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Changing Gears
Greg Foyster quits his job in advertising and decides to live more simply. Looking for inspiration, he and his partner Sophie cycle from Melbourne to Far North Queensland (via Tasmania, naturally) scouting out ideas. Preposterously underprepared, they are propelled by the inspiring and eccentric characters they meet along the way - from a forest activist living up a tree to an 18th-century woodsman and a monk walking barefoot through Queensland. Featuring eye-opening encounters with DIY downshifters and leading figures in sustainability, Changing Gears is a jaunty adventure that explores an important question for the can we be happier with less?
- GenresNonfictionCycling
348 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 2013
7 people are currently reading
91 people want to read
About the author
Greg Foyster
8 books1 followerGreg Foyster is a writer and illustrator living on Wadawurrung country, Geelong. His short stories have been published in Meanjin, Overland, Aurealis, The Big Issue Fiction Edition and science journal Nature. In 2023 he won the Peter Carey Short Story Award. He can be found at www.gregfoyster.com
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
October 5, 2025
A interesting and entertaining read. Lots of interesting insights. Here are the bits I enjoyed.
I rarely set foot in the garden. I didn’t feed the chickens or take out the compost. In all the time I lived at the communal share-house, I never once went dumpster diving for salvaged supermarket goods. I was freeloading off the freeloaders.
“an earthquake of the soul” – exchanging a scheduled pay-rise for a day off work instead – an act of downshifting – choosing time over money.
“ceci n’est pas une cabane”
voluntary simplicity – as restraining your income and consumption but increasing your QoL.
Necessaries of life – food, shelter, clothing and fuel. Greg had 10 – shelter, community, food, work, clothing, technology, money, health, spirituality and environment.
What si a car for? To get you from A to B – everything else is for comfort and decoration. Beauty has it’s own value – but it is helpful to be reminded of why we brought something in the firt place. Once an object is stripped of it’s cultural baggage, We’re better able to judge if we need it or if simpler, less costly version would suffice.
Ever since agriculture was invented, humans have been putting more energy into producing their food than the energy they get out of it.
Cycle touring – living within the laws of thermodynamics – you understand fully that if you expent energy you need to replace it.
We all need to connect with others.
Intellectually, I really believe in community, and yet the reality of having to ask bloody permission for that drove me insane. (moving a goat away from dogs)
We’ve always existed in tribes, anywhere around the world, the village was king and the individual was subsidiary to that. In the last few 100years some western countries have gone to the other extreme. Now the individual is king and the communal society is his impoverished subject. As a consequence of that, people have lost a sense of meaning, a sense of being connected, a sense of being supported by people whomatter to them. The more people are disconnected the more vulnerable they are to addiction and suicide.
Community is more than just providing ballast for our emotions, it’s about finding out who we are – not just as a group, but also as individuals. Community is vital for socialisation, but it’s also vital for our own personal growth. How are you going to work with your Achilles heels, your weak spots – without the input from people who care enough to want to tell you. Or you can go to a psychiatrist, but that’s more expensive.
The rebound effect – you reward yourself for doing good by indulging in something bad.
The next morning we woke to a clear, sunny sky. Sophie sung her morning chant: “go Sophie! Go Sophie!” Sunlight has the most amazing effect on her mood. Sometimes I wonder if she’s been a vegetarian so long she’s started to photosynthesise.
I realised that the reason other cyclists don’t go riding in bright yellow rubber gloves in because a) they’re too loose, making it hard to grip the brakes b) they don’t breathe very well, so your hands get drenched in sweat and c) the person you’re riding with won’t be able to stop laughing.
Cars = Consumption amplifiers. If we didn’t have them we would be forced to live in smaller spaces more closely together.
In country areas it was easy to stick to budget because there were few opportunities to spend. Maybe that’s one of the benefits of choosing a remote location to live simply – there’s less to lead you astray.
These people are so rich they have several pools, each one for a different method of entering the water. So alongside the “plunge pool” there would be a “graceful dive pool” or a “ cautious dip pool”.
