Hey Act Blue....

Fuck off.

Seriously though, FUCK OFF.

I made the mistake of donating to a campaign through Act Blue.   Only $25 bucks, not enough to make a real difference, but hearing someone was called a ghetto bitch pissed me off.   So I gave Angie some money.

What I didn't realize was that Act Blue was going to take my phone number and use it to robo text me from every other campaign.

Maybe it was in the fine print, maybe it wasn't.  What it did was ensure that I will NEVER give money to Act Blue again.   Ever.  So congratulations.   You turned someone who's fairly motivated to help the blue wave against your cause.   I'll vote blue, but that's it.

DO BETTER! 

It's been a little while...

Lots going on, just not a lot of writing.  I've been feeling burned out again, which seems to be a common theme in the summer here.   I just get sick of exercise and all that.   Not that I've stopped exercising, just sick of it in general.   I still intend to stay healthy, it just seems harder.

So what's been going on?   Well, I'm finally getting my knee replaced.   Yes that's correct I get a new knee next Friday and I'm more than ready to stop limping and feeling lousy.  It's going to slow down my workout regimen for a while but that's ok.   If all goes well I can consider running again.  Hard to believe, but I miss simple things like going for a walk, but I should have no restrictions after recovery.

We went to the Gorge to see DMB.   Great trip, too much walking.

Work has been busy as hell.

With all that ive been riding the bike a lot less.   When I was out in Seattle I didn't worry about exercise.  We were walking so much that I got plenty of activity.   I've also been in physical therapy and that kills a day of cycling.   I'm going to have to look at my goals and reset them, but I had to stop worrying about monthly challenges with that.   I'll probably pause my rings for the surgery and immediate recovery.   I just don't want to worry about that shit.

That's really it.   I just wanted to give a quick update.   I'll write some more before the surgery.

The world has gone crazy...   Stay safe

Fathers day

Yes, I am well aware it's not Fathers day anymore.  I really wasn't sure how I would feel about it this year since it's the first one since my dad died.  I didn't really get a chance to think about it until later because I woke up with vertigo and felt pretty shitty for a good chunk of the day.   It wasn't until much later when I got to thinking about dad.

He and I didn't always have the best relationship.   My father was an alcoholic that I removed from my life for a while and didn't allow back until he was sober.  I reached a point where I decided it wasn't healthy for me to have him in my life.  I just assumed he would drink himself to death.  Fortunately, he didn't, but we had a lot of bad history to get through.

All that aside, it was very difficult to see him decline and suffer for the last few years of his life.  I know there are people who judge me poorly because it was hard for me to even want to see him at the end, but that is my burden to carry.   Not theirs.  I have spent many days beating myself up over not seeing him more, and I have cried more times than I can count about it.

I do miss my dad.   Not the old man who forgot who I was, nor the drunk who tried to burn his house down a few times.  Instead I miss the man I went fishing in Montana with.   The dad who took me to concerts in central park and taught me to play darts, took me hunting and all the other things we did before alcohol nearly ruined his life.  Sure he was drinking then, but I was too young to know he was a drunk and to be honest, he was a functional member of society.

It's a long way to say I miss you dad.  It's still hard to process that I'll never talk to you again, never see you again, never anything again.  I just want to let you know that even if you weren't the best father, nor so many of the things other people say about their dad you were my dad and I love you, and want to wish you a happy fathers day.

Finally some progress...

Oh...   You thought that was about my fitness...  Silly rabbit!   I was talking about dealing with my dad's estate.   I'll be up in VA *again* next week and getting probate sorted.   While that's a good thing, it's goign to make for another rest type of week since I'll be away from home.

As to the main topic here, well, I'm finally starting to feel a little better.  I've been slowly lowering the intensity on the bike, as well as riding a little less, and I am beginning to see some results.   While my hip flexor is still tender, its not as painful as it was and I feel like I'm moving around better than I was.  I'm going to maintain that for a month or so and see how it feels.   What it looks like right now is a resistance cap of 25 and no out of saddle riding except for cooling down/stretching.

