Tuesday,
May 22, 2018
I HAVE to stop taking these
breaks from writing! At least this time
I didn’t take a break from working out.
Quite the opposite, actually.
My riding became less frequent
as my time to hike in the Adirondacks drew nearer and the rains continued
unabated. I also got caught up in the
numbers game my Fitbit has created…counting steps. At one point, I did over 30,000 steps in
three consecutive days. My feet were
quite sore after that period and it was a good test of what it would be like to
walk multiple days of more than 20 miles, as I would be likely to do when
trekking whatever long course I hike. I
also did over 193,000 steps in one seven-day period, marking a new record by
far for a week. I am on my way to
crushing my one-month total, as well.
And I do get caught up in these
numbers and I don’t know why. I always
have gotten caught up in the numbers.
How many miles did I run in a week?
What was my fastest time on a particular course? How many miles did I ride for the day, week
or month? What was Carl Yastrzemski’s
batting average (he won the American League batting title in 1968 – the year of
the pitcher – with a .301 average. It was
the lowest average ever to win the league title before or since)? The very important numbers only.
I climbed Hopkins Mountain in
the Adirondacks last Friday on probably the best weather day I have ever
climbed. With a cloudless sky overhead
and temperature hovering in the mid-sixties, I did the ascent in two hours
using a casual, enjoy the serenity, pace.
Once on top, I marveled at the views and deep blue of the sky overhead
and found myself mesmerized and unable to leave for over an hour. That part was okay, but doing so without a
cover on my head was not. I burned my
dome to the point of blistering and by the end of the day Saturday must have
been suffering from some kind of sun poisoning.
That was colossally dumb.
And so now I find myself
without a specific, immediate goal. I am
heading for Augusta and Fort Gordon this weekend to spend some time with
Jack. It’s a struggle to get in good
hikes around that area as the roads are busy and there are no parks
nearby. I’m thinking of packing up my
bike and doing a morning ride while Jack sleeps in, which he normally does any
chance he gets away from an Army routine that has him up by 4 a.m.ish. When I return home, I think I will map out a
strategy for the summer to include several weekend trips of hiking and biking. That will keep my focus where it needs to be –
on the training and conditioning I need to maintain as I head into retirement.
Oh…and I did actually notify
the farm that I want to semi-retire at the end of this year. It was a watershed moment for me to actually
commit to it on paper and with the organization. When I think back over my life at the things
I never really thought about or thought would actually happen, this is surely
one of those moments. It scares me. It excites me. The unknown will do that to you…
Hike:
One hour and 20 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 70 - 90 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 475.
Bonus:
22,000 steps.
Wednesday,
May 9, 2018
“My back is pretty sore. I was doing ditches again today and the pain
is wicked. I may just skip riding and
take it easy tonight,” I said to my cousin Donnie as I drove home.
“Good thinking, Maddox Man (my
childhood nickname stemming from my love to dig holes and trenches with a mattock). Even superheroes need a rest now and again,”
he said.
But by the time I got home, the
guilt of not having ridden the night before and the thought of not riding for
two nights in a row was too much for my limited brain function. I suited up and headed down the road.
Everything was fine for several
miles, but then I felt it at the base of the spine. Nothing serious or I wouldn’t have ridden,
just that nagging fatigue that comes from doing too much lifting. I cut the ride a little short, doing only 25
miles and after walking around for the rest of the night doing mundane chores, I
have to say it was much better. I know
my body and sometimes it is actually preferable to work through the ache.
The Boston Celtics knocked off
the Philadelphia 76’ers, so the CAVS have their opponent for the championship
round of the NBA playoffs. If LeBron and
company can manage another upset, Boston was seeded second in the east, they
will head for the finals. If LeBron does
that, it will be the eighth consecutive trip – something never accomplished in
the history of the NBA. He may be the
best the game has ever seen. Sorry, Mr.
Jordan.
Bike
Ride: One hour and 45 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 120-135 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 1,500.
Bonus: 26,000 steps.
Tuesday,
May 8, 2018
Last Saturday I made a
concession to the weight loss I’ve managed since going on the Paleo Diet and
dropping ten pounds. My belt has not
been doing its thing, which is to hold up my pants. I had it on the last available notch, so I
took matters into my own hands deciding it would be more economical to punch a
hole into a perfectly functioning belt than it would be to buy a new one. I used the end of 5 in 1 scraper and worked a
hole through the leather. I pushed the
hasp through the new notch and eureka – my pants stayed up and I saved like $10
on accessories.
