Newbie's question: What are you riding for? [Archive] - Women's Cycling Discussion Forums

emily_in_nc

06-28-2005, 09:12 AM

I started because it was something I could do with my husband and I needed the exercise.

I continued because it allowed me to EAT a lot more :D , and I love what it does for my legs and butt! ;) I am 44 and do not have a saggy butt, and it's all because of riding (especially climbing!)

I also love the camraderie of group rides and the friends I've made through the bike club. I love having a common goal and feeling myself getting stronger.

I love hanging out here on Team E with a bunch of like-minded women.

I also love the clothes. :D It's just another shopping opportunity!

I guess the question is - once you're hooked: how could I NOT ride??

Emily

mikki

06-28-2005, 10:16 AM

I ride to school, mostly. I'm just not ready to tackle the 12 miles of mountain to get to work yet. The reason I ride is complex. Parking at school is miserable. We only have one car, and I can't justify leaving it parked at school all day and leaving my DH stranded at home (not that he goes anywhere, really). I can take the bus, but I get car sick, and it takes about 40-45 minutes to go 6 miles. Or I can get off my butt, ride my bike and be there in 20-25 minutes, plus have an excellent excuse to go out for breakfast before lectures. :D

Googlie Wooglie

06-28-2005, 10:27 AM

I started because I blew out my knees and couldn't run anymore. It took about two days to get hooked and I wonder how I could ever have run so much--it seems so dull now! Now I ride because it's so much fun, it's something my BF and I can do together, and my legs look awesome! ('cept, of course, those *&@#$ tan lines!)

tatormc

06-28-2005, 10:34 AM

Hubby got me into it. He's been riding since he was 14 and it was his passion. We got married about 4 years ago and I'd never done anything athletic. So last year he said he wanting me to give cycling a try and I said I would, but no promises. In this year I've come to love it. It's something we can do together and it makes my legs look nice!

newbiechick

06-28-2005, 11:00 AM

After reading everyone's comments about their legs ... if this sport can really give me great legs and a great butt, I may never get off my bike!! ;) It's certainly motivation to get me out there more!

SimpleCycle

06-28-2005, 11:12 AM

Well, I've always ridden to some extent for transportation, fun and fitness. But my rides were few and far between.

Then we moved to Tucson, and EVERYONE here is on a bike. Lots of commuters, but also lots of recreational riders out on the roads. I bought a bike to commute (WAY faster than walking or the bus), and loved noticing things I didn't notice from the car. So I started riding around on local bike paths for fun. I also started taking Spinning classes, which were fun for exercise, but I sensed I'd be having a lot more fun out on the road.

I work with some roadies, and they got me really hooked. I bought a road bike, and ride with them on weekends, and now I ride because I LOVE it, and for fitness. We moved here a little less than a year ago, and I've seen more places by bike than I ever would have by car, and its way cooler. My favorite part is cresting a hill, and having a beautiful panoramic view. If I'd just driven up the hill, I doubt I'd appreciate the scenery as much.

SadieKate

06-28-2005, 11:14 AM

Psychiatric benefits. :D

SJCzar

06-28-2005, 01:05 PM

A few months ago I attended a meeting of a women's organization that I belong to through work. One of the guest speakers was a LBS owner and former Olympian. His overall pure joy talking about anything bike related made me remember all the great times I had twenty years ago when I biked almost everyday. Once I got geeked up about biking again I just had to find the perfect new bike.

Of course I ended up buying a better bike and lots more accessories than I ever anticipated but have no regrets.

I can't believe how much I enjoy being out on the road again. I commuted to work again today for the 3rd time in the past two weeks....30 miles round trip. I hope to get up to 3 commutes per week. I especially love the morning ride, lots of happy cyclists and joggers.

bcipam

06-28-2005, 01:59 PM

Mmmmm, I started riding so long ago... even as a little kid, I rode my bike around the neighborhood and beyond. Then as with now, I enjoyed the feeling of freedom. Over the years I've been serious and less than serious. Recently serious again more so for fitness than anything else. I guess I also got into cycling for the personal contact. My best friends right now all cycle, either road or mountain. I've decided since it is so important to me it has to be important to my friends as well. Our adventures are all cycling adventures (although I do get out and hike once in a while). Being actively involved with several cycling groups has help me make many new friends and contacts.

CorsairMac

06-28-2005, 02:48 PM

I've been on and off the bike since I was old enough to ride. As kids we rode everywhere coz that was the only way to Get anywhere, as a teenager I rode to get me out of the house, as an adult I rode coz my ex-hubby did but he was a jackazz about riding (which you wonderful TE ladies with your wonderful DHs and SOs have now shown me tyvm! :D ), so I was off the bike for close to 6 yrs. I took it back up again when my current job moved to offices right off the bike trail. I Love riding, the rush of flying through traffic, the walkers on the bike path every morning on my way to work, even the hills in my city which reward my climb by giving me an Awesome descent usually at speeds over 30 mph! Oh Yeah!! (no speed junkie here! :p ) I've ridden through snow, hail, rain, high winds, and days so gorgeous they almost make me cry. I've seen the moutains covered in snow, green when there's enough rain, sunlight and the gorgeous red they turn when the sun sets just right. I've done my first and second century this year and can't wait to do more. I'm participating in a virtual "Ride Across America" with 12 other people and am having a blast as I attempt to complete 3052 miles by the end of the year! (yup...I'll make it) I resent any time spent driving anymore and have worked out pretty much how to get anywhere in this city on my bike and want it that way.
What am I riding for?? Freedom!

