Fitness!

[aimee]

Hi all

So, now that I've bought a bike which, even as a light 250cc dual sport, weighs more than twice what I do, I reckon I need to get quite a bit fitter and stronger if I'mma do things properly.

Anyway, I've written a full blog post about it here at http://mymotocyclette.tumblr.com/post/42828436596*, and would absolutely love thoughts, feedback, comments and whatnot. Ladies? You too!

Yep, I've seen that there have been previous threads/posts on fitness, but the ones I found were pretty old and didn't go on for very long. It would be good to get a real discussion going here :)

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* Thinking about it, I figure it's silly to just copy-paste the damn thing, but if people want me to, I will :)

[EXCDirt]

Sounds like you should do some triathlons as well?

I would say that type of training mixed with some hard sand based riding is invaluable.
But nothing simulates and trains you like hours of riding.

Also gyms and cross fit training sound too structured. If it isn't fun you'll get bored quickly.
Mountain biking will help too.

I've not been riding my dirt bike as I've been training for a big Tri...... Very keen to see the results when I can get back out on my dirty bike!

[Crisis management]

Cycling works best for me, strengthens your core and legs which provides the endurance for riding (road or dirt), once your core muscles are strong your arms don't need to do much apart from control. Also look at your eating, hydration and the food you consume while riding, get the balance of those correct and you increase your endurance markedly.

Hours on the bike in the dirt also seem to make a huge difference!

[BMWST?]

yes,just start with riding a more...

[Grizzo]

Yep, more riding will get you ride fit.

[Akzle]

It would be good to get a real discussion going here :)

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* Thinking about it, I figure it's silly to just copy-paste the damn thing, but if people want me to, I will :)

b) you have your own blogspace on this stie, yours to do with what you will.

a) no, it wouldn't. this is KB. save your "real" discussion for.... somewhere else.

c) i lift quarts for exercise, problem is they get lighter and lighter every time i lift it, so i need to replenish them...

d) get a pack, find a hill, walk up the hill with the pack. tomorrow, add a 2lt milk jug full of water, the day after, another one, repeat.

[unstuck]

A bit of mountain biking and tramping, are about the only exercise I get at the moment. I used to run around the tramping tracks in the waitakere and coromandle ranges with a heavyish pack on when younger, but I do not think it did my knees many favours. Would love to start swimming again, but the beach is too far, the rivers to dirty, and the local pool is full of posey idiots on steroids.:Punk:

[Akzle]

i viewed your blag.

a personal trainer will be almost invaluable for you. go find one. preferably that lives close by so (s)he can wake you at 5am to do what needs to be done
(exercise before 0800 is more beneficial for your body)
get used to the taste of upNgo.

running is bad for you. don't do it. (knees, ankles etc) i dont care how good your shoes are, if you can see a use for your knees after the age of 40 and don't want saggy tits (your husband doesn't want your saggy tits, and can see a use for your knees after 40...), don't run.

swimming is excellent cardio and non-weight bearing exercise. do it, in the ocean. lots.
the ocean is good for you. unless it kills you horrifically.

cycling is for poofters. get a mountain bike and go hit makara park.


ps - you're a beautiful man and blog very well :niceone:

[Gwinch]

a personal trainer will be almost invaluable for you. go find one. preferably that lives close by so (s)he can wake you at 5am to do what needs to be done
(exercise before 0800 is more beneficial for your body)
get used to the taste of upNgo.

running is bad for you. don't do it. (knees, ankles etc) i dont care how good your shoes are, if you can see a use for your knees after the age of 40 and don't want saggy tits (your husband doesn't want your saggy tits, and can see a use for your knees after 40...), don't run.

swimming is excellent cardio and non-weight bearing exercise. do it, in the ocean. lots.
the ocean is good for you. unless it kills you horrifically.

cycling is for poofters. get a mountain bike and go hit makara park.


ps - you're a beautiful man and blog very well :niceone:

A) Agree. A personal trainer will create a program for you to follow and will know the way to greater success.

B) Disagree and agree. Depends what you mean by "exercise". If you're doing cardio then you'll a tiny bit of residual benefit over the course of the day in terms of fat loss. Not much though. If you're talking about strength training then there is no real optimum time. Your testosterone levels are highest around mid-morning and in terms of maximum power out-put it's late afternoon. Again, just a tiny difference. Elite athletes don't even follow this hard and fast.

