Fat? Forget Exercise

Trust me: The secret to losing weight is eating less. You can bike relatively hard for two hours every day and not lose an ounce if you compensate for the extra exertion by eating more. I am the living proof of it.

I see people laboring by on their 30-minute jogs, thinking they're going to lose weight as a result.

They aren't.

Hey, people: You want to lose weight? Eat less. And I don't mean diet. I mean EAT LESS ALWAYS. Don't eat lunch, or at least not more than an apple. Don't take a large portion at dinner, and certainly don't take seconds. Do have a little Ben and Jerry's Coffee Heathbar Crunch every night--BUT NOT THE WHOLE PINT, YOU KNUCKLEHEAD!

And forget the once a day, 30-minute jog. It'll just wreck your knees. Walk more, eat less, jog not at all. You'll be thinner, healthier, and happier.

Now if I could practice what I preach. Actually, I do, right up until evening, when I start snacking, and then I snack all night. And I mean all night. I don't sleep. All I do is snack, dusk to dawn. Cases of Fritos. Dozens of Krispy Kremes. Gallons of ice cream.

At least that's how it seems.

Riding Suits

I wonder if people who wear matching biking outfits (stretchy tops and bottoms with bright colors and a snappy tour-de-france look) also wear matching baseball uniforms (say, pretend NY Yankees outfits) when they play softball. Everybody wears the biking suits, so no one notices how silly they look.

Baskets, Again

Although I took several rides with the front baskets fully loaded (tent, sleeping bag, air mattress), and it wasn't too bad, I decided to put the front racks and panniers on. I already own them, the bike is designed to take front racks, the panniers are huge, and it will probably will handle better with the center of gravity near the axle. Plus, the front top rack was jury rigged a bit to support the weight of the baskets, and that seems like a bad idea. And I found that I never used the front basket in daily life. I'll still use the rear basket for the trip (although with the huge front panniers, there's not much to put in it).