge that could be overcome by a great spirit and an optimistic outlook in life.

He lost a lot of weight in the process of the operation and chemotherapy. He could not even ride his bike around the neighborhood. But he learned to be spiritual as a result of his battle with cancer!

After his chemotherapy treatment, he was declared cancer-free! He had a new lease in life. He went back to his passion–riding his bike! The weight he lost actually helped him in his biking career because he became more capable in going through scale stage races! Something was truly different as he went through the Blue Rider Mountains training trails. Finally, after fighting with cancer, he was ready to fight for the races!

When he finally competed for the Tour De France, he breezed through it and won the yellow jersey. More than that, he competed in the next Tours to win a total of seven races consecutively!

Lance Armstrong’s bout with cancer became an inspiration among so many people around the world! They know that they, too, can succeed against the dreaded disease through medicine, training and optimism!…

The Role of Acupuncture in Sports Injuries and Athletic Performance

Sports injuries are most often caused by trauma (from a fall or blow) or overuse/misuse of certain muscles and the neighboring structures, including ligaments and tendons. The acupuncturist commonly sees sports injuries such as pulled muscles, strains, sprains, shin splints, Achilles tendonitis and various manifestations of inflammation and pain that can keep the injured athlete out of the game.

Acupuncture is used effectively to reduce the pain and inflammation of sports injuries. It has also been shown to increase range of motion and accelerate healing time. Acupuncture can be employed at any stage of an injury: to prevent, to treat acute pain, swelling and spasms, and to address conditions that make athletes vulnerable to re-injury. Studies have shown that acupuncture increases blood circulation to specific areas of the body, which not only promotes healing of sports injuries but could also boost athletic performance.

A study conducted at the Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in which athletes received acupuncture after running three miles revealed quicker heart rate recovery than those in the control group.

The American Journal of Acupuncture published a study that examined the effects of acupuncture on anaerobic threshold and work capacity during exercise. Researchers found that those who received acupuncture not only had lower heart rates, but had higher maximal exercise capacity and were able to handle greater workloads at the onset of blood lactate accumulation (OBLA) than those in the placebo group.

The January 2008 issue of the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine observed the effects of acupuncture on cyclists. Participants were divided into three groups that either received acupuncture, sham acupuncture or no acupuncture prior to periods of high-intensity cycling. The study revealed that the group who received acupuncture that adhered to the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine had a higher performance scores and rode faster than their counterparts.

The nicer Spring weather here in Philadelphia lends itself to more outdoor activities. If preexisting or new injuries are hindering your training or recreational goals, acupuncture and Chinese medicine should be considered a viable option for a speedy recovery.…

Bodybuilding Workout Routine and Your Commitment

Your efforts at a better body are only going to be successful if you find a bodybuilding workout routine you enjoy and can stick with long enough to reap the rewards. Everyone out there has different motivating factors that allow them to set goals and stick with them.

For some of us, it’s all about the battle to get there, rather than the reward itself (1). Still others will suffer through unimaginable circumstances, knowing that the end result will be worth the battle to get there (2). Lastly, some of us will only do something if it’s enjoyable and don’t have specific goals one way or the other (3).

The same factors apply to maintaining a bodybuilding workout routine:

1. If you’re the type who loves to conquer obstacles to get your rewards: You may very well be able to work up to and maintain a rigorous routine, punishing your body day in and day out until you reach your goals. After all, you know that you’re not going to quit until you reach a certain poundage on the bench press, or obtain a freakish body like Mr. Olympia Lee Priest. For you, it will all be worth it once you’ve reached your goal.

2. The next type of person doesn’t really like the battle, but knows that they must stay strong and do what’s necessary in their bodybuilding workout routine to reach their dream. Like number 1, you’re going to do whatever it takes, so having a fun or flexible routine really isn’t a concern. You likely also have motto’s like “Just Do It” plastered all over your personal space.