C) Strongly disagree. Pounding pavement is generally bad for you. Find a trail run and use minimalist/neutral shoes without squishy heels unless you have a strong tendency to pronate or supernate (go to The Athlete's Foot to find out which you do). This also differs person to person. Some people are built to run and are highly resilient to the effects of pounding pavement and some aren't so much. On a trail however we as a species have evolved to be very efficient runners. Case in point - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistence_hunting

D) Agree. Swimming is good for cardiovascular fitness however it will be concentrating heavily on your core (not a bad thing), shoulders (not sports-specific for Aimee) and hip-flexers/hip-extensors (need these however the range of motion is completely different unless you're doing a lot of butterfly strokes). Cycling/biking/whatever would be best as it replicates the movement pattern. It's all about specificity when it comes to training.

[Jay GTI]

A personal trainer is only useful for a short period of time, an expensive waste of money there after. Once you get an understanding of what exercises you need to do, drop the trainer and just motivate yourself, it's free. UpNGo is a well-marketed packet of junk food, avoid.

I've been running since I was 19, I'm 39, I have no issues with my knees or any joints, not to mention have spent most of those years at least 15kg overweight (I do enjoy a beer and a pie, or several). Running has the benefit of working the same muscles you'll be using standing up on the bike, so you won't be forced to sit as often.

I agree with the ride fitness comes from riding, but I find that as I can't go riding 3 times a week (it's about every bloody 3 months at the moment!!), I have to exercise instead. I do a mix of bootcamp, cardio (mostly running) and some core training work I got off a personal trainer. If I don't keep that up, when I do finally get out on the bike, I suck large, because I don't have the strength, conditioning or fitness to control the bike and after a couple of loops of a trail ride, I'm shot. Being fat doesn't help, as the additional weight is something I have to work against as well as the bike, but if I'm fit, then I can still at least do a full day of riding without too much issue.

[Akzle]

UpNGo is a well-marketed packet of junk food, avoid.

I've been running since I was 19, I'm 39, I have no issues with my knees or any joints,

butbutbut.... it has the goodness of two weetbix and milk... and i like weetbix and milk.

i haven't run since i was 19, infact, i didn't run before i was 19.
i also have no problem with my joints, i roll them a bit loose and twist the end, they burn very well.

i will laugh my ass off if you have a whine in the next two years about how your joints are shot. until then. i wait.

[Crisis management]

butbutbut.... it has the goodness of two weetbix and milk... and i like weetbix and milk.



Akzle (needs greasing, seems to whine a lot?)

I will try and say this politely; some of your posts have humour in them but generally you come across (to me) as a smart arse jumping in where you have little knowledge and an ego in need of inflating, now this may work in some of the other forums but in the ones that involve people actively pursuing knowledge and improving their skill base it doesn't.

Either contribute or find some other corner to hang out in.

[superjackal]

...strengthens your core...

Going out on a limb here. This "core" rubbish that's crept into the exercise lexicon is (to me) the equivalent of homeopathy. Any exercise will help your core. I always advise people to stick with the basics. If you build it they will come.

Still, I always enjoy a good chuckle at someone on a swiss ball balancing another ball on their head - all for their "core".

[bogan]

I've been trying to get into running a bit more, but now that I'm fit enough to go long distance, it really fucks my knees, so looking to get into mountain biking for cardio and legs. I've found that calisthenics (7meg pdf link) (http://www.humananatura.org/workoutposter11x17.pdf) seems to do a good job of the rest, and helps a lot with flexiblity.


Going out on a limb here. This "core" rubbish that's crept into the exercise lexicon is (to me) the equivalent of homeopathy. Any exercise will help your core. I always advise people to stick with the basics. If you build it they will come.

Still, I always enjoy a good chuckle at someone on a swiss ball balancing another ball on their head - all for their "core".

Just like any exercise will help your cardio, it doesn't mean lifting weights helps it enough. A MX'rs workout needs a bit more than just the jog to get rid of some flab. Here's one for you, lie down on your back with arms at your side, raise legs, push the small of you back into the ground and keep it there while lowering your legs as far as you can, now wiggle your arms up and down as fast as you can. Probably sounds silly, but I bet you'll feel your core!

[steve_t]

Going out on a limb here. This "core" rubbish that's crept into the exercise lexicon is (to me) the equivalent of homeopathy. Any exercise will help your core. I always advise people to stick with the basics. If you build it they will come.

