The Freedom to Roam

The other night Jenny and I watched “The Hunt for Red October” while we were doing some trainer riding. The last time I saw this movie was in a theater in the early 90’s so I didn’t remember much. Loss of memory was good in this case because it was like watching a whole new movie again. Anyway, there is a great scene in the movie after Captain Ramius (Sean Connery) has told his immediate crew that he plans to defect to the United States and he is going to take them with him. After some thought one of his crew explains his plans once he gets to the US. Here’s how it goes.

Capt. Vasili Borodin: I will live in Montana. And I will marry a round American woman and raise rabbits, and she will cook them for me. And I will have a pickup truck... maybe even a "recreational vehicle." And drive from state to state. Do they let you do that?
Captain Ramius: I suppose.
Capt. Vasili Borodin: No papers?
Captain Ramius: No papers, state to state.
Capt. Vasili Borodin: Well then, in winter I will live in... Arizona. Actually, I think I will need two wives.
Captain Ramius: Oh, at least.

This scene reminded me of something that I am very thankful for. I am thankful for the freedom to roam. I have the freedom to go just about where ever I want and no one asks me for papers. What a great thing. I could get on my bike tomorrow and ride all the way across the country and no one would care because I have the freedom to do just that. Granted they might think I’m a little nuts because it is November but I could do it just the same. Don’t worry Jenny, I’m not planning on any cross country trips.

Of course I’m thankful for a lot of other things, but right now I’m thankful for the freedom to roam.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. Remember, you’re going to need those extra calories that you’ll consume tomorrow come springtime when you’re out on an epic ride.

Photos of the Week

Sometimes a series of pictures say it all.






Tomorrow night is our family's 7th annual pie night. Last year we had well over 70 people attend. I'm really looking forward to some serious carbo loading. Have a great weekend!

Interval Training Part 2

Yesterday I wrote about the love/hate relationship that I have with intervals and promised that I would share with you some of the more scientific information that I found on the subject. I know that you would be really disappointed if I didn’t follow through so here goes.

A majority of the useful information that found was taken from the Cycling Performance Tips website at the following URL http://www.cptips.com/intervl.htm. This is a great website. There’s nothing flashy about it at all. Just a bunch of information about cycling and the science behind it. If you’ve got a minute you should check it out.

Anyway, back to intervals.

So, why the heck would anyone in their right mind subject themselves to intervals.

Here’s the reason.
When you train to your maximum by doing intervals changes occur which will allow you to push even farther into your anaerobic zone the next time out. This is because:

• Your muscle metabolism changes to extract more oxygen from every milliliter of blood flowing through the muscle capillaries
• More capillaries develop in the muscles
• Your heart adapts to pump more blood for any specific time interval
• You learn to mentally deal with the pain and exercise through it

How often should you do intervals?

Intervals are most effective when:

• They are limited to twice a week during the peak training season
• The interval sessions are separated by at least 48 hours to allow adequate recovery.

What’s more important the intensity of the interval or the duration?
The answer is the intensity not the frequency or duration of interval training.
A study of interval training for 10 weeks found the following in a group of cyclists (all groups started off with a base of 40 minutes of intervals 6 times a week):
One group maintained exercise intensity, but decreased the duration of each session by 66%. The second group maintained exercise intensity, but decreased the frequency to 2 times a week. And the third maintained the frequency and duration, but decreased the intensity of the sessions.

The conclusion was the VO2max of the first two groups held constant, while that of the third decreased. So, intensity is more important than either the duration of the intervals or the frequency per week in maximizing the benefit of intervals on performance.

So I think it’s pretty clear that intervals are important but not the only type of training you should do during these horrible winter months.

As I stare out the window while I’m typing I’m really glad that I’m not out in the rain that has been coming down for days. I think I’ll just ride my trainer tonight while watching 24.

Interval Training

A number of years ago we purchased a returned trainer from the basement of REI. When we got it home we noticed that there was a Chris Carmichael DVD included in the box. Well, being the good cyclists that we are after a month or so we pulled the DVD out and watched it while we did a trainer ride.

