don’t generally worry too much about my diet; between riding and chasing my kids I manage to keep fairly fit and an extra cookie or two is not overly noticeable.
But in the last two months I just can’t get enough food and the benefits of exercise vs: dieting have become very apparent.
Me and my buddy Jeremy are training for the BC Bike Race this July. Its a seven-day mountain bike race starting in Cumberland and ending in Whistler; all on some of the best single track riding B.C. has to offer.
To get ready for an event like this, we have to ride a lot. We spend many many hours in the saddle each week and we climb tons of hills. Road climbs, gravel climbs and lots of technical trail climbing. Now that we’re getting down to crunch time with only four weeks left until day 1, the training is getting even more intense.
As you can imagine if we don’t fuel the furnace, the fire burns out fairly quickly. No fire, no energy…no energy, no pedalling, so the days start off with a big breakfast, then snacking all morning until I can eat a big lunch, then more snacking until that big dinner and a few more snacks until its time to sleep...and dream about breakfast, or riding up hills.
I’m not a big guy, but the amount of food I am eating these days would rival that of a Sumo wrestling team, and that’s just the good food. Add in all the cookies, family sized bags of fatty chips, beer, and more cookies and I should weigh several hundred pounds by now, but in reality I am losing weight.
Now I don’t expect that many of you reading this are planning a seven-day race, but imagine just riding a little bit more each week, maybe just one hour more, or one more day of commuting to work. All of a sudden you are feeling a bit healthier, a little fitter and next time the cookie plate goes by you can grab a couple with no guilt, because you know the furnace will burn it all.
So we can diet and cut out all the comfort foods…or we can just ride a bit more and enjoy life every day, all the while, staying healthy and fit.
I’m James Durand and I’m Goin’…to get something to eat!