TIME THERE: 25 min.
TIME BACK: 26 min.
WEATHER: clear, 12C, 6km/hr wind there; clear, 20C, 17km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, sweatshirt.
NOTES:
Today I felt a bit weak. My thighs felt tired right from the get-go this morning, even though I felt relatively well-rested. This tends to happen towards the end of the week - my legs get tired more easily, I just don't have as much energy in me. Then I have the weekend, and I eat more than I do during the week, and I rest up, and suddenly I hit the roads the following Monday with an extra spring in my step! Or, in this case, with an extra something-something in my pedal. That just doesn't sound as good.
I'm planning to go out to see a band tomorrow night, planning to leave the house at 6:30 pm so I can meet a friend for drinks beforehand. That hardly gives me much time after I get home (I get home close to 5 after picking up my daughter) to get her dinner, get my own dinner, bathe her, get her ready for bed, get myself ready to go out, and then head off. The friend I'm going out with was a makeup artist in a past life, so maybe I can bribe her into doing my makeup for me so I don't have to bother doing it myself! That way, I just have to worry about not stinking like bike-sweat and getting into some fancier clothes before going out. It'll be interesting, anyway. I'm very curious to see how long I'll actually be awake tomorrow night! Given how I've been sleeping lately, I might actually end up falling asleep at the rock club. How lame would that be.
I'm giving you fair warning now because I may not have time to blog about the commute tomorrow. If I don't, I'll see if I can get to it over the weekend. And if not, have a kick-ass weekend! And if you happen to go to some rock club Friday night and find some exhausted-looking woman nodding off into her beer . . . don't wake me.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Week Four - Day Three
TIME THERE: 24 min.
TIME BACK: 25 min.
WEATHER: clear, 11C, 4km/hr wind there; clear, 33C, 15km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, sweatshirt (sweatshirt in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
On the Weather: This extended summer has been good in some ways - much better than snow, that's for sure! It can be pretty uncomfortable to bike in, though. On the way home today, even the breeze generated as I cut through the air in my very un-aerodynamic way was so hot, it didn't feel remotely pleasant. Even my breezy cotton yoga pants felt stifling, and I was tempted to fold up the bottoms to make them into shorts. I figured that would just double up the material over my thighs, though, so I passed on that idea. Another major downside to this gorgeous weather: the sun exposure to the burn on my arm. Apparently this can cause scarring, and I'd like to avoid that given the size of the burn. So I'll have to cover it up as much as possible, it's just that every time I shower the band-aids or gauze or whatever I've tried on it always comes off! Alas . . .
On Sleep: I went to bed early last night and figured I must have been asleep by 9:30 pm. That was necessary considering how tired I was yesterday, and especially so because I was up before 6:00 am today (the alarm goes off at 6:30, but my daughter goes off whenever she pleases). I was tired throughout the day today, especially by our 3:00-4:00 staff meeting, but it was nothing like yesterday. I'm glad for that! I just hope I can find a way to get more sleep throughout the work week (and, come to think of it, over the weekend too, since babies know no difference).
On Nausea: I had been feeling nauseous for the past few days every time I rode to school in the morning. One of my co-workers figured I might be pregnant again, but as I told him, "That's not possible, my friend, I live by the age-old wisdom: knock me up once, shame on you - knock me up twice, shame on me." I wondered if it was because I wasn't eating enough before the ride, saving the bulk of my breakfast for when I got to work. However, it turns out the onset of the nausea coincided suspiciously with my starting to take Benefibre with my chicory drink before bed. Last night I had my chicory drink sans Benefibre, et voila - no nausea on the way to school today! Good to know - Benefibre, not so beneficial.
On the Early Degeneration of my Body: Also, around the same time period, my right knee started feeling sore. This is a problem because I have a history of terrible joints, in particular my knees. So when my right knee started acting up again (the last time effectively crippled me and I was in physiotherapy for months), I feared that my biking days might be limited. However, the last couple of days I've tried going back to biking in 14th gear instead of 15th, and that seems to have made a significant difference. No knee pain. Perhaps I just need to accept that I can't push myself quite as hard as the competitor in me might want to.
TIME BACK: 25 min.
WEATHER: clear, 11C, 4km/hr wind there; clear, 33C, 15km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, sweatshirt (sweatshirt in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
On the Weather: This extended summer has been good in some ways - much better than snow, that's for sure! It can be pretty uncomfortable to bike in, though. On the way home today, even the breeze generated as I cut through the air in my very un-aerodynamic way was so hot, it didn't feel remotely pleasant. Even my breezy cotton yoga pants felt stifling, and I was tempted to fold up the bottoms to make them into shorts. I figured that would just double up the material over my thighs, though, so I passed on that idea. Another major downside to this gorgeous weather: the sun exposure to the burn on my arm. Apparently this can cause scarring, and I'd like to avoid that given the size of the burn. So I'll have to cover it up as much as possible, it's just that every time I shower the band-aids or gauze or whatever I've tried on it always comes off! Alas . . .
