Just had to shoot you all a little report and get you all to do the Snoopy happy dance with me!

Latelatebloomer just did her first club ride on her NEW ROAD Bike and she was CLIPPED IN, TOO!!!

This is proof-positve that TE can work miracles. Of course, I also trained hard at the gym all winter, even did some tough indoor training with the local bike club's racing team. (What they thought when a 46 year old, 200-some lb woman walked in, I don't wanna know. But guess what? My heart rate targets were about the same as theirs. Talk about pushing beyond one's comfort level - I wore the spandex, one night I was the only woman there, and I was scared I was gonna throw up - either from nerves or effort! (but on the last night of training, one of the guys said he and a couple others might join me on my century ride, just to give me moral support I think - it made me feel like I was part of the team just a teeny tiny bit )

So, last Sunday, DH and I did a little how-to-road-ride class, and this Sunday, the same man was leading a class D ride - 10 mph, 10 -15 miles. Ok, I thought, perfect for a start. I mean, my best ride at the end of last season was 20! (this time last year, I could only do 3 miles.) Well, we got out there and after some miles, he announced we were all doing great and could handle a longer ride. We did 25. I was often last, but not by much, and I DIDN"T CARE ONE BIT! The leader taught me how to take hills a lot better, and told me I did great.

And there was a more experienced rider along to help and encourage - another large woman, an African American woman who mostly mountain bikes and SHE WAS TOTALLY CAPABLE OF KICKING BUTT - but also rode gently to help us out.

Yeah, I wanna lose more weight. Mostly so gravity doesn't have such a claim on me on the inclines - but I really feel like I have transformed myself. This is all so beyond what I ever believed I could do when I weighed 270+. Thank you all for coaxing me along when I got frustrated and discouraged. For all you big women who are committed to getting fit, I just want to mention that I stopped getting on the scale - because I'm building a lot of muscle and if the weight stays the same or even goes up a little, I plummet emotionally - so I just make fitness goals and slowly but surely, it's time to send another set of clothes to the Salvation Army. Just don't give up.

Thanks again, everyone.