Freezing outside, motivation waning.

I have found a new source of inspiration, courtesy of those Facebook Anniversary things that sometimes pop up.  It was a photo album from 12-13 years ago, of my wife's 40th birthday.  My wife and our two kids, me, the in laws all sitting round a table in  a restaurant.  My son gleefully cropped it and enlarged the part of the photo with my face in it - I was over 12 kg heavier back then, and christ did it show! 

Hate what bad weather does to my bike. Maintenance seems to take more time than actual riding and getting the bike dry after a wash is difficult. Can't help but worry about bearings, brakes and drivetrains when everything is covered in wet grit 

Commuting gets me out at this time of year. I actually like the feeling of rain on my face. I like the way the fairweather commuters melt away and there's just a handful of regulars out on the roads on the dark and rainy days. The only downside is having to wear more stuff, which takes longer to put on.

As for clothing, windtex clothing is absolutely brilliant. I hardly ever wear a waterproof jacket any more, with jackets from Sportful and Lusso and Parentini in regular use - bought near new off the forums - and absolutely brilliant worn as a single layer or over a sleeveless base layer. No more 'boil in the bag' and plenty warm enough even when getting wet. It's by far the easiest and quickest way to work, anything else takes forever because I'm not near the Tube or a railway or even a single direct bus route to work.

Commuting - just be stubborn enough to ride in the cold and dark. I get the train when it's raining or if there's surface moisture and it's cold enough to freeze as there's always the chance of black ice.

Is it just me or do others find it a lot more tiring when it's cold?

I no longer race, in fact haven't for a few years. So at this time of year. I will go out if it's decent, if not Turbo or gym bike followed by weights, then steam room, sauna and pool.

I also do two Spin classes a week. 
 

even when I did race I would rather turbo than go out in cold damp and/or foggy conditions.

My motivation has been lacking for about a month and I reckon the shoddy autumn has a lot to do with it.

I've just got a smart turbo on test (review coming soon) and that has made mid-week sessions much easier. I like doing interval sessions as they squeeze a lot in and leave my weekend rides free to just ride. Plus I don't have to deal with inclement weather AND dark evenings. I don't mind riding in the rain at the weekend. But rain, dark, cold after a workday. That's a no from me.

Thank you Organon, I had never heard of the term Nesh.  Learn something new every day.

Wiki has-

Nesh is an English dialect adjective meaning 'unusually susceptible to cold weather' and there is no synonym for this use. Usage has been recorded in Staffordshire, the East Midlands, Lancashire, North Wales, South Yorkshire and Shropshire. There is a similar term nish used in Newfoundland.

The word comes from Old English hnesce meaning feeble, weak, or infirm and is a cognate with the 16th century Dutch word nesch typically meaning damp or foolish. The Oxford English Dictionary notes that some etymologists have suggested a connection with Old High German nasc, meaning 'to eat dainty food or delicacies' (the origin of the word nosh), but it dismisses this connection as "unlikely".

Nesh was added, in 2011, to the British Library 'wordbank', a project to preserve regional dialect words and phrases

(citations removed)

I don't think it's that cold yet. I'm still only wearing one layer! But then I am a northerner in London.

Giving up your car is good motivation, it's worked for me the past 26 months, it makes you realise how superfluous some journeys by car are, it makes you think about doing three jobs/trips at the same time so you get more miles in but better efficiency.

Often time I've gone out for a winters ride on a Sunday and got the shopping on the way back, last Sunday I collected a 5kg pack of spuds and some fresh beets from one of the farmer shops in the next county. It was only about 12 miles from home and not hilly on the homeward leg but the road was closed just down through the village so had to do a bit of off roading down a muddy/gravel bridle route rather than back track up the long slog and a couple of steeper bits.

I save about £1000 a year not running a car and that's based on 3k miles with a car bought 14 years ago (Still in the garage for now) insurance for an old git is cheap. For people with newer cars and losing value/dereciation it's going to be hugely more.

Sure I've spent on trains but even half a dozen trips up North are only £200, I'd spend more than that on diesel and tolls so a set of extra pads or so and maybe the odd tyre is no big deal. Over a longer period you'll need a new cassette, chain and eventually c.rings, even racking up as many miles as driven with Tiagra (brilliant for commuter gear) that is far less than £100 every 2-3 years.

In 3 years you could save £2500 as a bare minimum, some won't see that as a motivator, for others that's a huge sum.

I love riding all year round - but if it is icy - I'm not going out. It was slippy walking on the pavement yesterday.  I don't see the point in risking injury for minimal benefit.  I had a great 2 hour turbo session and honestly it was better for me than my normal ride. 

I still miss the cake though. 

the problem with leaving rides till the afternoon is you quickly run out of daylight this time of year, classic example yesterday, the weather didnt clear till gone 2pm, which left less than a couple hours daylight left. whilst riding in the cold and rubbish weather is one thing, doing it when its dark too is worse.

turbo really seems the way to go when its like this

I like riding so therefore I try to ride all year round as I'm not a cycle commuter.  It helps if I've arranged rides with friends as I don't want to be the one withdrawing my attendence!  Riding with the club and other likeminded folks is also a help.  