nuthatch

06-28-2005, 04:56 PM

I started riding to get healthy and kept riding because as soon as I click into those pedals, I decide where I'm going, how fast or slow it will be, which birds and animals I will be talking to, what songs I will sing - in brief, an interlude of sanity. No obligations, no duties, no chores. So, yes, SadieKate, psychiatric benefits and yes, Corsair, freedom. Every time I get on that bike, I'm dumbstruck anew just how much it means to me, how much I love it. :D

Veronica

06-28-2005, 05:05 PM

Ice Cream.

V.

Biking Chick

06-28-2005, 05:09 PM

I ride because it's one of my passions.

It's what helps keep me strong and focused. I take pride in taking care of myself which relates to respect and honoring the real me.

Oh yeah ... and then there's always the ice cream

KSH

06-28-2005, 06:05 PM

I started riding so I could compete in triathlons.

So, I ride to train for that (I'm not all hardcore-serious though!)... and I ride to have FUN!!!!

I have found that I really LOVE cycling!

snowtulip

06-28-2005, 06:23 PM

My husband is an awesome rider and racer and I vowed many years back never to get on a bike (hey I'm stubborn and wanted my own hobby). I then had to stop driving because of medical issues for a while and had to commute on my bike everywhere, but didn't want to do the whole mountain bike thing (stubborn I tell you). Then some friends of ours left a tandem at our house for a week and we had to have a tandem, but since my hubby only loves mountain bike, we bought a mountain bike tandem. OH MY GOSH, talk about exhilarating, fun, challenging (we are bad asses on the mountain tandem). So I stopped being stuborn and got a mountain bike. I love it, it's now my relief and reminder of the necessities of why quality of life is important. What would I do without my bike? I also learned a lesson in being stubborn (why be so stubborn, enjoy what life has to offer - admitedly still stubborn on occasion).

bikerHen

06-28-2005, 06:31 PM

I started riding to work last year. Mostly to help me lose weight. Bike riding has queitly taken over my life. A friend recently asked why I like biking. The answer is so complex I didn't know where to begin and I still don't have a good answer. I simply must ride my bike. It has become a part of me. And the fact that I can slip in a few more carbs dosen't hurt either! :rolleyes:

Lynne

06-28-2005, 07:09 PM

I guess I'm just like everyone else here. You see my tagline, so you know I enjoy what I call the "cheesecake/pizza benefit".

I started in December because I was bored to tears with hiking and started dating my BF who has been riding since he was 12.

I keep riding because I love the "high" you get from exercise (and boy do you get it with cycling!), because it keeps me in shape as I approach 40, because I need to have goals for my excercise (and I'd run out of goals with hiking), and obviously because I love to eat.

But funny how what motivates me can change with the sport; I thought I'd be a trail-girl because I love long slow activity. But, with cycling, I like going FAST! And now I can't believe I ever enjoyed hiking (5 stinking hours to get to the top...what's that all about??? LOL)

Technotart

06-28-2005, 07:59 PM

I never planned to get a bike...I bought one this spring because....well -

My son is a racer - he races all over the country for both a collegiate team and an amateur team. I always watched him and wished I could ride, but I just thought well, I'm too old, I'm too out of shape and I'm too busy. The last time I had a bike was when I was 15 years old. Im 42, I'm in grad school and I have 4 young adult/teens I am still raising in addition to a 3 year old. I don't have time to to go the gym I'm already a member of, let alone ride a bike.

Then...I received word that my oldest daughters best friend from high school was just diagnosed with MS. 22 years old. It just blew me away.

My son has done the MS 150 before, and of course he wanted to do it again. Then in January we found out that not only would he be taking final exams the week of the MS 150, but he would probbably also be racing in collegiate nationals that weekend. Well I couldnt not have SOMEBODY ride for Summer! (My daughters friend) I just couldn't stand the thought that no one would be riding in her honor. I mentioned under my breath to my husband that I wanted to do it. He didn't laugh - he outright GUFFAWED. Then he stopped and said if I really wanted to do it, he would be right behind me. SO I got a bike, I started riding about 2 mos prior to the event, and then made 94 mi on the event (In May). I even trained the ride marshals for first aid and raised 3k. I didnt plan on riding so much after MS 150, I figured I'd ride just once in awhile for fun but...

I got hubby a bike for his birthday in April just a few weeks before the MS 150, he didnt ride the event, but he set up the team tent and drove up and back and just was awesome support. Now he's hooked too. I took him out for his first street ride this past week - we had been riding trails together. He LOVED it and we had a BLAST!

