Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

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Heltor Chasca
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Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Heltor Chasca »

I have had a very physical month or so doing tree work and hedging. Soon lawn clipping will be the brunt of my work as a gardener.

I had put it down to fatigue, but I noticed last week focusing on distance objects was seriously lacking detail. House numbers, street signs, number plates, birds in trees etc. Night driving wasn't great. I wasn't entirely convinced it was just fatigue. Being a sensible 40-something year old, I booked myself in for an eye test.

Without any sales pitch thrown my way, I was horrified to find I was just below the legally accepted standard! The health of my eyes was excellent. The long and the short of it is I need to sort my eyesight out.

Being a full time gardener and cycling in my free time, I think contacts are my best option. The optician said I need a cheap backup pair of specs just in case I get an injury or infection from my work. Yes this happens periodically. That's my job for you despite the PPE I wear all the time. No exceptions.

Glasses and lenses £60 one off. Change every 2-3 years. Monthly contact lens arrangement £23/month.

I have no experience or idea what I am getting myself into. What are your thoughts? Help, I feel way out of my depth.
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Mick F
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Mick F »

Can you read ok without glasses? I guess you can.

Is it just distance?
If so, just standard distance spectacles would be fine.

With me, it's just age related. Reading and intermittent for a while, and now it's distance as well (though not so much as yet).
Consequently, varifocals suit me generally, and I have some specific varifocals for the bike.

The bike ones are swept back and "wrap-arround" plus they are plastic shatterproof lenses and are rain resistant plus photochromic. Excellent for cycling. Protective + being able to see my Garmin and mobile phone as well as see properly. Highly recommended.
Mick F. Cornwall
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Heltor Chasca
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Heltor Chasca »

Thanks Mick. Yes it's just distance for now. Reading etc is fine. I'm only guessing, but at moment, my disposable isn't sufficient enough to be able to afford prescription cycling glasses.
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Mick F
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Mick F »

If you get standard spectacles for distance, you could use them on the bike, but the trouble is, they can become dislodged and work their way down your nose!

You can buy tabs or something, that hold them steady, so they don't slip.
You can have a strap/string round your neck so you can take them off for reading without having to put them down. Handy if they do fall off as they just dangle there on your chest.

I had the opposite issue to you when I was in my mid 40's. I needed reading glasses, but nothing for intermediate or distance, so I had a string so I could put them on and take them off ..................... and I always knew where they were.
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boblo
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by boblo »

Well glasses are clearly the cheaper option if budget is the primary factor. I wear contacts for cycling, running and mountaineering, glasses the rest of the time. I prefer contacts for outdoor sports as I don't get blinded by rain or wafts of hot air from waterproofs. I don't work in an outdoor or dirty/dusty environment either but I'd be concerned about your eyes/contacts getting contaminated with dust/dirt so might be inclined to wear specs for work (prescription safety specs even?) and contacts for cycling. This would reduce your monthly disposable lense cost and you'd get the best of both worlds.
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661-Pete
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by 661-Pete »

If you get good quality lenses and frames (which will, I'm afraid, usually cost rather more than £60) they should last a good deal longer than 2-3 years - provided your eyesight does not change much over that period of time. At your age this is fairly normal - it is generally younger people who need new glasses on every visit.

I have no experience of contacts, so can't advise there. There is reportedly a risk in connection with welding equipment, though I don't know whether there's any basis for it.

As with all products - 'you get what you pay for'. For your sort of work you will need non-breakable, scratch-resistant lenses. The optician will - obviously - try to steer you towards the more costly options. This is no place to be cynical - heed their advice carefully and don't stint yourself. I've been wearing glasses since childhood and never had any cause for complaint about opticians over-selling.
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Heltor Chasca
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Heltor Chasca »

Thank you to all 3 of you. I think it's a given that I'll need glasses for all the reasons above. For now I'll go with a cheap option to see how we get on.

I may even enjoy them and get a prescription for a more expensive work/cycling pair. I also really like the Germanic/Dutch styles so my taste may change.

