Bikes

The stationary bicycle has been my preferred form of cardio for quite some time. The first time I got on it I thought I wasn’t going to make it but I figured out how to get my rythm and I figured out how to use the up and down stroke to reduce muscle fatigue (foot straps are an invaluable tool when riding) Yesterday, I had a little too much energy at 5AM and I didn’t have anything that I interested me in the few hours before I was going to sleep. So, I did what any other unstable person might do, I chugged a pre-workout drink and headed to the gym. My current regimine consists of alternating 4 and 5 day lifting cycles. The current day in my program was legs

My workout consisted of
Squats – 20x225lbs 10x275lbs
Leg press – 40x275lbs
Calf raises – 50x135lbs
Medicine ball lunges – 60ea
Medicine ball bridges
Side bridges
Three point bridges

I’m not moving around a bunch of weight because I’m not trying to pack on muscle – I’m just trying to stay a lean mean fighting machine.

If I’m feeling especially ornery I’ll go for some deadlifts. They are quite hard on my back so I tend to shy away from them. After my workout I hit the stationary bike and did 15 miles in 37 minutes while climbing 2400ft of elevation. (If I did my math right I maintained a near constant speed of 24mph – not too shabby) Needless to say – I nearly killed myself. I was amped up from the workout when I got home but I knew my body had nothing left in the tanks. I’m sure parts of my body think there is a disconnect between muscles and brain. I should have stopped working out when I was done lifting, I should have given in to the pain, and I should have not set the stationary bike on level 14. There are days when I’m amazed by the amount of drive that is hiding deep inside me.

It was quite an odd feeling when I woke (at 1400)- I wasn’t really sore. I was simply wore out – still. I downed a bunch of cereal and couple of bananas and waited for it to kick in. I was dragging until 0030 this morning when I finally started to get out of the slump (I work nights at the moment).

Previously that day Jessica and I took our bikes out for the first time this year. She has an old Roadmaster mens bike, its a “wal-mart” special thats 2-3 inches too tall, and I have a Giant Sedona, a trail/city bike, that allows me to do a little of anything. I got it a 6-7 years ago for roughly $400 because I knew someone that worked at the bike shop. It was the cheapest entry level “non-walmart” bike I could afford at the time. I feel bad for her because she doesn’t know how easy I’ve got it compared to her. If you’ve ever ridden on a cheap bike and moved to a higher quality bike you’ll understand exactly how much easier of a ride you’ll get. I’m sure that if I rode her bike, which I couldn’t because its too darn small, that I would have burned 25% more energy just trying to get the darn thing moving. I forgot how much I liked to get out and just feel the wind in my face while hearing the ratchet of the chain as I rode around.

As a kid my bike was my primary form of transport until I was old enough to drive the Plymouth Voyager (the model with the monstrous, earth rotation altering, 2.2L I4 generating an amazing 96hp complete with fake wood paneling). I only had a heavy ass “roadmaster” type bike at the time and probably did no more than 20 miles on any given day. I rode that darn bike everywhere. I’ve never owned a road bike but I’m thinking next year – next year I might try and get one. I can always pick up a used bike on Craigslist or I can just wait until the end of the season and try to pick up one on clearance. I’ve got to get back on the road more often. I’d like her to come along with me but I know that I’ve got to get her a better bike first – she’s never going to make it if she is trying to keep up on her bike. I’d like to ride from our house to Sunrise point on Rainier (its only 83 miles away with a 5900 foot change in elevation – childs play…. or not) next year. We’ve got a lot of training to do in the off-season if we’re going to make it.