This was our first introduction to the world of intervals and it wasn’t pretty. Honestly, this was probably the closest I’ve ever come to throwing up while riding but the funny thing is we kept riding to this DVD. Why? Beats me. My dad tells a story of a guy who was hitting himself in the head with a hammer over and over again and when someone approached him to ask why he replied because it feels so good when I quit. I’m thinking we used this same logic for riding to this DVD over and over again.

The thing is once we got used to doing intervals I noticed that I could climb better and ride faster. At that point I realized that the pain and torture of intervals was worth every second.

In my self prescribed training plan I’m planning on incorporating intervals into my rides beginning next month. I have mixed emotions about this. I’m not looking forward to the pain of adapting to them but on the other hand I’m looking forward to riding stronger.

If you’re not familiar with intervals here’s the how my typical interval session works.

20 minutes of warm up riding
5 minutes of the hardest riding I can stand without throwing up
5 minutes of light recovery riding
5 minutes of the hardest riding I can stand without my head exploding
5 minutes of light recovery riding
5 minutes of the hardest riding I can stand without my legs cramping into a giant knot
5 minutes of light recovery riding
5 minutes of the hardest riding I can stand without crying like a little school girl
5 minutes of cool down riding
30 minutes of pass out on the couch and reflection time to wonder what the heck I just did to myself.

Every time I do intervals there is a strange break in the space time continuum that occurs. While I’m doing my 5 minutes of interval torture, time actually slows down to what feels like one hour per 5 minutes. I know this because when I look down at my watch after what feels like 5 minutes only a couple of seconds have expired. Then, when I’m riding my 5 minutes of heavenly light recovery riding, time miraculously speeds up to warp speed of 10 seconds per every 5 minutes. I guess this is one of the benefits of interval training that not everyone gets to experience. This is quite the strange phenomenon.

I did a little research about the scientific benefits of interval training but this post is getting kind of long for my short attention span so I’ll save that for tomorrow.

In the mean time, happy interval training.

Increasing Pedal Cadence without the Heart Rate

This winter I’ve been trying to smooth out my pedal stroke to gain more efficiency and I’m also trying to increase my pedal cadence. Smoothing out my pedal stroke is going really well in fact by spring I may not be pedaling squares anymore. They may be squares with rounded off corners but they won’t be squares. I’m well on my way there.

Increasing my cadence isn’t going so well. Here’s the rub. I can increase my cadence in an easy gear no problem but when I do this my heart rate climbs at least 10 bpm or more. In my mind this seems strange. If I pedal in a tougher gear with lower cadence thus using a lot more leg muscles my heart rate remains fairly low but once I shift into an easier gear taking the load off of my legs my heart rate shoots up. Is my heart confused or something? Come on figure things out heart. Low resistance = beat slow. More resistance = beat faster. Got it?

Since my heart isn’t listening to my logic I did a little research and found:

A lot of people have a lack of neuromuscular coordination when it comes to increasing pedal cadence. So basically my nerves aren’t firing the correct muscles in the correct order to make my legs go around quickly and effortlessly without an increase of heart rate.

Could this be what is happening to me? Am I really that big of a spaz? Really? I’m uncoordinated? I’ve ridden thousands of miles so I’m thinking my legs know what to do by now.

Well, I also found out that if I continue with the high cadence training that my heart rate will eventually come down to a reasonable level.

We’ll see if it works but I’m still a little ticked that my heart isn’t listening to my logic. More to come.

New Trainer Material

The following takes place between X:00 A.M. and X:00 A.M. on the day of the California presidential primary. Events occur in real time.

Do you recognize this opening line?

It’s the opening line for the TV series 24. I’m not much of a TV watcher so the most I knew about it was that it was on Fox. That was until last May. Last May when I rode the 100 miles of Nowhere trainer century I watched the first 6 episodes of the first season in a row. This show is so captivating that it really helped to get my mind off of the fact that I was riding 100 miles on a trainer in my family room at 5am on a Saturday morning.

I ended up never watching the rest of the series that we borrowed because Jenny didn’t like the show. That was until this winter. Over the weekend we found ourselves in Half Price Books and I spotted a used copy of the first season of 24 at a very reasonable price. Well, I own the DVDs now so I’m going to watch the rest of the series but only while doing trainer rides.

