Blogging again!
It has been a while since I have updated my blog and the reasons for not updating are many. With the increasing use of more immediate social media sites such as Facebook, Google+, and Twitter, it seems blogging is a bit redundant. However, it dawned on me that blogging allows one to provide a more detailed account than Twitter or Facebook posting. So I promise to update this blog with some personal insights on various matters of interest. I like the fact that I have a my own little soapbox!Participation in Team in Training for 2012
Since February of this year, I have been training to participate in America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride as a Member of Team in Training (TNT). This will be my sixth year participating as active team member and all of this would not be possible without the love and support from my wonderful family and friends. Every year I reach out to my friends and family to help me raise money for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society and I am quite humbled by their generosity.October 2004 |
No, I participate because of three things: 1) I do it to honor the memory of my late wife who passed away from multiple myeloma seven years ago; 2) I believe in the work of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and 3) I do it to honor those who are currently battling cancer. I have been there personally and I realize how difficult it can be to be a patient, a family member or a caregiver. I do this year after year so that that we can find a cure and no one has to loose a parent, a child, a family member, or a friend to cancer.
Kaitlin Cooper |
Training Update 4/21/12
I have been training with Team in Training since February. I haven't really posted anything until now since the rides have been pretty short and fairly "easy". But starting this month and next, we are really getting into the meat and potatoes of training. We are now riding fairly long and hard miles. So here is the snap shot of my this Saturday's training ride in South Arlington, TX. Weather was just perfect expect the wind picked up as the day progressed and the dogs in the area.So overall I am pretty happy with myself despite the fact that I was pretty gassed around mile 50 due to riding pretty hard into the headwind. That 475 Watts of power was up a short steep hill on my big chain ring and it really hurt. I am pretty happy that I can spike my Max heart rate up to 198 beats per minute despite my age!
So things I have been doing this year to improve my training and performance: 1) 100% devoted to the Paleo/Primal diet (see this link) and 2) I am a serious believer in "Bullet Proof Coffee" (see this link). The Paleo/Primal diet has changed my body to rely on burning fat as fuel of choice instead of massive amounts of glycogen and I feel so much better for it. "Bullet Proof Coffee" is simply amazing. You can read about and Google about it. If you are an adherent of high carb / low fat diet, you might be surprised by the information.