Here are some notes from biking to work for 13 days. I'm writing this partly for me to look back on and partly for any other bikers that might stumble onto this and be interested it someone else's experience.
- It feels like a lot longer than 13 days. (12½ days actually, I still have to bike home tonight.) I feel like I've been doing this for a long time
- It's a lot easier than when I started. Still a lot of work, but more manageable.
- I'm taking Memorial Parkway home instead of Waterworks. I like it much better.
- I still drive to work on Tuesdays & Thursdays, but every time I get in my car it feels like it's been about a couple of weeks since I drove.
- Even on a fairly mild morning, a water bottle full of ice cubes will melt in under 30 minutes.
- Most cars are pretty tolerant and courteous of bikes, but every once in a while there's some guy who thinks 6 inches is plenty of space to leave between us, even though there's an empty lane right next to him.
- Sometimes it's safer to take up a whole lane than to stay all the way to the right.
- For the first two weeks, my leg muscles weren't sore, stiff or anything. My lungs and heart couldn't keep enough to give them a real workout. The past two weeks, my heart & lungs have caught up enough allow my legs to start getting workout.
- I've lost about 10 pounds.
- I'm still making some progress on my times, but it has definitely started to slow. Here's a graph:
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7 comments:
Well, being a woman, the point that stands out most to me is: I lost about ten pounds.
?!?!?!
I definitely need some sort of bike with a three-child side car.
Yeah, I did Weight Watchers for a month a wile back and actually gained weight. This is working much better.
I don't know of a three child side car, but you could do a two-child cart and a one-child carrier seat. Then to carry your groceries, you could get a trailer. Talk about a workout!
Ha. And then we could all peddle happily back home on Shaw Road, where such conveniences as sidewalks do not exist. Then back our gravel drive. All of this having not really learned to ride a bike until my honeymoon (with less than romantic results).
Maybe I'll try Weight Watchers first.
The gravel road should be no problem, just get a mountain bike! If you an Ben both want to ride, you could get a tandem mountain bike.
You're not really supposed to bike on the sidewalk anyway, but I agree that I wouldn't feel comfortable biking on your road with kids. I say stick with the minivan.
I let out a huge snort of a laugh when I saw the fit and trim couple on the tandem bike and then pictured Ben and myself on it.
Yeah .. mini van and starvation. I think it's the way to go. :)
You SO did not do WW for a month. You barely lasted a week! And I still hate you for losing 10 pounds. I'm considering surgery for the next route.
Maybe not an entire month, but at least 2 weeks and closer to 3.
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