Our little one rides a mountain train (a sort of 1/2 bike that hooks on the back of hubbys bike) behind us when we ride baths, and he loves it too. He is 3 and a 1/2 and rode 16 mi with us the week before last. He even has his own little camelback, bike gloves, jersey and tiny pair of chamois shorts.

My oldest dtr is a fixed gear type who flys around philly, she is 22. My oldest son doesn't ride, the third son rides 600 mi a week on his carbon fiber orbea. The 4th child - my 17 year old daughter, commutes by bike to work and school, but won't race - she would be AWESOME if she just would!

And now...my mom and dad are shopping for hybrids!

Now, I ride for fun, family, and fitness and I LOVE IT!!!!!

newrider

06-28-2005, 08:48 PM

My son got me started riding again. He had a "surprise" kidney transplant last summer, and his nephrologist is a serious cyclist and triathlete, who has pretty much inspired all our family to do MORE stuff we never imagined we'd do.

My son got a road bike last fall, this spring my husband and I bought hybrids, and now this summer I've bought a road bike.

I ride because it's so much fun to be horizontal :p and see the world going by at eye level :) and know that life = good.

And, ok, ice cream. :rolleyes: Ice cream is good.

snapdragen

06-28-2005, 08:57 PM

Psychiatric benefits. :D

Amen sister! Can I have a Hallelujah!

snap "jest a touch crazy" dragen

JanT

06-28-2005, 10:20 PM

I confess: I'm addicted. I started riding to cross-train for running. Now, I force myself to jog occasionally to cross-train for riding. I have 3 bikes, for 3 purposes: mountain biking, road biking, and commuting. And if I had the money, you can bet I'd have a few more in the stable, because I'm always drooling over another bike. How about a singlespeed? Or a cross bike? Or a full-suspension mountain bike? Or maybe a recumbent? I know I'm addicted: I often ride alone. I ride to escape my problems. I forget how many times I've ridden in a week. I haven't yet, but I probably will someday, call into work to take time off to ride. I feel guilty when my riding takes me away from my family, but still I ride. I've spent more money than I should on riding. A ride first thing in the morning makes me feel good. I find I need to ride more and more. I'm sure I could find other signs of addiction, but I think I've shared enough for my first confession.

jobob

06-28-2005, 10:43 PM

I love going out by myself early in the morning and riding around the park near my home. It's like meditation.

I like the feeling of accomplishment I get when I do something that months, or even weeks ago, was a real struggle for me. I continually surprise myself.

I enjoy the awe and admiration I get from friends and co-workers when they find out I rode a century (metric or imperial, doesn't matter), or rode up Mt. Diablo. Quite the boost to my ego! (I can't rule out the possibility that some of them think I'm a bit batty, though ) ;)

I really like the way my body looks nowadays.

But, most of all, it's for the ice cream. :D

Jo-n-NY

06-29-2005, 07:24 AM

I pretty much grew up on a bike. It is basically the only athletic ability I have besides walking. But I was always more of a seasonal rider and once I had kids I didn't ride until they were able to ride. That of course consisted of little rides around the development.

Four years ago I wanted to ride the 5 borough Manhattan Bike a thon. My brother said he would ride it with me as my husband works on weekends and there is no taking off at this time of year. So two weeks before the ride I put my bike (hybrid at the time) on a borrowed trainer and thought I better start putting in some miles. The only exercise I was doing was walking on a treadmill. I felt so great after completeing 42 miles.

Well, since then, I ditched the treadmill and all I do is ride, winter, spring, summer, fall. That was also when my husband decided to get a road bike and would ride on his day off while I was at work trying to get himself in shape. Now with the little time we have together, we try really hard to ride together. It is nice to have something we both really enjoy as it makes for great conversation. We both just upgraded to lighter rode bikes and when you really love your bike it makes it even more fun and enjoyable. I never thought a bike could make such a difference.

As others have said, Freedom, forget about your problems, yes it has great psychiatric benefits. Plus I feel like I am included in the cycling loop. I love getting that cycling nod from cyclists that I pass going in the opposite direction.

~ JoAnn ~ for me...ice cream and pizza

emily_in_nc

06-29-2005, 07:55 AM

I forgot to mention that last week at the physical therapist's (rehabbing after my cycling accident / pelvic fractures), she asked me "Do you play any sports? You're so athletic!" My reply: "Nope, I just cycle".

Yep, that's why I ride. :)

Emily

wingsonwheels

06-29-2005, 09:19 AM

Cycling is my stress-buster, my way to enjoy the magnificent outdoor creation (when you ride, the sky is your constant companion), a way to improve and clean out my physical body...

and my alter-ego. I teach middle school, and I love the surprised look on my students' faces when I meet one riding. I want them to know that some adults do exercise, and play outside with their friends.

Grog

06-29-2005, 10:31 AM

I had biked my small town roads as a kid but I must admit it didn't play a role in my starting to ride seriously. I always had a bike because I live in the city (Montreal) and it is so much more convenient than driving, but I never actually spent money on one, just picked old busted bikes at yard sales. Sometimes I rode them on the long bike path that winds by the St-Laurent river but honestly I was always ashamed because the old bikes rattled and made awful noises... :) I checked out the racer bikes as they zoomed past me, but I never thought this was accessible to me... Cyclists - real ones - were from another planet.