I like the idea of contacts for cycling and then I can wear my cycling eyewear over the top. I have explained the nature of my winter and summer work and she has recommended large, soft, non-gas permeable lens that you swap out every month. Not the daily ones or hard ones for some reason. The optician has also offered a very low cost trial period for a month for obvious reasons but also I gather they are legally obliged to do this before they 'hook' you into a standing order.

So I'm on the fence really, but I've got a fairly safe option to try out both for all my activities.
Threevok
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Threevok »

Not sure what type of lenses you are being sold for that price, but Specsavers have the monthly disposables for £12 a month on the lensmail scheme. Mine however are £25 a month, because they are varifocal lenses.

I find lenses are best for cycling. Glasses are no good in rain/fog.

Get a cheap pair of cycling glasses you can change the lenses on, for different conditions
Grarea
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Grarea »

Glasses are generally a bit of a pain with both manual work and exercise.
Contacts are much better, but boy they work out pricey.

I haven't looked recently at them as I just don't have the funds for them.
I would have a good look around at deals for contacts, it can get a bit complicated.

Daily disposables are great in that you just throw them away. No cleaning.
They come in a package as well, so, if you wear your glasses that day, you are a pair up.

I have used contacts well out of date and they were fine, so you can save them up.

Contacts do get lost.
They can also get grit on them and you might need to change them out before time.
Which negates the gain made by long term ones (if they still do those?)

When you get glasses, you can get a kind of rubberised nose rest bits which work surprisingly well.
I use a band around the back of my head when cycling and squash type thing. They rarely move.
The biggest pain is sweat and rain and dust on them.
Drives you mad. (especially rain)

When you use them for manual type work, they WILL get damaged.
I wouldn't get good ones for it. I do hear what people say about scratch resistant, but they do get scratched.
I would get a second pair for the money.
The dust and dirt gets on them and you need to wipe them. It scratches them.
On the plus side, you always have safety specs on.

I have never seen the rain resistant type things, that has peaked my interest actually.

Overall, I would definitely prefer contacts, but because of the cost, I use glasses.
I don't do so much manual work now, but I had a pair for work and a pair for home.
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Heltor Chasca
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Heltor Chasca »

Thanks Threevok. Shopping around wasn't at the forefront of my mind. Shock of not being perfect to blame [emoji6]

Grarea, you are fully aware of my world. I think you understand fully what a physical job entails. Part of that is a more restrictive spending ability. I'll give contact lenses a bash over the trial period and think carefully about my monthly outlay. 3 payments I used to have every month have been cleared which is good. And I can put them through my business accounts. Thanks for such a considered reply.
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Paulatic
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Paulatic »

I wear varifocals now but started off with just needing reading glasses. As my need got stronger I used to keep the older ones for work. They do take a hammering at work. Always tell the optician my eyes were good until I started visiting him/her :) I expect they've heard it all before.
If you are looking for something to help keep glasses on at work do you know a farmer or shepherd? The rubber rings used for castration are excellent just slide them onto the back of the arms. The rubber must give extra grip. I gave, a guy I play squash with, a handful of rings 10 years ago and he still has plenty. He always uses them in the squash court to hold his glasses on.
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Tangled Metal
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Tangled Metal »

Glasses would be my recommendation. Although when i last had contacts they were monthly torics and technology has moved on a lot since then i still wouldn't go with contacts. My old contacts used to have me clawing my eyes out after less than 3 hours. Later tech will be better but that doesn't mean you'll get on with them. Monthly trial is the best option.

One point is you will need glasses as a backup. You can't wear them all day i think even the new ones.

I'm guessing you've got a mild prescription of probably less than -3. This would mean basic lens for glasses which come as standard with Specsavers. At that shop the price of the glasses on the tags is what you'd pay for the basic lens and the frames combined. A worse prescription you might want to pay for a lens upgrade. The key thing is refractive index, higher the number the thinner the lens but not an issue if low prescription.

