Super buys from Adelaide

Weigh in day

Previous weight: 100.7kg.
Today’s weight: 102.7kg.
2kg gain! I was expecting this though after the weekend.

With winter fast approaching us (I know, I know, I can hear you all shouting now “We’re only just into Autumn” – but seriously I don’t think summer actually ever really made it here to Port Lincoln!) I have been thinking about what exercise I will be doing in the coming months. I would like to say that I will be super fantastic and get out there and go shuffling/jogging/running, but I’m not so sure I can say that in all honesty. I haven’t been out running for the last couple of weeks to be honest. The mornings are so dark and gloomy now, that the thought of going out there for a run at 6.30am is just off putting to say the least. In the back of my mind is that whole thought of falling over unseen rocks, or getting attacked by some weirdo along my lonesome path (why I think these things will only happen to me in the dark I cannot explain, but that’s how my mind works). So with these thoughts in mind I really had to start thinking about what I was going to do to make up for that lack of running. I have to admit, that I’m also not a huge fan of riding my bike in the wet weather either – and I hear vicious rumours that it can get quite wet over here in Lincoln in winter.

So I can hear you all shouting now “join a gym woman!” but I’ve been there, and done that, so many times actually. I like the idea of a gym, where they have all the pretty shiny machines to use. But they cost so much money, and there’s always the extra added factor of having to bypass home to go there and then drive home all smelly. My memberships just never end up getting used properly and to their full advantage so I’m spending money on nothing. I can find other ways of spending my money on nothing to be honest. Like buying quilting fabric and cutting it all up to make “stuff”.

Enter my trip to Adelaide and a visit to Anaconda on the weekend. It just so happens that they were having a big sale on while we were there and I managed to pick up to very nifty little(?) items that I believe are going to help me get my exercise groove thing happening over the coming dark, cold and gloomy months.

First up, let me introduce you to Frank – my new Fluid bike mount. Frank will be helping me by holding up Bert (the bike) and allowing me to daily pedal my way to nowhere, all in the comfort of my dining room (we are heathens at home and hardly ever use the dining table…) and in front of a TV. No getting all cold and wet outside and having to deal with cars driving past me really close and spraying up dirty gutter water on me as I ride my way around Port Lincoln. I am trying to source some DVDs at the moment that are spin class type programs, something that I can follow along to, just to help me vary my workouts on the bike. So far, I haven’t found anything. Might have to go to one or two spin classes at the gym just to see what they do.

Secondly, we have Trevor the timer. Trevor here will be measuring my distances travelled, my speed and the time it takes me to do my training, allowing me to better my times and work on improving my speed vs. distance.

I’m actually considering putting up the pedestal fan in front of the bike and turning it on full blast when I get on the bike to help simulate riding outside in the wind, but I think that might be overkill. So between Frank and Trevor, some exercise DVDs and actually getting outside and shuffling/jogging/running on days that aren’t too bad, I do believe I may have winter covered. I’ve really got no excuses now do I! I was wondering though, if any of you wonderful people out in the wide world have one of these bike trainers. How do you find them, do they work for you, and do you notice a difference when you take the bike off and go for an actual proper ride?