Penance

After the T-bone accident two weeks ago, my life has changed quite a bit. I lost a friend, a job and quite a bit of self esteem. Since that time I have decided to forgive myself.

Life hands us so many lessons. Sometimes we need to be slapped to learn them. I guess I was punched in the stomach with this one. Maybe I was on the wrong path, going in the wrong direction. Maybe bigger things are around the corner. Maybe...

I am scabbed over and when the scars fade I will be reborn. I have learned my lessons and am choosing to recreate myself and move on. Only sunny days ahead of me.

Not At My Best

Yesterday I T-boned a little kid on the beach bike path. He wasn't more than 6-8 years old. I really scared him more than anything, no scrapes or cuts. And it happened while I was braking, but I wasn't stopped yet. I guess I'm trying to make this sound better than it is.

I think something happens to us when our blood is pumping fast, as in when carving. I know I have talked to a friend about how aggressive we become on the bike paths while jocky-ing for space.

That kid had been doing slow circles in the middle of the bike bath, both lanes. When I came upon him he started racing me in the pedestrian lane. He then waited and waited and waited and then turned right in front of me -- I couldn't stop. I was going too fast in my left curve of the carve. You see, I couldn't swerve right.

At that point a slew of brown words came shooting out of my mouth. I saw his red bike in the white sand. He was running back to his parent who was no where to be seen. I think he decided he was too far from mom and turned back. Who knows.

I didn't want to deal with an angry parent so I rode on. The kid was okay, it really was a slow hit, and he fell in the soft sand. I didn't even fall off the Trikke.

I was caught not at my best by only one witness, a kind bike guy who stopped to make sure everyone was okay. There was a very peaceful look on his face, I felt better for seeing him there. And yet I continued my salty tirade about that kid aiming for me for quite a distance. His look said take a breath, and I did. Then I smiled and rode on.

My blood was pumping fast as I was angry and just missed falling off the Trikke again. It was very hot. I felt like I was going to barf. My heart was all spent by the time I got to the pier, which was the half-way point.

I didn't want to go back the way I had come for two reasons: the wind was strong and the kid with his angry mother.

I am not proud of myself today. I was my father in that moment. I may have scarred a kid for life.

Afterthought -- I wasn't completely like my father, he'd have chased me down and beat me.

JTs Three-Wheel Zone

I have created a new label for all the posts on my blog that have to do with my Trikke called JTs Three-Wheel Zone. I'm just refreshing my brand if you will. After all, I am JT and I can do what I want here!

So look for some new posts and maybe re-posts of some of my favorites! Any suggestions?

Plus, look for me on Twitter as I tweet about my fitness challenge. I will post tips on fitness that maybe you don't know about. Don't worry I won't be making stuff up. I'll just pass on info that I find useful.

So, welcome to my world, the world of JT. And yes, I am full of myself. I'd have to be to think anyone is interested in my ramblings!

What is this "Sweet Spot"?

Me on Blue Birdie, my first Trikke

I have heard that term from the first day I got on my Trikke. It seems to mean many things, as many as people to define the term. Then an "old-timer" spelled it out for me in terms that even I understood.

The "sweet spot" is that spot when the Trikke hits the centrifugal force in the turn. And I thought it was when everything worked together to give one a smooth ride. I guess it still could mean that.

The one week anniversary of my face meeting the pavement was marked by the sweetest ride I think I have ever been on in my two years on a Trikke. Some rides it seems I can barely get into the groove but that day I was circling Rainbow Lagoon, or as we call it "the pond."

Every time I came around the folks at the pool I would slip into this ballet style dance. It felt as if I were a butterfly, alighting on one flower to the next. I don't think I will ever forget how good that felt. A bike sure can't give one that feeling of lightness and purpose.

I have read many stories of the Trikke "saving" the lives of one person to the next. I am one in that list. I was a chain-smoking, diabetic, TV-watching-24-hours-a-day-fool that weighted almost 300 pounds with a sugar addiction and suicidal tendencies.

The Trikke has not only given me a new lease on life (take that Dr. Oz) but it has also given me a new purpose as managing editor of TrikkeWorld Magazine.

I saw an acquaintance the other day for the first time in about 18 months, and he could barely contain himself when he saw me again.

My fountain of youth has three wheels on it.

OOPS! I did it again!

The very first time I mounted a Trikke, in a moment of panic, I jackknifed the handlebars and went flying. I landed on my face in the street and I wasn't wearing a helmet. I ended up with a ruddy nose and a black eye.

Last Thursday I was carving, I was in the zone, hitting that sweet spot, soaring on my Trikke, Black Birdie. Then, POP! The front fork dropped down, Boom! It felt like my front tire fell into a hole. It immediately stopped my Trikke but it did not stop me. Once again I flew over the handlebars and landed on my face in the street.

I was so dumbstruck I just sat there on the hot asphalt (actually a wonderful bike lane that Long Beach has provided us with -- thank you LB!) and wondered how I was going to pull myself up or even drag myself out of the street. It seemed like quite a while before anyone came across me there.

The first thing discovered was my front tire blew out. It was so bald the inner workings of the tire were exposed. What? I had recently added air to that tire! And my back tires are still in great shape. Yet at the Newport Beach Back Bay ride on 7/24/11, I seem to remember a fleeting thought that my front tire was aging. But a lot was going on and I forgot about it. 

So there it is, I was not paying attention to the condition of Black Birdie.

After my first trip over the handlebars I vowed to always wear a helmet. The sun guard on the helmet has grooves in it where my forehead hit the street. Those grooves would have been in my face.

So to recap, I did not pay attention to the condition of my Trikke. I did not check things out, and I hadn't for a long time. Oh sure, I squeeze my tires every couple of rides, but that's it. (And yes, I do know how to check the oil in a car.)

When something stupid happens to someone intelligent, one has to learn one's lesson quickly and move on. I have learned that lesson, and have a new interest in caring for Black Birdie. (And yes, I have been back on the horse that bucked me!)

The Newest Me

Me, ruminating

Life is really sparking around me lately. What I mean by that is a lot is happening and it's happening quickly. Don't get me wrong, I am loving it.

In my travels around the WWW, I have found some very valuable info about blogging and what creates readership and growth. I am not doing those things. So in a feeble attempt to catch up I have several approaches to try.

Firstly, the whole premise about me being full of myself is all wrong. I am supposed to write about what my readers will relate to. I have come from the opposite side of that topic while writing about what was concerning me at that moment.

The reason I created the blog was to overcome my quietness and have a voice somewhere. No one wants to listen to my ramblings aloud. So the blog was created. The second part of my life had not started yet so I had plenty of time to ramble on.

What has happened since 2009 is mind blowing. I am a partner in an online magazine. We are working with some high-powered people in the city of Long Beach, CA. There are letters to write, contacts to follow-up on, phone calls to make and so on.

So I have become a busy gal. And all this started with a friend seeing an infomercial in the middle of the night for a product called the Trikke. And the rest they say, is history.

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!