Broken Spoke

Friday Bike Ride:

Nice ride on the trail along the railroad tracks going through Lake Woebegone, if a bit rough, but about halfway through the ride I discovered a broken spoke on the rear wheel. Turns out that my happy little bike actually NEEDS all of its spokes, and the rear wheel bent just enough to rub against the rear sprocket a little bit on each revolution, and probably on the brake pad as well. The bend became progressively worse as the ride went along, as did the rubbing of the tire, and I was happy to get back home after 52 minutes.

Also it turns out that I don’t know much about my bike. I bought a spoke and some cone wrenches, removed the rear wheel with no problem, but couldn’t figure out how to remove the Shimano hub. Another trip to the Gateway Cycle Shop and the mechanic there showed me how to replace the spoke; there is a special tool for removing that hub. It looked quite easy when he did it! They're out of that tool at the moment, but I'll buy one when they come in because do need to be able to replace spokes.

Saturday (today):

Rode to Northland Tennis Courts where the St Croix Valley Runners gather before and after their 5-mile run, then rode the grass trails in the park north of the county maintenance shed, buzzed the runners a few times, stopped to chat after their run, then rode home. Probably about 22 miles in all, a very enjoyable ride. On the long legs I apparently had average speed of about 14 mph. It seems that’s the best I can do with this bike right now. Some minor pain under the right kneecap in the second half of the ride. I guess that’s just going to be with me for a while. It goes away after a day off from riding, if not sooner.

Friend Doug was quite helpful with advice this morning after his run. He’s been an avid biker, even owns a bike stand for servicing bikes. He actually has two sets of wheels for his mountain bike, one for trail riding and another with smoother tires for road biking. The road tires are quieter, and can be inflated to a higher pressure for less road resistance. It’s still a heavy bike, of course, compared with a real road bike. He also mentioned that the most important place to reduce weight on the bike is the tires. I have to think about why that would be. I weighed my bike today after the ride: 37 pounds. Professional road bikes can weigh 20 pounds less! Does that really matter at all on the flat? Of course it matters on hills - it’s as if I weigh 20 pounds more than I do.

Oh man - I don’t want to get sucked into biking. I really do enjoy it though. One of the joys of running is the chance to see lots of countryside that I wouldn’t bother to drive past, but a bike can double that. On the other hand, a runner who keeps his eyes open and head clear isn’t at much risk of serious injury except from external forces like cars, but a biker can get into a lot of trouble all by himself. So far so good for me, but I’ve had some close calls, nearly tumbling into ditches and the like, and I've taken one tumble while trying to jump a low curb. As with all of life, experience will help as long as it doesn’t produce overconfidence.

Running:

The new custom orthotics (previous post) feel just fine. I wore them for almost six hours today, but during most of that time I was riding my bike or sitting, watching the Tour de France. I don’t know if that counts toward “break-in” time or not.


Yesterday was a very good day for eating:

Breakfast:

Organic oatmeal, organic skim milk, mango, blueberries, organic strawberries, Brazil nuts. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 5. This is a normal breakfast during fruit & berry season.

Lunch:

No-hormone no-antibiotic pork loin roasted in peanut sauce (organic coconut milk, organic chunky peanut butter, ancho chili powder, organic lime, coriander), organic plum, kiwi, mango. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 7. Magnificent lunch by Sunshine; she exceeded herself. LOVE that peanut sauce, which was supposed to have creamy peanut butter according to the recipe, but is much better with chunky.

Dinner:

Roasted free-range local chicken with vidalia onion, corn/spud dish with Jim's potatoes and onion, organic plum, and "pie" of organic pumpkin, a little honey and molasses, and pecans. The pie is not so sweet as to be dessert; it's a vegetable. :-) Estimated Weight Watcher points = 9.

Custom Orthotics

The custom orthotics arrived today. I had imagined something a bit harder, stiffer, but these are a lot like the over-the-counter orthotics that I already have, except they have more support in the arch. And the support feels like it is more in the middle of the arch, not so much in the inside as I had expected.

Of course I still can't run, because I'm waiting for the plantar fasciitis to heal, but these feel like I certainly could run in them. They weigh six ounces total, three ounces per foot, so they do add to the weight of running shoes, but not an unacceptable amount. When I can run, I will certainly run in them. Except for races, perhaps, eventually.

The podiatrist (if a doctor is called "doc", what is a podiatrist called?) said I could try a little bit of running in ten days after the orthotics' "break-in" period. I think break-in means time for my feet to become accustomed to the orthotics, not for the orthotics to become fitted to my feet. They are made of cushioned rubber and don't feel like they will change any.

