Fitness Challenged

I have been on the diet roller coaster for a few months now. I'm trying to lose as much weight as safely possible by my 55th b-day. I am still hovering around 250, a number I cannot seem to break. What does 250 pounds mean to me?

When I originally gained the weight back in 1993, it was to protect myself. It was also due to a depression so deep I had to feed it like a monster come out of the closet. The only thing that got me through the day was the taste of a dozen doughnuts or a fruit pie. I no longer need the extra poundage and it's become another form of monster to get rid of.

Ok, that's the why of it, so where is the why not, as in why not drop the weight? I am around a lot of people right now and yet I don't feel threatened. I feel small. Is that why I feel the need to be so "artificially" big? There are more questions than answers.

In my weight loss challenge in TrikkeWorld Magazine I have decided to go back to the simple act of exercising and consuming fewer calories than I burn. The KISS method, as in keep it simple sweetie, is my best bet. What is it about me that returns to militant to get the pounds off?

So I'm easing up on myself and trikking more. Those are very important pieces to the puzzle of losing weight. Oh, and eating less with no unscheduled in-between snacking. No eating my way through a TV session anymore. No filling myself with artificial means to reach that empty pit in the center of my soul, (isn't that after all what this whole issue is really about?).

I'm going to start the visualizing as well. I'll see myself at lower weights, more comfortable weights. I'll see myself carving farther and stronger. I'll see myself with less pain. I'll see myself fly...

Reprinting Cougar

I hate this term, "cougar." It sounds like a woman who is over the hill who preys on the young. A woman squeezed into a too tight dress with lipstick on her teeth. Even the images that come to mind are of predatory women who hit and run, being so lonely that all they can get or hope to achieve is a one night stand. After all, most men will "tap that" with anything that has a pulse, (I have that on authority from a male friend).

So the tables have turned. Women have come a long way, now we can be the aggressors. This is a good thing, don't get me wrong. But labeling us as "cougars" is just another way men get a grip on a powerful woman. And put her down.

This is such a pejorative term, "cougar". It just seems like these women are chasing their lost youth. And maybe that's the point. After all men preyed upon us when we had tight skin. Didn't we think they were chasing their lost years? Why can't a woman do the same?

I would love to consume a youthful, beautiful body just like the next person. I just don't want to be labeled a "cougar" while doing it.

A Lesser Anniversary

I have recently hit the ten-year mark with diabetes. So far I have been lucky with the disease because I only take one pill a day, no shots. I also keep my blood sugar levels low. I accomplish that with my Trikke.

When I was first diagnosed with diabetes, I measured my blood sugar levels four times a day. I ate a good diet and I avoided all the things that I loved. I was scared and I was careful.

My A1C levels were high, (the A1C blood test measures my average blood sugar level over the previous three months). My cholesterol levels were high. I admitted to smoking. My weight was almost 300 pounds.

Then a friend showed me his new toy, the Trikke. I moved heaven and earth not only to buy a Trikke, but to get fit enough to ride it.

It wasn’t long before my A1C numbers dropped to healthy levels, from a 7.4 to a 6.1. My cholesterol number dropped from about 200 to 126. My Body by Trikke has gifted me with some really good test results.

I realize, after taking my health for granted for so many years, I’ve got to stop messing around. Sugar doesn’t have quite the hold it used to have over me, nor do fatty foods. As I eat my vegetable-laden salads nightly, I enjoy crisp, fresh tastes in my mouth. I love the way it makes me feel when I eat healthy foods. I like it so much that I am considering eating (mostly) raw foods. And what that means to me is lots of fruits and vegetables. 

I am also focusing on eating whole foods, those foods that are generally one ingredient, like eggs or oranges or salmon. They are full of valuable nutrients needed for Trikking. That’s the energy I need, not the empty calories from say, a Snickers bar. Skittles will not feed my muscles. Mars bars will not help my organs function. To further my point, researchers have recently discovered Alzheimer’s is diabetes of the brain.

The experts think diabetes can be controlled with diet and movement, and tearing up the sidewalk with the Trikke is a great way to move. The cardio exercise I get on the Trikke is tremendous. I tend to Trikke for longer periods of time, more than with any other form of exercise. That’s got to help!

Trikking has definitely changed my life for the better. It has already extended my life and created a better me.

SouthBay Trikke  is the place to shop for all things Trikke. Plus Demos, lessons, fix-its, etc!

