Anyone else feel this way?

[makbike]

Denise:

I think you have achieved an awful lot and I'm very inspired by all you have done. Gosh, a 100 lb drop in weight is outstanding. You are out and about on your bike, enjoy that time. Please don't worry about those who pass you on a hill. If nothing else let them be your carrot and chase them. I hate mean people and those young men mocking the woman walking were so out of line. I firmly believe that what goes around comes around only it is at least doubled! You are a kind and gentle soul so please continue to be the positive person you are for we all benefit of individuals like you. Ride your bike and be proud of all you have achieved.

[kelownagirl]

I definitely have felt that way, especially when I first started, and Makbike is right, you have every right to feel proud of your accomplishments!

I was thinking today as I slogged up the hills with my heart rate at max for much of my ride, that I'll bet those tdf guys don't have to work this hard (relatively, of course) for this long. (Well, ok, maybe they do but hey what's hard for them and what's hard for me are two different things...) That's why I'm always telling Erik to ride his mtb in the big gear if he wants to get as good a workout as I'm getting on my road bike.

Keep up the good work - I figure as long as we keep riding, we can't help but get better, and faster, and stronger, and more fit...

[Denise223]

You ladies really are wonderful!!

Pedal Wench -- I think I had heard Dr. Phil say that comment before on his
show -- and, it really is true....

What CD does your cute rabbit have on his/her head??

Mom on Bike -- Thanks for making me laugh . I do work very hard to
get up that hill!! After 2.5 hours on my bike, I really do feel
as if I've gotten a great workout !


Makbike -- I'm definitely a firm believe in "what goes around comes
around"..... I surely will hold my head up higher when
climbing up a hill!

Barb -- You've given me a new mantra -- "better, faster, stronger".
Thanks!!

Have a wonderful day everyone !!

Denise

[betagirl]

As one of the "speedier" ones out there, I can say that I'm not thinking anything snyde or the like when I pass someone slower than me. When I see newer riders out there trying, I usually try to say something encouraging when I see them plugging up a hill or such. I was out on a club ride with the boys last week and there was a woman riding a hybrid, and she was going at a pretty good clip. I smiled as we passed her and told her to hop on (our paceline) That got me a good laugh, but I thought it was nicer than just blowing by her. She was really working hard.

My friend has started riding with me lately, and he's on the bigger side. We ride considerably slower than my usual pace, and that's fine with me. I'm just proud that he's out there giving it his best. In the end, that's all that matters. And the more you go out and ride, the faster and more comfortable you'll become. So keep it up

[plantluvver]

I think there is something about becoming overweight, that people start discriminating against us, and then we start doing it to ourselves.

I was partnered with a younger thinner woman some years ago for fitness testing, and I could perform 3 times as many crunches as her. But I didn't feel it was because she was thin. But when I couldn't perform something, I then had to blame it on my fatness. I was at a lecture once, and a woman nearby sat on a chair and it broke. She was thin. But if I sat on that same chair, I would have felt that my fatness broke it.

Oddly enough, I got a pair of lycra Terry cycling shorts and I feel so good in them. I know this is silly. But I think it is because they remind me that someone thought that overweight people care just as much about their health, and want to be active, and want clothes to be active in, as anybody else.

Yes some overweight people don't care about health, but many skinny people don't care about their health either.

But once I finish I ride I feel I am feeling better. Today I started reading a book by David Burns, who is knowm for the book "Feeling Good: the New Mood therapy" which has become a classic in self-help. He says that it is our thoughts that create our moods, and often these thoughts are unrealistic, and pessimistic, and sometimes just not useful at all. So he has many exercises to get at these thoughts that are so automatic and fleeting we are not even aware of them.

I suffer from severe depression, but I think that this book can help everyone deal with everyday frustrations of life.

There is nothing wrong with wanting company for a ride. But if it limits your riding, then you might try to find some other people to ride with. I find it difficult to take a fifteen minute walk. But if I say, I need something at the store, and I will walk there, I am more likely to do it. I don't know if this will work for you.

Good luck with the riding. If nothing else, perhaps a different time of day would be easier for you to get yourself out.

Mary

[eclectic]

I am always getting passed or dropped on hills. At first I blamed it on my bike, wider tires, smaller wheels, heavier. (the bike not me)

Then I graduated to a road bike, smaller tires, bigger wheels, lighter. (not me - the bike - I gained a few pounds so we are now about even again

I was still getting passed.