Here’s the plan, on the nights that Jenny doesn’t join me for a trainer session I’m planning on watching an episode or two. On the nights where she does join me we’ll watch some of the movies that we picked on VHS tape for .25 a piece.

I’m actually pretty darn excited to get up there and ride which is a good thing because my plan is to integrate intervals into my trainer rides again by the end of the month. Intervals certainly aren’t my favorites but they pay off in the long run.

The following takes place between 8:00PM and 10:00PM in our bike room with multiple fans going in the dead of winter. Events occur in real time (but don’t really feel like it).

Duct Tape Nerd Pack

Our family has a tradition of making one Christmas present for each other in addition to ones that we buy each other. Since we needed to get a package in the mail to our son in Uruguay right away so it would be there in time for Christmas we all sat down and created for him some Duct tape masterpieces. The kids and Jenny made him a glasses case, tie, notebook cover and wallet. All of these items were made entirely out of duct tape. I made him a duct tape pocket protector. I really don't think he'll ever use it unless he's invited to a nerd rodeo. If so he'll be a hit. Here's a picture of my creation. It's amazing what you can make with duct tape.

6WS - Painting The House Isn't Cross Training

Yesterday was my day off of work. When I get a day off I normally go for a really tough bike ride in celebration but yesterday's weather was horrendous to say the least. It was rainy and the wind was howling so I decided to work on one of my goals for the year.

I know that 95% of my goals are cycling related but the one that isn't is to be a better husband by working on home improvement projects. Yesterday the project was to paint the living room with Jenny. I'd like to think that it was some good cross training but after 10 hours of painting the only thing that got worked out were my shoulders and arms. Not really cycling related muscles but they are killing me nonetheless.

Anyhow, the room looks great and in the long run if I get a bunch of home improvement projects finished during the horrible weather when the sun decides to come out I'll be out on the bike tearing things up.

So painting didn't turn out to be very good cross training but it is a very good investment for cycling in the future.

Although if I don't get to training I'm going to end up looking like this.

To see other Six Word Saturday submissions go to www.showmyface.com

Photo of the Week

A while ago I was out riding and passed this street sign. I would never want to live on Skid Rd but it was nice riding past it.

They Came, They Came!!!

Do you remember in the Movie "The Jerk" when Steve Martin meets the mail delivery guy and realizes that the phone books had just arrived. He dances around the parking lot and sings at the top of his lungs "The phone books are here, the phone books are here". Well, I just had one of those moments.

When I went out to get the mail there was a package addressed to me and I knew what was in it. I refrained from dancing around and singing out loud but in my head all the way to the house I was singing "The Fat Cyclist Jerseys are here, The Fat Cyclist Jerseys are here"!!!!!!

This year Jenny and I are giving each other Fat Cyclist Jerseys for Christmas. I know that my mother is reading this right now and shaking her head in disgust that I even opened the package before Christmas but in this case it's imperative that we check to see if they fit or not. And, of course I needed to check them out. Hey, I'm an adult I'm allowed to peak at Christmas presents aren't I? Here are a couple of shots for your viewing pleasure.

Dang, it looks fast

Here's the saying inside of the collar

Finally, here's the secret "inspirational" inscription inside the middle rear pocket. Since its a secret don't tell anyone else. It will just be our secret.

It's going to be hard to wrap these babies up for the next month and a half but I can do it. After all I wouldn't want to disappoint my mother any more than I already have.

From what I remember of "The Jerk" right after Steve Martin got his beloved phone book someone started shooting at him. In this case I hope no shooting occurs at our house.

Cycling Terminology Quiz

For today's post I need for you to do something for me. Please put all of your books under your desk and take out a number two pencil. Does that last statement simultaneously take you back to high school and strike fear in your heart? Pop quizzes were never my favorite but if you're a cyclist I'm thinking that you'll like this quiz. Most cyclists have adopted a vocabulary which allows them to communicate efficiently with other cyclists and baffle eavesdroppers all at the same time. They do this by using strange terms related to their beloved sport which are familiar to other cyclists but mean absolutely nothing to others. So today I've got a quiz to test your cycling speech impediment. Feel free to take your time but please do not look on your neighbors computer during the test. That would be cheating! Ready Begin.

1. Granny Gear

a. Clothes that compliment hair which has a blue tint.

b. The third cog on a front chain ring.

c. A designer cycling clothing line designed for the active retired women.

