Guest Article: Clean Livin’
Cyclists need the carrot and the stick. It’s all we understand. Do you want to perform well or not be embarrassed? It’s all the same. Either way one needs to train like a bastard to get there. The good news is training means more time on the bike. The bad news is not much else is going to get done besides work and cycling. Once in a while that is not such a bad thing. @Harminator is in for a real fun ride for KT 2015. There is still room for riders so make your plans before life passes you by.
Yours in Cycling, Gianni
Nothing sharpens you up more than having a clear objective. Except maybe losing money in real estate or nearly cutting your thumb off with the drop saw. Or touching wheels in the sprint. Heck, there’s probably some more, but having a clear objective does a pretty good job of it. For me, that objective is Keepers Tour 2015. To begin my preparation I spent a good six weeks at the Jan Ullrich school of winter conditioning. It was undoubtedly a good time but inevitably there came a moment when I poured another Kwak, slumped back into the sofa and slurred to myself “Maaate. You’ve gotta sharpen up!”
An old raft guiding buddy of mine used to attribute good days to a karmic reflection of what he termed “clean livin’”. Those happy, contented river days when everything runs smoothly were the universe’s way of saying thanks for being a good human. The clean livin’ ethic was both internal and external: Eat fresh fruit & veggies, drink plenty of water, breathe deeply and often. Treat others nicely, keep your temper in check, stay calm in a shitstorm and laugh at your own misfortune. It was all pretty lighthearted as far as ethics go – here one day, gone the next – but I always thought there was something in it.
So I put a bit of the clean livin’ ethic into sharpening up. I cut a lot of crap from my diet including processed sugar, white carbs and all alcohol. I resolved to Train Properly – especially when a 5am roller session was about as enticing as setting my teeth on fire. For the first time in forever I put together a nice long block of good, healthy work. Usually I’m one of the first to give in to temptation. You know the type – the after work beer, the Sunday night pizza, the choc-chip cookies in the lunchroom. But good has a way of breeding more good and I steadily became more and more invested in my V bank savings scheme. I wasn’t about to take backward steps just for a slice of cake at Nan’s birthday party. Merckx knows she won’t be next to me on The Kappelmuur in April.
The results have been just as you’d expect, Captain Obvious. Like the research paper that concluded that sword-swallowing is one of the world’s most dangerous occupations. On the upside I’ve lost weight and gained energy and strength on the bike. On the downside I’ve completely lost my tolerance for alcohol which is a completely unfamiliar problem. With less than a month to go before the rubber hits the stones the challenge now is to drive it all home. Many times in my life I’ve been satisfied with “pretty good”. Just when I get into the downhill slope of the bell curve I ease up in a cocktail of smug complacency and self doubt. What if I do everything right and still I fall short?
Let’s see this time eh? It’s Keepers Tour on the cobbles of France and Flanders. If I can’t sharpen up for an objective like that, stick me in the broomwagon now. I’ve seen the Welliminati kitted up and they look like they mean business. So tomorrow morning before the sunrise, after the intervals start to burn, I know where I am going. After all, this is what I came for.
@RobSandy
Sounds perfect. I had 10kg to lose in 11 weeks so a more radical (read unsustainable) approach was needed. After Keepers’ Tour I’ll be more relaxed but also keen to keep up some of the good habits. Cutting midweek drinking is a nice idea but one I struggle with esp. after a long day at work.
@ped
Sleep is totally underrated. The Scientists are still trying to understand the powers behind its magic. I heard an athlete recently talk about trying to out-sleep his rivals in order to get an edge.
Awesome photo. I’m betting on Sep for some results this spring.
@Harminator
I know what you mean, but I always found 1 drink leads to two…especially with wine.
A concession I make if I’m feeling weak is a whisky.
Also, two tips that have helped me lose weight.
1. Soup for lunch. Make sure it’s really hot, so it takes ages to eat. if it’s moderately healthy or home made it wont be very calorific but will keep you full.
2. Eggs for breakfast. Me and my son have regularly started having boiled eggs for breakfast. Takes roughly the same time to prepare as a bowl of cereal but has loads of protein and really fills you up. The size of bowl of cereal I have to eat to get me through the morning contains about 800+ calories. 2 boiled eggs and 2 slices of toast contain less than 350.
@Teocalli
Love. That. Movie. Always a favorite. Weird editing at the end though. No minimum drinking age back then, that’s for sure.
@tessar
Well, I hope the 38 year-old is appropriately proud of his “performance.” Must make him feel extra special.
@wiscot
FFS, if you look this happy up a hill while dropping the field, there’s something wrong.
Those knee-warmers are a rule violation by themselves, even without PED abuse!
@Chris
Most of us just assumed the camera was perched on top of Frank’s lofty seatpost.
VMH and I were just out of bed yesterday and she was complaining about being tired. I was dancing around, playing with the dogs and listening to music. She asked how I never feel tired in the morning and just wake up, no alarm, no snooze button.
“Clean living!” I told her. She laughed, since I’d had a few drinks the previous night. Life is good these days, so no reason not to be a happy fella. But, I’ve always just gotten up. It’s never going to be fun, so why bother hoping? Just get goin’ and make it happen.
@Ron
If you go through life expecting to be shafted you will never be disappointed when you are and you will always be happy and pleasantly surprised when you are not.
@Harminator
haha, that sounds just like the Istanbul traffic. It was bad enough before everyone had mobile phones, but now they have them and the police do nothing about it is like riding whilst every car drive is drunk. They just swerve all over the place and its a bloody death trap. Its also the case that traffic lights are optional when there are no cameras on them and the majority dont.
@kixsand
This is awesome. I still enjoy some alcohol, but know that it would be better but too. I can tell it does nothing healthy for my body.
@Harminator
I have heard the same things about sleep… Wish I followed the recommendation though. Recently I’ve gotten less sleep for the sake of working out. For my life is worth it.
Great stuff mate, I was at the KT a few years ago and enjoyed my short stay immensely, despite not touching a drop of the ever present Malteni, but the lads managed to get through my ration somehow. It will be a grand trip for sure, sadly I will be stick here in a northern Alberta sandbox. Enjoy !