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Ahhhhh…it’s only been a few short weeks since my first flat and would you believe that I just had another?! I guess these roads I’m riding on have a lot of junk!

Today, I was actually en route home from the same beach that I had the first flat. The road is called Greenville Loop and it would be unusual for me to not see another cyclist at some point in the morning. Knowing that I did have the equipment this time to fix the tire, I decided I would try to enlist the help of another cyclist as I was not overly confident that I would remember exactly how this was done. 😉

The first guy I saw coming from the opposite direction did turn around and come to my rescue. He had already done the majority of his ride and was more than happy to help me out AND he was also a great teacher – having me go through the steps along the way. All in all, a very good experience and I now do feel pretty confident that I could change the tire on my own next time.

I went immediately to the bike shop to purchase more tubes (I decided that I better keep 2 on me as the guy helping me did say that he’s had 2 flats in one ride before!) and some more containers of air. Goodness! The bike shop periodically runs a class on basic bike maintenance which I think would be a perfect idea for me.

Not letting it get me down…just need to be prepared! 😉

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The Biggest Loser TV show has been such an inspiration to me and played a large part in my motivation to create my own weight loss challenge beginning last January. I had gotten several of the Biggest Loser books and dvds for Christmas. (they were on my wish list – just in case you were wondering who would have the nerve to buy these items for someone for Christmas – ouch! ) 😉

The new season starts up again next week and I’m really looking forward to it! Last night there was a special that brought in past contestants to be weighed and talk about what has been happening in their lives. 

Big news on the show was that contestants Matt and Suzy were married and also have a new baby! How cool! Most contestants that were featured (of course!) had either kept their weight off or close to it. Another 2 contestants, Marty and Amy got engaged during the show! Goodness – that’s what I call life changing – go on a show, lose tons of weight AND fall in love. Hmmmmm….  😉

Other news about the upcoming season which starts next week – Allison Sweeney is the new host! Yeah! I actually watch one soap (Days of our Lives) and she is on it. Also, Jillian will be back and I love her! Talk about killer bod! I can’t wait until the new season starts!

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I’ve been seeing the doctor regularly to monitor for high blood pressure for 3-4 yrs now. Currently I’m taking 2 medications – Metoprolol and Diovan. My blood pressure was good today and I spoke with the doctor about really wanting to go off the medication. I’m convinced that my high blood pressure was largely due to my diet and lack of exercise and I’m hoping that I have turned this around. It could be that I will need the medications – I do have some history of high blood pressure in my family, but I’m really hoping that the positive changes I’ve made will cause my blood pressure to be normal.

The number one reason is, of course, my health in general. Another is that I’m needing to get health insurance and there is such a big difference in the price if you are being treated for high blood pressure.

I applied a few months ago and at my current weight (I think I was around 230 at the time) and having high blood pressure, the payment was $400 +/mo. whew! I did speak with someone at that time and he told me that yes, the blood pressure and weight could be having a big effect on that number. So I’ve had it in my head that I would reapply again when I was off the medication and under 200 lbs. I’m aiming to have this new insurance in place for January…good way to start out the new year.

So the doctor did take me off of the Metoprolol today and I am going to try to take my blood pressure weekly with the machine at Walmart until I see him again next month. At that point, if all looks good I believe he will take me off of the Diovan also.

Wish me luck! 😉

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Yesterday while I was unexpectedly at the bike shop getting my flat tire fixed, I decided to purchase a few things that I had been thinking about getting. I’ve been wanting to have the flexibility to be able to carry things with me without needing my back pack. For example, one weekend I was out riding and came along a great farmer’s market, but with no way to carry my purchases I passed it by. I also would love a place to store extra water, food, a book etc – depending on the mood!

I purchased (and had them install) a rack that goes over my rear tire. I also got a double pannier that hangs down on either side of each tire. It’s wonderful and does hold quite a bit. I can really do some good grocery runs with my bike now. I feel like I have pretty much everything I need. Most importantly, the extra tube for the tire in case of another flat and all the gear to fix it. 😉

WooHoo! I’m excited about my new gear!

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This morning I set out for what I thought would be another nice 32 mile ride to/around Wrightsville Beach. I made it all the way to the one end and then thump, thump, thump….or something like that.

I knew right away that I had my first flat tire! Bummer! Of course, I had nothing with me to fix it (nor would I have known how to fix it) so I began walking back towards town thinking I could make it to a gas station. Along the way, someone told me about a bike rental shop nearby, so I headed there. Now mind you, I go out pretty early in the morning (best time to ride as it’s been getting very hot here lately) so I would have had to wait for a bit for the shop to open. Looking through the window, I didn’t really think that they would have what I needed.

Luckily I had gotten into the habit of always bringing my cell phone with me, so next I called J. Yes! AJ’s dad was visiting with his van and they all decided to come pick me up and then we all went out for breakfast. Perfect! AND lesson learned for me. I had them drop me at the bike shop (where I purchased the bike) so that I could get it fixed, hopefully learn a thing or 2, and pick up some emergency equipment to have with me in case this ever happened again.

