Operation Phoenix Week 4

 Here we go with week 4 recap....    

4 weeks already? Damn. That whole "time flies" thing is legit. And the fact that its been 5 weeks since my surgery is just bananas.

So where do I start? Well, I got back on track by dropping just over 2 pounds last week. That puts me at 26 down since surgery. It has slowed down some because of the food increase, but that is to be expected. Add in that I was only on the bike 2x and that didn't help.

Not really sure why, but just wasn't feeling it last week. 2 rides.....not enough. I have been doing my small weight workout three times a week, so movement has still been happening. The lack of caloric intake does play a factor here. I feel fatigued pretty easy, which is a sucky side effect. I just want to go do long rides, and my body is like....hahahahaha. 

I did get out for a Nucleus ride on Saturday with a small group. Dan, Dave, Chris, and Lisa joined me at Kal-Haven for an easy 10 miles. I just kind of cruised and kept my heart rate low. This was just to get out and ride, see how the body handled it. It was a quick jaunt from Gobles to Bloomingdale and back. Nothing terrible, all flat rail trail. I felt pretty good overall. With about half a mile to go on the way back Lisa and I pushed the pace a bit. I learned pretty quickly that I can only push the pace for a minute before my body doesn't like it. Still, felt good to go faster for a short stretch.

Always good to ride with friends. Dave was sharing a story, and he thanked us for being part of his riding group. He said "Doctor told me to thank you guys for saving my life".  That really sunk in. Because of his riding, he was stronger and able to make it through a terrible event. Sure we all ride on our own, but these groups make the rides more enjoyable. A group gives us accountability. A group gives us camaraderie. We don't fully know the power of a group ride, I just know they are important. So lets keep having them! 

Not really much more to report here. Just making sure I am paying attention to how much I am eating. I am learning where my limits are, and how my body feels when I am actually full. Eating very slow is important. If I eat a bit fast I get a feeling of wanting to puke. It comes on VERY fast. I didn't even think I was eating fast one day last week, and all of a sudden I was like "uh oh" and was on the verge of hurling up what I ate. Thankfully that feeling went away and I was ok, but it was a reminder of my situation. 

If I get the small amount of food, and I eat slowly I don't have any issues. I am however getting tired of the baby food consistency. Only a week to go on that, and then the learning begins again. I will have to learn what foods I can handle, and not over do it. I am not talking about putting away a little debbie zebra cake, I am just referring to the amount of food in each sitting. And what types of foods will cause more issues than others. 

Overall, feeling pretty good. Stress is still high....but I am managing. Lots of potential life changes coming and some of them will be a massive benefit to those stress levels. Only time will tell.

I will be doing my first MTB ride this Saturday (weather permitting). That should be an interesting experiment to see how I feel riding harder terrain than the trainer or a rail trail. 

Otherwise......keep moving forward!