Hey, I Thought This Was a Blog About Bicycling!

After still feeling exhausted, groggy and not coordinated enough to bike safely, I took action and called my doctor. He ordered B6, B12 and iron tests. Then I went to get a Vitamin B complex injection. Soon after, my headache, brain fog and some fatigue lifted. I felt ok enough to see the hilarious new movie Jumanji:  Welcome to the Jungle with occasional riding partner Saurabh, and going home I had the occasion to run to catch a bus. A Dude Abikes does not run (maybe some day), so this was a significant sign that I had more energy from the shot. Even though I was drinking fresh organic fruit and vegetable juice and eating soups that I or a health food restaurant made, it was imbalanced and I paid the price. Hard. It will be interesting to see the lab results.

The lesson for me, and maybe for you, Dear Reader, is while something may seem healthy and doable, it may not work for you individually. Buyer beware!

So if you are going to do a juice fast, vegan diet, or make some other radical change, I suggest you first learn more about it than I did. Go gently, phase it in, be guided by your intuition and experience of your own body, not just others, and recognize your limitations. Reject dogma, ego and peer pressure in favor of health, practicality and ease of living. Any eating regimen that requires vitamins to me is clearly deficient and unnatural. But as it turns out, many of us are deficient in many things, and there’s no one clear answer. In my case, I’ve returned to most food groups but will keep on trying to incorporate more fibrous plant food. I need to stay on top of how I feel, rest more, supplement with several vitamins and minerals, and get other healing modalities like massage, enema, sauna, etc.

It Is a Blog About Bicycling! And All That Relates to It.

Every day there’s something going on related to my bicycle, even if I’m on a rest day and just thinking about it.  The car-free lifestyle and always seeking those marginal gains demand it. I found this article “4 Ways to Burn More Fat Through Cycling”, in Bicycling magazine. It suggests: 1) riding before breakfast, 2) high intensity interval training (HIIT), 3) weight lifting and 4) coffee, because:

“… we don’t want too much fat pushing back against our Lycra, since cycling is also a power-to-weight sport that punishes us—especially once the pavement turns upward—when we carry it in excess.”

A Dude can relate. He carries a llanta extra — spare tire — everywhere he goes. As well as two inner tubes. Ha ha ha!  Actually, A Dude Abikes is a thin man who is trying to eat his way out of the fluffier version he’s become stuck inside while in middle age. (You won’t be thin forever, most millenials!) My take is that riding without eating seems dangerous, especially after what I’m going through, but it might be worth attempting after a glycogen-rich meal the night before. I don’t drink coffee but maybe some green tea would increase my performance without taxing my adrenal glands and providing anti-oxidants.  Although why anyone would be against my father’s sister, I don’t know.  (A Dude has puns.  Aunty-Oxidant, get it?)

But the other two ideas make sense. With the trainer set-up I’ll be able to “HIIT it”. As for weights, last year I started out doing some, but I quickly grew bored and felt pain more than progress. Yoga has plenty of body weight exercises, but it’s probably time to add back in dumbbells, push-ups and more.  As mentioned, good guy, futurist, b-baller and awesome beard-grower Saurabh, has been getting great benefits from foam rolling his muscles; I endeavor to add that painful tool into the mix too.

Hopefully I will get those Garmin sensors installed soon. With the weather in Austin warming up to the 60’s F for the moment (sorry, people of the north experiencing record lows), perhaps I can fit in some sort of ride if I’m recovered this week. Last year I took a whole week off at New Year, so it looks like I’m in a bit of a resting phase.  Or if I’m still feeling a bit shaky, I can start some home training to get my burn on.

What have you done to burn fat? What doesn’t work for you? I’d love to hear in the comments.