The 175lb Cyclist

Back in 2005 when I got into road cycling, I was not the svelte athlete that I am today.

Just kidding, I wouldn't consider myself svelte even today, just in way better shape...

My first ride on my brand spankin' new Trek 5200 was only like 4 or 5 miles max such was my physical state that I didn't know how I'd do.  I felt good after that ride and was amazed to look down at my cycling computer and see how fast I was going down some small hills.  I wasn't fast, but that was okay, I was having fun.

Here's a stock photo of a Trek 5000 minus pedals, this is the bike I had back in 2005-2006

I began to devour anything I could get my hands on that pertained to the history of cycling and on improving my performance.  Pretty soon everything I was reading was using the 175 lb athlete as the benchmark.  There was nothing for folks in my weight range (at the time 200+).  I was researching different parts that I could swap out to make my bike lighter thinking that was what would make the most difference.  The spring of 2006 saw me upgrade the bars, stem, seat post & pedals along with my cycling shoes and a better helmet.

I was becoming a weight weenie, which is a cyclist so obsessive over the weight of their bike that they will spend hundreds on a carbon fiber component that weighs 100 grams less than the top end aluminium component.  I thought that by getting the bike as light as I could that it would make all the difference with my performance.

Another aspect to improving my performance at the time and through subsequent years up until 2012 was that I had to carb load, i.e. eat a bunch of pasta and such because I didn't want to bonk.  All the aforementioned books that referenced the 175 lb cyclist talked about eating bars & gels at the rate of 250 grams of carbs per hour because that is what the body can process.  The pros eat spaghetti pre-ride so that's what I did.

For real, I would make a small bowl of pasta top it off with Parmesan cheese and an egg all because the pros did it.  However as I have learned in subsequent years is that what the pros do isn't necessarily the latest & greatest nor is what they say they do, actually what they do.  For an example along those lines is how whatever bike is sponsoring their team that year is the best bike they have ever ridden.  The proof in the pudding is to see what bike they get when they retire, when it is their choice.

Plus, what I ride in a year, they cover just doing the Tour de France and several week long stage races.  They are riding their bikes way more than I do.

Because of his association with Lance Armstrong, I followed a lot of what Chris Carmichael was offering in the form of books & articles online.  What we didn't know at the time was that Carmichael was essentially a beard for Michele Ferrari.  And no matter what I did, my weight didn't budge past a certain point.  I could ride for hours & days on end and fuel the way I should be based on what I was told by the mainstream and my weight would not budge or it would go up.

I basically resigned myself to being a 200 lb cyclist...

...Then I discovered ancestral health, dropped sugar & grains (except when I was on the bike) and eventually dropped to 185 lbs, which was a weight I'd not seen since 1992 or Junior year of high school pre-drivers license.  And as I became fat adapted, I found that I could make my bike jump and go fast all because I lost weight, not my bike.  I could do a century (100 miles) and feel as fresh at the end as I did at the beginning and wake up the following day ready to go again.  Yes it helped that the bike I was on a great bike, a Cervelo S5 with deep section aero wheels, but in order to make that bike do what it is designed to, I had to be fit or rather fitter than I was previously.

Kicking grains & sugars got me there.

...Then stress kicked in and I ended up chasing that dragon for the last 5 years.

Now I know what's up.  I know all those books about carb loading and eating x # of grams per hour are a joke.  I was always upset that those books with the 175 lb cyclist focused only on those folks because I felt that there were more of me than them.

One of the last "fitness" books I bought pre 2012 paradigm shift was called Race Weight (I think).  In it I followed the carb loading post workout with a massive bowl of macaroni that was recommended.  Guess what happened?  Not only did my weight balloon up, but I also had bad blood values all because I was doing what I was told would work to get me to being a 175 lb cyclist.

So now, my target weight is 175-170 lbs.  Again, I've never been lower as an adult than 185.  Hitting 180 and lower will be an interesting no man's land.  I'll have no idea how I'll perform on the bike other than that my climbing should improve a lot.

I never thought I could be that 175 lb cyclist, but now because of a couple of guys named Loren Cordain, Ph.D. & Vinnie Tortorich I am within sight of that target.  Dr. Cordain got me started back in 2012 and Vinnie has reinvigorated me with his podcast & his attitude towards food, nutrition & cycling and life.

99% Sugar Free Century

In cycling terms, a century designates 100 miles ridden in one day.  It's a bit of a badge of honor and or a milestone for us and to those non-cyclists it's a bit of a head scratcher that generates a look of horror mixed with a decidely quizzical experssion.

