Mtracer

Some years back, a friend who was starting to think about retirement, asked several older and retired guys their thoughts on when they retired. He said every one of them said they would have retired sooner if they had it to do again.

Obviously, there are real financial considerations. But I think many of us are just concerned we don't quite have enough, so we work a little longer, then a little longer still. And it's quite the mental shift to go from saving your whole adult life to starting to spend that hard earned savings. I'm going through that process myself now.

But yes, I find cycling very time consuming. I'm on the bike about 8 hours a week. It's at least a good hour of prep and post-ride cleanup for every ride. I also like to journal and make entries for my rides. I also like to analyze data. So, that is a lot more hours each week. Of course, all of this isn't necessary. But it has become a hobby for me.

It really ticks a lot of boxes for me. I get exercise, I get to maintain and upgrade my bike, I get to play with data, and get to take part in these types of online discussions. I get to define riding goals and challenges and get the satisfaction of completing them. I still just ride solo. I haven't even tried to join a cycling club or groups rides, yet.

I definitely couldn't have done this much riding before I semi-retired. And I've been lucky that for the most part, I've not had to spend a lot of long term time caring for aging family members. But aside from just being fun to do, I've seen a huge improvement in both my mental and physical health.

staehpj1

I always from an early age said I wished I could retire at 40, but never actually thought that was at all realistic so I told myself I wanted to retire at 59. Health insurance was the biggest thing that prevented that, but when my employer was pushing out older employees and having them contribute to my health insurance in retirement was conditional on retiring that year I retired at 62.

I never regretted it and if I had had the opportunity to retire with any semblance of financial comfort I'd have gone earlier. As it was I don't think I really was financially ready any earlier in any case. I have been retired 10 years now.

WT21

Stop working. Time problem solved. (though perhaps money problems begin)

ofajen

I seem to average 10 hours per week on activity (cardio and strength) in the warmer half of the year and 8 hours in the colder half and that is pretty satisfying and keeps me healthy.

20 hours/week would seem like a lot to me. After 90 minutes of riding, 45 minutes of running, 60 minutes of walking or 30 minutes of weights, I’m happy to be done.

I’m still doing what I do in the work world and don’t really want to quit outright but will probably want to transition to less than I do now in a few years when I’m close to 65.

Otto

Jughed

51 here - retirement is not an option, probably not for 15+ years. I still have an 11 year old at home, 2 in $$$$ colleges...

Time is a thing. I leave for work at 5:00 AM, out by 3:30. Head to the MUP or road area, on the bike by 4:30, not back to the house until 6:30-7:00. Plus one 50+ miler on the weekend... 6 days a week, 1.5 hours per day min on the bike.

Wildwood 

Why is time more precious after 60?
In my life, time was more precious when the kids were babies/toddlers/little ones. I cycled then, too - altho a bit less.
Then the cycling got better.
One makes one's own priorities.
Live it, don't just do it.

Then even better



I believe you chose your reality. Grab the priorities while you can. Enjoyment becomes more precious after 60.

andrewclaus

I'm one of few who did manage to retire at 40, over 25 years ago. Well after retirement, I found a blogger espousing exactly what my wife and I did: Mr Money Mustache (He wrote another great post on the economics of cycling, in which he calls the bicycling a "money-printing fountain of youth.")

The bicycle played a key factor in early retirement. My wife and I were dedicated bike commuters, so we didn't need a good, reliable car--we shared an inexpensive old one. We stayed healthy and strong, so we never needed any medical care. We tried to do all our shopping by bike, so we didn't get a lot of stuff, and were able to live in small, inexpensive homes and apartments, garage optional. Vacations were months-long bike tours and hiking trips. We were both engineers, and were able to easily live on one income. It's all about choices, not having children being a key one, not getting into the rat race another.

But to echo others above, biking is just plain fun. All the benefits are extras.

Jughed

Yep - KIDS!! Thats the big X in the equation. The other X - attempting to raise kids on one (engineering) income. Those X's add up to over a million + over the long haul, possibly 2+ million.

