It's good to not feel bad

Since getting back on the bike after returning from Taiwan and the suffering I did during the epic ride there, I have only missed a few days of being on my bike. Even if modest, I've been logging miles as often as I can. Add to that, the fact that I have a few health issues to deal with and I've been more motivated to ride than I have been for a long time. And the icing on the motivation cake is that I sincerely feel like I owe it to all of you who have supported me so much since the crash to get back on the bike (and stay there this time) and race again. Yes, selfishly I want to race for ME too... but I feel like I owe it to so many other people to get back on the bike and ride again.

At one point in December, I was up to a whopping 225+ lbs- that is after dropping from 205 the night of my crash to 184 when they released me from the hospital the second time. As of today, after my ride on the rollers, I am back down to a more reasonable (and healthy) 208.4. I'm not back in race shape yet, but I'm a helluva lot closer than I was in December!

Here are the weight numbers since 2/7;
2/7- 210
2/8- 212
2/9- 211
2/10- 211
2/11- 212
2/12- 212
2/13- 210.4
2/14- 210.8
2/15- 209.6/ 208.4 (before my roller workout/ after my roller workout)

I know I won't be winning any mountaintop finishes, but I'm feeling a heck of a lot better at that weight than I was at 225.

I've been eating better and riding a lot more, as well as taking my cholesterol meds, so I am looking forward to seeing what the blood test results look like in April. I've also returned to the gym... well, once, for the first time since my crash. I went to the YMCA yesterday for the first post-accident workout and it didn't feel as bad as I feared it would. My right knee was a little sore last night after the workout and I was a little spooked by that, since that is the knee that had the double fracture and has/ had a micro tear in the lateral meniscus. BUT... the soreness was almost entirely gone this morning and my ride on the rollers this afternoon was pain-free. Today, on the rollers, I pushed a little harder too- I did my rock-n-roll sprint interval workout on my fixed gear on the rollers. The point is to sprint as hard as you can during each full-on guitar solo/ riff that happens in each song. I have my Shuffle packed with LOTS of great songs for this type of workout and was pretty much flogging myself for awhile there. I had one block of White Zombie, Rage Against the Machine, Queens of the Stone Age and Foo Fighters. But in the end, it was a great workout and I was dripping with sweat by the time I was done... and it felt great!

I still think I want to try and do some kind of weight loss/ get-in-shape support group type of thing, but I have to find the time to focus long enough to get it going... but stay tuned.

Again, I feel compelled to thank all of you who have been so supportive during my recovery from the crash (and before then too). Without your help and support, I know I wouldn't be as strong and on the road to recovery as I am now. Thank you, from deep within me.

Tim