Weekly Recap

What a great week!

We will start with my weight. I am down to 242. I know that I have not been in this weight bracket since at least 1998. Maybe 1997. 96-98 was the 1st of my large weight gains. So I am getting in to an area that I haven’t been in a long time.

As for the bike. Only made 2 rides in the last part of the week. Saturday morning and this morning. Yesterday was windy and cold. Only rode 15.7 miles.
This morning was a totally different story. I rode for 64.2 miles. A new personal best. I also kept a 15.7 mph pace. It was insane. They say cycling is a suffering sport. The last 12-15 miles I felt all of the suffer. Had the wind blowing in my face and it took everything I had to finnish the ride. I felt that I was so close to braking one of my goals (ride a metric century) that I had to push to make the distance. I couldn’t come up a couple miles short.

I feel that I am ready for the Chilly Roger ride on the 13th of March now. (62.5 mile ride)

Ok time for the mileage Challenge update.

Mileage to date – 594.5

Miles needed – 800

Miles + or – (-205.5) gained 10 miles this week.

I totaled 110 miles in 3 rides this week.

I will say that it will take a few more rides till my rear end will be use to this.
I am sore right now! I am tired and sore but I am very happy too. Now I just have to work on getting ready to try a Century ride. (100 Miles) That’s the next goal to attack.

Well that is all for now.

WOOO HOOOO!!!!

Well time to make another post.

Well I forgot to hit the scale Sunday. So I got on it yesterday. I am now down to 244 pounds. So it is 55+ since July and 7 pounds for the year. Only 45 to go for this year to get to 199!!!

I find it funny when I grab clothes that just fit me last year that now are like a parachute on me. I love to dig in my closet and dresser to get old clothes that I couldn’t fit in to any more.

Started this week off right. I got done early with work on Monday and headed out for a ride. It was a great day. Mid-60’s and the sun was shining. Ended up doing 30 miles. It was great!

Now today was a different story. It was a 180 from yesterday. Overcast and cold and the wind was blowing. So no ride today.

Seeing the scale on Monday has given me more motivation. HA. I already had the motivation. Just more determination now. I know I can do this!!!

Weekly Recap

Well time for an update.

Only rode Saturday. I rode 51 miles at a 15.3 mph average. Not my fastest but my longest ride ever. I am trying to work up the mileage. I have the Chilly Roger ride on the 13th of March that is 62.5 miles (100K) So I am working on making sure I will make the distance.

Ok here is the mileage update.

Mileage to date – 484.5

Goal miles needed – 700

Miles + or - (-215.5) Gained 19.8 miles this week.

I totaled 116.8 miles in 4 rides.

My dad is getting back going on the bike. He rode 10 or so miles on Saturday then today he rode 36 miles. I bet he will be a little sore for the next few days. Keep at it Dad. I will be going over to Houston at the end of March!

Cross Training

Well time for another update.

Wednesday I was still sore from Tuesday’s ride. So I decided not to ride. Instead I went and shot some hoops with some friends. Let me rephrase that, I attempted to play basketball. I am not a strong basketball player. I am short and fat. Not the best combination for basketball. I have never been a good basketball player. I wrestled in school. The way we played basketball was full contact.

I had some fun and did get the ball in the hoop a couple of times. And it was a different type of exercise. We played outside and I was really surprised how cold it was. While we were playing it really didn’t feel cold. But when we stopped I could feel the chill. I hope we start to get the really spring weather soon.

I managed a easy ride today. (Was still sore, basketball is hard on ya too.) Did 24.5 miles at a 15.5 mph pace. I kept the heart rate down too. Only averaged 71% of my max. I am really starting to feel comfortable on the new bike. I have got 264 miles on it now and I really am enjoying it.

I need to get 2 more rides in this week to meet my 5 rides a week goal. Hope the weather holds up.

Well enough for now.

Battling the WInd

Well I guess I need to make a post.

Rode both yesterday and today. Yesterday sucked to be on a bike. I was a bit sore from Sundays ride so I planned to make it an easy ride. Well it turned in to a true suffer fest. The wind was blowing very hard. It nearly blew me in to the ditch on the side of the rode on numerous occasions. I only rode for a hour. It was bad.

Today’s ride was a little better. Still had the wind but it wasn’t as bad as yesterday. I managed 27.6 miles.

