I decided to go for a bike ride this morning; haven’t been on a bike in about 12 years; haven’t owned a bike in  about 20 years.  I’ve been looking for ways to take advantage of my new home’s beautiful surroundings and am finding new ways to do so every day.

Living only a few minutes from the Loveland Bike Trail, I decided to rent a bike.  I’ve been planning to do this for some time, even bought the pants last year and then didn’t get to go - (long story for another post - or not. !)  But for some reason, I felt pulled in that direction this morning.  I just woke up, saw how beautiful the day was going to be, felt grateful to be alive, and wanted to celebrate it in some way.  While I was in the shower, the inspiration struck me - go rent a bike and cruise the bike trail.

No matter how many times this happens to me, I’m still amazed by it every time - whenever I follow my intuition, I’m greatly rewarded.  I was slightly hesitant to indulge my sudden urge this morning thinking that I should really stay in my office and get started on my new company.  But the voice kept saying, “Oh - just go.  Trust me!”  So I did, and even though I spent only one hour on the trail, it was the perfect amount of time to get the inspiration for this post, and a very valuable life lesson.

After getting signed up and giving them my credit card, I walked the bike to my car to ditch my purse.  Then, I mounted the bright pink Electra Townie and took off!

Well, sort of.

Let me explain.

Now, remember, it has been a while since I’ve ridden a bike.  The trail is completely flat and you can park right next to it in Historic Loveland.  (Which I did.)  It was a 7-speed bike set at level 7.  Which was fine - I wanted a workout.  While it is true that you never forget how to ride a bike, there was one major aspect that I didn’t remember, and that was the effort required to get yourself going.  So even though I was in the perfect spot to take off, the resistance of the setting and my (apparent) laziness caused me to struggle a little taking off.

Not to worry.  I adjusted quickly and was on my way in no time, but from where I started there was a stop sign very soon to allow for a highway crossing.  “No problem,” I thought.  “I have breaks.”  Yes, yes I did have breaks.  Only problem was, I had to get started again.  And, of course, there were nice people driving on that road who very graciously stopped for me, both ways, to allow me to cross, so I had an audience this time.  Wonderful!

Again, not to worry.  I probably looked a little silly, but I made it through and continued to get stronger with each stop and start.

As I reflected on the experience while riding, I had a major epiphany: There are many instances where life is like riding a bike.  It takes a lot of momentum to get going, but once you get going, you move faster and faster, and feel better and better.  So it’s worth that extra push in the beginning.

The first example of this that came to mind while I was on the trail was how much effort it took in the beginning to create a new life for myself, but then once I made the effort, my life got better and better until I was soaring.

Starting any project is usually that way as well - getting started is the hardest part, but once you’re moving, you gain momentum.  But you have to push yourself to get started.

A positive attitude is often that way as well, isn’t it?  It takes a little effort to make yourself pivot from a negative thought to a positive thought, but once you start thinking that way, you’ll experience an entire paradigm shift about whatever the subject is.

So I invite you today to learn from my biking lesson.  What is it in your life that you need to put a little extra effort in to in order to get going?

Until next time,
Live Joyfully!

My view as I turned around to head back to the rental station:

Posted under Motivation