11/12/14. The post where I ride my bike (sort of).

11/12/14: winter has arrived. Or at least, as close to winter as I want to be.  It was too cold to walk this morning, but after my debauchery yesterday, I desperately needed some exercise.  My bicycle was still attached to the trainer downstairs, so I decided it was time to give it a try.  It has been long enough since I rode it that I had to pump up the tires.  I set myself a 20 minute limit and started pedaling. 

I learned several things on my ride:

1.  I can do it.  My foot didn't feel great pedaling, but it wasn't horrible, either.  The color was okay afterward and I didn't seem to do any major damage.

2.  I am really out of shape.  I had convinced myself that as soon as I was feeling better, I would be able to go right back to my old activities.  Not so.  Twenty minutes of pedaling, in a low gear with no incline in a climate-controlled environment, and I was beat.  My arms are sore, my core is sore, my legs are sore.  Which leads to...

3.  It will be awhile before I can go for a real ride.  I am going to have to go through a serious reconditioning period before I am up to riding outside in traffic and on hills.  And besides,

4.  I look terrible in bicycle shorts right now.  It's pretty much a given that everyone looks terrible in bicycle shorts, but this is worse. Much worse. For the sake of my vanity, the aesthetics of the neighborhood, and the well-being of the general public, I think I'd better stick with the trainer for awhile.

5.  While my health monitor often mistakes driving with the top down for cycling, it does not recognize riding on the trainer as cycling. Or as any other physical activity, for that matter.  In fact, it just seemed to be confused about why my heart rate was elevated.  Whether that is a statement about the speed of my pedaling, my current physical condition, or the sophistication of my health monitor, I'm not sure.

Looks like we're in for a cold spell at least though the weekend, so I think I will try to ride for the next few days.  After a full day at work and choir rehearsal, I had to turn up the stimulator a few tics, but all in all, I'd say the bike experiment was a success.