This time around: to get rid of those pesky ācorona-kiloāsā.
And to get a head start on spring ā21. I have some wild plans for The Longest Day but mainly want to be able to do more 100k rides and if ever the swimming pools open up again hopefully do an OD triathlon next year.
Why I suffer?
Because if Iām honest to myself, I know that Iām actually a Couchlandrian 160h a week.
And whenever the moderator suspects a Couchlandrian in the SUF races, I know that someone uncovered my hidden secret.
But during that 4-8 hours per week where Iām on my bike, I do my best to shred chamois.
I was obese pretty much my entire life. As a kid I was interested in sports and I was active but my weight was already an impediment, there was a lot I couldnāt do(climbing trees, monkey bars, I remember once in gym class we did this thing where we were on little wheelie things and we took turns pushing each other, but I was too heavy for my partner and the teacher had to come push me 
). After middle school I just withdrew into myself and stopped pursuing any real activity. Gym classes were a nightmare
I kept packing on the weight, for most of my 20ās I hovered between 250-280, then I got a desk job and put even more weight on. I think my heaviest was 315. When I was 28 I woke up with a cramp in my leg that I proceeded to ignore, which ended up being a blood clot. I wound up in the hospital after having a small pulmonary embolism and it was such a miserable, sad experience. I felt so fat and helpless laying there. I was 309 pounds when they weighed me, and I made a decision in that bed that I was no longer fat, that I weighed 135 pounds and would eat like that and my ass would eventually catch up to me.
Two years later, Iāve made it down to 156 pounds. I bought a bike in March, after not having ridden one in 15~ years. I had to go to a parking lot to get by bearings and remember how to do it, and zooming around feeling the speed and the wind on my face felt so good I could have cried. It was like being a child again.
I suffer for the kid that I was, to do the things I had always wanted to do. To improve my body, my health, and my mind. To incinerate what remains of the passive, melancholy person I was. Suffering in a productive way saved my life.
@Bleep Welcome to the forum! We all seem to be individual chemistry experiments. Our bodies and minds change with nutrition, stress, sleep and exposure to heat and cold. Unfortunately we live in a time of plentiful access to food and shelter with very little energy needed to acquire it while at the same time we are also exposed to unnatural stresses as well. It is great to hear that you are finding your own balance and best wishes to you on your journey!
Everyoneās journey is different yet all are just as inspiring. @Bleep Thank you for sharing your story!
Last spring, my wife had a life-threatening health scare. Her doctor told her she survived thanks to her lifetime of smart diet and exercise choices. Itās as if all those years of smart decision-making added layers of armor to her body, protecting her from the unpredictable.
It led me to think about myself, sliding into comfortable middle age, buying bigger pants every couple of years, no fatter than most of the other dads - but no thinner, either. How thick was my armor? How ready was my body to deal with the unpredictable? I was waking up at four every morning anyway, due to the stress of dealing with my wifeās issues - I figured I may as well dust off the weights in the basement, pull the bike off the garage wall, and generate some sweat.
By the end of the summer, Iād ridden my first imperial century. Iād made some cycling friends in my area and discovered that I enjoyed riding with the guys. I bought an indoor trainer when the weather turned, got hooked on The Sufferfest, and here I am. I have a smaller waist and bigger muscles, which is nice for my ego. Most importantly, I have thicker armor to help take whatever life throws at me. I donāt just want to be a fun dad - I want to be a fun grand-dad and great-grand-dad. To get there, I need to suffer.
In 2014, I was overweight, depressed, and had a tentative diagnosis of MS hanging over me. I happened to strike up a conversation with a coworker who told me about her experience riding the MS 150. She asked if I would ever consider doing something like that. I thought, Iād like to be the kind of person who would consider doing something like that. I said, letās do it together next spring.
I had never ridden further than 10 miles! To me, 150 was something only a pro could do. So I started losing weight and pedaling on a stationary bike. I did yoga and Pilates and strength training. By the time the ride came around, I had lost 45 pounds and felt like I was 18 years old. That ride was the most fun I had ever had, and I wanted to ride for the rest of my life.
That same year, my husband started commuting by bike, and soon he had lost 45 pounds, too. We started sneaking out early before the kids were up to ride together. The next summer, we started a tradition of sending the kids to the grandparents for a week or two while we took long cycling tours.
Cycling, especially touring, with my husband has probably saved our marriage. I love riding with him and would do just about anything to stay in shape so I can keep up with him. Including Nine Hammers, Violator, and ISLAGIATT. I suffer for love - of him, of cycling, of roads not taken.
And it turned out I didnāt have MS. But Suffering would have made that better, too.
I suffer for many reasonsā¦A 7 year old and a 2 year old are the main reasons both to keep up with them and the limited time I have free to just go out and ride for hours on end these days.
I also want to keep fit and health as I hit 45 so I have as long as possible (excepting unknowns) to teach them how the world works and basically annoy my wife 
Iāve only just joined but have been reading through various threads. All of your stories here are rather inspiring. Iām sure Iāll eventually have something to say as well.
I am loving the app and workouts so far, but I feel like this community may be the best part of it all.
Hey, welcome. To steal Sir Glenās line, you can never leave.
Thank you.
You are crazy!!! Cool