Day 193-Weigh-in Day: 318.8lbs

WEEK 27

Start Weight: 365.4

Last Week's Weight: 316.4

Current Weight: 318.8

This Week’s Weight Loss: +2.4lbs

Total Weight Loss: 46.6lbs

Miles Biked this Week: 69.45

Total Miles Biked: 1669.35

Miles to Go: 5830.65

GEOGRAPHY (Where I'd be on the map having started at my house in Salt Lake City, Utah, heading for Tokyo):

Pacific Ocean (962 miles off the west coast. I am heading for the Hawaiian Islands)

WEEK’S MILEAGE

Monday: 29.51

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 23.33

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 16.61

TODAY:

Exciting things happened this week. After my long ride on Monday morning, my left leg began to swell a little and I have a varicose vein that really started to hurt. Despite that I rode my bike Wednesday (great ride by the way) but wondered if I had redness on my calf, it was warm, and painful, if I didn’t have the symptoms of a blood clot. Yikes, I understand those can be fatal if not treated immediately. I consulted with my wife and we decided that just make sure, I better go in and see a doctor at the local Insta-care. The doc came in an immediately got a worried look on his face. That’s not good. They didn’t have an ultra sound machine at that location, but asked that I go get my leg scanned the next day. He circled the part of my leg with a purple Sharpie that was a little pink. He then had a nurse come in and give me an aggressive antibiotic shot, and sent me on my way.

Well, I sat and wondered if I was going to die while I laid in bed that night. Part of me laughed about it, another part thought about the worst.

I texted my riding buddy that night and cancelled our scheduled ride for the next day. Bummer!

I went in the next day to get the ultra sound done on my leg which was an interesting experience. They like to follow your arteries from your hip all the way down to your foot. I got to see my veins and arteries for the first time in my life!

After the procedure, a radiologist read the images, and then contacted my Insta-care physician to share the results. The good news was that there were no blood clots in the arteries! The bad news is that there were blood clots in a superficial vein. When I heard that I was blown away. How could I, an avid cyclist, have blood clots? I will admit that because of the weight I have carried around for decades that my legs have taken a pounding, especially my left foot and leg. That is also the side where I injured my knee last summer. So, it is no surprise that something is going on in there.

The other good news is that the treatment is pretty easy and straightforward. I am taking Aspirin, and putting an antibiotic patch over the vein until the pain goes away. Already after a day or two of aspirin and the patch, the leg is feeling better.

So what does this all mean? How did this occur? Why did my leg flare up? I don’t know, but I have a couple of theories. 1) During my long bike ride, I didn’t drink anything until a couple of hours into the ride. 2) Our ride this time, compared to the one a few weeks earlier was twice as fast, and I was probably off the bike for no more than 5 minutes. It was a more rigorous ride. And then once home, I stood up fixing my bike for an hour and a half, didn't even sit down. I think I just pushed it a bit too hard. I should have had a cool down. Avid cyclists are probably laughing right now, but remember, I’m still getting the hang of this. So, I’m gonna be drinking! I know I’ve said that before…but I will drain my bottles during the ride and they will be empty when I come home. I’m going to stretch when I get home, and maybe even put the feet up and ice a little.

Today (Saturday) we went and rode up “Godzilla”, my nickname for the 7-9% grade hill. I had to stop and let my heart slow down multiple times, but made it to the top. We climbed 750ft! I was spent by the top. But I did drink a lot, and ate an energy bar to make sure I was fueling and hydrating properly. My leg feels good too. We’ll see how it does through the rest of the day.

LEARNED:

I think I just shared with you what I learned.

EATING:

I give myself a C this week on eating. It was a week of survival. I didn’t eat bad, but I could have eaten more veggies, etc.

FILM:

Nothing to report here this week.

MOTIVATION TUESDAY TEASER:

I hope you’re enjoying Motivation Tuesday. I am! I have a couple of interviews that are pending so stay tuned for a great feature on Tuesday!

Pedal heavy metal!

Don