Still, I always enjoy a good chuckle at someone on a swiss ball balancing another ball on their head - all for their "core".

Seriously? So many people have back pain due to poor core strength

[superjackal]

Seriously? So many people have back pain due to poor core strength

Easy. Define "core".

[bogan]

Easy. Define "core".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_(anatomy)

Is this some crusade of pedantry that despite everybody using and understanding the word just fine, it's actually not the best word for the situation?

[superjackal]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_(anatomy)

Is this some crusade of pedantry that despite everybody using and understanding the word just fine, it's actually not the best word for the situation?

I guess so. I personally loath the term and lump it in with “global warming” or (now), “climate change”. It’s a term that everyone knows what it means but can’t solidly define – and neither it seems can Wiki. If you’re exercising correctly your “core” develops by proxy. There’s no need for targeted “core” exercises and little real benefit or results. But it makes people sound like they know what they're talking about.

I think a lot of people are “impressed” by PTs rabbiting on about “core” but from observation their clients are usually out of shape and lose interest rapidly.

If you have back pain I would be very cautious about any kind of “core” training. Get a physiotherapist that knows what they’re doing.

That’s my 2 cents, I’m sure a lot of people disagree.

[bogan]

If you’re exercising correctly your “core” develops by proxy.

Again, it depends on what you are exercising for, don't underestimate how big of a part the core plays off-road.

This is all through observation btw, when I first got into mx I was pretty fit, but my core was a weak point which took a while to catch up; hence me thinking its worth doing targeted exercises for, for this sort of use.

[steve_t]

If you’re exercising correctly your “core” develops by proxy. There’s no need for targeted “core” exercises and little real benefit or results. But it makes people sound like they know what they're talking about.

That’s my 2 cents, I’m sure a lot of people disagree.

Yeah, I'm a lot of people :msn-wink:

"core" is probably more definable than "exercising correctly". You can 'correctly' exercise your biceps on a preacher curl station but it's not going to strengthen your 'core' at all

[superjackal]

Yeah, I'm a lot of people :msn-wink:

"core" is probably more definable than "exercising correctly". You can 'correctly' exercise your biceps on a preacher curl station but it's not going to strengthen your 'core' at all

You reckon?

I disagree, there's lots going on if you're doing preacher curls the right way. Clenching your abdominals while doing preacher curls is part of proper technique. Otherwise you can throw your back out.

If you're you want to start building climbing peaks I thoroughly recommend Larry Scott's methods.

I'll go so far as to say I can't really think of any standard exercise that doesn't utilise your "core".

[steve_t]

You reckon?

I disagree, there's lots going on if you're doing preacher curls the right way. Clenching your abdominals while doing preacher curls is part of proper technique. Otherwise you can throw your back out.

If you're you want to start building climbing peaks I thoroughly recommend Larry Scott's methods.

I'll go so far as to say I can't really think of any standard exercise that doesn't utilise your "core".

Utilising your core ie doing an isometric contraction, is hardly going to build adequate core strength for eg off road racing

[superjackal]

Utilising your core ie doing an isometric contraction, is hardly going to build adequate core strength for eg off road racing

Not sure if you're agreeing or plugging a weird new form of exercise. Why would you do an isometric contraction to prepare for off road racing?

Sounds like dynamic tension to me.

Then again, try tensing every muscle in your body as hard as you can for 2 minutes.

[steve_t]

Not sure if you're agreeing or plugging a weird new form of exercise. Why would you do an isometric contraction to prepare for off road racing?

Sounds like dynamic tension to me.

Then again, try tensing every muscle in your body as hard as you can for 2 minutes.

Never mind

[Akzle]

Akzle (needs greasing, seems to whine a lot?)

I will try and say this politely; some of your posts have humour in them but generally you come across (to me) as a smart arse jumping in where you have little knowledge and an ego in need of inflating, now this may work in some of the other forums but in the ones that involve people actively pursuing knowledge and improving their skill base it doesn't.

