Day 451-Weigh-in Day: 280.6lbs

WEEK 63

Start Weight: 365.4

Last Week’s Weight: 281

Current Weight: 280.6

This Week’s Weight Loss: 0.4lbs

Total Weight Loss: 84.8lbs

To Go: 70.2lbs

Miles Biked this Week: 38.11

Total Miles Biked: 2408.22

Miles to Go: 5091.78

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

Pacific Ocean (1688 miles off the west coast. I am heading for the Hawaiian Islands which is 2650 miles from San Diego)

Weekly Bike/Workout Totals

Last Week: REST

Monday: REST

Tuesday: REST

Wednesday: 14.25 miles (bike)

Thursday: 13.04 miles (bike)

Friday: 10.82 miles (bike)

Saturday: REST

TODAY:

Well, tomorrow it’s T-Minus 90 days to “The Ride!” Where am I today? Things are moving along very well. It’s been a few weeks since I got my bike and I am still madly in love with it. I tell my wife every day how much I love my bike. That sounds kind of weird doesn’t it? But she knows that there is no competition ;) I didn’t get riding until mid-week but got some good rides in with some good hills. It seems that every other day I look at the elevation of the hills I’m riding and then compare it to the elevation of Fuji and it scares me. I think I’ve shared this many times before…it’s an obsession. Really all I can do is train the best I can, and then hope for the best in August.

I’m a little bummed at lack of weight loss this week, But a half pound IS better than nothing. I know that this is not Biggest Loser and that large amounts of weight will not come off at a set time every week. I’ll continue to work hard, and I know I’ll see more results. One thing that I do need to improve on is weight training. Since I broke my wrist, I haven’t been doing any weight training. So, maybe I need to get back in my routine and get up early, lift weights and do my crunches.

I have been trying to find the right bike clothing and shoes to ride in. I’ve discovered that cyclists are small people. Have you ever seen what a horse jockey looks like? Well, that's what most of them look like J. I might look like the horse sitting on the jockey. Maybe not that bad but geeee bike stores, can’t you manufacture clothes and shoes for larger people too? I guess when you have a size 14-15 foot, things are a little harder to find. But I did finally find some stuff after a loooong search.

I found some good sales at backcountry.com and Performance Bicycle today. I finally ordered my road bike shoes, pedals, shorts and jerseys. Those have been the items I have been missing. I’ll be excited to learn how to bike with cleats, but a little nervous too. And I am wondering if I should try and learn how to use them this week and jump into the bike race next Saturday in them, or if I should start after? Hmmmm. I think I’ll jump in!

I have to be honest, when I started this challenge last year, I really envisioned myself standing on the top of Fuji at 210 pounds. Today, with 3 months left to Fuji, I am not sure if I can get there. Am I bummed? A little, but I am now looking past Fuji to achieve 210lbs. I keep reminding myself that compared to where I was last year, I’ve made great progress. If I can get to the top of Fuji having lost a 100 pounds, don’t you think that is something to be proud of? By putting Fuji out in front of me, it has been the fire to my rear. It has caused me to do things that I normally wouldn’t have done. So, I am choosing to smile and pat myself on the back, instead of get discouraged. But I remind you, there is still 3 months left ;)

Well, if you have any advice, I’d love to hear it. Next Saturday is my first bike race…a 52-miler. Any advice on how to prepare for it, or what I should do during it would be appreciated. Again, I am not doing this to win, I am doing this to finish.

Happy Memorial Day…remember the great men and women that sacrificed so that we can live our lives to the fullest. May we never forget them, or their gift.

