(Extra credit if you can name that song)
Last Friday I walked out of the gym and looked at my little Honda CR-V. I remembered then that the fuel gage was below the E mark and I wondered if I'd have enough to get home. Later, after putting a mere $60 into the tank, I thought, "It is entirely, incredibly stupid for me to be driving this to and from the gym every day. I live a little over two miles away."
Walking, however, would cut into my work-out time without giving me the exercise benefit I get while at the gym. I do intensive cardio and weight training. Walkies are good, but not good enough. Even jogging would cut into the time and, besides, I loathe -- utterly despise -- jogging. It hurts. Jogging is bad for you. It is evil. Normal humans should not jog.
This weekend, however, I hit upon my solution:
My criteria were firm: it had to be comfortable, yet light and zippy. At the same time it had to be sturdy and well-made. So a mid-price, hybrid bicycle with a nice padded comfy saddle, ergo grips, well-designed shifting mechanism, lightweight frame, good quality derailleurs, front suspension is the thing for me.
The bike is perfect. I get the intensive cardio (16 minutes each way, total of 38 minutes and my normal cardio workout at the gym is about 40-50 minutes). I save the $$ from the gasoline, and I get to do something relatively environmentally friendly! Which, while it's not my prime motivator, is certainly a good benefit, yes?
Adding some panniers to hold groceries and I can cut the light shopping gasoline use out, as well.
So watch out for this fat-bottomed girl, cuz she's coming your way!
Ooh, I love that song! Good idea. I have a bike. My gym is a mile away. I could do this, yes!
We'll see.
P.S. Be careful riding if it's not light out. Get a bunch of reflector thingies, 'kay?
Be careful riding if it's not light out. Get a bunch of reflector thingies, 'kay?
:-) Thanks! Yes, I ride in the early pre-dawn hours so I also got a nice bright headlight and a flashy 7-LED tail light. Gonna get a side-view mirror thingie too. It was a bit nerve-wracking, even with no traffic at that hour, moving over to the left-turn lanes and all.
Betcha my butt and legs are gonna be crying by this evening.
Dick says: I like the fatter tire because I'm more into a comfortable, easy ride than a high speed, calorie burning exercise. That said, I'd think the higher resistance of fat tires would appeal to my friend "Bob"'s desire to work at riding.
"Bob" says: No, I like biking because it is fast, at least a LOT faster than on foot. I don't like wasting the energy on damping --- expending energy without the gratification of going a lot faster. Hard tires feel almost frictionless. Those fat balonies do not!
There you have the view from the bottom.
I thought "fat tire" was a brand of beer?
So you'd think someone named "Bob" would rather like that.
My criteria were firm
As soon your butt will be...
I'm thinking to start biking to work. But I'm not thinking very hard yet. Yay for exercise!