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Stood in the shower taking 5 mins and got me thinking his lucky I am with the the I have and how I use it, having 3 kids (15-3) takes loads of time!!
So I'll kick off.
Daily - 10 mins stretch and 3 mins ice bath
2-3 x weekly - run for 30-50 mins
1-2 x weekly - ride for 60-120 mins
1 x week go for solo coffee - 20 mins
Zero kids that I know of…
I don’t have this problm!
Ride my bike any time and any day I fancy for however long I want.
Sorry/ not sorry.;o)
Nothing at the moment, and it's starting to take its toll.
Between working away for weeks at a time, 12 HR shifts on a facility with very little downtime activity, and then coming home to self-build a house, plus ~20hrs a week on a distance learning Engineering degree...
2 years so far of 2 kids and a wife not getting the dad/husband time they deserve. The end goal is keeping me going for now but I'm wondering how long I can keep this up?
I've not been on a proper bike ride for months
@mboy and @singlespeedstu - so all you do b each week for you is ride bikes and gloat? Wow
No gloating.
You asked.
I replied.
Simple as that.
I thought riding a bike might be pretty normal on a bike riding forum...
So apart from bikes what do you do for you
Whatever takes my fancy.
Go for a walk along the river/up a hill.
Go to a cafe/ the pub.
Sit around scratching by balls on the sofa in my undercrackers.;o)
Ride bikes 2-3 times a week but invariably leading/sweeping the rides, so not necessarily "for me".
Go to the gym once or twice a week.
Have a decent beer once a week.
Drinking overpriced frothy coffee at any opportunity seems to be my main me time.
Sounds similar lol
What I am doing now, relaxing in bed with a cup of tea and a cat on my lap.
Very little, sadly. 2 kids, busy job, decent sized commute and home improvements leaves little time for anything else. I have managed to squeeze in some Ps% time recently, but mostly due to sick leave due to damaged nerves in my neck.
No gloating.
You asked.
I replied.
Simple as that.
What Stu said…
I do have a job and a fairly sizeable mortgage in addition though… Keeps me busy enough during the week, and the odd weekend.
Currently enjoying getting back to some sort of normality health wise, and being able to ride a bike again though… Having dealt with several near death experiences and chronic illness for much of the last 2yrs, I have very much come to envy the likes of you @bikerevivesheffield who have been able to exercise for several hours a week without recourse…
But I would never be so vulgar as to judge you for doing so, or assume a position of comtempt!
No coke and ho’s ?, shame on you STW 😉
Very little.
Most of my hobbies/free time activities have dwindled away as I just don't find the time. And when I do find some time to do something for myself, I feel guilty the whole time I am doing it & anxious that there are 'more important' things I could be doing.
It's especially bad at the moment as we are having an extension built and almost every spare moment is taken up with thinking/planning things for that.
I have an Airfix model (well, it's actually Tamiya) I am doing that I started probably 2 years ago for some 'me time' - borne out of the Christmas Airfix thread. 2 years in & nowhere near finished.
I barely ride my bikes anymore. I did do regular Zwift rides as they are more convenient/easier to squeeze in but while the extension is being done I have nowhere to put the set-up so it's all in storage.
The only thing I am currently doing for myself is training for the Great Eastern Run which is in the middle of Oct. That's basically ~4 hours a week of running, maybe a bit more at the moment. I signed up for that, as I figured it would take less time to train for than something like the Dirty Reiver.
And even squeezing that in is a challenge & I feel like I shouldn't be doing it.
Hey ho. Not the cheeriest way to start the week.
I keep meaning to create a time diary to see where I am wasting so much time, as I can't believe I am so short of it> But, ironically I never get round to it.
I aim for 1 or occasionally 2 rides. Also 2 bouldering board sessions on the garden 35 Deg board. 1 session at the climbing wall. Some stretching due to a recovering shoulder injury.
But currently concussed (again) so doing very little whilst I get over it. The make-an-album thread is a good distraction.
I have two kids, but still manage to get out and do plenty!
I ride 3 x a week; 1 x MTB ride, 1 x fast club road ride, 1 x longer cafe road ride.
A also like to do some weights, I try to do 2 - 3 strength sessoions a week . But don't want to be away from the house on those nights too, or my wife will never see me! So I've got a little setup in my garage. That's excellent for me. I can help and do dinner whilst working out, between the sets.
We have a dog, and nobody else in the house likes to walk him, especially when the weather is grim. So a 60 min dog walk daily too. I enjoy walking whatever the weather.