3. Number 3 is the most fickle of the bunch. You have to enjoy everything you do, otherwise you’ll never stick to it. You want a killer body, but need a highly enjoyable and flexible bodybuilding workout routine to stay the course. Changing your routine monthly and working out with a partner is your best weapon to maintaining a commitment to your routine.…

Boat Rides and Bike Tours in New York City

New York City, despite all the preformed ideas people have about it, doesn’t have to be one of the most expensive trips you ever took in your life. There are a lot of things you can do which are completely free or are so cheap they end up saving you a lot of money. Two of these types of activities are boat rides and bike tours. New York City is famous for its ferry rides and also for its world class bike paths. These travel tips will help you find one to your liking and budget.

Staten Island Ferry

Don’t listen to all the rubbish about the ferry being “the cheapest date ever”, just enjoy the fact that you can take an hour long boat ride from Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan to Staten Island, with all the gorgeous views that NYC has to offer, for completely free. You can see the Statue of Liberty up close and all the beautiful skylines all around you. The ferry is free on weekdays but even on weekends you can find free or very cheap trips.

Apart from the free ferry service, there are many other affordable tours and cruises around New York City and even to other nearby cities in the Eastern Seaboard.

Cycling in New York City

No guide about cycling in New York City would be complete without elaborating on some basic travel tips. Generally, you will want to stay on the bike paths and in the parks when you are cycling. NYC traffic is very busy and its often very dangerous for cyclists. Even locals have a hard time coping with cycling in traffic so as a tourist you should generally stick to the bike paths. You will enjoy your cycling trip in the city more this way anyway.

A great starting place if you’re planning to cycle in New York City is This site will show you all the current bike routes in the city and give you some ideas for special trips as well, such as themed trips.

Extensive bike paths exist in all five New York City boroughs – Manhatten, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island. There are also special Manhattan Waterfront Greenway Maps and even a North and South County Trail map if you’d like to get out of the city a bit.

Some of the themed bike tours currently being organized are the New York City Century Bike Tour. This is a showcase of all the greatest views of New York City and takes place regardless of the weather. There is also an Escape New York bike tour, which gets out of the city by going across the George Washington Bridge and exploring the West Hudson Highlands of Bergen, New Jersey and Rockland, New York. There is also a Tour de Brooklyn, which is an annual international event that starts at Coney Island and goes all the way through Brooklyn for a total of 23 miles.…

Traveling the World on Bicycle With Children

Do you spend your days dreaming of taking off with your children to explore the world? You’ll ride camels around the Egyptian pyramids and gaze in wonder at the graceful domes of the Taj Majal – with your children by your side. You’ll take buses from town to town, fly from country to country, and explore back streets by donkey cart. But travel on bicycles? With children?

I have now cycled about 21,000 miles with my twin sons (now 12) in the past few years, and can tell you that traveling by bike may just be the best way to travel – even with kids!

When traveling on buses or other motorized vehicle, you tend to hop from one city to the next, and skip over the small villages. The bike forces you to get off the beaten track and spend time in the small villages – and therefore you get to know the country better. In the villages, you’ll see life as it really is and will learn more about a country from the country folk rather than city folk. In today’s world, cities are becoming more and more generic, while it’s the villages that have retained the character of the country. Traveling on bicycle allows you get out of the city and get to know the country.

On bicycles, you are more in touch with Mother Nature. Without a protective layer of steel and glass surrounding you, you’ll feel every drop of rain and every subtle change in temperature. Our children truly understand the idea that altitude affects temperature and the tremendous forces of nature that have created mountains out of lowlands – they’ve pedaled over it!

But perhaps the most important part of bicycle touring with children are the life lessons they learn from their bikes. They learn lessons that will carry them through life – through all the hardships and struggles they’ll face. They learn to persevere and know they can come out victorious in the end. There are times when only through teamwork can you reach your goal. And sometimes, all you can do is focus on getting through the next 60 seconds and forge ahead.

Can kids learn those lessons by traveling another way? Sure. But the lessons come a whole lot easier on bikes!…