Mama Got A New Toy!

I am not a bicycle person in 2020. In the 80's? Heck yes! I was always on my bike. But there is not one bit of me that wants to pretend I'm anything like a car and ride a bicycle on the road. And I don't want to die. 

I'm a runner. I love running. I've been doing it steadily for almost 11 years. Then the shit show of 2020 happened. All of my races were cancelled. And it got sooooo damn hot. I was running all the time at home, and things were looking good. Then the sun turned on and I paused for a short bit. Before I could resume I found myself with some crazy medical mystery that sent me to the Emergency Room and scared to resume running for fear.... that I would die. 

The day before the ER visit I had an impulse purchase that would take a month to get to me. That was such a wait!! Too hot to run, too nervous to get far away from my home alone, too filled with a desire to exercise and feel healthy despite all that is going on in the world right now... and this led to me getting a bike?? Well, sort of!

Now I can safely exercise in my home. I won't be hit by cars. I don't have to worry about falling over if I get dizzy from Meniere's Disease hitting me at the wrong time. I won't melt by running on the surface of the sun! For a week now I have been a very dedicated cyclist... in the downstairs area of my house!

I am now the proud owner of the NordicTrack Commercial S22i Studio Cycle!! She's so beautiful. I love her.

It was 5pm last Sunday that she was finally here. This was quite the shipping processes. So freaking slow. But once she arrived at my driveway I was outside welcoming her, and the delivery boys, with open arms. My mom came over to help me with the whole unboxing/assembly process.  This was not a lightweight thing. Hundreds of pounds. It took 2 big boys to get it to my step, and my mom and I were creative enough to get it inside and downstairs, with the help of a curious 4 year old, of course.

Assembly was simple, but time consuming. Not much to do, but screwing everything in took a long time. With the assistance of the 4 year old near the end, I had it all together that night! The unplanned pedal to the inner knee while setting up my profile ended our evening with the bike. I have a pretty little cut and bruise to show for that.

 I've had many questions, so here's the scoop on what I am doing and what I can do with this fun toy!

• I have made my own courses to ride. It is basically like plotting a route on Google maps. Then I hop on for a ride and get to see street view photos along the way, as well as aerial shots.
• Something so cool.... it does the incline all by itself! If I have a hill on my route it automatically adjusts to simulate what I'm riding on.
• Ooh, there is a built in fan that I am so in love with.
• I'm doing a "Back to School" series where every day I ride through various university campuses in the US. This is a silent one with the photos showing where I am.
• There is a tray below the big screen perfect for holding my phone AND my iPad. So on these quiet campus rides I have been watching different things on my iPad for extra entertainment.
  
  
  
• I am working on my cardio while singing... meaning Yes, I have been watching AND performing Hamilton while on the bike. I sing when I run, too.
• I LOVE riding with a trainer. I'm doing a beginner series on Maui. The trainer talks to you the whole time, with riding tips, Hawaii info, just standard conversation. You hear nature and see it all "live". This one is full video the entire time, not still photos like the University series is. I LOVE it!! We are doing interval work, with the resistance and incline all adjusting on its own.
  
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• Yet to tackle - live rides done in real time with trainers. I have to make sure to look ahead to put it on my schedule so I can join in. That sounds so fun!
• There are studio sessions with trainers as well, some even incorporate exercise off of the bike.
• That reminds me! This came with 2 weights that have a set spot on the bike, so you can use them during some of the workouts.
• Below the weights are 2 holders for water bottles. 

It seems the possibilities with this and iFit are endless. I'm so excited to keep going and finding more things to do!

Why NordicTrack versus Peloton? Well, all of the above. I love making my own rides, and I can do it anywhere in the world. I've done the Bahamas, South Africa and Florida so far. The Las Vegas strip is on my schedule, too! Another big selling point for me, perhaps the biggest, is the shoes. The Peloton we looked at required buying those shoes that clip in. Um, no. Not for me. 

I am so dang happy with this purchase. I've ridden over 80 miles already. Every day I have done 2 rides, except one where I did 1 ride because of the next thing we will discuss. But then I did 3 rides in one day after the next thing we will discuss.

My butt. It was dying. I've never been so aware of bones in my butt area until I started riding this bike! I immediately ordered a gel seat cover AND 2 different styles of padded butt shorts. What a life saver! I've got 2 more coming of my favorite style. And Shawn surprised me by ordering a seat all the women in the facebook group say they really loved for a more comfortable ride. It isn't swapped out yet, but already all of the padding is helping out a ton.

Am I done running? Hell no!! Am I skipping running while it is 1,000 degrees outside? Yes. But now I can at least exercise at home before work without worrying about childcare, and I can easily pop down and do it anytime if I don't have someone here to watch the busy little girl in this house. If anything, maybe this will help my running! Those races on the calendar didn't disappear after all, they are just delayed until 2021 (knock on wood).

So that's what's going on with me. I'm sure I left stuff out. It's pretty darn awesome, but now my laundry is getting full a lot faster with these multiple rides per day. I haven't worn socks since June and now they are filling my laundry basket!