HEALTHY TRAILS

HEALTH: HEALTHY TRAILS Gears Change the Ride

by Robert Soroky

One of the most common questions I hear when selling bikes is, “Do I really need all those gears?”

In a nutshell, yes, and the reason is simple: the more gears available, the more places you can ride.

Gears are your friends. They are designed to make riding more efficient and correlate to the style of bike and type of ride.

For example, a basic cruiser that would be ridden shorter distances over relatively flat terrain has one to eight gears, whereas a hybrid, mountain or road bike that is typically ridden longer distances over a wider range of elevations could have as many as 30!

To understand the need for gears, it helps to know what the gears do during a ride.

The lowest gears produce the fastest pedal rotation. This is called “spinning” on the pedals and is extremely helpful when riding into a strong headwind or up a steep hill.

Spinning puts more of the work on the heart and less on the legs. Since the heart is a stronger muscle, it is easier to climb the hills by spinning your way up and saving the undo stress on your legs, which will tend to give out sooner than your heart. It is about endurance over power.

Conversely, the highest gears produce the slowest pedal rotation, but generate more power. We call this “mashing” on the pedals and is great for those flatter stretches of road where you really want to open it up and cover a lot of ground quickly. Because you are not fighting gravity or galeforce winds, your leg muscles can easily handle the task of pushing the bike through these lower-resistance conditions. Now, power is king.

Then there are the shifters themselves.

There are two types, the twist or grip style and the trigger. Regardless of which one a bike has, shifting toward the lower numbers (lower gears) will make the bike easier to pedal, and shifting toward the higher numbers (higher gears) will make it harder to pedal.

As you now know, easier pedaling allows for better climbing and harder pedaling makes the bike go faster. Piece of cake, right?

Robert Soroky is a lifelong cyclist regularly participating in long distance charity rides and manager of the Century Cycles Medina location. Contact Soroky at robert@centurycycles.com to suggest column topics, for further information or to chat about bikes.

HEALTH: OF MIND AND BODY Kick the Blues

by Kelly Bailey

Sure, I like the first snow. It is pretty. Bonus! We had a white Christmas! Pretty cool!

As much as I like that first snow, as winter drags on with endless cold, snow and gray, I start to feel a little bummed out.

Many people report similar feelings during winter when the days are short, cold and cloudy. In some cases, the depression can be serious enough that a doctor will make a diagnosis of Seasonal Affective Disorder.

But there are things you can do to combat the winter blues and stay healthy until warmer, sunnier weather arrives:

Wear bright-colored clothing. Science shows that colors affect our mood. When I feel down, I put on bright colors or even look at colorful photographs. It really does help!

Get some houseplants. Put them on the coffee table, dining-room table, or wherever you spend the most time. Plants will provide that pop of green that will brighten your day. They also purify indoor air, an important perk with homes being closed up against the weather.

Eat comfort food. Feeling extra hungry? You are not imagining it. Humans are biologically wired to eat more when it is cold and dark. You can feed this need in a healthy way by making warm and nourishing soups.

Move your body. Exercise can be as effective as medication for reducing depression and anxiety. As few as 10 minutes of walking can boost your mood. Get up, and do something!

Dress for the weather and go outside. Sure, it is cold, but you can still walk, hike and run. Get adventurous and try a winter sport like skiing or snowboarding.

If you are struggling with anxiety, bad moods or depression that will not seem to quit, see a doctor, no matter what time of year.

As a certified personal trainer and certified holistic nutrition coach, Kelly Baily owns and operates Kelly Bailey Wellness. Read her blog, visit the Food Freedom page, and contact her at https://www.kellybailey.fit/