Perhaps the biggest blessing to come from the changes I’ve made has been the world of activity that has opened up to me.  It’s possible to be active at any size (and kudos to people of all shapes and sizes who get out and get off their butts).  For me, I’d gotten to a size where it was simply difficult to be active.  I wasn’t comfortable or confident riding a bike.  Regardless of what I was doing, I quickly became tired, winded or just simply didn’t have the strength to continue lugging my body around.  Things like hiking weren’t much of an option unless I didn’t mind be left behind at around a tenth of a mile into the hike.  Any elevation gains sent me into “exercise induced asthma attacks”.

Photo: My “new” 2011 Cannondale Quick 3 that I traded for on Craigslist.

The great news is that the same way poor habits have an exponential snowball effect…  so do good habits!  I’m absolutely stunned by how quickly my body responded to regular exercise.  Early on it was hard.  As it got easier, I’d step up my workout programs in order to increasingly push myself and keep my body responding and changing.  I grew to love the gym and working out (took awhile) and actually started to see that as fun.  My balance and coordination improved.    I started to be able to go upstairs without gasping for air.  I started to run.   But even better than that, suddenly more fun stuff opened up to me.  I started to feel stable on a bike.  My favorite thing right now is biking.  LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I’ve joined a hiking club.  The last time I was in snow, instead of feeling unsteady and afraid of falling, I *played*.

When I first bought my bike about 4 years ago with the intention of using it to get fit, I had difficulty getting on and off.  I wasn’t comfortable.  I felt unstable and once I got going, I was barely able to ride a mile.  2 weeks ago, I completed a 50 mile ride.  Cardio and leg wise, I could have gone 100.  My butt said 50 was plenty.

My point is… fitness is fun.  Living life is fun.  I can’t wait to explore the next new (to me) thing.

Photo: Me (left) Biking the Centennial trail with Mari-Ann (right), a PhD candidate from Denmark who is working on her research project at the company where I work.