This week, after a long hiatus, I re-kindled my love/hate relationship with my bike. To be more accurate, my a$$ has a love/hate relationship with my bike. Just sos we're clear, I don't exercise because I like it. In all honesty, I dislike it immensely. But I dislike high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes even more! So, I ride the bike. It's actually a very nice bike. A friend cleaned it up (you rock, Mike!), Tim has put on a comfortable seat*, and it's in really good shape.
My goal is to ride 4-5 times/week (I put a smiley face sticker on my calendar every day I ride). This week, I managed to get out 4 times, with today being the 3rd consecutive day I had ridden. By the time I pulled into our driveway (2:10; 1500 Calories; 23 miles later), my boom-boom had had it with my bike!
As I slid off the seat, I could not ignore the burning sensation in the seat of my padded pants! Tim just laughs and says, "You was ridin' today!" The sense of accomplishment I felt at conquering this route was dulled by my aching boom-boom!
Why does exercise have to hurt? It sure doesn't hurt when I'm sitting in front of the TV, feet up, with a big helping of B&J's ice cream. That feels remarkably good! Life is just full of paradoxes -- exercise, which hurts, is good for you; not exercising, which is bad for you, feels so good!
If I'm being totally honest, cycling does have its upside. It's exhilirating to put your head down, pull your elbows in, shift gears, and get your rhythm as you enjoy the 'down' after a long, hard 'up'. There's so much comraderie among cyclists. Strangers will change your flat tire, stay with you if you can't keep up and, literally, push you up a hill.
Fortunately, my boom-boom doesn't have a very long memory and my bike is very forgiving, so by tomorrow morning the feud between the two will be long forgotten. And more importantly, I've got 500 more smiley face stickers!
*No matter how ergonomic the seat, after a long ride, your boom-boom will be sore.
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