Since I rode 60 miles on Sunday, 45 of those miles being on the fabulous Tour De Bronx (Tour da Bronx?), I haven't ridden to work. I've been running on sleep deficit. Today looked like a bad day to ride since it's cold and rainy, and then my wife asked me to bring her car to the garage, so that clinched my decision not to ride today.

I upped the weight on my barbells for my morning bedroom routine. I went from 40 pounds to 60 pounds, and it feels just as difficult as 40 pounds did a few months ago, so that's progress. I should start tracking my weight to see if it rises. It went down over a couple of years, and now with my workouts, it might go up (in a good way). Does anyone know of a fitness or weight training forum similar to bikeforums? Or is there a section of bikeforums where people talk about this stuff?

Consecutive work commute number 168:

Rode to the dentist for my six month cleaning/checkup, then to the doctor's office for a blood draw, then picked up some lunch so I wouldn't have to leave at noon, then finally rode to work.

Less than an hour after the blood draw I got my notification from my results: in nearly every single metric my results improved from the last time they measured. My bad cholesterol is down, my good cholesterol is up, my triglycerides are down, etc. The only thing that didn't improve was my blood sugar, which stayed about the same as last time and is well within limits anyway.

I think most of these improvements are due to the 50+ pounds I lost since my last check. Most of the weight loss was the result of dietary changes I made, but my cycling certainly was an important ingredient in the health stew.

[MENTION=152773]noglider[/MENTION] Of course there are weight training forums... there's a weightlifting thread I see here from time to time. I used to do weight lifting as part of my gym routine. I was forbidden since my heart diagnosis, it builds heart muscle in the wrong area or something. I miss it. 40's to 60's is a big jump! And dumbbells are harder than a barbell. You can nerd out on it just as much as with bikes, if you wanted. I found it really beneficial to find something fun to do with my arm workouts (like rock climbing). I'd do legs on Monday so they'd be recovered in time for anything that required big leg strength (snowboarding, specifically) on the weekend. Crossfit is popular now. Yoga and pilates seem like girl things but they are strength training too. Probably 80% of the benefit you can get just by making a plan and following it, working to failure and waiting for recovery. But past that you are in to creatine and protein shakes and maybe spending more time on it than you wanted.

Thanks all for the welcome. I have not read the hitch hikers guide. I suffer from bicycle ADD, that is, I like to ride various bikes with drop bars, but the 87' Tempo is better than I ever would have suspected. Hopes are to take the Long loop home from work this Friday ...

I took the car today due to heavy rain overnight and this morning. I can't complain as we are in a drought and can use this rain, though I took advantage of taking the car and picked up bagels for my co-workers. I will say though driving at 6am in the dark and rain hurts my eyes, which cycling never does.

Nice ride this morning, but warm and humid. We finally got some rain last night, and the roads were still wet and it was foggy in spots.

A jerk in a van blasted his horn at me riding down a quiet neighborhood street and then rode alongside me yelling stuff that I couldn't understand. This is a wide street with a 30 mph speed limit, a designated bike route, and various "traffic calming" devices to slow traffic. A similar incident happened in my neighborhood earlier this week. Lots of angry drivers out these days, which I attribute to the campaign.

A couple of nice Friday morning rides. I rode to the gym, picked things up and put them down, then rode to work.

I'm going to that Tour of Gymnastics Champions with my son tonight. He is a gymnast and was really hoping to go. My wife and I surprised him this morning with tickets.

A nice afternoon ride home yesterday. This morning was pretty nice. Cool and calm. Took the Anyroad so it was a faster ride than I've had the past few days. Forecasted temps in the low 60's this afternoon! Going to enjoy it despite the expected winds that should be picking up some.

Ridiculously warm this AM, almost 60F. Cloudy skies. As always, a gorgeous ride. Wore legwarmers and an earband under my helmet, but honestly they were not necessary. I could've gotten by on just my shorts, wicking sleeveless and wicking long-sleeved high-viz shirts.

My Brooks saddle (B17 Imperial S) keeps getting more and more perfect for my sit-bones.

Instead of taking all MUP to my work, I got off at the last street crossing and rode the residential street up a slight grade. It was actually easier, and allowed me to avoid the s***-eatingly intense bridge that I have to dismount and walk my bike across.

Brrrrisk 40F this morning but no wind. Supposed to be upper 60's this afternoon - let's play the 'guess what gear to bring' game

48F, clammy. Nice sunrise though. For clothes I remain stable w/ shorts, t-shirt, raincoat, fingerless gloves, shoes, socks

Today was the only day I rode in this week. I had moved my Brooks saddle to my road racing bike on the weekend and still not moved it back, so I rode the road bike. It's a little cold and very windy today. I had fun. My feet got just a little cold. Gotta think of how to insulate my new cycling shoes.

I always love looking at that bike, and I would probably enjoy riding it more.

My 700-1000 meter commute is good. It is been rainy this week but we have to be dressed in rain gear to get in the boat so riding the bike is easy.