Once you're out then you kind of forget about your intial hesitation to leave the house.

However, there are limits!  If it's shitting it down with rain or really bad with ice/snow then the only sane option is to get the turbo out.

Just layer up, you don't need a fancy coat. A packable 30 quid boil in the bag waterproof outer will keep you plenty warm, you'll definitely get a bit sweaty but who cares as long as you're warm. 3 layers was enough for -1.8c this morning, could've done with one more layer but hey ho, lesson for tomorrow 

I like the discipline of turning out for a club ride when any normal, sensible person would stay in bed.

I cycle commute about 4 miles a day, at this time of year it's too much effort to defrost the car, if the roads are really icy then I'll walk.

My gym calories go up drastically in winter. dark, cold, wet? Sod cycling for fun and fitness, hit the gym, find a cardio machine, stick the earbuds in and watch something on youtube. I'm currently going through all of Carl Sagan's cosmos series.

Motivation is overrated.  As you have found it slips away when it is most needed.  Go for commitment instead.  You have a target, commit to beating it, then all you have to do is get on the bike and ride and you'll do it.

And like the poster above I think Turbo miles are fair game.  And if you feel a bit guilty about the Turbo, do it on rollers - then you'll gain a new skill as well!

Local club ride this weekend had one woman break her collarbone, and two others slide off the road with sundry injuries.  You won't get me going outside with that sort of injury rate!

I always have a slump at this time of year, when I'm within spitting distance of my rather more modest KM target.  I'm a mere 218km away, I reckon this will be the year!

I blame the onset of pre-Christmas drinks parties.

You have another 4 weekends, inc the Festive break.  So, that's 175km per weekend and you can probably do more around Xmas and pre new year.  Do you train indoors? Turbo 'miles' are fair game too, IMO... come on you can do this!!

I find buying a new bike helps massively

Randonneur round the year, and audax uk award for riding at least one qualifying rode (200km) every month for 12 consecutive months, even last winter when it was pretty much my only ride (other than commuting <10km) for 3 consecutive months, they got really hard by february, so not losing fitness will be moy motivation this winter.

I'm targetting 12,000km this year, which will beat my previous best.

Keeping commuting is easy when I am in my normal workplace, as it takes longer to drive than ride

Even with snow about, it can be done 

Currently at 19,700km, therefore my new target is essentially 20,000km - an all time record for me. I plan to squeeze a 200km ride in sometime this month - hopefully next weekend if the weather is indeed - not freezing!

1. The commute, although I have a car I always make a concerted effort to leave it on the drive.  Same for shopping, the bike has panniers.

2. The views, the cafe stops, social riding.

3. As already suggested why not give the Festive 500 a bash.  Last year I went to the warmer climes of Cornwall and got my 500 in =)

4. Finally, right kind of clothes.  Once you've warmed up and forced yourself out the door (yes it can be tough!) if you've layered up well and insulate yourself well against the wind and more especially the rain you can ride in just about anything. 

However, Black is Not Ice!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVPRTgbfg0g

Winter miles for summer smiles. There's no such thing as the wrong weather, just the wrong kit. Get your kit right, and unless conditions are too risky to make it worthwhile ( thick snow / ice / fog / mixture of these) get out and ride. A bit of cold never hurt anyone ( unless it's hypothermia ). It's never going to be as comfy as it is in the warmer, lighter months, but once you get going, it's not so bad, as long as your kit's right. Do or do not, there is no try.

11.3k last year, on track to reach 11k this year as well (10572 under the belt as at today). My solution?

1. Commute doesn't really apply to me, since I work from home, but I accompany our son to school each day and handle all errands (shopping, etc.) on a bike.

2. On weekends, I try to do at least 60 km each day, which is not that difficult given that it's 2-2.5 hours and my wife is pretty accommodating, since she trains for triathlons and similar events herself. In the summer, 100 km each Saturday/Sunday if possible; sometimes we go for a ride together with my wife and then more than 200 km a day becomes feasible if we have the time. So cycling with your spouse certainly helps reach these targets!

3. Winter shoes (Shimano MW-7 for the win!) and standard SPDs on all 4 bikes, so shoes are fully interchangeable. A lot of other gear, mostly from Decathlon, since their value for money ratio cannot be easily beaten. And a choice of bikes: a road bike, a gravel bike, a hybrid and an MTB so I can always find something interesting to do no matter the weather.

4. Poland is not exactly in the south, but I find smog (which should not be much of a problem in the UK) to be a considerable obstacle in winter, since cycling in a Respro mask is not exactly great fun. While strong wind is not particularly nice either, at least it disperses the smog, so hey, there's a silver lining even in that!