I woke up today to a big windy rainy mess outside. The very first thought I had was “Suck, I was looking forward to a nice long bike ride today.” I was struck by just how much my life has changed in the last couple of months because of my choice to ride my bike more. In that vein I have decided to try and get down all the ways in which my life has been changed by my bicycle. To give you a little back story, over the last three months I have used my car less than ten times, mostly for long trips to other states, and a couple of times to take large loads of laundry to the laundromat, and one time to get ice cream at midnight. Other than that every trip, every commute, every errand run, every party, every business meeting, everything has been on bicycle.

I feel like I should break down the changes into categories for easier reading.

Physical:

The most obvious change physically has been my legs. Muscles are starting to pup up in places I didn’t know I had muscles. My hips have started to bulge out at the sides, and my calves have inflated into large melon sized rocks. If I were to smack the side of my hip, nothing moves. I am sad to say that before a lot of things giggled. There are apparently muscles on the front of your shins off to the side a bit.

I have also noticed that the pants I bought three months ago don’t fit anymore. I have lost about 2 inches around my waste line, and my computer geek love handles have vanished. My arms have also started to get stronger, but they are lagging behind my legs for obvious reasons.

I ‘feel’ stronger, faster, more agile than before. I enjoy the feeling and it has given me a little more confidence. I can walk up the five flights of stairs to the office where I work without getting winded anymore. I sleep better and find that I am hungry on a more predictable schedule.

The only downside so far of all that riding has been some saddle soars (very painful wounds you get from sitting on a tiny unpadded seat for too long). These can be avoided by getting a different kind of seat, or better ass padding, which I am looking into. But I have only had this happen twice, and both were after weeks of really intense ridding.

Mental:

Riding has done wonders for my sleep. I used to have a really hard time getting to sleep at night, now I sleep much better, and find that after a nice ride I am alert, but calm. Riding in the city is not relaxing, you can’t zone out and just ride like you can out in the country. You have to be on constant watch for people opening their doors, cars pulling out, red lights, stop signs, cabs, pedestrians, pot holes, you get the idea. The thing is after a while you start to get like a radar. I am much more aware of where I am on the road, what is happening around me.

As such I have started to notice a lot more about the city, and in general have had a more more fulfilling time exploring it. It has also opened my eyes to just how much ‘stuff’ is going on. The other night I felt the need to circle back around and check out an alleyway to make sure that the man and women I had seen out the corner of my eye were in fact making out and that she wasn’t in danger. I had seen them both for about a tenth of a second on my way down the street, if I had been in a car I wouldn’t have ever noticed. She was fine, they were making out.

The ride to work in the morning gets me sharp and ready to focus on the days tasks, the ride home seems to do the opposite and gets me ready to relax. I notice that I am starting to do the same thing when I walk around. I notice more and am in “my own little world” far less.

Social:

I have started to encounter other bikers. People that ride the same route to work that I do. We say hi, see each other on the road, and watch out for each other. I have also been involved in several bike events including a very nice Halloween bike ride, and a 50 mile tour of the city that raised money for charity. I am starting to meet new people, and if I get brave enough might even try and make some friends (ha).

I have noticed that when pedestrians come up next to each other at the cross walk, they often don’t even look at each other, let alone talk, same with cars, but every biker I pass at least makes eye contact with me (they have the radar too). More often than not I get a head nod, or a a “howdy.” I have also noticed that many bikers in the city will point out chuck holes and other road debris for you when they are in front of you and give you a little “on your left” or “coming up on your right” when passing. Most cars I ride behind can’t even be bothered to put on a blinker when they are about cross over into the lane I am in.

Overall riding my bike has introduced me to more cool people in a short time than I would have ever met at bars, or just doing nothing. I am sure there are other ways to meet people (I could buy a dog), but so far this has been a good way for me.

Practical:

I never get stuck in traffic. There is always parking. My backpack is now my trunk. I can get most places as fast or faster than public transport, or car. I can now rock the one pant leg rolled up look without feeling like an idiot. Mike bicycle handling skills have gotten way better in a very short time. A direct result of my desire not to get run over. I feel much more confident on my bike, and understand my limits much better.

World View:

My car centric world view is starting to go away. I have started to ask myself why I own a car. Why do I bother to pay insurance, and put gas into something I almost never use? The idea of moving that much metal and plastic and glass around just to do what I can do on my bike has started to not only seem silly to me but appalling.

I am not sure if ridding you bike makes you a radical (I sure hope not), but I have noticed that people have started to give me strange looks when I pull up on my bike in the cold/windy/wet days. They don’t understand really what I am doing using my own legs to get around. I want to get them all bikes and put them in the street so they can enjoy the same thrills I do.

I can tell that this is the kind of lifestyle I don’t want to stop. I am going to try and ride all winter long, try and keep up the fun, keep pedaling up the hills, keep racing down the other side. My whole outlook on travel has changed. The car is no longer the symbol of freedom it once was for me. My simple two wheeled mode of transport with its pedals and gears is now my preferred mode of transport.

I have started to look at the way we design our cities, and how we lay out our roads and more and more I am coming to the conclusion that our car centric way of doing things is not only unsustainable, but may in fact be a major contributor to the ills we face in this world.

Do you ride your bike? Have you fallen in love with the life on two wheels? Do you get frustrated when bike are “in your way” on the street? What would it take to get you to ride your bike to work every day? Let me know in the comments.