Fitness Article 1: The Plan

     This is my first article on my fitness. In life, I have partied plenty hard. It is now time to prioritize and treat my body with the respect it deserves. In the past year I have gotten married which included an intense series of fun events which surrounded this wonderful moment in my life. I have also participated in birthday celebrations, beer pong competitions, anniversaries, sports event celebrations, BBQs, flip cup competitions, happy hours, pub crawls, and general festivities. Sure it is a great time to eat burgers & wings and drink whiskeys & beers; and I am not saying that I will never do this again. What I am saying is that I am going to sway my day to day lifestyle in a healthier direction and not make this my way of life.

     Am I on a diet?
                                                         No

     Am I training for an event?
                                                         No

These things are temporary. When people "go on a diet" or "train", if/when they reach their goals they usually stop. What I am doing is making my health a more important part of my life.

Here are some numbers:
Weight: 223.8 lbs
Height: 5'-11"
Age 36 
Blood Pressure: 130/90

These numbers are not good.
Over the next few months I will be cataloging what I eat and what I do each day in this blog thus hopefully resulting in changes to my weight and blood pressure.

I will post two different types of Fitness articles.
1) Nutrition Related
2) Activity Related

If you have been following my blog you have probably read a couple of articles about my re-entry into mountain biking and the results of this effort are marginal at best. The reason for this is my lack of commitment to my health.

I feel tired, fat and old.
There is way too much life ahead of me to constantly feel and look this way.

Illinois Passes Law To Protect Cyclists

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=7538674&status=ok

Click on the link above to read the comments. It is amazing how hostile people get when they are hiding behind a keyboard. Would they really talk this way face to face?

Article from WLS_TV:

Quinn signs bicycle legislation into law

July 5, 2010 (ARLINGTON HEIGHTS) (WLS) -- Ill. Gov. Pat Quinn signed new legislation Monday aimed at making Illinois roads safer for bicyclists.

The signing took place at Campbell Street Bicycle Shop in suburban Arlington Heights.

Under the law, it is illegal for drivers to crowd or threaten bicyclists by driving too close to them.

The governor says the new law will also remind drivers to be alert for those riding on two wheels.

Governor Quinn said he wants "to make our state the number one state in the union when it comes to bicycling and having fun on a bicycle and participating and having trails that are well done all across Illinois."

A second piece of legislation will create a new 'Share the Road' license plate. Proceeds will go to fund education efforts.

(Copyright ©2010 WLS-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

My comment to this:

Everyone needs to learn to obey traffic laws as I see most users (bicycle and car) behaving too aggressively everyday. The world would benefit greatly from some understanding and compassion. Roads are there for everyone; not just automobile drivers. The comments submitted here are extremely aggressive and hostile. It is this attitude that pushed your governor to pass this legislation. Be safe. Be calm. Share the road. Share the world.

If you feel as strongly as I do that everyone needs to calm the heck down when using the roadways, please let it be known. 

July 4th Ride

Sorry for the long span between posts. After going strong for a few months, I decided it was time to take a small hiatus to celebrate my 1 year wedding anniversary, my birthday and the 4th of July; but now I am back and will be posting regularly again.

My wife and I went on a fun ride the July 4th. It was my first time on the bike in a couple of weeks. The sun was hot with temps in the high 90s. We rode to the Wonderland Ballroom to meet up with some friends in the evening for some food and drinks before heading farther downtown to watch the fireworks. It was a great day and I really enjoyed spending the evening with my wife riding around DC.

For our route, we took the Sligo Creek bike path to the town of Tacoma Park on the border of Maryland and DC and then continued on 3rd Ave to Kansas Ave. These streets had intermittent bike paths and were easily navigable through the city. Because of the high temps, we had to take a little breather in the shade after climbing a couple of larger hills on Kansas in the blazing sun. Once we cooled off a bit, we continued on looking forward to the cold beers that were in our immediate future.

Sitting at the table on the sidewalk facing 11th ave, we saw dozens of people riding down to the mall to watch the fireworks. We ordered some BBQ wings which were saucy and well cooked with a fairly decent blue cheese dip. Then I ordered a foot long chilli/cheese dog and my wife ordered a sandwich and fries. Pretty decent food, good service, great beer selection and a real chill atmosphere is how I would describe this off the beaten path establishment. Having heard good things, we were happy we made this our hangout spot to celebrate our countrys break from Great Britain.

We then went to Cordozo High School to watch the fireworks. It was a great view. To the left is an image I made of our trip up 14th street which was exploding with fireworks everywhere. Every block there were people having fun and celebrating. Below is the short video excerpt of the show from Cordozo High.

Happy Fourth of July Everyone.

words, video and the last photo by Ray Heinsman

Bike Culture in Key West

My wife and I are celebrating our 1 year wedding anniversary in Key West Fl.

Here are some photos of bike culture. Here, the beach cruiser rules and the pedicab cruise.

