I always tell people that riding a bike gives you a freedom like no other! I've had a bike since I learned to ride at age 5, and I have always loved riding. It was my ride to school, friends' houses, parks, work, etc... In college it was my ride to class, work, and later for exercise and competition.
This weekend my husband Brad and I had the joy of riding with new friends, both on mountain bike trails and on the road.
On Saturday we met up with a new friend and his 14 yr old son on a bmx bike to ride the trails. He was excited... until he hit that first hill and decided that was tough and he wanted to walk up the hills. It was fun to be able to encourage him to keep going and that if we went up....we'd get to go down next! Brad found places to jump to give him a 'reward' for all his hard work on the uphills!
We made the 6.8 mile loop and the teenager was very glad to have a car to sit in with air conditioning, but I also could tell he was super proud of his accomplishment!
Today we hit the roads with another 2 new friends who just bought hybrid bikes. They have been doing awesome and had worked up to riding 20 miles, but they said they hadn't ridden on hills much yet so we invited them up here to ride with us. We started out in the neighborhood with the smaller hills and then headed out onto the main roads with the big hills. They both did awesome and again we were able to help our friends realize they can do it "one step/stroke at a time."
So, hopefully a few more friends were able to experience the freedom of a bike this weekend.
If it's been awhile and you've forgotten what it feels like to ride....dust off the bike and ride around the neighborhood!!!! One stroke at a time, the freedom is yours to be had!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
One word...one step...one stroke
I have been thinking about this idea of "ONE STEP AT A TIME" for awhile now whenever I think about fitness and wellness.
My husband and I work out most everyday and our friends and family are aware of this and at times poke fun at how often we are at the gym, riding, running, training for a charity ride or triathlon, etc, but what they don't know or think, is it is an effort on our part to do this, just like it is for EVERYBODY!!
There are many days we would rather just go home after work, or on weekends sleep in and not work out, but we understand how important it is and so we push each other, and encourage others to take that first step.
Today was one of those days! My husband and I have both been fighting some kind of cold the last few days, but the weather was absolutely gorgeous this weekend and it would have been a shame NOT to go ride our bikes.
We headed to the trails for ~20miles of mountain biking on Sat, and waited to do a road ride until today when it would be a bit warmer.
I felt AWESOME on the ride on Saturday! For the first time I have my confidence back on the mountain bike. I had lost all confidence in my riding the last 12 years since I had done VERY LITTLE riding on technical trails once I moved states. I was 2nd guessing my abilities all over the trail, but FINALLY I was able to ride hard with confidence, so I was feeling strong yesterday.
Well, this morning I wasn't so full of energy, but the day was too beautiful to pass up so we headed out after lunch. By about mile 5, I was not feeling so great. The wind was BRUTAL and it felt like it was pushing me backwards. I kept pushing since we would turn at mile 10 and head toward the National Forest so I thought the wind would get better and I would be warmed up. Well, there were times the wind was blocked, but for the most part I just had to dig deep and keep going!! My legs were hurting and I wanted to quit and hitch hike home, but that was not an option. We made it back to the house before my muscles decided to cramp so all in all it was a successful ride.
We had dedicated our ride to another young LIVESTRONG supporter who just lost her battle to ovarian cancer, so as bad as my legs were feeling, it was nothing compared to what she went through in her fight and what her family is going through with her loss!
We ride for family members we have lost, and we ride for those who cannot! We believe that because we CAN LIVESTRONG, WE MUST!!!
So as long as we are able we will continue to move...one step at a time and help as many people along the way that we can.
If you would like to sponsor our efforts, or donate to LIVESTRONG, EVERY DOLLAR is appreciated and 100% directly helps Empower those affected by cancer! 100% Tax deductible!
My husband and I work out most everyday and our friends and family are aware of this and at times poke fun at how often we are at the gym, riding, running, training for a charity ride or triathlon, etc, but what they don't know or think, is it is an effort on our part to do this, just like it is for EVERYBODY!!
There are many days we would rather just go home after work, or on weekends sleep in and not work out, but we understand how important it is and so we push each other, and encourage others to take that first step.
Today was one of those days! My husband and I have both been fighting some kind of cold the last few days, but the weather was absolutely gorgeous this weekend and it would have been a shame NOT to go ride our bikes.
We headed to the trails for ~20miles of mountain biking on Sat, and waited to do a road ride until today when it would be a bit warmer.
I felt AWESOME on the ride on Saturday! For the first time I have my confidence back on the mountain bike. I had lost all confidence in my riding the last 12 years since I had done VERY LITTLE riding on technical trails once I moved states. I was 2nd guessing my abilities all over the trail, but FINALLY I was able to ride hard with confidence, so I was feeling strong yesterday.
Well, this morning I wasn't so full of energy, but the day was too beautiful to pass up so we headed out after lunch. By about mile 5, I was not feeling so great. The wind was BRUTAL and it felt like it was pushing me backwards. I kept pushing since we would turn at mile 10 and head toward the National Forest so I thought the wind would get better and I would be warmed up. Well, there were times the wind was blocked, but for the most part I just had to dig deep and keep going!! My legs were hurting and I wanted to quit and hitch hike home, but that was not an option. We made it back to the house before my muscles decided to cramp so all in all it was a successful ride.
We had dedicated our ride to another young LIVESTRONG supporter who just lost her battle to ovarian cancer, so as bad as my legs were feeling, it was nothing compared to what she went through in her fight and what her family is going through with her loss!
We ride for family members we have lost, and we ride for those who cannot! We believe that because we CAN LIVESTRONG, WE MUST!!!
So as long as we are able we will continue to move...one step at a time and help as many people along the way that we can.
If you would like to sponsor our efforts, or donate to LIVESTRONG, EVERY DOLLAR is appreciated and 100% directly helps Empower those affected by cancer! 100% Tax deductible!
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