Yup, that’s an increase you see up there. Sad but true. It’s Saturday AM and last night, against better judgement I went out for a whiskey with Claire. One turned into 3 hanging some people and before we knew it it was late at night and we’d missed any real chance at dinner. The waking hour was hard! Topping it off I planned to be on the mountain bike today, waking up hungry and slightly hung over. Not the best way to start the day.
Sometimes very, VERY occasionally you have to live a little and enjoy the fruits of your labor. The old phrase, “All work and no play makes Bobby a dull boy” holds true.
I’d hit up some old riding buddies and let them know what I was planning. As fate would have it, they would be at the same trail about the an hour or two after I planned on being there. BONUS! Friends to ride with. Familiar faces from days of old being on the trail for a few hours was like being a few years younger, like kids playing together again. Before I knew it, time had flown by and we were miles and miles into the ride. 15 plus miles and almost 2 hours and 45 minutes all total, not fast, not a race. Pure fun and friends I missed. A joyful heart is made of such things.
I noticed as I kept a close eye on my heart rate over the course of the ride, that it wasn’t near as out of line as it had been the last impromptu ride I’d taken. Then, I couldn’t get my HR down and stopped often to huff and puff. Drawing a massive tornado of wind into my fat body at every breath. If there’d been a windmill nearby I could have powered a small New England town that day. But today was different, markedly different! Could just 10 full days of being plant powered have an effect like this? Not much else had changed. I even had a bad nights rest AND ate a bowl of oatmeal with walnuts before heading out. I never used to eat fearing the dreaded trail puke while riding, but today was different. I felt great! Didn’t suck for air, didn’t lack power and didn’t get dropped too badly, despite being out of practice and dreadfully over riding weight of old. This was the stress relief I was seeking. Breaking the chains of rational thought, if only for a while, helped to reset my body and mind. The bike, thus far in my life, is the ONLY thing that does that for me.
The aftermath of a ride, the ride before this, was brutal! Sore muscles, aching back, and general tightness all over. Were my riding days over?? Today proved that is totally BS! My best riding days are in front of me. Why? Because as of this writing, no soreness at all! Nothing feels out of whack, and I didn’t take it all that easy yesterday. I should, by all reason, be sore and not all that happy about having a ride. But no,.. I can’t wait to find my elixir of recovery, but for now not feeling like hammered shit and death warmed over is all I need. So happy! I feel reborn.
BobLosesWeight 