Either contribute or find some other corner to hang out in.

whine? as much as i appreciate the (poor) attempt at grammatical humour. that sucked. so please don't do it again.

and don't bother being polite to me, i'm sure as fuck not going to with you. i am a smart ass and my penis is huge.
//wait, i mean my ego. and my penis, they're both huge. maybe that's why running is so risky for me, while clearly not a problem for you.

i believe i am contributing, in more ways than one, droll advice on fucking isometric poofter curls is boring. every day. noone seriously gives a shit about that shit.
i'm providing advice as best as i know, noone is obliged to agree, and more than welcome to pick and choose or, y'know, think for themselves, about what i say.

i like my corner. it's green, and although it smells like urine and beer, it's got my chair in it, so i reckon i'll stay.
sheesh. most people would have just abused me with red rep, but you get all posty on it. :(:(



Then again, try tensing every muscle in your body as hard as you can for 2 minutes.

i pooped a little.

[Crisis management]

whine?

Sorry, I don't feed trolls.

[superjackal]

[COLOR="#139922"]i pooped a little.

Ha ha, I said every muscle.

[oneofsix]

Ha ha, I said every muscle.

Would it be rude to suggest that he is such a big arse hole that when with those muscles fully tight it is not enough to close the opening.

[superjackal]

Would it be rude to suggest that he is such a big arse hole that when with those muscles fully tight it is not enough to close the opening.

One of the funniest things I ever saw in the gym was a big guy doing bent over rows. He had the dreads, the attitude, the lycra white shorts, and possibly a little too much spicy food the night before. He "pooped" a little but didn't realise it for a good few minutes. Didn't see him at the gym after that. He may have even left the country.

[oldskool]

Core Blimey, a debate over which kungfu is stronger.

This is what I do to strengthen my internal strength and to realign my balance. It's called Standing like a tree. Not mainstream western, but this practice has been around a lot longer than 'cross training' or what have you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhan_zhuang

http://yang-sheng.com/?p=4184

Beats spending money going to a gym and you can do it in front of the telly too.

[Night Falcon]

for my 2 cents...being fit will always benift you when chucking a large DS bike around. Having said that I've observed over the years that riders with good bike control skills use a lot less energy when chucking the said DS around the trails. In fact there are some blokes I've ridden with that seem to use almost no effort hauling their bikes round narly tracks!

As for myself I know I need more fitness but hate exercising with a passion so getting the right balance between skill set and fitness seems like a good idea for me. I'd rather spend more time on my bike learning better techniques so I use less effort on the trails than more time on an exercycle getting fitter to compensate for poor riding skills.

I bought a camelback a few months ago and found that drinking more water while riding has had a marked improvement on my endurance. As someone commented already, managing your enery levels with snacks and fluids while riding does help you make the most of the fittness you already have.

[Blagger]

I think that women, on average, need more upper body strength for chucking the bike around. Only on average and individual body shape will differ.

I'm currently teaching a woman (60kg or so) to ride a KLX300. She can only just get her feet down and she finds it hard work particularly the sideways wrenching motion that comes up from the much-debated core through the pectorals and supports the shoulders and biceps.
I'm trying to get her to keep her elbows up and out as that helps her with leverage when turning or seems to.

Previous advice to get out and ride a lot I agree with - after all you're working with a machine so in a way that same machine is your best traing device.

[Akzle]

I'm trying to get her to keep her elbows up and out as that helps her with leverage when turning or seems to.

i'll chuck in erg training,

then answer the post above:
it's a lot easier to push/pull bars from behinds them. not on top. go ahead. try it.
"having elbows up and out" sounds uncomfortable. teach her to drop her shoulder into the corner a bit, which should put her arms in the right place and make it much less work.

if you're skidding a dirty, it'll be easier to pull the outside bar...a

[Crisis management]

then answer the post above:
it's a lot easier to push/pull bars from behinds them. not on top. go ahead. try it.
"having elbows up and out" sounds uncomfortable. teach her to drop her shoulder into the corner a bit, which should put her arms in the right place and make it much less work.


While you are entitled to your opinion how about qualifying it with "this is good for road riding"?

The "attack" position on a dirt bike is a well understood body position for off-road riding, stand on the pegs, knees bent gripping the bike with the ankles or inner calves, leaning forward from the waist with the head directly over the steering stem and with your elbows up and out. Blagger, you're doing the right stuff, just don't over do it with your friend while she is learning, once you get tired you make mistakes and they result in hard landings, 30 minutes at a time with lots of breaks and food / water.

[Gwinch]

If you’re exercising correctly your “core” develops by proxy. There’s no need for targeted “core” exercises and little real benefit or results. But it makes people sound like they know what they're talking about.

