thirdin77

It's a magazine article. Hardly a fount of knowledge. And it's in a running magazine. Written by people who are passionate about running and want to keep running. Read by people who are passionate about running and want to keep running. Figure it out.

c0lnago

So I can run on a trail, listen to tunes and not worry about becoming the hood ornament on a F250 a few times/week.

Luddite

I used to run, losing toenails sucks. lol

ImRael

My feet are too flat. I sound like half a horse when I run.

IbikezLA

I don't run because I want to preserve my knees. I used to do a lot of running(didnt have good knees to begin with) and after months of painful conditioning ,for the knees, I could go 10+ miles without knee pain. Now, my knees kind of suck again and I can't run 2 miles with my knees feeling swollen or numb or inflamed.

Running is fun though. When I could do it, I loved it. Just the ability to move quickly for a long period of time like that was good for my self esteem.

kayakdiver

Bah Humbug

Yes, and that's the same path I'm doing (though I want to still run some).

Also, cross training is good. Running and biking use different muscles.

Running is also a whole lot cheaper, and much easier to do spontaneously. No tires to check pressure on. No packing a saddle bag. No chains to lube. No cables to adjust. Tie shoes, go.

pacificaslim

I hear that. It takes me probably 2hrs. including messing with the bike and gear to do my regular 16 mile loop ride up the trails here (including about 2000' of climbing, mainly in the 6 to 8 range, but with some sections as high as 15%). I'm with you in thinking 20 minutes of running would do me just as good. I guess I'll have to mix that in on the weekdays afterwork when I don't have enough time for a ride.

chadteck

I much prefer cycling to running. If you can move much faster given the same amount of effort, then why not do it?

It doesn't make sense when people claim that running is a better workout than cycling. If you aren't burning the same number of calories cycling as you are running, then you aren't riding fast enough.

Luddite

At this point, I vastly prefer cycling to running, though when the rainy weather hits my glasses are going to be an issue (I would run without my glasses and just deal with the blurry vision, not a good idea on a bike lol)

I love the speed, the distance I can travel, the sheer FUN of cycling. Once I either get my road bike working right for me or get another one, I'll love it even more. I hardly ever take the bus anymore!

Neurodoc

I don't get runners either. It doesn't look fun. I never see runners smiling, except maybe at the end of the run when they don't have to run anymore.

IbikezLA

I guess the fun part for me ,with running, was being able to zone out and keep going, that was just something else-a total surreal experience on some windy days at the beach. Whilst riding I've always got something else to think about and sometimes it bugs me or stresses me out. Plus it was a good way to show off fitness since you can't always have a bike around

kidonabike

Yeah I'm a youngster, 19 and will be twenty in a few months. My mileage is a bit deceptive since I do a lot of other sports and just don't rack up that many miles running. This past May I actually ran the La Jolla Half marathon and finished a tad under 2hr (1:52).

Thirdin77: Yeah I'm going to start focusing on less abusive activities soon heh. Even at a sprightly 20yo I still feel beat up on weekends. Plus it's getting expensive and I am on a severely limited budget...

davids0507

People have been saying things about mileage and joints and things -- I always found that I was most likely to get injured when I increased mileage or ran inconsistently -- I never hurt myself when I was running a lot of miles consistently. If you run enough, you're strong enough, and your technique is good enough, the pounding is mostly absorbed by muscle -- my quads would always get sore when I started to run more on harder surfaces (road vs dirt) when I was in good shape.

rishardh

I run too but prefer cycling. Like getting properly fitted on a bike you got to work on your running style to avoid injuries, especially if you want to do long distance running. If you are starting to run after some time off you got to ease into it or else you will experience pain.

datlas 

Does the runners' forum have postings entitled "Why do People Cycle??"

I would love to try running occasionally, but even a single 1 mile run and my knees cry "uncle"....I can race-walk pretty fast without knee pain but that is way too dorky, even for me.

merlinextraligh

If it takes you 2 hours to get a work out on the bike, you're not riding hard enough. Try doing a set of Tabata intervals, and see if you got a workout.

People who say biking is too easy, or they can't get a workout in a short period, simply aren't riding hard enough.

If you go out and just ride your bike at a moderate pace, the analogy is walking, not running.

If you go out and push, you can get a workout in in very short order.

AngryScientist 

i'll add that depending on where you are geographically, running may be way easier. there is a system of parks in my town with about an 8 mile loop, when i was training for the marathon, this was all i needed to get in all my long runs, and speed work-outs, traffic free.

biking generally requires a little more route planning to accomplish certain goals.

that said, i think its makes perfect sense to mix both running and cycling (for me). they both offer a great workout, and i thoroughly enjoy both.

StephenH

If you're already fit, running may be fine. If you're overweight, everything bounces wrong when you try to run. Also, I find that if I run at what seems a natural pace, that is too fast, and I have to stop. If I "run" at a sustainable pace, I feel like I'm trying to run in slow motion.

The best exercise I ever found was hiking uphill. It gets you the aerobic benefits, works your legs, but doesn't have the bouncing and jarring that running has.

antiaverage

That's why I skydive.

You get more of an upper-body workout with running, especially with hand weights, so it's not just about the calories you burn. The trade-off is that its rough on your joints. It may make them stronger over time according to Runner's World, but going from cycling to running is quite a noticeable stress difference.

People who are new to running always have the most issues during the first week. If you hang on and stick to it, it does get much better rather quickly. So much of it is mental, puking included.

iron.wren

you have trained your body to that level on a bike, i do a 2.5 mile route for breakfast. I ran in high school and shape and tuned my body for running. When you first started riding you had to start out small, same in running, consistency is key

purefreedom

I am running 3-4 times a week alternating 5 and 3 mile runs to keep in shape and keep my Army PT test scores up...I then got into riding this road bike...LOL...let me tell you, riding the bike helped my runs because riding that bike up these hills makes a hilly 5 mile run feel like a walk in the park!! Riding helped me manage fatigue and pain, so now when I run, the pain and discomfort I use to have is a distant memory...

n00bL35

I went for a 4 mile fast walk with my wife the other day. Every joint in my lower body was stiff, swollen and in pain for 3 days. I forced myself onto my bike for a 20 mile ride, and when I got back, the pain in my legs and back was gone. I'm not going to say that running is always bad for everyone, but I simply cannot do it, and am much better off on my bike.

cooker

I'm overweight and I can't run very far although I could bike all day. The only running that makes sense for me is short anaerobic bursts up stairs. I suspect the joint damage is minimal since you are placing your leading foot rather than landing on it, and putting in shorter workouts to expend the same effort.

And you should walk back down the stairs

soccerun8728

I used to run when I was in high school, not too long ago. I was usually around 60-100 miles a week. After I had three stress fractures and some knee pain I decided I was done running that much. I will still go out for runs but it is more to stay in shape. I do like to ride my bike more and will probably start cross training. Running does place more of a demand on your body, from my point of view. However, cycling can get you in more trouble, it is so much easier to go beyond what your body is capable then if you were running. There isn't a lot of physical pain with cycling where running tells your body when enough is enough.