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More Time To Get Fit - 2025

stangmx13 said:
The shirt is from one of my fav YouTubers, a powerhouse pro MTB couple Syd and Macky. They are one of the reasons y I bought a MTB.

Syd and Macky

www.sydandmacky.com www.sydandmacky.com
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They are one of the reasons I picked the Shafer as my gravel bike. They are fucking awesome people. And for Syd to be the second woman ever to receive a Marji Gesick buckle is flat out bonkers (the first woman finished just a few minutes before her, also in the 2025 race). They live in Los Alamos New Mexico not very far from where I grew up. In high school I was a ski instructor at their local ski area, Pajarito and I used to spend a fair bit of time in there town. Much of the stuff they show in their northern New Mexico videos I have been to.
 
Syd’s Marji vid is pretty awesome. We are Patron members of theirs and watch everything they publish.


I’ll be racing Whiskey50 next year and I hope they are there. Sadly I’m still a little too slow for Pro category and they’d race on a diff day.
 
Ridley said:
They are one of the reasons I picked the Shafer as my gravel bike. They are fucking awesome people. And for Syd to be the second woman ever to receive a Marji Gesick buckle is flat out bonkers (the first woman finished just a few minutes before her, also in the 2025 race). They live in Los Alamos New Mexico not very far from where I grew up. In high school I was a ski instructor at their local ski area, Pajarito and I used to spend a fair bit of time in there town. Much of the stuff they show in their northern New Mexico videos I have been to.
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I worked in Los Alamos for a while. Interesting town. :thumbup
 
stangmx13 said:
Everyone meet at Rock Cobbler 😬
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does not appear to be edible cobbler…. hard pass.

in other news, the bike build is coming along. i’m gonna 😭 cry. this is the second time i had a bike built for me. the first was a peugeot (sp?) frame and three speeds, which made six year old me the envy of the neighborhood.
4748695512052570631.jpeg
2082546491336288837.jpeg
 
Ridley said:
You lived in Abiquiu, not terribly far.

Somehow, someway, I need to meet you…fellow New Mexican.
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Super down to show you (and Robert +1) the trails around UCSC and Wilder Ranch State park. Most weekend would work if you can make it happen. It might be a little soggy for a while..
 
Climber said:
Looks great, TWT!
Interesting location for the holder, on the front.
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i think it’s so that, if i need to pack anything, i put a little more weight over the front wheel plus it can act as a fender if it rains.

today’s exercise was rowing for 25 minutes. i am fighting off some sort of sinus infection. it has me tired.
 
If you have access to a steam room that is the best answer to a sinus infection, breathing thorugh the nose.
If not, a personal steamer can also have effect.

I found that amoxicillian doesn't work much better than heat to treat sinus infections, especially after the 3rd or 4th time.
 
thank you! i’ll try that. the entire left side of my head is swollen and tender - neck, scalp, cheek.
 
stangmx13 said:
You get Bakersfield BBQ dinner included with the Cobbler entry, and some surprise free gift. My first year the gift was a shovel lol. Last year it was a cool shop light that I use around the house.
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i like food! :laughing

it’s a sunny day here. gonna go for a wee pedal soon. will pass the 50 mile mark.

anyone got recommendations for a good cyclometer? i want to put one on the new bike.
 
mikev said:
Garmin Edge 1050 but it's hella expensive

Coros Dura cheaper option
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holy guacamole that’s fancy. a little too rich for my blood. i’m looking to track miles and possibly cadence and watts.
 
two wheel tramp said:
holy guacamole that’s fancy. a little too rich for my blood. i’m looking to track miles and possibly cadence and watts.
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Maybe try using the free version of Strava for a while? It's how I tracked everything before I got my Garmin watch. It kept me interested and informed well enough when things were new :)
 
Ahh, welcome to the data/metrics rabbit hole.

A phone handlebar mount and a cycling app is a good entry point. The Coros Dura is mid-range. The Garmin Edge 840, 850, or 10-series are high end. I don't recommend the cheaper Garmin 5-series because the lack of touchscreen is infuriating with the detailed Garmin UI.

Start recording activities to a cycling platform w your watch. Most would use Strava. RideWithGPS is another good free choice. Make sure to authorize Health/HR permissions so you also record HR.

You'll probably also want to watch metrics on your phone while riding & recording with your watch. This will prob require you to start recording with your phone too. Just make sure you don't double-upload. I have too many friends that record and upload to Strava with both their watch and their phone and screw up all their totals. Discard the phone one because it won't have HR.

For cadence, you’ll need a Bluetooth cadence sensor. Bluetooth will allow it to connect to your watch/phone or a cycling computer.
https://a.co/d/fUmrCkD
https://a.co/d/ekllQOH - This includes a speed sensor, which is unnecessary for road riding but good for MTB. The cadence alone from Garmin is the same price

For watts, you’ll need a powermeter solution which will be >$500 and may require cycling shoes. Powermeter pedals are the easiest option, but def require shoes. A crank powermeter is the next best option that could be used with flat pedals - but it's new bike parts that can present fitment challenges for diff bikes.

If/when you buy a cycling computer, you'll record data only with that. You could download another app to broadcast your AppleWatch HR to the computer. Or you could use a diff heartrate monitor (HRM). Chest strap HRMs provide the best data, far better than any watch. Bicep straps are also good, getting more common, and can be more comfortable.
 
