Month: February 2010

How Much Have I Been Riding?

This is the chart of my mileage ridden per bike since January 2009.  I didn’t have the LHT until January of this year, so that explains all the zeros.

January and February are up slightly over last year.  That was following a pitiful December.

Poor Oria hasn’t been ridden since November.  I’m thinking about riding her to work one day this week.

Month LHT Nermal Oria Total
2009-01 0.0 214.8 63.0 277.8
2009-02 0.0 77.3 186.0 263.3
2009-03 0.0 63.6 128.8 192.4
2009-04 0.0 290.9 0.0 290.9
2009-05 0.0 141.6 310.4 452.0
2009-06 0.0 268.0 274.2 542.2
2009-07 0.0 184.6 186.7 371.3
2009-08 0.0 71.3 128.3 199.6
2009-09 0.0 79.1 219.8 298.9
2009-10 0.0 313.5 122.6 436.1
2009-11 0.0 348.0 95.9 443.9
2009-12 0.0 91.6 0.0 91.6
2010-01 210.0 113.6 0.0 323.6
2010-02 294.0 3.3 0.0 297.3

Two Weeks?

I haven’t posted in two weeks.  What happened?

I’ve been busy.  Some of it was necessary, some of it was fun.  I’ve been riding, but not quite enough.  I’ve been following my paleodiet a bit better.  I’ve  been losing weight.

The RCCS had a another coffee ride last Sunday.  It was a lot of fun.  Due to scheduling issues, we didn’t have one today.

Tim got a new bike.  It’s a Kona Ute, a cargo bike.  I have no real need for a cargo bike.  If I get a trailer, I’ll have even less need for a cargo bike, but I really like his Ute.

My daughter got a Nook.  I got studded tires for my bike.  Winter still won’t go away.

A shifter on my new LHT broke.  On Your Left Cycles has ordered a new one for me, and fixed up the existing one well enough to have most of my gears.

I’ve order some slightly wider tires for my LHT.  I should have them by Wednesday.  There as wide as I dare go for enough clearance between tire and fender.  (42-622 Continental Contact).

I’ve been under a fair amount of stress.  I’m trying to teach my daughter to drive, but her attitude has made that difficult.

The stress makes me want to eat poorly.  I’ve been doing pretty good at avoiding that for the most part.

With my weight hovering right around 200 I’m trying to push it under that 200 lb mark.  I know that’s just an arbitrary number with no real meaning, but it does have a psychological meaning to me.  My goal weight of 175 is also just another arbitrary number.

40 Miles on Valentine’s Day

The RCCS had another coffee ride today.  I wanted a few extra miles, so I rode from Jeffersonville.  Three of us rode on this cold, snowy, Valentine’s Day.  Tim (our fearless leader), Marcus (new to our rides), and I.

The ride itself was about 24 miles.  My mileage for the day was about 40.  We explored a trail in Clarksville that I’ll revisit when the snow melts.

Beef!

I bought some meat a while ago and froze it.  I don’t remember if it was several pieces of roast, or several thick steaks, but in any case it was relatively inexpensive beef.

I put them in a with a small amount of olive oil, put a slice of onion on each, sprinkled with garlic, salt, and pepper, and cooked on a low heat while covered.

A while later they were done (actually slightly over-done).  I served with brussel sprouts, and it was good.

Mother Nature is Not Cooperating!

The weather has not been helpful with bike riding.  I have ridden some.  I rode about eight miles today doing a partial commute.  I don’t feel comfortable with portions of my full commute when the roads get slick.

Also, riding a 4-mile one-way trip in 19 degree temperatures is one thing.  Riding the full 16.5 miles is another.

During my ride today, I wore my normal work (dress) clothes.  I just wore boots, hat, gloves, and helmet in addition.  I changed into my shoes at work.  Very easy, very simple.

I’m doing the same ride tomorrow, but that really doesn’t add much mileage.  So, the RCCS is holding a ride Sunday (Valentine’s Day), and I’ll be riding that.  The weather will probably be less than ideal, but that’s one thing that makes RCCS rides interesting.  🙂

Riding in the Snow

Riding in the snow is fun.  It’s ice you have to worry about.

