Gearing up for riding

So, I have 3 exams down, and 1 to go! Law school can be such a pain. I mean, I like it most of the time, and practicing law is going to be much better than what I was doing before (I was a records clerk at an energy company in a previous life), but the schooling part is mega-stressful at the moment!

I took a break from studying yesterday. I had a 24-hour take-home final that I did from Thursday morning to Friday morning (yes, it took me almost the entire 24 hours to complete), so I needed a break from my desk!

I rode out to Stone Mountain and back, which is just over 26 miles round-trip for me. Stone Mountain is a granite outcrop near Atlanta, and there's a bike path that runs from my house to its surrounding park.



First, I had to gear up! I feel like I have a lot of biking gear, but all of it serves a purpose.

First, my Camelbak. I fill it with mostly water, a little ice, and about a cup of Gatorade.



Gatorade freaks me out because of the fake colors and flavors, but I haven't found a feasible cheap alternative yet. When you're biking in 90 degree heat, you need some help with hydration!

Next, of course, my beloved Garmin 305.



It's important for me to keep an eye on my distance and speed because I'm not a very experienced biker (I started just a month or so ago!), and I don't want to burn myself out by pushing too hard or too fast. Getting stuck somewhere between my house and Stone Mountain is NOT an option; those aren't the friendliest of neighborhoods.

Next, ginormous sunglasses and a bondi band.



Yes, yes, the sunglasses might look ridiculous, but they stay on my face the best of all the ones I've tried. They don't slip when my nose is wet with sweat, and the ear parts stay firmly around my ears. I don't mind looking ridiculous! I've tried biking without sunglasses before, but I think it's just not a good plan. Being blinded constantly is quite dangerous!

The bondi band is a wicking headband. Never heard of bondi bands? Check out the website here. They keep the sweat from dripping down my face. I just stick the helmet over it, like so:



All ready to go!



Gear I don't have, but want: gloves, clipless pedals and shoes. To any of you bikers out there, do you think gloves and clipless pedals are totally necessary, or just good to have? Should I invest in them now, or is it okay to put it off for awhile?

I did most of the trail on Wednesday, too, but didn't get all the way to the end because the sun was setting. Yesterday, though, I left early enough to make it all the way to the park and back.

Yesterday's ride was MUCH easier than Wednesday's! I'm not exactly sure why, but I was much more powerful going up hills, and I kept up a much faster speed on the flat parts. I have some theories...

• First, it could be because I had Gatorade mixed in with my water in my Camelbak. You may not think this makes much of a difference, but I think I could actually feel the extra calories coming into my body! I think that helped with my muscle power, especially at the end.
• Second, it could be because I started using my lower handlebars when going up hills. I don't know if y'all use yours on a regular basis, but I just started using mine, and I love them! I feel like it forces me to use a different pedaling motion and thus a different set of muscles in my legs. If I put my hands down and my head down, I can power up hills like I never could with my hands on the top bars.
• Third, I know more about how to use my gears to my advantage. I'm still learning how to ride a bike properly, and that means learning how to choose the best gears for different situations. It's a learning process, and I know more with each ride I go on.
• Fourth, I knew the route better. Each time I ride the path, I know a little bit more about how to best attack it. I know when I need to shift my gears, when I need to be prepared to stop, when I need to drop to the lower bars, etc. It makes the ride much smoother. Many people might think that doing the same route over and over again is boring and tedious, but when you haven't mastered it yet, there's always something new to learn.
• Fifth, I properly carbed-up before leaving. On Wednesday, I hadn't really eaten enough during the day to fuel my body through a 26-mile ride. For me, that costs me about 1,600 calories! Yesterday, I ate properly in anticipation of that sort of calorie burn, and my muscles thanked me. Luckily bike riding isn't like running in that you have to pre-fuel with only foods that sit well in your stomach. However, you do need most of your fuel to be carby so that your body can burn it. My solution? Take-out Chinese food! Bring on the rice!

Anyway, it was definitely more enjoyable!



So, in case I haven't mentioned it yet, I'm going to be doing volunteer work in Haiti from May 12th to May 16th. I wish I could stay down there longer, but my summer classes start promptly on May 17th, so I just had a couple days free. I think it's going to be an awesome experience, and I'm super excited about going!

I hope that I'll be able to post again before I leave, but if I don't, I'll see you on the 16th when I get back!

Race recap, part 2

So, I learned a few things about me and racing on Sunday. Well, I learned a lot of things, but I'll just tell you about a few of them! Being my first race, I was starting from scratch, but I thankfully got a few things right!



