Cold ride/warm desk

I find that if I am in the mood for it, riding in the cold is not too bad.  It was about 10 this morning when I left and after the initial bite on the bridge of my nose wore off, all was fine.  As long as I can keep my ears and hands warm, I can handle most rides.  It takes a while for cold feet to do me in but cold hands and ears will stop me quickly.


Contributing to this morning's comfort were two pieces of my motorcycle gear.  My neoprene/fleece balaclava kept my ears happy and my winter rated motorcycle gloves did the job for my hands.  I have bicycle gloves but they have lost their insulation due to old age (though I seem to have added insulation due to old age, just not on my hands).  I need to replace them because those motorcycle gloves are expensive and I don't think I need carbon fiber knuckle protectors for the speeds I ride my bicycle.

(Why yes, I do have pets, why do you ask?)













As far as the warm desk goes, a friend loaned me his Led Zeppelin collection. Led Zeppelin was my first musical obsession.  I think they, more than any other band, contributed to my low level hearing loss and slight ringing in my ears.

I am listening to Physical Graffiti for the first time in years.  Between emails and the usual work stuff, the memories just keep coming back.  Each song has it's own images popping up.  Mostly though, they are just so comfortable and familiar.  And, interestingly, fresh at the same time.  Sure an 18 year old can appreciate the fact that Led Zeppelin can melt your face, but as an adult I can appreciate how difficult putting together something this great is.  Wow!

Now, on to In Through the Out Door.  Someone has to do it.

Dang!

Woke up this morning tired to the bone.  My head was awake but my body was not having any of it.  I took it as a sign and decided to skip today's workout and I rode my motorcycle to work instead of my bike.  It was definitely the right decision.  I feel much more rested than I have in a few days.  Back at it tomorrow.

Going along pretty nicely, thanks.

I have ridden my bike to work everyday this week. I have managed to stay on top of the exercise plan so far this whole month.  I even managed to do my sprint workout this morning.  Sprinting is my least favorite exercise with pushups being a close second.  I can definitely feel it in my legs right now.  They are heavy.

I have to say that I can feel a positive difference overall. I just feel stronger which makes it easier to move. I want to believe that I can see a difference.  But, I am waiting until Feb, 1st to weigh in because I would be crushed if there was not much difference.  I have been working too hard to not see a difference on the scale.

This week I have rediscovered the bane of the occasional cyclist-butt pain.  The first day is always fine, but the pain increases each day until, miraculously, it is gone.  I am about out the other side but I know there are still 1 or 2 days of soreness left. If I was a total noob it would probably discourage me but (no pun intended) I have been through this enough times to know that pain free days lie ahead.

Decision Made!

I will ride at least one century in late Spring or early Summer.  Not a competitive one.  One that I map out and ride.  My 12 year old is thinking about joining me.  That would be awesome.

A Good Start

Well, I got off to a reasonable start this week.  I exercised most mornings and I even did my sprints Thursday morning as scheduled. I only missed Saturday because I was at an Academic Team meet all day with the youngest.

More good times ahead next week.

Resolutions

So, other than the resolution to weigh 190, I have two other resolutions

I will be the laundry master at the house. Everyone appreciates it. It removes the stress of wondering when it will get done and it allows me to ponder/meditate on the abundance of my life.

I will be more kind and compassionate. In particular, to those who I am closest to. It seems that the ones I love the most get me in my most raw state. Though it is nice to know that they love me unconditionally and that they will, more than anyone else, listen to me at my worst, they deserve my kindness and compassion most.

Back without a vengeance

I want to use this to track my progress again. I started out 2011 at 250 lbs and relatively quickly got down around 220 following a low carb diet and occasional exercise. I lifted for a couple of months during the summer of 2012 and proceeded to injure my left rotator cuff. Throw in a few brief periods of cardio and bicycle commuting and I have been 220 +/-5 for the last several months.

I have decided to get on it again. My goal is to get down to 190 and around 15% body fat. I hope that will allow me to get off this blood pressure medication. I will basically follow the Primal Blueprint fitness model with around 3-5 hours of 55-75% of max heart cardio, two or three days of resistance exercise and 1 day of sprints. I already follow the nutrition recommendations so I should be good there.

So, today I started with 220 lbs. and 29% body fat according to our scale. I know that this kind of body fat measure is fairly poor but I just plan to use it to measure the general direction I am heading. Started today with 45 minutes of cardio on the elliptical and resistance training. Feels good so far.