By-Tor.com

Thanks Zep! I bought a Specialized Road Bike.. with gas prices I wanted to start riding more and leave the truck at home.

I have some pictures of it I posted on facebook.. it rides so nice.. I am at the point I don?t even like getting in the truck..

However, truth be told this has been a bit of a journey for me.. last thanksgiving I had to go to Redimed (after hours clinic) to have a minor procedure done.. stepped on a scale and had an OMG moment. I had been looking in the mirror and really hated the person who was looking back at me. So with that, I rededicated myself to the gym 6 days a week.. 1 hour of cardio a day plus I am weight training.. I was getting stronger but in December the smokes were holding me back so I set them aside too. Now I am doing over 5 miles a day on an elliptical and another 10 miles on a stationary bike, I bench press 245 and can run a mile in less than 8 minutes.. I have lost almost 50 pounds since Thanksgiving and am completely smoke free with no desire to go back.

I was looking at different ways to mix up my cardio routine and I thought what better way than to ride a bicycle.. save some money, get some great exercise. Plus maybe some big adventures.. so I started looking at roadbikes, and wow are they expensive.. I have $1200 invested in mine.. and while it?s not entry level it?s not top of the line either.. You can spend some money on a bike let me tell you.. I saw bikes for $8000 at the bike shop.. mine has an aluminum frame, carbon fork and it is so light, around 16 pounds.. It is a dream to ride.. I am absolutely hooked on cycling.

So right now I am just knocking down goals I have set for myself. 4 months ago commuting to work and the gym 20 miles a day on a bike seemed impossible, now it?s my routine. My girlfriend lives 10 miles from me.. never thought I would ride a bike that far either.. I have a 25 mile ride this weekend.. this summer there is a museum in Kalamazoo Michigan which is 97 miles away.. I plan on making the trip on my bike.. and this fall there is a 100 mile ride through the hills of southern Indiana. I have heard it is very grueling but it?s a goal that is going to get knocked down..

I love adventure so I am thinking that maybe next summer I am going to take 30 days off work, maybe more.. still working on the details but I would like to get on a bus with my bike and go to Rapid City SD and from there ride the bike to the Pacific Northwest area.. I love it out there and have been wanting to go back and who knows I may stay.. I have family in the Seattle area. Anyway its roughly 1346 miles one way and it is not lost on me how rugged that terrain will be. I figure a year of hard work and conditioning in the gym and on the bike, I could manage 200 miles a day. I thought about camping along the way but after 200 miles on a bike, a warm bed and hot shower would be welcome. There are a lot of details to work out but this is a very doable goal. I am thinking July 2012 tentatively. I will make a determination as to where I am at physically next spring .. I am also looking for somebody to make the ride with me.. At some point I am going to start a blog and I may do this as a charity ride.

I will keep you all posted with my progress.

You're livin' my dream!

Well, one of them...

Well, get to conditioning and you can meet me in South Dakota next summer!

I think I found the weight you lost....

Would your gf be intersted in dping the ride with you perhaps or do you have a guy friend in mind. I could make a smartalec statement about Elfie and you...hehehe

no she likes to ride the paths around here with me, but has no interest in a long ride.. No offense to anybody but you cannot take off across the country on a Walmart Bike and she does not want to plunk down the money for a good bike..

Neil has a bike good enough for the trip...

Sounds like a lot of fun. I used to cycle a lot in my teens (20k a day, very up and down terrain, took abou 45min - 1 hr) I want to get back into it . I could use a good bike though. Good stuff getting in shape, personally I can't run, too painful, but cudos there too. A mile is about my threshold before the shoulder starts trying to down me like a kick in the nads.

Holy hell Soup.......go buddy go!!!!!!!

My dog pulls my bike...its kinda scarey sometimes.

Xanadu wrote:My dog pulls my bike...its kinda scarey sometimes.

So your bike has an Alpo motor????

Jelly bean gun?

Sir Myghin wrote:Sounds like a lot of fun. I used to cycle a lot in my teens (20k a day, very up and down terrain, took abou 45min - 1 hr) I want to get back into it . I could use a good bike though. Good stuff getting in shape, personally I can't run, too painful, but cudos there too. A mile is about my threshold before the shoulder starts trying to down me like a kick in the nads.

Yeah.. I am 43 and life has taken it's toll on my joints and knees. so running on pavement is not ideal.. I find if you run on trails versus pavement its a little easier on the joints, but still painful at times.thats the good thing with cycling though.. you can get the same cardio with no pressure on the knees plus you can spread out your distance so there is more opportunity to explore.. I have also found if you go on an asprin regimen.. I take 2 bayer prior to doing my cardio.. I breathe easier and everything seems to flow a little better.. I also have been running on an elliptical.. gives you a great cardio workout without the pounding on the joints, plus it increases my stamina on the bike... Got 50 miles in on the bike this weekend!!!

and this just in, for the single guys... an added benefit.. at least in this area.. there are a bunch of great looking women out on the trails.. much better selection than in the bars on a Saturday night... I went out for the first time in quite a while a few weekends ago.. apparently the bar is not my scene anymore..

My right shoulder, has what I figure is a pinched nerve, not a joint problem, but when jarred too much the pain is tremendous, right under the trap. The same shoulder is also hyper-migratory, or so I think, judging by some events with seated shoulder press and sleeping where it feels like it pops out some. Never injured it myself though.. only injury it sustained was dislocation during birth. Can't place the whys, but they must of done something wrong putting it back...
I like erg/rowing machines personally. They are nice.

Funny thing, Soups, is that when I run on the trails around here, all I find is cougar and bear scat! That stuff ain't too good looking!

Guess I have to move to a less rural area when the kids are grown!