2. Presta

a. A valve stem designed to fit a narrow wheel.

b. Brand name for bottled spaghetti sauce.

c. A shirt that has recently been ironed.

d. An Italian term meaning to race like your hair is on fire coined by Mario Cipollini.

3. Lactate Threshold

a. The amount of Chocolate milk a cyclist can drink after a tough ride without throwing up.

b. The point at which lactic acid starts to accumulate in the blood stream.

c. The proximity a cyclist can maintain to a cow without being chased.

4. Bonk (American Version)

a. The act of running into another cyclist while gawking at their bike.

b. A condition where depletion of glycogen stores results in sudden and severe fatigue.

c. The sound made by a cyclist falling over while stopped at an intersection and still connected to both pedals.

5. Cadence

a. The number of revolutions of the crankset per minute.

b. A chant sung by cyclists while riding together in a paceline.

c. The invisible zipper found in most cycling jerseys.

6. Blinky

a. The name of a famous cycling clown who frequents mountain stages in the Tour de France.

b. The act of getting a bug out of your eye at high speeds.

c. A small red flashing light attached to the back of a bike to attract the attention of passing cars.

7. Bobke

a. A Dutch term which means to ride in rain storms of biblical proportions.

b. Nickname of cycling and hand talking legend Bob Roll

c. A person who has the latest cycling gear but no cycling skills.

8. Clipless

a. A pedal which connects to a cleat on the sole of a shoe thus holding the shoe firmly to the pedal.

b. The act of wearing a bike helmet without buckling the chin strap.

c. A cyclist with long hair not put into a pony tail

9. VO2Max

a. The maximum amount of money a cyclist is able to spend on cycling equipment without the threat of divorce.

b. The number of days a cyclist can ride in a row without doing yard work.

c. The maximum capacity of an cyclist to transport and utilize oxygen during intense exercise.

10. Chamois Cream

a. A cream used by cyclists to reduce friction in sensitive areas.

b. A favorite cream used to top lattes after a tough ride.

c. Hair gel worn by many flamboyant cyclists.

OK, please put your number 2 pencils down. This test will be self scored so you're on the cyclists honor system. If there is such a thing.

Answers

1. B, 2. A, 3. B, 4. A, 5. A, 6. C, 7. B, 8. A, 9. C, 10. A

Here's the grading scale

10 - 9 correct, Excellent work, you've earned yourself an extra ride this week.

8 - 7 correct, You're getting there, spend a couple of hours at your local bike shop to sharpen your skills this week.

6 and below, if you own a bike please return it to the nearest bike shop immediately.

Thanks for taking the quiz. Feel free to report your score in the comments section and forward this test to fellow cyclists to test their knowledge.

New Economic Indicator

When I was in college I had to write a term paper in an Economics class which analyzed all of the current economic indicators. For those of you who aren’t familiar with economic indicators they are things like unemployment rate, housing starts, and the Consumer Price Index. With the stacks of analysis that I typed up I was then required to predict what would happen to the economy in the next year. I remember looking through all of my data that I had assembled and then basically making a wild guess and hoping my professor would buy it. I think I got a B on the paper.

Now that I’m a year or two older I realize the reason I had a hard time making sense of the economic indicators was because I was missing the most critical indicator of all. So, today I’d like to introduce you to the newest economic indicator which will surely be at the top of Timothy Geithner list the next time he briefs the president on the state of the economy.

*** The Mecca Price Index ***

A little under a year ago I wrote a post about the making trips to Mecca in our town. For those of you who haven’t been to Marysville, WA Mecca is the nickname of the local Coke bottling plant. In the parking lot there are 4 coke machines and last December a 12oz can of coke could be purchased for 25 cents. Times were good back then and everyone enjoyed social trips to Mecca for a refreshing beverage. Then in August of this year the Coke bottling plant placed signs on the Mecca machines stating that the price of soda would be increasing to 40 cents. I remember at the time thinking that the economy had really taken a turn for the worst and it would be a while before we bounced back. Since then the unemployment rate has gone above 10% for the first time since 1983. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

Last night we heard a rumor that the price of a Mecca soda had dropped back down to 25 cents again. Could it be true? Could the economy be on it’s way up again? We made a family outing out of the rumor and confirmed that indeed the price of a 12 oz Coke is once again a mere 25 cents. Halleluiah!!!