I retired.
My thoughts now tend towards "what can I do that isn't for me".
I'll be decorating my daughter's flat soon.
I help run a local running club, including leading runs.
I volunteer for Sustrans.
I recently helped review 7,500km of tracks and paths in Scotland, contributing to a rewrite of the book Scottish Hill Tracks.
This is why a lovely commute can be such a perfect thing. Putting aside the benefits of the cycling (or walking) part of it,the biggest win is that it's 'You time'.
Free of the day to day demands,your A to B is all you need.
Signed ... an X-supercommuter
🙂
Every day?
Run. Even if it's only for 30 mins, this is not negotiable.
Walk the dog. You could argue it's for him and not me, but I know, and Mrs Lunge knows, that I'd miss it more than the dog would if we stopped.
Every week:
A pint, occasionally 2, in a quiet pub with a magazine to read.
Took up Crown Green Bowls in July last year.
Best thing I've done in years. Friendly competition - also great just to sit and have a chat while while scoring other matches going on. Gets me out the house for many hours and gets me socialising with other blokes too which I'm unlikely to do otherwise.
Season finishes this weekend though. 🙁
Run. Even if it’s only for 30 mins, this is not negotiable.
You are Tom Vickery and I claim my £5
Not much due to kids (two under 6yrs) and having ADHD (a recent revelation). ADHD gifts you the paradox of absolutely needing structure to your life but also hating structure in any form.
I've been on 2 mountain bike rides this year, both were Enduro events! The only other time I ride bikes is nursery runs or occasional commutes to the office
Organising anything in the future is difficult if I am the one organising it. I mainly just concentrate on getting through each day. Family life means I cannot just do things on the spur of the moment any more. Even then pre-family, I'd spend most of the time procrastinating before finally getting to the trail centre at 4.30pm on a Saturday and trying to get round before it gets too dark. I also don't socialise with my own friends, mostly only tagging on to what my wife has organised.
Any free time I do get can result in me wanting to do literally everything and ending up doing nothing. Or I get really focused into something, run out of time to finish it and then never complete it (because I don't pick it up again).
I really like running but cannot turn it into a daily routine (true of most things). The problem is motivation (well actually it's dopamine). If we go away on holiday I often go out on runs, because it's somewhere new to explore. Back home, I've run all the routes already. I know running clubs exist, but I found these are either too focused on competitive events, or drinking (see hashing). I just need organised fun.
Quitting alcohol and being thankful I did every night at 8pm when the Try Dry app asks me if I drank that day. Currently up to 563 days dry.
Microhobbies help me cope with the lack of time for "proper" hobbies due to parenting (woodworking is once in a blue moon now the boys have coopted my garage workshop to be their gym)
I keep one ukulele in the car and one in my bedroom so whenever I'm sitting around waiting to pick a child up, running a bath etc I can practic. I'm still cack at it, but it's relaxing. Learning hindi via duolingo makes walking the dog less of a time black hole, and it's another thing I can do whenever I'm waiting around (or modeling good homework behaviours for the kids)
Sunday morning is my one piece of absolute Me time - I do a couple of hours of martial arts (do the food shop on the way home) and then go for a pint to write up my notes.
Just about keeps me sane, though I still dream of a time when the kids have grown up and I can spend weekends making sawdust.
I'm retired, so it's not as much of an issue as it used to be, but there are still moments in each day/week that are just for me and are always really appreciated.
Morning coffee - after I've got a few chores done. A really good home made espresso or cappuccino. I really enjoy the aroma and ritual of grinding fresh beans and carefully making the best tasting brew I can manage. I'll go to a cafe a couple of times a week, and whilst I enjoy it, the coffee is never as good as at home!
Running - currently 3 or 4 times a week. I have just got back into it after a few years off due to knee pain, injury and an ACL reconstruction op. A few false starts but I am now tentatively running free of pain and injury. Not far, just 5-12km at the moment but I am so grateful I am able to do it again, I really thought my running days were over.
Mountain biking - not as often as I'd like tbh. I find it tough in the winter as the trails near me turn to slop very quickly in the rain. When I do find a window I never regret it though. Spring and summer are easier and my favourite thing is meeting up with my son, who always pushes me out of my comfort zone.
Motorcycling - Love it. I Jump on with a loose time frame rather than a fixed destination in mind, going where the mood takes me. Mooching down interesting country lanes, exploring pretty tucked away villages and discovering new coffee stops. Usually mid week to avoid the hordes of weekend warriors.