I'll be working till 67 and squeezing in my biking adventures in drips and drabs.

big john

I retired @65. Couldn't afford to, but I had to get out of there. Wanted to retire @62 but got hit with financial stuff and would have had no health insurance, so I waited for Medicare. At the last minute, (literally a week before leaving) they asked me to stay and what would it take, etc. Sorry, you had your chance during the last few years.

I always liked riding at least 10 hours per week but exhaustion from work cut that down during my last years at the job. Now I do about 15 hours per week and I would do more but I need more recovery time than when I was younger. I like climbing and fast group rides, but the faster group rides are becoming too much for me.

The amount of time spent on the bike was never a concern. It's what I want to do. I don't think of riding as just a way to get exercise, that's a side benefit. I also don't just noodle around and smell the flowers, actually I do sometimes. I want to stay in reasonable shape so I can do the rides I want to do, with the people I want to ride with.

I could never imagine myself thinking "I'm spending too much time on bicycling" or some such.

tkamd73 

A lot of people don’t even make it to 60, time is precious period. Ride your bike and be happy!
Tim

jackb

I was lucky enough to be able to retire at sixty. I'm seventy-five now and can honestly say that the last fifteen years have been wonderful. I haven't done a stitch of remunerative work in all that time. I'm as free as I can be. No employment, no money worries, no responsibilities except those involving daily activities. Generally I ride every other day in spring, summer, and fall. this year I'm off to a slow start because of hip replacement surgery, but I'm about ready to resume outdoor cycling. I can't say enough about the advantages of retirement. And I love cycling. Yes, it takes time, but if one does the things one loves, the time cannot be better spent.

cyclezen

Time has always been precious; it's just that the urgency of it is realized more, as 'our' time advances.
how much of it we have is the Great Unknown; equally, a curse and blessing.
Riding the bike, taking a walk, going for a hike, skiing, swimming are all the 'Fulcrum' of my multi-armed balance scale, during their time of activity,
Not only do I get an 'experience', an adventure, I get time to clarify things which need further understanding.
They're not just exercise, not just joy and happiness (essential !), they allow me to create 'equilibrium' to life dynamics. Because life just happens, unexpectedly (boy, has that slapped me in the face these past few days), Having those 'Fulcrums' means I don't need to flounder, gulp for air, or wander aimlessly.
And if I am floundering, they become that floating chunk of wood I can hold onto and get me to some footing...
The 'Be Here, Now' of riding a bike (or any other magic carpet) makes 'Now' worthwhile and valuable. Worry less about what was, and the uncertainty of what might be.
Ride On
Yuri

rsbob 

It may use a lot of time but am finding that after hard efforts, it’s taking far more time to recover. My logic is that if I can hammer the climbs on short days (30 -40 miles) it will make it far easier to back off by two MPH on long days and not hammer the climbs. Maybe my logic is flawed. So I spend more time recovering rather than just gentle cruising all the time. Counter productive?

cyclezen

sounds good to me...
definitely a good way to get thru the ride & day, and still retain a little self-respect ?
Ride On
Yuri

rsbob 

Very little, but it will have to do.

staehpj1

Time is always precious. We all have a limited clock and don't know when it will run out. Today may be all you get. Go for that ride, play with your kids/grand kids, do whatever it is that is really important to you.

GhostRider62

Depends on your objectives.

If you fitness is improving and you are enjoying it more, then that approach sounds productive.

For me, if fitness declines with that approach, it would not be productive for me even if that style were more fun

I think most riders do not give themselves sufficient recovery time (days) nor do they go hard enough on hard days, instead they sort of go hard fairly often and sort of recover. If someone has very limited time (say 4 hours per week), going full gas all the time sort of makes sense but since your short rides are 30-40 miles, it sounds like backing off hammering climbs on long days makes sense. I know when I had a coach, he got upset if I went over tempo on ANY climb on long rides. If I went over 300 watts climbing on long rides, he yelled at me (admonished)