You'd be astounded by the number of people who don't exercise correctly however. I agree with you that in an ideal world if you're doing the big compound movements such as dead-lifts, squats, lunges and bench press etc then you're working your core sufficiently that doing separate exercises is no longer an absolute necessity.

The problem here is two-fold. Many people shy away from proper squats and dead-lifts as they're intimidated by the exercise. They'll either head on over to a leg press machine which disengages the core almost entirely and also not do dead-lifts because of the reputation it has for being a "back-breaker". The other issue is that many people don't have a correctly trained core. The transversus abdominus (TVA, inside the rectus abdominus and internal/external obliques) is the foundation of core stability. Even elite athletes can neglect the importance of this muscle. Studies have shown that without proper neuromuscular training the neurons do not fire correctly and the external muscles take over almost all of the work (which they shouldn't!) which leaves the TVA doing very little. There are very specific movement patterns you can utilise to re-train your TVA to fire up properly when you actively recruit your other core muscles.

[superjackal]

You'd be astounded by the number of people who don't exercise correctly however. I agree with you that in an ideal world if you're doing the big compound movements such as dead-lifts, squats, lunges and bench press etc then you're working your core sufficiently that doing separate exercises is no longer an absolute necessity.

The problem here is two-fold. Many people shy away from proper squats and dead-lifts as they're intimidated by the exercise. They'll either head on over to a leg press machine which disengages the core almost entirely and also not do dead-lifts because of the reputation it has for being a "back-breaker". The other issue is that many people don't have a correctly trained core. The transversus abdominus (TVA, inside the rectus abdominus and internal/external obliques) is the foundation of core stability. Even elite athletes can neglect the importance of this muscle. Studies have shown that without proper neuromuscular training the neurons do not fire correctly and the external muscles take over almost all of the work (which they shouldn't!) which leaves the TVA doing very little. There are very specific movement patterns you can utilise to re-train your TVA to fire up properly when you actively recruit your other core muscles.

I’d believe any figure on the number of people who don’t exercise correctly.

“Core”-type exercises are some of the trickiest to get right. Same goes for dead-lifts and deep squats, both of which (IMHO) have dangers and side-effects that outweigh their benefits as exercises. Go heavy and deep and enjoy - no knees in your old age, big thighs and well-developed buttocks. That’s about all they’re good for. I spent years trying to develop obliques, serratus, christmas trees. Best way to develop those is to diet. They’re good exercises – just not very pleasing to the eye.

Squatters bum is impossible to get rid of. Like over-developed traps, once you got ‘em, you can’t get rid of them.

[Hoon]

I do weights 3 times a week and cardio another 2-3 times. My core is still weak. During Army PT most the guys can "bridge" for 2+ minutes but I'm struggling after 40 secs. Need to throw more ab work into my program I think. Some guys with naturally strong cores will no doubt scoff at core specific exercises but for me they are necessary.

Jogging/squatting/deadlifts etc ruining your body is just another myth. As long as you are doing it right then you have nothing to worry about. Don't be put off by those that have been doing it wrong.

I've just overcame a niggling knee/leg injury that's been causing me grief for years. Ended up being due to muscle imbalance i.e weak quads/glutes/hams. The fix was the last thing I would have ever thought of to try fix a bung knee.......smashing out squats, deadlifts, step ups and lunges. After 6 weeks my knee was fully recovered and I'm now injury free for the first time in about 15 years.

[Blagger]

Haha I always ignore that green-inked troll

If Kiwibiker represents Kiwis, he's Richard Prosser

[Akzle]

While you are entitled to your opinion how about qualifying it with "this is good for road riding"?

The "attack" position on a dirt bike is a well understood body position for off-road riding, stand on the pegs, knees bent gripping the bike with the ankles or inner calves, leaning forward from the waist with the head directly over the steering stem and with your elbows up and out. Blagger, you're doing the right stuff, just don't over do it with your friend while she is learning, once you get tired you make mistakes and they result in hard landings, 30 minutes at a time with lots of breaks and food / water.

nono. i'll qualify "my opinion" with physics. it works. every day of the week and on every vehicle, all the time.

so i'll add, "this is good for offroad riding" and qualify with "at a beginner level"

teaching a n00b should be done the easiest way to inspire confidence. attacking shit comes later. i'm talking from a farm/bush POV, not hardcore trails and ramps and shit.