Then I started going out with a guy whose parents had become big roadies in their early 50s. My BF himself was into mountain biking, but did take his mountain bike on the road once in a while. I thought cycling together would be a cool thing to do because you don't have to go out of town to do it, we have plenty of nice places to ride around here. We were at some outdoors store for something else and I dragged him downstairs to check out the bikes. I was a bit disappointed that he was not that enthusiastic, but I felt like getting one for myself anyway so I bought a Trek hybrid on sale. I didn't want to spend more than 500$, so for that price I got a bike that was a bit less expensive but with clipless pedals and shoes. Honestly, I'm nearly sure that those pedals made the difference. I was physically hooked the first time I took the bike out and in one month rode about 500 km, which was a lot for me.

Then came the road bike, which I traded against some work on a bike manufacturer's web site. The 18-pound baby just grabbed my heart and won't let go now. I've kept on riding 500 km/month and I can feel myself becoming a better road biker.

And you know what? I'm currently breaking up with the mountain bike guy, which is sad after two years of living together, but I feel that this bike thing is one of the best gifts that relationship has left me, plus riding is my way to remain sane during the breakup. (And he just got a road bike too. *sigh*) And even a 3000$ bike comes cheaper than Paxil!!! :D

The feeling of flying on the road is what I love best about cycling. It IS close to nirvana: I just ride and ride and ride and stop thinking, totally. I love the speed. Being self-propelled also feels like a statement to me. The health benefits are a good point too, as my family has a history of heart disease and various cancers. Plus, I too love the legs and butt, and am learning to live with the tan lines. I kinda like being pointed out as a cyclist now, and maybe it has taken me to another planet...

And finally it has allowed me to meet - virtually or in real life - tons of new cool people. And that's another great reward! Thank you girls I love chatting with you on this board.

Keep riding!

mjv007

06-29-2005, 10:40 AM

Hey my cycling sisters!

just a casual question tossed out at random sparked something I think. I may save it for later. I love reading/hearing people talk about their passions! Cycling is so freeing and it makes us so happy! Like back to childhood happy, pure and simple happy.

Thrilled to see some 40-somethings answer! I am 45 (yikes) but hey that is still younger than Madonna!

I don't yet have the miles under me that some of you do. I did do a sprint triathlon a few years ago, though was cool. My knees have become tempremental (sp) the last 2 years-this I relate to an overuse injury that I did not recognize as such and did not treat it until weeks after the fact. But my DH has a pretty decent cycling resume (MS 150 century, RAGBRAI) and competes in tri's as a hobby. So he is always a source of inspiration.

Anyway, I like this board and I'll drop by later. Special hello to those residing in North Carolina, I'm down on the coast by Topsail, just got here in April.

-MJ

MomOnBike

06-29-2005, 11:17 AM

For the beer? :rolleyes:

DH and I have been going out to dinner and a drink on our bikes for a while now. I think I've learned the location of all cycle-friendly dining establishments in Lincoln. I'm not really joking when I say that William is "bar broke". I limit myself to one drink, though, I don't want to wobble on the way home.

I ride because a year or so ago, I asked a nurse at work to take my blood pressure, just for grins. She turned white and sent me home. Not good, no grins. :eek:

I ride to the drug store to pick up my meds. It just seems counter-productive to drive for blood pressure medication.

I ride because we are a one-car family, and the teenager seems to always have the car.

I ride because I love to bomb down hilly roads at night. (Yes, my guts/brains ratio is pretty high)

I ride a recumbent because I don't like the way my hands feel after a mile or two on my upright.

I ride a recumbent because I like to look around. Even on an upright, I'm always trying to be too upright. I figured I'd better be honest and get a bike that's built for looking around on.

I ride a recumbent because I love the way bad-*** dudes say "cool bike" when I ride by. God, I love that.

I ride because touring the country on a horse just isn't feasible in the 21st century, but it is on a bike.

I ride for mental health. Even super-frugal DH admits that bikes are cheaper and more effective than psych docs and meds.

And don't forget the beer.

emily_in_nc

06-29-2005, 12:17 PM

Thrilled to see some 40-somethings answer! I am 45 (yikes) but hey that is still younger than Madonna!

Anyway, I like this board and I'll drop by later. Special hello to those residing in North Carolina, I'm down on the coast by Topsail, just got here in April.

-MJ

Hi MJ, I'm in the Piedmont area of NC and 44 years old. I can honestly say I am in far better shape than I was 10 years ago, all thanks to cycling. I am constantly mistaken for someone 10 years younger, too! So much of it is attitude, but a lot of it is how I walk (well, at least how I used to walk before my accident!) and my trim figure, thanks to cycling. So many of my friends really started letting themselves go in their 40s, and that's the decade where lifestyle choices really do start catching up with you and showing. I definitely feel WAY younger than 44!

