After Years of Struggling With Her Self-Confidence, This Rider Found Happiness on the Bike
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Name: Rema Morgan-Aluko
Age: 38
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Occupation: Vice president of software engineering at Fandango
Time Cycling: Three years consistently, but I’ve had a bike for six years
Reason for Cycling: My bike is everything to me! Riding outside brings me so much peace and joy. When I’m out on the bike nothing else matters, all my stress falls away and I can focus on myself.
In 2016, I was looking for ways to lose weight. I suffered from arthritis in my knees, so my doctor recommended low-impact workout options like biking or swimming that wouldn’t hurt my knees too much. Well I can’t swim, but I could ride a bike, so I found an indoor cycling class at my local 24 Hour Fitness.
I fell in love with indoor cycling immediately. I loved the instructor, music, energy, and camaraderie in the room. Plus, it was a killer workout. I did that for a few months, but I was dying for more variety in my riding. So I decided to try riding a bike outside instead of just indoors.
I bought my first entry level road bike in 2017—a Trek Domane AL 2 from Helen’s Cycles in Santa Monica, California.
When I first got my bike, I would go outside to ride on weekends by myself on the Ballona Creek Bike Path or along the Marvin Braude Bike Trail, both in Los Angeles, because it didn’t feel safe to ride the streets with cars buzzing by me.
However, I wanted to find a way to ride with other people and found an event that had both running and biking combined—The Long Beach Marathon, which also has a 5K, half marathon, and bike tour. It falls near my birthday in early October, and I used it as a way to celebrate. The bike tour is about 20 miles across Long Beach, California, and I’ve been doing it every year since 2017.
Over the years, I’ve struggled with my managing weight and due to that, I’ve struggled with my overall self-confidence as well. I tried various diets, weight loss programs, and different forms of exercise and the weight would come off but always came back. I have a demanding work schedule and I mostly sit at a desk in front of the computer all day, which doesn’t help. My self-worth got wrapped into how much I weighed and that’s a terrible feeling to carry around. In 2019, I fell into a depression which affected my personal life and work life.
Then in November 2019, I met a Peloton instructor, Tunde Oyeneyin, at an AfroTech conference in Oakland, California. Her story of being an overweight dark-skinned teenager really resonated with me. I was inspired by how she turned her life around, and had a positive relationship with her body and her confidence.
Later at home, I downloaded the Peloton app and started to ride on the indoor bike at the gym again. Tunde’s classes were tough but she would talk to the class like it was a therapy session. Mentally, I worked a lot of things out on that bike. With every ride, I got a confidence boost!
When the pandemic hit in 2020, I bought myself a bike, this time a carbon fiber Trek Domane, and started riding outdoors again. This time, there weren’t many cars to worry about on the streets as many people were at home.
During this same time, there was an explosion of new cyclists riding bikes outside and small communities of young Black cyclists started to form. I saw posts on Instagram for RideWitUs, inviting beginner cyclists to ride. I joined them and started to ride twice a week. There were almost 100 people some nights riding around the city—it felt like a party on the bike. I looked forward to our rides every week and I was committed to improving myself and pushing myself to eat better and to lose weight.
I started to get faster and stronger on my bike and I wanted to learn more, so I joined more clubs. In 2021, I started riding with the Major Taylor Cycling Club of Los Angeles. Through Major Taylor, I learned new techniques, better bike handling, the mechanics of riding in a group, pacelines, and safety precautions.
Slowly the weight started to melt off my body and my mindset changed. In late 2020, I felt healthy and was fully out of my depression. I now had a community of friends to lean on, a healthy routine, and I felt free.
In late 2021, I joined the Los Angeles chapter of K.R.T. Kings Ride Together & Q.R.T. Queens Ride Together. Because the club is heavily populated on the East Coast, I wanted to meet the larger group so when they hosted their second annual K.R.T./Q.R.T. season opener, I purchased a bike bag, packed up my bike and jumped on a plane to Philadelphia in May 2022. There were cyclists from all over the country coming together and riding together and supporting each other. I’m now completely hooked and caught the travel bug. Every trip I now go on, I take my bike.
