Category: Exercise

Too Cold To Ride

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, ExerciseLeave a comment

Well, it seems that Summer isn’t quite yet here.  I have been waking up nearly every morning at 4am to go out bike riding thinking that it would be in the 90’s or 100’s during the day so I’m basically trying to beat the heat.  Well, we had heat for maybe a week but then it was gone.

The last 3 days (including today) it has been too cold to ride.  Yeah I could’ve just gone out when the temperature was in the 70’s but I’ve gotten so used to riding when there are no cars when the sun isn’t up yet that I don’t want to go out during the day.

Friday I checked the weather channel application on my computer and it said that there were going to be thunderstorms so I didn’t go out.  Yesterday when I went outside to go bike riding it was raining, well more like sprinkling but you know how it goes.  It starts out with a sprinkle then next thing you know it’s raining hard.  So I just stayed in.  This morning it was so cold outside and I just decided to wait until when it was warmer and now it’s too warm even though it’s only 68 lol.  Well, the weather channel says 68 but it’s warmer than that outside.

Hopefully tomorrow it will be ok.  It’s supposed to be 85 during the day and it says that I should wear pants and a jacket at 7am for exercising because it will be 65 but that is a good temperature in the early morning to exercise for me.

I never thought I would say this but I wish the heat would come back lol.

Testosterone Overdose

On By Michel McDonaldIn Bike, ExerciseLeave a comment

I don’t know what’s going on but all of a sudden it’s almost like I got an overdose of testosterone from all the bike riding I’ve been doing.  It’s like all this energy is inside me now.

That rear bike rack that I got for my birthday wasn’t the right size but I figured out how to make it the right size by rigging it to the seat and using old brakes to screw it into the frame at the bottom.  Today I went to the store and could hear it creaking where I attached it to the seat post so I drilled a hole into the seat post and put a screw in there to make it more stable.

bikescrewpost

I also finally thought of a way to get the bar on my home gym back on.  When I got it (it’s a Weider Total Body Works 5000) that little plastic thing at the bottom (you see it in the picture from that link) which holds the bungee cords, the screws snapped off of it, when?  I have no idea.  It was loose in the box.  I didn’t send it back because I bought it from Wal*mart’s website and it was shipped to me.  So I didn’t want to pay for shipping just to get that replaced so I just left it.

So I was sitting here and I got a brain storm.  What if I use the Dremel tool to cut into the screws where they snapped off at the bar so that I can use a flat head screwdriver to unscrew them and take them out and finally get that plastic bungee cord holder back into place.  So I did and it worked.  OMG!!!  Finally!  I’ve had that thing for a couple of years now and it always put a bad taste in my mouth that I couldn’t use those bungee cords to add more resistance because I didn’t want to have to keep raising and lowering the darn thing, it’s too heavy to have to do that.  It would be easier to use the bungees which is why they put them in there in the first place.

So now I can.  Boy, I feel so butch these days lol.

Muscles Used To Riding

On By Michel McDonaldIn Bike, Cycling, ExerciseLeave a comment

Since I started riding the bike in the early morning before the sun comes up to escape the heat, I’ve noticed that my muscles are already used to riding the bike so I don’t have to ride every other day to rest my muscles.  I can ride everyday if I want to.  In fact, I rode for 3 days in a row.  Well, mainly that was to burn off some burgers and fries I ate lol.

But, I have no problem riding the bike anymore at all.  It’s like my muscles are back to the way they were when I was a kid, that’s how used to riding I am now.

I seem to recall last year when I started riding my bike again, when I first found out about the bike trail after summer was over from one of those city park summer guides, in the back it has a map of the bike trail.  So I got the bike out of moth balls, filled the tires, actually I had to buy a new tube for the front tire because it had a hole in it that I couldn’t repair with the new tire repair kit I had bought lol.  Anyway, I started riding and my legs were so not used to it and I would get down to H and 3rd and my legs were already tired and it was just 1 block away from my house lol.

So I would ride all the way to California and H and I was like screw this, I’m going back home and that whole trip was 1 mile lol.  Then when I got home my legs were so stiff from riding that 1 mile that I could barely even walk in the back door.  I had to sit and rest and I had to massage my thighs because they were just in so much pain from that pitiful ride lol.

I think I was riding like that for a week before I was finally able to go maybe 3 miles then went up to 4 then 5 which altogether took about a month before I was even able to get on the bike trail.