So my report to Timothy Geithner is that the Mecca Price Index is down. Thus, by year end the economy will start its grand recovery.

I think I’ll enjoy a Coke right now in celebration. Now, if I just had an opportunity to do that term paper again maybe I would get an A this time.

Cycling in the Rain

On Saturday morning I got up early and decided to go for a ride. After all it was early November in the Pacific Northwest so it should be a great day for riding. The one thing I forgot was that most of the rides in November where I live contain plenty of "Liquid Sunshine". I still wanted to ride so I gathered up my rain gear and headed out. Normally, the Centennial trail is incredibly crowded when the weather is good but on a rainy early Saturday morning this is what the trail looked like.


I had the trail pretty much all to myself. I only saw 2 other cyclists out and they were really pounding away and looking like they were having a great time sprinting for fictitious sprint points.

Once I got used to the rain and my body acclimated to the colder weather the ride was great. I'm looking forward to some more early morning liquid sunshine rides in the future.

No Shave November Update

Last week I divulged that I was going to participate in the No Shave November ritual by growing a soul patch. Well after a week of not shaving below my bottom lip not a soul has even asked me if I quit shaving there. How's that for not being able to grow facial hair? Lets face it, I'm just not much of a facial hair growing person. That's OK with me. I also noticed there are a few whiskers that aren't brown. No way they could be grey, I'm making a judgement call and calling them "blonde". I'll update you next week on the growth. I'm looking for some big progress next week.

6WS - Going Riding In the Rain Today

I've had enough inside bike riding for the week. I think I'll do some riding in the rain today. Not too bad if you wear the right gear and don't think about it too much.

To see more six word Saturday's click here. http://www.showmyface.com/search/label/6WS

How to Buy a Bike Trainer (Part 2)

Part 2 of How to Buy a Bike Trainer

Once you have made your decision on what type of trainer to buy here are some other things to look for in a trainer

• Make sure it’s sturdy and stable. The last thing in the world you want to do is lean over while riding and fall to the ground causing untold injury. You would never want to tell your cycling buddies that the gnarly gash on your leg was caused while riding on a bike trainer. That’s where unforgiving nicknames come from.

• Make sure it’s easy to install and remove your bike on the trainer. Since no one is ever motivated to ride on their trainer if it’s a long or tough process to put your bike on your trainer there’s a good chance you’ll find a lame excuse not to ride. Most trainers are designed to quickly install your bike. If it takes longer than a minute to install your bike flunk the trainer.

Where to buy your trainer

• Most bike shops carry really nice bike trainers and they will help you find one that will work for you. New trainers also come with a warranty. The only downside to this is you’re going to pay full price for a trainer. Unless you’ve got piles of extra cash laying around that you are dieing to get rid of this isn’t the best place to go.

• There are literally thousands of bike trainers that have been ridden only a couple of times if at all and then tucked away in a closet for a couple of years that are on the market at incredibly reduced prices. These are the ones to look for

• www.Craigslist.org is a great resource of people who want to get rid of their trainers. I just looked at Craigslist in our area and in under a minute I found a great trainer. http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/bik/1449198823.html
  

• You can also find trainers on huge sales that have been returned. We picked one up at REI in Seattle that someone returned because they couldn’t figure out how to assemble it. We assembled it at the store, made sure it worked then bought it before someone else picked it up. We got it for half price.

So there you have it. Now you have no excuse for sitting around this winter. And if you get started training now you’ll be ready for the 3rd annual 100 Miles of Nowhere. Happy training.

How to Buy a Bike Trainer

Every now and then I come across someone on a forum asking about bike trainers and what they should buy. This can be a daunting purchase so I thought I’d give you my two cents worth of advice about what I know about trainers and how to purchase them. First of all let me say that I’m not totally fond of trainer rides but were I live they are a necessary evil in the winter if you want to do some serious riding in the spring and summer. I look at each trainer ride as an investment toward some epic summer adventures.

