Tag Archives: cycling

New Friends, New Trails, New Adventures!

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So, once again, I went on my 7 mile run this morning.  Only this time, I met up with my friend Samantha for a bike ride afterwards!  We had such a blast riding through a trail I had never done before.  We enjoyed seeing cool iguanas and turtles, did some strange people watching and, of course, had some awesome girl-talk time.  What a great way to end the weekend!  Actually… what a great way to start my Sunday!  A reverse brick workout, LOL.  Now, I gotta start getting serious about cycling and running back to back… but in the correct order.

After Samantha and I finished having a yummy breakfast, I took my bike to the shop to get it serviced, have the handle bars re-taped and buy some road pedals and cycling shoes. I’m looking pretty legit now on that bike, LOL 😉  Ready for my months of training ahead.  Gonna be awesome!

 

May 10th: We’re So Cultured!

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I went for my second 20 mile bike ride this Saturday morning… and what an epic fail of a ride it was.  I don’t know if it was because I was exhausted, if I was just having an off day, or if it was the CRAZY gusts of wind that were threatening to push me down the whole ride but, it was NOT a fun ride.
I was obnoxiously slow and sweating profusely the entire ride.  My legs felt like jello and my heart felt like it was trying to escape my body via my throat!  Regardless, the photo above is how I posed at the half way point.  (A view of the ocean is truly a cure-all.) 
 
After the ride, we washed up and headed to my school for the yearly school carnival.  I collected tickets at the dunk tank for a brief while then was relieved of my duties.  We took advantage of having traveled South then headed to the Ft. Lauderdale Museum of Art.  They had an amazing exhibit of the American painter, William Glackens’ work as well as an exhibit of Civil Rights photography by Ben Adelman and multiple works by artists from the CoBrA era.  Very cool stuff!
Here we are engaging in the interactive display after the CoBrA exhibit….  🙂

April 26th: My first 22 miler ever!!

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Saturday I did my very first long ride on my bike!  The furthest I had ever gone up until this point was the leisurely (but very scenic) 13 mile course we did in the Everglades a few weeks ago.  I don’t really consider that a true 13 miles because it was very stop and go and not at all a straight shot like this Saturday’s 22 miles were.

I was worried that I would be embarrassingly and annoyingly slow or that I would just zonk out towards the end but I surprised myself.  I held my own pretty well, especially considering it was my first legit intro to the road.  At one point we were averaging 19/20 mph… Unfortunately that was not the average pace of the entire ride but, my goal is to be able to maintain that pace.  Slowly but surely I’ll get there.
Our turn around point was the lovely Lake Worth Pier where we got to stop for a second and enjoy a view of the ocean and the bluest sky ever.  When we got back, Casey treated me to a very romantic brunch and we toasted the occasion with mimosas.  I did it!  And not only did I survive, I had a blast!
Brunch was followed by a trip to the ocean, a walk through an art festival and then a very well deserved nap.  The combination of exercise and heat really did us in!  Could not have asked for a better Saturday.

March 26th: From Sore to Lumpy

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So, I’ve been trying out my new bike this week… luckily, my sore butt issue is being resolved through my use of padded bike shorts.  But, now I have a new dilemma… They make my already large booty look bigger through the addition of a big ol’ lump where the padding is, LOL… whatever.

More importantly, I’m learning to ride it slowly but surely.  I didn’t realize how different it would feel from riding a regular cruiser.  I’m taking short 6-7 mile rides around my neighborhood until I get comfortable riding it then plan on going further along the same ocean-side route as my Saturday long runs.

I already have several friends ready and waiting to ride with me!!  🙂  Can’t wait!

 

Bicycles and Sore Butts

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I am proud to say that I have been hard at work running and riding my rinky-dink bicycle lately.  I have not missed a work-out except for Tuesday.  I was just too tired after coming back so late Monday night from my trip out of town and wanted to give my body a rest.

My daily routine has included either a fast 3 mile run and a short cool-down bike ride OR a 6 mile bike ride and my favorite butt exercise video.  I’m feeling good and am SOOO glad that I have begun to do a secondary form of cardio for various reasons:

  1. If I run every day, my knees and hips just don’t feel right.  I ache and feel uncomfortable.  Cycling has given me something to do in between my running days.  Extra cardio and no knee pain? What a concept!
  2. Its helping me strengthen a different set of leg muscles which, i’m sure, will ultimately make me a stronger runner.
  3. Its fun!
  4. Its getting me super psyched about getting a REAL bike and doing a tri!

Despite my excitement, I have one small complaint… MY BUTT HURTS!

You would think that with my Cuban-sized booty, it wouldn’t be a sore as it is but, I’m downright uncomfortable, people.  I either need to get a better seat for my bike, wear padded riding shorts or just suck it up and get used to it if I’m going to be making this a new habit!

I will be getting a more efficient bike sooner than later and will hopefully be able to try it out during my spring break!  I can’t wait to share THOSE new adventures with you.  Until then, I gotta keep movin’!