So i went on a great training ride the other morning (before it got stinkin hot thankfully). It has been a little bit since i've been on a really decent ride. and i was biking around the city (around and around). i got to thinking. i was thinking about how cycling is like life. now i have been known to get all philosophical and stuff as i ride then write about it on this blog, so if you're so over reading about all that stuff i suggest you stop reading now. so yes cycling is like life. you see when you're on your bike you feel things, well at least i personally feel things. i feel more in touch with what i'm feeling and i think that comes from being hyper aware as to not get hit by cars or fall off the road or whatever, but yes i feel alot on a bike. and i think alot on my bike too. i get into a relaxed thinking state. so the other day i thought i would do a little experiment. i've recently come across a great saying that i've been trying to incorporate into my life more "when i focus on a problem, the problem increses. when i focus on finding a solution, the solution increases." great huh. i really like. so hills. i'm a wacko and really love hills. love going up them. i see a huge hill coming up and i start to smile. it's odd i know. but that's what happens. and i usually have no problem going up the hills. so the experiment. when i saw a hill in the distance, i made myself worry, i made myself question, i made the hill seem so incredibly huge and insurmountable in my head. i don't have to tell you how it turned out. it was hard. it was agonizing to go up. so at next equally big hill i let myself get the usual excited that i get when i see a hill. easy as pie going up. coincidence? i think not. embrace the hills. embrace. the. hills.
on a semi related note, i thought about embracing the weee. i know this sounds strange but it's good. promise. so going down hills (there are alot of hills on my training routes). you can go really slow and brake the whole way, or you can go really fast. really fast can be terrifying or it can be really fun. if you are heading down a hill at 45kph+ and all you are thinking about is what a horrible mess you would make if you crashed going this fast, then you are not embracing the weee (and chances are you are also really tense making a wipeout way more likely). So relax embrace the weee, i find it helpful to actually say "weee" as you are going down the hill. kindof like on a roller coaster but without the awkward safety restraints cutting of circulation or thoughts of who sat in that seat before you did and what they did while they were there.
cycling is not really comfortable. it can be downright uncomforatble, (just look at the seat). but so is life. it has moments of compleate bliss, and then moments where you think you might just die. and if you get through those moments where you think you might die, you've grown a little. and growing is good. and some of our best growing comes from places where we feel discomfort. i've done alot of growing on my bike (and not just my leg muscles, although they are quite impressive). in my time on my bike i get challenged i get uncomfortable, i learn about myself and where i think my limits are. a few years ago i hadn't even been near a bike in 8 years or so. who woulda thunk i'd be totally fine biking 100+km/day. and then there's the new people and new experiences factor. so i'm a shy wee person. i like to be at home with my cats, usually laying on the floor with them in the sun, i'm fine being alone, lots of "new" stresses me out a little (ok a lot). but it's good. the more i expose myself to the "new" the more social i realise i really am. i can carry on inteligent conversation in a group of people. amazing!
alright that's enough rambling about life and cycling.
wear your helmets! brains are cool!
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