Words and Photos by Ray Heinsman

Defining Inspiration

I just found Mike's blog and I want to share it with you. After the firm he worked for was purchased by another; he wondered "what am I going to do now?" His answer was to visit Bruce Gordan in Northern California, purchase a touring bike, and ride it from Florida to California. Now of course many people have ridden their bike across the country, but Mike's blog is something special. He posted everyday about his experiences on this epic journey. Starting in February 2010 and ending in May, he rode, wrote and photographed about mostly great and some not so great things that happened along the way. I encourage everyone to check it out.

http://mikedillon.wordpress.com/

Bike Portraits

Special Thanks to my coworker Maria for her recommendation to look at this site:

http://www.dayonepublications.com/Bicycle_Portraits/Index.html

Because the FIFA World Cup is happening now in South Africa I think it only appropriate to also show some South African Bicycle Culture

 Quote from the site:

The Bicycle Portraits project was initiated by Stan Engelbrecht (Cape Town, South Africa) and Nic Grobler (Johannesburg, South Africa) early in 2010. Whenever they can, together or separately, they’re on the lookout for fellow commuters, and people who use bicycles as part of their everyday work, to meet and photograph. They’re finding out who rides bicycles, why they ride bicycles, if and why they love their bicycles, and of course why so few South Africans choose bicycles as a transport option. There is no specific range of questions asked, they'd rather just establish a conversation around the rider’s life and where his or her bicycle fits into it. 

Please bear in mind that these recordings were transcribed verbatim and that english is not the first language of many of the characters they met. Being avid cyclists themselves, this project is as much an investigation into South African bicycle culture as it is an excuse for them to ride their bikes and take photographs. Follow the project on Twitter or contact us at dayone@me.com

Bike to Work in Work Clothes; Why Not?

Article:http://www.boston.com/yourtown/arlington/articles/2010/06/13/more_cyclists_forgo_special_garb_commute_in_heels_and_suits/

Today's article, in Boston.com, discusses how more people are riding to work in their "street" clothes. For years when commuting in Buffalo NY I did this. Then I moved to DC and my commute got considerably longer. I would wear shorts, sneakers and a t-shirt and change into my work clothes when I got to work because sweating is bad when in an office environment, but never spandex. Now that I ride a short distance, and I may sweat a little, I am back to riding in my work attire. Why Not? I have shoes with rubber bottoms that hold the pedal nicely. I look professional where-ever I go. This is the way they do things in the rest of the world and it is becoming popular here. Check out my first rider of the day.

If you want to ride in your "gear"; go for it. It is comfortable and performance oriented. If I take a ride for sport I wear sporty gear.

On the other hand, If I am just using a bike for transportation; changing requires a lot of extra work........Its a simple task - get somewhere in a few minutes to do something. I think it is easier to drive and park in a garage then it is to get changed at the beginning and end of every little jaunt. Some people have even infused cycle into their style. Check out http://velovogue.blogspot.com/.

Unless it is raining or snowing, you won't ruin anything to ride a couple of miles and get some ice cream......mmmmmmm     Ice Cream.....that sounds good.

Ride on

Words By Ray Heinsman

Rider Of The Day 22

Todays Rider of the day was photographed crossing Colesville going south on Georgia Ave in front of the Discovery Communications building in downtown DC.

It was a bright sunny day at noon.

Keep Riding

Words and Photos by Ray Heinsman

Becoming One With Nature

Making great rides happen requires preparation. 

1) Eat well - check

- ate a banana, a breakfast sandwich, a sandwich at lunch with lots of veggies on it, and a bagel 1 hr. before the ride. I also took the endurolytes which really seem to be working,

2) good nights sleep - check

- got a solid 8 hours the night before with vivid dreams and no mid-night wake-ups.

3) reduced alcohol and caffeine consumption - check

- had a couple of beers and 1 cup of coffee the previous few days before the ride.

4) lots of water - check

- had 6 pints of water on Wednesday and 5 pints on Thursday before riding.

5) Clean riding gear - check

- well my gloves were a little stinky - but a clean jersey and shorts!

6) Arrive on time - check

- got to the trail head 20 minutes before launch even in heavy traffic - which took some paying attention to the traffic report before leaving - in DC  - a necessity

7) Bike in Good Working Order - Check

- My bikes tires were just right and the chain was well lubed.

8) Good Spirits- check

-there are two types of spirits - a. anytime I go riding I feel happy and b. Scott brought more Raging Bitch Ale by Flying Dog for an after ride thirst quencher.

9) Be ready  - check

- I had just found my multi-tool which was good becaseu the new guy had some headset trouble, I also had cold water, a tube and a pump in my bag, my phone was fully charged and I had my ID and keys in my bag.

10) Ride with good people- check

- Today's ride was led by James. He took us on the two larger loops at a great pace that was both challenging and fun but didn't destroy me. I found my second wind a third and forth time. We also had a new guy who's positive attitude went a long way to helping me find that little extra when it was needed.

What does all this have to do with the title? Just now I felt a little itch on top of my head. I reached for it and there was a little bump which felt like a scab. I picked at it and it came right off in my finger nails. Holding it in front of my eyes I looked at it and it was a TICK! Evidently my head was a great place to start a new family but that didn't happen. Ah bringing a little trail back to the office the next day.

Ride on

Words and bike Photos By Ray Heinsman

Tick photo courtesy of the website in the TICK link

Rider of the day #21

Today's rider of the day post is someone I saw while on the bridge over Rock Creek Park on my way to my mountain bike ride. This railroad bridge converted to pedestrian bridge sits high above the Rock Creek and provides a great view of the valley. As was waited for the clouds to move so the sun would hit my bike, this cyclist came riding up and I quickly adjusted to take the photo.

Ride Hard, Rock on

Words and Photo by Ray Heinsman