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stangmx13 said:
Ahh, welcome to the data/metrics rabbit hole.

A phone handlebar mount and a cycling app is a good entry point. The Coros Dura is mid-range. The Garmin Edge 840, 850, or 10-series are high end. I don't recommend the cheaper Garmin 5-series because the lack of touchscreen is infuriating with the detailed Garmin UI.

Start recording activities to a cycling platform w your watch. Most would use Strava. RideWithGPS is another good free choice. Make sure to authorize Health/HR permissions so you also record HR.

You'll probably also want to watch metrics on your phone while riding & recording with your watch. This will prob require you to start recording with your phone too. Just make sure you don't double-upload. I have too many friends that record and upload to Strava with both their watch and their phone and screw up all their totals. Discard the phone one because it won't have HR.

For cadence, you’ll need a Bluetooth cadence sensor. Bluetooth will allow it to connect to your watch/phone or a cycling computer.
https://a.co/d/fUmrCkD
https://a.co/d/ekllQOH - This includes a speed sensor, which is unnecessary for road riding but good for MTB. The cadence alone is the same price

For watts, you’ll need a powermeter solution which will be >$500 and may require cycling shoes. Powermeter pedals are the easiest option, but def require shoes. A crank powermeter is the next best option that could be used with flat pedals - but it's new bike parts that can present fitment challenges for diff bikes.

If/when you buy a cycling computer, you'll record data only with that. You could download another app to broadcast your AppleWatch HR to the computer. Or you could use a diff heartrate monitor (HRM). Chest strap HRMs provide the best data, far better than any watch. Bicep straps are also good, getting more common, and can be more comfortable.
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i think i’ll skip the watts for now. :laughing

the Bluetooth cadence meter looks good and is inexpensive. i’ll get a good phone mount and use my apple watch, which does track mileage. thank you!

(p.s. thanks for being such a data nerd and giving me this info!)

edit: 6.99 miles on today’s ride. at 53.66 for the year. might go on a shorty tomorrow morning to make it 20 miles for the week.

saturday: 24 minutes rowing, 3000m, 11 minute pedal to surpass the 20 miles for the week mark, plus walking.

today? rest day but somehow clocked 85 minutes of exercise moto riding and walking around.
 
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So been about 1.5 weeks of adding the treadmill back into my routine and I must say feeling better and for some unknown reason ankle/ligament cramps seem to have gone away which makes me happy. Still stuck on old routine as I haven't found a cross fit style routine I am happy with but also haven't been able to devote a lot of time to research but will try to get it taken care of soon. I did a routine a lot of years ago that I liked I think it was in Men's Health and it was called the Spartacus workout will need to see if I can find that again.

So I am doing a 30 minute treadmill set with about 5 of that being warm up, at this moment 5 minutes of light jog which I increase by one minute each session, and the rest is fast walk at 3.3 on the treadmill whatever speed that winds up being who knows. last night that got me to about 1.9 miles of distance traveled per the machine for 30 minutes. VBeen thinking on this and when I hit the 15 minute jog interval I think i will cap it there and start upping the speed for a bit and then once I get to an intermediate pace will start upping time again. Shooting for 5 minute warm up then 25 minute fast pace jog/run then cool down which is usually about 5 minutes.

Starting to think backup muscles are slowing down my bench press gains so think I might need to start focusing on my triceps and shoulders more so I did hit them fairly hard last night and used higher weights than normal but think with everything besides my bench I have been complacent and need to really push myself more and track weights so I don't slip back into doing the same old weights and reps.

haven't lost any weight really but shirts do feel looser but who knows. end of the year dieting is probably not going to work out well for me with Turkey day and Tamale eve happening soon plus my daughter that is living in Ohio will be down for most of December so that means a lot of sushi will be eaten in December as she is my sushi buddy. watch out AYCE sushi as we will make you pay in December. :ROFLMAO:
 
You may not notice a difference on the scale if you build muscle as you lose fat, but it sounds like you're starting to see a difference in your body composition (looser clothes, feeling better in general) which is more important anyway. I will look online for this Spartacus workout you mentioned, I may have to give it a try sometime 💪

Keep it up! Sounds like you're doing great
 
Sharxfan said:
Starting to think backup muscles are slowing down my bench press gains so think I might need to start focusing on my triceps and shoulders more so I did hit them fairly hard last night and used higher weights than normal but think with everything besides my bench I have been complacent and need to really push myself more and track weights so I don't slip back into doing the same old weights and reps.

haven't lost any weight really but shirts do feel looser but who knows. end of the year dieting is probably not going to work out well for me with Turkey day and Tamale eve happening soon plus my daughter that is living in Ohio will be down for most of December so that means a lot of sushi will be eaten in December as she is my sushi buddy. watch out AYCE sushi as we will make you pay in December. :ROFLMAO:
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Is this all flat bench? I moved back to less FB and more incline bench (dumbbells). In a few workouts, I've picked up FB strength with better shoulder stability (I think).

On your scale stuff: IMO and IME, Kawakana is spot on: scale don't tell the tale. Pictures do. Take some of those intermittently (for yourself). You'll look back in 6 months and realize your memory of you looking better then will be incorrect many times...FWIW.
 
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