Month: January 2018

Cadence & Speed Sensors; Proposed Bike Lanes; and My Verified Iron Deficiency

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

Part I:   More Data from Garmin Gadgets

I finally made it to Sun & Ski Sports for the sensors.  Once I figured out how to sync then with my Garmin vivoactive hr watch, they were easily installed by Mike the Mechanic.  Speed is already measured by the watch, but now it can be measured on the home trainer.  That is, if we don’t blink and miss Austin’s short winter and I don’t need to pedal inside.  However, clearly, I do.  The X-Files has been back on for over a week and I hadn’t seen either episode.  Such Scully-y and Mulder-y goodness!  If you’re not a fan, you have no idea.  I’m sure the paranormal investigating FBI agents are cyclists when not busy hunting conspiracies or aliens and such.

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To (Vitamin) B, or Not to B: A Cautionary Tale + Fat-Burning with a Home Trainer

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Hey, I Thought This Was a Blog About Bicycling!

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A week as a vegan dangerously depleted my B vitamin levels.

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!

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My First Week of 2018:  Exercising & Eating Better Is Hard Work, But Worth It

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“Moderation in all things, especially moderation.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Not Every Body Can Be Like [Your Favorite Celebrity Vegan Name Here]

It’s no coincidence the acronym for this cool clinic spells N.A.P.

As predicted, out of necessity, I ended up modifying my diet to include more than just fruit, vegetables and nuts. While I lost 13 pounds in 7 days, I believe it was too much radical change, detoxification and finally deficiency that led me to add back in a tin of sardines in olive oil and a fish oil tablet.

I knew something was off when I went to Neighborhood Acupuncture Clinic today. I couldn’t fall asleep as usual, and pedaled home as if in a sea of jelly. This is dangerous, and I dropped and cracked my shades. Which makes a dude sad since they are very nice and were donated by a nice guy. Sigh.

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It’s Late on a Sunday, and You Haven’t Met Your Goal. What Do You Do? (Day 7)

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Check out this cool short map video of my Sunday night ride:  https://www.relive.cc/view/1346454488

It’s Good to Know Your Limits, So You Can Exceed Them

Dragon fruit at Wheatsville Coop. Not as smoky as expected.  For dragons.

It’s late on a Sunday night, cool and windy outside.  You’re tired after a long week.  But you haven’t met your bicycling (or running, blogging, yoga, walking,  crotcheting, or whatever) goal.  What do you do?

Well, you could stay in and rest, get ready for the week, and try again next week.  Or you could drag yourself out the door and go for it.  Only you know what’s best for you, but I can tell you what I did:  I went for it.  Why?  Because I like to push myself to see what I can do.  And I wanted to start the first week of the year meeting as many goals as possible.  Looking deeper, I can see that my motivation came from a desire for consistency in my bicycling practice, especially since I have cut my goal in half from two years ago to 50/week (although I may raise it again). Continue reading →

Soup-er Tired, but Good Things Are Happening Bike, Blog and Body-Wise! (Day 6)

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Today I walked, talked, (but listened more), biked, job searched and now am blogging. I have yet to yoga-cize, but I will, even if I must take a sivasana siesta first. But I’m tired. Partially that’s because of having extra energy from the cleaner eating, which leads to doing more than I should (like spending too long on this blog), staying up too late, and then fatigue. Although I’m eating super healthy, it’s insufficient in quantity and diversity.

Also, I’ve started to notice a craving for fats, which I’ve somewhat managed to address with almonds or walnuts, seeds or avocado in my smoothie or soup, and peanut butter with an apple. I’m not having any grains, which is a big shock to the system. So my plan is to survive the seventh day then reassess what all I can and want to eat but also NEED to eat. I’ve had an image of a delicious pink/orange piece of baked wild salmon. Yum! (I guess you’d call that salmon-colored.)

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My Journey Toward Being a Little Less of a Fathlete (Day 5)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 7 Comments

Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty… I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well.

— Theodore Roosevelt

Bike Life Is Hard; The Struggle is Real

Bicycling on average of almost 100 miles a week for the last two years, totaling 10,020, was damn hard. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to really put in words what I went through to accomplish it. Yes, there’s much more serious suffering in the world, and I’m not comparing war, poverty, disease, accidents or having to even look at or listen to US President #45. However, when I put “suffering” in my posts as a key word, I am not kidding. I often truly suffered while biking. But I’m grateful for making the choice to push myself far beyond my limits or expectations of others who believe people with excess adipose can’t kick some serious ass. Wrong!