Most non-cyclists cannot fathom doing 100 miles on a bike, let alone 10 miles.  And to some extent I can understand that because I cannot fathom running more than 3 miles.  Thus those who run half or full marathons are crazy.  And don't even get me thinking about those ultra marathon events...

Back in the middle of June I found myself once more in North Berwick at 6:30 a.m. at the house of a friend who is also an avid cyclist.  The two of us and one other  were meeting there to ride up to Sunday River Ski Resort in Newry, Maine.  Every year, barring one of my 12 participation in the Trek Across Maine I have ridden with these two to Sunday River.  Sometimes there are more of us, but over the last 12 years we've been the core group.

June mornings in Maine can be quite cool, temperatures usually are in the mid to high 50s by 6 and as the sun creeps over the horizon temperatures rise rapidly.  Mid to high 50s for a Mainer is shorts & t-shirt weather.  On a bike though you have the added factor of wind, which can make the usually bearable temperatures less so when your heart rate is not that high.

We set out, I opting to forego a wind vest and knee warmers, but my arms covered because I knew from past experience that was all I needed.  The mosquitoes that morning realizing the bounty that awaited them managed to appear just as we were leaving.  Mosquitoes don't like cool mornings and what few I initially encountered were sluggish yet persistent.

A very brief section of town maintained dirt road greeted us for the first quarter mile.  This was followed by a quick pause once we encountered pavement to wipe any grit and gravel adhering to our tires, lest we get a slow puncture as a result.  About a mile or so down the road a short but steep wall greeted us.  My legs yet to warm up weren't pleased but as with all that goes up,it to shall go down.  We regrouped a bit further down the road just as the first real downhill approached.

I like going downhill fast and because of my weight I can hit some good speeds.  However since becoming both a husband and later a father I don't take too many risks going down hill.  In this case though I was familiar with the road and confident in both it's condition, my bike & my skills.  Without even trying I hit 50 mph, which is both quite a lot of fun but equally crazy given how narrow road bicycle tires are.

By the time we emerged onto rt 4 in Sanford we were sufficiently warmed up and began to edge our speed up.  My friend whose house we departed from is a strong cyclist and likes to sit on the front of the group.  He also doesn't use a cycling computer so he has no real way of knowing how fast he's going, he really gauges his speed soley on how much effort is he putting out and like I said he's a machine.

We dropped our other friend at some point in this stretch of rt. 4 as we headed towards Alfred.  D generally has fewer miles in his legs than us two so its not uncommon for him to drop off and ride his own ride.  That day we had a tailwind, which was great but at the same time it also meant that we could easily go to hard too soon and end up paying for it at the end of the ride.

By now the course we follow is well ingrained in my head.  And it's also neatly broken up into 25 mile segments, which is how I approach it for the most part.  Thus we arrived in Limerick and stopped in at the local General Store.  The only downside to stopping here is that they don't allow customers to use their restrooms.  This was also were I began refueling for the ride and this is where I began to enter no-man's land for me.

All winter & spring I'd ridden without sugar or grains aka gels & bars.  For the majority of my rides I was under 50 miles so I didn't need to eat, but I did use tea in my bottles.  So this was going to be a wicked experiment where I didn't use gels, bars or sports drinks.

I put several packs of cashews into my jersey pockets and that's what my fuel was for the day.  I tore into the first packet and ate even though I wasn't quite hungry yet, but I didn't want to run into a scenario where I did get hungry because then I'm chasing it rather than being out ahead.  And speaking of being ahead as there was no bathroom, I rode ahead of my buddies to a scenic lookout where I knew a port-a-potty awaited.

The r3 at the scenic view, the spaciously sized porta-a-john is to the right off camera

The next 25 miles from Limerick through Cornish to Denmark are some of the most beautiful roads in Maine.  At one point we cross and then ride along the Saco River.  The roads here are usually free of cars to the point where when we do encounter one it usually takes us by surprise because of how infrequent it is.

The other thing about this leg of the ride is that you know when you hit Denmark that it's time for lunch at Jim Bob's Convenience Store, the last few miles into Denmark are also slightly downhill, which means easier pedaling, but not so easy that you can coast.

The folks who run & work at Jim Bob's remember us and look forward to seeing us each year.  I'm particularly memorable because of my order, a ham Italian sans bread, which they put on a bed of lettuce.  C the guy whose house we left from & I got there before D and settled in to our lunches.  D got there about 3/4 of the way through our meal and insisted we not wait for him.