The grass has been getting out
of control on the farm and the storm ditches along the front of the property
needed cutting badly. I took my hand
mower down and began the arduous task of cutting them. The angle is wicked it took a couple of hours
slipping, yanking, pushing and pulling to complete the task. My back ached the entire time, but it had to
be done and I’m the only one available.
Retirement keeps looking better and better.
I got out of the car slowly
after pulling in the driveway. I
thought, ‘this would be a perfect day to ride and tomorrow is going to be in
the eighties’ but decided that my back needed some rest. I already had 25,000 steps for the day from
all I’d done at the farm and so took a 2-mile hike with Dakota just to give her
some exercise and to push my total over 30,000 for the day. When we returned, I did another un-Paleo
thing and made Amish casserole for dinner.
It has turkey meat (good), canned cream of chicken soup (bad), noodles
and cheese (even worse) in it, but I needed something different that tasted
good. I made it, I ate it, I enjoyed
it. And then I felt guilty.
Hike:
40 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 70 - 90 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 275.
Bonus:
31,000 steps.
Monday,
May 7, 2018
I never watch basketball. I find it rather boring, to be honest. The see-saw nature of the game drives me
crazy and it feels like it’s going to come down to the last couple of minutes
anyway, so why watch the other 46? In any
event, I went to bed whispering a silent prayer that LBJ and the CAVS would
take care of business and sweep Toronto out of the playoffs. As is often the case, I woke up around 1 a.m.
and decided to check my smart phone for the results of the game. CAVS:
128 Raptors: 93 flashed across my
screen. I mean wow…that was a royal ass-kicking
if there ever was one. I was surprised
that I hadn’t received a late-night notification from Jack about the sweep, but
he gets up at 4 a.m. so he probably missed it.
I texted him on my way to work,
typing one word – ‘Wow’. He wrote back,
‘the CAVS got out the broom’. And so
they did. Sweep of the number one seed
complete. Now let’s see if they can make
it to the finals for the fourth straight year.
It was a rugged day on the
farm. Mitch and I shoveled, pulled
fencing, cut grass, hung a heavy fan from a ladder, and other miscellaneous
things to the point that I was feeling soreness in my back by the end of the
day. I’d actually been experiencing some
discomfort since the previous week when I’d moved a couple tons of stone and
limestone screenings onto the service drives in an effort to repair holes
created over the winter.
I drove home thinking it was
the absolute perfect day for a long ride.
The temperature was in the low sixties and not a cloud in the
skies. I suited up with Dakota watching and
thinking she was going along. She never
has taken up bike riding and I’m not sure where the optimism comes from, but
that’s her. “I’ll take you for a walk
when I get back,” I said guiltily.
It was another of those rides
where I felt ready to rock for hours. My
legs weren’t feeling the previous day’s ride in the least, but as I got up out
of the saddle to ride up a short hill, I felt a twinge in my lower back. Odd.
This pattern continued
throughout the ride and I knew my back was messed up. Nothing serious, mind you; I know the
difference, but it was something that could use some rest. Yet I had lots of heavy lifting to do at work
and many miles to ride in the coming days.
Rest for a sore back is unlikely.
We will see…
Bike
Ride: Two hours.
Training
Heart Rate: 120-135 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 1,500.
Bonus: 25,000 steps.
Sunday,
May 6, 2018
Thursday was the hottest, most
humid day yet. Hovering around 80
degrees, I took Dakota and headed out for our hike. She was not exactly thrilled and lagged consistently
behind me by about 50 yards…but she did keep moving. We did our long hike, climbing out of the
valley on Everett Road and she perked up as we made the half-way point and
turned for home. With another day of
more than 30,000 steps though, I was beginning to feel it and thinking about
doing this and more day after day with a pack on my back on the North Country
Trail. Ah well…I’ll be ready when the
time comes and if I’m not, I’ll die.
Friday was nicer and the hike
went more smoothly, but my right hip was hurting enough to keep me awake at
night. I worked on it all day Saturday
at Mimi’s, but decided against a hike afterwards and instead made some dinner
and watched the inspirational true story of Boston Marathon bombing victim,
Jeff Bauman, as he dealt with the physical and emotional pain of having lost
both his legs. Jake Gyllenhaal is
amazing in the role as Jeff Bauman, but when isn’t he amazing?