Wind Trainer
This was the first trainer that I ever owned and I completely wore it out after a couple of seasons. The advantages of a wind trainer are they are the cheapest of all trainers and the faster you ride the more resistance you get so I guess you could say it replicates real riding situations. Now for the disadvantages. Wind trainers are incredibly NOISEY! If you plan on riding while you watch TV don’t plan on listening to any sound unless you have a huge surround sound system and your neighbors don’t mind 120 decibels of Phil Liggett pumping out of your house. When I had a wind trainer I would turn on the closed caption while I rode. It wasn’t an optimal solution but it increased my speed reading skills. My advice: if you can afford a more expensive trainer bypass a wind trainer because of the sound and they normally aren’t built very well.

Fluid Trainer
We own one of these trainers and it works really well. The advantages are they are really quiet so you’ll be able to watch TV or talk to others without the being required to know sign language. Fluid trainers also give you a smooth ride that is the most comparable to real live outside riding. One the downside, fluid trainers are incredibly expensive ranging into the $300 arena. They are also prone to spring leaks which could make a huge permanent mess all over your carpet. If your significant other isn’t a cyclist this could get you a lifetime banishment to the garage for trainer rides. Not a good thing.

Rollers
I don’t have much experience with rollers because I’m just not coordinated enough to stay up on them. I borrowed a set once and after a couple of attempts that was all for me. Every time I got on I envisioned myself sliding off of the rollers while still on my bike and hurling helplessly into the wall. Not my cup of tea but a lot of people say once you get the hang of rollers they are great for increasing your balancing skills. I also hear that rollers don’t provide much resistance so if you’re looking for some good resistance training rollers probably aren’t for you.

Mag Trainer
This is what I currently use and I like it a lot. Mag trainers are quiet and are in the mid range of the price spectrum. Most of them have a control which allows you to adjust the resistance which comes in really handy if you want to do some really hard interval type training. The only disadvantage of the mag trainer is that the resistance is constant no matter what speed you’re riding at. Personally, this isn’t a big deal to me so for my training purposes and budget a mag trainer suits me just fine.

In tomorrows post I’ll share some thoughts that I have about what to look for in a trainer once you’ve made up your mind on what type to buy.

Tour de Flu

For the last week the kids have been battling the flu off and on at our house. They all looked like they were finally getting over it but last night they took a turn for the worst. When I got home from work all of the kids were still looking pretty miserable and Jenny wasn’t looking very good either. Needless to say, things were grim at our house. I'm really hoping everyone will snap out of it soon. It's just no fun being sick. While I was in the kitchen I heard a comedian on the radio who told the most fitting joke I’ve heard in a long time.

When is the only time it’s appropriate to yell "I’ve got diarrhea" in public?
.
.
.
When you’re playing scrabble!


That joke really cracked me up but only got courtesy laughs from the rest of the family. I wonder why? By 6:30 pm I was the only one who was still awake in the house. For some reason I didn’t get the flu like the rest of the family. So, in celebration I brought my bike downstairs and rode on my trainer for an hour. It was like my own private Tour de Flu stage.

I recently checked out the documentary on the Civil War by Ken Burns from the library. I watched one of these DVDs while I rode. It was fascinating. I wish someone would do an in depth documentary on the Tour de France like Ken Burns has done on the Civil War or Baseball. I would buy that in a second.

I’m continuing to wash my hands whenever I think about it in an attempt to bypass this bug. Wish me luck. If I’m lucky stage 2 of the Tour de Flu could be tomorrow night.

Counting Calories

When I was a kid I wasn’t much of an eater. In fact, my parents tell me that they used to routinely find candy bars in the back seat of our car with a single bite taken out of them that I had left behind.

Well, all of that has changed these days because now I really, really, really like food. I’m not quite sure when the transformation happened but it probably had something to do with marrying a great cook. I’ve been a “Good Eater” ever since.

My eating habits aren’t a problem when I’m in full out cycle training mode but we I hit the off season the “reserves” start to build up. Out of curiosity I decided to document what I ate yesterday and I’ve made a couple of conclusions about it. First of all here is my consumption list.

5 am
1 cup of homemade Granola
1 cup of skim milk
Eating pretty darn healthy so far – this could be a great eating day.