Jim Bob's, Denmark, Maine

Awaiting us straight out the gate from Jim Bob's was a climb, which normally would not be a big deal, but we'd just sat for about 30 minutes.  Our legs were tight and not happy about this effort.  To make matters worse out of nowhere the ugliest black lab charged us from the other side of the road.  It very nearly got hit by a car in the process and then C in trying to get it away made the dog think he was playing with it!

A bit past this was a right turn that would eventually lead to another right and short fast downhill before we eventually passed Shawnee Peak Ski Resort, yet another marker on the trip north.  Just past Shawnee Peak we have another long easy climb and then a wicked stretch of downhill and by wicked I mean long and gradually the decline levels out.  And that puts in to mile 75 aka Center Lovell and another General Store.  Again I had my cashews and was feeling great.  By this point we have 25 to go and some hills ahead, but the route begins to level out a bit as well or rather the hills are more gradual.

C & I eventually got to somewhere around 12 miles out from Sunday River when I started to feel something odd.  I have never truly bonked and didn't want to that day.  I had cashews and that ham Italian and water all day.  At this point I had a bottle of water with MCT oil and probably should have drank that sooner, but I didn't.  Macadamias being a nut higher in fat and lower in carbs also might have been a better choice.  C had gotten a coke in Center Lovell, so I took a sip of what little was left in his bottle and immediately felt better.  Yup I was nearing a bonk.

The author wondering where to go...

At around 7 miles to go we ran into some folks I know from a cycling club in Kennebunk, they too were riding up so C & I rode with them into Bethel and a convenience store.  It was here at mile 94 that I had my first real big amount of sugar that day when I bought a coke.  I knew that the Sunday River access road and it's grades of 13% or more for over a mile awaited me and I did not want to blow up there.

The Coke was tasty as ice cold ones are on a hot day.  I refilled my bottles with water and off we went.  C had already taken off and I didn't bother catching him and eventually I did see him and might have caught him on the access road had he not turned off to go to the Grand Summit Hotel at Sunday River.  I was headed to South Ridge Lodge, which is where all Trek functions were taking place including bike storage.  That 13% grade really bit into my legs, but I threw it into my lowest gear 34x32 and just rode it at my own pace at that point.  As I neared South Ridge the grade eased and I threw into the big ring for a final charge at the non-existent line.

And there I was at Sunday River having ridden a Century, 99% on no sugar no grains and I was pleased as one could be.  Now I'd have been more pleased had I done it 100% but I was not about to let my ego trump reality.  I hadn't had a chance to test anything out before this ride, so I was headed into the great unknown so to speak and came out intact and with ideas with which to make it better next year.  Or the next century I ride, if any, this year.

South Ridge Lodge at Sunday River Ski Resort, Newry Maine where the morning after this the Trek would commence.

Update on the (mostly to date) Sugar Free Lifestyle...

Back in January I wrote about my success with NSNG, aka no sugar no grains, which is a close cousin of Paleo.  The difference is that NSNG allows for dairy, especially full fat dairy and it recognizes that we aren’t perfect and that now & again having something that is normally off limits is not the worst thing to happen.

So long story short there came a point in February where I slipped and had a treat ending a sugar free streak that was quite long and with that I became an intermittent eater of sugar once more.  That isn’t to say I fell completely off the wagon, because I didn’t, but I wasn’t 100% NSNG rather I was more like 80-85%, which for some can be fine, but personally for my goals that isn’t good enough.

By the end of June I’d ridden more miles in 2017 than all of 2016 combined so I think even though exercise is a poor way to lose weight, that it did help keep any excess weight off.  When I was on my bike racking up those miles (over 2,200 fyi) I was NSNG and the only stuff put in my water bottles was either tea or MCT oil.  The majority of my rides were under 50 miles so I didn’t need to eat while on the bike and up to the 1^st of April I’d been doing strict zone 2 HR training, which kept my heart rate low to burn fat for fuel not glycogen aka sugars.

I had three cycling goals for the spring.  The first was the Crank the Kanc hillclimb time trial.  I sucked hard that day and ended up being the second to last male rider in my age group.  The last guy was hauling a tag along with a couple of kids.  I just did not perform that day and I was not happy about it.  I slacked off, no doubt about it and those slips & trips with sugar meant that I was at a steady weight and never dropped anything.

Years ago during my archaeology days, I had a crew chief who was big into martial arts and being a home brew guy.  But he came to a point in his life where he had to decide what he like more martial arts or home brew because the latter was causing his weight to fluctuate in a way he didn’t like.  He was on the rollercoaster of losing during the week and then come the weekends he’d brew and imbibe and gain it all back.

