READY TO ROLL

For the past several weeks I’ve been contemplating where my fitness-quest was going to lead. The prospect of doing a few 5K’s and a half-marathon in 2010 was really exciting to me especially since I haven’t done any running seriously since my high school cross country days; Jimmy Carter was president at the time. I’ve really been preparing to accept the consequences of taking up running; the consequences that my doctor said would befall a 50 year old man-that is until I came to my senses. I really don’t think my knees can handle the impact of running or anything connected upward from there. You know the tune, the knee bone’s connected to the hip bone, the hip bone’s connected to the back bone and so forth. The thing is, my joints are in fine working order and I'd like to keep it that way so I've switched gears a tad. Anyway, I have this beauty of a bike picked out and I’ll be visiting The Bike Rack in St. Charles real soon. I’m looking forward to frequent rides to town and back, winding my way around Lake Holiday, hitting nearby back roads to who-knows-where as well as 18 miles of Lakeshore drive in Chicago and even a century ride. It’s interesting how my little fitness-quest has evolved into something door-opening and eye-opening. The bike is just the tip of the iceberg because as with any sport, you must accessorize and gadgetize (sorry honey). This includes but is not limited to a tight-fitting pair of padded-crotch biking shorts and that there my friends is my motivation to hit the workouts extra hard in the months leading to the spring riding season. Bring it on!