By the time I was finally riding the bike trail I could only go so far before I had to turn around and go back but eventually I was able to do 11 miles per day which was a little over an hour.

Now, I can do that 11 miles in just 55 minutes so I have to step up my ride and go further and go 16 miles just to make up my time which is about 1 hour and 16 minutes.  But that 16 miles to me now is no biggy.

Early To Bed, Early To Ride

On By Michel McDonaldIn Daily Blog, ExerciseLeave a comment

I’ve been going to bed relatively early every night like 9 or 10pm which is odd for me because I’m usually up until like 1am but I’m making an effort to beat the heat to ride the bike to get my exercise.

It’s actually not that hard getting used to waking up at 4:30 in the morning and leaving by 5am and back around 7am.

It’s really nice being out there that early though because it’s in the 60’s or 70’s at 5am, there is no sun yet so the city hasn’t had a chance to get hot yet.  By the time I get home it’s still nice out even though the sun has been out for at least 45 minutes by that time.

I think that it’s going to be easy to get my exercise done and over with by going so early every day.  I just need to learn to take naps during the day to catch up.

Early Morning Bike Ride

On By Michel McDonaldIn Bike, Cycling, ExerciseLeave a comment

Well, I did it.  I set the alarm clock for 4am and of course had to push the snooze and when it went off again in 10 minutes I decided ok, I need to do this, I need to wake up and get ready.  So I got up, went and got a bowl of raisin bran cereal.  I read my emails which weren’t that many since the last time I read them last night lol.

I like to eat then wait 30 minutes to go, so 4:45am came and I left the house and it was pitch black outside.  Thank goodness for bike lights.  Although I didn’t realize until I got there that the back light wasn’t working at all.  It wasn’t until the sun came out that I realized that it was because the wire snapped off.  UGH!  It’s easily repairable.

What I especially liked about riding that early is that there are absolutely no cars.  0 cars.  Well, there were a couple but none that I had to worry about.  Of course being that early I had to stop and push the walk button because certain lights just won’t turn green unless the sensors detect a car sitting there and they don’t detect bicycles.

While I was on the bike trail that early in the morning before the sun came up there were no other riders which isn’t odd for me not to see anyone because in the daytime there are barely any other riders.  So it really didn’t make much of a difference.  But when the sun did start coming up I did start to see a couple of riders.

Even coming home with the sun up at 6am there still weren’t any cars.  I finally got home at 6:22am so I was gone about an hour and half but my total time was 1 hour 5 min.  Hey, I have to take a break during my ride lol.

Now that my muscles are getting used to riding I’m gonna experiment with going out again tomorrow and then the day after that.  I want to go out every day, not just every other day.  I want to get as much exercise in as I can because the weight is coming off.  So, we will see tomorrow if I go out or not hehe.

Will The New Diet Stick?

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, Diet, ExerciseLeave a comment

Yesterday I went to the grocery store and bought about 10 power bars and 4 tigers milk bars for my bike rides so that should last me awhile.  Well, at least 14 rides anyway.  Actually that should last me the whole month since I ride 3 days a week.  Plus I bought 2 cans of Slim Fast Ultima.

I also bought a box of muffins because they were reduced for quick sale.  It had 2 bran muffins and 2 blueberry muffins.  I ate 1 blueberry muffin for breakfast and a slim fast shake for lunch then nothing all day until dinner time and we went to Que Pasa for dinner where I had a 2 item combo, beef Enchilada and beef burrito with rice and beans on the plate.  Then with my ambien I had a banana.  Food helps the ambien kick in faster.

It seems to have done some good for me because I’ve finally noticed some weight loss on the scale.

While I was at the store yesterday I bought 2 bags of the salad mix so when dinner rolls around I can eat some salad instead of the usual pasta or pizzas that we eat.

It’s time for me to start taking responsibility for what I eat and just say no when confronted with certain foods that I like.  I REALLY want to lose this weight but at the same time all this food is coming at me left and right, sometimes I just can’t say no.

I was going to ride today but my thighs are just in so much agony so I’m going to just stay home.  Our new tenant moved in yesterday and I’m going to help them with the rest of the heavy stuff in the U-Haul.  It rained yesterday from about 3pm until late last night but the street seems to be dry as a bone now.  I was going to use that as my excuse for not riding but frankly I can’t lol.  I’m just going to say that my legs are tired, I’ll do it tomorrow.

