Hi. I'm not a newbie, but I haven't been on my bike for about 3 years due to a back injury (disc herniation), and I've gained a LOT of weight. I was just searching the site for weight topics and found this thread - exactly what I needed.

I was doing so well with both my riding and weight loss, until the back pain started, then herniated the disc. I had lost about 20# that spring/summer, and I have since put that 20 back on, plus about 30 more. I'm now at the heaviest I've ever been and it's disgusting. I've been walking, doing aerobics, etc. as well as riding a bit on my old hybrid, but what I really want is to be back on my road bike. I just had my bike cleaned, tuned-up, etc. and it's ready to ride again - now I just have to work up the courage to get on it again. I have one pair of shorts that I can fit into (barely), but have NO jerseys.

I was wondering about spinning, but thought I was not in good enough shape to do it. Maybe I should just get over to the Y and talk to them about doing it. I hear you can work at your own pace, is that true?