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piglet at 02:34pm on 05/07/2011
piglet at 02:34pm on 05/07/2011Why am I riding my bike to work? For *SO* many reasons. None of which is "to exercise" or "to get fit". If one more person compliments me on "getting in shape", I swear I will PUNCH THEM!! (Which is, of course, a bald-faced lie, since non-violent little ol' me ain't gonna be punching nobody, nohow, no matter the temptation.)
Why I started riding:
1. to get to work (and then to get back home again).
2. to save the planet.
3. to hang out by the mighty Hudson.
4. to speak Groaci... er, to use my body.
Why I continue riding:
5. it makes me high.
6. I don't have to carry anything -- the bike does all the work.
7. to expand my lungs; to breathe easily.
8. to leg press, whee!!
Reason 8 might legitimately fall under the rubric of "exercise", along with my pig iron. I am willing to go as far as "working out", but cannot go to the lengths of "exercise", given the lack of ... hm. Self discipline! That's it. The lack of self-discipline. Exercise is by its nature self-flagellating. Pushing the body, driving yourself towards your optimal, your boundaries, your maximal performance. 80% of your target heart rate, etc. blah blah baby fishcakes. Exercise is about metering, measuring, weighing, comparing -- excellence in performance. Or at least repetition of performance. Consistency.
I don't mind being misapprehended by strangers. When the woman from the third office down the hall runs into sweaty me changing into work clothes in the bathroom, and says, "Good for you! You're getting in shape!" I know she means well, and I smile and talk about how much fun I'm having.
When someone who has known me for 15 years and has been related to me for 5(? 7?) says "Oh, you're exercising!" and asks me how many times a week I'm commuting by bike, I do not smile. I do not talk about how much fun I'm having. I snap, "I've only been doing it for 2 weeks; it's a bit premature to talk about 'how often' I do it."
Why I started riding:
1. to get to work (and then to get back home again).
2. to save the planet.
3. to hang out by the mighty Hudson.
4. to speak Groaci... er, to use my body.
Why I continue riding:
5. it makes me high.
6. I don't have to carry anything -- the bike does all the work.
7. to expand my lungs; to breathe easily.
8. to leg press, whee!!
Reason 8 might legitimately fall under the rubric of "exercise", along with my pig iron. I am willing to go as far as "working out", but cannot go to the lengths of "exercise", given the lack of ... hm. Self discipline! That's it. The lack of self-discipline. Exercise is by its nature self-flagellating. Pushing the body, driving yourself towards your optimal, your boundaries, your maximal performance. 80% of your target heart rate, etc. blah blah baby fishcakes. Exercise is about metering, measuring, weighing, comparing -- excellence in performance. Or at least repetition of performance. Consistency.
I don't mind being misapprehended by strangers. When the woman from the third office down the hall runs into sweaty me changing into work clothes in the bathroom, and says, "Good for you! You're getting in shape!" I know she means well, and I smile and talk about how much fun I'm having.
When someone who has known me for 15 years and has been related to me for 5(? 7?) says "Oh, you're exercising!" and asks me how many times a week I'm commuting by bike, I do not smile. I do not talk about how much fun I'm having. I snap, "I've only been doing it for 2 weeks; it's a bit premature to talk about 'how often' I do it."
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