Biking Update - December 6, 2008

Last week, I did not post an update because I was away for a little Thanksgiving vacation in Bath, NY and its surroundings. While away on that trip, I declared a "free day" where I could eat what I wanted. These "free days" are important to a diet plan, because it allows me to be able to say when I am tempted, "I won't have that today. The free day is coming in X days, and I can have it then." It is amazing how much pressure that takes off when I see someone else having a piece of cake, eating potato chips, or wolfing down mozzarella sticks. And you can see on the graph this week that the "free days" really show how easy it would be to put back on the pounds I have lost. That extreme spike is Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, and that weekend. I gained almost 10 lbs over those 4 days! Luckily, when I came back to the plan on Monday, most of the pounds came right off as well. Proof that weight quickly gained, can be quickly lost... but weight left on over time, takes time to take off. I ended off this week at the low I had achieved just before Thanksgiving.

I also learned something else on this vacation. My family has a history of diabetes. I myself have never been diagnosed with even a pre-diabetic condition, but the doctor is watching me closely. Everyone who has diabetes has also had a weight problem, so we were never sure what was the cause and what was the effect. I learned this time around that my body reacts STRONGLY to sugar - as opposed to other fattening ingredients like carbs and fats. On Thanksgiving Day, I had 4 chocolate chip cookies - not large ones, normal sized - as my only sugar intake. (I have been pretty much sugar-free on the plan since July.) When I was done, my body began to shake and would not stop. After simply being uncomfortable for a bit, I got up and took a long walk around downtown Bath which burned off the excess energy. The same thing happened the next night when I had a piece of chocolate cake. (Photo to the right is from one of those walks.) Apparently, my body reacts STRONGLY to sugar and especially strongly processed sugars. It appears I might do well to avoid refined sugar in the future, even on my "free days".

But, finally, I *DO* have some biking news for my "biking update." When I was first exploring getting a bike in the late Spring, I became enamored of folding bikes because of the ease of storage and transport. And because they seemed like something a super-spy would use. While looking, the best option seemed to be the Dahon Matrix because it provided a full-sized bike (with suspension to protect my back) with no folding-bike compromises. But at the time, I decided it was impractical because folding bikes were - in general - much more expensive than standard bikes. Plus, most of them had a maximum rider weight of 230 lbs, and at the time I was MUCH more than that (see graph). But since then, I have melted off the weight and kept it off for a few months. And while up in Bath, it became evident that it would have been VERY nice to have a bike along on a trip where it was impractical to bring along the standard bikes (because of added weight and uncertainty of weather). Well, on Thanksgiving Day Performance Bike had a 20% off of everything in the store sale. They had already discounted the bike for the winter season by 15% and thrown in a free storage bag. After struggling with the decision all day, I finally decided this was my ONLY chance to get this folder for a price I was willing to pay, so I went ahead and purchased it. The bike came Wednesday and I put it together (with some difficulty) and brought it over to the bike shop to be trued up yesterday. It is a beautiful machine, and I look forward to using it on many trips and situations.