Cycling in the mud and sun

Two months since I have found time to blog. I was trying to do it as much as possible but, work and family became hectic.

What has happened in the 2 months since my last post?

I am down to 95KG which is a total of 9KG lost since January. I have bought a mountain bike (Kona Hei Hei – for the tech heads), have let my weekly total drop to 20 miles a week (meaning I have only totalled 700 miles this year), competed in a 12 hour relay mountain bike race and have tried to get mileage back up again in the last couple of weeks.

These last two months have been crazy with work. I have been struggling to get the motivation to cycle while giving work my all. It has been an unusual 8 weeks, so I am hoping to get things back to normal.

I have come on holiday with the family this week to reset the mind and body. It has been great, I have managed to get 10 miles in a day and around Falmouth that is just up and down. The roads all start with sharp steep climbs with equally steep downhills. In 10 miles I have been averaging 1400 feet of ascent.

The Zing Deluxe On Holiday

Last weekend, I went on a great friends stag weekend. It must have been one of the best stag weekends of all time. No forced drinking and stupid night clubs where you spend tonnes of money. Instead we did a 12 hour mountain bike race at Erlstoke. Guess what?  We even podiumed.   We came 2nd out of the whole field. I got a new set of Truvative bars for the Hei Hei as a the prize.

Stag Getting on His Way

A muddy Team Mate at 2300 hrs

The Red Bull Tent At Prize Giving

A Podium Finish For the Stag Team

In terms of diet, I have kept up the 5/7 diet and added in natural green juices for breakfast every day. Which is a an elixir for life. Great to give your body all the natural vitamins and nutrients one requires. It has also helped to get me more into shape.

The holiday may have set me back slightly on goal, as it has been indulgence fest.  I figure that everyone needs to release at least once a year.  However, I have been cycling 10 miles a day.

Time to cycle, juice, work and have fun like never before.

Goal for June – kick it to 93KG (keeping the weight slow, so it remains off) and cycle at least 10 miles a day with a couple of 40+ days chucked in for fun too.

Sunny Falmouth

FC

Back on it…..like a car bonnet

Amazingly it worked…….that is, posting blogs focuses my mind completely to cracking on.

I had two pieces of unexpected inspiration. 1. From my cycling buddy, who happens to be one of the most chilled and thoughtful people I know, who took the time to say “hey I liked your post” and 2. an inspirational comment from http://www.heartattackwaitingtohappen.com/ aka Paul Squire that I wanted to share it with you:

” I’ve found that doing the “good things” over an extended period have resulted in quite a different impact than over a shorter period (a month, say). This probably sounds obvious, but I hadn’t realised how much time some things take (to start to lose “love handles”, for example).

My fitness kick was prompted by a Heart Attack, so I had some built in urgency. Your year-long challenge has the potential to result in some big, sustainable differences. Stick with it!”

What a great comment and it definitely helped me get on my bike when my body was saying noooooooo.

It is so true that doing the “good things” as Paul says is the right thing to do over an extended length of time.

We all know it. We all know what we should be doing. So we do we need something like a life altering wake up call to stop us eating comfort food in front of the TV.

My belief is that it is all down to programming. Society has been programmed by adverts that are compounded by your peers buying into them, that eating junk food or snacking is the way to relax.

I think once in a while absolutely. But are bodies were not designed to get self gratification from living others lives through TV and chomping down on fatty salt filled snacks.

I know this, you know this, so why does it A. feel so good at the time and B. taste so good that it is basically addictive.

The right thing is hard. But in the long term far more rewarding for ones soul or out look on life and ones health.

So I must keep up the meditation and re-program my mind to realise that if I am watching TV then the delicious taste of fruit or better yet, nothing is as fulfilling.

On top of that I am going to ask myself – could I being doing anything else right now that would allow me to get more out of life from using my body, even if it is tinkering with my bike, or spending time to prepare a fresh tasty meal from fresh ingredients. The best ones for me obviously involve Mrs. Fatcycles or second to that my bike.

Side NB. Celebrating holding up my fasting day yesterday while on a business trip to Vienna.

More to follow.

A bit cheesy but does the trick – get motivated to get out in the cold

Making Business Trips Work

Cruising to the back straight.

I am not sure that this is always possible, however I like to try and find the hotel gym or similar when staying away.

To be honest, I usually find the hotel gym, acknowledge that it is there and feel that I have worked out.

But not this trip.  I am currently in Abu Dhabi.  In my new state of I am going to crack this being fat thing.  I thought I would plan ahead and sort an activity that I would really enjoy and that would work my body.

When the research started little did I know that I could link to of my favourite things together….cycling and F1.

On Tuesday night the F1 track is opened to cyclists for free (if you have your own bike) or 100 AED for 2 hours to rent a bike, you can then race round the F1 circuit (at 10% of the speed of the drivers).

I am feeling on top of the world, incredible day of meetings, then rather than drinking at the bar to celebrate , I pumped out 38 miles on the most glorious smooth asphalt I have ever ridden on.

