I'm slightly overweight. By Iron Man standards I'm morbidly obese. No chance. (One of my brothers had been considering it, but recurring back problems made it impossible.)
So I've started running again. Imagine my surprise when I learned that...yep...I still kind of hate it. Ha! I like playing outside. Let me hike and paddle and cycle. It's just that this summer, I didn't do much of any of that, and the cold weather is coming again...
Cycling in the cold isn't a problem though, surely? Cycling regulates your temperature pretty well, once all the exposed points are weatherproofed.
Quite right! I can keep cycling until the snow and slush hits. Hard-core cyclists (like my brother, the urban bicycle activist) cycle through the worst of the winter. I'm not hard-core. Ha!
The problem in Lowland Scotland (and where I stayed in inland Corsica) is that there isn't much snow and/or slush. The temperature hovers just above and below freezing, so you get water on the road and black ice. With the right type of bike, snow is no problem, but there's nothing that won't skid on black ice.
I'm doing my short course version of the same time trial. The whole ride is about 30 min, and I take the time at the half way point. I think my best time was 15:40, last spring. 2 days ago I did it in 17:50, full winter gear. I'll continue to try to bring it down, and this spring I hope to get it below 15:00.
I've never had cardio as part of my workout routine because I find it dull, want to avoid anything likely to wear down the joints and am generally trying to gain muscle. Cardio is only addressed through hobbies - boxing, judo and mountain hikes. And life in Tokyo generally requires walking or biking several miles each day.
That's funny, because I find most other kinds of exercise dull, and I don't do them to avoid damaging my joints. Cycling and walking are great though.