And you're right, we're still younger than Madonna. :D

Emily in NC

geochick

06-29-2005, 01:40 PM

Because it was time to get back on......

When I was a kid, we always rode bikes all over the place - living in rural SW Michigan with 2 working parents, that's how you got anywhere. When I was 14, my family (mom, dad, big bro, little sis and I) joined a group of folks from the area - people my dad worked with and members of their families - and started riding "seriously". We trained for RAGBRAI (rode it 2 years) and several other organized rides over the course of a few years. The last year my dad and sis did the Iowa trip, while my mom, bro and I stayed home (neither he nor I could afford to take the whole week off of work from our summer jobs). That week, he was riding his bike and a car struck him from behind. He was about a mile from home, wasn't wearing his helmet and suffered massive head trauma which led to brain death.

He was 18, I was 16, and for nearly 19 years I was afraid to get back on a bike.

My hubby's dad turned 65 in Feb and I'm not sure who made the decision, but it was determined that "we" (pop-in-law, me and hubby, and his sister and her husband) would all go back and do RAGBRAI "one more time".

It was somewhat intimidating at first, but when my bike came into the LBS and I got out in the parking lot to try it out and make sure the sizing was right, it was such a great feeling. I had forgotten how much fun it is to ride.

Now, I'm riding for a bunch of reasons:
- spending time with hubby :)
- training for RAGBRAI
- training and being a part of a team for the MS 150 Ride to Jack and Back
- getting my legs and butt and even my arms in better shape than they've been for YEARS!!!
- and, very importantly, losing weight and getting healthy so that when hubby and I start trying to get pregnant this fall we'll hopefully have an easier time :D (This one's somewhat of a catch 22, as I've discovered that riding is not a recommended exercise during pregnancy. Looks like I'll be spending A LOT of time on the trainer.)

I ride because I can have fun, exercise, see new places, meet amazing new people and constantly challenge myself mentally and physically. There's always something to celebrate at the end of a ride: whether it's completing a loop a minute faster than yesterday or making it up that hill without stopping, every ride is an accomplishment. And it's something that I can do for myself where the only limitations are those I impose on myself.

PurpleJADE

06-29-2005, 01:45 PM

As a kid I loved to ride. And I saved for that yellow Schwinn Varsity 10 speed and remember ridiing it 31 miles around my neighboorhood the first day! A series of life events had me pretty much inactive till my late 30's A friend convinced me to do a team triathlon where I would swim when I got out of the water and handed off to my bike rider I realized I wanted to do my own triathlon. A few small issues like never ever running and not being on a bike in 20 years needed to be addressed in order to do that. I bought a Hybrid and was soon on the path to a road bike. I realized that my childhood love of biking carried over and I still love it. I returned to the same triathlon a year later and did the whole thing!

Barb

06-30-2005, 08:32 PM

I started really riding again at 40. Hmmm, yeah I guess I rode cuz I turned 40. oh yeah and one more thing....WHEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!! :p

jobob

06-30-2005, 08:59 PM

Thrilled to see some 40-somethings answer! Oh, there are a few of us here :D

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=922

LBTC

06-30-2005, 11:34 PM

Zen

when I ride
there can be nothing else

(I have the scars to prove it)

Namaste,
~T~

ladiebug

07-03-2005, 10:01 PM

As I was reading all these replies, I was wondering if anyone has any small children. You all seem to have all the time in the world for biking. Gosh, I have a hard time squeezing it in. But...... my response to why I bike.... because I want to keep up with my kids! They want to do SO much. Their eyes are wide and the world is still brand new to them (ages 6,8,9). I guess that just boils down to wanting to have FUN!!! :D

BikingAt50

07-07-2005, 06:15 PM

My husband had been riding for a few years and was now in excellent shape. In August, I was under so much stress, I felt I was losing it. Funny thing, I am a therapist. I started riding slowly and rode longer each night. I wanted to get some of the benefits I saw my husband obtaining. One night, I just kept going. It was as if the stress was being blown off of me! It became my therapy. I tell my friends that over the last year of dealing with so many things, I lost me along the way. My bike helped bring me back home to me. I owe my health and my emotional well being to my bike! When I am on my bike, nothing else matters. It becomes "all about the ride"! Now hubby and I ride together. He rides for speed. I ride to ride!

nuthatch

07-07-2005, 06:42 PM

It became my therapy. I tell my friends that over the last year of dealing with so many things, I lost me along the way. My bike helped bring me back home to me. I owe my health and my emotional well being to my bike! When I am on my bike, nothing else matters. It becomes "all about the ride"! Now hubby and I ride together. He rides for speed. I ride to ride!

Yes, yes, yes! Well said!!

wabisabi

07-08-2005, 09:43 AM

I went riding the other evening, and was thinking more about why I ride....

I ride because I can ride; because I am healthy enough at 55 to ride 100 miles in one day, for which I am grateful. Still look pretty good, too!