I went from riding alone in 2018 to riding with many cyclists with various levels of experience on the bike. When I’m having a bad day or negative thoughts begin to surface, I can just go for a ride. It’s my meditation. On the bike, I focus on where I’m going and my surroundings. I pay attention to my cadence, and the sound of the gears. I focus on my breathing during a sprint or a climb up a big hill. Cycling takes focus so every other stressor falls away.
I never understood what people meant by “it’s a lifestyle” before, but I totally get it now. Working out should be fun, it should be a gift that you give to yourself before you give yourself to others.
My love of cycling has grown so much I’m taking it international. I will be traveling with some members of K.R.T./Q.R.T. to Ghana hosted by Cycle Ghana in July 2023 to ride along the beautiful coastline in West Africa. As an American-born kid growing up in an African household, I’ve always wanted to visit Africa and see first hand the place I’ve heard stories about my whole life.
I currently ride three to four times a week, two indoor rides on my Peloton, and one or two long outdoor rides on the weekend with the clubs. I also have gotten into strength training to help with my joints and being stronger on the bike, and pay more attention to what I eat and drink so that I can be fueled properly for an intense ride or long activity. Food is no longer a fix to my emotions—it’s fuel to move my body in the way I need.
This bike has taught me to put myself and my goals first so that I can be physically and mentally available to others. I never prioritized my needs before and that wasn’t healthy.
I’m learning mental toughness and slowly building confidence every day. I’ve learned true discipline and consistency. I’m traveling to various cycling events with these clubs all over the country and meeting amazing people and forming new friendships. I’m living my best life right now and I’ve found a happiness I never could have imagined in 2019.
These tips have made my cycling journey a success:
1. Be consistent
The best way to get better at cycling is to just ride your bike. Motivation isn’t needed when you’re consistent. There are definitely days when I’d rather lie in bed instead of working out, but when I finally just get out there, I’m so glad I did. When I’ve been inconsistent, a ride I did before easily can become challenging after even a week off from cycling.
2. Get fit by a professional bike fitter
I spent too much time riding a bike that didn’t fit. It was too small for my incredibly long legs even though the calculators said my 5’9” height should fit a 54cm bike. I should have been on a 56cm. That caused pain in my knees and less power on the bike and general discomfort.
3. Ride your ride and have fun
Don’t worry about other more advanced cyclists. Take advice from them, figure out what you want to use, and discard the rest. We’re not professional cyclists; we ride to have fun so make sure you’re doing that. Don’t compare your ability to others, focus on your own performance and work toward gradual improvement.
I spent too much time feeling bad about not keeping up with the group—like getting dropped or being slow going up the hills. But, everyone gets dropped sometimes so it’s not a big deal.
4. Invest in clothing that makes you feel good
It definitely helped with my confidence and I like to make sure I look good on the bike. I like wearing bright-colored jerseys, matching socks, and a pop of bright lipstick when I go out to ride. How I look directly impacts how I feel and my whole mood.
Rema’s Must-Have Gear
→ Machines for Freedom Women’s Endurance Bib in Tall: I love how this brand has inclusive sizing and the bib is high rise and provides compression in all the right places. So many women’s bibs cut too low across the tummy in awkward and unflattering places. I also have extremely long legs so the tall option is a life saver.
→ Roka Matador Cycling Sunglasses: These glasses are super light and I barely feel them; they don’t slip at all. They also have additional lenses in multiple colors and shades that I use to match my cycling kits.
→ Chamois Butt’r for Her: I’m so happy they have something specially made for women. I use this literally every time I ride and it doesn’t irritate my sensitive skin. It makes those long rides in the saddle so much more comfortable.
→ Q.R.T Philly Graffiti Jersey: I love to represent my cycling club when I go out riding. It’s a Black-owned brand and club and it’s important to me to support the club that’s given me so much happiness.
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