With slow fashion, the philosophy is to buy less, but have a greater relationship with what you have.
Clothing in our modern society is about image and identity. Thoreau – the true purpose of clothing was “te retain the vital heat” and ‘to cover nakedness”. Like a snake that outgrows it’s old skin, a change in character should come before a change in trousers. Identity should come from your internal character – your thoughts, speech and actions – not your external possessions.
Clive Hamilton – Clothing acts as the interface between self and the world, clothing is perfect for providing the bridge between who we actually are and who we want to be seen to be.
Substance over image – shift from judging objects on their appearance to judging then on their function and efficiency and ecological impact is a necessary part of moving to a simpler lifestyle. The benefits of living more simply, a feeling of greater contentment. Work less and have more time for art or craft or conversation or sitting in the sun or playing the guitar.
The things we think are normal are just collective habits. The process of changing them is painful for a short time, but once you’ve adjusted to a new normal you don’t feel deprived of the old way.
The main difference is unpowered methods require more time or physical labour. Living without electricity at home would be more hassle, for sure but you’d get by.
Someone on my measly income gets a lotto-high at finding a dollar coin on the highway.
The more people centre their lives on materialistic values (like making money and having possessions) the more quality of life is diminished. Beyond a surprisingly low level of material wealth, more stuff won’t make you happier.
Lao Tzu –“He who knows he has enough is rich”
Consumption norm – common point of reference for appraising personal wellbeing, leading those below the norm to feel less happy and those above the norm, more happy. Once basic needs are met, your wellbeing is the result of your perceived place in society rather than an objective measure of wealth. If you feel well-off compared to others, then you feel happy.
“Don’t be scared of dying, be scared of not living”.
Depression is not a mental illness, it’s a way of thinking, it’s a way of reacting to stress, it’s a pattern of behavious. The person who has depression has no goals, someone who doesn’t believe in the future. People with anxiety, they haven’t given up hope, they have goals, they have too many goals. They’ve got to control everything, they’re on constant surveillance, they’re watching to see nothing’s going wrong.
The more people put energy into accruing material possessions, the harder they have to work to get fewer and fewer rewards. All ecological problems of the world are solved through discipline and living simply. The thing about getting more and more into consumption is it makes you more like a heroin addict – more dependent on stuff.
The forest is a world that has been evolving and existing for millions of years in a cycle that keeps going. We’ve got so much to learn from observing it and being in it. We’re one species of many. We’re one part of the bigger whole. When you are in the forest you can get that perspective back. High above life, humans just another speck in the wilderness.
Despite all our fancy technology and endless self-congratulation, we’re not all that different from other creatures – we evolved from them and out fate is bound up with theirs.
Life forms do not constitute a pyramid with our species at the apex, but rather a circle where everything is connected to everything else. People can still fulfil their self-interest – it’s just that their sense of self- extends to a wider community of living things.
Work with what you’ve got – Bloom where you are planted.
We can get used to just about anything – adaptability – Put humans in a tight spot and we’ll quickly conform to our surroundings
Embrace Hypocrisy – when your actions don’t match up with your values- cognitive dissonance – the psychological tension that comes from clashing beliefs or behaviours. The inner conflict can be a catalyst for self-improvement.
Humanity needs humility- spending time in nature is so important to regain the sense of being a tiny part of a larger whole.
Ignore the c-word – “Can’t” The mantra of impossibility is everywhere in society. When you inquire more closely it’s usually not physically impossible or even logistically impractical, it’s because it’s not normally done. We shouldn’t accept something can’t be done just because it’s not the way most people choose to do it.
Stuff breeds stuff – If you find yourself thinking your old bathroom tiles really don’t match your new shower squeegee, get rid of the squeegee.
Simple living isn’t so simple.
It’s easier in the peloton – going along takes extraordinary effort- pushing forward as a group is much easier. If you are interested in changing your life, it’s worth joining a collective that’s heading in the same general direction.
