Saturday Indiscretions..............

Back to the old grind today, following a fantastic 3 day weekend.  The weather was beautiful, got a ton of work completed at the house and hosted a barbeque for family and friends.   Unfortunately, I didn't get as much exercise in as I had hoped, but I think it was good to give the body a bit of a rest given the number of km I have been biking.  It does however put me a little behind in terms of km I need to reach my goal, but it just means I have to work extra hard the next few weeks.  I managed a 6 km power walk on Friday with my sis, and Pete and I hiked the Bluff trail in Timberlea on Sunday which was 10 km in total.  It was interesting how sore I was after the Bluff hike considering the biking I have been doing, but I figured it had to be because I am using different muscle groups.  The scenery was amazing, although we didn't get a glimpse of any wild animals like Pete thought lurked in our wilderness.  No bears, no coyotes, no moose, just a squirrel, a hawk and baby toads were seen on our trek.  We took a 30 minute break when we reached the peak, so our total time was approximately 3 hours.  Pete did really well considering he hasn't hiked for a long time.

Well back to Saturday night.........hmmmm..........wine is not good for dieting, not only is it full of calories, it also leads to a sore head the next day, and leads to bad behaviors such as 'pigging out' when the night draws to an end.  I managed to behave during dinner, caesar salad and a hamburger with no bun, but I couldn't resist the temptation of coconut cream pie and ice cream just before bed.  It wasn't pretty!  I felt pretty disgusted the next morning, but then I rationalized that boost in calories may actually shock my metabolism.  There are theories that this works, but I don't recommend it.  I really felt badly the next day for overindulging.   The key is moderation, if I planned to have treats, I should have exercised my butt off earlier in the day to balance it out.  Live and learn.

I have exactly 21 more days until Labour Day, so I have to bike every day without exception unless it rains whereby I will have to do km on the treadmill.  I am so DETERMINED to do this. 1000 km is like biking all the way to Quebec City, and to do it in a month is pretty damn good if I say so!

Hope everyone has an amazing day, and I have enabled the blog to accept comments.  I didn't have the settings set up correctly previously.  I hope it works!  Cheers!  Tracey

Pulled over by the Police - Riding on the sidewalk criminal

As of today I have surpassed the 400 km mark!!!!  only 600 more to go by September 2nd.  It is a little overwhelming thinking of what I have left to accomplish but I can only take it one day at a time.  I am so committed to reaching this goal, but I fear the weather may hamper my efforts.  I cringe every time I see a weather forecast that includes rain, fearful it will impede my ability to bike.

My ride home yesterday was interesting as I approached an intersection by the Halifax Shopping Centre on Mumford Road.  I was just about the hit the last bit of busy road before the trail and I was "pulled over" by the Halifax Regional Police.  I was called "Mam" and told I couldn't ride on the sidewalk, even though there wasn't a pedestrian in sight on my side of the road.  I acknowledged his direction with a snicker, and got off my bike and walked the remainder of the trek to the trail.  Traffic was just too heavy to ride on the road, and I wasn't going to risk my life.  I can understand if there are pedestrians, but the sidewalk was clear. It is really unfortunate we don't have more bike lanes in this city.  You really take your life in your hands when you bike with cars.  Cars are bigger, faster, and cannot manoeuvre around cyclists easily.  I can relate to their frustration with us.  

The ride to work this morning was amazing.  I had an interesting experience when I made it to the start of the trail and spotted a beautiful deer standing a few feet away from me.  I predicted she would move as I came closer, but instead she stayed staring at me with those soulful brown eyes.  I became a little panicked visualizing myself being kicked and beaten up by a deer, so I started ringing my bike bell like a mad woman.  I am convinced any trail users in the distance thought there was an ice cream truck coming.  Much to my relief, the deer eventually galloped gracefully away seconds before I crossed her path. 

I am looking forward to a productive day at work, and wish you all an amazing day!  Cheers.

Tracey :)  

Glorious morning - August 7

What a glorious bike to work this morning.  The 14.3 km seemed effortless in the crisp morning air.  I can feel Fall in the horizon so I want to fully take advantage of the few weeks of summer we have left and embrace every day!!  Pete and I had an amazing night which included exercise.  We had some gadgets to return to Home Depot and decided "Why don't we bike there?"  It ended up being an adventure as we didn't take the main roads and found some old trails in the woods which brought us to our destination.  I had a little accident on the ride home as I attempted to burn rubber up a hill which was quite sandy.  I felt the bike start to lose control in the sand and fell over in to a grassy ditch.  Nothing hurt other than my pride, and lesson learned to stay in the ruts on trails. When we arrived home we googled the route and were surprised to see we had actually rode 14 km in total.  All those km add up and what an awesome way to spend the evening.  Pete has one of those amazing metabolisms, so he looks slim and fit, however, I tell him he is "fat" on the inside and needs to exercise to clear all that "gunk" from his system, meaning cholesterol etc. and get his blood flowing.  He did really well, but I am encouraging him to exercise more regularly.  We are planning on hiking the Bluff trail on Saturday morning which should be an experience for him.  He will feel the Canadian wilderness experience which includes "watch for bear and moose" signs.  Beats the poisonous snakes and spiders in the Aussie bush that he is use to.  Let's just say we have differing opinions on "risk"!!!!!  Wishing everyone an incredible day and hope there is sunshine wherever you are.  Cheers! Tracey :)

Day 1 of my blog

Today is Day 1 of my "Shedding Fat" blog.  I am soooooo excited about documenting my short term goal of reaching 1000 km by Labour Day, which is Monday, September 2nd in Canada. I began this cycling quest on July 25, 2013 and have reached 337.5 km by today's date of August 6.  I am getting addicted to this form of exercise!! I have tried it all....... gym, running, power walking, hiking, boot camps and cycling by far is my favorite.  I know I still have to incorporate these other forms as well, but I am going to focus on cycling until I reach the 1000 km mark.  I was shocked that I was able to ride 46 km straight on Sunday, which is a HUGE accomplishment for me.  My energy levels are soaring.

Tomorrow I start my round trip ride again to work (28.6 km) for the remainder of the week, and I hope to reach the half way point of 500 km by the end of this weekend.  I have made the decision mentally,  to convince myself I no longer own a car, so when I don't feel like dragging my fat butt out of bed in the morning to leave early to bike, I trick myself by pretending there is no car in the driveway.  It really works for me!  It makes sense in terms of time efficiency to ride to work as well,  because I no longer waste time in traffic, and I am getting all of my exercise for the day to and from the office,  so by 5:45 when I arrive home, my time is my own.  I am able to shower at work, which is great because being "ripe" is not an ideal when starting your day!

I am excited to see the results by September 2nd, and then I will move on to another exercise plan for the Fall.  I have a "drop dead date" to reach my weight goal by December 15th, in my attempt to look "drop dead hot"!!!!  My boyfriend Pete and I are travelling to his home in Australia for Christmas and I plan to walk off the plane in a Size 8 sundress.

Pete has been amazingly supportive, and will be video documenting my progress as well for this blog.  He is the techno nerd in our relationship. Size 16 to size 8..............SO GONNA DO THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I made it from a size 20, so FAT GET LOST!!!!!!!!!! AND STAY AWAY FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Cheers everyone.  Have a great DAY!

PLEASE feel free to post a comment.  Let's motivate each other!  Tracey :)