Hello, my name is Nigel. I am 71 years old and this is my first post on the forum. In January this year, I awoke with some left sided facial weakness and slightly slurred speech. I was admitted and an MRI showed a right fronto-parietal stroke. Prior to becoming unwell, I had been a very keen cyclist, out most days on my road or mountain bike and enjoying multi-day tours. So, the stroke was a terrible shock and I was faced with many questions about whether and how I could return to cycling. I was lucky, though, as I had no lasting weakness, and my balance and vision were unaffected. I have struggled emotionally and also found that while I can write well enough by hand, typing is challenging as I scramble words, leave out letters, etc., so writing emails and material on my website is laborious. I tried a few short bike rides after discharge from hospital in February, and as these went quite well, I decided to try something more ambitious, a 6-day adventure ride in the Chiltern Hills, accompanied by my wife, Jacqueline.
I have written up a blog (on my website) about how this went, my hope and anxieties, some of the highlights of the ride and some of the things that went a bit wrong for me which, of course, I initially thought were likely the result of my stroke, but on reflection I think might just have been the kinds of things anyone my age might do from time to time.
Overall, the ride went very well, and it has built my confidence to try more cycling trips, including days spent on my own. I will be very happy to receive comments and to answer any questions that readers on the forum might have. If there is interest, and after the initial period of my introduction to the forum, I can post a link to that article and will be pleased to receive comments and to answer any questions, readers on the forum might have.
Welcome to the forum @Samoens. It’s great to hear that you’ve been able to return to cycling after your stroke. I’m a lapsed mountain biker with a growing yearning to get back on two wheels, so I’d be interested to read your blog if you post a link.
Hi, thanks for your comment. I am not permitted to include a link in my posts yet (being new to the forum), but as soon as I can, I’ll add that and we can discuss more. Have you managed to get back on the bike at all? Best, Nigel
Hi @Samoens , as a kid cycled everywhere including the hills Robert Millar trained on for the TDF then fell away as needed cars for work and sold my bike. This year through circumstance and with great enjoyment have been cycling again with my nephew, would love to tackle off road but have stayed on paths and easier trails as don’t have too much grip in my left hand. We started out on 10 miles and now up to 30 or so at a reasonable pace. Kinda lucky as we have cycle lanes/ paths on our doorstep into and around Glasgow through to Loch Lomond as well as Edinburgh. Weather is closing in now but plannong to spend time in the gym on their bike over winter.
Good luck and keep it up, I never realised how much I missed it.
Hi @Samoens and welcome to the community. It’s great to hear you have returned to cycling after your stroke. It sounds like you’re soing really well at it and I am sure many will be interested in your experiences especially how you built back up to it initially. Sometimes I think taking that first step back to things after a major illness is often the hardest and after that it all gets that little bit easier.
Very interesting post ! Reminds me of my early years, when I had just passed my 11plus exam and my Dad bought me a brand new Coventry Eagle bike and which that summer I rode entirely alone from north LEEDS, West Yorkshire to east of Spalding, Lincs - 125 miles,non-stop, which was quite an adventure for a 12 year old boy!
I wish @Samoens every success in getting back on his wheels.
What a fantastic achievement. To do that cycle ride before stroke would be remarkable so soon after a stroke…….well I am in awe. Some beautiful places visited and some stunning scenery. A few wrong turns but all worked out in the end. I did like your attitude around just doing it…..even though you didn’t know how it was going to affect you. There is something to be said for that. I’m with you on not really knowing what listening to your body in stroke terms actually means. Certainly in the early days. These days I have a pretty good idea of when I have done enough.
It is a long time since I have been to a Wendover and it made me a little sad to see them building HS2 tunnels through what was a pretty village when I was there. They’re doing something similar not too far away from me too.
Welcome to the community, it can be a real shock when a stroke happens.
It’s great to hear about your journey with getting back to cycling. I’m sure your story will be inspiring for others too and I hope you’ll also find this community helpful.
If you need anything whilst you’re using the Online Community, please don’t hesitate to tag me using the @ symbol and my username.
Thanks vey much for this. At least the HS2 tunnels at Wendover will be covered over, so,I assume, that the tracks and noisy trains won’t disturb the views or the community.
Hi @Samoens and welcome to the community. It’s great to hear you have returned to cycling after your stroke. It sounds like you’re soing really well at it and I am sure many will be interested in your experiences especially how you built back up to it initially. Sometimes I think taking that first step back to things after a major illness is often the hardest and after that it all gets that little bit easier.
Thanks, that has very much been my experience - taking my first steps on the way back to cycling was a bit scary at first but I’m so glad that I did it. Best wishes to all, Nigel
Thanks for posting the link, I enjoyed reading the article and it’s further encouraged me to get back on the bike. Interesting that cycling became a big part of your retirement, I’m planning to retire in less than two years and do see that as an opportunity to return, though I have a lot of fitness to rebuild. Your advice to “take it easy but just do it” is perfect.