Despite my list of stuff ^ it is quite rare that I get all that done in a week. Illness, injury, kids, house maintenance, work all limit that.
I like the idea of microhobbies. One of my mates locally picked up an accordion a while back, and taught himself as hobby. I'm keen to try it and see how it goes. He's quite good already and is playing gigs now, but I am keen to just give it a go.
Sawdust- yeah anything with wood, if not critically important building stuff can be good. I have been making a few climbing holds for the wall. Quite crude, but with a bit more shaping and finishing, could look good.
Coffee at my favourite open air seafront cafe, couple of times a week, weather dependant, self employed, so I can go whenever the suns out ;))
Start my day with a decent coffee and a bit of laptop time.
I do my hours in 4 days so on my 3 days off I often ride or build trails depending on the weather. I do a bit of strength training at least 4 days a week with a motley collection of gear under a shelter in the garden.
I ride mostly on my own as I like to dance to my own tune but treat myself to regular trips with the boys over the year to the Tweed Valley or a bike park.
And often stretch at night while watching TV.
I also walk towards school with my boy (13 yrs old) and dog twice a week. Not strictly me-time but we both get a lot out of it 🙂
I quit biking and took up running, and for all sorts of reasons its better for me, however I do pick up injuries every now and then, and this year has been particularly bad in that respect.
At the moment its enjoying watching my dog zooming round after squirrels.
Sunday morning swim in a reservoir with a friend.
An overnight wild camp when weather / family allows.
Well, my only child is growed up, but I still do stuff for him. He's into bikes, so mainly helping out with that.
Everything else, apart from the stuff I do sat here at work (well, some of the stuff I do is actual work), nearly everything is for me.
These include riding my bike to work (that's definitely for me), going on rides with my partner, seeing my partner and doing stuff (fnaar) with her.
Refereeing rugby, absolutely for me, but how nice is it that it's appreciated by the club I ref at?
Swimming down the beach occasionally, running so my legs work for the rugby...
Sitting around on me arse watching telly, the times I'm not doing those things, is for me too.
Not as much as I should, but other things have to come first.
Took up Crown Green Bowls in July last year.
Best thing I’ve done in years. Friendly competition – also great just to sit and have a chat while while scoring other matches going on. Gets me out the house for many hours and gets me socialising with other blokes too which I’m unlikely to do otherwise.
My original biking mates are all retired now, but this is their thing. They still ride once or twice a week, bowling in summer, walking (via a pub) in winter
Commuting on the bike is a great way of drawing a line under working. Although the occasional bad driver and scrotes that want to rob you is slightly unsettling. That said I do have half a million routes to take in and out of work.
This is why a lovely commute can be such a perfect thing. Putting aside the benefits of the cycling (or walking) part of it,the biggest win is that it’s ‘You time’.
Free of the day to day demands,your A to B is all you need.
Signed … an X-supercommuter
This is what I miss the most 🙂
A good start to the day and a good end.
Next to sod all. I essentially get my free time at work. Very occasionally get to go for a run on my break. I listen to music on my commute if driving, if I don't need to drive and can use public transport I might get to use the folding bike or walk.
Procrastinate on here when I could be doing something much more worthwhile....
I ride bike to work it's only 15mins each way but it's great. I do a job I really enjoy and I steadfastly avoid any promotions. I take my son on bike rides sometimes, I take him to rugby. I ride my bike 2 or 3 times a week if I can other than going to work.
As I work from home I often do a pseudo commute, a 15 mile loop after work.
Ride my bike on the roads locally stopping for a pint maybe 3x a week. Swim 2x a week. Walk the dogs every day. Online chess. Bothy trips once or twice a month with dog or MTB depending where I'm going.
This week prompted by the PSA thread I've ordered Schwalbe winter tyres and a few bits to convert a spare bike to a winter commuter for my son. For him but I enjoy tinkering with bikes. And as he rides to work every day all year round having a safe option for icy roads is a big plus.
With 2 kids and a partner at home. I play 5-a-side a couple of evenings a week followed by a few pints and then normally get 2-3 hrs to ride my bike on a Sunday morning. Sometimes manage a longer commute on the way home and sneak in a few MTB trails to take it from 15 m to an hour.
Other half does sport too which takes an evening a week and much of Saturday.
