Cycling really takes you places, the greatest of which is a place to think. The rhythm of breath and legs create a different mental setting. (I like to think of it as an action meditation) where problems float in, are looked at, turned upside down, and maybe even turned inside out. At the end of the ride, if the problem doesn’t have resolution, it certainly appears more manageable than before.
A recurring idea I’ve had over the years, oddly enough while riding, is how cycling has shaped how I think and live my life. Riding started out as just exercise but evolved into something much more. Upon reflection, the lessons fall roughly into three general phases. Learning, Practice, and Teaching
Learning About Cycling and Self
Put Your Head Down and Do the Work
The work is worth the effort.
From developing the muscles and stamina needed to ride comfortably, to being at ease traveling roads or trails, you earn everything. The work just naturally flows from riding. Fresh breeze in your face, nature rolling slowly by – the whole two-wheel experience that likely takes you back to that sense of freedom you felt when you rode as a kid. FUN is always the bottom line.
Attitude is everything. You will be regularly surprised. The hardest challenge may be the thing you cannot see. On the road there is something called a false flat – the road looks level but your legs tell you differently. Sometimes this challenge will just frustrate you until it doesn’t anymore. And sometimes you are just stronger than you think you are.
How you learn to respond can make or break your day. It’s all up to you.
Have a Sense of Humor
From the rarely funny antics of today’s highly distracted drivers to being chased by a local canine, find ways to laugh at them. Competing for road space, while serious in nature, provides great comic material when looked at a little off-center. Besides, single digit sign language does not improve upon situations in the field.
For those of a spiritual bent, Cycling provides a great forum to engage the Life force of the universe, in whatever form you perceive it/him/her to be. When presented with changing weather conditions (like that headwind that follows me no matter which direction I am traveling) during a ride, I will often have some choice sarcasm to share about the options I am being offered that day.
You’ve gotta laugh about the things you have no control over. The option of getting angry just makes you sound like posts in a social media feed.
Learning About Cycling and Others
Be a Good Team Member
Granted, cyclists can be a weird-looking bunch, we do excel at teamwork. Whenever you have two or more cyclists together, you instantly have a competition but competition comes with some general rules. The first of which is that we look out for one another. The riders in front look out for and report back about upcoming obstacles in the road.
If somebody is having a bad day and not able to keep up, a rider or two can drop back to help them finish. It always amazes me how much a Power Bar and some words of encouragement can help you get home.
We help each other, which is a pretty good philosophy for living in my book.
Understand and Follow the Rules
Rules, whether simple traffic laws, racing regulations, or that increasingly rare commodity of common sense, all serve to help protect you and allow you to enjoy. With cycling, you’ve got skin in the game. (Reality check: cyclist vs. 3,000-pound vehicle + cyclist losing each and every time.) Consequences for decisions and actions are often immediate and there is often no second chance, so choose wisely.
Sometimes the rules are the ones that Nature doles out. Gravity, speed, and human bodies all blend together into a fantastic dance. You can choose to disregard the ones you don’t agree with but there is a lesson coming your way.
Find the Lesson
Surprises are always just around the next turn – each is a teachable moment to ourselves. Quitting at a difficult time can be a pivotal moment in one’s life. By discovering your boundaries, you find out who you are and learn how to be the person you want to be. The boundaries may not be where you think they are.
Next post: Part 2 – The practice and teaching
It’s a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don’t quit when you’re tired – you quit when the gorilla is tired.
– Robert Strauss
Dr. Hal’s Exercise Recovery Shake
I have experimented with a number of protein powder formulations but the whey-based versions always sit pretty hard on my digestion. So, I developed this recipe using vegetable-based protein, combining brown rice with peanuts for a nutritionally complete protein. I still get a training effect but without the heavy feeling in the gut.
This recipe can be made as fully vegan or modified dairy versions. Go with what works best for you.
Ingredients
2-3 cups milk (nut milks can be substituted for dairy)
2 Tbsp. Powdered Brown Rice
2 Tbsp. Powdered Peanuts
2 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder (unsweetened)
1 tablespoon Agave juice or honey (or to taste)
Optional
Banana or other fresh fruit
Combine in a blender if adding fruit, otherwise a shaker bottle work fine.
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