Cycling Achievements

This year I started cycling in February for these reasons:

1. I wanted to alleviate various aches and pains in my knees by strengthening them.
2. I wanted to do a long ride or two.
3. I wanted to feel more healthy.
4. I wanted to commute to work by bike.

So far, here are the results of these goals:

1. My knees gained strength within about a month. Little to no knee pain now.
2. I have already ridden one century ride, and look forward to the Tour des Lacs later this month. The initial goal was to do the Seattle to Portland ride, but my riding partner who lives in another state came into some conflicts, so...based on us both being only partially committed to the ride anyway...we dropped out. BUT the Tour des Lacs starts right here in Spokane, and is a better fit for everyone involved. (Because a big ride definitely involves more very strong people -namely our wives- than just the riders themselves...on more than just the day of the ride!)
3. Coming out of the winter holidays I was easily holding 215 pounds, and I just felt gross. I impulsively ate whatever was presented, and I snacked hourly...it seemed. When I first began riding I gained a greater appetite, but soon I realized that I would not fully benefit from the early morning rides unless I gained control of my eating habits. I stopped negating the workout benefit, and within a couple of months, I was down to 200 pounds. That's when we began summer gardening and home projects, and my cycling cut back a bit, but I continued to drop to 190 pounds, and have hovered between 190 and 195 all summer.
Now I'm ramping back up for the next big ride. I'm again having to cut back those eating impulses, and I'm putting more time in the saddle. I love it. It takes some planning to put in longer rides, but I feel amazing during and after the rides.
4. Here's my commute history: In April I commuted 1 day. In May-11 days; June-13 days; and July-10 days. This was fairly good success, but I couldn't manage to ride a full week straight. BUT in AUGUST, I commuted by bike every day I worked! (I just looked at the record, and it's amazing to me that I only worked 16 days in August.) I've had occasional mechanical problems on my bikes, but the key was having multiple bikes (see honey, I do need them all!). September is shaping up pretty well also.

One final benefit of cycling: When I flex my quads, my kneecap and interior quad muscle make a crease as they fight for space, which looks really cool!

Oh yeah, there has been one con from all this: I've had to purchase more cycling clothing to cut down on laundering. (But maybe that's not a con!)