<p>Cardinal Fang, The Surly LHT looks awesome! I found a bike shop less than 5 miles from here that sells Surly bikes. Unfortunately, that bike is way out of my price range once I add fenders, pedals, and sales tax. If I hadn’t recently bought a Star Trac spinner, I might spring for it. But I did, so that’s that. </p>
<p>I’m going to check out a Trek FX WSD next week. H thinks I should also look at the Cannondale Quick Feminine. My neighbor told me there’s a Cannondale dealer nearby that doesn’t show up on the web, so I plan to check that out, too.</p>
<p>toneranger, We’ve ridden part of the C&O trail in WV. Did you and your H ride through the half-mile long, pitch black tunnel? If you haven’t, you should. Wow! What an experience. It’s something my family will never forget. Knowing that trail, I still prefer a bike without a suspension since a suspension fork adds weight. I agree with CF that the soft wide tires on a hybrid bike are all I need.</p>
<p>Mapesy, yes, we did the Paw Paw Tunnel! With little flashlights. Kind of spooky actually (I’m a little claustrophobic I think). But an adventure for sure. I love that trail…beautiful with lots of great old towns to explore. Would like it to be more hilly though. And the bumpiness slows us down! The AT trail in MD/PA has a bit of an incline but it’s gradual. Anyway, I would love to do the 350 mile trip from DC to Pittsburgh. </p>
<p>Good luck with your bike purchase. I’m with you…I like to avoid traffic. There’s a great 30 mile beginner mountain bike trail around here that we are thinking about trying. Beginner but it’s not technical but it’s VERY hilly and bumpy so it’s no picnic. Not sure I like this type of biking as much though…I prefer to go fast!</p>
<p>toneranger, Yes! The Paw Paw Tunnel is definitely spooky. We only had one small flashlight when we rode through it, and I was convinced snakes and bears were lying in wait to attack us. My kids loved it, though. Of course, they’re the type who enjoy skydiving, rock climbing, and bungee jumping. I don’t think they’re related to me.</p>
<p>Have you done much biking in WV? That state is a biker’s paradise. And do you have any favorite bike rides near Philly? We live in the region, but we haven’t done much biking around here. Too busy with kids sports. Now that we’re empty nesters, though, we’re loving our weekends hiking with the dogs and kayaking in the Susquehanna and Chesapeake Bay. Looking forward to adding local biking to the mix. I just need to buy a bike!</p>
<p>mapesy…the lehigh gorge is beautiful - goes for 26 miles…slight incline. They also have some single track mountain biking trails.<br>
There are trails in PA/Bucks County and Jersey on the Delaware River…you can do loop tours. The PA side goes for 60 miles. I love stopping in Frenchtown and Stockton. Google the D&R trail.
You can bike to Philly on the river trail but it’s too industrial for me. I like Valley Forge to Green Lane Pa on the Perkiomen trail…mostly flat but there are some hills to get your heart moving. It’s a mix of asphalt and crushed stone.
Blue Marsh Lake in Reading has a 30-mile mountain biking/hiking trail around a the lake. We’ve hiked there but haven’t tried it on the bikes…looks like a challenge…lots of big hills!<br>
Yes, we bike in WV. Really beautiful state. MD has some nice biking too.
