Does Muni provide exercise at all?

yes

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It provides an absolutely incredible amount of exercise.

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So much excersise that you will drop dead after six hours of hard
riding.

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nice!
just what i wanted to hear.
The reason I got interested is because im growing out of my SS rigid
mtn bike and was in the process of looking for peices for a new build.
All I wanted to build was a fun bike that would also give me a workout
and I didnt want to have to get a summer job to build it. (which I
would've had to do to carry out my mtb plans).

What ~$250 bikes are good for a mixture of 50% mtb trails and 50%
messing around in the street?
I think I was looking at a muni with DX in the name but I forgot the
details...

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Yes, Muni is excellent exercise. There are Muni riders here who have
said, after many years of biking/mountain biking, for about 15 years,
once they started to uni, in a few months they were getting more of a
workout then biking has ever gave them.

Constantly pedaling, always using muscles most people hardly use to
stay balanced and to make the sharp adjustments needed. Legs pumping
like mad to get up hill, or putting so much backwards/downwards force
on the pedals your muscles will give out before the decent. Its great
=p

Also, the Torker DX that you mentioned is a great uni, make sure to get
the 24 inch version, because it sounds like you will be wanting to do
trails and muni more than anything, and it is a good cheap uni.

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I was going to recommend getting the 24" Torker DX, but I see that
Jerrick beat me to it.

MUni, I'd imagine, requires a great deal of energy, and gives an
excellent workout. Since I don't have anywhere to muni around here I'm
sort of limited to trials & freestyle; both of which, though, are great
workouts. Really anything on a unicycle is more demanding than on a
bicycle.

Can you unicycle already?

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burjzyntski said:

I was going to recommend getting the 24" Torker DX, but I see that
Jerrick beat me to it.

MUni, I'd imagine, requires a great deal of energy, and gives an
excellent workout. Since I don't have anywhere to muni around here I'm
sort of limited to trials & freestyle; both of which, though, are great
workouts. Really anything on a unicycle is more demanding than on a
bicycle.

Can you unicycle already?

Unfortunately no. thats another thing I was going to ask. I know that
in mountain biking it is always best to start with a cheap beginner
bike then move up to intermediate and then if you need it, move up into
more costy, lighter bikes. Is the same true for unicycling, or is it ok
to just jump in with something like the Torker DX?
I spend a lot of time in the mountains, so I'd have quite a bit of time
to learn balancing, turning, and all that.

Nonetheless, it sounds great! and cheap, too, which is totally not true
in mtnbiking😠 . I'm by no means abandoing mtbing (ive stillgot
another fs xc bike), but it sound like a great sport to fill in the
'fun' aspect im missing a bit in xc mountain biking (and i dont have
the $$ to get a dj or freeride bike)
thanks for the input so far 🙂

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RB2 said:

I'm by no means abandoing mtbing (ive stillgot another fs xc bike)

Pssshhh!! Yeah, right!!

Just wait. I sold my FS XC bike to pay for a -fourth- unicycle. 😉

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RB2 said:

Unfortunately no. thats another thing I was going to ask. I know that in
mountain biking it is always best to start with a cheap beginner bike
then move up to intermediate and then if you need it, move up into more
costy, lighter bikes. Is the same true for unicycling, or is it ok to
just jump in with something like the Torker DX?
I spend a lot of time in the mountains, so I'd have quite a bit of time
to learn balancing, turning, and all that.

The Torker DX is a good uni to start with if you already know you want
to do MUni. It should be fine to learn on, and it will take a good
amount of abuse. If you want to upgrade later to a Kris Holm or custom
uni, you can do that, but you probably won't find it necessary; the
differences in equipment in unicycling are a lot less than the
differences in mountain biking. (At least so far).

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The DX is not top-of-the-line, but yes, traditionally a person's first
unicycle is a cheap-o brand (<$100). If you have the money for a DX
right now, go for it. A lot of people move on to the KH (Kris Holm) 20"
[for trials], 24" [Muni], or 29" [XC], depending on what you're into.
KH's are probably the strongest and lightest, but there are perfectly
fine (cheaper) other brands. I, for instance, have a 20" Torker LX
which is good for freestyle, but not especially trials, muni, or xc. A
24" CX just plain sucks, but it was my first uni. I also have a 28" Sun
that is good for cruising around town (though a 36" is preferable), and
another practically unbreakable 20" Nimbus Hoppley ($350) [it has a KH
rim and hub, plus qu-ax cranks, a nimbus II frame, and maxxis creepy
crawler tire - a trials machine]

Keep us updated on your progress. I'm sure everyone would be interested
in hearing about another mountainbiker-turned-(m)unicyclist.

Don't give up on learning, either. This forum has some great people
that will undoubtedly help you on your way to becoming a unicyclist.

Just out of curiousity, where/how did you hear about Muni?

