Why Biking to Work is Totally Worth It

You may have heard that ArcStone has moved to a location on the Greenway in Uptown, Minneapolis. For those of us who are partial to two-wheeled transportation, this is absolutely fantastic. There are routinely a bike or two or three leaning against the wall inside the office, with others soon to hop on the bandwagon.

Biking to work easily becomes my favorite part of the day. This is why.

Image via nullrend on Flickr

Biking: When I leave my apartment in Hopkins at 7:15 am, it becomes just me, the sunrise, my bike, and a beautiful stretch of Greenway. Birds chirp and swoop between treetops, bunnies nibble their green breakfasts, and other riders nod and smile in my direction. I arrive at work feeling calm, awake, and happy.

Driving: When I leave my apartment in Hopkins at 7:30 am, it becomes just me, my hunk of gas-guzzling metal, and a whole bunch of other people trying to get to their destinations in the quickest way possible. Some jerk cuts me off in his ploy to get ahead of everyone else, someone in a fancy SUV tailgates me when I'm already going 7 over the speed limit, and drivers run through lights until the last possible second as they turn red. Any semblance of "Minnesota Nice" is chucked to the curb when we're behind the wheel. I arrive at work feeling agitated and sleepy. This column featured in Minnesota Monthly magazine is way too true.

If you're not currently biking to work, it's probably because you A) live "too far" away, B) are adverse to exercise that early in the morning and don't want to arrive to work sweaty, or C) are just plain lazy. Well, I'm here to tell you that I used all three of these excuses to my advantage at first when thinking about biking to work. This is how you can beat them.

Excuse 1: I live too far away.

I bike from Hopkins to Uptown - 7.5 miles one way. Yeah, it's a little far, especially if you're not exactly in shape. However, Minneapolis and the 'burbs make it way too easy to shorten that up! Drive to a Park n Ride and ride the rest of the way or ride to a certain point and then catch the bus.

Excuse 2: I don't want to be sweaty when I get to work - that's too much exercise.

Even though you'll be a little sweaty, you'll feel great during the day! More energy, maybe inclined to eat healthier, looking forward to your jaunt home. Heck, you might even drop a few pounds or feel more energized after biking a couple days a week for a month! Invest in a couple bike bags (panniers are great), pack them full of a change of clothes, deodorant (and a swipe of makeup if you're a lady), and your work things, and just freshen up and change when you get there. It's really no big deal.

Excuse 3: I'm too lazy and/or out of shape.

This is my biggest excuse. I pull the "I'm too tired right now" or the "I just don't feel like it" card. Easy way to fix this: get absolutely everything you're going to need ready and packed on your bike the night before. When you wake up, you'll be way more likely to just do it. Leave nice and early so you can go slow, and build up to going faster as you get more in shape. Start with just once or twice a week, and build up to more while the weather's nice. The best part is, you can't really wimp out for the way home, because your car isn't at work! So, hop on and get to it!

Grennway Photo: A huge thanks to nullrend on Flickr for the stunning Greenway shot!