Some people say biking IS suffering. Strava has a “Suffer Score.” From saddle sores, to wrecks, muscle pain and cramps, nearly getting hit, maimed or killed by shitty drivers every single day, cold, wind, rain, snow, 100+ degree Fahrenheit Texas summers, and hills – gott im himmel, the hills! – and of course being on a bike for 10 hours riding 100 miles in a day four different times, twice back to back — is super [expletive] challenging. Even more so when you’re overweight, not so young anymore, and a full-time desk jockey until I was laid off a few months ago. (Anyone wanna hire A Dude?) So yes, the struggle is real, as those who do any sport at some distance and intensity know. But it’s nothing to be afraid of: Suffering forges you into a better, tougher, fitter you. And that’s way (weigh? whey?) more important than a number on a scale.

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Healthier Choices; Getting Out into the Community & Meeting Cool People (Day 4)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 1 Comment

Wednesday’s 16 miles on the bike began with a ride to a downtown coffee shop to talk with a very interesting person.  I can’t reveal their identity or the purpose of the talk just yet, but it was a good experience for me, and I hope for them.  So we’ll see how that goes.  You’ll read about it here, assuming you keep coming back to read A Dude.

While I was there, I spotted someone else of note.  That person was Jim Hightower, the populist former Agricultural Commissioner of Texas who has gone on to be a voice for progressive politics in Texas and beyond.  My second favorite thing he ever said was at a Ralph Nader for President rally where he was a warm-up speaker.  The crowd was rambunctious, so he said, with a Texas inflection, “This rally is hotter than high school love.”  Hilarious!  My favorite thing he said was, “I was born recently, just not yesterday.”  I said hello, he was pleasant and polite but he didn’t remember me from Adam.  Funny thing, years ago he considered me to be too radical for his radio show.  Instead he got my friend on the air, largely because he was an Army veteran.  True story. Continue reading →

Equanimity & 499 More Words in 30 Minutes (Day 3)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 1 Comment
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A statue epitomizing equanimity during a rare recent snow

Today’s blog is a writing exercise.  A Dude wants to see if he can write 500 words in 30 minutes.  He can tend to be long-winded, and while that may appeal to some readers, it may dissuade others.  Since I intend to write daily for some period, perhaps even the whole of January, it behooves me to be brief.

It’s refreshing to hear from people who read my blog recently.  One is a fellow cyclist who bikes in the winter — in Finland!  Thank you all!  This blog was intended to be an experiment, and I have a lot to learn about doing it well.  New Year resolutions being what they are – much sound and fury signifying nothing – I’m not making many hard and fast rules for myself right now. Continue reading →

What Jerry Seinfeld & The Juiceman Can Teach Us About Making Healthy Choices (Day 2)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 9 Comments

If you can walk to work or take your bike on a daily basis, I think that’s just about the coolest thing that there is. 

                   -Jerry Seinfeld, on a 2015 Reddit Ask Me Anything thread

Such is the Winter of Our… Bad Habits

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Bicycles make even Jerry Seinfeld smile

About 11 years ago, comedian Jerry Seinfeld (if you didn’t know it already, A Dude loves the Sein!) was said to have revealed the secret of his success.  It was four words (five if you don’t count the contraction):  Don’t Break The Chain (DBTC).  By that he meant writing jokes for 10 minutes a day, no matter what.  Seeing the red x’s accumulate on the big all-year wall calendar would supposedly motivate him to keep going.  Eventually the jokes would get better.  Turns out that was bogus; he didn’t invent it or really do it.  But he sure did work hard and continuously to become one of the most successful comedians ever.  Plus, he walks and bikes to work, how cool is that?!  If you haven’t already, check out his documentary, Jerry Before Seinfeld, on Netflix.

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4,714 Miles Bicycled in 2017 = 10,000 in 2 Years! A Recap of My “Epic Velocimania” (Day 1)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 23 Comments

Whole Lotta Bikin’ Goin’ On

2017 Strava stats4,714 miles in 2017 and 5,306 in 2016 total 10,020 miles — that’s what A Dude Abikes bicycled in two years.  The numbers don’t lie (if you believe my Garmin vivoactive hr, Strava and GeoPositioning Satellites, that is).  But I don’t need technology to tell you that I definitely biked 40% around the equator (all the way is 24,901 miles).  Any way you look at it, it’a alot of damn miles.  Not easy with my various challenges.  But I did it.

So what, you might ask?  Lots of people ride farther and faster.  True, but I ain’t them, and they can get their own damn blog.  I often wonder why, too.  In one sense, it’s just what I do.  Also, I’m approaching 13 years of being car-free.  (Not care-free — I wish!)  So if I want to go anywhere, biking is usually the most efficient way.  Cars are expensive and pollute.  Lastly, the only race I’m in is the human one. Continue reading →