I made my very own workout routine using a medicine ball and then loaded it into Garmin connect. I press start of my watch and it tells me what to do when and counts the reps. Counting the reps is only as good as the hand wearing my watch moves, but all in all it’s a pretty good way to exersize.
I don’t do this workout as often as I’d like. But I did it today, and I’m feeling proud. Every moment matters.
I spent some time recently updating some of the pages to SheRidesToday. With the upcoming #VirtualBikeMS it was due time to update the Bike MS page. Check it out!
The Garmin Fenix series watches make a calculated estimate of VO2 max based on recorded physiological data over time. People tell me it’s pretty accurate. I remain skeptical, but only because it thinks I’m better than I think I am. Still, a VO2max of 48, or even anywhere in the 40s for that matter is as about as good as a non-competitive woman in her 40’s can get. I’m going to bask in the feeling of achievement this analysis that Garmin gave me.
She is exceptionally photogenic. I am not sure why, but I feel compelled to photograph her everywhere I go. She makes the world around me more beautiful.
I made a brand new page to link and connect to al my Project Sunrise adventures. Check it out!
I saw this meme on the internet- and WOW! It speaks to my new bike, Blue Lightning so much! My White Bicycle, well, she didn’t mind the rain at all. My commuter has mechanical disc brakes that squeak. They squeak loudly, and they squeak all the time, rain or shine. But my new bike is in a class alone. The brakes work wonderfully. They work better than any other brakes I’ve ever used. But they scream in the rain. Thee brakes down squeak. They full on sceam. They scream as loud as they can.
My bike is but a few months old, and it needed to get some adjustments. I’m not used to using a double chainring and needed some help getting my derailer set right for the perfect amount of trim. I wasn’t sure how much life my stock chain had in it (turns out to be a lot!) and one of my discs had some rub.
I procrastinated for weeks, but finally got out to the bike store. The store moved to separate entrances; sales and service. While several people didn’t read the signage, it was clear and well done. It worked for the most part. Each customer had to wait in line outside until space opened up inside. Each staff person had a marked “zone” to stand in, and they kept a 1:1 ratio for staff and customers. Each staff person had to be their own cashier and checked out thier customer only. Sanitizing stations cornered the zones. They did a great job.
She is exceptionally photogenic. I am not sure why, but I feel compelled to photograph her everywhere I go. She makes the world around me more beautiful.
It's a small act of programming, but thank you for being on the side of humanity, Strava. Nicely done!
They decided to turn the routes black in the activity feed only:
Athletes for Equality Support for equality, and especially justice for George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery, is at an all-time high in the Strava feed. We’re proud to see athletes standing up for what’s right. Starting this weekend, use these hashtags in your activity and we’ll add a special polyline to your workout to be sure it stands out in the feed: #equality #justice #justiceforfloyd #breonnataylor #irunwithmaud and more. Everyone in the Strava community – and beyond – deserves justice and equality. We’re more than happy to amplify the voices of those who are calling for it.
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What do you do when you fall off the wagon? What do you do when you lose your mojo? It seems, at least for me, you reach an age where you know everything you need to know to live the best life. You think back to that book, “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” and how stupidly profound that thought is. As a middle-aged adult, I find my biggest struggles are 5-year old struggles; self-discipline, eating right, sleeping right, staying active, having fun. As I’ve grown and the world became more complex around me, the things I struggle the most with are the ignorances I had as a child.
I look at my phone a lot. All the time. I named it, “my right arm.” My phone has an always-on display that can accomodate a picture. Reminders are helpful, often these are physical objects; keychains, rocks, or something like that. But they can be anything, even a picture. I chose “The Time is Now” because so often I look at a choice that sounds compelling in the moment. RIght now, I am drawn to these temptations, indulgences that seem impossible to resist. I know I’ll feel bad later…but right now, I’ll have just one little indulgence! How bad can it be? Over and over again those indulgences backfire. Eating an entire family bag of M&Ms is really fun in the moment….but feels terrible about 45 minutes later.
The Time is Now. Now is always when we need self-discipline. Not later. Now. I need to remind myself of this often. I posted this reminder on my phone and I see it all hours of they day. I the week that I’ve been looking at it, I felt better than I’ve felt in the past 2 months. What to make a difference in your life? Want to make the difference in the world? What is your mission; your calling? Now is the time to do it. There may not be the chance to later.
She is exceptionally photogenic. I am not sure why, but I feel compelled to photograph her everywhere I go. She makes the world around me more beautiful.
I ride past a few parks every day. They all look the same. The swings are tied up with caution tape and the parks are blocked off.
A single mom and her little boy live in the apartment above me. He’s young, maybe first grade? It’s hard to guess because he’s so spry and hard to catch a glance at him. He runs back and forth all day long and jumps from the furniture. Sometimes he branches out to the elevator and sprints up and down the hallways of all the floors. These are not long hallways; on 2 units deep. One time I watched the mom go outside to put trash in the dumpster. The boy yelled from the balcony, “Mom! Mom! Mom! Look at me!” The mother, clearly embarrassed and worried, hushed him and told him to go inside. More than annoyed (and it is annoying to hear all this thumping!) my heart breaks for this child. Kids can’t go to school and they can’t play outside.