So, with the two weeks off in May and then the reduced workload, how am I doing?   I'd be lying if I didn't say I was struggling a bit, but lets see how it went:

Weight Results:

• Starting Weight: 230.50
• Ending Weight: 239.30

Exercise Info:

• Number of rides:  45
• Time on exercise: 11:55:14
• Distance on rides: 165.08
• Number of rows: 5
• Time rowing: 2:03:22
• Distance Rowing: 24560
• Weight Workouts: 15

And here were my May goals:

• Ride 450 miles (I adjusted to 400 but didnt account for being in VA)
• May Apple Fitness challenge
• Perfect Month in Apple
• Gold in my May challenge
• Continue weekly weight workouts.  Try for 2 dedicated weight routines and at least one I&A
• Continue weekly row.
• Break 17k meters in the 60 min row and warmup
• Depending on my knee/hip try to walk
• Get my weight below 230 and stay there

Yep, there it is.  I'm beyond frustrated with my weight.   I didn't think I ate poorly when we were away, and no I didn't, nor have I been eating poorly at home but for some reason my weight is holding solid and refuses to go down.  I'll spend all week chipping it down and then balloon back up on Saturday/Sunday.  I am building muscle, and my clothes still fit, so I don't necessarily think it's fat, but I still have a good amount of that to lose.

And that kind of set the tone for the month.  Going to VA and not riding for 2 weeks definitely hurt my mileage goal.  I am going to try and do some LI riding up in VA next week because I don't think I need a week off, but I'm only going to ride two or three times.  .  On top of that my challenge team wasn't full, so I missed the Gold. 

So what went well?  I've been rowing a little more and I started taking a live row class on Sunday mornings.   I'm going to miss a week of that, but I'll pick it back up when I get home, and if I feel up to it, I will probably add in a longer row afterwards.  No, I didn't get 17k, but I was away from the rower for most of the month.   I'm going to try to get that this month, but I think next month is more likely.

So what's my rebound plan?   Well here are my goals for June:

• Ride 350 miles
• June Apple Fitness challenge
• Perfect Month in Apple
• Gold in my June challenge
• Continue weekly weight workouts.   Monday and Thursday or Friday
• Fill in cycle rest days with rowing
• Break 17k meters in the 60 min row and warmup
• Get my weight below 230 and stay there.

This should look familiar.   I've cut my mileage down a bit and will probably end up closer to 300 miles by the end of the month.   It's not that I want to make it easy, but I do want my goals to be obtainable, and with travel and my hip, setting a goal and missing it because of circumstances is frustrating.   If we're away, we're away and I just need to accept that.   I won't stop pushing myself to get my weight down, because that is something I can control.  Since Sam left and Friday's schedule sucks, I made that a rest day.   

That's about it.   Hopefully this will be a better month.  Talk soon!

Rest weeks?!?

Yes you read that right.   I took almost half the month off the bike.  Merinda and I ended up spending a second week up in VA.   It just seemed to be a little rushed coming home the day after Tyler graduated, and Merinda might have celebrated a little too much to help with the driving.  Plus we got to see all the grandkids a little more so it was time well spent up north.   What I wasn't expecting was to take a full two weeks away from cardio.

My knee and hip were definitely struggling with going up and down stairs so I decided to do only stretching, mobility and strength training and see if that helped but I can't say it did or didn't help.   I think it did, and it felt great to actually give myself a bit of a rest, but I'm still struggling with my hip flexor.   Standing on the bike today was awkward at best, and cadences over 100 were much harder than before, so it looks like its going to take more time to heal.   I'll ask when I start physical therapy.

Based on this, I am goign to lower my mileage this month to 200.   I'm also considering increasing my "off" days to two or three.   Maybe something like this:

• Sunday:  Row
• Monday:  Strength/Stretch
• Tuesday:  Tabata/LI
• Wednesday:  Endurance
• Thursday:  Hills 
• Friday:  I&A (maybe strength/stretch)
• Saturday:  Endurance

I think it makes more sense for me to swap Friday to a strength class.  I love I&A, but I need to see how the speed work feels on my hip.   It's a lot easier to modify hills than intervals and the Long Center won't be reopening until July, so I won't be adding swimming back until then.  Regardless, it's good to be home and back to a routine. 

