Friday, January 15, 2010

Week Twenty - Day Five: The Un-Sick Day

At 3 a.m., I awoke from my deep slumber. I heard the rustling of my daughter's sheets in the next room, signalling her concurrent wakefulness. She wasn't crying, so I closed my eyes again and willed myself back to sleep. Just before I started drifting off, however, I heard an unmistakable, horrible, disgusting sound - the sound of someone vomiting - and I knew at that moment that I was not going to be able to go to work in the morning.

"Sophia?" I called out to her in the dark as I lumbered out of bed and towards her room, trying to rub the sleep out of my eyes so I'd be able to deal with whatever mess might confront me.

"Dirties," I heard her say in a calm voice, as though making some nonchalant observation. She's more excited about pointing out the moon every day, or picking out a book to read before bed. How can this girl be so calm after puking all over her crib??

The mess wasn't as huge and horrific as it was the last time she had a stomach bug, but it was still enough to warrant a full linens laundry with her pajamas thrown in for good measure. I changed her sheets, made a pile of the laundry that I would start in the morning, and gave her a warm bath. She was in high spirits, helpfully pointing out the patches of "dirties" she had left on her sheets and chasing the cat around as I cleaned up.

I stayed home with her today, even though she had no other symptoms of illness aside from that one overnight puke. I think it was enough to pull myself off work just based on the fact that I spent two hours of the night dealing with the aftermath of her sickness! Really, though, it was mostly to make sure that if she was sick again that she'd be in the comfort of her own home with her loving mom and not spreading it to other kids at daycare. So we stayed home and had a lazy Friday here.

However, I can't say I didn't lament the loss of a commuting day. That's an hour of exercise I'm not going to get! That's somewhere in the range of 700-800 calories that I won't burn! And worst of all, the more time I spend at home the more I tend to eat . . . it's a grazing thing, or a boredom thing, or some combination thereof. Whatever it is, it's not ideal, so every day of work that I miss feels like a huge set-back in my weight loss efforts.

To try to combat that, today I set up my stationary bike while Sophia was having her afternoon nap. Fighting off the urge to take a nap myself, I managed to get in at least a 20-minute, 6 mile ride on the stationary bike (if you recall, that consists of Eastwood the mountain bike hooked up to the bike trainer I bought from MEC). Twenty minutes isn't massive, but it's better than nothing! I've also maintained my habit of tracking what I'm eating through the DailyBurn website, and I've managed to keep to the lower end of my allotted calorie range, which is somewhat of a triumph for a day spent at home.

All in all, for a non-commuting day, I did what I could to be fitness- and nutrition-conscious, and for that I'm pretty happy with myself. Best of all, my daughter has been completely well all day, so I haven't had to clean up any more puke or spend all day with a miserable sick toddler. SCORE! Everything's looking up.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Week Twenty - Day Four: Loose

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 28 min. (hey-o!)
TIME BACK: 27 min. (whee!)
WEATHER: a few clouds, -9C, 6km/hr wind there; clear, 0C, 7km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, t-shirt, waterproof shell, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Everything's falling apart!

I found two more broken spokes, once again on my back wheel. I'll have to take the wheel in to the bike shop this weekend and get them repaired. I don't think it will cost much and, quite frankly, I'm not really willing to do it myself. It would be a messy and (at least for me, unlike for a professional) time-consuming job, and I always have plenty of everything else to do on the weekends. So I'm willing to scrounge up whatever it might cost so I don't have to bother with it myself!

Also, the handlebar stem became loose. I guess all the rutty, bumpy riding has gotten to my bike and knocked the stem out of joint. I'll have to tighten it up tonight before I hit the road again tomorrow. Between the spokes and the stem, it's pretty apparent to me that my poor bike is taking quite a beating. It seems to be holding up, but I've heard horror stories of bikes not lasting through the winter. Please, oh please, Mike, stay with me!! You can make it, I know you can! I guess I'll just have to do my best to keep him as well taken care of as I can. Otherwise, I'm out of a trusty steed!

Guhh . . . I'm just feeling off my game. I'm tired. I haven't slept well the past couple nights, and for no apparent reason. I just couldn't fall asleep. And I've been trying to be pretty consistent about my nutrition, sticking to a range between 1300-2200 calories per day (usually around 1400 on weekdays, and closer to 2000 on weekends). I feel like I'm losing weight this month, which is awesome, but maybe that's contributing to my lack of sleep. I know sometimes when I don't eat quite enough I have trouble sleeping. Or maybe it's that I'm taking home my concern for my clients, and I'm losing sleep worrying about how they're doing. I'm pretty sure that played a factor in my sleeplessness last night. There's also personal life stuff - wondering about potential romantic relationships, thinking about my daughter and her relationship with her dad, reminding myself of all the friends I want to get back in touch with after not seeing them for a while. Financial stress, worries about my uncertain future, the pressure to work on my dissertation . . . BAH! There are so many thoughts swirling around my head, no wonder I'm not sleeping!!

