Hello everyone, I am new to mountain biking and this forum!
A little background: I am an avid off-roader and my husband and I have two Jeep Wrangler rigs. We love the off-pavement lifestyle! I am an Army veteran, he is active duty Army, and this is a new hobby for us to do together. I sustained some injuries and blew out 3 lumbar discs and fractured my pubic ramus (pelvis), and it has been about 3 years since I have been in shape. I have recovered from these injuries but also gained about 40 pounds over that time and I have never been so miserable. I quit smoking almost 2 years ago after 6 years of smoking.
I recently bought a brand new 2014 Giant Talon 5 with the assistance of a LBS and a friend who is really into riding. I took it for a spin today around my neighborhood which has a few small hills, and the 1.4 mile circuit nearly killed me! I was keep a pretty quick pace I guess, and my cardio is just NOT up to par. It took 15 minutes for my heart rate to come back down after the ride. It was miserable.
Is it always this hard starting out? What else do y'all do for fitness, especially for someone as out of shape as me? I do some light muscle failure type training with medicine balls, stretch bands, and an Indo balance board. It is so scary seeing how bad my cardio is now though. I used to run 6 miles a day in the military, and now... I'm overweight and useless.
I hope that biking will get me in shape quickly!
A little background: I am an avid off-roader and my husband and I have two Jeep Wrangler rigs. We love the off-pavement lifestyle! I am an Army veteran, he is active duty Army, and this is a new hobby for us to do together. I sustained some injuries and blew out 3 lumbar discs and fractured my pubic ramus (pelvis), and it has been about 3 years since I have been in shape. I have recovered from these injuries but also gained about 40 pounds over that time and I have never been so miserable. I quit smoking almost 2 years ago after 6 years of smoking.
I recently bought a brand new 2014 Giant Talon 5 with the assistance of a LBS and a friend who is really into riding. I took it for a spin today around my neighborhood which has a few small hills, and the 1.4 mile circuit nearly killed me! I was keep a pretty quick pace I guess, and my cardio is just NOT up to par. It took 15 minutes for my heart rate to come back down after the ride. It was miserable.
Is it always this hard starting out? What else do y'all do for fitness, especially for someone as out of shape as me? I do some light muscle failure type training with medicine balls, stretch bands, and an Indo balance board. It is so scary seeing how bad my cardio is now though. I used to run 6 miles a day in the military, and now... I'm overweight and useless.
I hope that biking will get me in shape quickly!