About a month ago, I started bike riding on a very light road bike. When I first started, I was terrified. When I was on the road, I was petrified of the traffic, was too nervous to get the water bottle out to get a drink and couldn’t even find the courage to take my arm off the handlebars to signal. Since I’m a real beginner, I decided to get this bike with regular pedals and did not want to wear bike shoes where I had to clip in and out of the bike.
I figured that practice would help and so most mornings I went riding. I’ve made progress! I can actually take my arm off to signal and can take a drink of water when I need to. Surprisingly, I am enjoying bike riding far more than I thought I would—it gives me a tremendous endorphin rush. Feeling confident, I decided to take the plunge and bought bike shoes. I ditched the pedals. I thought I was ready to clip in and clip out.
This past weekend, I practiced clipping in and out in a parking lot. I was doing OK! And then I fell.
Putting aside the scrapes, the bruises and the impact of the fall onto my left side, as my 49-year old body hit the pavement, my confidence shattered. I didn’t want to get up. I didn’t want to get back on the bike and I actually contemplated getting in the car, driving to the bike store and screaming “PUT MY PEDALS BACK ON.”
As much as I wanted to do this, I didn’t. Instead, I started talking to myself. And I somehow convinced myself that I could do this. I went out the next day on the road. I did better. I fell again but I was ok. The next day I tried again and didn’t fall. It was NOT easy–it took A LOT of encouragement from both my family and from within myself.
We all need to do this when we’re faced with situations that make us feel uncomfortable. It could be pushing yourself to get your resume together or finally deciding to take care of a health issue. If you find yourself in a circumstance where you’ve “fallen” and just don’t want to get up, force yourself to push through. It will be scary (I’m still scared!), but you will also feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction.