Enjoy The Ride



Cardio, blasted devil cardio.

I like lifting. Lifting is my favorite. It has come to my attention that despite my desires to lift and only lift, I need to incorporate some cardio into my life. I can run, its not fast and it sure is not pretty but I don't mind it. I started some mild running a few years ago, with the Couch 2 5k app (which I highly recommend) I have to be honest with you, while I am capable of running more than most people I know...I struggle to do it. The idea of more cardio has been on my mind a lot lately. I have a little bit of muscle, I'm Scottish so I'm pretty bulky by genetics and I am able to build muscle--but I'm also 180lbs.

All of my fantasies and grand dreams of cardio were kicked into hyper drive 2 weeks ago when I blew the motor on my Jetta TDI, unbeknownst to me this is a difficult and expensive motor to find. We have a great public transportation system here in Eugene! You can get anywhere in town for a couple of bucks, the buses are air conditioned and they run in certain areas from 5:30 am to midnight. The key word here is "public transportation" in conjunction with this great system comes a gang of homeless men that ride constantly for said air conditioning. Maybe it is just me but without fail I will be on an empty bus and the creepiest guy ever will sit right next to me and attempt to propose, or crack a smile which exposes his implant grade vampire teeth... if he has teeth at all. No matter how great of a system the city has for public transportation--It can scare even hardened criminals.

Along with a "great" bus system we also have extensive bike paths throughout Eugene & Springfield, so I decided to commit to commuting by bike for the remainder of the summer. I have a cruiser, not ideal for speed but it tops the list for comfort which is great for newbies. Big seat for my not yet squat booty, a couple of gears so a slight incline doesn't have me walking up hills? This is do able.

Most places I need to go are 8 miles away, so I'm automatically putting in 16 miles round trip! I am a quitter, I like to quit at rep 9, literally and figuratively in all areas of my life. I cant tell you how many times i got within 10% of my goal and quit. This is not my greatest quality. Riding my bike doesn't give me the option to quit. If I am 3 miles from home and feel like I am dying I have no choice. My first week alone I put in 100 miles! ONE HUNDRED MILES?! Some days just going to an appointment and running errands I am forced to burn a couple thousand calories! Generally it is not that much but even one busy day by bike and I've almost reached my cardio goal for the entire week!

Now, I am not suggesting you add 5 gallons of oil too many and blow the motor on your car (Yes, that's what really happened) or ride your fixie in the snow like a true hipster, but imagine using your body to commute one day a week? You have places to go, you can either burn your gas or burn your ass! Despite how it may seem, riding my bike is highly enjoyable. I can burn calories while sitting on my butt listening to music. I get to travel away from the cars and traffic that create so much American stress. I have seen some really amazing graffiti, flowers blooming, beavers swimming, turtles, nasty opossums. I have a beautiful freckled tan, and Im easily getting lean. We want everything to come quickly. We want all the gains-now. We want to lose 10 lbs-now. We want to run to the store-now. Traveling by bike makes running errands take just a little bit longer, but if offers you the option to slow down and enjoy the scenery. Getting fit is a journey and there is no finish line. I want to enjoy the ride.

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