Compromise and commitment
Stephen Clayton
I am born of the land, my soul is the sun
Nature is my mother, I am, mother natures own son
The wind is my spirit, running wild, running free
The water is my mirror, reflecting visions of me
I am like a great river that slowly runs dry
Polluted and abused I am the river, slowly – I die
I am child of the earth, created from dust
I live for the liand, taking only what I must
I am hunter of animals, imitating their stance
I am what I hunt, I am its spirit in the dance
I am a painter of walls, I am an artist of dreams
Depicting mythological creatures, and spirits in my scenes
I am from the never never, a long time gone by
The Dreaming is my creation, I am at home when I die
I own no land, for the land owns me
That’s the way it has been, how it always will be
For I am what I am – I am - Aborigine
Resources:
Aussieslivingsimply.com – voluntary simplicity.
Walden by Henry David Thoreua
Growth fetish, Affluenza, Scorcher and Requiem for a Species by Clive Hamilton
Down---to---earth.blogspot.com.au
I rarely set foot in the garden. I didn’t feed the chickens or take out the compost. In all the time I lived at the communal share-house, I never once went dumpster diving for salvaged supermarket goods. I was freeloading off the freeloaders.
“an earthquake of the soul” – exchanging a scheduled pay-rise for a day off work instead – an act of downshifting – choosing time over money.
“ceci n’est pas une cabane”
voluntary simplicity – as restraining your income and consumption but increasing your QoL.
Necessaries of life – food, shelter, clothing and fuel. Greg had 10 – shelter, community, food, work, clothing, technology, money, health, spirituality and environment.
What si a car for? To get you from A to B – everything else is for comfort and decoration. Beauty has it’s own value – but it is helpful to be reminded of why we brought something in the firt place. Once an object is stripped of it’s cultural baggage, We’re better able to judge if we need it or if simpler, less costly version would suffice.
Ever since agriculture was invented, humans have been putting more energy into producing their food than the energy they get out of it.
Cycle touring – living within the laws of thermodynamics – you understand fully that if you expent energy you need to replace it.
We all need to connect with others.
Intellectually, I really believe in community, and yet the reality of having to ask bloody permission for that drove me insane. (moving a goat away from dogs)
We’ve always existed in tribes, anywhere around the world, the village was king and the individual was subsidiary to that. In the last few 100years some western countries have gone to the other extreme. Now the individual is king and the communal society is his impoverished subject. As a consequence of that, people have lost a sense of meaning, a sense of being connected, a sense of being supported by people whomatter to them. The more people are disconnected the more vulnerable they are to addiction and suicide.
Community is more than just providing ballast for our emotions, it’s about finding out who we are – not just as a group, but also as individuals. Community is vital for socialisation, but it’s also vital for our own personal growth. How are you going to work with your Achilles heels, your weak spots – without the input from people who care enough to want to tell you. Or you can go to a psychiatrist, but that’s more expensive.
The rebound effect – you reward yourself for doing good by indulging in something bad.
The next morning we woke to a clear, sunny sky. Sophie sung her morning chant: “go Sophie! Go Sophie!” Sunlight has the most amazing effect on her mood. Sometimes I wonder if she’s been a vegetarian so long she’s started to photosynthesise.
I realised that the reason other cyclists don’t go riding in bright yellow rubber gloves in because a) they’re too loose, making it hard to grip the brakes b) they don’t breathe very well, so your hands get drenched in sweat and c) the person you’re riding with won’t be able to stop laughing.
Cars = Consumption amplifiers. If we didn’t have them we would be forced to live in smaller spaces more closely together.
In country areas it was easy to stick to budget because there were few opportunities to spend. Maybe that’s one of the benefits of choosing a remote location to live simply – there’s less to lead you astray.
These people are so rich they have several pools, each one for a different method of entering the water. So alongside the “plunge pool” there would be a “graceful dive pool” or a “ cautious dip pool”.
With slow fashion, the philosophy is to buy less, but have a greater relationship with what you have.
Clothing in our modern society is about image and identity. Thoreau – the true purpose of clothing was “te retain the vital heat” and ‘to cover nakedness”. Like a snake that outgrows it’s old skin, a change in character should come before a change in trousers. Identity should come from your internal character – your thoughts, speech and actions – not your external possessions.
