Life After Cycling Part 1 - The Equipment

Well it has been over a year and a half now since I decided to quit cycling and I have to say that so far I am pretty happy with my decision. Quitting cycling was a big decision for me to make at the time, however, I think that it was a very good decision in the long run. Over the past several years, I have been analyzing various aspects of my life and trying to figure out ways to consolidate and simplify things so that I have more time and money to do the things I like, and less "stuff" sitting in my garage or attic that I rarely use. I want to live my life enjoying what I have and not sitting around wishing I have more or pining for things that I want to do but can't afford to. So, how does this relate to cycling? Well after doing competitive cycling for two years I came to this conclusion: Competitive cycling requires a lot of resources. It requires a lot of time (for training, bike maintenance, etc.), and a lot of money (for gear, maintenance, club fees, race fees, etc.). I found myself getting progressively frustrated with finding the time and money to progress the way I wanted, and I didn't want to live in a perpetual state of frustration because that just wouldn't be fun. I guess there is this aggressive side to me (belive it or not!) that wants to progress. I couldn't be happy just plodding along on my bike on sunny days, I wanted to train, I wanted to race, and I wanted to be able to do it in any weather. Lacking the sufficient resources (time/money) to achieve that, I decided that I would be better off putting my energy in something more sustainable for my lifestyle.

After I quit cycling, I sold all of my cycling equipment and put the proceeds towards upgrading my home gym. I sold my old bench-press setup and after doing a lot of research I settled on a free-weight system centered around a BodyCraft F320 flat/incline/decline bench, a Powertec power rack, a barbell, and a set of Ironmaster Quick-Lock dumbbells (photos below). I have been very happy with this combination, as it allows one to do an amazing number of exercises in a relatively small space, and within a very reasonable period of time. I now lift weights for about an hour 3 or 4 days a week, all year, rain or shine, first thing in the morning when I get up before I go to work. The other nice thing about weight training is that I don't feel like I need to compete in order to see how I am progressing, I just keep a log and see how my strength icreases from month to month.

When I first looked at power racks, I thought that they would only be for hard-core power lifters and that I probably wouldn't get much use out of it. Boy was I wrong, dfter doing a little research I soon came to discover that a power rack is one of the most versatile pieces of equipment (besides a good bench) that you can own. Some of the exercises I can do with my power rack are: bench press, squat, shoulder press, dips, chin-ups, pull-ups, incline sit-ups, etc. The other nice thing about it is that it has safety bars so that when you are doing squats, shoulder presses, or bench presses you can push yourself a little without having fear that you will drop the weight and hurt yourself.

From my past experience, for anyone considering putting together a home gym with free-weights and doesn't have the money to do it all at once, I would recommend doing it in stages:

1. Get a good set of adjustable dumbbells. You can do a lot of exercises with just a pair of dumbbells, nothing else is required when you are just starting out. You can use a simple pair of spin-lock style dumbbells and some weight plates, that's all I used for many years. If you have more money, a set of quick adjustable dumbbells can save you a lot of time in changing weights, after doing the research, I highly recommend the Ironmaster Quick-Lock dumbbell system.
2. Get a good adjustable bench, something that allows you to go flat, incline, and decline. This type of bench, coupled with a set of adjustable dumbbells can offer an amazing array of exercises. You may find that is all you will ever need for you weight training needs. For more lower-body exercises, many bench maufacturers also offer a leg attachment for their bench for doing leg extensions and leg curls. If you ever plan on going to the next step and getting a power rack, I think the BodyCraft F320 bench is an excellent choice. The other bench that I really like is the Ironmaster Super Bench, it has a lot of cool features and many nice attachments (including a bar for doing chin-ups and dips).
3. Get a power rack. After a set of dumbbells and a flat/incline/decline bench, a power rack will really complete your gym. Although they look big and tall, they typically don't take up that much floor space. To go with your power rack, you would also need a bar and some additional weights for the bar. Some power racks have lots of attachments that you can add on to them as well (cable pull-downs, dib bars, etc.), but they are not required since a power rack on it's own can offer you a lot of exercise options.

In addition to the weight training, I am also playing racquetball a couple times a week at lunch (a sport I am growing to really love - maybe I will blog about that some other day) with co-wokers at the college and the days I don't play racquetball I go for walks. All-in-all I am very happy with how the transition from cycling happend and I really don't miss it at all any more. It has allowed me to simplify my life and get more pleasure from my recreation time, which I think means that I probably made the right decision!

A few photos...