You go girl!! I was hoping to hear the outcome of all that exercise!

Fantastic Kelly ! You have so much commitment !!! That is the beauty of cross-training. All you have to do is switch exercises and you see really quick that you have another level of fitness to work on :) I bet your DH sweat some big sweat !

Sunday DH and I did our 25 mile country bike route. We didn't get started as early as we would usually so it was in the 80's. He was a trooper though and we stopped 2x under trees in the shade to drink water. I had my 30# on the bike. We avg 12.7 mph so I was very pleased. I came home and did 1/2 mile in the pool. I love this time of year so I can do more than one thing in a day ...and COOL OFF ! Yesterday I only swam laps for 1/2 mile. Today I used a brush and scrubbed all the bricks in my back garden...paths and patio ...what a job and an upper body workout for sure. I jumped in the pool after and did 3/4 mile .

Congrats, kelly, how good about your progress!

I've had a great two weeks of exercise, and my aerobic fitness is picking up. Setting to bump up my bike mileage to 30 now. I had a good hard spin today (equal to 12-15 miles perhaps?), so will go for an easy 15-18 miler just to start tacking on time & distance.

Got my RAGBRAI entry number yesterday, so it's official :). Lots of work ahead though, so I'd better get off the computer & get back on the bike...

Yay! 22 miles this afternoon, & I feel pretty good.

But I am sooo wiped out today, lol! Need to get in more miles tomorrow, if the weather cooperates.

Yay Kelly! 4 pounds is great!

Awm...20 miles is great. Our bike path in town is 10 miles. Someday I'll get to do the whole thing down to the beach and back.

I'm going along OK. Had some really nice walks and a 10 mile bike ride. I started PT for my arm. The therapist swears I really need to be there. It is so aggravating, but I'm going. In the meantime I managed to get a giant patch of poison ivy on my upper arm, right on the fat!

Eating has been great. I really worked hard on my WW program. I won't get to weigh in tomorrow because I have to work. My scale shows some progress.

Just keep on keeping on!

Beth P.

Beth and awm...sure wish we were closer...would love to have others to ride with !! Beth, riding to a beach sounds so wonderful and peaceful. You are lucky. I sure hope your arm gets well soon.

Wed. I rode to the gym with the weight on my bike and did legs and abs for 45 min. then rode to the bike shop and to get my haircut and back home. So I got in 23 miles on the bike and gym time. When I got home I did 1/2 mile laps in the pool. It sure is a nice kind of tired isn't it awm ??!

Took off Thursday as I took my bike in to have the front wheel serviced and a new tire put on and a tripod kickstand added. The weight of the panniers pulls it over. This will make it easier for me to service the bike on the road as it lifts it off the ground. We have a good ride planned Sat. to meditation and back . We are due a lot of rain in the next week so will get out some to practice riding in the rain with the packs. Will have a lot of that in Canada.

trailrunner, that sounds like a good, thorough workout. I'll BET it was a nice kind of tired! And to finish it off in a pool...ahhh, paradise!

kickstand -- thanks for mentioning that. I need to find one that works on my bike.

Off to spin. Showery today but warm. Maybe I'll ride in the rain.

I'm 17 weeks late to the party but would like to join in ; )

I've started physical therapy for plantar fasciitis, gone from being fairly sedentary this winter (because for four months I has a very ill kitty who only wanted to be on my lap and because of the plantar fasciitis troubles) to walking and working in my lawn and garden.

The last two weeks I have been walking at least a mile in the mornings and I've started weight watchers. I'm down 5 pounds in two weeks, so that is encouraging.

welcome, kiki! Excellent news about your walking & weight watching. I'll bet you feel better for it already. Hope your dear kitty is better too.

Welcome Kiki! Great two week progress report!!

Thanks for the cheers - I need all I can get!

It sounds like everyone is doing so well.

- Trailrunner, I sure do hope you or someone on your upcoming tour keeps an online journal. I followed the last one with great anticipation of each entry.

- Awm03, you have some pretty awesome progress yourself. Are you anxious or nervous at all? I would love to do something like that. Or at least I would love to do something where it was perfectly acceptable to eat pie all day! I'm not much into "roughing it" so it's probably not a good fit for me.

- Kiki - the more the merrier! These threads really help to keep me on track and some weeks, they just help me to stay honest with myself.

- Gibby, thanks for your continued check-ins and encourgement - it means a lot!

I think I'm having another big lose week but I'm doing my best to not get on the scale too soon. My clothes feel so good and I'm just really comfortable in my own skin. DH said I've developed some "swagger" - LOL!

Kelly you CAN do it !! There are so many different ways to tour. There are 2 couples right now that are riding tandem bikes from New Orleans to Minnesota. You follow the Mississippi River the whole way. They are eating out every day and staying in motels every night. You and your DH could do a small tour on a tandem and see how you like it. You can ride stoker ( back seat !!) .

If you really are interested I can send along a lot of info for you. I will link to the blog that these folks are keeping on Crazyguyonabike.

I am going to have my MacBook Air with me so I will be "blogging" as much as I can and linking pics !! I am glad you enjoyed it !

Here is a link that might be useful: riding the Mississippi River S to N

Where's Polly?

Today DH & I loaded up the bikes in the car & drove to NYC to ride along the West Side Green Way. We started at the 59th St. entrance, riding south to Battery Park, returning north to the George Washington Bridge, then riding back to the 59th St. entrance.