Clive Hamilton – Clothing acts as the interface between self and the world, clothing is perfect for providing the bridge between who we actually are and who we want to be seen to be.
Substance over image – shift from judging objects on their appearance to judging then on their function and efficiency and ecological impact is a necessary part of moving to a simpler lifestyle. The benefits of living more simply, a feeling of greater contentment. Work less and have more time for art or craft or conversation or sitting in the sun or playing the guitar.
The things we think are normal are just collective habits. The process of changing them is painful for a short time, but once you’ve adjusted to a new normal you don’t feel deprived of the old way.
The main difference is unpowered methods require more time or physical labour. Living without electricity at home would be more hassle, for sure but you’d get by.
Someone on my measly income gets a lotto-high at finding a dollar coin on the highway.
The more people centre their lives on materialistic values (like making money and having possessions) the more quality of life is diminished. Beyond a surprisingly low level of material wealth, more stuff won’t make you happier.
Lao Tzu –“He who knows he has enough is rich”
Consumption norm – common point of reference for appraising personal wellbeing, leading those below the norm to feel less happy and those above the norm, more happy. Once basic needs are met, your wellbeing is the result of your perceived place in society rather than an objective measure of wealth. If you feel well-off compared to others, then you feel happy.
“Don’t be scared of dying, be scared of not living”.
Depression is not a mental illness, it’s a way of thinking, it’s a way of reacting to stress, it’s a pattern of behavious. The person who has depression has no goals, someone who doesn’t believe in the future. People with anxiety, they haven’t given up hope, they have goals, they have too many goals. They’ve got to control everything, they’re on constant surveillance, they’re watching to see nothing’s going wrong.
The more people put energy into accruing material possessions, the harder they have to work to get fewer and fewer rewards. All ecological problems of the world are solved through discipline and living simply. The thing about getting more and more into consumption is it makes you more like a heroin addict – more dependent on stuff.
The forest is a world that has been evolving and existing for millions of years in a cycle that keeps going. We’ve got so much to learn from observing it and being in it. We’re one species of many. We’re one part of the bigger whole. When you are in the forest you can get that perspective back. High above life, humans just another speck in the wilderness.
Despite all our fancy technology and endless self-congratulation, we’re not all that different from other creatures – we evolved from them and out fate is bound up with theirs.
Life forms do not constitute a pyramid with our species at the apex, but rather a circle where everything is connected to everything else. People can still fulfil their self-interest – it’s just that their sense of self- extends to a wider community of living things.
Work with what you’ve got – Bloom where you are planted.
We can get used to just about anything – adaptability – Put humans in a tight spot and we’ll quickly conform to our surroundings
Embrace Hypocrisy – when your actions don’t match up with your values- cognitive dissonance – the psychological tension that comes from clashing beliefs or behaviours. The inner conflict can be a catalyst for self-improvement.
Humanity needs humility- spending time in nature is so important to regain the sense of being a tiny part of a larger whole.
Ignore the c-word – “Can’t” The mantra of impossibility is everywhere in society. When you inquire more closely it’s usually not physically impossible or even logistically impractical, it’s because it’s not normally done. We shouldn’t accept something can’t be done just because it’s not the way most people choose to do it.
Stuff breeds stuff – If you find yourself thinking your old bathroom tiles really don’t match your new shower squeegee, get rid of the squeegee.
Simple living isn’t so simple.
It’s easier in the peloton – going along takes extraordinary effort- pushing forward as a group is much easier. If you are interested in changing your life, it’s worth joining a collective that’s heading in the same general direction.
Compromise and commitment
Stephen Clayton
I am born of the land, my soul is the sun
Nature is my mother, I am, mother natures own son
The wind is my spirit, running wild, running free
The water is my mirror, reflecting visions of me
I am like a great river that slowly runs dry
Polluted and abused I am the river, slowly – I die
I am child of the earth, created from dust
I live for the liand, taking only what I must
I am hunter of animals, imitating their stance
I am what I hunt, I am its spirit in the dance
I am a painter of walls, I am an artist of dreams
Depicting mythological creatures, and spirits in my scenes
I am from the never never, a long time gone by
The Dreaming is my creation, I am at home when I die
I own no land, for the land owns me
That’s the way it has been, how it always will be
For I am what I am – I am - Aborigine
Resources:
Aussieslivingsimply.com – voluntary simplicity.