Originally published in TrikkeWorld Magazine. For more of my weight loss challenge, visit TrikkeWorld Magazine the chronicle of the carving revolution!

Dork of the Day, Revisited

I had to laugh when I reread this post from almost two years ago. It was so silly that I decided to re-post it, just to remind myself not to take myself too seriously. Here goes...

Just recently I got my first ipod. I had to learn how to operate it, load songs and create a library in itunes. Technology has such a learning curve.

I now use it wherever I go, on the bus, walking, anytime I want to communicate to anyone, "please don't talk to me."

So it was that I came home yesterday after listening to my music rather loudly, ya know, like music is meant to be listened to. After taking the ear buds out of my ears I noticed that my right ear was muffled and felt blocked. I thought that it was due to the loud volume I had just been enjoying. Or maybe, well never mind. I was thinking I would have to go to the doctor to have my ear checked.

I sat down to watch the news. Still not able to get that ear problem off my mind. I started to take off my earrings when my finger brushed against something sticking out of my ear, the padding from the ear bud, you know that white plastic that surrounds the metal speaker. I removed it and, problem solved.

And now you know why this is entitled "Dork of the Day".

One Trikker's Initiation

Since the separated bike lanes appeared in Long Beach, users have been harassed, yelled at and cursed. It's part of the initiation. It's part of the dues paid for use of the lanes.

And so it was bound to happen.  I was yelled at by an angry driver as I was about to get into the bike lane.

I was able to shake off the confrontation pretty quickly as I was on my way to the fundraising event at the new Bikestation at the transit mall in Long Beach, CA. I was going to be in a room filled with others who have been cursed at. In other words the users and creators of the bike lanes.

The event was a fundraiser for the California Bicycle Coalition. Dave Snyder, executive director for the San Francisco division was there.The room was also full of Long Beach movers and shakers, bike fans and even some Trikkers.

I arrived on my green Pon-e, Elekktra. I parked it with the other bikes on the top floor of the Bikestation, where members can store their bikes with 24/7 access. This is great if you want to ride a bike or Trikke to work and you can't bring it with you. There are showers for sweaty bikers on their way to meetings. There are many reasons  to utilize the Bikestation.


Even I will be using the Bikestation soon. I will be parking my Trikke there as they work on the larger elevator in my building. I expect knock-down drag-out fights with the elderly trying to fit their electric wheelchairs in an elevator that will accept very little else.

The event was casual. There was wine and beer, and some fabulous tacos were available. There were speeches. Then  several thousand dollars was donated among the attendees.

I was very happy to bring the Trikke to this event. Trikkes are becoming visible in Long Beach. It is a part of the dialogue and is in the photos. The Trikke is present. It makes me happy to see the acceptance of my funny three-wheeled vehicle in this very accepting city by the sea. Long Beach is truly a city of the future as it incorporates new ideas with the old.

Dare I say it again? I love Long Beach, CA!

Loving Long Beach

I have dropped more deeply in love with Long Beach over this past weekend. Long Beach opened the separated bike lanes on Saturday with more than 100 people present. Finally those selfish gas guzzlers are learning again what they should have learned in kindergarten -- how to share!

I have been reading the comments in the local papers about what people think of the new "sharrows" and most of the comments have been made by those dinosaurs that will soon be paying $6 a gallon for their right to pollute the world. That doesn't seem so smart to me.

Long Beach has provided us a way to be safer while not running people down on the sidewalks. Long Beach has given us a speedier way to get across town without having to compete for road space with a couple of tons of metal going at speeds of 40 mph. Long Beach has given us space to set aside our cars and ride our Trikkes/bikes to the store or other local errands. Long Beach has given us a chance to do something that will better our environment.

And so it is up to us now, because these separated bike lanes are a trial effort. We have 1-year to prove to the city that we love what they have done for us. And the way to do that is to lock up the car and take a ride on a Trikke or bike or whatever form of human powered vehicle you choose.

One Trickk Pon-e

My new Pon-e, Elekktra, is amazing. I am rather a slow trikker but I can keep up with the crowd on the Pon-e. I don't have to worry about distances when I am on Elekktra, I can go about 20 miles on a single charge. It really satisfies my search for fun, safety and what I call speed.

I feel pretty safe on Elekktra, probably since I am so used to the Trikke. I have always been afraid of motorcycles; riding, steering and changing gears, it's all too much.

