Daily ride

I have been rising daily at 5:30, and riding an eight to ten mile loop near our house. The air is clear, and the sunrise is always breathtaking. Yeah, it's flippin' cold out there, but with proper gear, it's nothing.

Advice: Cold weather riding gear
Because the air is chilled and, at times, damp, I've been hitting the road in a pair of long, joggers pants, a long sleeved wicking shirt, an overshirt and a lightweight waterproof pullover. I also wear a pair of light ski glove liners, because they keep the cold off, yet allow for breathability.

What the heck is "wicking"?
Wicking fabric is designed to "wick away" moisture from the body, thus keeping you warmer in cool weather, and cooler in warm weather. It's amazing. There are several major brands who make clothes designed for wicking, the most notable being Under Armor.

I did it.

Trusty credit card in hand, I went to Tri-Sports Bike Shop, and invested in a Trek 4300. It's one step up from the base model, and it's beautiful. All shiny and new. And FAST.

As soon as I got the bike home (haven't named it yet) I took it for a spin on my usual 5-mile walking route. I just walked the circuit yesterday and it took me an hour and a half.

On my bike, it took less than 20 minutes.

I LOVE THIS! Fast exercise, and it's FUN! FUN, I TELL YOU!!!

Doing this for real...

Showering has always been a non-visaul activity for me. I made a pact with myself when I'd started pushing out the pups that I would keep off my own back about how my body had changed. That was all well and good, but twelve years, three kids and 15 extra pounds later, I accidentally made the mistake of catching a glimpse of my corpulent self in the bathroom mirror.

Gah.

Where had my body gone? My beautiful body with it's toned, golden flesh? And who'd replaced it with this sagging lump of congealed pudding?

I began dieting. It worked reasonably well; I was mostly miserable, but I kept telling myself that it was the only way to losing the weight I'd packed on. Shedding a few pounds wasn't a problem... however, I quickly noticed that the reason I didn't like my naked self (which I'd now taken the time grossly overexamine and criticize) was mainly due to large, flabby areas doctors called, "muscles."

Apparently, you need to "exercise" to raise your "metabolism" (which increases weight loss) but also to "gain musculature." And muscles are, when well-groomed, apparently really pretty.

So I've decided to start exercising. For whatever reason, these badasses on mountain bikes intrigue me. I want to be out there, in nature, riding around.

I'm doing it. I'm getting a bike. I'm going to lose weight. I'm going to be a badass. A muscular badass at that.