Walden by Henry David Thoreua
Growth fetish, Affluenza, Scorcher and Requiem for a Species by Clive Hamilton
Down---to---earth.blogspot.com.au
October 22, 2013
A young couple start to think about what really matters to them, and after years of idle discussions after work in their Melbourne share house, decide to look into ways of changing how they live to be happy. They embark on a cycling trip that spans from Melbourne all the way up to Cairns (via Tassie), encountering a number of interesting characters and different levels of self sustaining lifestyle along the way.
This book was an interesting one for me right now, and early on I was interested in what sort of balance Greg and Sophie might end up exploring - the trendy cafe lifestyle Melbourne is famous for doesn't really match up with true self sustaining principles, no matter how many hipsters you meet there!
Overall I really enjoyed this one, and am planning to research some of the things that Foyster mentioned as his source material. I also enjoyed seeing a side of Australia that I only glimpse occasionally; living in a city can give you blinkers you don't always remember are there.
One criticism though, is that there is more than a touch of the 'self righteous', 'I'm better than you because I live in a way that is better than you' sort of vibe to several sections of the book. Generally, I thought Foyster managed to walk a good line, presenting his developing views in a non judgemental way that was inspirational, so when he deviated into the judgemental tone it really got difficult to read.
Definitely walked away thinking about my impact on the world a little more carefully!
This book was an interesting one for me right now, and early on I was interested in what sort of balance Greg and Sophie might end up exploring - the trendy cafe lifestyle Melbourne is famous for doesn't really match up with true self sustaining principles, no matter how many hipsters you meet there!
Overall I really enjoyed this one, and am planning to research some of the things that Foyster mentioned as his source material. I also enjoyed seeing a side of Australia that I only glimpse occasionally; living in a city can give you blinkers you don't always remember are there.
One criticism though, is that there is more than a touch of the 'self righteous', 'I'm better than you because I live in a way that is better than you' sort of vibe to several sections of the book. Generally, I thought Foyster managed to walk a good line, presenting his developing views in a non judgemental way that was inspirational, so when he deviated into the judgemental tone it really got difficult to read.
Definitely walked away thinking about my impact on the world a little more carefully!
January 12, 2015
This book is such a smart look at how we live, and what we individually can do to change our course in life. Greg is a humorous yet insightful writer. I hope we hear more from him in the future!
May 29, 2014
This book makes you shift perspective about the way we live - a truly life-changing read!
May 2, 2020
Don’t be scared of dying, be scared of not living - loved this book of simple living and adventures in nature - thanks Greg & Sophie for sharing your journey.
April 17, 2015
I have done an unusual thing (for me) and read two books at the same time. Changing Gears by Greg Foyster and Running Away from home by Jane de Teliga. They were both able to be read and put down and returned to easily. I feel compelled to review them together as there were uncanny similarities, and yet worlds apart.
So Jane escaped life to Europe, a life she knew from her work travels. Greg escaped the rat race with his girlfriend to cycle up the east coast of Australia (with a detour via Tasmania). In there own ways they realised living simply, relative to their outlooks. They both had sea change experiences of a large magnitude.
They both had interesting sections, they both had some dryer sections. Jane was more introvert in her reflections, Shane reflected more deeply on community living, living simply broadly. They both applied what they were experiencing and learning to their respective realities.
If you want to still have modern comforts but get some guidance on how to make a big move, read Jane's book. If you want to understand what you mean by the words "living simply", assuming any one or combination of greeny, conservationalist, saving mother earth, or living off the land as being a catalyst for your approach, then Changing Gears may well help.
One question remained unanswered in Shane's book. His brother gave him a challenge to make a new friend on the journey.