It's the route on the west edge of Manhattan parallel to the Hudson River. The 59th St. entry is about midway:

If ever you are in NYC, you must rent bikes and try this fabulous ride! The landscaping along the southern route is really beautiful: large planters or embankments with wonderful plant combinations, in addition to the natural beauty of the Hudson River & all the fascinations of the city. The northern route is closer to the river and encompasses older parkgrounds: more grass, mature shade trees, stone outbuildings & walls. On the northern route you forget you're in NYC, believe it or not, as you are below street level and far away from urban scenes. Eventually you come to the the little red lighthouse by the GW Bridge:

The path is used by joggers, walkers & rollerbladers, so you can't go very fast. That's fine, though, because there's so much beauty, you're happy to just float along. I think the length is about 10 miles, so double that to include the return trip.

Truly a wonderful experience. So if you're ever in NYC, please give it a try!

Kiki,
Welcome! I have had plantar fasciitis many times over the years and eventually developed a really good sized heel spur. I had great success with acupuncture. I couldn't believe that in 3 visits the pain started to radiate away from the spur and was better soon after. My acupuncturist took a continuing ed class in it just to help me out.

Beth P.

awm ..that is my home away from home territory ! I keep a bike as does DH at my DB's coop and I have been riding the west side since 2007 when I first went up and had a meet up with the kitchen forum folks !! My DB was on 7thAve and 54 st at that time. He has now bought a coop and is on 58th and 8thAve. I love that bike path and watched it evolve over the years into a more and more special place. If you get the chance ride all the way up to the top and go to the Cloisters. If you haven't been there it is a marvelous place . The gardens are so special. Or turn off and ride the GWB and go on out into Rockland County and visit cat_mom !!! Great ride for a day trip. I have pics from the Chelsea area when DH and I took our lunch up to the HIghLine ..they had just completed this restored area. I need to find them ! You are so lucky to live so close !! c

Thanks for the tips, trailrunner. We'll definitely be going back. DH wants to go early some Sunday morning & do the entire path. So glad to hear you love it too.

We like to park at a parking garage across from Fordham Univ. Lincoln Center (60th & Columbus). It's just a few blocks from the 59th St. entrance.

Have you ever done the 5 Borough Bike Ride? That's wonderful too, if you don't mind a few bottlenecks (lots of happy people to chat with at least!).

Nope never am there when they have that. I belonged to two different cycling groups, the NYCC and a small group that meets every Tuesday and Thursday AM at the Loeb boathouse. I used to ride regularly with both of them. I made a number of friends, 2 of whom lived close to DB. We met on the other days of the week and took day trips over the GWB and out to other towns. Had lunch and then came back into town. We usually did 40-75 miles each time. With the NYCC they have lots of planned excursions and I used to do those all the time. Was a great way for me to cycle Westchester and other farther out areas with people that were familiar with the sites to see. I have been a lot of places.

You must park and walk on the High LIne the next time you are there. Stop in and shop and get sandwiches. You can lock up the bikes below. It is SO beautiful up there and great views. Go to Amy's Bread in Chelsea Market and you will have fantastic breads !! You can watch the bakers through the windows...I have a bunch of pics...they hammed it up for me when I took their pics :)

The Cloisters are amazing. My DH says he doesn't care if he sees anything again up there if we can just go there each visit. It is truly the best most lovely and peaceful place you will visit. The Summer and Spring gardens are just amazing and inside...well...you will see.

Hm...I will have to think on what else. I have never been to NYC as a tourist. I arrived in June 2007 and bought a bike within 45 min and have never looked back . Have never been to one "sightseeing" thing in the city. I prefer the real town...like to just go and do and feel. The people are the best part. Everywhere I go I meet folks that are so interesting...concerts...restaurants...red lights while I wait on my bike...you get the picture. It is a place that you have to step off the sidewalk and get into the atmosphere. Nothing like it in the world. But then I guess I am biased. I don't have to live there LOL !

I haven't been lately...circumstances haven't been right. I sure do miss it. DB said my bike is missing me :( c

awm,
oooo, so cool. I want to do the NYC ride! My sister did the 5 boro ride on a tandem bike.
Thanks for the info awm & trail. I am taking notes and will look into doing this sometime soon.

Thank you guys for the support and thank you Bethpen for the acupuncture info. Awm, no kitty did not get better but she had lots of attention, care and love during her last 4 months.

It's funny, since I've been making more healthy food choices lately, my friend's vegan cookbook photos are starting to look appetizing.

Trail, just saw your post and wanted to say that I just returned from a weekend in NYC and visited the High Line -- what a great addition to the city! I know what you mean about just being in the city and not doing the tourist stuff. We try to visit once a year or so (from Boston) so we have pretty much done all the 'tourist' attractions. This weekend we went to about 4 flea markets, walked through Central Park a lot, checked out the 'new' Meatpacking District, etc. We did go to MOMA for the first time in many years, which was great (went Friday midday so it wasn't too crowded).

On the fitness front, we probably walked at least 10 miles over the course of the weekend, but we also had a lot of restaurant meals, so I have some work to do this week!

Sue...glad you enjoyed the weekend. It was so fun to go and have a place to stay...DB is in the heart of everything ! His new place does not have an extra bedroom so we are out of luck :( DH and I are both big music buffs so that was our first decision to make. We have certain venues that we like so I would check the schedules and plan around that. Then I would email friends and plan my bike rides. That gave our visits structure. Eating out was our next consideration . We don't have much money for that so we have places that we love that have excellent food and the price is right. We don't "do NYC" like others do but it works for us.

I love MOMA !! I always check to see what they have going on there. You can get in free on Fri 4-8 PM. I am always looking for bargains. We love the park and since DB is /was so close we rode and ran there every day. Nice to hear about your visit too !! c