Well, it's been a month of me commuting to work now. I can certainly tell I'm over the hump on this because I look forward to getting up now and riding in. That is quite an accomplishment for a certified night owl.

The odometer has 658 miles on it and I can make my 9.5 mile one way trip without feeling like I'm going to die in around 35 minutes or so. I've already tried an alternative route in that is 14.5 miles and that is going to start to be the route I take home each night as I start working into that next week.

Weight loss is going well too. I started out this year at 275. I was down to 255 when I started the rides to work. I got on the scale the other day at 237. I've not checked my BP yet but I hope that I'll be off the meds for that soon as a month ago I was at 125/80.

If someone would have told me 2 months ago that I'd bet putting up a post about something like this I would have never believed them. And to think it all started because my daughter's boyfriend got a new bike that I tried riding and I thought it was pretty cool.

Biking really is amazing.

Congratulations. Keep riding, stay safe and have fun.

658 miles in your first month of commuting? Outstanding!

excellent!

+1. Thats pretty impressive. Stick with it!

That does include some weekend riding of course. Tomorrow I get my first shot on rural highway driving up at the lake. The highway around the lake is about 13 miles. And it has hills, something I don't have to deal with much for my commute. That should make it very interesting for me.

Nice, thats a lot of miles for your first month! I always commute like i'm racing someone and i always end up all sweaty when i reach my destination

Hills aren't nearly as relentless as the wind. A hill is a test of willpower. The wind is a test of character...

Hey, congratulations. Not many people have the courage to change their lives the way you have. Peace.

Awesome! You'll be an inspiration to others. Congratulations!

Way to go and riding the bike is fun idnit?

Not in Sioux Falls you don't. Come on down to SW Iowa and we'll give you some hills. [] (I worked at Empire Mall for several years and lived in Chancellor!)

Good job. It's cool when transportation becomes fun again.

Sweet, good work!

Good job. And just remember, winter commuting is fun to. Sure summer is fun, but the challenges of winter present a different type of fun.

Winter in Georgia is a welcomed break for riders. Instead of being hot the entire time (like in the summer), you're cold for five or ten minutes and then feel great. Our normal winter day is in the high fifties for highs, and low 40s for lows. Sometimes it hits the low 70s and high 50s in the middle of January or February, and the worst days are highs in the 30s or 40s and lows in the teens or 20s.

Anyway, CONGRATULATIONS on your incredible lifestyle change. I can't believe you lost that much weight and are pushing through the initial pain like that. WELL DONE.

I'm a little confused about your blood pressure: 125/80.

That isn't bad. Why would you be on meds for that? I thought borderline was in the high 130s.

???

Out of curiosity, what did you do between 275 and 255?

damn 675 is alot of miles man. I think i put maybe 250 my first month, my computer was reset on accident so i dont recall the exact numbers.

congrats, you legs will be like tree trunks in no time.

Great job man. It is really fun isn't it? Can't believe I gave this up for 30m odd years.

I salute you sir!

You know, I got my current job because it was so close to my house. I was tired of driving.

But now that I'm a bike commuter and my round trip commute is only 8 miles, I wish I lived further from work, so I could pedal more and lose more weight like you.

You're an inspiration.

w00t! Congrats on the progress-great stuff!!!

I am on a similar path to you, starting at 250, and down in the low 230s now. been commuting for 2 months. I have a 10 mile each way.

Kudos on stretching it to 14.5 miles! I am trying to do this right now, but it is tough to fit in. Your progress is reinforcing to me too, as is others, as I feel like I am not at it alone!

Keep it up!

Keep it up ... fantastic job.

Congratulations! It's pretty easy to blend the commuting miles with the fun and exercise miles, isn't it?

Nice to hear another story about someone crossing over to our side.

It's amazing how bike commuting can completely change a person. You don't have to be a super fit roadie (most of us aren't), you just have to get from point A to point B every day. Soon those miles accumulate and you gradually lose weight, improve your overall health, and acquire a butt and legs that everyone drools over. Not to mention saving money on gas.

It also opens the door to other lifestyle changes. If you can bike commute, you begin to realize other things you've been meaning to do aren't quite as daunting as you once thought. (I recently bought a push reel mower, and I love it; it's not nearly as hard mowing the lawn as some might claim.)

Good job!!

I'm a similar story but nowhere near as impressive of stats.

I was 240 in Feb and was disgusted by the dunlops disease. Started dieting by mostly just cutting my portions in half. Got the first 10 off easy but headway was really slow after that. Started commuting a little over 2 months ago (4.3 miles). Now down to 213lb.

Like you I look forward to the ride in the morning. It sets my mood for the day and honestly it has really made me a little more agreeable with people. The Stress at my job doesn't bother me nearly as much as it use to.

I have similar goals about why. I had a really bad MI 4 years ago. My Cardiologist kept giving me hell about how I was going to die a slow miserable death and get diabetes along the way if I did get exercise and drop the weight (he was a lot more nice about describing it). I'm only on a Beta blocker for PB but I want off it as well as the Cholesterol meds. My resting BP is now around 118/64 with HR of 65


Keep at it and keep us posted.