Back in the saddle...

Thursday, July 07, 2011

I arrived at the park ready to push myself. I intended to do the Survival Workout and a long ride and I wanted to hit them both hard…then go home and weigh in. Things started well as I ripped off a push-up pr with 54! Two more and I hit my age…something I didn’t think I’d be able to approach once…but not anymore. I charged through the remainder of the workout, returned to the car and headed home for the bike ride.

I needed something long to jump-start the engine and access the progress of the knee. I decided to ride out Pekin and beyond…turning around eventually in Amish country 27 miles away. I was hauling down Gates Mills Blvd. for Old Mill Road when a motorist yelled something out his window. These things are usually confrontational…and I’m always up for a good confrontation…but something about the voice sounded familiar. I looked through the back window and from the bald head knew it was Dan. He pulled over on a side street and waited for me to catch up.

I’ve been bugging Dan every time I go to his place for work on a vehicle to get out his bike and start riding again. He did triathlons with me about 30 years ago, but his bike has been in his garage attic for a long time and he’s been reluctant to get it down. When I rode up to his window he said “seeing you riding has me thinking. How long do you suppose it would take me to ride to work? Maybe an hour?” Dan lives in Chardon and works in Beachwood…about a 20-mile hitch…and hilly. “Maybe an hour…to the halfway point! C’mon Dan…you got old and fat and you haven’t ridden since Moby Dick was a minnow. I think I’d allow an hour-forty-five. You can work it down from there sure…but figure long at first.”

The good news is…he’ll get the bike down, dusted and lubed and start riding. He does work out with weights and hits the stationary cardio equipment at the Geauga YMCA, but nothing gets you ready for the roads…except the roads. He sped off and I continued the ride, racing down Old Mill at 50 mph only to discover the bridge over the Chagrin River was closed, forcing me to alter my course. It was no big deal and in an hour, I was passing buggies in Amish country and hitting my turn-around.

I managed the return trip at about a 19 mph average pace…which is good for me on hilly courses with lots of turns. My feet and butt were extremely sore when I made it back to the house…I sometimes find the balls of my feet aching from the constant pressure on the pedals…but after a dip in the neighbor’s pool, I was feeling better. I checked the weight when I went in to change, expecting something in the high 180’s so I was thrilled when it registered 183.5.

So…I got away with missing some workouts and not eating Paleo. I think I’m continuing to lose because even when I’m not eating Paleo, I’m watching every calorie and keeping junk and sugar out. I’m closing in on needing a new wardrobe though…a good problem to have.

Survival Workout duration: 60 minutes. Bike workout: Three hours and 15 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100 to 150 bpm for workout, 130 biking.
Calories burned during workout: 600 for survival workout. 2,800 biking.