I went to the doctor "Dr, Dr, what can I do ? ? I can't breathe when I climb hills,please make my lungs better - I want to be able to climb a hill without dying"

Lots of tests later I discovered I was functioning on 65% lung capacity and was chronic asthmatic (I used to just be exercised induced). Very expensive medicine later my lungs are much better although still not perfect

I started to do weight training in December and riding a lot in April, again with the only goal of climbing hills easier. Every time I went out for a ride I tried to climb at least one good hill - I thought "this is only 10 minutes of my life"

I still can't breathe and huff and puff all the way up. My friends are no longer quite so concerned at my condition - very red face and heavy breathing. I still get passed regularly, BUT at the beginning of the summer I could only go 6.5 tops up my measuring stick hill and last week I went up at 7.0

Progress - Not perfection

Hang in there, I wish I could say they get easier but they don't - you just get faster and the pain goes away quicker

[mimitabby]

plantluvver and eclectic,
a lot of wisdom in your two posts! Plantluvver, you have figured out a lot of stuff that a lot of people never become aware of.

and Eclectic, your experience with ASTHMA! proves that a lot of things are just NOT what they seem.

keep pedalling gals...

mimi

[Beth-Ro]

Here's the thing -- sometimes, when I'm riding up a hill, it does take me awhile, and I'm huffing & puffing my way up the hill (mind you, they're not BIG hills....they are long & rolling though)... There are lots of cyclists out where we ride, and of course, they constantly pass me.


Oh boy, have you ever named my tune!

So a month ago I finally got around to reading Heft on Wheels by Mike Magnuson. And on page 46 and 47, he also names my tune. I take encouragement from this. It makes me smile:

"When the attacks begin - meaning that someone blasts off the front of the pack - we are climbing into these hills...And at the back of this long string is where I'll be: 255 pounds of sweat and hard breathing and guts churning with Gatorade and PowerGel and the Taco Bell that I know I shouldn't have eaten for lunch. The farther into the long climbs, the farther I drop back, till I'm as much as 600 yards behind everybody and all alone, with only the roadside flowers and dogwood trees to see the effort I'm putting forth."

"But the diamond in every hill's lining is that if you go up, you'll eventually go down and....I am, like Frosty the Snowman, the greatest belly-whomper in the world. The little guys relax on the long descents, to recover and gather their strength for another climb, and this, of course, is the proper way to cycle - ride hard, recover, ride hard, recover - but the long descents are my only chance to catch up, so I click into the biggest gear I can crank and I let it rip..."

"So if I'm out there riding with you, and you think you're a bad@@@ cyclist, a hammer, a machine, and you're feeling all smug about yourself because you're a few hundred yards ahead of me on that long, long hill, let me tell you buddy, if I can see you on the road ahead of me, if I'm anywhere close to you, I'm really kicking your @@@".

It's not zen, but it works. If you want zen, try this the next time you are passed:

"You're harshin my mellow, man"

[GLC1968]

Denise - a lot of people here have already said some really nice things and shared some great stories...but I had one more thing to add.

I've only been riding a year. I started last summer as a way of getting a greater cardio challenge than I could get any other low-impact way. I am about 30 lbs overweight and it's all in my legs. Put me in bike shorts, and I look AWFUL! Standing in my bedroom, think I look like an idiot. On my bike, kicking ***...and I don't care. I know I look heavy, but when I can bike faster and longer than a lot of the skinny girls, I feel great about myself. Keep it up and no matter what your size, you'll feel it too!

That said...I want to tell you a little secret about most people on hills. I'm good at hills. It's my specialty for some odd reason (I'm very, very grateful for this!). When I'm passing other people on group rides, I RARELY even notice how they are huffing and puffing. I'm too concerned with getting my gearing just right, or monitoring my own HR, or where the hill ends, or how far ahead of my husband is... basically, I'm more worried about how I'm doing to notice the people I might be passing. In fact, on Saturday, I was extra careful to not huff and puff too much AS I PASSED someone, because I didn't want them to think that I was over-exerting myself to show off!

Really, just keep it up. Feel good that you are out there and that you are improving!!

[Denise223]

Thank you all so much for your responses -- everything -- things you have all shared & the sharing of your experiences!

My husband and I went out yesterday in the blazing afternoon sun, 97+ degrees with 70% humidity. We've had soooooo much rain in May & June, so it was great just to be out & not waiting for "perfect weather".

We planned on riding a 14 mile country road loop that we did last week, and we did -- but, this time we turned around at 7 miles -- for a total of 14 miles.

