Since I moved onto my current team at work…well, let’s just say I’ve gotten a bit porky*. I have a chronic sweet tooth and lack of willpower at the best of times, but over the past year I’ve taken to snacking from the tuck shop quite a bit, especially over the past couple of months. In an effort to try and reign in my expanding waistline, I’ve started doing Weight Watchers again.
You work out your ‘Points’ according to your height, current weight and age, and level of daily activity. My daily Points allowance works out at 18, which incidentally works out at two Yorkie bars and a Milky Way. AND NOTHING ELSE.
So, I’d been quite good, carefully logging my Points, and trying to go under by a point or two each day. To be honest, this wasn’t too difficult as this bloody infernal cold had dimmed my evening appetite somewhat. So, on the Friday evening, I had Weetabix for dinner.
Next day we decide to head out to the Chase – after a couple of weeks also feeling sickly, Mr Toast was raring to get back on the bike. As we were both feeling a bit off, we decided to ride together.
Unfortunately, due to a slight oversight, I sort of…skipped lunch. It’s actually pretty rare I have lunch on a Saturday (or Sunday) before biking, and normally I’m OK. Possibly due to an entire week of Twix fuelled calories still waiting to be burnt off…
On this particular day, however, I felt wretched. Absolutely bloody awful. Not only had I got a cold, but I felt as if I was riding through treacle. Delicious, sugary…sorry, we were talking about biking? Normally I can get at least halfway up the fireroad hill in the middle ring, but this time around I could barely get started in the granniest of granny gears. I just felt very…slow, and my legs felt like lead. I spent most of the time sat down, to the point where I felt I couldn’t ride the end of 8 because I couldn’t get out of the saddle – it just felt like my legs wouldn’t support me. I had the will, but not the way. :s
I also felt very skittish on the trail. I don’t know whether this is because there’d been a bit of rain, or whether it was because I was going too slowly, or whether I just felt it more because I was in the saddle so much. I’m still thinking about getting some new tyres, just looking into what will give me good traction without being too slow rolling or heavy.
On the plus side, I rode the rocks again, and I’m definitely getting better at those last couple of steps on the turn onto the bridge. I also made sure that the rest stops were kept to a minimum, and kept short – mainly for Mr Toast’s sake as much as my own!
Off to the Chase again tomorrow with Toast and his friend Ovide (not his real name), so hopefully I’ll have a better ride then. Certainly looking at my diet a bit more, might have to invest in some porridge…
Ride: Cannock Chase
Trail: Follow the Dog
Highlights: Riding the rocky bits
Bad bits: Feeling generally arse
Post ride food snaffled: Cheese and Onion flavoured Discos. No expense spared!
Good dogs seen: None really, bit of a drought 🙁
* Mr Toast took exception to me describing myself as ‘porky’, insisted that I wasn’t, and accused women of being mental.