[Akzle]

Haha I always ignore that green-inked troll

If Kiwibiker represents Kiwis, he's Richard Prosser

i'd rather you called me an asshole in my own right than compare me to a politician.

that's just fucking rude.

[aimee]

I think that women, on average, need more upper body strength for chucking the bike around. Only on average and individual body shape will differ.

I'm currently teaching a woman (60kg or so) to ride a KLX300. She can only just get her feet down and she finds it hard work particularly the sideways wrenching motion that comes up from the much-debated core through the pectorals and supports the shoulders and biceps.
I'm trying to get her to keep her elbows up and out as that helps her with leverage when turning or seems to.

Previous advice to get out and ride a lot I agree with - after all you're working with a machine so in a way that same machine is your best traing device.

i agree - us ladies do, on average, have far less upper body strength than do boys, so we have to work on it more.

thanks for the advice there: useful for me!

(i'm on a klx250s, and my mechanic kindly lowered it by an inch or so, which means i can get a foot flat...very useful!)

[Jay GTI]

nono. i'll qualify "my opinion" with physics. it works. every day of the week and on every vehicle, all the time.

so i'll add, "this is good for offroad riding" and qualify with "at a beginner level"

teaching a n00b should be done the easiest way to inspire confidence. attacking shit comes later. i'm talking from a farm/bush POV, not hardcore trails and ramps and shit.


Ah awesome, the "learn to ride wrong first, then sort out the bad habits later" line of advice.

You're an asshole, that better?

[noobi]

Ah awesome, the "learn to ride wrong first, then sort out the bad habits later" line of advice.

You're an asshole, that better?

But that provides so much enjoyment for other riders.

RE: the physics. You might want to them again mate, there's a reason the 'attack' position is used by all fast riders.

Using low elbows might make sense to begin with, but high elbows make a lot more.

[nzspokes]

The "attack" position on a dirt bike is a well understood body position for off-road riding, stand on the pegs, knees bent gripping the bike with the ankles or inner calves, leaning forward from the waist with the head directly over the steering stem and with your elbows up and out. Blagger, you're doing the right stuff, just don't over do it with your friend while she is learning, once you get tired you make mistakes and they result in hard landings, 30 minutes at a time with lots of breaks and food / water.

Im going to be practising just that on the weekend. One question, which part on my foot should be on the peg? Ive read the ball and the arch?

[Ocean1]

Im going to be practising just that on the weekend. One question, which part on my foot should be on the peg? Ive read the ball and the arch?

The balls of your feet on the pegs. Gives you the additional "suspension" of your ankles and allows you to move around on the bike more. Being fat, old and lazy I move to the arches sometimes, when things are a bit less taxing, just to give my calf muscles a break. I've even been known to sit down.

[nzspokes]

The balls of your feet on the pegs. Gives you the additional "suspension" of your ankles and allows you to move around on the bike more. Being fat, old and lazy I move to the arches sometimes, when things are a bit less taxing, just to give my calf muscles a break. I've even been known to sit down.

Cheers. :cool:

[takitimu]

Cheers. :cool:

Stefan Everts was a big fan of not only the balls of your feet, but also pushing your down ankle below the foot peg.

Broxy has a nice article on this subject in Dirt Rider DownUnder ( I think it's the Jan one ) .

[Crisis management]

Ah awesome, the "learn to ride wrong first, then sort out the bad habits later" line of advice.

You're an asshole, that better?

Thank you for taking up that cause, I gave up tilting at windmills. :2thumbsup


The balls of your feet on the pegs. Gives you the additional "suspension" of your ankles and allows you to move around on the bike more. Being fat, old and lazy I move to the arches sometimes, when things are a bit less taxing, just to give my calf muscles a break. I've even been known to sit down.

I use both, arches when I need lots of gear selection / rear brake (tight single track) and balls when it's suspension only (fast whoops etc).
I use the sit down when you can, stand when you have to technique to lessen the exhaustion, it's all about managing your endurance. :msn-wink:

[NordieBoy]

I ride on the balls of my feet but only when sitting.
I can't lift my toes much (can point them, but not lift much) and if my arches are on the pegs, the toes get bashed all the time.

I need to do more standing on the balls of my feet to get more weight transference. Especially on the DR, as the pegs are mounted quite far forward.