Meanwhile I can use the orthotics for one hour today (done), two hours tomorrow, and so forth for ten days. That's August 5. I will try running a very short distance on August 5. Marking the calendar ... aw heck I won't forget that date!


Salad:

Organic romaine, avocado, Danish blue cheese, fresh mango, organic grape for color accent. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 3. Sunshine bought a crate of mangoes, so there will be lots more pictures with mango in them.

Salmon dinner:

Sweet Pea's wild caught Alaskan salmon dish with organic fat-free yogurt, dill, and paprika, plus organic beans, nasty corn chips, fresh mango. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 8.

Apricot oatmeal breakfast:

Organic oatmeal, organic fat-free milk, blueberries, organic apricot, Don's "gronch" consisting of dried sweetened cranberries, dried mango, dried, pineapple, and a few more things. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 5.

Salad:

Organic romaine, organic basil, fennel, mango, organic strawberries, blue cheese, strawberry vinegar. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 3.

County Park Permit

Yesterday’s bike ride was wonderful, energetic and very satisfying. After the Tour de France telecast was finished, I announced that I was going out for a bike ride. Sunshine suggested that we put all three bikes on the car and go to the Washington County park to ride there. Great idea, off we went. Though I have been in the park several times this year on foot and on the bike, this was the first visit by car, so we bought Washington County park stickers for both cars. Always a good investment - the parks are worthy of support.

We agreed to meet back at the cars in an hour, and I rode out of the park on a trail that I have not used in years, then explored the city to the west. Why have I never run or biked here before? Out to the county line, north to the railroad tracks, back on my favorite trail along the tracks, then an extra loop through the park and my hour was up.

Along the tracks a “train” of just three engines had stopped, diesels rumbling, with one man on the tracks checking a switch. As I rode by with a grin on my face, he waved and hollered “Have fun!” Further down I re-entered the park, on a dirt road, past a sign saying “Park Vehicles Only,” and past a police car stopped there, ready with engine idling. The officer waved as I rode past smiling and saluting. They don’t mind runners and bikers, as long as we behave ourselves.

This wasn’t as hilly as some recent rides, but it certainly was rough, especially the trail by the tracks, strewn with inch-sized rocks fallen down from the rail bed. Most of the ride was NOT in my hybrid bike’s highest gear. About 13.5 miles in 1:02. I’m quite pleased with my five-year-old $150 Eddie Bauer bicycle from Target; it took a lot of abuse.

And somehow I felt as if I had found a groove yesterday. I’ve learned a lot about the bike in past weeks: how and when to shift, how to maintain leg turnover, when to stand, when to sit, and how to use momentum. The ride felt very good, as if I could sustain this energy level for hours. I don’t WANT to like bike riding, because I’m a runner, but in truth I’m enjoying it more and more. The right “bike knee” hurt only slightly, even though I also rode hard just the day before. The knee is getting better. Life is good.

The plantar fasciitis doesn’t seem to change much. I can barely feel it, only once in a while, but am confident that it would reappear in full if I tried to run. Two months of “hammock therapy,” said the podiatrist, and I’ve only finished week three. Meanwhile I ride the bike.


Frannie is always hungry, even though she gets plenty to eat.


Lunch for me, not Frannie:

Organic swiss chard, pistachios, organic raisins, organic red grape raisins, dried cranberies, leftover chicken/turkey hot dog, leftover lemon-grilled chicken, honeydew melon, organic nectarine. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 6.

Afternoon treat when I need calories:

Orange, organic apple, organic strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, organic fat-free yogurt, Dove dark chocolate. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 4. I take my time eating this treat, one little delight at a time, and eat the chocolate last, so that flavor is in my mouth for a while afterward.

Dessert:

Organic red grapes, organic plum, honeydew melon, organic strawberries, blueberries, organic fat-free yogurt. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 4. Take your time and enjoy this piece by piece for a half hour.

Lumberjack Days in Stillwater

What a wonderful morning for a run! As always, the Stillwater Lumberjack Days 5k and 10-mile races were warm, but not nearly as hot and humid as in recent memory. Certainly not for me, as I did not run because of the plantar fasciitis.

Results: 5k and 10 mi.

This is a major race each year for the St Croix Valley Runners, especially the ten-mile race. It's a measure of mid-summer race fitness for some of us.


Both races are downhill, and many runners make personal records. The pictures are of friends who ran, especially my two sweeties and another close friend. I wish I had pictures of more of the runners.

I'm proud of all of them. And I had a great bike ride up to the start, a nice chat with several runners, and a ride back down to the finish, so I got in some good exercise.

The left foot (plantar fasciitis) did hurt a little in the past few days, triggered I think by the stairs exercise on Tuesday. No more of that I guess. But no pain in the foot today.

