Naked bike ride: Boulder, Co

Not much needed to be said about this post:

Chronic Fatigue part 4

It’s been a while since I’ve updated the blog with regards to my battle with chronic fatigue.  It’s been nearly 3 months since my diagnosis, which included confirmation via specific blood tests that looked for antibodies of the Epstein Barr virus and the Cytomaglo Virus, both of which I tested positive for. And, while the general fatigue continues, I’m starting to notice that my recovery from working out is starting to improve some.

 

I’ve learned that CFS affects people differently and the best way I can describe it for me is the feeling of being stuffed in a very small box with the loudest hard rock metal music that you can’t stand blaring at you for hours.  The feeling is that I just want to escape.  This is when the chronic fatigue is at its worst.  So for me, it’s not so much the fatigue rather the inability to absorb life’s little challenges that’s been challenging -- although some morning it was painful crawling out of bed and some afternoons I just wanted to crawl under my desk and go to sleep.

 

I’ve kept up with my medication, 8 weeks of a low-grade antibiotic, vitamins and clean eating – limited sugars, coffee and things that feed Candida.  I also started napping frequently and my afternoon cat naps really, truly helped a lot.  It took me a couple of weeks to get used to them and now I can’t live without them, which can pose a problem when having to deal with real life.

 

I also discovered that the main trigger of fatigue for me is dehydration.  Meaning that I have to be ultra-sensitive to make sure I don’t dehydrate too much else it will take me days to recover.  Dehydration, I’ve found, leads to other things and my body just suffers as a result.  So, I’m always drinking water and always looking for ways to keep myself over-hydrated.

 

CFS has been challenging for me, not just physically, but also emotionally.  For an athlete who is used to going and achieving, it’s hard not to have motivation and energy to do one tenth of what I used to do.  CFS has also impacted my work and my relationships.  I don’t want to blame this all on CFS, but in less than a month I lost my job and my girlfriend broke up with me.  Yeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh CFS!!!

 

The last thing I’ll share today is that apparently the majority of people have these viruses in their bodies.  These viruses live dormant in and around our livers and only come out when we are immune suppressed.  Suppression of our immune system is caused, in my case, by a lot of emotional stress and physical challenges.  The basic things that your grandparents told you…eat well, sleep well, be wholesome with your approach to life is very true.

 

Thanks for reading,

 

Kam

 

 

 

And the first ride...is a group ride.

IBR in Boulder - Island Boy Racing

Friday morning, left Roger's casa at about 8 to meet Kurt at Amante in north Boulder by 8:45. The man has not changed a bit...still looks the same and he's still wired up like he's stuck his tongue in the outlet.



I was nicely reminded how much of a cycling town this place is as I saw dozens of cyclist riding around. Once in a while you'd see a pro jersey, such as the Slipstream team and what not. This is the place to be and ride if you love cycling!

Larry (my friend and old riding partner) and one of Kurt's friends (Jen) met us at Amante and we rolled up to the Bus Stop to meet up with a group of triathletes, including Matt Reed (US champion and Olympic hopeful, his wife Kelly and a contingent of Aussie female triathletes who were all hammerheads!



We were supposed to ride a semi flat route called Fruit Loops but ended up climbing up and over Old Stage (one of the steeper hills in Boulder and the major climb of the Boulder Peak triathlon, also known as the hill where Davis Phiney used to climb and do sprints on).

The tri girls soon pulled away...I think perhaps some sort of the female competitive thing...and I found myself climbing with Larry and Matt with Jen a sizable distance behind us.

At the top of the hill, Larry and I looped back and picked Jen up while Matt continued down the back side of the hill. By the time Larry, Jen and I made it to the bottom of the descent, the group including the girls and Luoni, had already taken off. So we rode up left hand canyon (about a 7 mile gradual climb) to the town of Jamestown, turned around and came back down.


We chose a different route and climbed up Lee Hill, another steep but shorter hill, and descended back towards Amante on the other side of the mountain.

Needless to say, the scenery was amazing...very much like riding in a post card. This is a picture of Jen riding in front of her favorite view, including a ranch house and 4 horses (that are not in the picture.)


And, one of Larry and me on the same spot.


Larry, Jen and I had coffee and chai at the Spruce Cafe, then I headed off to Vecchio's bike shot to say hi to Peter (owner) and buy a tire. It was good to see Pete and we talked a bit about riding in Boulder versus San Diego, the war, military, etc.

I shot an email to Kurt telling him what we did. We may hook up later tonight or he may come to "my" outing -- group of us are meeting at 5 pm on Saturday at a local park with food and games and what not.

It feels really good to be here!

First day in Boulder -- hike and eat!

IBR in Boulder - Island Boy Racing

Friday was consumed by getting re-acclimated to Boulder. A short run and followed by a hike with my buddy Roger and his dog Thunder in the mountains was just what the doctor ordered. The air, in addition to being thin like MJ's receding hairline, is also very clean (unlike MJ) and it feels good to fill the lungs with it. Coming out of spring, everything is super deep green and the colors magically match against the deep blue sky. Boulder's been unusually windy this spring and summer, which makes riding a bit challenging but keeps the air nice and clean.



Had a low-key dinner party at night at Roger's house with good friends Larry and Charlie, put the bike together and got ready to meet Luoni in the morning for a cruise ride.

What's it like to ride in Boulder, Co.

IBR in Boulder - Island Boy Racing

Not that you should care but I thought I'd share riding news from Boulder! I'm hoping to hook up with Kurt Luoni this weekend but he's got some 1/2 Ironman tri in a couple of weeks and says he needs to do 3-4 20min efforts instead of ride tempo endurance with me and my friends. cool!

My buddy Roger is outfitted nicely with the IBR kit I got for him...thank you Pedro and we'll be riding in style on Friday and Saturday. I'm sure we'll get a lot of looks cuz nobody's seen our kits here.

Sat across Ted Nuegent yesterday at the commuter airport. He was flying out to Bakersfield for a show after playing at the House of Blues for the troops in San Diego on Tuesday night. Very interesting, articulate man who's deeply passionate about the American way of life, hunting, our troops and the benefits of animal protein. I didn't want to impose too much on his good nature to ask for a picture. But, he did get a chuckle when I shared with him that the TSA geniuses thought he's George Thorogood. Doh!

Okay, it's super windy here in Boulder so no riding today, but will put in a hike through the local trails.

Saturday is the epic ride from Boulder to Lyons, up Peak to Peak Hwy. to Ward, and back down to Boulder via James Town....about 4-5 hours and 6,000+ ft of climbing up to just under 11,000 feet in elevation at the highest. anybody got extra oxygen?

Stay tuned for photos and much more!

Out.