I really like this bike shop – very friendly and helpful. The guy fixing my tire took time to show me how to do it and help me to pick out what I needed to keep with me. I got a little kit that fits under my seat – including an extra tire tube and everything you need to fix a flat. I felt much better knowing that I had this with me from now on. It was bound to happen and I was really glad that it wasn’t while I was on River Road which would have been a bit trickier. (although there are quite a few bikers on this road) I also decided that from now on I would carry cell phone, some cash and a debit card with my while on the bike.

So, lesson learned, all is good, AND I did manage to get in a good 20 mile ride today before the flat! 😉

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Can you believe it?! A new record for me!  WooHoo! I am a bicycling fool!

I’ve been riding so much these past few weeks. Typically I like to go 15-20 miles at a time and I’m trying to plan for a bigger ride on Saturdays. So this week I accomplished my goal of riding to Carolina Beach – and beyond! Funny thing, but when I’m looking at the map, I suddenly become determined to reach a certain point and in this case, the road literally ends. You can catch a ferry here and of course I had to see what this was all about it. So, I just kept going. I felt a bit like Forrest Gump and the endless running. hehe 😉

I was VERY tired when I got home, but definitely a good tired. There is a much bigger bridge going to Carolina Beach than Wrightsville Beach and it’s a bit steep so I managed quite the workout there. Not sure when/if I will try to beat this 45 mile goal. Perhaps I should continue to do more medium size rides. (I guess this is now getting to be around 20 miles or so) I certainly don’t want to burn myself out although I can’t imagine that happening as I am enjoying riding so much.

I’m really noticing the difference in my hips/booty as well. Now THIS is good progress!

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I did it!

Today I rode my bike all the way to Wrightsville Beach! It was wonderful!

I crossed the bridge that had earlier caused me to think I would not be able to make this ride and then rode to one end of the beach, back to the other end, and to the center again to cross the bridge coming back.  I’ve changed my previous attitude of thinking that there are NOT good roads around here to ride on, to realizing that I can bike absolutely anywhere.

I will definitely go to the beach again as it’s so beautiful and the whole ride there is really nice as well.

In total it was 32.3 miles (Wow! I can’t believe I did that – who knew?!) and it took me 2 hours and 53 minutes. Not a bad workout, eh? Next on my destination list is to go the other direction from my place, hitting Carolina Beach. I believe that ride is supposed to be about 30 miles, so now I know that I can do it.

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Starting this month I am logging my cycling adventures around town. I have one of those cyclometers on my bike (handlebar) that tracks distance and speed. (it also has a clock)  I’m going to record where I’m riding, the distance cycled and the time it takes me. I plan to go for miles to begin with and will also be working to get some bench marks for myself as far as speed goes.

In general, I am roughly riding about 12 mph which I’m feeling pretty darn good about! 😉

Last week I rode a total of 84 miles so I am definitely going to start pushing myself on the bike. My record ride to date is 26 miles and I would love to make that 30 or so before the end of the month.

I’m going to attempt to ride to both major beaches (opposite ends of town) before too long and I’ve really been studying a map to see where else I might like to ride to.

This is fun stuff!

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Wow! I can’t believe that I rode 26 miles yesterday! It felt amazing.

I discovered this great place to ride called River Rd. There’s not too much traffic, no lights or stop signs and there is a bike lane – one of the few in town. So far, I love it. As you would expect, the road goes alongside the river (Cape Fear River) and at the end there is a big bridge that leads to Carolina Beach. My next goal will be to bike all the way to the beach and after today’s ride I think I’ll be able to do it.

I’m discovering a part of myself that I really didn’t know existed – physically, that is. I never knew that I could push myself this much and it’s feeling really wonderful. I can feel a competitive sportier me coming to the surface that existed back in High School.  I’m actually starting to entertain thoughts of biking trips, races, and things like this that I could not have imagined myself doing a year ago.

A big dream would be to do a bicycle trip oversees – I LOVE Italy, so maybe this will make it into my travel plans for the near future. 😉 That would be so amazing!

I’m feeling stronger, my endurance feels better and I’m pushing myself a lot harder than I had been while walking for cardio. Next month, I’m going to really start doing some serious cycling and begin a log of my miles and times. This is fun stuff! AND I can feel myself losing more weight (or at least inches) since I started biking.

WooHoo!

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I’ve been doing more and more biking…really just trying to get used to riding in a bit of traffic and for longer periods of time. Starting next month, I’m really going to make my way around town and try to find some great rides. I’m still loving it and sometimes it’s all I can do to keep from going on a few rides a day. Who knew exercise could be this much fun! 😉

I really encourage you to find something that you enjoy doing for exercise if you haven’t done so already. I think this makes all the difference in the world. It’s not fun to exercise if you have to drag yourself out of the house to do it – not saying that we shouldn’t make ourselves even when we don’t feel like doing it – I do believe this.

I’m starting to think about additional gear that I might need for my bike. I really want to figure out a way that I can comfortably carry groceries and heavier items, but for now the back pack is working fine. (for shorter distances) Most of the rides I’ve been doing have been nearby and I would say that I am averaging 10 miles or so – I try to go for at least 40 minutes which I think is a pretty good cardio workout. It feels like 40 minutes for me on the bike is a much better workout than 40 minutes of walking. (I guess I could also stand to walk a bit faster and push myself more here.

Rock-n-roll!

🙂