Added the cadence feature to my computer. I finally broke down and got the sensor and installed it. I think that this will help me develop a better pedal stroke. We shall see.

I am eager to see how the Chilly Roger ride goes next month. Will be my 1st metric century ride. I hope to ride 50 miles this weekend. I want to try to add some mileage every weekend leading up to the ride to make sure I am ready.

Not much else to rant about today.

Sunday Ride

Well had a great ride this morning. It started off fast. The group was averaging 19-20 mph. I was able to stay up with them for about 9-10 miles. I knew I would be falling off the back. I just don’t have the legs yet to keep that pace up. I kept the group in sight till the made the turn to the south. Then my personal battle with the wind began. I was very happy when I made the turn to the west and wasn’t riding in to the wind. I ended up with 42.6 miles and averaged 16.6 mph. That is my fastest ride ever. I was able to keep up with the group for about 3 miles longer than I did the last time so I know I made some gains. I will only get better as the year progresses and I lose some more weight.

This week I broke 1600 miles since I started back in August. Funny it doesn’t seem like that many miles.

I am going to start to do a weekly update on my goal mileage for the year. The goal is to break 5200 miles. That means I need to average 100 miles a week. So here is the 1st update.

Mileage to date – 367.7

Miles Needed – 600

Miles + or - (-232.3)

I really am not worried about the negative balance right now. I know that I will make some of that up when the weather gets better.

Well not much else to say today

Cold Ride

Well I finally got to ride again. Froze my tail off but still managed a 25 miler. I was humble by a woman the other day at the bike shop. (Just kidding)

I acquired some shoe covers and a jacket so cold weather here I am.

Louisiana got snow again. 1st in the beginning of December now in the beginning of February. Just got to love the global warming.

Planning on riding again in the morning. So I will keep this one short.

Suprise!!!

Well haven’t been riding since the weekend. Cold and lots of wind. Hope to get at least one ride in this week.

Had to go to court the other day. So I pulled out the Sunday best. Most of my Sunday best were bought back in 1999. My best friend’s brother was getting married and his mom had a dress code to adhere to. The Sunday best had been very tight for the past decade. Very tight.

To my surprise, when I got dressed the pants were loose!!! So that means that I am equal to or a bit smaller than back in 1999. WOW!

Well I love this.

Well not much else going on for now.

Weekend Recap

Well, I only rode on Saturday morning. It was windy and cold. I was planning on riding on Sunday but I woke up to 35 degrees and a sore hamstring. As I has said before I am not equipped to ride in the cold this year. I don’t want to waste money on clothing that I will not fit in to this next fall.

The weather forecast for the week is not looking too good to get much riding done. Looks like I will be back in the gym.

Saturday was nice. My dad and his wife passed thru Lake Charles. He and I got to talk cycling. I am planning a trip to Houston in March to go ride with him. Also started to make plans to ride the MS ride in October out of San Antonio.

Doing a MS ride is very important to me. I will make the ride in the memory of my mother. I know she would be glad to see me getting healthy. If she was here she would have been on my case more than my dad or grandma ever was. Mom had an iron will.

Sunday was a nice day. Spent time with my sister and her family. Watched the Super Bowl. I will say that game was one of the best Super Bowls I have ever watched. Still can’t believe the Saint’s have won a Super Bowl.

Well enough for now.

TGIF

TGIF!!!

Well the rain has passed for now. So out I go to put some miles on the new ride. Did 26 miles this evening. Just made it in before it got dark. Planning on making a ride tomorrow and Sunday. (Mondays forecast is for rain again)

Starting to feel a little more comfortable on the new bike. I know it’s going to take a few more weeks to really get the true feel. But I really am enjoying riding this bike. After my spill back in October, my wrist has always hurt while I rode. On the new bike it really hasn’t been a issue. The carbon bars and on the bike really have dampened the road vibration so no issue with the wrist.

Well time for my weekly weight report. I am now at 247 pounds. So now a total of 52+ pounds lost. 48 to go for 2010. I can say that I can not remember being in this weight range in the past decade. My 42 waist pants are hanging on me. I can fit in to 40 waist cloths now . That hasn’t happen since the late 90’s.

My body is getting use to the new vitamins and the diet change. But for now it seems like it is going good. I haven’t had any wild cravings to eat and splurge.

Well that’s it for now.