The Seattle event to top all Seattle events; the “Swift Social Distance Ride.” All I had to do was take a ride BY MYSELF and take picture of all the things Swift Industries decided I should take pictures of and they would send me this nifty patch! I just got the patch in the mail today! I was so excited to see it, that I opened it up before letting it sit in the 3-day mail quarantine zone. Don’t worry, I opened the letter with tongs, recycled the paper, and then washed my hands before touching the patch inside. I am so happy with this patch! The question now is, where do I put it?
I decided to ride my bike to Kerry Park every morning to greet the sunrise. The goal is to bike a slightly different route to Kerry Park every morning and take a photo. I have been riding my bike to work most days for the past 8 years. I have the lucky advantage of living in a north enough latitude and have a long enough commute in each direction that I often get the chance to ride with either the sunrise or sunset and sometimes both. If it weren’t for the grey weather that hides the sunrises and sunsets, I could probably see sky colors most of the days of my commute. I’m working from home now with the “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order that looms over most of the country as we limit contact to combat COVID-19. I don’t have a morning commute any more and the gym is closed. My job is the 24/7 sort, so the working from bit doesn’t feel all that different from normal, but having no access to the gym has been the death of me. This project gave me a destination, a way to get out of bed, and a good climb too. I finally found a repeatable ride that meets 2 of the 3 parts of a good ride: exercise, destination, social time. This activity is about half of what I did while working onsite, so it should be easy to maintain every day. I decided Sundays don’t have to be sunrise rides because there is already a “sun” in the “day” (har har). You can tell easily from the summary photos which days are not sunrises!
I’m nothing if not coordinated. It’s been my goal my whole life. Underwear match my bra? Socks match my shirt? Nails match my outfit? Everything must fit. I’ll even go through great lengths to coordinate my hair color, nails, clothes and ID badge all so everything goes. Still, it came as a great surprise do discover the addition of a 3rd bike meant instant perfect matching of water bottles to bikes! I didn’t plan it, but each bike has a perfectly coordinating bottle. It would take someone like me to notice, and appreciate such things!
I joke that it all started with a bike chain. My chain was due for replacement. I got a bike strand for Christmas. I change the chain myself. But it doesn’t sound right. So I go to the bike shop. Turns out I need a new rear cassette. I buy a new rear cassette. WHile putting on the rear cassette the mechanic notices my discs are shot. So I replace my rotors and pads. While buying rotors and pads I talk to the checkout guy about how I want to get a power meter. He looks up options. Turns out the current market of power meters are not backwards compatible enough to go as old as my white bike. I’d have to replace the whole drivetrain to do that. A brand new bike would be cheaper. So, here I am. I start out with a chain and end up with a 2020 Specialized Roubaix Sport!
This is notably the most spontaneous thing I’ve ever done. I don’t spend money easily. Buying a vanerhome felt spontaneous. It was spontaneous in that I decided which one overnight. But I’d been thinking about buy a vanerhome for 15 years before I took the plunge. This bike? It was literally all of a week from the time I installed the chain to having the new bike. I woke up Saturday morning. I decided that moment to drive down to Portland. I went to River CIty Bicycles, the shop where I bought my first Roubaix back in 2004. I took this Roubaix out on the same roads. I meanered all around the industrial areas of close-in SE. I took it on the bumpy wooden slats of the Eastbank Esplanade. It was glorious and freeing and fun. What a way to start 2020!
I feel like a mom with a new baby. I want to share all the pictures of my beautiful new baby. My baby bike!
My Garmin told me my VO2 Max is in the top 10% for my age and gender. Take that heart disease! No one can blame me for my ailments, no one! My will is stronger than my body.
Trainer Road’s “Ask a Cycling Coach Podcast” answered the question I submitted about climbing Haleakula in Maui. Every year I visit Maui in March with family. Every year I sit in a van while we explore the island and I look longingly out the window at all the cyclists riding on the side of the road. I see cyclists climbing the mountain and I am in so much envy. One time we stopped at a rest area and I chatted a bit with a woman taking a rest. It wasn’t her first time taking the climb and she seemed to enjoy every moment; its reward and struggle. After we chatted a bit I found out she was from Seattle and lived not far from me.
My question starts at 1:42:04. They took a direction I didn’t expect. They started talking about “The Growth Mindset”. They pulled that I had a fixed mindset from the way I phrased my question. This is an uncanny direction to take. Just weeks ago my employer held a forum on the Growth Mindset and asked me to present as part of a penel. Each person talked about their fixed mindset past and the struggle trying to take a growth approach. A bit part of my personality is my drive to experiment. I am constantly trying to learn about the world around me and thrive with novelty. And barely weeks away, the group of strangers pull my fixed mindset out from just a few sentences of writing. In crafting my question I thought about how I would sound. I didn’t want to come across too boastful because I am not a racer. I phrased it with the goal of coming off humble, not fixed. But where did my need for humility come from? How fixed is my mindset really? I grew up in the Western culture that declares “you can do anything if you just put your mind to it”. At the same time, I am filled with worry and fear every time I ride. I still ride, and I guess that’s what makes me different from others. Needless to say, I don’t love the Growth Mindset approach. I can see how it’s what my employer needs, but it doesn’t touch me personally. That being said, I am now more driven than ever to take on the next challenge. Prove them wrong. I lived many years filled with insecurity, but that isn’t me now and hasn’t been for a long time. Check back soon to find out what my next big challenge will be.
