Life Dope

I was supposed to ride with Joseph Saturday, but it didn’t happen. Joseph, if you read my previous post, is better known to you as the King of the Mountain on the Pinarello. An email had gone out earlier in the week with a list of rides that different guys were planning on and an invitation to join in. In between preparing for hurricane Sandy and then the aftermath, it would have been a week to the day since I last got a ride in. I was itching to get out. (We were fortunate in this area as the Hurricane was a non-factor. Others weren’t as fortunate as you undoubtedly know.)

I have three wonderful daughters, all of whom had various degrees of colds and I did not escape unscathed. It left me feeling pretty blah and so I backed out of the ride. There’s always a tension when deciding to skip the ride due to illness or time. Sometimes the best decision is to just ride, even if only for a few miles. The time you “lose” on the bike is more than made up for with the energy and clarity gained post ride.

Some weeks ago, when the Lance Armstrong news was hitting, Carl had stopped by office in the afternoon. That morning I had been on a great ride- a fun, sometimes brutal and yet beautiful ride. Carl, who purchased my Trek from me after I bought my new bike, had recently taken up cycling. We chatted a bit and I said, “You know, I don’t know about bike doping, but cycling is life dope.” The comment reflected how I was feeling that afternoon: energetic, focused and productive. Carl agreed, acknowledging the positive effects of a bike ride.

You often hear of the “runner’s high” but I’ve experienced it on the bike as well. While I don’t experience the “high” on the bike on every ride, the post ride effects are remarkably consistent: better mood and focus, increased energy and overall sense of well-being. There’s science to back this up and you can read about it here.

All that to say, I’m feeling a little tired and somewhat blah this morning, so I’m hoping to do some life dope this afternoon.