You bike like you eat

Eat a large meat lover’s pizza and top it off with a couple of beers and a dozen hot wings the night before your bike ride and you’re going to feel it, guaranteed. Have a protein shake, oatmeal, water, and complex carbohydrates on the other hand and you’ll feel it too. This is the difference between having cramps and spewing chunks vs. having energy and speed.

During 9 days off the bike I ate like a fool, slept late and watched too much television. During my first ride after the break I was feeling it all over. My legs were cramping, my stomach bloated, and my head felt foggy. I felt like crap.

I haven’t thought about my eating habits and avoiding the bike ride. I have thought too much about what motivates this behavior. For starters, I eat junk food because it tastes good and I momentarily feel good; satisfied, full, gratified. Junk food is a drug. I avoid physical pain. My bike ride up Paseo is a painful experience. Put these things together: food as a drug and bike riding as painful and there you have it. I’ll need to rewire some of my attitudes about food and biking if I’m going to get in shape and enjoy riding my bike.

Bike Shop Review:

I stopped by Sport Systems Ski and Bike the other day and walked the isles of bikes. This place has tons of Specialized bikes: comfort, mountain, road, cruisers. I stopped by the sales bin and a friendly buy working on a bike asked if I was doing okay. I said it was all good, “Just looking. How are you?” The guy says, no kidding, with a sigh, “I’m just a ski tech putting bikes together and fixing what comes through the door.” With four employees hovering near the counter I stopped by the tool section and checked prices which were comparable to prices at other bike shops and had questions on bottom bracket tools. I was ignored for about 15 to 20 seconds as the sales staff finished up their chatter about a bicyclist who “didn’t know what he was talking about.” But by the time the guy looked in my direction I was done. I decided to leave. Right now, I don’t plan on going back. Right after leaving the place I drove on up to The Kickstand and thought it weird when I overheard a lady at their checkout counter mention the terrible service she received at Sport System Ski and Bike. 4 Points out of 10. 2 points awarded for their “bicycle advocacy” donation from 1% of their sales, and 1 point for everything else.