I need glasses with a high refractive index due to a very high prescription.they cost. If you don't then basic lens ok.

One thing, get scratch resistant coating on glasses. You should not need anti reflective coating because low refractive index lenses don't suffer from reflections as much. Although for the cost it might make night driving better.

Sorry for the rambling but IMHO if you don't want to spend much then glasses. You'll need glasses with contacts anyway so it makes it more expensive option.

I've been wearing glasses for 37 out of my 44 years so far. I have never found any issue with wearing glasses while doing sports such as running or cycling. Properly fitted they should grip you well. How do cycling glasses stay on if normal prescription glasses don't? I'd suggest metal framed glasses because they have flexible nose pads that can be moved to fit better. Plastic frames have rigid nose pads. If they fit great but not if they don't. A plastic frame either fit or not.
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Heltor Chasca
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Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Heltor Chasca »

Paulatic wrote:I wear varifocals now but started off with just needing reading glasses. As my need got stronger I used to keep the older ones for work. They do take a hammering at work. Always tell the optician my eyes were good until I started visiting him/her :) I expect they've heard it all before.
If you are looking for something to help keep glasses on at work do you know a farmer or shepherd? The rubber rings used for castration are excellent just slide them onto the back of the arms. The rubber must give extra grip. I gave, a guy I play squash with, a handful of rings 10 years ago and he still has plenty. He always uses them in the squash court to hold his glasses on.


[emoji23]I knew you would come up with a load of old 'balls'.

Trouble is that my shepherd contact 'owes me one' so I need to be wary. The last time we were working together, he went into the farmhouse to get hot drinks, leaving his wellies outside on the doormat. I filled his boots with leaves and scarpered. Farmer and wife laughed like drains but the shepherd's red face lit up the sky and man can he shout.

Childish I know, but I can run faster then he. Small things amuse small minds.
tatanab
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by tatanab »

This experience is from 20 years ago, so form your own opinion on relevance.
I'd been wearing glasses for about 35 years when I decided to try contacts. I was given hard lenses. Seemed ok until I ventured into mountains on my summer tour. I found that in the heat, sweat was running into my eyes (as normal) and covering the lens. This salt covering did not clear (heat/dry air) and I had trouble descending because I could not see a lot. I reverted to glasses and now use prescription sunglasses from Optilabs. Yes, glasses get covered in sweat (or rain) inside and out, but I can take them off and clean them. In extremis I can take them off when climbing and still see easily enough. Sometimes I do a bit of physical labour and the same applies, I can clean the sweat away. This might apply to your work. Start with the least intrusive option and see how you get on, so that's glasses-contacts-laser surgery.
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Paulatic
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Re: Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

Post by Paulatic »

Heltor Chasca wrote:
Paulatic wrote:I wear varifocals now but started off with just needing reading glasses. As my need got stronger I used to keep the older ones for work. They do take a hammering at work. Always tell the optician my eyes were good until I started visiting him/her :) I expect they've heard it all before.
If you are looking for something to help keep glasses on at work do you know a farmer or shepherd? The rubber rings used for castration are excellent just slide them onto the back of the arms. The rubber must give extra grip. I gave, a guy I play squash with, a handful of rings 10 years ago and he still has plenty. He always uses them in the squash court to hold his glasses on.


I knew you would come up with a load of old 'balls'.

Trouble is that my shepherd contact 'owes me one' so I need to be wary. The last time we were working together, he went into the farmhouse to get hot drinks, leaving his wellies outside on the doormat. I filled his boots with leaves and scarpered. Farmer and wife laughed like drains but the shepherd's red face lit up the sky and man can he shout.

Childish I know, but I can run faster then he. Small things amuse small minds.


Could be dangerous asking him for some castration rings. He might just apply them for you. :lol:
Joker at squash club once filled my boots with sand from the fire bucket.Got my own back , I introduced him to cycling. He's now totally addicted and because he's 20 yrs younger than me it's costing him a fortune feeding his habit. :lol: :lol:
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