Juicing Preparation and Mountain Biking

So, I decided rather than just jump into juicing, I would experiment with different recipes for a few days and then do a full detox starting Jan.2.  The first two days, I drank nothing but my own home made juices with a sensible (vegetarian) dinner.  The third day I went on a decent bike ride of ~18 miles/~2000+ft, and was a bit worried about how my strength/energy would hold up during a decent ride. I packed two bottles (one w/apple & pear juice, another w/water) and off I went.  To make a long story short, my energy and strength seemed to be no different than any other ride.  The big test will be when I am on the detox and get in a 30+ mile ride with 4-5k of climbing.

*My recipes used thus far:
Morning 'Green' Glory
1 cucumber
3 kale leaves
1 handful spinach
3 celery stalks
1 large apple
1 lime
1 mandarin
Pretty darn good...my first ever concoction

Sweet Beet Treat:
1 pear
1 beat (w/stalks and leaves)
2 mandarins
1 cup mixed blue/strawberries
Dark red and delicious!

Orange Crush:
1 large orange
2 mandarins
3 carrots
1 mini lemon (or half regular sized)
1 apple
Yummy!

Pineapple Citrus 'Punch'
1/2 pinapple
1 lg orange
3 mandarins
1 lemon
1 lime
3/4 thumb of ginger
This made a lot of juice...and good thing as it is De-licious!

Veggie Experiment:
2 kale leafs
handful spinach
2 celery stalks
three thin carrots
3 tomatoes
1 lime
When mixed, it turns and earthy brown.  Taste is earthy, but I like the kick the lime adds.

*All recipes I have found on-line and then altered slightly based on what I had in the fridge. ;)

Juicing!

The New Juicer

In order to improve my cycling performance I have turned to Juicing. Steroids/PED's you ask? Nope, can't afford that. I am talking fruit and vegetable juice! Much cheaper than the Barry Bonds/Lance Armstrong program I am sure (but sadly, not by much, or so it seems). This type of Juicing should help me loose weight, improve performance and become a heck of a lot healthier.
Since my 20's, whenever I realized my daily diet was off-track, I did a juice detox; usual 3 days, then back to eating sensibly.  When I was in my 20's I ran my first Marathon at ~5'8", ~153 lbs.  Got as low as 149 during triathlon training (also a vegetarian at the time) but after a couple knee surgeries I was comfortable and in-shape at ~165 as a regular exerciser.  Well, let's fast-forward 15 years.  Married, two kids nagging injuries and the constant consumption of dark beer, racks of ribs and a the development of an eat-all-you-can philosophy, I have seen my normal daily weight fluctuate from ~177 to now ~185 (once peaked at 195 after a two torn calf muscles).  Time to get serious about getting into shape.  It is frustrating going on long bike rides and actually feeling my stomach slowing me down.  Plus, I am not a bad climber in my 180's...imagine how much better I will be in my 160's!?!

My First Juice

So as I was getting geared up to detox, I came across this thread on MTBR about juicing. Amazing timing really. I then watched the movie Sick, Fat, and Nearly Dead and it has inspired me to not just go beyond a 3 day detox, but why not shoot for 5 days? or even 10?  After all, those guys did 60! 
So, I picked up a juicer and fortunately my friend Melissa is up for a juicing challenge (edit, she will be blending), so here we go!
The Plan.

Experiment with juices between the 27th - the 31st.  Then come January 1st  (so cliche' but oh-well) I will start the juicing.  After juicing, I will continue with a vegetarian diet for 30 days and then a month of no red meat...all the while, juicing once or twice a day.  The goal? Drop 20 lbs over the next 4 months while at the same time becoming a lean, mean mountain biking machine!

Edit (after Laura's post):  This wonderful concoction (called "Morning Green Glory" was made from:
4 medium kale leaves (w/stalks)
1 handful of spinach
3 celery stalks
1 avocado (peeled)
1 fuji apple
1 very small lemon (unpeeled)
I must say, it was pretty good.  Might add another 1/2 apple next time, but it made a lot of juice and I drank it all and am looking forward to more combos.

Also, for full disclosure, here is a pic of my last meal before juicing  ;-)

FWIW the cake was split four ways so don't you judge me!