I went the other evening after work, and there was a big headwind and it was overcast, and it was a lot of work, but I could do it. Earlier in the day, I recalled that I had an old law school classmate (we're talking 30 years ago) who live in the Bay Area. When we were in school, there were not many women, and one's girlfriends were really important. We used to joke that we could all fit into the women's room, which was not that big. We were all pretty idealistic too. Well, when I looked her name up (it is pretty distinctive) in the Ca. Bar, next to it was the word "deceased." I can't tell you what a shock I felt. I took a ride, to help to take it in and to just be with my sadness--over her, over the mothers of GI's I talk with, all of the sadness. And, to celebrate being alive and being here, and having a body that works pretty well, and for those who can't ride.

carback

07-08-2005, 04:03 PM

I'm riding because:

Of the sound of whirr - it's onomatopoeic
I love the excitement of riding in a pack and taking my turn pulling
I love what it's done for my legs
It's freedom on two wheels
I often see bears and other wildlife
I've made the most amazing friends in the world through biking
I love saying "On Your Left"
It defines me
I appreciate a good pair of shaved male cycling legs
Of the smells & sights of rivers, trees, flowers, forests, towns
No matter how much I might not feel like riding, once I get myself out the door, I have NEVER regretted it
At 43 years of age, I can still pass for early 30s
I like relaying the stories behind my bruises & cuts (from mountain biking)
I can't imagine not riding

KSH

07-08-2005, 05:24 PM

I love saying "On Your Left"

HAHAHA... have you seen that movie, "Spanglish"???

:p

BikingAt50

07-08-2005, 09:02 PM

I ride because I can ride; because I am healthy enough at 55 to ride 100 miles in one day, for which I am grateful. Still look pretty good, too!

Wabisabi -- your 55 and can do 100 in a day! That is awesome. I am 50 and increasing my distance each week. You are my role model! :D

CorsairMac

07-09-2005, 10:08 AM

I'm riding because:

Of the sound of whirr - it's onomatopoeic

OK - Anyone that can use AND spell that kind of word deserves the She-Ra Princess of Power Tiara for the day!!! had me in Stitches!!

Welcome to the board Carback!! If you haven't already (I always read these backwards) there's a thread under the open titled "getting to know you". Gives you about geez - what we up to now an hour or two??- of grins and giggles getting to know us and tell us a little more about you - is you're so inclined!

PinkRacer

07-09-2005, 10:48 AM

My honey is super into biking and I found it a great way to spend more time with him. After I ended up breaking my foot (not bike related) it turned out to be the best rehab for it. Plus the "leaning out" factor has been super. I workout in the gym all the time but biking is giving me that "wow" shape I've been trying to work so hard for. :D It's just so much fun! Getting the right bike made also helped. I had a really hard time finding a bike that really fit till I went to rodcycle.com. Now I have a custom pink bike that I day dream about riding while at the office.... :D

CorsairMac

07-09-2005, 11:07 AM

Welcome to the board PR. Man are you and your pink bike gonna stir up some interest! We've got Quite a few pink riders on the board and they're gonna wanna see your bike!! if you get a chance tell us all about ya'll on the "getting to know you" thread and post a pix of your purty pink bike!!!

Trek420

07-09-2005, 11:18 AM

Like most I rode as a kid, even long after I could drive and got a car. I think early 80's my bike got stollen and I never replaced it. In '96 when my GF and I wanted to get back into fitness we got bikes. She no longer rides, we also broke up but for me cycling took off.

I ride because if I was a horse they'd shoot me, from the hips down I'm a wreck. I ride on Dr's orders. My othopedic surgeon suggested cycling as a non-impact sport. He said "you have a choice of changing your lifestyle to fit your legs (he meant go sedentary because my legs are shot) or change your legs to fit your lifestyle". He probably thought "to the store" "on the Bay Trail", wasn't thinking "Up Diablo with the TE gals" "to LA twice" ;-)

I ride for the look on my coworkers face when he said "I can't walk at lunch I'm too old" and he's 30 sumthin. I said "I'll be 50 in March" and he knows how I ride. He demanded to see ID.

I ride because bikes are so beautiful.

I ride because cyclists are the best people.

I ride for the food.

juvel01

07-13-2005, 10:35 AM

I started riding mtb because it made me stronger and more balanced on my horses (I ride competitive dressage at higher levels). Now, I ride with my DH (though he can kick my a$$ any day of the week off road). I'm just beginning road and I have to say, its almost a zen thing. I prefer to be on my own, just listening to the chain click, the road hum of the tires, etc. Its my time to not have to listen to my trainer yelling at me, my boss paging me, my dogs barking, my cat meowing, my DH asking where his keys are, my kids calling "mommy, can I (insert something you say 'no' to here)", bad news on NPR, my car brakes squealing.......

chick on a bike

07-13-2005, 06:10 PM

I ride for several different reasons really...

