Sundays and Wednesdays

My scheduled rest days from exercising are Sundays and Wednesdays.  It is becoming increasingly more difficult for me to not exercise two days a week.  These two days are prescribed in the half marathon training plan I am following.  I am going to have to find something I can do which gives my legs a rest on these two days but still gives me a good work out.  I have been thinking about starting to use the Bowflex again.  Now may be the time.  Currently, I have been biking for at least and hour Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.  I have been running Monday, and Thursday with a long run on Saturday morning.  I think I will start using the Bowflex on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.  I am not sure however, that an upper body workout on the Bowflex will give me the exercise "fix" that my body now craves daily for the two days per week that I am not running or cycling. 

Progress Picture and Picture of New Surly LHT

As of my weigh-in this morning I have lost 90.6 lbs.  I am posting a picture taken this morning.  I am actually wearing a polo shirt rather than a button down shirt, something I haven't done in years due to my size and my being self conscience.  I lost 4.2 lbs. two weeks ago and 3.8 lbs. this week.  My weight loss rate has increased from my previous average of 2.6 lbs. per week since I have started bike commuting two weeks ago.  If the current rate of loss continues, I will make goal in early January rather than mid March as previously forecasted based on the 2.6 lb/week loss rate.

New Bike

I have been riding my bike quite a bit more lately so I decided to buy a decent bike to replace the Target special I purchased back in February.  After looking at the Trek 520, a Kona, a Specialized Tri-Cross, a Cannondale Touring 1, and a Surly Long Haul Trucker, I decided on the Surly.  I wanted a touring bike so that I can both commute on it and do self-supported bike tours.  I picked up the bike late yesterday afternoon, it finally came in after a week and a half waiting for it.  It is very nice.  I rode it to work today and my pace was 3 mph faster than on my old bike with less effort (lower heart rate average).  I will post a picture of it soon.

Bike Commuting

Well, I finally began commuting to work on my bike this past Wednesday, 8/13. My start was delayed due to a broken spoke this past Sunday which was not repaired until Tuesday. Things went well on Wednesday. I took the longer "back" route in and the more direct major street route home. It is definitely safer to "take the lane" on a major road with narrow to no shoulder.

I did not commute yesterday. I took a day of vacation to attend the funeral of a dear friend from my church who passed away on Monday morning.

This morning, I took the major road, direct route in. Again, I "took the lane" in the two places where the shoulder disappears. I averaged 11.8 mph in which is not bad considering the hills and the traffic lights.

My quads were sore yesterday from the 12 miles round trip on Wednesday, but the soreness was minimal this morning and did not hinder my run yesterday morning. In fact, my run yesterday was a personal best for my speedwork day.

I am excited about riding the extra 48+ miles per week by bike commuting at least four days a week. I still am not sure if I will bike commute on Wednesdays due to making it to church on time. Although, if I can get an early start the way I did this week, I will have plenty of time.

Bike Commuting

I have decided to try begin commuting to work each day on my bike.  It is only around a six mile ride each way but it is on very busy major roads with heavy traffic.  I test road part of the route this morning.  Very little traffic at 6:00 am on a Sunday morning, but a got a feel for the route.  It is so different on a bike than in a car driving.  I plan to ride in my regular work cloths and take it slow so that I do not heat up.  My only real concern at this point is of course staying safe and possibly over training, as I will be riding on days that I run as well.  My normal "off" day from training is Wednesday.  I have not decided yet whether I will ride to work on Wednesdays or drive to maintain the off day.  We will see.