The Whole Enchilada--Auburn Style

Was suppose to ride Annadel with the good guys at the Bicycle Emporium, but unfortunately plans fell through.  It was probably for the best as those guys are all faster than me and I was sick (head cold) which means I am slower, with less energy and strength that normal (and normal is not so great). so I was on my own, yet determined to ride, so why not ride 'The Whole Enchilada'! In Auburn, this means riding from the Confluence up to and around FHDL (Foresthill Divide Loop) and back (on several different trail systems).
My route started on Flood Rd. and I rode these trails in this order: Flood--Stagecoach--Clementine--Connector--FHDL--Connector--Fuel Break--Culvert--Confluence--Stagecoach--back to Car.
My goal for this ride was to only pedal enough to not fall over thus saving everything for the ~5000' of climbing (see Strava to the right). Some of the trails were a tad moist and naturally steep, so I ended up off the bike a handful of times (only for a few moments) due to loosing traction, but what-evah! In spite of blowing snot the entire ride I was able to press on and muscle up the Stagecoach climb at the end for a slow, but strong finish.
A good day.

*This 2nd ride with the Niner Rigid Fork was a real test and it performed wonderfully.  In fact, other than being tired, I feel surprisingly good after the ride.  I honestly might have more elevation gain during the last three months in Auburn that the previous seven months in NC.

The lone pic taken near the start of the ride, on the Flood Trail.

I Am Hard! First Ride With Niner Carbon Fork/Review

TMI? Maybe, but I am pretty excited after my first ride with the new Niner carbon fork.  Hit a night ride led by Travis of 'Bicycle Emporium' here in Auburn.  Forgot my phone, so no Strava, but the ride was ~14 wet, muddy miles with many sections of trail where one moment of lost concentration means tumbling down, down, down...and likely being helicoptered out (if you survive, that is). I set my front tire at 20psi and realized that with my riding style (slow, methodical) I could go even lower.  I also learned that I cannot just grip tight and 'hit' obstacles like I could with suspension.  The front wheel is more likely to jettison left or right.  More focus on the trail is needed and using the arms more as suspension is a must.  I can tell with a few more rides, this will become natural.  I also realized my stem needs to drop ~10mm.  I figured this might be the case when I set it up, but I would rather start out with the steer tube too long than too short. With Niners short headtube (~80mm) the short steer tube may make it hard to resell the fork, but I don't think that is going to happen. I may switch the REBA back on for certain occasions or just use it as a backup for the SIR 9, but I am keeping the Niner fork.

The bike was noticeably lighter when I lifted it onto the rack and toward the end of the ride, it raced up the 2 mile Stagecoach climb with much more ease than before. When back at the shop, after a beer or two we weighed this bad boy and it came in at 19.9lbs. The only item on the bike not normally there was the spare tube (usually carried in a pack or pocket), so we figure under 19.5 lbs at normal riding weight, but whatever, it is light and I am not.  Looking forward to more rides on this bad boy to lighten myself a bit.
Good Times.

You Are Not Hard, Unless You're Rigid!

Well I guess I am hard.  And it did not take porn or a little blue pill, but rather a carbon Niner fork. First 'real' ride will be Thursday night (12/6).  Since I installed this bad boy myself, I am hoping I tightened everything enough (but not too much) and it stays together as I prefer not to eat teeth at any point during the ride.
Went with a Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.35 up front with ~19 psi to help take the edge off.  I will give a ride report in the near future.
Dang, I need to get this bad boy on a scale.

Great Day to Ride!

So it is storming outside. I am not missing a ride because of some silly wind and rain. Oh, but I do not want to be ostracized by the mtb community who surely are policing the trails to capture any deviant wet-trail riders, so I dust off the road bike and off I go.  Damn! Not even a mile away and a mechanical!  Got something metal stuck in my rear brake. Off the bike, take off pad, clean it up and reinstall.  Damn, now the wheel is rubbing. Sucks fixing a mechanical during a ride.  Sucks even more when it is pouring rain.  Screw it, I will just get a better workout.
Decide to use the rear brake sparingly (in the pouring rain) and stay close to home just in case.  Ended up with 40 miles (See Strava to the right for the map/stats, though it is just off) while never venturing more than maybe 2 miles (as the crow flies) from my house.  Good ride, good hills, good workout, good times!

 And FWIW I ran into four mountain bikers who said the trails were great.  Next time screw the trail police, I am riding trails damn-it!!!

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HELP!  Trying to choose a name for this bike.  I do like Acronyms, so the two leaders are TIT (Titanium is Tremendous) or DEB (Do Everything Bike).  Any others?  Let me know.