A good double...

Sunday, February 28, 2016

I’d had a pretty good exercise week, having gotten on the trainer twice for one-hour rides and hitting the Metro Park for the Survival Workout on another day.  I’d also managed a long hike and realized that I average 11,000 steps per day at the farm, as reported by my ‘Health’ application on my IPhone.

Still…that’s not nearly enough and I knew it.  I’d managed a reasonably healthy diet through the weekend in spite of a family wedding, my nephew Nathan is now married, and all the eating that goes with it.  I’m now dating a wonderful lady who thinks that my eating habits could be improved, to put it mildly (she is maniacal and it could be a good thing if I survive the changes). 

Sunday proved to be an amazing exercise day for the end of February.  The temperature hit the low sixties, but the wind was whistling at high levels.  I took off on the bike knowing that I’d be facing the gale over the final miles of the ride…and I wasn’t disappointed.  I spent the last 45 minutes in an all-out effort comparable to riding up hill.  It sucked.  I climbed off the bike and walked inside, exhausted, and when I climbed the stairs to take a shower, was reminded of the differences between riding a trainer inside without hills and wind and the real thing.  My thighs rejected every step.

I picked Kimberly up and we drove to the North Chagrin Reservation where we spent the next 90 minutes hiking off-trail, climbing hills and dropping down into deep ravines that separated them.  I could feel the ride in every step I took uphill…and it reminded me of the importance of training for climbing in the Adirondacks.

I returned home to a dinner of eggs and toast and headed to bed early and tired.  It was a good day, but a day that pointed out the neglect of my training over the past few months.  I feel re-energized though, and am ready to start putting in the training I need to do. 
       
Bike duration: 1 hour and 40 minutes. Hike duration: 90 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 135 bpm riding and 75-90 hiking.
Calories Burned: 1250 biking and 500 hiking.

Where did I go?

Thursday, February 18, 2016

 …and then it began to snow.

That’s really no excuse for not writing my blog…or following my regular exercise routine, but I’m going to use it for a moment.  As with so many folks who attempt – and then stop – an exercise program, I am a victim of routine.  We were have a pretty smooth winter by Northeast Ohio standards, little snow and warmer temperatures, but that all ended several weeks ago.  My job, unfortunately, is largely dictated by falling snow.  When it hits, I’m up earlier, moving the snow from my own driveway before driving to the farm where I have to plow the lots and service drives and then shovel walks, pasture entrances and clear arena doors.  If it’s hovering around zero as it was on several occasions, I find it all to be rather draining and by the time I get home and shovel my drive again, I find myself wanting to simply take a hot shower and vegetate…which I often do.  So yes…I’m a slacker.

Now things are changing.  It’s supposed to hit fifty tomorrow and again on Saturday, though the melt will make outdoor riding miserable.  Still, spring maybe close and I’m all about that.  I have big plans for this summer, which will be me getting in peak form with lots of cycling, hiking, and Survival workouts.  I have a house to sell, a move to make, and a new life to live.  I intend to attack it with a upbeat attitude and I know my physical conditioning has a large part to play in achieving that.  The blog will again be a testament to that effort.