Middle-age crisis ... for my mother
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jonny jeez
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chislehurst, Kent, UK
Lithuania sounds like new cross.
welsh dragon
Thanks but no thanks. I think I'll pass.
Sounds like riding a bike in the UK. Your mum is 56. A grown woman. I hadnt ridden a bike for about 45 years, so if i could do it, then so can she. Might be a good idea to change the pedals, but she will be fine. I hope she enjoys herself.
welsh dragon
Thanks but no thanks. I think I'll pass.
Nice looking bike by the way .
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
I think she might struggle and you're right to be worried. I'm not trying to be funny but a trip to hospital and perhaps a MRI scan might be in order.
Don't want to be alarmist but better safe.
Don't want to be alarmist but better safe.
Lee_M
Guru
or Liverpool, or Manchester, or London :-(
Lee_M
Guru
She's only 56, she's not a doddery old woman you know!
We have riders who have just started who are in their 60s.
I started again when I was 52, no worries, we aren't pensioners!
biggs682
Itching to get back on my bike's
- Location
- Northamptonshire
well done mum for wanting to do something , but agree re worry
A road bike might be a bit too twitchy for her as a first ride, but I don't suppose you'll know until she tries it. Isn't there anywhere a little safer you could suggest she goes to for her first try? Maybe a local car park (smooth surface) or a local road that is in better condition than others? Do you have any friends that live nearby that could accompany your mum to look out for her?
It's difficult being so far away. Maybe ask her to wait until you arrive and then go and find somewhere to try it together?
It's difficult being so far away. Maybe ask her to wait until you arrive and then go and find somewhere to try it together?
I'm 56 and not a bloke. 56 is not decrepid. I don't see any difference between the two genders. Yes she has had health problems but staying fit can only help.
There are two ways this will go. Either she will get to the end of the road and realise it's a daft idea. Or she will cope fine.
You ride in Lithuania so why shouldn't she?
There are two ways this will go. Either she will get to the end of the road and realise it's a daft idea. Or she will cope fine.
You ride in Lithuania so why shouldn't she?
jefmcg
Guru
Let her live her life, for god's sake. 56 is way too young for you to start mothering her. I'm sure she knows the roads as well as you do. And cut out the sexist crap. We'd achieve nothing in our lives if we believed the "it's different for women" crap that we are continuously being fed.
And there are promising studies that exercise reduces the risk of reoccurrence of cancer, so it may even save her life directly.
When my mother was about your mother's age, she expressed a wish to cycle again, which she hadn't done since she was a teenager. I went to her house the next weekend, but my father who had a fear of cycling, had talked her out of it. 20 years later, she has a massive, debilitating aneurysm with extensive brain damage. My brother asked what could reduce the risk of it, and the neurosurgeon said "cardiovascular fitness". If my mother had taken up cycling again in her mid fifties, maybe she'd still be around today. She certainly had the genes for longevity. Several of her siblings made it into their 90s and her 96 year old sister is still living independently (though not a cyclist
).
And there are promising studies that exercise reduces the risk of reoccurrence of cancer, so it may even save her life directly.
When my mother was about your mother's age, she expressed a wish to cycle again, which she hadn't done since she was a teenager. I went to her house the next weekend, but my father who had a fear of cycling, had talked her out of it. 20 years later, she has a massive, debilitating aneurysm with extensive brain damage. My brother asked what could reduce the risk of it, and the neurosurgeon said "cardiovascular fitness". If my mother had taken up cycling again in her mid fifties, maybe she'd still be around today. She certainly had the genes for longevity. Several of her siblings made it into their 90s and her 96 year old sister is still living independently (though not a cyclist
).
Globalti
Legendary Member
I helped my mum to buy a Specialized hybrid at the age of about 80, she loved riding it and found it stable and inspiring but after 6 months she became too nervous about falling off and breaking a wrist or hip, which would be a big problem because when somebody over 70 spends a week in hospital their muscle tone deteriorates by 10 years. So she sold it.
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I understand your worries, and I think I'd have the same. It's hard being far away from those you care about. I think though, all you can and should do is make it clear to her that your bike will feel and handle very differently to the bikes she remembers and you think she should be aware that it'll try to spill her. Suggest she plays with it on quieter roads, or in a park before she tries going any great distance.
At the end of the day, all you can do is give her the facts as you see them then leave her to make up her own mind. She is an adult after all.
At the end of the day, all you can do is give her the facts as you see them then leave her to make up her own mind. She is an adult after all.
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