I'm looking forward to the weekend. I need a freakin' break!

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Week Twenty - Day Three: On-Roading

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: clear, -4C, 9km/hr wind there; a few clouds, -6C, 9km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: Joe Fresh "warm-up" pants (double layered with a cotton inner layer and water resistant outer layer for only $29!), t-shirt, waterproof shell, running gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
I stuck with taking an on-road route again today, which has been working for me in every way imaginable. It's more stable, it feels safer, and I pedal harder and faster so I don't feel like I'm too slow in the car traffic. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm still way slower than the cars! Still, I like to try to keep my speed up as much as I can, and that makes for a great workout.

Today's Downside: I had to contend with traffic in the morning. I got stuck behind a bus a couple different times and had to start-and-stop behind it for a few blocks, which was annoying as hell. And I got stuck in traffic between cars, unable to speed pass them on the right side of the lane because of the snow and muck that has accumulated there. The narrowing of the lanes has blocked my ability to speed past the traffic-logged cars as I laugh to myself at my obvious superiority. Alas! What will I do without my sense of superiority??

Today's Upside: A few blocks around the university were shut down for the Olympic Torch relay. They shut these roads down between 4-6pm, trapping numerous university staff and students in their parking lots and creating traffic hell in other parts of the campus area. This has been a major concern all week for some of my colleagues and other concerned university-area car commuters. NOT ME!! Hahahaha!!! I didn't worry for one millisecond about how I'd get home today. I just got on my bike at the same time I usually do, biked home the same route as I did yesterday, and got home at the exact time I was expecting to. No delays, no university-area traffic jams, no stress. Just fresh air, a good workout, and a feeling of superiority. HEY! It's back!! I feel superior again!!!! Wheee!

Man, life as a bike-commuter is GOOD!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Week Twenty - Day Two: Off-Roading

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 36 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: a few clouds, 0C, no wind there; clear, 0C, 4km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, t-shirt, waterproof shell, running gloves, folded-up balaclava
NOTES:
"You see this?" I said, indignantly holding up my helmet to a colleague after my ride into work this morning. He examined it with a look somewhere between impressed and incredulous. Mud splatter covered the back of my helmet, leaving some drops of slop on the top of the helmet, and a couple slop-drops even made it to the peak in the front. "I don't even off-road!"

As much as I claimed not to off-road, I felt like I was mountain biking for most of my commute today. The constantly shifting wet snow threw me around aggressively and threatened to bog me down if I didn't keep up my momentum. I had to speed up to get through the deep, heavy, slippery mash of just-starting-to-melt snow at every intersection, rising out of my seat and climbing as best I could to keep going as the crap around my wheels did all it could not to let me pass through.

"Get off the sidewalks, get off the sidewalks!" my inner voice yelled at me as I fishtailed dramatically over the messy terrain. But I couldn't! There was no safe way to pass onto the street from the sidewalk because of the mountainous snowbanks that separated the two. I was stuck. So I ended up having a pretty white-knuckled, difficult, and messy ride (at least the part from the west end into the downtown area) this morning.

"That's it! I'm sticking to main roads on the way home!" I vowed. So on the way home, I abandoned my regular side-streets-and-sidewalks route and kept to the major roadways. The roads were wet, to be sure, but far more stable - and I'd take puddles over that wet shifting snow any day! I was able to ride at a decent speed, the drivers were considerate enough and gave me ample berth as they passed, and most importantly I didn't feel like I was in a constant battle between me on one side and snow/gravity on the other. Huzzah! I'm planning to stick to the major roads again tomorrow, but tomorrow is supposed to be a bit cooler so the roads might be pretty slick when all that moisture freezes. We'll see how she goes . . .


Monday, January 11, 2010

Week Twenty - Day One: ALIVE!!!!

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 33 min.
TIME BACK: 32 min.
WEATHER: a few clouds, 3C, 7km/hr wind there; clear, 4C, 6km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, cotton t-shirt, fleece mid-layer top, balaclava (face part folded up so it's just like wearing a cap), running gloves (balaclava in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
It is beautiful out!! It is so warm out today and that makes it feel sooo gooood to be outside on my bike.

"I'M ALIVE!!!" shouts my inner voice as I pedal madly along my route. It is amazing how much stronger, fitter, and faster I feel - just because of the temperature. I didn't think it would make such a difference! After all, wouldn't the terrain make more of a difference than the air temperature in how fast I can go and how easy it is to ride? Well, if that were the case, I would be less impressed than ever today: the previously hard-packed snow has become soft and mushy, constantly shifting under my tires and threatening to throw me off my bike at every turn. The ride is messy, unstable, and the snow is harder to handle because I have to plow through it rather than ride over it.

And yet, despite all that, I am ecstatic to be out riding today! The warm air on my face, the freedom with which I can pedal now that my muscles aren't frozen, the pleasure of riding with so few layers of restrictive clothing between me and the fresh air. God it feels good! Today, I am very happy to be a bike commuter, I don't even care how messy all this melting snow is!