Discouraging

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, Diet, ExerciseLeave a comment

I bought my new bike wheel on April 13th, I think.  My first ride was on April 14th so I’m going to assume it’s the 13th when I got the wheel.  I have 2 weeks worth of riding in my log which technically is only 3 days per week.  But in those 2 weeks I haven’t lost 1lb.  It’s a bit discouraging when you ride so far and get no results from it.

I guess in all fairness I wouldn’t lose the weight so easily with only 3 days per week but I’ve just stared exercising again so it’s not going to be easy on my legs to just get back into the routine again.  I mean, when I first started riding last year I only rode for half a mile before my legs were just killing me because I hadn’t ridden in so many years.  And it took me 2 weeks just to get to the point where I was riding for 6 miles a day.  Then I went up to 10 miles a day then next thing you know I was able to ride 18 miles.  That of course was only 2 days that I did that.  I knew it was too much so I went back to 10 miles per day.

My point is that I’ve started up again going 10 miles a day instead of easing myself into it.  So it’s a bit discouraging that 30 miles a week gives me no results.

That first week that I was riding Darrin got his check on that Friday so he wanted to go to Hometown Buffet on Sunday for dinner when he got off work.  Then the very next day was his day off and he took me to China Town Buffet.  Oh and plus we went to Taco Bell.  I knew I wasn’t going to lose weight that first week but come on, the buffets and Taco Bell were a bit much for someone who is working so hard to lose weight.

The 2nd week I wasn’t even trying hard enough to eat right.  I’d have a bowl of cereal for breakfast or some days just toast then go ride and eat a Tiger’s Milk bar when I got to the half hour mark when I took my break to give me the strength and energy to get back home.  But then I’d come home and I was so hungry that I’d end up eating 2 sandwiches.  Some days I’d eat a whole box of Macaroni and Cheese (cooked of course duh lol).  That’s definitely not good for trying to lose some weight.

I’ve taken the last 2 days off.  The day before yesterday I took off because I had ridden 2 days in a row and my legs just needed a break.  Then that day I couldn’t breathe through my nose so I took yesterday off thinking I was coming down with a cold but I was fine.  I’m still a little stuffed up.  But I’m taking today off too because it’s Chips day off.  Plus our dog doesn’t seem to be doing too well for some reason.  I don’t know whats wrong with her.  She might be constipated or she might be sick.  We can’t take her to the vet so we’re watching her.

This week I have to really focus on what I eat and I have to try hard to get motivated to ride because I don’t want to be discouraged.  I need to lose this weight.  We’re talkin 90lbs here that I have to lose.  I have to try so hard to eat less to shrink my stomach so that I get full faster so I don’t overeat.  I’m going to try the best that I can.  I don’t have any money until Friday though so I have to eat what we got in the house.  I’m going to buy a head of lettuce though to try to eat some salad for lunch today and maybe for dinner too.  That should help start getting my stomach smaller.

I think one of the things that is stopping me is the stress from thinking about it too hard.  They say that stress raises your Cortisol levels which makes it harder to lose the weight.  I’ve been documenting my every move (my rides that is) so maybe that is causing more stress than anything.  Plus the stress every time I weigh myself.  UGH!

I think the new plan should be to write down all the info from the bike computer but not think too much about it.  Try my best to start eating salads and maybe even sliced cucumbers and carrots etc.  Just eat veggies as much as possible to help with my hunger pangs.  And maybe put the scale in the back of the car so Darrin takes it to work with him so I don’t have any way of weighing myself every day.  Just do my weekly weigh in.  Or maybe a month weigh in.  That should help if I only weigh in once a month.

Oh that reminds me.  (I’m sorry, this post is getting too long.)  A few years ago I think I was 212lbs and so I started eating salads.  I wasn’t restricting myself on what I put in it.  I put sliced olives, hard-boiled egg or tuna, cucumbers, carrot and I used the salad mix (not head of lettuce) and I used ranch dressing.  I didn’t weigh myself at all for 3 months and I got down to 170lbs.  All of a sudden I weighed myself and that was the end of the weight loss.  Weighing myself put stress on me to keep losing weight so I was constantly weighing myself and the weight started coming back on.  Maybe I should just act like I’m not trying to lose weight and eat the salads again but not weigh myself ever again lol.

New Way of Thinking About Food

On By Michel McDonaldIn Diet, Exercise, HealthLeave a comment

Boy oh boy.  Here comes the post where I have to talk about changing my diet habits when I start riding my bike again.