I was on a similar course except that my weight because of the treats and the cycling was staying put, granted it was staying put at an okay weight.  However that weight was not idea for going uphill on a bike very fast.  There were other mistakes made that day in terms of gear choice and warm up, but at the end of the event it also came down to my decisions pure & simple.

Next up was the White Mountain Memorial Day Classic, a ride which I adore and have a bit of history with.  In 2012 I finally made it to the top of Hurricane Mt without stopping and was literally flying until I crashed out and since then while I have gone up Hurricane without stopping I haven’t gone up it feeling the same and haven’t been flying since.  Well this year like last year it rained.  Now I’ll ride in the rain as it is not a big deal, but cold & rain, no thank you.  And so I missed it again.

Third was the my 12^th Trek Across Maine, the Trek is 180 miles over 3 days from Sunday River Ski Resort to Belfast. I love this ride and every year barring 1, I have ridden up to it with some friends.  Now at the Trek all food is provided by the locations where we stay, so it is tricky to be fully NSNG off the bike.

On the bike though I was able to stay NSNG, including the majority of the 100 miles we rode up to Sunday River from North Berwick, Maine.  And since then I have been thinking about how I want to proceed with NSNG.

Do I go strict NSNG and go into ketosis and become ripped?

Do I go into a 95-99% state of NSNG?

I think and it’s really hard right now because of it being summer and wanting ice cream, but I think I have to go full NSNG at least until I know I can deal with the sugar beast.  Now that may mean I never taste sugar again, which even though I know how good those things taste, is a good thing because regardless of taste they are just awful for my health.  And I’m aware of enough of my limitations that I know I can’t just eat one.  For me one leads to two and two to three.

So for now I take it day by day and try to get this under control.  I know I can do it, it’s just getting there without any hiccups that is the kicker.

Stay tuned for a recap of the century I did mostly NSNG….

Memories Are Made of These...

What is your earliest memory?

My earliest somewhat vaguest memory is of an Afro-Caribbean gentleman who stopped me from wandering further afield when we visited my father's parents in Bermuda.  I've no idea why I wandered off, nor did my parents.  I just did it and this gentleman stopped me and kept me there until my parents came to get me.  I think I was around 2.

After that, there are other vague memories like a stage production of Batman & Robin, of which there are photos from the event.  But my most solid memories come from when I was 5.  It was May 1980 and my Uncle took myself & my cousin Dave to see The Empire Strikes Back.  I slept over that night, we went to McDonald's in Sanford, Maine and then up the street to the Jerry Lewis Cinema.  McDonald's was doing a drinking glass promotion of the film and I got one of them.

As stated in other entries, I plan on doing the Mt. Washington Hillclimb.  I'd wanted to do it the year I turned 40, but it did not happen.  Once I got the r3, I was one step closer and had planned on doing it within 2 years of that acquisition.  That plan meant that next summer I'd tackle the event.

I'm postponing my participation for at least 3 years.  Why?  See the photo below...

The back of this photo has a stamp from wherever my parents had the film processed, it reads November 1975, which puts me (the adorable bundle of joy in the carrier) at approximately 7-9 months old given the clothing being worn.  That's my Dad rockin' his 70s 'stache and my sister who'd not yet be 5 years old.  It's also the summit of Mt Washington, hence why it's summer and they are wearing jackets, thus putting it between July - September 1975.

I do not recall this trip, nor would I given my age.

My youngest is 2.5 and I want her to be able to remember seeing her dad ride a bike up Mt. Washington.  Thus, pushing out to 45 adds another 3 years for all my kids to get a bit older and thus be able to recall seeing me do this.

There's also another more practical reason too.  Aside from upgrading my bike to get it as light as possible.  I also need to get as light as possible to maintain the perfect balance of power to weight.  Traditionally I have been quite good at keeping my weight down from January through the Trek Across Maine in June and then it usually creeps back up and so I start the cycle all over again in January.  This year I plan to keep the downward trend of my weight going.

The new plan is thus, shoot for 2020 when I'll be 45.  Upgrade the gruppo and wheels over the next two years.  Finally, start doing more hillclimb races to get whatever practice I can get all so I can suffer over 7 miles and thousands of elevation and steep grades to show my kids that nothing cannot be overcome so long as you have a bit of grit & determination.

But most importantly I want my kids to remember seeing their dad ride Mt. Washington.  

Fit

"This is going to hurt."

That is the exact thought that went through my mind when the car, whose value was less than my wheels pulled out in front of me while I was descending a hill at 35 mph.  It was July 2011 and I was on my way to a family cook out on my wife's side.  In fact I'd just passed her aunt's house and was so looking forward to arriving at the party and getting in the pool.

Suffice to say our plans changed that day.