Don

Day 444-Weigh-in Day: 281lbs

WEEK 62

Start Weight: 365.4

2 Weeks Ago Weight: 284

Current Weight: 281

This Week’s Weight Loss: 3lbs

Total Weight Loss: 84.4lbs

To Go: 70.6lbs

Miles Biked this Week: 53.48

Total Miles Biked: 2370.11

Miles to Go: 5129.89

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

Pacific Ocean (1649 miles off the west coast. I am heading for the Hawaiian Islands which is 2650 miles from San Diego)

Weekly Bike/Workout Totals

Last Week: 8.6 miles (bike)

Monday: 11.93 miles (bike)

Tuesday: 8.90 miles (bike)

Wednesday: 3.98 miles (bike)

Thursday: 5.73 miles (bike)

Friday: 14.34 miles (bike)

Saturday: Rest

TODAY:

You can read yesterday’s blog entry if you want to know where I’ve been over the past few weeks. All is well, I’m still here hummin’ along. Life at work got chaotic again resulting in 1-2am late nights with bad survival eating. But, this week was pretty much perfect. I will admit I ate a small cookie, had a dime size sample of Cold Stone ice cream, and a big handful of popcorn yesterday. I am sure it all added up to less than 100 calories. I was pretty perfect this week with eating, and I was able to ride to work, doing a longer route, each day.

Yesterday, I did some good hill climbing, including the monster hill I tried to conquer a few times last year. Guess what? I still can’t climb that darn hill. It gets to be about a 17% grade and I just can only move myself so far at that grade. When you think about it, 17% grade is 17 feet of elevation increase for every 100 feet of road. That is steep! I rode some other hills this morning that were about 8% that were fairly do-able. I got to the top and a fellow in a car rolled his window down and congratulated me on my hard work. That was surely nice.

I can’t tell you how I love my bike. I never knew how awesome it would be to move from a mountain bike on the road, to a road bike. Every day I catch myself peddling along with a smile on my face. The first day I rode it a few weeks back, my wife and her friend were driving down the street approaching me without my knowledge. They said that I was smiling while I was peddling. Really, is it that obvious? The bike is a 30-speed and hums along without any noise. It shifts so smoothly, and I’m getting used to how it all works.

I can’t remember if I told you, but we ended up purchasing our tickets to Japan from United Airlines. I bought at the cheapest time I’ve seen over the past 3 months. I feel good about it. It is going to cost $400 to check my bike in under the plane, round trip, so I am going to send United a letter asking them if they will waive the fee. I of course will give them a nice mention and plug in my film. I also found our hotel that we’ll be staying at by Mount Fuji. I approached the hotel and they will give me a little discount too for my film. I am learning that if you just ask, many times you’ll get what you’re wanting. I will be plugging the hotel too. It’s a pretty cool little place, with gorgeous views of Fuji.

I did something kind of scary today…

I signed myself up for a 52-mile bike race in 2 weeks. I don’t know what I’m doing, but I thought it would give me some good experience doing a longer ride. It has a 1500-foot climb in elevation during the race, and is out in the boonies of the desert, west of the Salt Lake Valley. It starts in Stockton, heads south to Rush Valley, heads west to the mountains, heads north to Grantsville, and then heads back south to Tooele. It’s like a big loop. It won’t be easy for me, but I think it is do-able…especially on my bike. It is a race, but I am not doing this to try and win, I just want to finish :) This will be my first bike event. I’m scared, but I’m also kind of excited.

Well, I’m going to leave you on a fun note…

Tonight, my little girl won 1^st place out of 22 Pinewood Derby cars that were racing at a Girl Scout Powder Puff race. As a little congratulations outing, we took her to get some ice cream at Cold Stone. Talk about delectable looking ice cream! Well, I let my wife and daughter have what they wanted, but for me, I simply had a dime-sized sample taste of the poison. ;) I have included some pictures of what I resisted this evening. I am proud of myself.

Well, I hope this upcoming week will be a good one for you. I have 14 more weeks to go, and still have a lot of weight to get off of my frame. The less weight I have on Fuji, the easier it will be to bike. I don’t know about you, but I want to be 210 Again!

Happy hill climbing!

Don

Day 443-A Little Set Back

Well,

You're probably wondering where I've been over the past couple of weeks. Well last week, my body not only needed a "free day" but a "free week!"

I was up until 1 and 2am a few times cause I was working hard to get a project at work done. My eating a sleeping was a bit chaotic.

Again, this time of year at work is another challenge for me. I didn't go crazy with eating, I just had to eat outside of my regular trough of food. To be honest, I didn't feel any guilt, although I knew I'd pay for it with a 2 week set back. It usually takes 2 weeks for my body to catch back up where it was.