The winter storm that passed through last night and this morning dumped several inches before I even got out of bed.  My daughter and I took a short ride around the neighborhood right after the plow went by.  The road surface was still covered, but not too deep.  Riding through the deep snow in the driveway was amusing.

I convinced my daughter to go into town with me, so we went back home, I switched bikes, and we both grabbed helmets.

We ran a few errands and stopped at a coffee shop to warm up.  The main roads were still quite snow covered at this point.  We went home, and my daughter made some “snow ice cream“.

I had one other errand I had forgotten earlier, so I packed up and headed out again, alone this time.  By now the roads were mostly just slush.  I’m really glad the LHT has fenders.

I finished my errands and had an enjoyable day.  It was much better than sitting indoors the whole day, and we didn’t fall on any ice.

Snow Day

I woke up this morning to several inches of snow, and it’s still coming down. My daughter’s school is closed. Many places are closed.

I haven’t been out yet to see the roads. There is a strong possibility I will stay indoors and drink coffee.

Sandy wants back in

Meatza!

I fasted for 24 hours, from Sunday afternoon to Monday afternoon.  I figured I would “break my fast” in grand fashion.

I had read about meatza, a paleodiet-friendly pizza with meat instead of crust.  I used the general idea from here, with my own changes.

My “crust” was ground beef and eggs mixed together like meatloaf.  I fried some sausage as a topping.  I sauteed onions, green peppers, and red bell peppers for more toppings.  I mixed tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, basil, garlic, pepper, and oregano for sauce.  I made the meatza from these ingredients, and broiled it until it was done.

I had mixed some olive oil, dried red pepper, and parmesan cheese as a thick sauce to add after the meal was cooked.

It turned out delicious!  It is filling so I have leftovers.  I didn’t take any pictures of it, or measure anything, so I don’t have a true recipe, but I’m going to do it a little different next time.

Last Night’s Paleo Dinner

I had a (mostly) paleo dinner last night, and it was good enough that my daughter liked it.

I cooked mashed potatoes with the skins still on, covered them with onion and green pepper sauteed in butter.  I then had two pan-fried pork-chops with red pepper served on a bed of fresh spinach.  I had a large glass of water with it.

It was an easy meal to prepare.  Although the potatoes provide some carbs, I’m mostly just giving up sugar and grains.  I’ve found a way of life that is more sustainable in the long-term.

Weekly Average Weight for February 6, 2010

My average weight for the week ending 2/6/2009:
207.4 lbs

Down from last week:
3.7 lbs

Down since I started on 10/31/2007:
89.0 lbs

My average loss per 30 days since 10/31/2007:
3.22 lbs

Weight until goal:
32.4 lbs

It’s been months since I’ve posted a weekly update.  My weight loss had stalled, so I mostly wrote about bicycle related activities.  That has changed.  I’m losing weight again.  My new diet is working.

I still expect to reach my goal weight of 175 lbs.  I hope to reach it before the end of this year.  My new diet should make it easier to maintain than my previous low-calories diet.

My New Diet Is Working

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my new eating habits are based upon the paleodiet.  Although it took some initial getting used to, I now feel pretty good, and the weight loss has continued.  My weight this morning was 205.0 lbs.  That’s the lowest since August.

The advantages of this diet:

  • No counting calories or restricting myself
  • Better for long-term health (supposedly)
  • I can have a juicy hamburger, without the bread, or big piece of meat

The disadvantages:

  • Finding a restaurant to eat at is difficult
  • Cooking is required much more often (rather than convenience foods)
  • Initially I had a lack of energy and carb cravings; that has passed
  • It can be more expensive to eat this way
  • There is a long list of items that shouldn’t be consumed, including beer.

Once my lack of energy subsided, I was able to ride my bike to work and back again.  I rode the full way on Monday, the full way there (but got a ride home) on Tuesday.  Wednesday I drove.  Thursday I rode a partial-commute each way.  Today, I’m driving because of weather.