Madone 5.2 OCLV 2006, Shimano Dura-Ace gruppo, Bontrager Race XXX Lite components, this was a "real" Madone.  The year after this all Trek's were branded as Madone's.

There was nothing I could do except slam into the car.  I was wearing a cycling kit that day whose primary color was red.  The girl who hit me claimed that not only did she not see me, but that I did not attempt to brake.  Uh huh, that is what she said as written down in the police report.  I went into the driver side rear quarter panel, was thrown up and over the car and landed in the road.  Thankfully no one else hit me and a former ER nurse was one of the motorists who saw what happened and helped me.

I was lucky that day in many ways.  First and most important I lived.  Physics dictate that a cyclist will always lose against a car.  In my situation I lost but at the same time I won.  The end of my ring finger was broken and I quickly removed my wedding band so that it would not cause any issues.  I also got my HR strap off asap knowing they'd cut it off at the hospital.  And the only other injury was a nasty gash in my right knee that came within millimeters of the bursa layer.  Had that gash been deeper I'd have gone into surgery.  There was some minor road rash too.  Ultimately I walked out of the ER that day.  A win right there for me.

The second way I was lucky, was that the Concord, NH, Police Officers who arrived on scene understood the bicycle laws in NH and knew not only did I have the right of way, the right to take the lane based on my speed but that the motorist did not yield to me and just pulled out right in front of me - she was at fault.

Again all too often the police are ignorant of the law and side with motorists.  So much so that motorists can actually kill cyclists and get away with just a slap on the wrist.

The Madone 5.2 after the accident.  The steerer tube blew out the head tube.

The other way that I was lucky was that I took the wrecked frame to a Trek Store that actually knew about the product they sold.  The driver had a Progressive as an insurance carrier.  I'd had Progressive as my insurance carrier once and knew how cheap they were.  Something that was confirmed by an old friend of my mum who upon hearing about the accident warned me about them.  This person ran an auto body shop with her husband and had lots of first hand experience.

Let's put it this way, Progressive spends more on their commercials then they do on customer claims.

The Progressive rep first claimed she was a triathlete, a claim that seemed dubious when she scoffed at the total value/ cost of my Madone.  FYI, it was in excess of $10,000.  Now I did not buy it all built up like that, no, I upgraded parts over time to get it to what I wanted.  Then she went and used a NH bike shop, that has 3 locations - Concord, Nashua & ??? and it became apparent that the staff there did not know anything about the product they sold.  I wasn't surprised because the shop in question wasn't worth going too.  They've been around awhile, but that is all they have going for them.

So the Trek store had to argue that while yes Trek did make the 5.2, mine was closer to the 6.2 because it was made here in the states using the OCLV process and a bunch of other factors.  The rep stalled.  But then something happened.

The Adjuster Progressive sent to the Trek store saw the busted frame and said, out loud so everyone heard, "wow he's not in hospital."  That's right it wasn't a question, it was a statement of surprise.  After he left I got a call from the Trek store saying I should expect a check from Progressive soon.  I then got a call from the rep I was dealing with and she confirmed that.  Full value for the bike.

After that I dropped the ball when it came to the pain & suffering part of the compensation from them.  I ought to have fought for more, because they fought me on what I deserved and ultimately I took about the same amount I got for my bike.  I realize now I should have gotten double or triple that.  Not because it'd have been a pay day, but my life was worth more than my bike was.

So once that was all done and dusted and the check was in hand and cleared I got to have the most fun in bike shops ever.  I literally was able to get whatever I wanted and finally settled on a Cervelo S5.

Cervelo S5, base model frame, Zipp 404 wheels, SRAM Red grape, FSA K-Force Light Crank, 3T cockpit, Selle Italia saddle

When my wife & I got married we brought our bikes with us on the honeymoon.  On the way to Cape Cod we stopped off at Landry's Bicycles, Natick, Massachusetts, a bike shop I'd discovered the year before and had grown to love right away.  I'd recently bought a new saddle for the Madone and was having trouble with it.  The bike fit guy, Andy, helped me out and suggested I get a bike fit done, a real proper one.  So we scheduled one for the day we were coming home.  

At first, it felt weird riding in the new position that Andy put me in, but then something happened.  It became natural to me and I noticed a subtle change in my power output and performance.  Well when I got the S5 I knew that I'd also get a bike fit.  Andy had upped his game in the interim and had some new tools and toys with which to fit a rider to their bike.  

One of the items he now used was a pad that an individual sat on and mapped their sit bones.  It's how I choose the saddle in the picture above and as a result something marvelous happened.