By Sunday, I was determined to
ride…and long. I was on the bike on a
somewhat chilly morning by 10 a.m. with the intention of going at least forty
miles. I picked a course I’ve been
riding with the intent of adding a couple of loops to make up the
difference. As I rode up and out of the
valley on Everett Road, I could tell I was going to have an excellent ride. I climbed in a harder gear with no real
effort and continued attacking hills throughout the course. I dropped back into the valley, but then
decided to climb up and out again near the end of the ride for the extra miles…and
punishment. But with the excellent
climbing gearing on ‘Locke’ and my conditioning and decreased weight, it went
easily. As I crested the hill for
another descent, I felt like I could keep doing this all day.
I arrived back home after two
and a half hours in the saddle feeling fantastic. Perfect way to end a ride, too. I still needed to get out with Dakota for a
hike, which didn’t concern me as the hip felt fine once again.
I’m holding my weight at 190
with some cheating. I went out Saturday
and scored a pint of Maple Nut ice cream, eating it all while watching the
movie. I had walked a record 188,000 steps for the week, crushing my old record of 168,000 easily and thought I deserved it.
Jack did call late Saturday
night to announce the outcome of game three between the CAVS and the Toronto
Raptors. When I saw who the call was
from, I knew they’d won. He’d never call
to discuss a loss.
“Did you see LeBron’s final
shot, dad?” he asked excitedly.
“Did he miss it?” I asked.
“He…what…no! He’s the most clutch player in the history of
playoff basketball!” he said.
Well…sure. He’s LBJ.
He was in The Land.
He coaxed me to get out of bed,
Google the last shot on YouTube and watch it with him on the phone. I did and it was amazing, but it’s LBJ and so
should we be too surprised?
Bike
Ride: Two hours and 30 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 120-135 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 1,875.
Bonus: 188,000 steps in one week.
Wednesday,
May 2, 2018
“They’re gonna sweep, dad,”
Jack said, matter-of-factly.
I had just asked him how the
CAVS, having squeaked by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the NBA
playoffs, would fare against the number one seed, the Toronto Raptors.
“They’re going to beat is four
straight?” I asked, innocently.
“NO DAD! We’re going to sweep THEM!” he said…as if I
didn’t know what he’d meant in the first place.
And so we went to Toronto for
game one and, in overtime, beat the Raptors by a single point. I hope you’re right, Jack.
I’d worked all day in a hot,
humid sun and was driving home thinking about abandoning my ride. I was exhausted. This happens when the weather changes
suddenly from winter to summer with no spring in-between. That it how it seems. Sunday morning, it was snowing in
Pennsylvania and now it’s in the eighties.
My body has not acclimatized and yes, that’s a real thing. Your body has to retool itself to dissipate
heat after spending five months trying to conserve it. It can take a week to ten days, less for a
highly conditioned person, but I’m not that right now.
I reached home and had
convinced myself I’d be a little girl if I didn’t get out on the bike, so I
suited up, filled up both water bottles – one with Gatorade – and headed out on
my 25-mile course. I struggled over the
last several miles, but was proud of myself when I rolled back in the driveway,
spent.
I took Dakota on a short walk,
acknowledging that she too needed to get used to the sudden heat wave. She moved slowly, but steadily for our 2-mile
hike and was glad to be back in the cooler house in the end. Though unwilling to concede it easily, I will
have to watch her closely this summer.
If that ‘dog years’ thing is accurate, she’ll be in her 90’s and maybe I
need to consider shorter hikes. She
looks fit, trim, and young and mostly acts that way, but it’s something to
watch for.
Thunderstorms are in the
forecast so the next couple of days may be tough for riding. With the Adirondacks only two weeks away, I feel
ready. My weight remains down and I’m
working out every day. It’s going to be
a good summer.
Bike
Ride: One hour and 30 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 120-135 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 1,125.
Bonus:
26,000 steps.
Tuesday,
May 1, 2018
For the past three years, I
have been meeting regularly with two life-long friends, Don and John, for
spaghetti dinners and then watching something related to baseball. We’re all junkies. Don and I were in the fitness business
together beginning in the early eighties when we were Fitness Directors for the
Back Wall Athletic Clubs. We started our
own fitness testing/cholesterol screening business afterwards and stayed close
over the ensuing years. Recently, he
told John and I how he was juicing six pounds of carrots a day and drinking the
48 ounces he got from his efforts.