I just put in an order of supplies to get my bike repair service on the island going.

I am also finally going to expand my fish hobby. My last guppy died after 2+ years and three houses. So I am making the 10 gallon tank into a terrarium and I found a used 40 gallon tank I will use for fish.

We have had a lot of rain the last few weeks, but also some sun and several rain bows. Here is one from a few days ago.

Went for a test ride - first outing for the commuter bike since my little surgery, and it has some new tires. The tires roll great, but my sit bones chafed quick. This was after a ~2 mi ride last night with kiddo on the kiddie hauler bike. I'm too used to not riding, going to have to HTFU again!

This morning's commute was a very nice uneventful ride under dark starry skies with the temp at 42f degrees. Unlike yesterday's ride for fun where someone screamed at me just to watch me jump. Unfortunately for them I did not jump nor move my head to see who was screaming. I have long since learned not to give those types of people a reaction.

A bit cool for just a short-sleeve shirt this morning, but I did it anyway. 56F to start. I'm ready for the time change which will make it light again for most of my ride in for at least another 3 or 4 weeks.

Schools were out today so much less traffic. I think they schedule a teacher work day on Halloween because they can't actually call it a holiday.

I went slow and easy for a Monday morning ride. 14.4MPH which is bit slow than normal but it's only 5-6 mins more.

I switched my tools, tubes and flat repair kit to another bike yesterday and forgot to put the stuff back in my commuter bike's racktop bag afterwards. Just my luck, I'll probably have my first XXXX in months. However, I made it to work without any mishaps, so perhaps I'll be just fine.

Washed 5 of my bikes yesterday in addition to my car, and that took about 2 hours. My bikes were really filthy. Normally I would be concerned about bringing on some rain by washing my vehicles, but we are in the midst of a dry spell and really need the rain.

I need to remember to watch out for trick-or-treaters on my ride home tonight. It's nearly dark when I get home early, and the kids start early in my neighborhood.

This morning was supernaturally warm, about 64F. Usually here in the Denver area it's snowy and cold on Halloween. Breezy.

I saw two coyotes on the trail this morning. I swear they must be hybridized, either with dog or maybe wolf. Really big, beautiful canids, not small and rangy how I usually think of coyotes. I was so shocked, I just started ringing my bell like a maniac, and was talking low and loud. I didn't want them to feel trapped, but they were on the trail and I didn't want to slow down. They scrammed, so that was good. As soon as they saw my light, they were getting out of the way. I know there's plenty of rabbits around for them to eat.

Nice Lemond titanium. I recall reading when you got the bike in another thread. Did it come with that aluminum fork? It looks non standard for Lemond (they usually had CF with alum steerer for the 853 ones, but not sure for the Ti bikes).

Was a nice brisk 46F or so this morning. I've been sticking to park and ride. Also had a lot of Friday's off trying to use up my vacation days. So not a lot of riding (maybe 80 miles or so a week). But still am happy to be commuting on the bike! I saw a guy on the bridge wearing cycling shorts. Brave dude and wonder how he doesn't freeze his knees or family jewels...

A friend bought it on ebay for his girlfriend who decided it wasn't for her (because of the color!) and sold it to me, so I know little about it. Consensus is that it was contracted out to Clark Kent, now out of business. Clark Kent's expertise is said to have been more in steel than in titanium, but this frame seems to be well made. I assume the fork is original, but I don't really know. I also assume that since it was contracted out, it may comply with few or no standards of the Lemond company.

Back to commuting.

Yesterday (Sunday), I didn't work, as I have a Mon-Fri job, but I took a couple of commute-ish rides. I rode to my wife's concert on E 29 St. I rode Citi Bike (the big bike share program). It was unusually warm, so I put my jacket in the basket and wore sandals. There was a huge fire right near the church where I was going, and traffic was blocked. One could not even walk near the site of the fire. The fire started early in the morning, and by the time I got there are 3pm, emergency vehicles were still arriving.

After the concert, it was raining heavily. The nice thing about using the bike share is that one can take one-way trips and return by other modes such as subway and taxi. Sometimes riding in the rain is unpleasant and offers bad visibility, but I decided to take a chance. It was fine. I wore my jacket to keep me warm, and my partially exposed feet did not get cold. The fleet of bikes has drum brakes in the hubs which are unaffected by rain. Of course, one must think about traction on the street surface, but these tires are wide and confidence-inspiring. The bikes are 50-pound tanks.

Today, the radio warned that the wind was from the north (the direction into which I ride) and was very strong. It turned out to be steady and not shifty or gusty, so I didn't find it to be a big challenge. It's a bit cold today, but it's clear and bright, and I was quite comfortable. The path I take already has far fewer users on foot and bike, and I almost wonder why people don't bother. It's really not unpleasant.

55F, raining hard, leaves falling like there's no tomorrow.

Today is Halloween, and a couple of blocks before I arrived at work, a black cat ran across the street in front of me. I can scarcely believe this. I'm not superstitious. I just think it's funny.