By the time I got the S5 it had been nearly 2 months since I'd been off the bike.  My weight had gone up due to stress eating and because I had to let my body heal I'd not done any gym work.  I rode 75 miles that first day.  My wife played the roll of sag wagon that day.   I rode as far as I could and then had her come get me.  I hurt all over except one place - my ass.  That saddle fitting meant I got the right saddle for me and thus it supported me where I needed it, etc. etc.

Whenever I see cyclists on group rides that are shaking their hands out or shifting etc on the saddle I know they haven't gotten a bike fit.  They just set it up the way that someone thought it should be set up.  There's an old school mentality about slamming the stem so there is no space between it and the frame - like how most pros bikes are set up.  IT looks cool, but not everyone can ride in that extreme a position nor should they. 

The point of a bike fit is to maximize your position to get it dialed in as best as possible, while still maintaining your maximum power.  I've had Andy update my position a few times.  The first was when I put aero-bars on the S5.  April - October, the S5 is a commuter rig and I wanted to get to work as quick as possible, so having aero bars meant I could get into a Time Trial position and be more aero and faster.  Well I had to have Andy adjust my position to account for those bars and to make sure I was aero as I could be and still put out power.

Thanks to Andy I found out that one leg was shorter than the other.  That's another thing the bike fit helped with and explained why for the longest time I could not ride without holding the bars.  One result of the bike fit was I could now ride sans handlebars because I was completely balanced on the bike.

In the spring of 2015 I went and visited a chiropractor who got my legs to within millimeters of one another and I've done a lot of work since to close that gap.  So Andy adjusted my fit again and it got me lower.

Here I am at Landry's Natick, Andy is off to my right looking at the monitors I am looking at, he's got 2 cameras pointed at me.  My wife is taking the picture and took note of the gal behind me checking my back side out...

Cycling is expensive and I am always stunned by the folks who will spend thousands on wheels, frames, etc.  Yet, will still adhere to old school notions of how a bike should look.  Or they balk at spending a few hundred to get fit.  The bike fit was the best money I have ever spent.  And now as my wife is looking to get a bike this spring, her getting fit is not even a question.

If you have more than one bike and are fit to both, then it's amazing you don't even notice a difference when you ride them.

Since I started taking Pure Vitamin Club Magenesium my flexibility has increased A LOT.  No seriously it has.  Since I saw that Chiro, I've been doing the flexibility stuff she prescribed, but I was literally stuck at a certain point.  But now I can actually  get into child's pose.  So perhaps later this year I'll pay another visit to Andy and see if I can get lower.  It's all about next steps...

Call & Response

My lovely wife has of late become something of a blogger.  Her writing is fantastic.  No really it is, everyone that reads her work says that first thing after finishing her latest offering.  The most recent work delves into what it is like to be married to an avid cyclist.  Although not sure if she uses the word avid, but that's a key descriptor.

She had me hooked long before I found out the night we met that she wanted to do triathlon.  Right away I could see she was funny, smart & beautiful.  And that she had a horse was not a problem whatsoever, because horses are probably just as expensive as cycling can be.  So it made arguments for expensive wheels, all that much easier.

I loved what she wrote and told her as much and that I would do a point by point response to what she offered up.

And with that....

1. Your weekends are probably already planned.  Yep, they usually are.  During the cold months of winter that weekend planning also comes with a stalker like obsession with local weather forecasts.  What's the temperature going to be?  Will it snow on Friday?  Who can watch the kids if need be, etc.  Come spring through fall it's more about planning as it pertains to how many layers are needed and if a rain coat will be tucked into the jersey.

And yes, charity rides will often involve food of some variety at the end of the ride.  In fact you can often judge charity rides based on the food found at the end.  Moreover, I have not gone back to charity rides because of the food they did not offer but had promised.  Food matters to cyclists...

2.  Your pantry will get weird.  Yes you might have big ass jugs of electrolyte sports drink on your fridge for eternity.  But at the same time your pantry might start to resemble something that you wouldn't think it would.  The traditional view of edurance athletes like cyclists or runners needing carbs, carb, carbs, CARBS - is old, outdated information.  Fat is where it is at.

Look at Joe Friel the go to standard for triathlete training, he's paleo and co-authored The Paleo Diet for Athletes.  Or look to Vinnie Tortorich and his podcast, that is free and available via iTunes.  His cohost Anna Vocino has a wicked excellent no sugar no grain cookbook Eat Happy.  Robb  Wolf, Chris Kresser and Loren Cordain are all experts in the field of ancestral health/ functional medicine and talk of and write about how grains & sugars are not the right food for humans to fuel our daily lives.

