ZaksDad
Senior Member
- Location
- Altrincham, Cheshire
Afternoon all. Today was my first ride out after our 2 week family summer holiday.
Yep, like many of you, 2 weeks ago we packed up the car with enough clothes for our 2 kids to cover every possible weather scenario, including them being selected for the annual crossing of the North Pole. Well, we are holidaying in the UK and as my missus always says, you can never predict the weather.
She didn't want me to take the bike with us, much to my initial disappointment. This is a family holiday, she said, not a 'daddy disappears for a couple of hours every other day holiday'. Fair point to be honest. I'm allowed a free reign with cycling time most Sunday's and midweek without any grief, so a couple of weeks without the bike isn't that much of a sacrifice, is it?
So we holidayed. We swam in the sea, ate lots of ice cream, sheltered from the rain, sheltered from the heat of the midday sun, ate out every night. Had sweet sticky puddings and basically most of the food groups we avoid the other 50 weeks of the year. I tried to be sensible, and probably failed miserably. But it was great.
Only 4 years ago, my holiday diet was my all year round diet so after a radical change in what and how I eat, and then discovering cycling, I'm a healthy 4 stone lighter and several mph faster on the bike with the support of family and friends. And I've made some new friends along the way, many of whom are active members here and have offered great encouragement and support.
Anyway, I digress. We drove home from Devon yesterday and this morning, a little later than usual, I headed out for my Sunday morning ride.
How do you feel that first ride out after 2 weeks off the bike? The Lycra seems to fit a little tighter than usual..... Every incline feels like a 20% climb..... Every downhill is time to coast a little to get the breath back..... Every turn of the pedal and you feel that ice cream on the beach oozing from your pores..... That home cooked burger draped in cheeses you've never heard of seems to sit heavy in your gut.... And finally you are hammering that sprint you love, sweating calories and bits of sand from the beach that seem to get everywhere, then you glance down at your garmin and see your average mph is way below your normal pace. Bugger. I struggled at times, and 'only' managed 40m today, 20-30m off my usual Sunday ride and got back home thoroughly knackered, but with a big smile on my face as I look forward to working this holiday off.
It's great to be back out and already I'm planning tomorrow's ride. I'll be back to my best after a few more rides. And maybe just one more ice cream, after all, it's a bank holiday weekend.
Yep, like many of you, 2 weeks ago we packed up the car with enough clothes for our 2 kids to cover every possible weather scenario, including them being selected for the annual crossing of the North Pole. Well, we are holidaying in the UK and as my missus always says, you can never predict the weather.
She didn't want me to take the bike with us, much to my initial disappointment. This is a family holiday, she said, not a 'daddy disappears for a couple of hours every other day holiday'. Fair point to be honest. I'm allowed a free reign with cycling time most Sunday's and midweek without any grief, so a couple of weeks without the bike isn't that much of a sacrifice, is it?
So we holidayed. We swam in the sea, ate lots of ice cream, sheltered from the rain, sheltered from the heat of the midday sun, ate out every night. Had sweet sticky puddings and basically most of the food groups we avoid the other 50 weeks of the year. I tried to be sensible, and probably failed miserably. But it was great.
Only 4 years ago, my holiday diet was my all year round diet so after a radical change in what and how I eat, and then discovering cycling, I'm a healthy 4 stone lighter and several mph faster on the bike with the support of family and friends. And I've made some new friends along the way, many of whom are active members here and have offered great encouragement and support.
Anyway, I digress. We drove home from Devon yesterday and this morning, a little later than usual, I headed out for my Sunday morning ride.
How do you feel that first ride out after 2 weeks off the bike? The Lycra seems to fit a little tighter than usual..... Every incline feels like a 20% climb..... Every downhill is time to coast a little to get the breath back..... Every turn of the pedal and you feel that ice cream on the beach oozing from your pores..... That home cooked burger draped in cheeses you've never heard of seems to sit heavy in your gut.... And finally you are hammering that sprint you love, sweating calories and bits of sand from the beach that seem to get everywhere, then you glance down at your garmin and see your average mph is way below your normal pace. Bugger. I struggled at times, and 'only' managed 40m today, 20-30m off my usual Sunday ride and got back home thoroughly knackered, but with a big smile on my face as I look forward to working this holiday off.
It's great to be back out and already I'm planning tomorrow's ride. I'll be back to my best after a few more rides. And maybe just one more ice cream, after all, it's a bank holiday weekend.