9:30am – really hungry but I don’t want to break into my lunch yet so I dig through my wallet to look for money to feed the candy machine. No money in my wallet so I dig through my pockets only to find one penny, seriously, ONE PENNY! I go back to work and count down the minutes until lunch time. I can feel the good eating habits slipping away.

10:45am – I can’t stand it anymore and head to the break room early to heat up my meatloaf sandwich in the microwave. Oh yeah, it was good. That hit the spot but I also remember that my coworkers have a cabinet full of chips that are free for the taking so I grab a bag of Fritos.

3pm - Leave work and drive home. Grab a hand full of Smarties on the way out the door to keep me awake on the way home. That works and I survive the drive.

4pm – walk in the door and have a couple fun size candy bars from the left over Halloween candy jar. Then I eat two pieces of cream cheese frosting covered pumpkin bars. I told you it was dangerous to have a good cook for a wife.

5:30pm – eat two Navajo tacos which if you haven’t had them before they are deep fried yummy goodness. I’m done eating for the day and feeling very satisfied.

I originally started counting calories for the day but by the time I got to the bag of Fritos I decided ignorance was bliss and stopped the counting madness.

Now there are a couple alternatives I could take here to stop the eating madness.

1. If you notice, my vegetable intake was next to nothing unless you count corn chips, pumpkin bars and salsa as a healthy dose of vegetables. Maybe I should replace some of the garbage that I eat with low calorie vegetables. Not really an option unless someone were to stage some kind of vegetable intervention on me.

2. I could eat smaller portions of sensible food more often during the day so I don’t get as hungry. Probably a good idea but I just don’t see that happening.

3. I could kick my cycling training back into gear and burn up most of the junk calories that I eat.

Looks like I’m going to hit the cycling training again real soon. But first I think I’ll have some pie.

The Bike Room

A couple of days after my son moved out of the house the vultures (our kids) swept in to scavenge through his remaining movie posters (he used to work at a movie theater) and clothes that he didn't pack away. My youngest daughter also moved into his room. I have to say that everyone was pretty sad to see him go but the kids loved the additions to their rooms and wardrobes. He is doing really well by the way.

Once the dust had settled we ended up with an empty bedroom right next to ours. It was empty for at least 15 minutes before all of the bikes moved in and made themselves comfortable. We also moved in a drum set, couch and a 13 inch TV/VCR combo. This is now one of my favorite rooms in the whole house.

Cable isn't connected to that room so we've been watching old movies that we have on VHS while we do trainer rides. Since it's been raining enough lately for us to consider building an ark we've had a lot of opportunities to do trainer rides. I love this room and have been enjoying watching movies that we haven't seen in years. Here is a list of some we've recently watched.

Return to me
The Italian Job
Tommy Boy
Finding Forester (My favorite so far, I love that movie)

I'm thinking about hitting the local thrift store to look for some cheap VHS movies. I bet I'll be able to pick up some classics for next to nothing.

We are calling our new room "The Bike Room" but I think we could do better. Got any ideas for a room name? I'm open for suggestions.

Plans for November

I came downstairs this afternoon to the sounds of Mmmmmmm....... and Ohhhhhhhhhh......

This is the sight of a very successful Halloween. My son went trick or treating last night dressed up as an M&M and carried a pillowcase. This afternoon he celebrated his successful evening by almost suffocating himself with his pillowcase over his head while eating as much candy as possible at one time. Good Times!!!

Now that we have made it to November it's time to unveil my plans for the month.

1. I'm going to participate in the NaBloWriMo. In a nutshell it's a challenge to write a blog post every day of the month. This could be a rough challenge because my blog posts haven't been very frequent lately. That will change this month!

2. I'm going to participate in No Shave November. Last year my kids heard that the Oregon State Football team held a No Shave November challenge. Ever since then they have asked me if I was going to participate this year. Well, I'm going to give this a try but I'm only going to "attempt" to grow a soul patch. Jenny isn't very excited with this idea so we'll so how it goes. As for day one it's going strong.

3. I'm going to eat massive quantities of Pie culminating in the 7th Annual Pie Night toward the end of the month. In years past we've hosted this event at our house but it's grown so large that this year we rented a hall for the event. If you live in the area come on down because we've got room.

This is going to be a great month. Let the writing, growing, eating and occasional bike riding begin!