Pedal Power

Somewhere in May, I woke up one day to the realization that I’ve gained 10 pounds and and inch around the waist over the past year.  Most people that know me would say so what, I’m not really over weight.  Those that do know me know that I shouldn’t be gaining that weight and don’t really pay much attention to health and fitness.

I decided to buy a bike.  I was criticized by my parents (who were visiting at the time) and my wife because I spend a fair amount of cash at the time (although it really was not an expensive bike as far as bikes go).  I bought a GT Avalanche 2.0 Disc which, by the way, I’ve been very happy with.

I began to ride 5-10 mile rides around the area where I live, and started meeting with some coworkers near the office and riding into work.  Soon I was convinced to try a 14 mile ride from parker to work with several of my coworkers on the Systems Operations team.  (In fact at one point we had 5 of 8 guys on the team riding in together!)  I’ve added Shimano SPD peddles that “Cooter” (one of my coworkers) gave me and I’ve replaced the stock grips with Ergon GC2s.  Along the way I’ve added a few pieces of clothing and a pair of Shimano MTB shoes with clips and recently I decided to put more road worthy tires on the bike. 

In mid-September I rode in the Good Samaritan Hospital Bike Jamboree and complete 47 miles!  This was by far my longest single ride.  I’ve recently begun riding from downtown Denver to the Tech Center where I work which is ~20 miles each way.  Here is one of my maps.

I can’t say I’ve lost any weight (although I haven’t gained any either) or lost the inch around the waist, but I can without a doubt say that I’m healthier and in better shape.