One week...Headwinds vc CrazyC...

We started commuting this week.

I sure hope you can help me out with my q's.

1-Why oh why must I have headwinds each way? I've tried the subliminal message to the weatherman idea but it hasn''t worked..

I would like to ask about how I should cycle into headwinds with sidewinds added on. On my way home I take the long route round the river & there are always headwinds

Normally I stay in a lowish gear and slog my way through. The main problem is my speed drops to about 19-20km/hr & I often struggle to get back up to 25. What am I doing wrong??

2-Have you changed your food intake??? I understand the idea of fuelling my bodeeeee but I am rather unsure of how much more i should eat?

Example-prior to ride-I have an up & go

Breakfast-bagel(s) with honey

Snack-banana & another item

Lunch-pasta or sandwich or whatever else I made with yoghurt, raisins, & another item

Snack-banana

Am i eating enough during the day or too much?


So far commuting isn't a problem and am enjoying my time on the bike.

I do wonder where everyone is though. There's hardly anyone on the bike routes-I pass maybe 2-3 people on the way in..( it is 530am though....). After work, once i get past the river, there aren't many cyclists wandering.

Oh joy, my next mission is to battle the heat whenever that arrives...This week it's just been rain, overcast, windy etc.

TMI...Now if i could just learn to go pee before i leave work I wouldn't have to use a tree...

c

Headwinds - they suck and always will

I deal with them by dropping my gears and using it as a time to practice my spinning - gotta find a bright side in everything, huh?

Food... no, I haven't really changed anything. What you are eating sounds just fine to me.

I have 2-3 pieces of toast with olivani (not butter - I can't eat butter anymore, too rich, and the various soy based margerines just taste like plastic)

I eat again when I get to work, usually about 45-50 minutes after I have showered and changed. I have an early lunch and get a bacon and egg toasted sandwich or one of the yummy bagels from the cafe downstairs.

I have a second "lunch" no later than 2:30pm so I don't have food sitting heavy in my tum when I head home, which is about 1/2 uphill. Again, its something savoury on some kind of bread.

I try and eat only when hungry, as I am trying to lose weight, but am aware that I need to eat to fuel as well.

I have a great food replacement protein shake at work which is very low in both sugars and fats which I have with low fat milk if I am hungrier than usual.

How long is your commute, CC? Maybe delaying the morning coffee (if you have one) til you get to work would help with the "pee" factor?

Can you shift your route to one that's got more buildings or trees? It's windy here but I'm mostly going through town, not out on the prairie. Who knows, maybe as seasons shifts, your prevailing wind will shift and you'll have tailwinds both ways for a hwile, too.
Without knowing how long you're riding it's hard to say whether that's enough fuel. I don't really eat anything extra because 7 miles one way just isn't that much exercise.

I found myself needing to eat extra only going 3-4 miles, but I'm convinced distance is relative when comparing road bikes to mtn bikes.

I'm with Geonz on trying to shift your path so you're near more trees/buildings.

Also- I'd put off the morning coffee until after you get there. Pity, too, because it can really help, but coffee makes me pee like nothing else. If your wallet permits, maybe a redbull would be a decent substitute?

CC--with those winds--are you SURE you're not riding in Chicago? :p

I just pretty much second what everyone else has said. I really, really need a snack before I head home, short as my ride is (3 mi/5 km), or I am STARVING when I get in the door.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by crazycanuck

Breakfast-bagel(s) with honey

Snack-banana & another item

Lunch-pasta or sandwich or whatever else I made with yoghurt, raisins, & another item

Snack-banana

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you can afford more than one banana a day??!!
lucky bugga!

Postie-I don't spend alot of $$ on junk food and spend it all on bananas...lately!!!!

Thanks for your replies ladies.

1-Up & Go is a breakfast type drink that I have before i run off.

2-I always have to go pee as i drink up to 1 1/2 litres of water at work...

3-Both commutes don't allow for more buildings or trees...There aren't that many on the long ride home. The short ride goes through residential/industrial areas and again there aren't that many trees.

I will stop and take a few photos one of these days to give ya a better insight into my routes.

The headwinds weren't as bad today. It took me 1hr 7min to do 30km.

c

[QUOTE=crazycanuck;127021]Postie-I don't spend alot of $$ on junk food and spend it all on bananas...lately!!!!

mate, that's zakly what I say to my husband when he comments on the price of fruit and veg...or how often we hafta stock up on bananas or apples etc. I'd rather be spending the moolah on the good stuff unlike many people who spend squillions on junk food.
I used to have up n go too.....but like a lotta other yummy things, tiz fulla sugar.
When I was in Perth a few mths ago I noticed all the lovely bike tracks along the river etc. One day I gotta go back with bike!
wind...omgggg......most of last week.....and again today....grrrrrrr

Quote:

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Originally Posted by postiechic

you can afford more than one banana a day??!!
lucky bugga!

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Are bananas expensive there? Or am I missing something... (probably :rolleyes: )

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kelownagirl

Are bananas expensive there? Or am I missing something... (probably :rolleyes: )

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yeah, just a tad.....cyclone a few mths back wiped out most of the banana crops in Qld. So of course what was left are about 5x the price what they used to be....dammit....I love bananas...used to have one every day; now it's every 2nd day