Yeah we like to hike with our dog too, but he’s starting to get too old to keep up with us </p>
<p>Took Saturday off and then hit the gym this evening. Instead of the bike I toughed it out on the dreadmill for an hour. Funny thing is my HR was higher and easier to max in the 80- 85% range most of the walk as compared to my biking. Barely broke a sweat while I sweat buckets on the bike. Had the dreadmill at 2.5 incline and walked my slow pace at 3.2 mph. Wonder what that means?</p>
<p>toneranger- Where is Green Lane? I run on the Perk Trail and did so Friday and Saturday. I start at CVS in Collegeville and run towards/to Oaks. I’ve also started at Betzwood before and run to Oaks and back. I love the Perk Trail.</p>
<p>Biked 36.5 today. Started with a group of 6 (no H today since he was still driving back from PA). The other woman and I really only wanted to do 30-35 today and the group was talking 40-50. After 12 we had a decision point and the guys were trying to convince us that the route they were taking (with a challenging climb) would only be 40. Susan kept shaking her head and told me we shouldn’t do it and she would explain later. So she and I took the Natchez Trace (still very hilly) and had a nice 36.5. She told me the other route was narrow with a huge climb and cars whizzing by you. She also didn’t trust the distance they were claiming. Without my husband there (he knows the distance of every road in middle TN) she was afraid we would wind up with 60 miles or something. These guys are notorious for that. We just didn’t want that today. I’m glad we spun off. It was very pleasant just going at our own pace on the Trace. Finished the week with 32 running and 36.5 biking.</p>
<p>mowc…if you keep going after the CVS in Collegeville, you’ll wind through Shwensksville, and Spring Mountain, and end up in Green Lane near a park. I’d say it’s at least another 10 miles. So starting at Betzwood and doing the length and back is a long ride (or run!) - close to 40 miles. There are also some nice offshoots (Phoenixville for example). And some pretty big hills on the stretch after CVS. The trail near Green Lane is gorgeous. </p>
<p>Another nice place to walk/run/bike is the Wissahickon trail- although it gets to crowded when it meets up with the Kelly Drive - so the length isn’t enough for us for biking even though it’s quite hilly in parts. Gorgeous there - however I always think of that poor young runner who got killed by a falling tree branch last year. They have a memorial bench for her now. So sad. </p>
<p>I think I would collapse after 60 hilly miles on a bike. 30 sounds more reasonable to me but I’m pretty tired after mostly flat trails at that distance so I’d have to work up to it. Glad you’re doing better MOWC!</p>
<p>Played a few sets of tennis yesterday and did a bit of weights yesterday. I went back to using the barbell for squats but there are two parts of the exercise that tweak my arm - flipping the barbell up over my head and then back down again. There are no problems with the exercise itself. I may need to ask my son for help when I do those. My alternative would be to use a dumbbell version of the squat but I don’t have weights that are heavy enough for that without using my plate set which means changing weights.</p>
<p>I do have ten pound fixed dumbbells and one 15 pound dumbbell. I played around with the 10s doing presses and curls but it was too light. The 15 pounder was quite good for that - not too much weight so that I could do lots of reps with only slight soreness afterwards. I can’t do curls with my right hand though.</p>
<p>One major annoyance with the plate dumbbells is that the bar weighs 2.5 pounds. So you have to go with increments of five pounds + 2.5 pounds unless you don’t mind using an unbalanced dumbbell. I much prefer fixed weights, but, as idad mentioned, you can spend a lot of bucks for them. I might look into getting a twenty at Sports Authority to do single-arm stuff until my right arm gets better.</p>
<p>I think you’ll find that the WalMart set for for $34 delivered is the best deal you’ll find even for one pair of heavier dumbells. You can build up a pair of either 13.6 or 18.6 pounders from one set. You would need a second set (or some extra weight plates) for a pair of 23.6 pounders). </p>
<p>With three sets, you could build up three pair of dumbells: a pair of 13.8 pounders, a pair of 18.3 pounders, and a pair of 23.8 pounders. At $102 for three sets, you’d still be cheaper than buying those three in fixed weights and you would have the option of reconfiguring really heavy (a pair of 23.3 pounders and a pair of 28.6 pounders).</p>
<p>The only pratical advantage of a fixed dumbell over these is that they are “cleaner” in the sense that the bar ends do not extend past the outside of the weight plates. In the set, the bar ends extend a few inches beyond the weights, which could be awkward on a few exercises. The only exercise that the length would bother me would be the reverse flys on the stability ball. I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. My 8 pound vinyl covered dumbells are all I can handle for a dozen reps of reverse fly. </p>