The only thing that I have to warn about the Torker DX is that the
frame has a likelihood of breaking/bending at the weld that connects
the seatpost tube (of the frame) to the crown (the flat part). I don't
have a DX, but a lot of people seem to be complaining about this
lately. I believe Torker will replace the frame for free if this
happens, though. (You have to ride it -really- hard for this to happen,
though, so I'm sure a beginner wouldn't have much to worry about).

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It's no good being Polish unless you prove it once a day.

\"every silver lining has a touch of gray.\"

"In summary: You want to make sure your Koxx is hard enough before you
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The workout you get from unicycling is entirely dependent on the
terrain. If the terrain is easy (flat and/or smooth) you are not going
to get the same kind of workout you can on a bike. On a bike you can
change gears to make even the easy terrain a workout. Can't do that on
a unicycle.

Muni can give you a good workout if the terrain is good for it. You
can get the heart rate up and keep it there. On some trails even much
more so than the same trail on a MTB. On the types of trails I like to
ride I can keep my heart rate up higher on the muni than on the MTB
(but my MTB skills also suck so I can't ride the MTB aggressively on
singletrack). On the muni I often have to stop and grab a tree to rest
and catch my breath because I'm working so hard. I have never had that
problem on a MTB.

Smooth buff XC trails without a lot of elevation changes are going to
be bad for the workout goal. Rooty, rocky, and rolling trails are
going to give you a very good workout. It also has to do with how
aggressively you ride the trail.

There are some differences in the workouts though. On a bike you can
push yourself farther into energy debt than you can on a unicycle. You
can be totally beat on a bike and still keep pedaling and still keep
your balance. When you're totally beat on a unicycle you'll be falling
over little simple bumps in the trail because you'll be unable to
recover your balance.

Unicycling requires the sprinting fast twitch muscle fibers to keep
your balance when riding bumpy terrain. Those fast twitch muscles are
the first to go when you get beat. They're also the first to go when
you go anaerobic to make it up a climb. On a bike the fast twitch
muscles can go and you'll still be able to pedal and keep your balance.

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burjzyntski said:

The DX is not top-of-the-line, but yes, traditionally a person's first
unicycle is a cheap-o brand (<$100). If you have the money for a DX
right now, go for it. A lot of people move on to the KH (Kris Holm) 20"
[for trials], 24" [Muni], or 29" [XC], depending on what you're into.
KH's are probably the strongest and lightest, but there are perfectly
fine (cheaper) other brands. I, for instance, have a 20" Torker LX
which is good for freestyle, but not especially trials, muni, or xc. A
24" CX just plain sucks, but it was my first uni. I also have a 28" Sun
that is good for cruising around town (though a 36" is preferable), and
another practically unbreakable 20" Nimbus Hoppley ($350) [it has a KH
rim and hub, plus qu-ax cranks, a nimbus II frame, and maxxis creepy
crawler tire - a trials machine]

Keep us updated on your progress. I'm sure everyone would be interested
in hearing about another mountainbiker-turned-(m)unicyclist.

Don't give up on learning, either. This forum has some great people
that will undoubtedly help you on your way to becoming a unicyclist.

Just out of curiousity, where/how did you hear about Muni?

The only thing that I have to warn about the Torker DX is that the
frame has a likelihood of breaking/bending at the weld that connects
the seatpost tube (of the frame) to the crown (the flat part). I don't
have a DX, but a lot of people seem to be complaining about this
lately. I believe Torker will replace the frame for free if this
happens, though. (You have to ride it -really- hard for this to happen,
though, so I'm sure a beginner wouldn't have much to worry about).

Im not exactly sure where I first heard about it. I think it was
through fellow mtbrs. Once I inititally heard about it I investigated
it and found out that it looks really fun and a new twist to mtb.

The only thing that is in my way right now is $$. Once I can collect
enough (prob a few months 🙁 ) I will definitely try this out.

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john_childs said:

The workout you get from unicycling is entirely dependent on the
terrain. If the terrain is easy (flat and/or smooth) you are not going
to get the same kind of workout you can on a bike. On a bike you can
change gears to make even the easy terrain a workout. Can't do that on
a unicycle.

Muni can give you a good workout if the terrain is good for it. You
can get the heart rate up and keep it there. On some trails even much
more so than the same trail on a MTB. On the types of trails I like to
ride I can keep my heart rate up higher on the muni than on the MTB
(but my MTB skills also suck so I can't ride the MTB aggressively on
singletrack). On the muni I often have to stop and grab a tree to rest
and catch my breath because I'm working so hard. I have never had that
problem on a MTB.

Smooth buff XC trails without a lot of elevation changes are going to
be bad for the workout goal. Rooty, rocky, and rolling trails are
going to give you a very good workout. It also has to do with how
aggressively you ride the trail.