Fat is what we should be doing to fuel our bodies.  When I was fat adapted I could do a hundred mile ride, eat a meal post ride (steak, veg) and be ready to rock another ride the next day as well as finish strong on the day of the event I'm doing.  Cliff Bars and Powerbars never did that for me - ever.

In 2012 not only did I discover paleo and dropped a crap ton of weight, which saw me tip the scales at a weight lower than that I was at when I got my driver's license in 1992, but my performance on the bike shot up.  So we'll have lots of stuff like sweet potato, bacon, avocado, hamburg, eggs, steak, nuts, etc.  And I'll skip the bread and pasta.

And before you say I can't get rid of bread or pasta!!!  I'm of Italian descent, holiday dinners at the massive rectangular table at my grandparents involved pasta.  I love pasta, but that doesn't mean I need it.

3. The bikes will mysteriously multiply. The formula n+1, where n represents the number of bikes one currently owns is accurate.  However, one thing my wife didn't get to really was that different bikes have different purposes.  For instance I did have a cyclo-cross bike for a bit due to the dirt roads we lived on being impassable in the winter on skinny 23mm road tires.  Last spring I got the bike I plan to use to do the Mt. Washington Auto Road Hillclimb next summer.  The road bike I had prior to this new bike was a bit too heavy even after the component upgrades.  Whereas if all goes well this new bike will be sub 14lbs once it is completely built up the way I want it.

4. They will get hurt.  Yes this is true.  Invest in a good helmet and replace it every two years.  Maybe that is a manufacturer's standard so that you're constantly buying something from them.  But I look at it like an investment in your safety.  Plus it's a Styrofoam liner and that will break down overtime after baking in the sun.

And don't pull the "well I didn't use one as a kid."  If you are even close to my age, you never used a cell phone, dvd player, bluetooth, blu-ray player or the internet as a kid.  I see guys (it is always guys) that are older than me, that probably use that logic but will gladly use other cycling gear improvements like clipless pedals for instance.

It's also true that we will inform our spouses, partners, etc what the status of our bike is before we say what our condition is.

Pro tip:  If you experience road rash, stand in the shower and wet down the bandages first to remove them more easily.

5.The gear is not cheap.  No it is not, but then you want to be comfortable and perform well.  However thanks to the internet you can often find wicked good deals.  The tires you prefer may cost $80/ tire, but you can find them for $35 - WIN!

And some of us are willing to spend hundreds to shave a few grams off the weight of a part of the entire bike.  Those folks are weight weenies.  It's mental, all mental because bigger performance gains can be garnered by dropping body weight.  That being said, you want the best you can get.  For instance the aforementioned new bike has a carbon fiber bar due to the natural vibration dampening effect that carbon fiber has, but the stem is aluminum because the weight difference was a few grams, but several hundred dollars in price.  Next month I'll have a new crankset put on that is expensive but very light and stiff, which is something you want as it means all that force & power you are putting out actually goes into propelling the bike.

Also, if you are gonna drop thousands on a bike, then spend a few hundred to get a professional bike fit.  And whatever you do, don't listen to the moron who says you gotta slam that stem.  Yes it looks cool, but you may or may not be as flexible as the pros and the best position for you isn't going to be the same as the moron who is more than likely ill fit to their bike.  Numb tingling body parts should not occur - it means your set up is not set up properly.

Pro tip: Get a saddle fit.  After the car hit me (as referenced in the blog) I was off the bike for 2 months.  First ride out I did 75 miles and the only thing that did not hurt was my backside because I had a bike fit done that mapped out my sit bones and a saddle was chosen based on that.

6. Tools, tools everywhere.  There are some repairs that are easier said than done.  But that being said, if I can save some dough by doing easy things then I will.   If you have a carbon frame then you'll want a torque wrench, a good one, that has a digital readout.  If you over tighten carbon it will crack and if like me you'll then go through several seat posts/ masts over the course of a few years...

7. Data overload.  Yup, I was the only senior in my high school geometry class full of freshman and sophomores.  As an undergrad I was able to handle statistics.  So there is something to the notion that if the subject is applicable you can do the math, so while I couldn't do it in high school I can somehow do it now.

8. Cars.  I grew up in the 1980s and during that time we didn't use helmets and I would ride my bike to work every day and pretty much every where all hours of the day without lights at night through a summer resort community full of terrible drivers from Quebec & Massachusetts.  Where traffic was so heavy it could take 45 minutes to move 1/2 mile in a car.  I have a healthy respect for cars and understand that physics dictate the car will win everytime.