Things I got right:

• I dressed in layers. I didn't know what the temperature would be at start time, but I knew it was going to be right on the cusp of long-sleeve temperature and no-sleeve temperature for me. I wore both and was able to make the decision at start time.
• I got a little caffeine buzz. I finished my double-dose of green tea about thirty minutes before the race started, and I felt it gave me just the right amount of jolt by start time.
• I got some good sleep the night before. The night before the race, Jeff and I went out for dinner with some friends, picked up some soy ice kream on the way home, and watched that week's episode of Vampire Diaries off the DVR. I got to sleep by about 10 and woke up at 6. I felt well-rested and ready to go.
• I picked someone who was running slightly faster than I thought I could, and I kept up with him. I needed something to keep me at the pace at which I found myself (see the third bullet point below), so I picked a dude who was keeping a pace faster than I had ever run before, but a pace that I thought I could handle. It kept me going when I wanted to slow down. There's definitely a competitive urge in my heart!

Things I did not get right:

• I ate beforehand, even though I usually don't. Ouch! I woke up about 2 hours before start time, so I thought maybe I should get something in my belly. I ate some raw oats mixed with peanut butter and raisins, which is one of my favorite breakfasts. Wow, it hurt later! I'm not used to eating before running, and I could definitely feel it. Next time, I'll wake up earlier or try eating something with less protein and fat.
• I didn't drink enough water the day before. I tried to drink a lot of water on race day, but I don't feel like I was fully hydrated from the day before. I need to drink more water. All the time. Everyday.
• I got all excited and tried to pass everyone in the first mile. When the gun went off, I realized that I was surrounded by grannies and people with strollers. Ack! I spent the first half-mile dodging the slowpokes and finding an open spot, but, when I found one, I didn't want to stay there! Passing people is addictive, and it was the first time I had really experienced it! I wanted to pass more people. Before I knew it, I was running at a much faster pace than I planned on being at, and it hurt to maintain it. Worst part? I had nothing left to give at the end, so I couldn't kick it into a higher gear for the last half-mile, which I had planned on doing. Bummer.

Anyway, now I know! My next race isn't until May 22nd, but I'm super-excited about it. It's called the Warrior Dash, and it's a 3.22-mile course with 11 obstacles.



Click here to see the course and obstacle map for the Georgia course.

It's not a very serious race--it involves warrior helmets, silly constumes, a moustache contest, and free beer at the end--but it's going to be awesome! I'm doing it with my little brother Ian, some of his fraternity brothers, a couple friends from law school, and a ton of friends from my old corporate job. I'M GOING TO BE A WARRIOR!

Alright. Back to work. I'm in the midst of a 30-page research paper on the idiocy of the Supreme Court under Chief Justices Waite's and Fuller's watches.

What races do y'all have coming up?

Pre-run and post-run fuel

I love all (vegan) food, but there are a few things that just rock my world. One is my pre-run soy yogurt.



It's low-fat, low-fiber, low-protein, high-carb, and it gives me just the right amount of energy I need pre-run. I don't really have a weak stomach, but I'm used to eating often; it's pretty much impossible for me to wake up and run without a snack. Fat, fiber, and protein slow me down though, so soy yogurt it is! (Check out this article for some ideas about what to eat pre-exercise.)

The other thing I absolutely adore is soy milk, which is usually in my post-run fuel, mostly because it's fortified with vitamin D2 but also because it's creamy and delicious!



Being vegan, it's a bit harder for me to get the vitamin D that I need through regular foods. I don't eat many processed foods that are fortified with vitamin D, and even those that I would be willing to eat are usually fortified with D3, which is animal derived. My good ol' Silk soy milk is fortified with D2, the plant version of vitamin D, and I love the stuff! (Check out this article for more information about the importance of vitamin D.)

My favorite post-run fuel? A 1/2 a cantaloupe, a cup of soy milk, and 2 tablespoons organic chocolate chips.



Let's talk about post-exercise nutrient calculus for immediate refueling. Ideal post-exercise refueling has a 4:1 carb to protein ratio, and the ideal amount of post-exercise carbs is one half-gram per pound of body weight. So, a runner who weighs 140 lbs should shoot for a post-run meal with 70g of carbs and about 18g of protein (18g being roughly one-quarter of 70g). For me, the equation takes me to about 60ish grams of carbs and 15ish grams of protein, which my snack of melon, milk, and chocolate chips perfectly satisfies!

Remember, the above calculus is for immediate refueling! We're talking no more than 30 minutes post-exercise if the exercise was super-intense. In addition to the immediate refueling, you need a proper meal with a good mix of carbs and protein within an hour. More on that later!

(If you're interested in post-run refueling, this article has some basics, and this article has some more specific information.)