This photo makes me really upset. It shouldn’t “upset” me, maybe I’m becoming a bit sensitive to things like this now. But it really bothers me.
1) The escalators are outdoors. These things are probably super expensive to maintain because keeping them lubed after all the dirt and stuff flying around is a hassle.
2) Even gyms need handicap access. Escalators do nothing for handicap people.
So yeah, why are these here? If the business before the gym wanted them, that’s fine. It was probably a furniture warehouse full of couches and recliners so they catered to their clientele. But it’s probably cheaper for the gym to shut these down or get rid of them…and they should be gotten rid of due to the fact that THEY LEAD TO A FREAKING FITNESS CENTER!
I’ve heard there’s an LA Fitness on the entire second floor of a building in Hollywood. It’s a big building and having an elevator is necessary…but LA Fitness should deactivate the thing since they cover the entire floor and only allow access with a key or something. Take the stairs people…
And I’m done.
So the Tour de France is looming and Garmin is running a Facebook promotion that you could win a Felt F1 Team edition bike, a set of Mavic Cosmic Wheels, or a team edition Garmin Edge 500. The US team picks are interesting to me so I decided to publish my picks here so you can see what I think. (By the way, with Le Tour nearing you’ll see me publish more on the race as this is a cycling and health blog.)
The first few were pretty simple to choose. These are the leaders and the people that could make the best possible showing in the Tour.
Now it gets tough. Reading an article last year on Jonathan Vaughters choices for last years Tour, he put his hopes in the 3 time trials (2 ITTs and 1 TTT) of that race. Looking at how he did, I felt that if he had provided both Vande Velde and Wiggins one or two more climbing specialists they would have fared better in the overall standing. So this year, with more climbing and no Team Time Trial and a course that looks like the one where Vande Velde got a 5th place overall standing, I went with more climbing specialists as opposed to Vaughter’s previous picks.
Notable people left off the list. It’s good to note these two people being left off of my list. Danny Pate and Martijn Maaskant. These two guys have helped in the Tour before and either of them would do well again. Pate was really difficult and if he takes the place of either Martin or Danielson, I won’t be surprised. Maaskant, in my opinion, doesn’t fit well in this years Tour. If he is chosen for the Tour, you’ll know that Vaughters has put his eggs in the sprint finishes basket and on Farrar’s success. This will leave Vande Velde again under supported for the overall classification.
I think having Farrar supported by Dean, with duel roles support from Millar is adequate enough for Farrar to gather a few stage wins. Cavendish isn’t on form and has been seen being paced by riders like Hausler, etc. Farrar is faster than Hausler and just needs to do his thing. Vande Velde needs strong climbing support to keep from people breaking away, otherwise he can hold his own.
Hot Cal: Nice Weight Loss Tool -
Cool Tools for School (that sucked)
So I’ve a huge advocate of knowing what you eat. I’ve said many times before that the best part about Weight Watchers was the fact that I have to pay attention to everything I eat. It’s not necessarily the points system, but just knowing what I put into my stomach and seeing it’s impact makes a huge difference.
But I also know that Weight Watchers can be cost prohibitive for some people. That’s why I was stoked to find this free service called Hot Cal. It’s much like Weight Watchers except that it shows details based on Calories, Fat, Fiber, and Protein. It has a nice food diary that works much like WW and also takes into account activity and the change in caloric intake that occurs when you do work out. Most places with food diaries don’t consider the fact that after a long bike ride, you need more calories than normal, but this one does.
I’m not saying Hot Cal will be the difference between loosing weight and not, but based on my experience. You have to pay attention to what you are doing to effectively loose weight, and Hot Cal looks to definitely be one of those tools that will help you do just that.
Weight Report
So news is in and it’s a positive…no not positive poundage, but a good report. Here’s the quick stats:
So it’s good news. It’s leveling off a little bit and I think it’s for a couple reasons. So I’ll work to break through those issues.
I’ve got a few more posts for you coming up just need time to work though them. I’ll get them posted as soon as I get them. Another gear post, I’m riding tonight, and something more on little victories.
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Weight
So I’m glad to see that I was able to burn off enough of the additional calories I ingested over the weekend. So I did loose some weight. Here’s the stats:
Weight: 225.0 lbs (102 kg)
Weight Loss since Last Week: 1.8 lbs (.81 kg)
Total weight Lost: 45 lbs (20.4 kg)
Weight Until Next Goal: 9 lbs (4.1 kg)
So there you have it. I’m kind of getting a bit excited about where I’m going. At 220 lbs, I will be under 100 kg…that’s a great thing to think about.
One key that I’ve been using to keep me motivated to loose is simple and achievable goals as well as simple things to get excited about. When you are eating healthy, it’s exciting to eat a big delicious but not exactly healthy meal. Things also like this 100 kg marker. That’s something most people wouldn’t think about but saying that I am 5 lbs from weighing under 100 kg is nice and motivating. That point, 220 lbs, is also a big deal because it means 50 lbs total loss. Little things, these are the things to get excited about and keep you going.
What motivates you?
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I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but this holiday weekend I binged a bit again. Saturday I really wanted a hamburger, which wouldn’t have been bad if it wasn’t for the great On The Border meal that happened later.
Sunday I took my beautiful and beloved wife out on a complete day to ourselves. We dropped the baby off at his grands, and took to the streets. After a filling breakfast at Another Broken Egg Cafe (which wasn’t healthy, but oh so good) we walked around White Rock Lake. We may have burned a few calories, but the walk was spontaneous so neither of us were dressed for the walk. Once the sweat started pouring a bit too much we made our way back to the car. Later a movie (Robin Hood, which was pretty good, by the way), which I drank a non-diet drink. Why can’t movie theaters carry something other than Diet Coke!?!? Then we topped of the day that evening with Greek food and Gelato ice cream. The few movies I’ve seen with Greek themes, they tend to be proud of their food and their weight. So I know the meal wasn’t that healthy.
For Memorial Day, I jumped back on the eating well bus. I an egg beaters, english muffin, canadian bacon breakfast sandwich and a very small lunch. Then for dinner I had grilled chicken, corn, and a salad. So I didn’t do too bad on Monday. But that doesn’t mean I’m not concerned about the scale this week. We will see.
Just an FYI, to counter this, I rode 45.5 miles on Saturday (will post about it later) and spent 40 minutes on the trainer on Monday. I can’t spend much more than 40 minutes on the trainer for some reason…would like to stay on it for closer to 1.5-2hrs but I never seem to make it.
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Weigh Day!!!
Big news on the weight front. Goal 2 has been hit! I weighed in at 228lbs! Seriously.. I hit that mark running. I was hoping to hit it earlier in the month, but no biggie…I’m still trucking!
So it’s a new weight goal. As I get closer to my final target weight (hope to hit 199lbs), I know that my weight loss week to week will slow down. So I’m thinking I should shrink the distance to my next goal weight down. I’m thinking 216lbs. Why? Because that’s 20% from my initial weight (270lbs). I hit 20%, then I keep on rolling.
I’m so close I can taste it…TASTE IT!