On Sleep: I went to bed early last night and figured I must have been asleep by 9:30 pm. That was necessary considering how tired I was yesterday, and especially so because I was up before 6:00 am today (the alarm goes off at 6:30, but my daughter goes off whenever she pleases). I was tired throughout the day today, especially by our 3:00-4:00 staff meeting, but it was nothing like yesterday. I'm glad for that! I just hope I can find a way to get more sleep throughout the work week (and, come to think of it, over the weekend too, since babies know no difference).
On Nausea: I had been feeling nauseous for the past few days every time I rode to school in the morning. One of my co-workers figured I might be pregnant again, but as I told him, "That's not possible, my friend, I live by the age-old wisdom: knock me up once, shame on you - knock me up twice, shame on me." I wondered if it was because I wasn't eating enough before the ride, saving the bulk of my breakfast for when I got to work. However, it turns out the onset of the nausea coincided suspiciously with my starting to take Benefibre with my chicory drink before bed. Last night I had my chicory drink sans Benefibre, et voila - no nausea on the way to school today! Good to know - Benefibre, not so beneficial.
On the Early Degeneration of my Body: Also, around the same time period, my right knee started feeling sore. This is a problem because I have a history of terrible joints, in particular my knees. So when my right knee started acting up again (the last time effectively crippled me and I was in physiotherapy for months), I feared that my biking days might be limited. However, the last couple of days I've tried going back to biking in 14th gear instead of 15th, and that seems to have made a significant difference. No knee pain. Perhaps I just need to accept that I can't push myself quite as hard as the competitor in me might want to.
Burn Update Photo:
Hurts like a mo-fo!
Hurts like a mo-fo!Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Week Four - Day Two
TIME THERE: 25 min.
TIME BACK: 29 min. (eep)
WEATHER: clear, 10C, 6km/hr wind there; clear, 29C, 25km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, sweatshirt, gloves (sweatshirt & gloves in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
I was dead. tired. by the end of the day today. My daughter has not been sleeping through the night - last night she woke up at 11:00. 1:00, 4:30, and was up for good at 5:30. I went to bed just after her first waking around 11:30, so imagine how much sleep I got. Combine that with a heavy client load today and by the afternoon I could barely keep my eyes open. At least the bike commute in the morning woke me up, but I had no such salvation during the long afternoon hours.
I'll try to go to bed at some ungodly hour like 9 pm tonight. I need it. I'm wasted. Maybe that's what made my ride home today so long, almost back up to 30 min.! Partway home I started asking myself, "Really? Is it worth it? This is so much effort, so much sweat and planning and biking through wind, and all for what? Maybe I'll lose 8 lbs this month. Compared to how much I have to lose . . . this is definitely not worth it."
I don't know how other single parents do it - the ones who work one, two, three different jobs just to keep food on the table. I've been quite privileged, being able to support my daughter and stay in school (thank you, federal scholarship!). My heart goes out to all the other parents who get to work exhausted, with crusted food stuck to their clothes after a messy breakfast, peering with red-rimmed eyes at the work they have to do and knowing that going home is no reprieve. Getting dinner ready, giving baths, reading stories, cleaning, laundry, packing lunches. Finally snuggling into the covers two hours after their bodies begged them to go to bed, praying for a good sleep and never getting it. All just to start it all over again the next day.
I won't even get into how we're perceived socially - as screw-ups, bad parents, people who selfishly wouldn't just keep together for the kids. I have a lot to say on the subject, but I just don't have the fight in me today. Perhaps another time. Instead, I'm going to shower and read and go to bed early! The best kind of end to a day like today.
TIME BACK: 29 min. (eep)
WEATHER: clear, 10C, 6km/hr wind there; clear, 29C, 25km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, sweatshirt, gloves (sweatshirt & gloves in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
I was dead. tired. by the end of the day today. My daughter has not been sleeping through the night - last night she woke up at 11:00. 1:00, 4:30, and was up for good at 5:30. I went to bed just after her first waking around 11:30, so imagine how much sleep I got. Combine that with a heavy client load today and by the afternoon I could barely keep my eyes open. At least the bike commute in the morning woke me up, but I had no such salvation during the long afternoon hours.
