Winter Fitness Plan?

[ny biker]

I for one will admit I am also a wuss when it comes to cold weather. My minimum temperature for riding outside is 50F. I tried to ride in the winter when I first got my bike but it hurt to breathe (asthma symptoms), and I just don't like being cold anyway. Sometimes I can't motivate myself to go to the gym because I'm not in the mood to walk there and back in the cold.

In general the best motivation for me is habit. My gym/exercise time on weekdays is after work at the same time every day. By making it a regular habit, I reached the point where it felt weird to just sit at home watching TV when I would normally be working out.

My other main winter motivations are (1) not wanting to gain weight and (2) I worked damn hard to get these muscles and I intend to keep them.

It also helps to have a goal in the spring, like a charity ride in April. That way even if I give in too much to cold weather avoidance in January-February, I've got a reason to get back on track by March.

BTW I've found the best way to make sure I actually ride the bike on the indoor trainer, rather than just thinking I really should do it but I just don't feeeeeeeel like it right now, is to keep it set up and ready to go. Which for me means having it constantly in the way in my very small living room. But it works best for me to minimize the amount of work I have to do to use it.