“You’re going to turn
orange. I read about Steve Jobs doing
that and he turned orange,” I said.
He was pretty sure he wouldn’t
since he’d been doing it for a couple of weeks and was still pale. We teased him anyways, but he kept
drinking. Yesterday, we went to Fisher’s
for ribs where he told us he had an interesting story to tell.
“I’ve had a non-aggressive form
of prostate cancer for two and a half years,” he said. He went on to describe how he had chosen to
just keep an eye on it with his Cleveland Clinic doctor because he wasn’t ready
for the alternative chemo or radiation.
“Eighty percent of my patients
opt for an aggressive approach because they are uncomfortable with cancer in
their bodies. You don’t need to do
anything if you’re comfortable with that approach, though. We will watch your PSA and do the exams we
need every three to four months,” he told Don.
And so it went – until his last
exam when his doctor told him he had a large mass and it was growing fast and
aggressive. “We need to take quick
action,” he told Don.
“I went home and did some
reading – like all people do who get this diagnosis – and I kept reading about
mega doses of carrot juice. I checked
with Bob (our good friend and incredibly thorough nutritionist) and he assured
me that there was not toxic buildup of vitamin A as long as it came from a
plant source. I told the doc’s office
what I was doing and put off the biopsy for a couple of weeks so I could give
it a chance to work. They told me there
was nothing to support what I was doing, but as a pharmaceutical rep, I know who
puts the money into medical research and it’s not them if there is no drug to
sell if it works,” he said.
For the next six weeks he
juiced and drank his concoction. He had
his biopsy three days ago – fourteen samples were taken – and the doctor had called
him with the results just before he joined us for dinner.
“The doc was kind of
emotional. He said he’d never seen
anything like it before, but my cancerous mass and any sign of cancer – was gone!”
I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know he’d had it and he was telling
me it was gone and of course I was extremely happy for him and dumbfounded by
how he’d accomplished it.
“In your reading, was the
carrot juice option limited to prostate cancer or would it help will all cancers?”
I asked.
“Any cancer,” he said.
It has me thinking about
getting a juicer and turning orange.
I managed a hard ride before
dinner, going 25 miles on a hot and sunny afternoon. I also hit 30,000 steps for the second consecutive
day, which is something I’ve never done before.
Today is should be a good riding day if the thunderstorms hold off until
evening.
Bike
Ride: One hour and 30 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 120-135 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 1,125.
Bonus:
31,000 steps.
Monday,
April 30, 2018
I’m getting bored with hiking
as my only form of exercise, but even though it was perfect weather for a ride,
I opted for a hike with Dakota. You see,
I arrived at home with 21,000 steps already in the books from a hard day on the
farm. I knew my standard hike would put
another 9,000 on that total and I liked the sound of 30,000 for the day. Additionally, I would set a monthly record
for myself that would be hard to beat and I like having tough goals. So…out I went.
And I didn’t stop until I reached
almost 36,000 for the day and 649,000 for the month. Okay…that’s done. Today should reach almost 80 degrees and with
sun in the forecast, I’ll ride. The
Adirondacks are three weeks away and I really should find that missing bag of
salt, throw it in my backpack and head to the local track to do some
steps. How to you misplace a fifty-pound
bag of salt anyway? One of the issues of
my new house and no garage.
I continue to follow the Paleo
Diet though I took a weekend off to have some French toast and maple syrup
while camping. I began watching ‘The
Magic Pill’ on Netflix and although I am only half way through the 90-minute
documentary on sensible nutrition, I can already endorse it. Essentially, it is the Paleo diet, focusing
as the Paleo does on lean meats, fruits and vegetables. It does a nice job of explaining the Paleo
theory that our body’s DNA for eating, which for 100,000 generations (not years
– generations!) was all about food we ingested from our hunter/gatherer methods. Only over the last 10,000 years have our
bodies switched to highly processed, grain/legume, carbohydrate-based foods,
which is at the root of so many of today’s illnesses. Though I have not finished the program, I
hope that it will spend some time on activity levels as a large part of the
obesity issue throughout the world. As much
as diet, I suspect this leads in a large part to issues such as high blood
pressure, diabetes, heart disease and joint issues related to being
immobile. In any event, the emphasis on
the right kinds of fats and the elimination of boxed carbohydrates is fascinating.
Hike:
One hours and 30 minutes.
Training
Heart Rate: 70 - 90 bpm.
Calories
Burned: 525.
Bonus:
36,000 steps.