That being said I am not opposed to confronting a shitty driver or calling the cops on one.  I play a game where I recite random license plates as a memory exercise.  Looking over my shoulder frequently is a habit I do as well so that I am not surprised by a car.  I use a blinking tail light and head lights in the spring when I ride in to work early.

A lot of cyclists now use GoPros mounted on their helmet or bikes to record their rides and errant behavior of motorists.  The reason we have to do this, is because sadly a lot of cops will side with the motorist even if it is apparent the motorist is at fault.  Thankfully in my case when I was hit, the cops who arrived on scene understood the law and my rights and faulted the driver.

Cyclists have the same rights as drivers do and with that comes the responsibility to ride responsibly.  Nothing irritates me more than some moronic ass hat running a red light or doing some other egregious behavior on a bike and irritating a motorist who doesn't differentiate between cyclists.  We are all the same to them.

9. The mess.  Yep, many a time I have come home soaking wet covered in grit or post ride wiped down my chain and cassette and come up with greasy hands.  You do an outside sport were there are no rain days you are gonna come home messy at times.  Bikes are not fine china, get out and ride if its above 40 and raining regardless of the weather.

10. You will be recruited.  And that recruitment can vary from following us to take some photos for an essay contest to win a bike or as a possible support vehicle for a ride of ridiculous length.

And finally here's one last point.

Cyclists are inherently lazy, sure we have no qualms riding 100 miles in a day, but will do whatever we can to remain stationary once on the couch.  Have our 6 yr old go grab a can of seltzer - sure.  The adage among the pros is why stand when you can sit and why sit when you can lay down....

Subtle Changes

The Biggest Loser, has come under scrutiny in recent years for the rapid weight loss during the competition and the subsequent gain of that weight back its contestants.  The spectacle and how many eyeballs Jillian Michaels & Co is really all the powers-that-be on that show truly care about.  Otherwise, the weight loss would be a slow burn, with subtle changes.

And that is where I am at right now, the subtle changes stage of weight loss.  I've lost, since Thanksgiving, 15 pounds total.  And am about to start week 6 of zone 2 training.  The weight has come off primarily to dialing my diet back in.  My body chemistry (and let's face it most others as well) does not do well with grains or sugar.  I have found that I can tolerate dairy, so I am eating full fat and grass fed whenever possible.  If I should only be eating what is correct, shouldn't my food as well?

Don't even get me started about what chickens are fed though...

So zone 2, what is it you may be asking?  Well it means that I took my age, subtracted it from 180 bpm and added a bit extra because I started out a bit fitter than most.  Thus when I am out riding it is all about keeping my heart rate to a max of 144.  When I ride inside, if forced too, it is very easy to keep my heart rate below a max of 144.  Mostly this is because I don't experience hills or rollers when I am inside - go figure.

I did one of those side by side comparison photos too after the second month and there were some changes that definitely were visible.  When I take the month 3 photo next weekend I'll be curious to see what that shows in comparison as well.  

Today I rode a filthy 40 miles.  Filthy because the roads were wet and covered with grit and sand towards the edges.  The back of my Quick Step-Innergetic winter jacket was speckled with stains from the road and my bike was filthy.  But it was a great ride, I reversed the loop I'd been doing because why not and to see if it was easier in this direction.  It was, mostly due to the bigger hills being at the start.

Now doing zone 2 means that on the flats and slight rises below 1% grade I am able to move at speeds near 20mph or above if the grade goes into the negative.  With those conditions, my heart rate might get up near 140, maybe 142 but rarely above that or if it gets closer I ease off and it drops like a  stone.  But when I hit steeper longer climbs I find myself at 144 or higher and the thing is, I don't realize it because it's getting easier.

Now climbing really is about power to weight ratio.  So given I've lost 15 lbs obviously going up hill is getting easier but combine that with the zone 2 training, it is getting really easy to the point where I am really having to back off and coast on uphill sections.

I've got another 8 weeks of zone 2 after this week and I am so looking forward to a few things once I am done with it.  In two months time it will late March heading into April, which means I'll probably put the Zipp 404 carbon wheels back on my s5.  April is when I start cyclo-commuting back to work. April is also when I get my cholesterol checked and annual physical.  Once I've finished the 14 weeks I was told to stick to zone 2, I can begin doing intervals again, which means going hard and then going easy and my commute is so ideal for that.  I'll also ride to my doctor visit that month and if all goes to plan absolutely stun them with my weight.  And it will be the first time this year I go up Mt. Agamenticus, which is several months later than I normally do.

So far so good and the post ride chicken with artichokes, spinach & tomato was fantastic and the addition of the Justin's Maple Almond Butter packet was the icing on the cake...