In a desperate attempt to reclaim the health and the life God has graciously placed in my stewardship, last week I trained like Norma Desmond preparing for her "return." Monday, I hit the road, alone, on the cycle for a 30.57 mile ride. It was very hot out and I was a bit unpleasant. My pace was an embarrassing 11.9, but I was out there fighting back against age, laziness, and a general decline.
Tuesday, I did some yard work and also took a walk. On the single walk, I went for 4.22 miles with 200 steps of shuffling thrown in. For the day I accumulated 5.12 miles.
Wednesday I went out again on the bike. Brian never rides on mid-week church night, so I left the house somewhere around 11:00 am. For breakfast, I only consumed a small bowl of cereal. Supper the night before was a mere protein shake. Yes, I am attempting to lose the belly. To make a short story long, I bonked terribly.
(Some of my international friends on Facebook have called my attention to the fact that in some English speaking countries, "bonk" carries some indelicate connotations. Well, I'm an American and here the term has a long history of referring to running out of muscle glycogen, ie, hitting the wall).
I stopped in a patch of shade in the north end of what members of the Money Road Cycling Club calls "the chute." I was done. I had exactly one gel with me. I consumed it and was taking a long pull on the water bottle when a stranger in a pickup truck stopped. Once more, to make a short story long, and to protect a good guy who broke company rules and picked me up, I accepted a ride back to town.
After the ride started, I thought it might be a good time for a bonk ride. To really run out of fuel is a most unpleasant thing, but experience has taught me that it produces a tremendous training effect. So why not do it often? If you did it several times, you would surely hate your bicycle or sport or whatever you are dong when you bonk. It is a once per season training endeavor.
I made it 33.38 miles giving me 63.95 for the week. These numbers set me to thinking and helped fuel (see what I did there?) excitement and ideas for some serious exercise later in the week.
Thursday I finally heard from Brian. We drove to Money and rode from there. It was crazy windy out but we hit it hard, in contrast to my easy pace when I was alone. We did 15.51 miles, and when done we were both happy with our performance.
Memory fails me on what I did Friday, but the big blank in my training diary tells me that working out was not a part of the day. Oh, I remember now. I spent the day looking for Ray. I need to write that up.
Saturday, Brain and I met at Bankston School about 3:00 pm and went to Money and back for 21.03. We had a strong south-west wind which made coming back a special kind of misery. I took a short walk right off the bike and then lifted some weights later in the day to finish up a real week of being back in the saddle. Literally.
For the week:
I lifted weights two times,
walked 6.89 miles, and
rode 100.49 on the bicycle.
My breathing is better; I feel better; and my outlook is better. Thank you, Jesus.
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