May Day

Here we are already into May.  Lot's going on, mostly good, some not so good, but let's dive into that shall we?  For the most part I've been feeling "ok" when I ride.   I'm still struggling with my hip flexor and right knee, more on those later, which is adversely affecting my overall bike performance.  What do I mean by that?  Well, I rarely do any out of saddle work anymore.   It is uncomfortable and makes me favor my left leg, so to avoid any further damage, I've been keeping it in saddle.   I also struggle a bit with high RPM riding and very heavy resistance.  I'm trying to ease up a bit on the overall intensity to let my hip rest and heal.  Finally, race week got cancelled so no sailing for me :(

With all that what good news?   Well, I saw the surgeon on Monday and I'm finally on the track to get a knee replacement.  The bad part is a year to fully recover, but it tracks with my goals and I'm looking forward to walking without pain.

So with all that, how was this month?   As they used to say..  Lets go to the videotape...

Weight Results:

• Starting Weight: 234.8
• Ending Weight: 230.5

Exercise Info:

• Number of rides: 93
• Time on exercise: 24:40:10
• Distance on rides: 376.25
• Number of rows: 5
• Time rowing: 75:00
• Distance Rowing: 18646
• Weight Workouts: 6

And here were my April goals:

• Ride 450 miles
• April Apple Fitness challenge
• Perfect Month in Apple
• Gold in my April challenge
• Continue weekly weight workouts.  Try for 2 dedicated weight routines and at least one I&A
• Continue weekly row.
• Break 17k meters in the 60 min row and warmup
• Depending on my knee/hip try to walk
• Get my weight below 230 and stay there.

To be honest, with the exception of missing my weight goal by a half pound, I'm happy with this month.  As I said earlier, my knee and hip have been painful all month, so anything beyond cycling is difficult.   Walking is out of the question right now, and the few times I've had to walk have been frustrating.  I didn't row as much this month and that's mostly because of taking some additional rest days, but my rowing performances have been getting stronger each time, and that's real progress.

I guess the real question is where do I go from here?  I'm planning to keep working out as much as I can right up until the surgery and I'll take it as it goes.   I don't have quite the stamina I want, but my class performances are staying consistent, so I'll take that.

Ok, so what's the plan for May?

• Ride 400 miles
• May Apple Fitness challenge
• Perfect Month in Apple
• Gold in my May challenge (this might be challenging)
• Continue weekly weight workouts.  Find a replacement for I&A :(
• Resume weekly rowing
• Break 17k meters in the 60 min row and warmup
• Get my weight below 230 and stay there.

These are pretty consistent, but if you're observant, you might notice I lowered my mileage target.  Merinda and I are going to Virginia for a week, so I'm going to be light riding at best for that time, and I won't be rowing, but I think I can get to 400, even maintaining row and rest days when we get home.  If not, I expect to be damn close.  I'll also need to fill in some schedule holes since Sam is leaving and that puts a big hole on my schedule for Friday.   I'd swap it to be my rest day, but I don't like ending the week on a rest day, nor do I like working out after work on Friday.   I'll have to see what it all looks like next week.

I am also going to finally dip below 230.   I was hoping I'd get there today, but some late night snacking was my undoing again.   However, I'm doing much less of that, and my appetite seems to be going down and my average seems to be going down slowly.

That's really all I had to say, stay safe friends and talk soon!

Frustrating...

Today I got an email saying that registration for the Dunedin Triathalon was open.   Yes, I could have signed up a while ago, but the email felt a lot different.  Normally, I would have been well into my training, but my knee and hip have ended those aspirations.   Now, I don't know if I will ever compete in one again.   What makes it more frustrating, is I wanted to finish on a better note than I did last year.