Smooooth Asphalt

I have started planning February more to follow.  It is going to be more painful.

FC

3rd weekend the downfall of New Year Resolutions

Did you know that the 3rd weekend in January is when most people give up their New Years resolutions.

Although I have said that my experiment is not a New Years Resolution, the fact that I started it on January 1st is not helping.

However, I am staying strong. After a dinner party last night and a wedding today, I have still not drunk a drop of alcohol and I have not knowingly let any wheat into my body.

My thoughts to people who are thinking the hell with it or are about to quit what ever they are trying to achieve in 2014 as a ‘new you’ are as follows:

1. It is half way through the month, you have made it this far. What is one drink or whatever you have given up going to achieve in the grand scheme of things. Whatever the reason, I will guarantee that in the back of your mind you will feel you have let yourself down. Keep going for only a bit longer.

2. Think back to why you are doing this anyway. I am sure you had some fairly good reasons. Really try to picture those reasons. Maybe write them down. What ever it takes to re-focus your mind.

3. Life is full of little challenges. If you have set yourself a challenge for January and you complete it, think, how you will be able to tackle the rest of the challenges that crop up over the next 11 months or even your life.

Even writing this has made me even more determined. Good luck.

One last thought. Surround yourself with people who will support you. The longer you go on the easier it will get. But at the beginning of doing anything ‘different’, for some reason some people (even so called friends), will try to talk you out of what ever you are doing. For example not drinking. Why is it such an issue? Some people just cannot help themselves from trying to persuade to have “just one drink” or “this is a special night, how many weddings/birthdays/team building nights are there this year…….”. Why?  because they feel guilty that you are about to do something to better yourself. If what you are doing makes you happy keep going. I have surrounded myself with some of the best people I know for January. Two of which are new to my life, but little do they know they have made a huge impact. No malice and supportive of whatever others are trying to do. I am sure it is to do with their labradoodle…….

Life feels great. We have one life. Lets make the most of it and enjoy every second.

FC

Road bike party 2

This is mega impressive.

Cliiiimb by 4iiii

If you’re pursuing Strava KOM segments, new from 4iiii (read: four eyes) is the Cliiiimb that provides real-time audio and visual feedback, along with heart rate chest monitor.  Simply download a Strava app, link via ANT+, and when a segment begins, you can race against the time of another rider or your own PR.  The unit attaches to your sunglasses.  Released in November, the Cliiiimb Pro retails for $199.

This is re-blogged from those awesome guys at bike war.  I could not get the video to upload while re-blogging.  If you are into bike war is a great blog to follow.

Of low blood sugar and being selfish

I feel that 7 days in I am doing quite well. However some of my colleagues might disagree.

Today, for the first time during the last 7 days I hit a wall. Now this was all down to my own poor planning and lack of organisataion.

I had a real test. We had a major client in today. Client lunches used to be one of my favourite things. Oudles of sandwiches and savoury pastries. None of which I can now eat due to the wheat content. To top this I forgot to eat any breakfast…..this is not an entirely fare description, as I never forget about meals, I had forgotten to plan a none wheat breakfast or inform catering that I am not eating any wheat.

My day consisted of the following – ride to work, strategy meeting with business partner, dream about food, eat an apple, panic that presentation for client was not ready, complete presentation, dream about food, eat an apple, client arrives, 1200 client lunch arrives, sit drooling while everyone tucks in, finish client meeting, snap at colleagues, cycle to dentist……hang on rewind. Snap at colleagues? Yes that is right my poor colleagues took the brunt of my poor organisation and had their heads verbally ripped off for nothing.

What can I take away from this apart from – poor organisation leads to poor staff retention? Well I have managed to stick to not eating wheat, even when the client thought that my stomach rumbling was a thunder storm and I have managed to keep going on the cycling even when energy is low. I am still on track for my 600KM T-shirt from Strava…121KM in on day 7.

Must get some bananas and dark chocolate as emergency food!!

Now for a little bit of bike porn I found on WordPress check out this Brabus bike.

FC

A morning ride with a buddy

An unexpected surprise – Part of having to get up to meet  your cycling buddy means you might get to see things you might have missed if you were still wrapped up in bed.

I would suggest that if you are getting into cycling or have just got into it, get yourself a buddy.  I was cycled solo for years.  I didn’t want to slow anyone down or get pushed past my comfort zone.

But I have to admit cycling with a buddy has really opened up my cycling.  My cycling buddy is a lot fitter and in better shape than me, therefore at his standard pace I really am having to push.  It  has got me beating personal bests on Strava and it is great to have someone to gossip about cycling with – not what Mrs. FatCycles considers a great topic for conversation.

‘Ice and Slowly, capturing my cycle buddy. Although my iPhone bag seems to have misted up somewhat.

If you are looking for people to go cycling with look up your local club.  There are loads of resources to find clubs, in the UK try British Cycling

I promise you will get more from cycling, get fitter, meet like minded people and have a laugh.

FC

Loving it even when it is wet

Another wet day.  Mrs. Fat cycles helped capture the moment of water logged shoes.