For the past 4 hellish years, I have been sick with Chron's (an autoimmune disease) and was not doing well physically at all. I threw everything up as anything that went down-no matter how small-would come right back up so my muscles and body was deteriorating from throwing up for 4 years. Finally, by the grace of God, I was granted my health back and as of Feb. 6 of this year, I finally stopped throwing up. I was exahsted but oh so relieved; been 5 months now sinced I last hurled....WooHoo!!!!! :D

Well in the last few months that I was sick, I had started riding with a best friend as he had an extra bike. But when I'd go with him, he'd always have to wait for me because I was so slow and outta shape, (pluss having bad health at the time didn't help! :P) So I figured I'd better get a good bike to start getting into shape now that I'm getting better. I had a bike but my old mountain bike was too small and was too freakin' heavy to even think about messing with; I needed a new one.

Well I had been walking everyday after I stopped throwing up to try and get back into shape (and because it was helping my stomach digest and my intestines to work as they really hadn't for the past 4 years-and still are iffy) but I found that that was no longer going to work as it was just too hard of an impact on my knees going up and down hills (loved walking up hill). So I knew at that point I was going to have to get myself a bike as I had to keep exercising for my health, and because it was so low impact on my knees. So for the time being my girlfriend gave me her mountain bike to ride while she out of the goodness of her heart, worked to put one together for me-bless her!!!

So for a while I rode her bike and then after my "new" mountain bike was put together I rode it quite proudly! ^^ It's so ornery...just like me! ;) My knees were feeling a lot better since I started to ride again (I used to a few years back but got out of the habbit-glad I picked it up again :P) and I realized that I was loosing the ugly fat on my legs and butt........Riding for me then became a hot motive to loose the extra pounds that I had never been able to loos over the years (didn't even loose it while throwing up, :P stupid fat! ~grumbles~)

So now I ride to keep my health in check and to keep my body looking somewhat decent. It keeps my mind in better shape as it truly is exhilerating to be out on the roads and mountain trails on a bike. I've come to love it so!!!

~Liz :cool:

shadon

07-13-2005, 10:17 PM

I want to get back into shape, and I think biking is the best exercise there is.

I want to expand my horizons..I don't drive, so cycling would be a way to see more things, go more places.

I want to meet new people, make some new friends.

I rode a bike in HS and college, and I always thought cyclists were cool and fun....I want to be cool and fun!

I want to ride the Cinderella Classic! and the AIDSLifecycle Ride.

I was talking with some friends who ride, last weekend, about why cycling is a good sport, and after a lull in the conversation, one of them said "and you can drink beer!"

I'm there!

Grog

07-14-2005, 03:59 AM

For the past 4 hellish years, I have been sick with Chron's (an autoimmune disease) and was not doing well physically at all. I threw everything up as anything that went down-no matter how small-would come right back up so my muscles and body was deteriorating from throwing up for 4 years. Finally, by the grace of God, I was granted my health back and as of Feb. 6 of this year, I finally stopped throwing up. I was exahsted but oh so relieved; been 5 months now sinced I last hurled....WooHoo!!!!! :D

Congrats Liz on starting to ride and I'm really glad for you that you overcame Crohn's. I have a friend who suffered a lot from it and he was quite sure he'd never turn 30, grew very cynical about life, but survived and now he's about 35 with a great wife and kids. I'm quite sure that exercise will do wonders on you, along the regular stuff of course... Just make sure you don't overtrain (it can weaken the immune system), but ride! ride! ride!

Cheers!

massbikebabe

07-14-2005, 08:37 AM

I loved to ride in my twenties...but then babies, and life took over leaving me no chance to ride. Then in my forties a very good friend was diagnosed with progressive multiple sclerosis, I got back on my bike for her, to fundraise. Now I feel like every pedal stroke I make gives her one more precious step, even if it is with crutches. I am riding to keep her out of a wheelchair!!

karen

chick on a bike

07-14-2005, 12:25 PM

Congrats Liz on starting to ride and I'm really glad for you that you overcame Crohn's. I have a friend who suffered a lot from it and he was quite sure he'd never turn 30, grew very cynical about life, but survived and now he's about 35 with a great wife and kids. I'm quite sure that exercise will do wonders on you, along the regular stuff of course... Just make sure you don't overtrain (it can weaken the immune system), but ride! ride! ride!

Cheers!

Thanks hon! ^^

That's great that your friend is doing well now; it's easy to be really discouraged and have a poor outlook on life as when you feel worse than butt, nothing is appealing and you wish the whole world would just go away or go die some place! *lol* :P I don't ever remember getting cynical about life, but I sure was discouraged...Though I guess I had reason to be as I had lost my last semester in 10th grade to my health; never got to finish it. :(

I always new while I was sick that things would someday get better...I didn't know when but I knew they had to. :) Though as I hit the last 6 months of being sick, I was going down hill again and really started to worry as my body was begining to shut down. I was feeling weaker and I would go weeks to a month without (parden my grossness) having a BM and my liver was causing my skin, teeth and fingernails to turn yellow. I was not in that great of shape. I realized if something didn't change soon, I was going to be in serious trouble. Finally, I got my break and I was able to heal; I stopped with the constant vomiting and my body started to get back on track.

