Might be time for some long-john’s soon!
Again, I left late this morning (not sure how late, seeing as it was still too dark to actually read the numbers on the computer!!! Hah!). I caught up to Brian today, though, just near the end of Juniper. He was on a red Specialized Down Hill bike today. Turns out his bike shop (in William’s Lake) gave him a test bike to try out. He’s going to keep his Brodie for x-country riding, but is looking for a downhill rig as well. He decided to give it a whirl and see how it rode x-country (which I think was a mistake, but I wasn’t the one riding it so whatever!). It’s heavy and squishy. Very nice on the downhill portions I’m sure, but he didn’t make the steep climbs, even the ones he usually makes with his Brodie.
I had a fun ride, but my left knee was bothering me slightly. Not as bad as yesterday, but I could feel it and so I kept focusing on pulling with my left foot instead of pushing on the pedals. I had a good stretch along the single-track, managed a decent pace over all. I did have to dab quickly on the corner/dip section, but made the rest of it. Coming down into Peterson’s Creek was good (again, my front brake is doing pretty well recently) and I made the creek crossing and the technical climb up the other side again.
The rest of the ride was good. It was brisk for sure, which I’ve started to really notice at the end of my ride when I’m sweaty and the wind cuts through like a knife… Brain freeze!!!
I had a doctor’s appointment this Monday, which I forgot to mention here. Overall, he was happy with the fact that I don’t smoke, have lost a lot of weight and he said my blood pressure was great. He was concerned with my family history of heart problems (Dad’s angioplasty, Grandpa’s heart attack) and as such he wants me to get an EKG done soon and some blood work to test for cholesterol levels. He asked me what I thought my ideal weight would be and I said 200lbs, with which he agreed. I told him I’ve plateaued a bit with the weight loss and he figures that’s mainly due to the fact that my body has become used to the exercise. It knows what’s going on each morning/afternoon and isn’t as stressed out about it anymore. Therefore, it isn’t digging as deep into it’s “reserves” as it needed to before. Therefore, he figures I need to switch it up a bit. Maybe take a longer route, add a few more hills to the ride, or add another exercise throughout the week. So, I have decided that I will start regular work outs on our new multi-gym three days a week and start recording the results of these as well. I also will continue with the extra sprinting/cranking that I’ve been doing recently to keep the workout level higher while riding. Maybe I will also start riding up to some higher trails on the way home to get in some extra climbing? I don’t feel the need to add any climbing to my morning route…
On Monday, I did work out on the York Multi-gym. I did 3 reps of 15 bicep pulls, as well as tricep pulls, of 80lbs each time. I also did 3 reps of 10 bench presses and 3 reps of 10 “pec mate” presses (also with 80lbs each). It was a decent workout, and I did feel it on the 3rd rep for sure. However, I didn’t feel too sore the next day. Today (Wednesday) I can feel it a bit, but not too bad. In knowing that, I might increase to 4 reps or possibly keep it at 3, but increase from 15 to 20 and 10 to 15? We’ll see how tonight goes. Corrie also works out with me, so that’s fun!
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