I was physically destroyed the first time I rode my bike home from Costco lugging a trailer full of groceries. The 11-mile round trip left me with dead legs, a sore back and the sneaking suspicion I had made a mistake.
A month earlier, my 23-year-old minivan broke down for the last time. Rather than replace it, I decided a new “car-free” reality would encourage a healthier lifestyle. My aching muscles questioned the viability of this plan.
Three years later, I now know that giving up my car was the first step toward solving a lifelong struggle: maintaining consistent physical activity. What started as a necessity — I had no car, so I must bike — became a strategy: Errands are an opportunity for exercise.
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