Day One: The Beginning

And so it begins!

Today was the first day of my internship, and correspondingly the first day of my bike-commuting to school and effort to lose weight. I figure I'll structure the rest of the commute-tracking posts as follows, leaving my rambling prose for the days when I just want to vent about something or otherwise indulge my wordy self.

TIME THERE: 31 min.
TIME BACK: 33 min.
WEATHER: 28C, sunny, Humidex added +3C, 13km/h wind
WHAT I WORE: Heavy wide-cuffed dress pants, t-shirt (had dress shirt packed away in panniers)
WHAT I ATE:
Breakfast - banana (eaten at home), protein bar (eaten at the office), coffee (mid-morning)
Lunch - Korean BBQ beef with steamed broccoli and white rice (didn't eat all the rice)
Afternoon Snack - mid-afternoon coffee
Dinner - A smaller portion than usual of homemade chili plus a salad (unless otherwise indicated, my salads consist of pre-packaged, pre-washed salad mix topped with cherry tomatoes and broccoli slaw and a sprinkle of feta cheese, drizzled with balsamic vinegar), a piece of whole wheat bread, and an apple for dessert
Evening Snack - sliced orange and my little indulgent treat: chicory coffee subsitute with flavoured liquid Coffee Mate in it
NOTES:
Oh my God, was I tired today! I think there were a number of factors going on there - it's my first time back to full-time work since beginning my 16-month maternity leave/research year, where I really haven't worked on anything for more than a few hours a day, a couple days a week, for almost 1.5 years. I spent the entire morning yawning and being very grateful that I didn't see any clients today, lest they be insulted by my exhaustion (I'm a counsellor, by the way, doing my PhD internship in counselling psychology). It was also quite warm today, and I was wearing heavy pants, so I was particularly warm throughout the day - which, by the way, doesn't help when you're already tired. Add that to a poor sleep last night (chalked up to nerves about my big day) and an hour of commuting under my own steam, and we've got ourselves a tired puppy!
Aside from being tired (leading to a complete lack of brain functioning throughout the day), it was a very good day. I didn't die while commuting, either from being too out of shape or from being hit by a car, and I consider that a victory (huzzah!). Even with heavy pants that stuck to my legs as the hot weather got me all gross and sweaty, and even with the remarkable difference the packed panniers made in the weight and feel of the bike, I survived. Work went well - it was a pretty easy, slow day, filled with lots of socializing with my colleagues who are remarkably fun and awesome, so I can't complain.
What I learned today is that having the weight of the packed panniers over the back wheel made a huge difference in how "solid" I felt on the bike. Between that added junk-in-the-trunk weight throwing off the balance a bit, and the fact that I seem not to have tightened the stem well enough when I put that handlebar-height-extender on, AND with the noise the fenders made every time I hit a rough patch of road, all these colluding factors led to what felt like a shaky, less controlled bike (and therefore a more shaky, fearful rider). I'll try to tighten the stem tonight and see if it makes a difference tomorrow. Nevertheless, it really surprised me what a difference such an apparently small change (addition of packed panniers) made.
Another thing I learned: it would probably be wise to wear my stretchy, light yoga pants with t-shirt for the commute, pack away the dress pants along with the dress shirt, and just get all nekked and change everything at work. Wearing the dress pants was a mistake for a couple reasons: the cuffs continually rubbed against the bike chain, and though they didn't get caught or torn they will undoubtedly get dirty and worn out and may eventually be ruined by getting caught in the chain; also, the heavy, non-breathing synthetic material was definitely not made to exercise in, especially in warm temperatures, so it felt heavy and hot against my legs and once they started sticking to my sweating thighs they definitely added to the required effort for pedalling.
All told I'd say it was a successful first day! Hopefully as time goes on I'll feel less tired at work, more confident on the bike, and maybe even be able to shorten the commuting time. Wish me luck!