Cycling in the time of Corona

The Strava Police obvs!

Just been out to the park for my rope skipping workout (great way to keep people at a distance) and the only cyclist I saw flew over his handelbars when he hit the kerb when exiting a totally empty roundabout. Luckily he was ok, and able to walk the bike home. Totally surreal scene.

My take it on it is that the PM has effectively said “do some exercise”.

This instruction could simply be to allow us a degree of freedom or it could be because he/his advisors know that people not exercising and staying cooped up indoors will get restless and their health, especially their mental health, will suffer and this will make them less likely to adhere to the lockdown in the longer term.

So, while the advice is to leave the home for one form of exercise a day, I’ll be making damn sure I do.

so is the advice to leave your house for one form of exercise a day (no time limit)? or is it one hour of outside exercise?
I'm working from the one hour I thought was stated yesterday.
Has this changed?

not sure where people have got the hour from

this states

One form of exercise a day, for example a run, walk, or cycle - alone or with members of your household.

and then

These four reasons are exceptions - even when doing these activities, you should be minimising time spent outside of the home and ensuring you are 2 metres apart from anyone outside of your household.

I know I'm obnoxiously banging on about this but when going out for a ride please also remember that some of us don't have gardens or balconies or dogs or driveways. If mild outdoor exercise is banned, supermarket trips will be the only time I'm allowed out. My mouldy 1 bed flat has 3 windows. Don't do it to me

some of us don't have gardens or balconies or dogs or driveways.

then you shouldnt be on lfgss

😘

I've just been out for a bike ride with my wife, her bike isn't in the best of shape, and I'm not particularly good at the maintenance side, I'm wondering if this is an earning opportunity for any West London forum members, if a way of exchanging the bike safely can be arranged?

I don't know either.
I'm wondering whether the advice was an hour last night, when Boris first made his announcement and then was amended to one form of exercise this morning.

I'll take as much time out on the bike as I can currently, but I'm not looking to be a dick about it.

i think folk are over-thinking this. Cycling for exercise is permitted. The only times I've ever stacked it in my life is when I've been pretty wasted on something or other. It's classed as a low-risk activity. So long as we're all sober and not trying to descend like Pantani I think we'll all be fine.

As ever, it's the drivers we need to watch out for anyway... went to the supermarket earlier (in the car) and people seem to be taking the empty streets as a license to re-enact their favourite car chase movie.

And if being overweight/obese is a factor influencing severity of C19.
Then for the sake of the NHS, ride your bike, ride your bike, ride your bike (once daily for an hour).

This exactly, I'm in my late fifties and with a high BMI, which I really need to get down, both for my own sake, but also because if I sit around for the next 3 months watching box sets, and fighting off the urge to snack/drink through boredom, I may very marginally lessen the chance of using ICU spot from COVID, but I am increasing it of using one for heart attack/stroke. It seems to me that cycling if done sensibly/responsibly is the easiest form of exercise to indulge in while social distancing.

Just to stress, I don't know what the relative probabilities of one against the other, I like all other keyboard warriors don't sit every day running computer models of the effects social behaviour have on health, but the government do exactly that, so I think its best to take their advice, I find this pious social vigilantism obnoxious.

I think the sensible thing is to follow advice, not demand measures you in your unimformed way think are "Common sense", but when this is all over there must be a full and open public enquiry into actions taken, for lessons learnt for when this happens again. (It will unfortunately also be used to apply 20/20 hindsight to decisions taken in highly difficult circumstances).

A few other things I'm guessing the government are taking into consideration: (I stress guessing, because I like everyone else on this board don't know)

1. Mental health, I can't see how we are going to come out of this without a spike in suicide rates, and a lockdown will add to this.
   
2. Domestic violence, most violent crime is in the home, I can't see increased family time spent in forced incarceration not makng this worse.
   
3. Smoking, you can't tell me that ex smokers under stress with time on their hands stuck in the home haven't fallen off the wagon, again this can lead to increased use of ICU resource.
   
4. Drinking, ditto above.
   

Possible scenario - to protect people from a disease that goes after people who are overweight with heart problems/*, we coerce the population to engage in behaviours that put them at increased risk of becoming sedentary, overweight and subsequently suffering from heart problems**.

* this may be a gross simplification
** this may also be a gross simplification

one session daily for exercise

Tough time to be a triathlete

Does the wife's bike need components replacing,
or,
just a thorough WD40/ greasing to allow unlaboured use?

Yep,
aren't Xmas & Easter holidays spikes for Family violence/break ups
as family groups that just about survive weekends,
have fortnights of unmanageable stress?

I fail to see why people is so offended at the idea of riding out. Just ride safely and avoid all humans, no coffee stops.

Especially if you need to work on your swimming.

I had the covid-19 early and (hopefully) immune to this strain going forward. I plan to ride again soon - can previously infected people be treated differently or carry a doctors letter of sorts?

The latter, I don't think she'll ever need new brakepads :(

I feel in a privileged position, key worker, NHS, that can commute on bike through Dartmoor only coming within 2m of cows and pony's.

Shower and change into work clothes at the start of a shift, shower and change into cycling stuff for ride home.

Still allowed time to exercise!

It's an interesting call that the government has made. Many flu viruses can be transmitted by heavy breathing or even by breathing while talking if you're close enough. Granted, it's a very minor mode of transmission compared to coughing and touching your face but it's clear that the harm caused by allowing people to exercise is far less than the harm of preventing it.

Toolstation 89691 Lithium Grease £2.98
ditto 20321 WD40 Specialist Degreaser £7.19

Let's agree a time, you can leave the bike outside with some wetwipes.
Whatsapp for futher discussion?

Good luck getting one now.

Yes, will take this offline. 2 issues however.

1. No wetwipes, Mrs Sifta's idea of hoarding means we can now bathe daily in prossecco, but no wet wipes :)

2. Last time you helped me you refused payment, except in beer, I don't know if your repayment terms stretch that far in the future.