Originally Posted by
jgt_madone_newb
As a former very sedentary person, I've seen both sides of this issue. Looking back, it seems to me that, in my case anyway, it seems like you slowly and gradually get fatter and lazier and more lethargic, and tired and achy, and cranky, and a lot of other really negative things, and it isn't until you've made some huge changes that you really understand just how crappy you felt before.
Definitely agree here. I was underweight rather than over, but I was certainly no healthier than my larger friends, no matter what my doctor said (I've changed docs - that one put me on a scale after I had started biking and SCOLDED me for gaining 5 pounds. That was 5 pounds of MUSCLE!).
I hadn't done any physical exercise other than walking in ten years, and I was constantly tired, achy, cranky, incredibly anxious, fearful, and gradually becoming less and less able to leave my house. When I got my first bike, I only ventured a few blocks, but even that was enough for me to feel more powerful and made me want to do more.
Three years after that first round-the-neighbourhood bike ride, I ride ~60 km a week for commuting/errands, and I try to do a longer ride every weekend (usually 50-70 km). This month I did my first (real) century ride, and it won't be my last by any means. I've also gained thirty pounds (primarily muscle, but the hollows under my collarbones are gone and my ribs don't stick out when I wear a bikini) because I can eat without freaking out, and I haven't had a cold in two years.
I think that for women the sense of having physical power and strength is particularly important - it's not something most women of my generation grew up with. We were trained to see sports as something boys did, and exercise as something we should do to keep our bodies in a particular shape, not as something pleasurable in itself. We were taught to look at our bodies from the outside to make sure we looked right, not to experience our own physicality and the sheer fun of moving. Luckily that seems to be changing - my Pathfinder group (all 12-13 year old girls) are happily rambunctious and they don't see any reason why they should not play hockey with the boys (and win, usually! There are some pretty talented athletes in this group).