After I posted about giving ourselves permission to not be on the bike for two weeks, I have been taking advantage of being too busy to ride my bike for that purpose. It’s been wonderful, really. I don’t feel anxiety about not riding my bike because I’m getting other important things accomplished as well – like cleaning the house, paying bills, grocery shopping, shuttling the kids places, leading my daughter’s Girl Scout troop meeting and a three-day business trip to Orlando. But I do miss it. It being riding my bike.
The weekend after I posted, I met up with five guys from Philly Bike Club (BCP) for a greasy-spoon breakfast run out to Skippack. It was a lesson in proper layering – while I did good with layering my base, jersey, armwarmers and woolly (with my windbreaker stuffed in my back pocket), I opted for thermal tights. The tights got very warm once we were done with breakfast and the temps were in the mid-60s. The lesson being if you are going to overpack bring your own backpack and next time opt for capris instead of thermal tights. 😀 55miles with 3800’+ of gain means breakfast was well-deserved.
This past weekend my girl friend and I decided to get brunch at Royal Tavern in South Philadelphia. I drove to the art museum district where we met up and then we biked over. I can say an easy three miles each way was as delicious as breakfast. Urban riding is decidedly different from my usual weekend rides – and it’s easier to slip into a mode of rolling stops. Bike lanes make you feel safer than sharrows. And assholes in pickup trucks honking at you are more prevelant. Fortunately I am a fan of being kind to drivers who are not as progressive.
This morning I was contemplating my bike commute. My commuter friend and I were talking about how much routine plays into motivation to ride. If it’s your routine to get up and ride your bike to work every day, it’s less of an issue to simply get out of bed even though it’s dark and cold. When you are sporatic and occassional, it’s more difficult because you don’t have the momentum of routine behind you. To make bike commuting permanent, I would need to fundamentally alter my existing routine. I’m not sure that’s possible right now, no matter how much I’d like it to change. My husband travels for work, the kids are still school-age and I feel strongly that being there for them in the morning is a small way to show them their importance in my life. I’m hoping that will pay off as they get older.
Also, I haven’t been running like I should be. The Lemon Run is in 3 weeks and I’ve been out twice for no more than one mile. I need to focus my time to running or this 5k will eat me alive.
So this post isn’t so much about cycling as enjoying the time off and focusing on other things that are also important for a bit. I’m looking forward to next week, when I will have time to bike commute again. Next weekend is the Philly Bike Expo as well, which I will be riding to with my BCP friends and then volunteering at their booth Sunday morning. Come by and say hi!
Until then, see you on the road.
wife. mother. awesome girl. 
sometimes a break is nice! I’ve been fighting the urge to slow down but after yesterday I think I might listen better.
I’m on a forced slow down but it’s not terrible. It has helped me accept that it’s OK to not go out every single day. I won’t lose my groove too much and the desire to ride will still be there.
I think that’s what keeps most people riding a boring trainer all winter – the fear of having to rebuild next spring. But we need to approach rest and recovery with the same gusto that we approach training.
Thanks for stopping by and following my blog! I’ve been resting for too long, it’s time for me to get on that trainer! But I agree that rest is important as well, so I haven’t been too hard on myself 🙂