The day was just TOO hot -- but, we did climb the hills, and I actually did go up one faster than I had last week -- which felt great. To be honest, I brought all of you ladies along with me in spirit , and we made the hill together!

plantluvver -- The only other rider I know is my husband. I've got a few
girlfriends, but no one else rides bikes. So, I will make it my
goal this week to get out at least one day by myself. Perhaps
I'll make a riding friend when I'm out & about. Or, I really
might enjoy going solo.

eclectic -- You're right -- PROGRESS NOT PERFECTION

betagirl -- It means a lot to someone when they hear something positive
from another human being, even if it's just a smile & a "hello".
I know that to be true. And, I'm happy that you're riding with
your friend. I'm sure that he appreciates the company soooo
much!!

Beth-Ro -- Thanks for the book recommendation. Thank you for making
me smile !!

GLC1968 -- I DO feel great to be out there and I can definitely tell that
I am improving. It really is such a good feeling. I've been
paying much more attention to my gearing, too - When I first
started riding, I didn't know how to shift -- Proper gearing
really makes climbing A LOT EASIER - PHEW!!

I hope that you all are having a beautiful & peaceful day -- to you & yours!!

Thanks again!

Denise

[bcipam]

OK so I'm old, need to lose 60 - 70 pounds and can't climb well. BUT, I still ride and am proud of what I can do. For all the people that pass me up hills, they are still alot of people I can past, maybe not uphill but going down (weight does have its advantages) and on flats.

So never ever feel bad about how you look and how you ride. The point is you are riding. I ride with a fairly large club. Most of the folks I hang out with afterwards, are the strongest riders in the Club you know the folks that can do a century in 5 - 6 hours. But I'm still a member and they still treat me as a friend. In fact, they are in awe of the fact I do a century in 7 - 8 hours. No way any of those guys can be on a bike that long.

Anyway what I am inartfully trying to say is be proud of your accomplishments. For every one of you are 1000 people sitting on a couch doing nothing but getting old fast!

[MomOnBike]

Regarding that Heft on Wheels quote:

Man, that's me. On my faired recumbent, as heavy as I & my bike both are, you just don't catch us on downhills. (there was this pack of 3 teenage boys recently...) OK, I'm sure someone can, but I'd make 'em work for it.

I ride for the downhills. DH catches up on the next uphill.

[Bikingmomof3]

Denise,
I have only been on a bike for 6 days. Yes, at age 37 my husband and sons thought it was about time mom learned to ride. I was terrified. Each day my confidence grows stronger. At first I only rode in the cul-de-sac. At first when I went out I thought "all the neighbours are watching". Then a wonderful quote from Richard Feynman came to mind (actually his wife said it to him quite often), "what do you care what other people think?". You know what? I do not care. I am not ashamed that my children can ride circles around me. I am proud that I have conquered my fear of bikes and I look forward to being able to go out a ride every day. Even after 6 days I am beginning to get the urge to race-oh not anytime in the near future, but maybe next year in one of the local club charity races. Only time can tell.
Whew, that was longer than I intended it to be. Long post shortened. Enjoy your time on your bike. Do not compare yourself to others and who cares what anyone thinks. Enjoy yourself and be proud that you are going up hills! Some of us have not been that brave yet.

[Denise223]

Hi Ladies!

bcipam -- You are not old!! You know, I really am having more fun riding, and I'm not so self-conscious any longer, which is wonderful !!

posted by bcipam -- For every one of you are 1000 people sitting on a couch doing nothing but getting old fast!

Isn't that true -- I really hadn't given that much thought!

Bikingmomof3 -- Welcome to TE and to the wonderful world of cycling !!
I'll bet that your husband and sons are very proud of you, too! It took me awhile to be comfortable on the road -- I stayed in parking lots for a few summers, until June 5th of this year. My husband and I decided that I might be able to enjoy riding if we tried a bike path, which we did. Now, we enjoy riding on beautiful, scenic country roads .
It was like I was paralyzed being around cars & trucks (while on my bike). I was much too nervous to enjoy anything.

As someone else said here on this thread... PROGRESS NOT PERFECTION!!

Have a peaceful day everyone....

Denise

[plantluvver]

Denise,

I had to rerad this thread to be sure, but you started out worried about your comfort in traffic, and in less than a week, you are giving out the"wisdom of experience" to Bikingmomof3..

How's that for progress?

How is the soloing gong?

Mary