I haven’t actually gotten the new front wheel yet and I haven’t gotten my Camelbak or Diablo skull cap so I can’t really start riding yet.  Even if I get my wheel tomorrow, if I don’t have the camelbak or the skull cap I’m not riding yet.  Yeah I know I’ve ridden without them just fine in the past but I really want to have them when I start riding again.  I think it will help me stay hydrated a lot longer than the old 32oz bottle because I can feel free to drink more since I now have 70oz of water to drink so I won’t be conserving it so much.

But what about my food habits?  Ok, well, no more McDonald’s that’s number one.  No more fried chicken from Albertson’s or cocoa pebbles cereal filled all the way to the top of the bowl.

From now on I am going to try my hardest to only eat good foods.  I don’t know what is a good example of good foods but I’m sure I will figure it out soon enough.  Instead of buying the crap cereals, I’m going to buy either Raisin Bran or the Weight Watchers cereal.  Costco used to have the Weight Watchers cereal and it was so good and I was measuring it instead of just pouring it into my bowl.  I have to start doing that again.

It’s all mentally and physically preparing myself for the torture I’m going to be putting myself through on a daily basis.  Can you imagine riding for 20 miles straight in a couple of hours burning something like 1000 calories?  Then coming home and taking a shower just to get ready to go to McDonald’s to eat lunch?  OMG That totally cancels out the whole ride.  Just 1 McChicken sandwich cancels all that out.  Not to mention the 2nd chicken sandwich that I would normally eat as well as the small fry and 2 apple pies.  I don’t count the diet coke, it has no calories.

No, I’m going to have to spend a little more money on my food at the store rather than eating a $5 lunch at McDonald’s.  And when we go out to restaurants I’m going to have to get the side salad or sandwich every time so I don’t cancel myself out again.

Oh and forget about ever being able to have ice cream again lol.  Ok, Ice Cream is fine in moderation.  I can safely eat ice cream as long as it’s 1 scoop of ice cream, not an entire container of ice cream.  You know, those little $5 cups of Häagen-Dazs.

With my birthday coming up it’s not going to be easy for me but I think I can manage.  And Darrin is diabetic so I know he’s not going to buy me a cake that he can’t eat.  So I think that we will figure it out.  They have these single serve cakes that we can buy and we can buy 1 of those small Häagen-Dazs ice cream cups and split it.  It’s hard to scoop from a tiny cup lol.  Oh wait they have these little tiny cups that measures to I think half a cup of ice cream which I believe is 1 serving so maybe I’ll buy 2 of those lol.  They ain’t cheap, they cost $1 each.

The point is, I’m going to start riding my bike again hopefully this weekend maybe tomorrow.  I’m not going to ride on Chips days off, just 5 days a week when he works so that he won’t think I’m blowing him off to go bike riding.  But before I start riding again I’ve gotta rethink my whole eating habits so that I don’t keep making the same mistakes I always make and think hey well I’m exercising so one ice cream won’t hurt or 2 McChicken won’t hurt.  They will.

Ugh!  It’s a lot of mental preparation and a lot of physical torture but I gotta do it.  I just wish my stuff would come in so I can do it sooner than later lol.

24 Hour Fitness

On By Michel McDonaldIn Exercise, HealthLeave a comment

I’ve always wanted to go to 24 Hour Fitness but they always charge you so much money up front.  You can’t even get a membership unless you have $200 in your pocket (or debit card) so I’ve just given up hope.  Also I’d have to take 2 buses to get there and wait about 45 min for the bus.

The bike trail is near where the 24 hour fitness is so I could get to the bike trail from home then when I get to Rosedale Hwy I can just start riding on the sidewalk (because it’s on the wrong side of the street) until I get there.  They have a special right now that is $19 down, $19 a month.  Now I can afford it and I can be exercising on the way there then get a couple of hours of exercise in before leaving where I will be exercising some more to get home.  Good plan.  We’ll see if I do it when I get my used bike.

A Bicycle Built for Two

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, ExerciseLeave a comment

I suggested to Darrin today that maybe we should get a bicycle built for two.  He didn’t go for that one lol.  I think it would be cool.  We could have matching performance wear, helmets and we can have headsets for chatting.  And we can also use a Y adapter for my Dell DJ so we can both hear the same music while we ride.  I think that would be awesome.  This is what we would look like…