retswerb

Just because your first sentence is true doesn't mean your second one is too.

RChung

The most important data field to display on your head unit isn't speed, or HR, or cadence, or wattage; it's time of day so you know when to turn around and head back. You *never* want to be late from a ride when your spouse is waiting, or when you have to pick up the kids at day care or at school. Put the time of day in the same spot on every data screen so you always know at a glance where to look.

Camilo

Very similar story for me.

It really is. Just keep your priorities in mind. For me, a life long cycling enthusiast, it was never difficult to forgo it in favor of the more important things.

t2p

for me biking slid way down the list

I was away from serious biking for almost 20 years - just returned to biking recently

initially I did continue to bike when the kids were smaller - but as they grew / aged biking was limited to some quick off road rides in the nearby woods

instead of biking I became the kid’s youth football coach, basketball coach, and baseball coach ; continued to coach my youngest kid in baseball up to high school years

also was the RC car pit crew ... guitar / amp / keyboard roadie ...

wife also participated in many of these activities so her biking also took a big hit ... she did get out more than me though - she would get out at times with the kids when I was cutting grass / working around the house

Camilo

Yea, I did a lot of coaching too. And driving, and skiing, and camping, and stuff I could do around the house and keep in touch with what was going on. But I have never felt the need to be super fit (just reasonably fit) and was never competitive. I guess I can sort of understand if you have those at the center of your life, it might be hard to give it up or compromise.

JohnJ80

Get a Burley trailer and put your child in there. There's a lot more to cycling than just blasting around a route by yourself or in a group ride. I think we had our children out on a ride probably within their 1st month. Not sure that's the right way to do it, but certainly by the time they have some head control. I rigged up a way to mount the car seat in the trailer and we got them a little helmet that fit and off we went. I'd pick a sedate route with little to no traffic or on bike paths.

A side benefit is that it often is a great way to get them to take a nap.

Being a new parent is a rude awakening into the importance of time management. Exercise is important if you want to live long and by part of your child's life well into adulthood. On top of that, kids learn, even at amazingly young ages from parental examples, and if they learn to like being around bikes from their earliest days, they'll probably turn into serious riding partners at some point.

And lugging the trailer around you'll definitely get serious exercise especially if hills are involved.

Sometimes, it might not work out so well and then the smart answer is to know when to call it and head back. If you want a riding buddy, you need to keep it pleasant.

So like pretty much everything else with kids, the more you integrate them into your life and into doing what you do the closer your family will be, they happier both you and they will be, and you'll develop activities that become lifelong family events.

ummed

My first kid didn't affect my cycling too much from what I recall. I rode less but I was still able to do much of the riding I wanted and didn't lose a ton of fitness. The second kid was really the nail in my fitness coffin. I still ride enough to be fit but don't get many long rides in and I can't really keep up with most of my friends on climbs anymore. We shall see what number 3 brings.