I was in the same situation recently, only I took off for several years. I ballooned up to over 235lbs and had to take several trips to the ER thinking I was having a heart attack. Turned out to be high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Went on a diet, cut back on the beers (I like beer) and started riding again last summer. What motivated me, besides my health issues, was having something to work towards. We have a race/ride here called the 24 Hours in the Canyon. It's a mountain bike and road bike 24 hour race but you can participate in without racing. I signed up for the 24 solo mountain bike race when registration opened in January. I had that in mind the 6 months leading up to the race, which I really wasn't going to "race", but challenge myself to see how many laps I could ride in 24 hours. It worked. I've dropped over 20lbs so far and I really enjoy getting on the bike again. After racing for over 20 years, I was a bit burned out. I'm glad I found a way to get back on the bike. I feel great. AND....I don't plan on racing anymore. I just ride for fun.