The ride went great, was absolutely beautiful, inspiring and a wonderful light fog kept me cool. The route was actually pretty easy because the coastline portion alone was 80 miles and that is mostly flat. So piece of cake. ;)
But let me tell you about something that was really exciting for me. I finally ate enough! I am usually pretty bad at this. I tend to forget to drink and eat when I am on the bike. This time I did it all differently and it made an incredible difference. First of all, I made sure to eat a lot of really good food a couple days before. I also made sure to chug water for those couple of days to hydrate my body prior to the ride. Full on believer in being prepared.
While on the road I usually don't eat anything for the first two hours or so, but by the end of the ride I feel pretty beat. I realized that this doesn't have to be the case. This time I tried to drink water every 20 minutes, and eat a Balance Bar or trail mix every hour. I know eating enough sounds basic, and somewhat remedial, but I have always found it difficult. What I used to think was "enough" wasn't. This past weekend I was putting an extra scoop on my plate and eating until I was definitely full. On the ride I would eat when I thought I wasn't hungry but in reality I was, my body was just too busy pedaling my ass around to give me hunger signs.
Last year, Francine and I were doing the bike tour and she would make me pull over and eat...a lot. Where my body didn't necessarily feel hungry, it was. I was slowing down, feeling groggy and riding day after day can begin to seem daunting.
I was so proud of myself to finally understand what it means to fuel your body. With proper nutrition and attitude anything is possible in cycling and you often finish with a bigger smile on your face.
Now how the hell do those guys in the tour de France do it? Ride 100 miles after 100 miles while abiding to strict diets? The body is amazing I guess. Another question. How do they refuel when flying around in pacelines? Very carefully. :)
Ur my hero! I am going to eat something in your honor. Love.
Congratulations! If we team up, we'll balance each other, since I'm about the opposite. I can ride mile after mile simply because of the promise of food. Tell me there's a vegetarian buffet in Southern California, and I'll bike there, snacking the entire way.