This time last year I was biking about 100 miles a weekend and had shed about 40lbs. I did a triathlon in Nov 08 and since then I have been on the bike maybe half a dozen times. I know I caused myself to burnout because I took to it so quickly and pushed myself to do too much too fast. Now I have gained about 30 of those 40lbs back and I want to lose about 20 of them (6'0" and 162lbs was too skinny). I am having a hard time getting the motivation to pull the bike off the hooks and get back out there. What have been some of your methods of pulling the bike out of it's slumber? Thanks

If you need to trick your self into riding, maybe you should just trade it in on a big screen and a recliner.

Seriously, I don't know how to answer that. The first thing would be to enjoy it, and if that doesn't work for you, and your dis-satisfaction with your self image doesn't work for you, there isn't much I can say that will do the trick.

Try to find the fun in it, and forget about the 30 lbs. If you can do that, you will drop the weight. Buy a fat tire cruiser, and hit the beaches. I know if I was in Hawaii, I know the scenery I would be riding for.

Realizing that I was over 40, fat, and out of shape did it for me. The first rides sucked but it gets better fast. Concentrate on how fun it is, not how slow you are.

Even now that I am racing there's some days, usually in winter, when I find it hard to get out. When this happens I tell myself that I'll just go out for a half hour. If I still don't want to ride after that, I'll go home. I've never gone home- it's always better once I get on the bike, even when it's cold and raining.

Read about how much fun biking is. Try the book Heft on Wheels, or even a lot of posts on other forums here like touring and long distance.

Second that. Just go for a short easy spin. When it is time to turn around you probably won't .

Actually already have that.

I thoroughly enjoyed it when I first got the bike and was out every weekend doing 100 miles. Like most things I do I go full steam right from the get-go, I don't know any other way. I think that simply burned me out, that and the fact that I started going to school in the evenings. So full time job, school in the evenings and family commitments something had ot give and I guess it was the weekend biking. I'm still 15 weeks away from finishing my degree, but the self image thing is starting to get to me and thus the whole wanting to get back in the saddle. I actually got up this morning and went for a jog and that's how my whole fitness craze started last year so maybe I have begun again. I sure hope I did.

Can't do the fat tire cruiser. I do go out on my motorcycle on the weekends and trust me I do get plenty of the scenery in.

Just do it! Good luck with your return!

Buy yourself a kick ass toy to go with your bike. Something like a Garmin 705. Make yourself a regular route that you can ride once a week and start tracking your times.

I find buying myself some cool new gadget usually works to get me motivated. Then the fun of it will keep me going.

The best thing to do is just go out and ride. Don't worry about x number of miles per week, or average speed. Even if you only ride once per week it is better than 0. Pick a new route. Go ride with a gropu or loved ones. No one says you have to ride 100 miles per week. 10 miles is better than nothing.

Richard

Watching live, DVD or YouTube coverage of great bike races from the past always gets me pumped up to jump on the bike and put in a few hours.