There are some differences in the workouts though. On a bike you can
push yourself farther into energy debt than you can on a unicycle. You
can be totally beat on a bike and still keep pedaling and still keep
your balance. When you're totally beat on a unicycle you'll be falling
over little simple bumps in the trail because you'll be unable to
recover your balance.

Unicycling requires the sprinting fast twitch muscle fibers to keep
your balance when riding bumpy terrain. Those fast twitch muscles are
the first to go when you get beat. They're also the first to go when
you go anaerobic to make it up a climb. On a bike the fast twitch
muscles can go and you'll still be able to pedal and keep your balance.

Ill reply to this separately...
I live in SoCal, which has pretty much everything... steady, long fire
roads, long segments of downhill singletrack, rocky (very rocky)
trails, ledges, rock formations, etc. There's pretty much everything
here except rooty, rolling singeltrack.
So I think muni will be good for this area. Ive thought about it quite
a bit. Also, I live in LA, which is full of places to ride in the
street.

thanks for all the help 😄

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Of -course- you live in SoCal; -every-body lives in Cali. You shouldn't
have any trouble at all finding other unicyclists in your area (within
a hundred miles or so).

...🙁

(nobody is willing learn to ride here)

If money is an issue at the moment, the Torker LX can be found for less
than $100 on eBay (mine was $97.97, including S&H). The LX is a great
beginners unicycle. It's held up to my 6'5", 170lb body doing numerous
3ft drops on it, and nothing is out of whack on it. You might not be
able to do Muni on it (the way you could with a DX), but it works the
same way.

Buying one $100 unicycle and then buying the upgraded $260 model isn't
recommended, but if you're wanting to learn ASAP, then the LX isn't a
bad choice (you're going to end up with a unicycle for every function
[freestyle, trials, XC, MUni] anyway. I didn't believe it at first, but
it's true 🙄...)

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"In summary: You want to make sure your Koxx is hard enough before you
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🙄 Unicycling is by far the best workout of any sport I've done.
(cross country skiing, downhill skiing, trail running, hiking,
swimming, and rock climbing included). I'm not good enough yet to Muni
but that's what got me intested as well.

I got a 24" DX, got discuraged by the steep learning curve then I got a
16" CX and one day while riding down the street a guy gave me his 20"
Avatar. Now I'm also getting interested in freestyle and trials and
learning to ride backwards (I just started my guess by the time to
learn originally I'll be riding backwards in 3-4 weeks,
hopefully🙄 )

From what I've read the frame on the DX will be fine unless you do
repeated drops over 4 ft. to pavement or higher to dirt. But it has a
lifetime waranty anyways so it doesn't really matter.

Good luck🙂 Don't get discouraged just keep practicing and you'll get
it😄

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RB2 said:

So I think muni will be good for this area. Ive thought about it quite
a bit. Also, I live in LA, which is full of places to ride in the
street.

Muni is excellent in the LA area, with a great selection of rides at
all skill levels. There are quite a few riders around here with
several of different groups, too. This is a great place to get hooked
- we've got the terrain and the community.

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I regularly do (did) 100-60 mile road rides and 30-50 mile mtb rides and
I'll have to say after a 5 to 8 mile Muni ride I'm fried. My distance
is getting better but I still can't believe how tired I am after such a
short time. On my bike I could rest while still rolling along soft
pedaling. The only way I can rest on my Muni is to stop aka upd. I've
only been Muning for a month or so and I'd have to say if I had to do
it again I'd skip over the DX and buy the Holms or Knoxx. It's not
that the Dx isn't good enuff to handle what I can do. It's just that
being a mtber/roadie/mechanic I can see flaws (mostly the cranks, the
nubbs catch my shoes and not many different sizes) in the DX. I'll be
riding it for a while still but I'm gonna be getting something else
next year sometime. Something with ISIS spindle.

BTW.... I haven't been on any of my bikes in over 2 months. I find
mtbing to be TOO easy and boring these days. Next time I go mtbing
I'll have to spice it up by riding wheelies and hopping around on the
rear tire.

And the wife's [censored] that I've found ANOTHER cycling hobby.😄

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Don't know if anyone has said this yet because I am too lazy to read it
all, but in unicycling, especially muni you need to be peddling at all
times unlike mountain biking so it is alot more energy required.

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habbywall

January 1st, 2007 A NEW REVOLUTION
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Someone mentioned the fact that you cannot change gears on a unicycle
and although this is pretty true you can get a similar feeling to that
by changing the length of your cranks. A 20" wheel with 110mm cranks is
going to be speeding alot at a much higher cadence than a 24" wheel
with 150mm cranks. (and if you are like me you will be keeping up no
problem:p). Because unicycles depend alot on cranks there are a very
good selection of sizes and changing sizes is quite easy.

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