I need to find a low impact way of exercising that I'll enjoy enough to stick with. When I was a teen I rode my 10-speed everywhere all the time. I'd like to get back into biking and we live in a great area for it as we are surrounded my miles and miles of country roads.
I'm leaning towards a bike I could use on dirt if the chance presents itself, although most of my riding will be on paved roads. The roads here are "paved" with oil and gravel (they call it chipping), so sometimes they can be pretty gnarly. A strict street bike with skinny tires won't cut it. I don't mind springing for a decent bike to start, but I'd rather start conservative and move up to a nicer bike if I decide to stick with it.
So I could use some advice...
Recommended bike type?
What's a good distance for a ride? 10 miles? Or is that not enough to get a decent workout?
Gear? I never wore a helmet as a kid, but then again, I didn't wear seat belts back then either. So I'm assuming a helmet as a minimum and maybe elbow protection. I don't fall gracefully at all.
And what about shoes? Regular running shoes ok to start?
Technique? As with running, I assume you need to set a pace you sustain over the distance which will also burn calories. Is there a good minutes-per-mile standard I should be looking at?
Gotchas? I'm sure I'm missing something. What else do I need to think about?