I'll try to go to bed at some ungodly hour like 9 pm tonight. I need it. I'm wasted. Maybe that's what made my ride home today so long, almost back up to 30 min.! Partway home I started asking myself, "Really? Is it worth it? This is so much effort, so much sweat and planning and biking through wind, and all for what? Maybe I'll lose 8 lbs this month. Compared to how much I have to lose . . . this is definitely not worth it."
I don't know how other single parents do it - the ones who work one, two, three different jobs just to keep food on the table. I've been quite privileged, being able to support my daughter and stay in school (thank you, federal scholarship!). My heart goes out to all the other parents who get to work exhausted, with crusted food stuck to their clothes after a messy breakfast, peering with red-rimmed eyes at the work they have to do and knowing that going home is no reprieve. Getting dinner ready, giving baths, reading stories, cleaning, laundry, packing lunches. Finally snuggling into the covers two hours after their bodies begged them to go to bed, praying for a good sleep and never getting it. All just to start it all over again the next day.
I won't even get into how we're perceived socially - as screw-ups, bad parents, people who selfishly wouldn't just keep together for the kids. I have a lot to say on the subject, but I just don't have the fight in me today. Perhaps another time. Instead, I'm going to shower and read and go to bed early! The best kind of end to a day like today.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Week Four - Day One
TIME THERE: 26 min. (oh no!!)
TIME BACK: 25 min.
WEATHER: clear, 5C, 13 km/hr wind there; a few clouds, 22C, 19 km/hr winds back.
WHAT I WORE: jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, cotton gloves (gloves & sweatshirt in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
Jeans = no good. Maybe it would be different in more baggy jeans, but these ones were thigh-hugging, waist-cinching, and did absolutely nothing to make my ride easier on me. Pushing my legs through each rotation took more effort as the heavy material clung to my thighs and restricted my motion (don't even get me started on trying to do my stretches in those damn jeans once I got to work). The tight waist made breathing more difficult. It was unpleasant, to say the least. This is my excuse for my ride time to school inching up above 25 min., though I doubt it made that much of a difference seeing as how I made it home in good time.
On another note, I burned my arm over the weekend trying to keep my daughter away from the hot oven, which she was steadfastly determined to explore. The video below was taken within a few minutes of the injury, and since then it has developed a lovely large scab that I wouldn't really mention except for the fact that it surprisingly hurt every time I went over a bump. I guess the simple motion of being jolted by the cracks in the road jostled my skin enough to irritate the tender, healing burn. Who would have thunk it? Now I know - burns need smoother bike rides!
Also, I've been taking pictures of myself every weekday before bed to track my anticipated weight loss. Usually when I save these pictures on my computer I compare that day's photo to the first one I took on August 31st. Today, when making that comparison, I couldn't believe my eyes. It's only been three weeks and the weight loss is already clear. This is very encouraging! I'm planning to put these pictures together into a short flip-book-style video at the end of the year, so I won't share anything with you now. SUCKERS!!! You'll just have to wait a year!
TIME BACK: 25 min.
WEATHER: clear, 5C, 13 km/hr wind there; a few clouds, 22C, 19 km/hr winds back.
WHAT I WORE: jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, cotton gloves (gloves & sweatshirt in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
Jeans = no good. Maybe it would be different in more baggy jeans, but these ones were thigh-hugging, waist-cinching, and did absolutely nothing to make my ride easier on me. Pushing my legs through each rotation took more effort as the heavy material clung to my thighs and restricted my motion (don't even get me started on trying to do my stretches in those damn jeans once I got to work). The tight waist made breathing more difficult. It was unpleasant, to say the least. This is my excuse for my ride time to school inching up above 25 min., though I doubt it made that much of a difference seeing as how I made it home in good time.
On another note, I burned my arm over the weekend trying to keep my daughter away from the hot oven, which she was steadfastly determined to explore. The video below was taken within a few minutes of the injury, and since then it has developed a lovely large scab that I wouldn't really mention except for the fact that it surprisingly hurt every time I went over a bump. I guess the simple motion of being jolted by the cracks in the road jostled my skin enough to irritate the tender, healing burn. Who would have thunk it? Now I know - burns need smoother bike rides!
Also, I've been taking pictures of myself every weekday before bed to track my anticipated weight loss. Usually when I save these pictures on my computer I compare that day's photo to the first one I took on August 31st. Today, when making that comparison, I couldn't believe my eyes. It's only been three weeks and the weight loss is already clear. This is very encouraging! I'm planning to put these pictures together into a short flip-book-style video at the end of the year, so I won't share anything with you now. SUCKERS!!! You'll just have to wait a year!
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