Two Wheel Blogs

Being sick is no fun at all.

For the last week I have been stewing in a double dose of misery. Getting sick (head cold) and not riding make for a really lousy string of long days.

I am not going to bitch about it. I managed to get sick during a good time of year relative to cycling. I am not missing much (unless you really enjoy riding on snow in the cold). Not so fast G-Wiz, the trails here are all jacked up too (some D-bag rode them when wet...very wet).

I like to manage stress with cycling, but laying around sleeping seems to work OK too. I have supplemented this with a fair amount of Blog reading too. Thanks to those of you that feed my need for cycling information. Hopefully, I can return the favor once I start riding again.

I have been trying something new lately. Over the last couple days I have been adding notes to my journal and thought I would try to transform it to the blog...perhaps you find it interersting.

em•bro•ca•tion [ èmbr? káysh'n ]
noun Definition: lotion: a lotion or liniment that relieves muscle or joint pain

In cycling, you sometimes hear it referred to as Belgian leg warmers. Basically what guys do is rub this stuff on pre ride/race and it keeps their legs warm without using bulky clothing that seems to slow us all down.

I can hardly believe it's been over two weeks since Froze Toes. Where has that time gone in my little world? That's easy. I went on a business trip for a few days and then I got sick. That's about it. The rest is just ugly details.

A few weeks ago, a well known professor of nutrition referenced this study (which was published in the AJCN) on our local cycling message board and cautioned people about using vitamin C. Her message seemed to indicate that, in general, people should follow the FDA RDI for vitamin C rigorously and that going above this value could be detrimental and dangerous.

Sunday afternoon. As I type this the little weather icon in my tool bar is alternating a black flashing 78.1°F and a red flashing Alert! I hover over the alert and I'm told we're under a winter storm watch tomorrow. Oh that's grand.

Wow, what a couple of days we've had here. Beautiful weather, if not a little windy. I took every possible advantage of it.

No riding though. I have not been on a bike since Froze Toes last weekend. The first part of the week was my business trip. I've been sick with the flu since then. Mostly I lay around and cough, trying to stay as comfortable as possible.

A couple of days ago I woke up feeling like I hadn't slept in a week. I'd been shivering cold and sweating all night; and as much as my body ached, my head was worse.

The first decision I had to make was easy: Work or no work. No question there, I didn't even have the energy to sit at a desk. My second decision - whether to seek professional medical help or not took care of itself with a simple phone call.

My Doctor's office: Good morning. How may I help you?

ME: I'm sick.

My Doctor's office: Do you have a fever?

ME: Yes, and aspirin seems to be helping.