For three days a week, at least, I drive two hours round trip for work. That’s six hours of mundane driving on the highway, 120 miles a day — 360 miles a week — in a car, with nothing but me and my thoughts.
On some days, this time is spent reflecting on the day or the day ahead. I often drive in silence because, as a parent of three children who are naturally averse to silence, it has become a rare commodity. The silence buoyed by the humming tires affords me the chance to decompress. To breathe. To hear my thoughts.
But on the days I don’t want or need the silence, I listen to the radio or a podcast. I’ve also listened to audiobooks. This week, I have been listening to James Clear’s Atomic Habits.
The influential book offers a systems-based approach to making small (1%) changes in our lives that compound into positive habits over time.
One of the key takeaways (there are several) is this idea of creating implementation intentions to help with following through on plans or achieving goals.
The idea is pretty simple. Here’s an example:
When I clear my plate tonight, I will take it to the kitchen and put it in the dishwasher.
Implementation intentions force you to define the time, place and behavior to help you automate goal-directed actions. If your goal is to have a tidy counterspace, this can help form a new habit around that.
But he takes it a step further by saying habit forming is best done when tied to identity. So if my identity is linked with being a tidy person, this small implementation intention can be a way to reinforce that part of your identity.
So, because this is a platform that reflects the part of me that loves riding bikes, here’s my identity-based implementation intention:
On Monday and Friday mornings, before work, I will ride my bicycle — because I’m a cyclist and riding bikes is what cyclists do.
Lately, that “cyclist” part of my identity has been degraded due to life changes and other circumstances that I explored a bit in my last post. I’m hoping this declaration can help rebuild that part of my life, not just to revive that cyclist identity, but to achieve goals around being healthier and more fit.
I’m also motivated by the annual Peckerhead ride, to be honest, which is slowly creeping up to its June 20 date. How embarrassingly bad would it be if the host of an annual road ride passed out on the Renie Road climb because he wasn’t in shape? Can’t have that.
Speaking of, here’s a shameless plug for the annual PKR and a reminder to RSVP.
What: An annual (self-supported) road ride with friends followed by eat/drink at our house in Sunny Mansfield, Ohio.
When: Saturday, June 20, 2026. Doors open at 7 a.m. with staggered start times for longer routes vs. short route TBD.
Where: We start and end at 451 Davis Road, Mansfield, OH 44907
How much: Free (donations of money and food and drinks and general good vibes are welcome)
Why: I adopted this free, annual bike ride from Jay Allred in 2024 because I believe riding bikes with others is an endeavor worth perpetuating. I’m inviting you because I think you feel the same way.
Should I RSVP? Yes please. This is the only way we know how much food to buy/prepare. Do that here.
I need you cycopaths to keep me accountable with this. Check in on me. Join me on these early-morning rides. The first official ride under this new regimen starts Friday.
That’s all for today, folks. Happy riding.
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