The "D" Word

Well not much to write about cycling today. Been raining since last night. So no ride today.

Instead I will write about the dreaded “D” word. Diet.
I haven’t been following a specific diet plan. I always fail when I do. This time I am eating mindful. I am eating smaller portions and trying to avoid the bad stuff. I have also been drink a lot more water and less sodas. (I don’t think I can ever give then up completely.)

Well it worked well so far. But I have hit a wall. So I am revamping the diet again. I am adding more green stuff. (salads to be exact) I am trying to only eat a salad for dinner. I am hoping that by not eating a have meal at dinner it can help me get past the wall I am at.

Well 5 days in and I am starting to like this. It’s really affordable to hit the supermarket and shop for salad fixing’s.
I will see how this new approach works.

I just thought of something cycling to put in this post.
I just got a new rack for my car! I am ready to hit the road! I bought a Saris Thelma rack. It allows me to carry 2 bikes and it holds them by the wheels and not the frame. Very important because carrying a carbon bike by the frame is no good. So now I will have to make the trip to Houston and ride over there with my dad.

Well enough for today.

Today's Ramble

Well time for my daily rambling.

Yesterday’s ride was ok. Did 23 miles at a 15.5 mph pace. Still getting use to the bike. I am working on my shifting. She shifts really smooth. I am not use to that.

The war with Mr. Wind continues. It was fairly calm most of the day. Till I got on the bike. The new bike makes cutting thru the wind easier but it’s still feels like I have a brake hung up!

Won’t be getting out till Friday. The rain has moved in. Weather forecast is for a clear and cool weekend. Should get some miles in.

Not much else to say today. Will go to the gym tomorrow.

Till the next post!

A little rambling and some backround

Well the rain spoiled any chance of a ride yesterday.

I figured that I have some stuff I want to put to paper so I might as well make a post.

A little background on how I let myself get in to the poor shape I am in. Thru out high school I was always involved in sports. I mostly wrestled. And I don’t mean just at the high school. I trained and competed year round. All of that ended after my junior year. I moved to Louisiana and was at a school that didn’t have wrestling.

After I graduated I joined the Army. I was an Infantryman. We did PT every day. Took long walks in the woods and spent long amounts of time out doing other training. Thru this I was always active. But it is also hard on the body. In 1995 I tore up my knee. (Again!!! Messed up the right one in 1991 at Airborne School, this time the left one) Well after they did surgery to clean that mess up, I was told that I would have to be reclassified. I just wasn’t going to be the same after the knee injuries. Well I took the other option, they Medically discharged me. I needed a new start. (I was in the middle of a divorce)

So in February 1996 I was discharged.

I know that between that and the divorce it took a mental toll on me. I drifted and I continued to eat like I was as active as I was for the past 6 years. I also drank way too much.

I rechanneled my drive to be in control and be the best to my work. I was a fast burner. I moved up the latter at work quickly. But the job was very stressful. I never ate right and was always drinking too much too. I never made time to go workout. It was too hard, so I took the cop out.

Well I finally realized that I couldn’t continue the stress load. I also got tired of feeling like crap because of drinking. So there started some changes. I left the stressful job and drifted for a while until I got hire to my current job. During the drifting time I just never realized what I need to do.

Then it hit me when I saw the scale maxed out.

So there the journey began. August of 2009 was the start. Where it will end is really up to me and me alone. While I have great support from friends and family, it is still up to me. It is up to me to keep riding and working.

I took the time to look up what the Army regulations say someone of my age and height can weigh. It is 178 pounds. So I have decided that my ultimate goal is 180.

But that is a large chunk to lose. So I have made some short term goals. I am taking this 10 pound at a time. Right now I am at 249. So the goal for now is 239. Then it will be 229 and so on.

My goal for 2010 is to get to 199. But I will not stress out if I don’t get there. I will be happy with whatever I weigh on December 31, 2010. So long as I am working at losing more. I know that it will not come off over night. It was 13 year of neglect that got me here. So I know that I will have to work at it to lose it.
That is the biggest difference between this journey and my other attempts to lose weight. I was always looking for the quick fix. There is no quick fix. Its hard work and changing your lifestyle. It is a journey.

Well that’s just a little background and some thoughts and goals.

I am a talkative person. I can ramble on endlessly. Also my grammar isn’t the best either.

So there is my ramble for the day!!!