The Fit Nation

https://ift.tt/z1tLUa6 Since yesterday was scheduled to be a longer ride, and I’m running out of days to meet the Strava climbing challenge , I decided to try for 1000 m of climbing in a day. Mountain runners call this a “vertical K”. I chose the biggest climb in our area, up to Henry Coe state Park, about 16 miles of climbing out East Dunne Ave. The last time I did this on a recumbent was probably over 30 years ago. I had no electric assist for that one, and climbing the last steep stretch known as “the wall” required pulling up on my clipped-in shoes on the pedals. I made it, but ended up with a bad shin overuse injury that took a couple of years to go away. I was hoping to avoid that this time: No clipped-in shoes but electric assist would. I made it just about to “the wall” but was running low on battery. I had to leave enough in reserve to kept home because there was still some climbing on the way back. So I came up short of Henry Coe,...

https://ift.tt/IgtOkwN I signed up for a challenge to climb 7000 m (23000 ft) for the month of June on Strava . Trouble is I didn’t sign up till June 19th. I figured I’d already climbed a lot this month, but I forgot I don’t climb much by myself on the recumbent, so it turned out I only had 2600 m under my belt, so in the last 11 days of the month I needed 4400 m more. I’ve been scurrying since then and so far I’ve gotten another 2277 in as of yesterday, now I need 2076 more in 5 days. Note to self, next time join at the beginning of the month! Last Thursday I rode to the Northwest of Morgan Hill on a nice day. Up Half Rd Past Andy’s Orchard Saturday I meandered to the Southwest on a foggy morning. It didn’t lift till I was almost home. Coming down Tennant ave on the way home, the fog just burning off Tuesday my group ride started from Mendoza Ranch parking lot at Harvey Bear County park. I love this ride on beautiful roads ...

https://ift.tt/ec1wU87 Cycling for a Quiet Mind: 60 Minutes Cycling Routine That Will Change Your Day This was an interesting and helpful book by Gerardo Regalado who writes under the pen name Captain G. It is for people who have perhaps had difficulty quieting their minds with conventional approaches like meditation. He explains how he is often able to achieve a quiet mind while cycling. This is not something that can be forced, but we can take some simple steps to prepare the ground so it is more likely to happen. He also connects this to Zen practices from the website https://zenhabits.net/ from Leo Babauta. Gerardo is also familiar with the relevant neuroscience, and explains that what we are trying to do is quiet the brain’s “default mode network” which I have discussed previously . I come from a different background perhaps than the target reader, because I am experienced enough at meditation that I am able to readily quiet my mind during conventional s...

https://ift.tt/2xPUIlv The weather’s been hot lately, highs in the low 90s F (33 C), but that’s not till the afternoon so it’s best to get my rides in early. Yesterday I had a pleasant late morning cruise to the Southeast of Morgan Hill and on San Martin rural roads. These long stretches with light traffic are good for practicing my mindfulness. I’m doing better at “staying in the present moment” on my rides but still wander off in thought a lot. Heading Up Tennant towards the East foothills Sotuhbound on Foothill ave, now in San Martin Passing the entrance to Harvey County park on San Martin Ave San Martin ave turns into New ave after this corner South on New approaching Church which is the Gilroy city line West on Church enjoying the downhill run West on Maple Ave Back in Morgan Hill on Murphy Ave. This farm lets food trucks park here on Saturdays, with a variety of choices. Morgan Hill’s popular soccer fie...

https://ift.tt/VaJhMDw Summer is approaching fast, and for us the first sign is always that our hills are no longer green and are now golden, which they will remain until the next rainy season in the fall. But the weather has been delightful for riding, not too hot until later in the afternoon when I am already finished. I do have to be a little careful about ride length because some pollen is in the air that gives me allergy headaches. Not too bad if I keep rides under 3 hours. Last Tuesday my group did its “Taco Tuesday” ride for the 1st Tuesday of the month. We head south to San Martin, then turn east, and turn back north on the east side of the valley and up the Coyote Creek trail all the way to Metcalf Park, looping back over Malech road and back downtown for lunch. Cochrane road on the hill that goes past the Almaden reservoir dam Heading out on the trail The trail bends west towards the Santa Cruz Mountains Taking a break at Metcalf park On Sa...

https://ift.tt/4C6m1Qv On Thursday we got some unexpected late May rain, totaling about 1/4″ (6 mm). I didn’t feel like getting my rain gear out so I did my workout on my stationary bike. We’ve had nicer weather since, so I did some local cruises Friday and Saturday, then did 2 hours 45 minutes north through the Coyote Valley on my recumbent yesterday, at a brisk pace with some intervals and on-bike strength training thrown in. I followed that by 15 minutes of strength training in the garage. This is as hard as I want to push my leaky aortic valve until I do a follow-up with my cardiologist in August. On the rural Dougherty Rd through Coyote Valley Past Some Farm Fields on Hale Ave Hale Turns into a divided road nicely lined with trees closer to suburban South San Jose. I rode Hale then go off on residential streets at Bayliss, then followed the foothills to Coleman Ave and back. Unfortunately my camera ran out of battery so I don’t have footage of t...