Joe Average Gets Fit

Two weekends ago, an unexpected revelation struck me. I’ll be participating in a large cycling event next month, and decided to focus that Saturday on distance riding. I thought that perhaps if I pushed myself I might be able to ride 30 miles (48 km). I prepped and started pedaling. I enjoyed the morning, and the miles peeled by. After twenty-something miles, I found that I really felt good still. It seemed odd, as I should have been ready to call it quits. (Or so the little voice in my head was saying.)

I was at the bottom of the valley, but I noticed that I was within riding distance of a favorite canyon, and struck out for it. I rode up the canyon and zoomed back down to meet family for lunch at the bottom of the canyon. I put the trike on the car rack and we went home. In all, I cycled 40 miles (64 km). I was tired, of course, but far from being “wiped out”.

Compare that to last year, which I mention on the About Page. Last October I rode 50 miles (80 km) in a cycling event. This was a big accomplishment for me, considering I was obese. The ride and some extenuating circumstances really hit me hard physically and psychologically. I was physically spent around 42 miles (68 km), and the last miles were a grinding crawl in low gear, my mind not really caring about anything but getting back to the motel so I could get off the stupid machine. If my hotel wasn’t also the finish line, I would not have cared about the finish line; not one bit. Afterwards, I recovered physically quick enough, but I hung my trike on its place in the garage and didn’t touch it again. Mentally I was beaten. There the trike hung until after I decided to re-engineer my body, mind, and soul… setting myself on a new path.

That was last year. The startling revelation that happened two weeks ago, at that twenty-something mile point, was the following. I was still cycling according to last year’s thinking. I had assumed that if I pushed myself, stretched myself to the limit I might be able to ride 30 miles. I didn’t understand that my improved overall fitness would so dramatically increase my abilities. Where I expected to turn around and commence a slow grind home was in fact a place where I said, “Hey, let’s ride up a mountain!”… and did so.

Yesterday I put this to the test. Until now I envisioned 50 miles to be a barrier. I was determined to discover whether I could best that personal record. In the end I did just fine. I ran out of water at about 46 miles (74 km), but was determined to grind those last four miles out. In the end, I rode 51.55 miles (82.96 km) in 3h50′47″. Not a world record, but something that I would not have believed until I experienced it. I showered, slept for three hours, and have bounced back just fine.

As we deliberately re-engineer our lives, we’ll not know our expanded capabilities until we push our boundaries. At times we’ll be astonished to see how far our limits have ballooned. These unexpected bonus events will come along only if you’re willing to seize the opportunities to test your reach. I enjoyed this moment of personal triumph, and moved onto the next phase.

I hope you all will relish your moments of breakthrough, both big and small, and keep moving. Best wishes!

Status: 60 pounds (27 kg) lighter.