I married an athlete (former state champion track runner) that ran a lot-- and when we were younger, that was an activity we could share. As I grew older knee problems caused me to quit running altogether and up my cycling time, mostly off-road but on-road as well. We always owned bikes and she would join me and the kids on MUP/rail trails, etc. but never felt like it was comfortable to her (She never even owned a bike when she was a kid, which to me was hard to fathom). Shifting gears and bike handling were so foreign to her, and over the years I tried to coach/teach, but she only wanted to stay on flat paths without traffic on her old steel MTB.
Fast forward a few years and our kids are both in college. Suddenly lots of extra time -- and I suggest road Cycling and taking some trips, etc. We rented hybrid bikes for her 45th birthday and cycled Napa & Sonoma-- the quieter roads and beautiful scenery of Sonoma got her hooked, but the hills and shifting were still a major sticking point. After we got home I ordered her a road-based hybrid and we found some flatter courses around us to ride regularly. At the same time she found a ladies cycling group and she began to ride with them, as well as me, and we started doing some longer charity rides. Her confidence grew every year and at some point we added clipless pedals (2-bolt SPD) to her bikes.
I thought about mountain biking because that's my first love, so I paid for some guided rides in Bend OR 0n the beginner/intermediate terrain. Unfortunately, although she is super-fit and could climb well, the handling required by a MTB didn't allow her to relax and really enjoy the flow. So she stays on the road or trails only. Her hybrid is still around for trails, but she wanted a a true road bike and we've upgraded that twice now to a Spesh Ruby with Ultegra. She now rides 3 or more times a week an loves it as has upped her miles every year in the last 5. Just before the Pandemic she completed a century, one of her goals, at 15mph average. For the past 5 years or so we plan our warm-weather vacations around cycling-- we are heading to France this summer to do some riding and see a stage of Le Tour (she's become a fan of racing as well
) Pick some great places to visit and bring or rent bikes.. it's a natural fit. She still runs up to half-marathons, where I become the support crew.
The total elapsed time for the above to happen? About 12 years. Good luck on your journey!