Cycling helped my Jayhawk influencer dad lose over 100 pounds. He’ll help you, too
It was 2011, my senior year of high school at Blue Valley in Overland Park. “What’s the point of having those bikes hanging there if you’re never going to ride them?” I said to my dad as we walked through our garage and got into the car. A few weeks later, on a Saturday morning, over one of those magical two-week stretches of a Kansas City spring when the humidity and temperature seem perfect, I got home to see my dad pumping up bike tires. He hadn’t actively cycled since the late 1980s, or really exercised at all in years — as you could see from his 6-foot-3-inch, nearly 300-pound frame.
We hopped on the bikes and rode maybe two miles before my dad was struggling and said that he needed to go back home. Exhausted, he got off the bike and fell down in our front yard grimacing in pain, saying, “Thomas, I am really out of shape.”
Like many millennials, I returned home during the pandemic to stay with my parents for a few months in 2020. While at a fitness class at a gym in Kansas City, a middle-aged man I had never seen before came up to me and asked, “Are you Greg’s son? I’ve seen him post you on Instagram before.” I realized then that my dad had become a quasi-famous Kansas City cycling influencer.
Today, Greg McKean is almost unrecognizable from the father I knew 10 years ago. He weighs less than 200 pounds, cycles more than 100 miles per week, hosts races all over the metropolitan area — including a yearly charity event, The Rutlader Gravel Fondo — and has amassed a mini-influencer presence in cycling with his Instagram profile Gravelkansas.
As I write this, my dad pushes 60 years old, and he just completed his fifth and final Unbound Gravel cycling race. Coincidentally, my 30th birthday approaches, leaving me to reflect on the lessons learned from his fitness journey. I’ve applied these lessons to my career, health and life.
Here are my Top 6:
▪ Consistency is key. Keeping off 100 pounds for more than 10 years takes serious consistency. My dad rides year-round, and in the cold of the winter, he has a device that allows him to cycle inside.
▪ Don’t get discouraged. My dad has encountered many setbacks. At his second Unbound Gravel, he had a serious crash and was hospitalized, requiring facial plastic surgery and many stitches. Thankfully, he is fully recovered with nothing more than a few small scars.
▪ It doesn’t matter where you start, as long as you get going. The shortest route in most cycling events is about 50 miles. My dad barely got four miles that first time he rode.
▪ In a community, you will grow. Even “Saturday Night Live” has taken jabs at how tough it is for adults to make friends. My dad has built a real community in cycling, and I have seen him make lifelong friendships well into middle age. They rally together and keep each other motivated to stay competitive.
▪ Don’t worry about the mules — just load the wagon. This wouldn’t be a Greg McKean story without a reference to the Kansas Jayhawks. Bill Self said this to the Hawks as they made an epic tournament run this year resulting in a national championship win. Don’t let the outside influence you, and stay focused.
▪ Play with passion. Do it for the love of the game.
As Men’s Health Month ends and summer starts, I challenge everyone to channel my dad’s story and find time for fitness. The benefits to your health and mind are undeniable, and I have found that pushing myself in fitness coincides with pushing myself in other areas of life, especially my career. If you’re interested in cycling, contact my dad at Gravelkansas on Instagram. He is invested in helping people find themselves in cycling, and he will welcome you to the community. If that’s not your thing, there are more options than ever before: From pickleball to fitness classes, there is something for you. The key is starting. No matter how small it seems, progress begets progress and you never know where it will take you.
This story was originally published June 29, 2022 at 5:00 AM.