So Jane escaped life to Europe, a life she knew from her work travels. Greg escaped the rat race with his girlfriend to cycle up the east coast of Australia (with a detour via Tasmania). In there own ways they realised living simply, relative to their outlooks. They both had sea change experiences of a large magnitude.
They both had interesting sections, they both had some dryer sections. Jane was more introvert in her reflections, Shane reflected more deeply on community living, living simply broadly. They both applied what they were experiencing and learning to their respective realities.
If you want to still have modern comforts but get some guidance on how to make a big move, read Jane's book. If you want to understand what you mean by the words "living simply", assuming any one or combination of greeny, conservationalist, saving mother earth, or living off the land as being a catalyst for your approach, then Changing Gears may well help.
One question remained unanswered in Shane's book. His brother gave him a challenge to make a new friend on the journey.
July 4, 2014
I love simple living and learning all I can about it so this book was a quick, informative and enjoyable read for me. The book has also inspired me to use my own bike more, although I'm not ready yet to do a tour of eastern Australia but who knows what the future holds. This is a huge improvement as I've hardly ever touched a bike since high school, but today I rode 10km between towns plus more while running errands all day. I love how I get from place to place much quicker than walking or waiting for a bus, and riding on a bike trail today in the country going downhill being blasted by the chilly winter air against a contrasting backdrop of fields of rolling hills, trees and wetlands was both thrilling and awe-inspiring. I also love how much more energy I feel I have after going for a ride and the fact that I'm going to get so fit through doing something I'd do for fun and convenience anyway. The frequent movement has an added bonus of keeping me warm when I'd usually be complaining about the cold along with everyone else.
November 22, 2014
I liked it. Very easy to read and a bit nerdish but I guess that is what the author is claiming to be. I realise that there is far more to many of the characters to what is presented in the book and a brief visit to each place will reveal the positives rather than the negatives so was happy with what I read. I have actually interviewed subjects in the book and there can be a darker side to some, but that is life. Over all I agree with what Foyster is trying to convey especially the idea that we use far more than we need, and sometimes we are "taught" to do so.
August 27, 2016
This book was gifted to me by the author... the first time that's ever happened!
I have ZERO interest in cycling but fortunately this is not heavy on the bikey details of the cycling trip. What I liked most about this book was the self-deprecating humour and vulnerability, and the fact that Greg and Sophie actually made real changes to their lifestyle as a result of their journey - there was more inspiration for me in their own lifestyle adjustments then in the stories of the people they interviewed along the way.
I have ZERO interest in cycling but fortunately this is not heavy on the bikey details of the cycling trip. What I liked most about this book was the self-deprecating humour and vulnerability, and the fact that Greg and Sophie actually made real changes to their lifestyle as a result of their journey - there was more inspiration for me in their own lifestyle adjustments then in the stories of the people they interviewed along the way.
May 6, 2014
Wonderful read full of adventures and laughs. However funny it was you'd be mistaken if you thought Changing Gears has no substance. Laced with insights, face the facts stats and motivation on what to do about it. Greg is however no theorist he did the hard miles and the hard changes but you'll have to read the book to see what they are.
I loved it.
Miro
I loved it.
Miro
January 15, 2015
The author and his girlfriend cycle from Melbourne to Cairns exploring ideas of living more simply along the way. I read it, mostly, for the cycle touring aspect. I liked most of it and I already lead a fairly simple life, albeit nothing compared with some who they meet along the way. It was enjoyable to read and thought provoking as well.
September 16, 2015
Fabulous read. Full of information about people views of how we can each play a part in protecting our planet from things such as climate change, pollution and over consumption by just living simply. Narrated with humor and in simple form, felt like I was riding along side of them all the way.
August 10, 2016
Just finished. Loved the clear, honest, reflective and accessible story telling that helped the reader to join in your challenging message. Thank you
April 14, 2014
I loved this. I little investigation into some mainstream sustainable ideas.
March 27, 2017
Informative and Inspiring book. It made me to think seriously about leading a simple life with less damage to our environment through our lifestyle.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews