Low Budget Cycling Christmas Gift Ideas

17
Nov
2011
By

Low Priced Gift Ideas for Cyclists: With 38 days left until Christmas, it’s the perfect time to find a gift for that special cyclist in your life (or for yourself). We don’t want to inundate you with too many options (or suggest something like a new and expensive bike…which we all would love by the way), so we’re simply listing off our top 5 low budget ideas for you.

1.  Loving the Bike and #bikeschool merchandise: Click HERE to Purchase

*30% off all Loving the Bike and #bikeschool jerseys, kits, and t-shirts from now until December 1, 2011.

Enter “LTBBKSCHOOL” in the discount code box upon checking out when shopping at Groucho.

Please forgive the blatant self promotion of our merchandise, but we do think it would make a great gift…and with prices at 30% off, how can you go wrong?

Price: Jerseys from $32 and up.  Kits – $55.95.  T-shirts – $15.39 (after 30% discount)

 

 

 

 

 

2.  A subscription to Bicycling Magazine: Click HERE to Purchase

Price: Two Years for $22.00

 

3.  Cycling Jewelry from Green Goat Designs: Click HERE to Purchase

Price: Starting at $25.00 and up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  Cycling Artwork from Kollective Fusion: Click HERE to Purchase

Price: Starting at $25.00 and up

5.  Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance or Zinn and the Art of MTB Maintenance book: Click HERE and HERE to Purchase

Price: $16.47 (from Amazon)

 

 

Enjoy Your Ride
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  • Tim Starry

    Just be careful who you get the subscription through. If it’s a third party and you decide to cancel, they will automatically renew the next year. Bicycling Magazine doesn’t care and it’s virtually impossible to get the third party to desist. Short of cancelling your credit card and getting a new one.

    • http://lovingthebike.com Darryl is Loving the Bike

      Thanks for the tip, Tim.  I appreciate you mentioning it.

  • http://twitter.com/myrnacgmibus Myrna CG Mibus

    Great ideas and wonderful prices on the Loving The Bike merchandise!
    I hope you don’t mind if I chime in with two other ideas …Here in Minnesota we need cold weather biking gear and I found my LBS has great balaclava (face mask/hat thing) for about $20. I plan to get one for my husband, Owen, for Christmas (shhh, don’t tell!)Here’s a link with pictures: http://milltowncycles.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-cold-weather-head-ware.htmlAlso, this year my family is going to buy less for ourselves and give to others in need. We discovered we can donate $36 to send a bike to Africa so healthcare workers can get around to deliver medications and services – this fits in with our love of biking and helps others, a wonderful win-win!

    • http://lovingthebike.com Darryl is Loving the Bike

      You guys are incredible….what a great thing you’re doing with your donation to Bike to Africa, and what a great lesson to your kids.  Thanks for the suggestions, Myrna….very much appreciated.

  • Jackie

    Great list, thanks for putting it together.  My family is always asking me for affordable gift ideas so now I have a list for them.  That cycling artwork looks great and I would love to have a couple of them.

  • http://caratunkgirl.blogspot.com/ Caratunkgirl

    I just forwarded this list to Santa.

    • Samantha

      Same with me.

  • Pamela H

    I’ve been wanting to get a loving the bike jersey for a while now.  Getting 30% is going to be great.  Yaaaay, I can’t wait to get it.

  • Ian

    These are some really good ideas and I like that they’re all price quite nice.  I’d like to get one of the kits for myself since I didn’t win one in your contest.  The magazine would be nice.

  • Logan

    Great list of ideas.  You’ve just made this year’s shopping so much easier for me.

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What’s the best fuel for an early morning ride?

Question: Out of habit, I’ve always eaten cereal (granola) before my morning ride.  For the last several weeks, I’ve been riding at 6am to avoid the heat, and eating at 5:30 am.  I haven’t had any stomach issues, but I am not sure that this is the best pre-ride meal strategy. My legs have felt heavy since starting to ride earlier.  My rides are 1.5-2 hours.  Should I eat less, something different, or nothing at all?  What do you think?

Kelli’s Answer: I think your pre-ride fuel strategy can be improved.  The issue with eating a moderately high fiber breakfast within 30 minutes of beginning a ride is that it will likely take too long to digest, absorb, and metabolize to provide any energy to your muscles at all.  And, what’s more, if the meal is setting in your stomach, you are increasing your risk of stomach cramps (but it sounds like you’ve been okay here) and a reduced bloodflow to your legs since your body is working at digesting.

Although many athletes feel like they need a full breakfast before a morning ride, I think you’ll have better result with less food, and ones that you can eat quickly and metabolize faster.

My first choice would be 2 Tablespoons organic honey + 0.5 – 1 Tbsp organic coconut oil (all straight off the spoon).  Why? These are fast-acting, quick-metabolizing energy foods.  The honey provides moderately fast carbs that act similarly to maltodextrin (moderately fast and longer lasting than glucose), natural enzymes to improve digestion, and antioxidants.  The organic coconut oil provides fast-acting medium chain triglycerides which are used directly by the mitochondria of cells (energy producers) without the need for bile or slow digestion.

Another option would be a sports food with a moderate amount of protein – something like a Clif bar. Or, a smoothie with 1/4 cup yogurt, 1/2 banana, 1 Tbsp honey, and water.  These foods will also digest quickly and provide energy during your ride.

And, don’t forget about 8 oz. of fluid.

During your ride, especially if high intensity and over 60 minutes, or moderate intensity and over 90 minutes, you’ll still need during-ride fuel as well.  With all rides in heat, you’ll want fluids and lytes!

Please send us your questions for our Expert Sports Nutritionist, Kelli Jennings to “Ask the Sports Nutritionist“. Kelli Jennings is a Registered Dietitian with a passion for healthy eating, wellness, & sports nutrition. For more information go to www.apexnutritionllc.com.
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