Anyone else feel this way?

[Pedal Wench]

"If you only knew how infrequently people were thinking about you, you wouldn't really care what people were thinking about you!" There's a saying that goes something like that.

It doesn't sound like you're worried about riding alone for the usual reasons - you're worried about it because you think if you're with your hubby people will think differently about you? Again, no offense, but I don't think people are thinking about you at all! Seriously! They're out suffering up the same hill. Remember - it doesn't get easier, you just get faster!

[MomOnBike]

One more thing. Those of us who are larger (I could stand to lose half my current weight) are working harder to get up the hills - 'cause we have to haul all that bio-load. OF COURSE the guys who have to stand twice to cast a shadow on their weightless bikes blow by us up the hills.

It ain't fair, but that's the way it is.

We're getting more of a workout, though.

[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

[Pedal Wench]

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

**Thread hijack in progress**

Wow - could have written that myself! I have about 62% lung capacity too! What can we do about it? I take my asthma inhaler before I ride, but I huff and puff all ride long while no one else is. Does the very expensive medicine help? Mind sharing the name of said very expensive medicine???

[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

[plantluvver]

Put me in bike shorts, and I look AWFUL! Standing in my bedroom, think I look like an idiot.

YEAH, you look as idiotic as all cyclists, with a mishapen head, goofy looking clothes and playing on a child's toy!

Mary

[Bad JuJu]

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.

Me too, me too! Looking at myself in the full-length mirror in my bedroom, I could just scream--I look like a pink-and-black fire hydrant, fercryinoutloud. But once I'm on my bike, that image just disappears and it's all about the ride and the feeling--it doesn't even occur to me to think about how I look.

Hey, we're all out there cycling--that's what matters!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Sometimes I think that we have a moral obligation to wear stretchy lycra biking clothes, because if we didn't, our joy and excitment might burst out while we were riding and hit innocent passersby and motorists, possibly causing injury or accidents.
So stuff yourself into those shorts and go out with a clean conscience knowing you are merely protecting the safety of others.

[Luci]

Sometimes I think that we have a moral obligation to wear stretchy lycra biking clothes, because if we didn't, our joy and excitment might burst out while we were riding and hit innocent passersby and motorists, possibly causing injury or accidents.
So stuff yourself into those shorts and go out with a clean conscience knowing you are merely protecting the safety of others.

That's great!!!! I love the way you put that. Now that I'm getting back into biking, I have such a hard time seeing myself in my bike shorts . I was in such good shape a few years ago before I went back to school and those few years at my age make it exponentially harder to take it off.

On riding solo, I really enjoy it. I like riding with my DH too. Just variations on the theme.

I do hate riding in traffic and prefer a nice MTB ride, but had few concerns when I lived in Italy. I rode right in the middle with all of the cars there. As a cyclist, I was treated so much better there that I felt much more safe. Where I lived there weren't lanes painted on many of the roads so cars just drove in their own space bubble. As a result, people were very aware of their space and yours. They weren't just blindly following the guy in front of them. Then you compound that with Utah drivers and I really have to watch when I'm on the road.