As I WFH, I have more me time due to not wasting two hours travelling to and from work. I walk my dogs between 10-12KM a day (split over a few walks). If I wasn't currently recovering from a MTB injury, I'd mountain bike 2-3 times a week. I dabble in wood working and I'm more focused is I'm working a commissioned job (a job that family or friends ask me to do but not paid). I garden but less now that 'the summer that never was' has passed and we're into autumn. So thinking about it, I have a lot of me time but then again my youngest is 23.
I spend time in nature as often as possible.
And exercise 4 or 5 days a week.
We are keeping this SFW, yeah?
I generally do whatever I want.
Semi retired.
Live in a van.
Have no real responsibilities to speak of other than making sure neither the GF nor I go hungry.
Ride my bikes.
Look at the clouds.
Play with my penis.
Not necessarily in that order nor everyday.
pilates / swim / gym (rarely) and ride gravel / mountain bikes 2-3 times a week was 4-5
lads trips a few times a year germany or sun/pool
and a fair few mtb trips with friends or solo
One of the reasons for my recent breakup (and subsequent breakdown) was trying to square the circle between doing things just for myself and being selfish.
Despite now being single, I still have problems with this, mainly because defining "doing things for myself" is so difficult. Is reading Private Eye doing something for myself when there are other jobs to do? Why am I talking to people on the internet when I could be moving firewood from the outside store to the inside, or painting the parts of the house that need it still? Why am I not trying to find time in my day to look after the garden?
The biggest, most selfish thing I do is skydive. It is intensely personal, but even then most of my jumping is coaching new starters, jumping with other people to improve them or filming teams. I think the only truly selfish jumps I have done this season have been my wingsuiting ones. That benefits no one but me, so yes, for me, but also selfish.
Is reading Private Eye doing something for myself when there are other jobs to do?
Does it matter?
Do you enjoy doing it? If so then that's a good thing.
Took a while for the GF to understand that me doing nothing was me doing something.... In that moment I was doing nothing and it felt good.
Daily:
- I try really hard not to rush my first cup of tea when I get up. Such a simple thing but it's like a little piece of calm before dealing with today's issues (whatever they may be)
- Music, listen to some, whether it's in the car, in the home office or sat on the train.
Weekly
- Something related to boats or bikes. Doesn't matter if it's fixing stuff, lugging boats off to events for children, doing a race officer duty or actually going riding or sailing. This weekend I did some light support for youth sailing then race officer for Sunday's club racing. I did get to drive the rescue boat recovery tractor though. Hadn't done that for a while and was pleased I did it acceptably.
- Learn something new about/for my work.
- Watch a decent film or couple of episodes of something worth watching.
My thoughts now tend towards “what can I do that isn’t for me”.
I've a hip flask that's empty next time we go bikepacking...
Daily dog walk. Half an hour to an hour. Ride for 3-5 hours on a Saturday morning. Couple of short mid week rides.
Making Sunday Roast with some tunes on. Bliss.
Daily I currently go for a walk during my lunch break, usually along the sea front, onto the sand as far away from people as the tide allows! Gets me away from the computer, desk, office environment, into fresh air & daylight, relaxing next to the sounds of the sea, sometimes walk barefoot. Or I'll jump on my bike that I rode to work on and go to the park.
2 or 3 quick trials riding sessions at the weekend, in the back garden, for half an hour to an hour usually, over obstacles constructed from cut up pallets, a concrete wall, skinny beams, etc. Don't usually have enough energy after commuting by bike all week to go for a proper mountain bike ride, nor enough time to drive somewhere with the hardtail (doorstep rides not that inspiring), so riding a trials bike in the back garden actually works pretty well, I can arrange the obstacles in whatever way I want to ride and get my fix for technical challenging riding.
Daily? Music is pretty much constant except when I'm teaching but even then it's often present. Late night reading for an hour or so often combined with a long soak in a very hot bath, it helps my bad hip. I also tidy things.
Weekly? A couple of rides one of which is usually solo or better, with Max the collie. Time spent making or fixing things. Tomorrow's project is to make a small table from a scrap signpost a friend has given me.
Things I do for me
Walking, running, or riding my bikes around local woods, footpaths, bridleways and quiet roads. Reading books, Listening to music and making late night snacks.
I see all these as kinds of therapy which I definitely need to help me recharge enough to be able to face interacting with other humans.
On the music it's actually alot more than just listening, I've always been into my music, but since lockdown I've really enjoyed falling down Spotify and YouTube music rabbit holes, and making lots of playlists with newly discovered music and forgotten gems.