This week has been a good one, and I'm eating and riding in the groove. I loooove my bike! This morning I did some hills that I remember last year practically gave me a heart attack, but with a lot less weight, and the right bike, I got up the hills a lot easier! It wasn't easy, but there is a big difference.

I'm almost to 40 miles this week, and still have a little time to beat my last weigh-in's mileage.

One little note, I am not doing a free day this week. I am testing my body to see how it does with free days every two weeks. And then, I may simply just do a free meal each week. We'll see.

Have a safe ride today!

Don

Day 430-Weigh-in Day: 284lbs

WEEK 61

Start Weight: 365.4

Last Week’s Weight: 284

Current Weight: 284

This Week’s Weight Loss: 0lbs

Total Weight Loss: 81.4lbs

To Go: 73.6lbs

Miles Biked this Week: 61.8

Total Miles Biked: 2316.63

Miles to Go: 5183.37

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

Pacific Ocean (1596 miles off the west coast. I am heading for the Hawaiian Islands which is 2650 miles from San Diego)

Weekly Bike/Workout Totals

Monday: 21.23 miles (bike)

Tuesday: 10.51 miles (bike)

Wednesday: 5.78 miles (bike)

Thursday: 5.17 miles (bike)

Friday: 13.31 miles (bike)

Saturday: 5.87 miles (bike)

TODAY:

“May the 4^th” be with you! I heard that from a 9-year old yesterday…Hahaha!

This has been an exciting week. It’s the first time since the week of January 12^th that I got in more than 50 miles. I’m finally ramping things up. I do need to get back to the gym and do my weights and intervals. This week will be a good week to introduce that back into my schedule.

The highlight of the week though was getting fitted for, and purchasing my new bike! I got a new Jamis Bosanova from Highlander Bike here in Salt Lake City. Doug, the owner, helped get me measured up correctly for the bike. I had a camera guy there who caught everything on video so I’ll have to put some stuff up for you to view. Doug did a great job explaining why Jamis is a great brand of bike, and why the Bosanova is perfect for my needs.

I cannot believe how amazingly smooth this bike is. There is no comparison with my mountain bike The mountain bike has been a good trainer over the past year, but now that I’m on this new bike, it really takes you to an entirely new level.

Usually on a MPH sign out in a neighborhood, I’d see me hit 12, maybe 13mph tops, but today on a quick little spin I saw 17mph! What a difference. It shifts so smooth, and purrs along the road. No squeaking on this bike. It has both front and rear disc brakes which make braking nice.

As far as my weigh-in, I think I was on my eating game, plus I got in 50 miles plus, but somehow I stayed the same weight. I think with all the riding getting going again, my body is retaining a little water. Anytime I put myself through some pretty rigorous activity, my body inflames a bit. I kind of feel that. My clothes even feel a tad tight. It will be gone soon.

Anyway, I plan on riding my bike to work every day from now on, and Saturday mornings need to be reserved for long rides.

I’ll be watching airfares this Tuesday morning…there’s a good chance I’ll be purchasing. Gee, with bike in hand and plane tickets, there’s no turning back!

That’s it for today…I’ll keep you on the up and up.

In case you want to follow all my workouts, you can follow me on twitter at: @210AgainDon

Every time I do a workout of some sorts I post.

You can also see pictures, video, and the latest goings on at 210 Again

Happy purring-down the road!

Don

Day 428: A New Bike!

Yesterday I spent the morning at Highlander Bike getting fitted for my new bike. They happened to have a Jamis Bosanova in stock and in the size I need! So they made some adjustments, and I came and picked it up today! Talk about an absolutely awesome ride. It can't even compare with my old mountain bike! It's such a nice ride that now I can see what cyclists rave about! My mountain bike was a good training bike, giving resistance unintentionally. On this new bike, the only thing that can hold it back is me.

I've almost got 50 miles in this week, and have been tired. I decided to rest today, but this evening when picking it up, I HAD to ride it home! It was sweet. Thank you Doug for getting me into this great bike. My life is about to "shift gears" and take on the next level!