Though now, I'm still having trouble keeping my intestines and stomach working like they should and I've been yellow too, but it's not enough to keep me off my bike; I don't dare stop riding. The riding is what's keeping my intestines moving! *lol* If I stop, they stop. :P Not good, so I'm out on the roads and trail as often as possible. I try to do it at least 4 times a week, each time going from 13.8 to 14.8 miles. The 13.8 miler I can usually do in less than an hour; anywhere's from 54 to 58 minutes. I move the fastest when there's not a strong headwind, I hate headwinds! :P My 14.8 miler I usually do in an hour and 2 minutes and both these rides I've been doing in about 80 degree weather if not a little more....I miss the cool weather! *giggles* :D

But training in the warmer weather does have it's advantages (aside from being easier on the muscles), it makes it easier to really fly once the cool weather is present! :D I have a habit of pushing myself (partially due my extreme competitiveness) but also have to be careful when I do as I can make myself sick in the warmer weather. I push because I can and in some way makes me feel better when I do. Although I did not know that overtraining could affect the immune system by making it weaker.....How does it do that??? :confused: ~scratches head in wonder~ I know it can irritate my knees! *lol* ^^ :P

~Liz :cool:

Grog

07-14-2005, 02:10 PM

Although I did not know that overtraining could affect the immune system by making it weaker.....How does it do that??? :confused: ~scratches head in wonder~ I know it can irritate my knees! *lol* ^^ :P

I am no sports medic but I suggest you check this issue out in good sports medicine books, maybe especially those about cycling (I've seen a couple cited on TE but can't remember the titles). Discussing this with a friendly doctor could be an option too. Generally they worry about people being inactive, but being overactive can, in extreme cases, become problematic too.

Doing anything in EXCESS can weaken your system: if you use all your energy to get better at one thing (usually: going faster) you may not have much left to fight simple infections, for example. There are a couple of threads about overtraining and/or sickness you could read from this discussion board, too. Just make sure you listen to your body and only increase your training hours/efforts gradually (10% per week is generally recommended). From what you tell us - 4 times a week, 15-20 miles - I don't think it will be an issue for you... but cycling can become addictive!!! so who knows? :)

Keep riding and don't worry, I'm sure you'll have tons of fun!

shortwavez

07-14-2005, 03:44 PM

i got into it because its a good way to stay in shape!

chick on a bike

07-14-2005, 07:13 PM

Doing anything in EXCESS can weaken your system: if you use all your energy to get better at one thing (usually: going faster) you may not have much left to fight simple infections, for example. There are a couple of threads about overtraining and/or sickness you could read from this discussion board, too. Just make sure you listen to your body and only increase your training hours/efforts gradually (10% per week is generally recommended). From what you tell us - 4 times a week, 15-20 miles - I don't think it will be an issue for you... but cycling can become addictive!!! so who knows? :)

Keep riding and don't worry, I'm sure you'll have tons of fun!

I'd have more fun if I had someone to ride with. :( My girlfriend that I was riding with (who put my bike together for me :) ), is in Alaska right now with American Job Cor, building trails, so she won't be back til the middle of October. :( Until then, it's going to be really lonely, and is really lonely. She was a real motivator for me; brought out my competitive side. :) But since I don't have anyone to ride with (or even know anyone to go with daily), my motivation is only for a better body and to keep the innerds workin' like they should. But I can deffinitely agree with you; cycling is a little bit too addicting! *lol* I know watching some of the Olympic bike races (well, triathalons) was always so inspiring to me as I thought "Wow, they just seem to go for miles and not get tired....and look at those legs and butt!!! :eek: I wish mine looked that good...maybe some day...~sigh~". I never knew that one day, I'd actually be feeling like I could go for miles and have a fairly decent looking bottom half. It's kinda cool! ^^ But I doubt I'll ever be good enough to be in a race or some Olympic triatholon, that's for sure; I'm just not that gifted with that much endurance. :p

I did catch the thread of overtraining/illnesses that was on here as I've been surfing over this forum for a couple days now since I joined. :) The overtraining/illness thread was informational and made perfect sense...I do have a habbit of over exerting myself but when it comes to riding, I can't really push it too hard as it's too invaluable for me to screw things up so I cant ride. If I can't ride, I'll get sick! :p Or if I ride too hard, I'll be off because of my knee(s) so I have to be careful. I'm really quite in tune with my body so anytime something's wrong I can usually pin-point it and take care of the problem, so that helps....But I know I still have to be careful. ;) Thanks alot for your advice!!! All you ladies on here are so nice and seem to be just awesome folk! ^^

I look forward to learning alot from everyone! :D Thanks! :) ~hugs to you~ ^^

~Liz ;)

Honeywell23

07-25-2005, 07:47 AM

I started to ride because of my boyfriend. I knew nothing about cycling before him. My ex actually made me watch some of the tour last year and I was like.. yawn.. (OUCH I KNOW!) But I went to my currents boyfriend's races and became obsessed with it. I wanted more knowledge. This year when the tour came on I decided to watch it again and I was totally amazed at the difference in my attitude. When you understand what's going on, it's much more fun to watch. Now we'll be racing side by side next year and I'll be in awesome shape. I am amazed at how fast my legs are toned from riding an hour a day. At 5am I am up and riding and off I go with a smile on my face. Cycling rocks!