The right knee hurt just a little, but not bad. I think that will resolve if I don't push it too hard.

Lunch:

Wheat-free pasta curls (made of corn, quinoa, red bell pepper, spinach), organic garden veggie pasta sauce with added whole corn sliced right off a cob, organic uncured beef hot dogs, cantaloupe. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 7.

Dinner:

Roast lamb, Rose's lime marmelade, organic strawberries, organic plum, spinach delight (organic spinach, broccoli, organic ricotta cheese, organic organic yogurt, onion, parmesan cheese). Estimated Weight Watchers points = 8.

Hilly Bike Ride

Very hilly half-marathon (actually 13.3 mi) in 59 minutes in local neighborhoods. Good enough, I guess, considering the hills. It was a pleasant 70-degree morning, and an enjoyable ride. Right knee hurt a little but not enough to bother.


Sandwich lunch:

Whole-grain toast, cold roast no-hormone no-antibiotic beef, organic bread & butter pickles, organic yellow mustard, organic grapes, organic plum, organic kiwi. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 8. We had some of Jim's beans with this meal too, but they evaporated before I could shoot them!

Great lunch:

No-nitrite turkey bacon, wheat-free pasta curls (made of corn, quinoa, red bell pepper, spinach), organic garden veggie pasta sauce with added whole corn sliced right off a cob, organic strawberry, organic white nacho chips, organic yellow corn chips, homemade artichoke dip with Jim's fresh chives, parsley, dill, and thyme, plus garlic and more. Sunshine may publish the dip recipe on her blog. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 9.

Elliptical

813 calories burned on the elliptical in 30+ minutes, finishing HR 130. No problem, plenty of sweat. Did I feel a twinge from the plantar fasciitis heel? Not sure, so I’ll ice it.

Breakfast:

Organic oatmeal, organic milk, blueberries, organic strawberries, organic nectarine, kiwi, Dove dark chocolate. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 5.

Snack:

Watermelon, honeydew melon, organic seedless grapes, blackberries, sugared organic ginger. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 4.

Salad:

Organic romaine lettuce, blueberries, organic strawberries, kiwi, pistachios, blue cheese, raspberry vinegar. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 3.

Dinner:

Organic whole-wheat spaghetti, grass-fed bison & spiced ground hormone- and antibiotic-free pork, organic spaghetti sauce, Jim's wonderful cabbage, organic nectarine. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 7.

Stairs - Running Equivalence

Stairs for 50 minutes today, more than 200 trips (2800 steps) up and down at a little over four trips per minute, leg turnover at least 120 footfalls per minute, finishing heart rate 143. That heart rate corresponds to a running pace of about 8 minutes per mile. At that running pace I burn about 938 calories per hour (125 calories/mile * 60/8). Round down to 900. Today, if that rate of caloric burn is correct, I used up 750 calories in the 50 minutes. Divide 750 by 50 = 15 Weight Watcher points. That’s also 15 calories per minute. Is that math correct? Hope so.

Bottom line:

• Stairs at 4 trips/min up & down = 900 cal/hr, 3.75 cal/trip.
• Running at 8:00 min/mi = 938 cal/hr, 125 cal/mi.

I weigh 150 lb; these calorie values would be higher for a heavier person, less for lighter, roughly proportional to weight.

Good news is: NO HEEL PAIN. The last time I did stairs for cross-training, my left heel with plantar fasciitis began to ache after a while, but today it’s entirely quiet. Nevertheless I’ll ice it a bit. The bad news is my right knee does hurt a little, the same one that hurts when I bike, and in the same place. But I’m not as worried about that little pain because it doesn’t hurt at all when I run, though it’s about time for that pain to go away - it’s been hanging around since before Grandma’s Marathon, June 16.

Too many food pictures in the queue again, so here goes a day’s worth of meals:

Breakfast:

Organic oatmeal, organic milk, blueberries, organic strawberries, organic apricot. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 3.

Lunch:

Cold roast free-range bison, 100% whole-grain bread, organic pickle relish, organic yellow mustard, organic nectarine, organic plum. Estimated Weight Watchers points = 8. Nice post-run recovery lunch.

Supper:

Roast lamb, Jim's cabbage roasted with caraway, organic carrots with Jim's onion, roast organic sweet potato, Jim's beet roasted. Virtually eveything is local. Estimated Weight Watcher's points = 4. Cat in background is forever optimistic about a food accident.

Fruit-yogurt dessert:

Banana, organic red seedless grapes, blackberries, blueberries, organic plum, organic nectarine, organic fat-free yogurt. Estimated Weight Watcher points = 5. While most treats are gone in five minutes, this big bowl can entertain for twenty or more.