I really am a timid creature when it comes to taking chances that might result in asphalt burn or broken bones. Any kind of discomfort makes me nervous, really. And yet because of the stance on the foot pads with the Pon-e, I don't think of personal injury so much.

The Pon-e is such a blast to run errands with. A trip to the market turns into a fun ride around town. This is the closest I've been to owning a car in 17 years. The convenience factor is so important. And when it's all done, I take Elekktra into the elevator, up to my apartment and straight to my bedroom where I have made a space for her.

I love not having to depend upon exact change for the bus. I love not being a slow moving target. I love that I don't have to purchase gas, insurance or maintain a big savings account for car repairs. I love that my world got a little smaller with the Pon-e.

Plus, it's shiny and new. Who doesn't like shiny and new?

Loving Long Beach, Part ll

Charlie Gandy and John Simpson, Trikke

On Friday, April 1st, TrikkeWorld Magazine met with Charlie Gandy, in the mayor's office, to talk about Trikkifying Long Beach. That story will unfold in TrikkeWorld Magazine in the months to come.

I had arranged for Trikke Tech to bring down from Buellton, a Pon-e for everyone to ride, or should I say have a blast with. Trikke Tech just happens to be unleashing their new model Pon-e's this month, which are the lithium powered Trikkes. We were flying through the new bike lanes that Long Beach is unveiling in a few weeks. These lanes are such a gift for all who currently fight for sidewalk space.

I am not a full throttle gal, but I was racing to keep up with the guys. We flew east-bound through bike lanes that access Broadway to First street to Junipero, to horrors, a descent down one very steep hill to the beach!

I never realized how much fun it is to be terrified and thrilled all at the same time. My inner-child really had a full play day on the Pon-e. If only people could try these things...

We followed the lanes all the way through Belmont Shore, on the new Sharrow lanes. There will be fewer accidents between bikes and side-walkers, especially here in Belmont Shore.

Long Beach is a very forward thinking city, and it is thinking green.  Prediction --  there are going to be a lot of Trikkes tooling around my favorite City-by-the-Sea in time for summer.

And thankfully, we will have safe new lanes to take us where needed  for exercise or a quick stop at the market. My favorite, the corridor that runs from Alamitos to the LA River bike trail, and back. It used to be a difficult trek on a trikke with no other location but the sidewalk to ride on.

Thank you, Long Beach for making the sidewalks and streets safer for bikes and Trikkes! And thank you, Charlie Gandy for being the newest Trikke advocate!

What Was I Thinking?!?

I have been wanting to lose weight since I put it on 18 years ago. Last  year I had a good start when I lost 30 pounds, but then I got sloppy. I think I relied too much on my Trikke for taking the weight off and not enough on calorie control. So I'm taking another shot at it.

Losing weight must be like quitting smoking, in that I must keep trying until my goal is reached. Just because I failed a few times, the only real failure is giving up. So I am focusing on my health, on the calories I shove into my mouth, and exercising every day.

The crazy thing is I am doing it in front of 98 (to date) readers of TrikkeWorld Magazine as well as you, my blog fans! I think the pressure is just what I need to keep my nose out of the refrigerator.

I will be reporting in once a week at the magazine, but more frequently here. I see this as the space where I can blow off the day to day steam from not being able to eat my way through my anger, joy, fear, excitement, disappointment and whatever other feelings I may have in any given moment.

My first installment will be March 24th, and I will focus on why I over eat, how it started, some of the psychology behind my weight gain and my obsession with food. It should be deep, but not so deep that it's uncomfortable to read. That's what I'm aiming for anyway.

Obsessed

My friend and I are either talking about it or doing it together. Sometimes I do it alone. Sometimes I even do it in a group. And ever since I started doing it, it is always on my mind. I'm thinking about where I'll do it tomorrow, or doing it in the SouthBay next week. What is "it" you ask? Well if you are familiar with this blog you can probably guess "it" since I write about "it" a lot..

It's TRIKKING, the best way to have fun and get full body exercise as well. But I'm not writing a sales brochure here, I'm just admitting to an obsession.

 Recently I talked to someone, an interview I was doing for TrikkeWorld Magazine, and this someone had not trikked in a long time. As I spoke to him, his Trikke was hanging above him, on a hook. By the time we were done talking, he was planning to upright it immediately.

That's the way it is with Trikkers. Once you experience carving, nothing else makes sense. Even when I get overwhelmed a Trikke run helps me focus.

It's funny, because as I sit here I am debating between a nap or a Trikke ride. And the Trikke wins again.