These thighs were made for pumping….

I have finally found what my thighs were made for….riding up hills!! Combined with a larger lung capacity (thanks to running) my first attempt at a 100km cycle has been a wonderful experience!

So why the celebration about my thighs? I am short… At full height I am 160cm (5’3″ for those who do imperial) so my legs aren’t exactly long. For years I have described my legs as chunky, but not in a bad way, in proportion to themselves. Quite bulbous calves and thighs… Well thighs that aren’t exactly willowy. They have never been fat, but larger than skinny jeans will allow for.

About 4 months ago I realised that they aren’t actually big at all. I caught a full length reflection in a window and I realised that my legs aren’t big… They have shape, but they are not large by any means. I had always thought that I had escaped most of the brainwashing that one is fed in the glossy mags and fashion. I wear what I want when I want to because it makes me feel confident. Turns out that I’m not completely immuned. I have steered away from skinny jeans because I can’t generally pull them up over my calves, and if I can get them past my knees I definitely cannot get them over my thighs. So it seems that its a logical leap that if you need to buy jeans a size too big in the waist and bum just so they fit every where else, that your legs are too big.

This weekend I have confirmed they are not too big! They are made for cycling up hills!! They are made for running up hills!! They are made for short skirts and boots! They are made for me!!

So enough about jeans and stupidly made trousers. Let’s talk about the amazing feeling of accomplishment. Thanks to the persuasion of my delightful friend Zoe, I signed up for the women’s Rapha 100. A 100km ride from the Rapha store in London out to the top of Box Hill and back again. So armed with my 3 spin classes and my 10km cycle to work, off I went on a social ride 10 times longer than anything that I have attempted recently.

Words can’t describe how good it felt to ride along side these wonderful women. Each doing it for a separate reason. Some are training for events, triathlons, fitness and recovery. I was in the last category – the social rider, but we chugged along averaging about 24kph to the top of Box Hill. Powering to the top, enjoying a great view and recovery time (and a huge piece of coffee and walnut cake!). The best bit about it, is that I saw more of south west London than I have seen the whole time I have lived here.

A big thank you goes out to Rapha for arranging the ride… Not only in London, but around the world. A huge global ride for women supporting women cyclists. Most of my thanks goes to the London one though, for the chaperones, who were full of tips and tricks, their patience, and their navigational skills 😉 and the time that it took to arrange. For me, it showed me how much you can see by just picking a road and cycling, it gave me the confidence to get out and push myself, but most of all it gave me a massive buzz to ride in a big group of people all determined to the same thing. I guess also some thanks has to go to the British weather for exceeding itself with glorious sunshine and no head winds.

And just like all the other randomly stupid things I sign up for…. I may sign up for that ducathlon after all Zoe 😉