<p>For squats, you can either use two dumbells or one heavier dumbell held at your chest. You could even use a backpack full of books held at your chest. If you are using lighter weights, just press or curl and press the weights above your head as you come up from the squat – think of it as one athletic move with the legs and arms pushing the weight up. I find that 10 reps of this with anywhere from 14 to 26 pounds total (I do it various ways), to be plenty challenging from a heart rate standpoint. Try it with both of your 10 pounders held together in front of your chest, pressing them above your head. Or your 15 pounder, holding it vertically by one end like a goblet and pressing it over head. For some reason, that position is more taxing with lower weight.</p>
<p>My lighter fixed weights are plastic coated at 10 or below. The 15 pound fixed dumbbell has an anatomical grip which I like much better than the straight bar. The only squat that I can do with the dumbbells is to keep them at my feet. Anything resembling a curl or downward pressure from the arm generates pain. I cannot even do a ten-pound curl with my right arm. I already have dumbbells that are reconfigurable but I don’t like to do the reconfiguration. The two ends sticking out are a bit of a hazard when you are walking around without shoes on.</p>
<p>One nice thing about the Y is that they have a pec fly machine where you can press from your upper arms to do the exercise. In general, with dumbbells, you have to load the weights on your hands. In the regular fly machine, the stress is still on your lower arms. Machines are nice when you have an injury because they isolate the exercise.</p>
<p>Hit my next milestone today–80 pounds! (Or, as I like to think about it, I’ve lost 20 pounds 4 times.) A neighbor I hadn’t talked to in a while cornered me the other day and asked if I’d had bariatric surgery. Um, no, but any other nosy questions you’d like to ask?</p>
<p>Could your neighbor stand to lose a few pounds herself? She was probably telling herself that there is no way to lose that much without surgery…now you’ve burst her bubble!</p>
<p>Chintzy…You go Girl!!! Wow! What an acomplishment! You must be so proud of yourself! I am in awe! What all have you been doing for exercise and mixing up your meals? I could use some tips and advice! So happy for you chintzy on reaching a new milestone and achieving your goals! Three cheers for chintzy!!! (Ignore the ignorant remarks!)</p>
<p>They had a 20 pound outfit at the race. You put on this outfit so that you felt what it would be like to be 20 pounds heavier. I didn’t need to try the outfit.</p>
<p>80 pounds is a tough accomplishment. It must be interesting at family reunions.</p>
<p>Awesome chintzy!! What am amazing accomplishment. You must be very proud…and some others are likely envious…hence the snarky comments. </p>
<p>Anyway, the 20 lb outfit is interesting. I have lost almost 20 lbs over a 9 month period and I feel so much better. And I have lots of big clothes that I can’t wear anymore. But nobody notices…I haven’t received even ONE comment. I guess I’m so tall that I hide extra weight well (like someone’s dog on another thread!). No problem, I still got 10 or so to go and at least I notice what I’ve done so far!</p>
<p>I hear you toneranger! H has noticed but no real comments from anyone else even though I have dropped a bra siza, pant size and top size. I know my face is thinner but I guess people just don’t notice. Guess it must need to be more drastic. sigh…</p>
<p>Yep. I’m thinking about adding those foam handlebar grips to the dumbell bars.</p>
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<p>Can I get an “amen”? I learned that lesson the hard way, actually with rubber coated dumbells, too. Now I put them under or behind the furniture when I’m done, not in a position to inflict damage on my toes!</p>
<p>Chintzy - That is amazing! Congrats. I will get back to this thread in a couple of weeks. After DD goes back to school, hubby and I will return to the YMCA and eating healthier.</p>
<p>Wow. Fantastic. I’m inching up (well, actually down) on my next milestone, but I won’t be matching your eighty anytime soon. That’s awesome. Must be those burpies!</p>
<p>toneranger:</p>
<p>We all notice. That’s what this thread is all about. Losing weight and getting fit triggers a mixed bag of responses from people. Threads like this are really helpful in staying motivated, IMO.</p>
<p>My big milestone is graduating to big boy pushups and regular fit jeans (from my usual relaxed fit cut) in the same week. To quote legendary NASCAR driver Junior Johnson, “Well, I reckon’ that don’t suck **too **bad…”</p>
<p>I admit that I’m one of those people who don’t notice weight loss, even pretty dramatic weight loss. I don’t remember names, I’m bad at remembering faces, I’m just not a person who notices things…I sort of think, “looks nice” but my brain doesn’t register why. If someone points out “oh, hasn’t NM lost a lot of weight!” I’ll notice, but I almost never notice on my own. Sorry everyone, but your friends may be like me.</p>
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