Serious Cyclists

Recently, there was a discussion in one of my online bike forums, as to what constitutes a "serious" cyclist.   Some people proposed that competitive cyclists doing 20 mph and over on rides are serious, someone said that serious cyclists "don't buy their own kit" meaning someone is willing to sponsor them.  I guess that presumes they look attractive  enough in their kit to model it for an advertisement.   The guy who initiated the discussion mentioned that upon seeing an older man riding a child's repaired bike to work, he concluded he was a serious cyclist.  

The whole discussion bothered me.  I had to think about it a bit, in order to put my finger on why it bothered me so much.  

I was thinking about it all day.  It finally came to me.  In my view, "serious" is a state of mind.  It's not the way you look, while you do what you do, and it's not the amount of money you spend, or don't spend, or someone else spends on you, doing it.   It's not how fast you go, or how strong you are.  "Fast" and "strong" are physical conditions that might result from having a serious state of mind, but even if you are not strong and fast, it doesn't mean that you are not serious.  

My conclusion is, that it is what you consider important enough to do day in and day out, that makes you serious.  The small daily habits like having your bike ready to ride, with air in the tires, the chain oiled, and good brakes make you serious.  It's having your cycling kit laundered and ready to wear.  It's having a route planned for where you want to go, and enough time reserved on your calendar to get the planned miles in.  It's inviting friends to go with you to strengthen your commitment.  It might be riding your bike to work every day. Or it might be riding to the grocery store.  Or it might be riding around the block every night when you get home.

In the same way, you can demonstrate how "serious" you are about losing weight by those small daily habits.  Buying the right food at the grocery store.  Meal prepping if that works for you. Not buying chips and cookies and candy and ice cream.  Giving yourself time to prepare and enjoy healthy food, especially if your friends are on the same page. Tracking your food.  These are all daily habits and routines that are signs of how serious you are about losing weight.  It's taken me a while to "get serious".  But I know that if I lose weight, I will have an easier time riding up the hills.