Who would've thought?

I've been what you'd call a "big guy" for about 20 years. I was a stick-thin kid until around 5th or 6th grade, then I just added a little weight here and there, never really taking any off. I don't think I ever actually got to the 300 mark that I know of, but when I went to the doctor 4 months after my 30th birthday, I weighed in at around 290.


It only slightly bothered me. I've always been a happy-go-lucky kind of guy. I never really killed myself about my weight. It didn't depress me. As far as I was concerned, I had a lot of other qualities that I liked about myself just fine, so I didn't let the weight get me down. Sure, I didn't necessarily enjoy being the fat guy, but all in all, I have a pretty sweet life, so who am I to complain? Over the past six years, Kimberly would make me go out and walk with her occasionally (I mean occasionally, like 2-3 times a year). It would be torture. I didn't want to do it, and I was miserable the whole time.


About a month ago, something just kind of clicked. I dont' know what it was. It was a Sunday morning, and Kimberly had "dragged me" out to the park under the guise of "We'll walk a little bit, then let Cohen play on the playground". Well, far be it from me to deny Cohen his precious swing time. I reluctantly agreed.


About 3/4 of the way through the 3 mile walk was when I noticed it...Hey, this is kind of killing me....but I kind of don't mind it. I think I could do this more often. I mentioned to Kimberly that I think I could be down for doing this at least once if not twice a week, and she was ecstatic.


Meanwhile, my buddy Nate had taken up biking. Actually, quite a few of my friends had cioncidentally taken up biking all around the same time. I had tried it a few years back, but I didn't really enjoy it all that much, so my bike had been collecting dust (more specifically, pollen and spiders) for about 6 years. I was content to keep walking with Kimberly.


A couple of weeks went by, and I was enjoying (well, not hating) the walking. Our jogging stroller has an iPod dock, so we would listen to a little inspirational music (BuckCherry, Squad Five-O, The Darkness) and do it a couple of times a week. At the end, I'd be drenched in sweat, but I felt good about it nonetheless. I couldn't help but think, though...if I did this on my bike, I could cover a lot more ground and do it faster.


One Saturday afternoon, hockey was cancelled because of rain that never actually came, so I had my chance. I pulled the bike off the wall, washed it off (with a hose from a distance....you know...the spiders), pumped up the tires and threw it in the back of my car. Off to Tribble Mill park I went.


Holy crap it was miserable.


I did the same 3 mile path Kimberly and I walk. It is pretty hilly. Some people don't mind the hills because - you know - every hill you go up, you also get to go down. I'm not one of those people. I finished the trail in about 22 minutes (it takes us about 40-45 to walk), and when I dismounted the bike, I almost fell down because my legs were absolutely killing me. Kimberly and I went the next morning and walked that same trail again, and I told her that I may not be able to keep up because my legs were so sore from the previous day's ride. As it turns out, I was able to keep up. I realized that while I was pretty sore, it didn't seem to bother me as much as I expected it to. I decided to go try it again on the bike the next chance I got.

That chance was the following Saturday afternoon. Once again, I loaded up the bike and headed out to the park. This time I finished in around 15 minutes. My legs still hurt, but it was slightly more bearable this time. I was actually getting a little excited about the prospect of riding more often.

My friend Nate is quite up to speed on all the local parks and trails, and he knows all the best places to ride. He mentioned the Ivy Creek Greenway, which is less than a half mile from where I work. I decided to go ride it Tuesday after work. It was pretty good...being the seasoned rider I was (you know...two 3 mile rides under my belt), I was able to knock it out pretty quick. I went home having ridden about 4 miles feeling pretty satisfied with myself.

Two days later, on Thursday, I went to the same trail after work. I went about 5 and a half miles that day. Other than heading straight from there to band practice, only to get laughed at for being soaked with sweat, it was a pretty good experience. Every time I rode, I covered just a little more ground than the previous time, and I was feeling pretty good about it.

I hadn't planned on riding Friday. Kimberly and I had an end-of-the-year teacher party to attend that night, so timing was going to be a little tight. I started out the door to head home, and I just couldn't do it...I had to do at least something. I went with Nate over to Rock Springs park and put in a quick three miles before heading home.

All in all, I was drastically improving every time I rode. This past Saturday, in a twist of fate, my entire day's schedule opened up at the last minute. Jackpot! I decided to test out my endurance and see how much I could do. I headed out to the Suwanee Creek Greenway. Where I parked was right in the middle of the trail, with about 2.5 miles on either side. I started left. I rode the 2.5 miles to the end and back....okay, that's 5 miles. When I got back, I decided to go right. I went about a mile going that way and came back. This brings my total to 7 miles. As usual, I was pretty sore and pretty tired, but I felt good about it. I thought to myself, I'll head toward home and stop at Rock Springs park. Maybe I'll do 3 miles there to bring it to an even ten for the day.

Rock Springs park has a 1/3 mile track, so it's easy to ride in increments, knowing exactly how far you've gone. I finished the first mile. Then I finished the second mile. Right around the time I was wrapping up the third mile, I thought, I think I can do a little more. So I just kept going around the track. 4 miles. 5 miles. I just kept going. By the time I stopped, I had ridden 7 miles on the track. This brought my total to 14 miles. In one day. This may not mean a lot to you, or to someone who rides regularly, but it's absolutely huge for me. I can't remember the last time I felt so good about something I had accomplished!

Sunday, after doing some around-the-house stuff we needed to knock out, Kimberly and I took Cohen to the park and walked again. It felt great. Despite having ridden 14 miles the previous day, my legs could not only handle the brisk walk but also the occasional bursts of jogging up hills. Can this actually be happening? Am I exercising? Am I making progress?

I had decided not to ride on Sunday. After getting back from the park, we jumped in the pool for a while. My plan was to climb out of the pool and watch the Braves game a little after 1:00. By 1:45, I could stand it...I had to go back to the park and ride some more. Rock Springs it was. After 9 laps around the track (3 miles), I decided to call it a day. I got back in the car and made it almost to the park gate before turning back around. I knew I had more in me than that. I went back to the track and strapped on my skates (the inlines I use for hockey). I had no idea what to expect. Maybe I'd do a lap or two and see how it went. I had finally had my fill after 6 laps. That was 3 miles on a bike and 2 miles on skates.

I couldn't believe how good I was feeling about all this! I went to bed Sunday night excited about my upcoming ride today after work. I planned on going back to Rock Springs (my new favorite place) and log about 7 more miles or so. The thought had crossed my mind that I could maybe do it before work, since I didn't have to take Cohen to Snellville this morning. However, in my old age lately, fully waking up has been harder and harder every day.

When I woke up this morning, I was just as groggy as I usually am. As Kimberly left for work, I decided that I should just go out and try it. Worst-case-scenario, if I didn't like it, I'd just go back after work, as was my original plan anyway. I pulled into the park, still rubbing my eyes and trying to fully wake myself up. Despite my muddled head, I climbed on my bike, put the iPod on GNR's Appetite for Destruction, and started pedaling. By the end of mile 1, my eyes were wide, my vision was clear, and I was fully awake. My legs hurt, but that hadn't stopped me yet, so I wasn't going to let it get to me today, either.

45 minutes later I was at the shop, changing out of my sweat-drenched clothes and cleaning up for work, having ridden 7 miles.

Just in case you haven't caught the theme here...I feel great! The fact that I would be exercising in and of itself is almost foreign to me, but the fact that I'm exercising and enjoying it...well, that's just ridiculous! I really think I'm starting to become addicted to riding my bike. Even having done the 7 miles this morning, I can't wait until work is over, so I can to at least seven more before I go home. Maybe I'll do ten, just to top Saturday!

I have no idea how much weight, if any, I have lost. Though I haven't changed my diet drastically, I have started eating more sensible portions. Also, I have cut out about 90 percent of my soda intake and replaced it with water. Instead of grabbing a handful of chips before going to bed, I have been drinking a glass of V8 splash (you know...the juice that has a complete serving of fruits and vegetables in each glass).

Point of it all is that it only took two weeks to get comfortable with a signifantly more active lifestyle.

I'm pretty happy about it.