Fun & Fitness over 50

We've been having some stellar weather lately here in the north east. At least for cycling. Cool but not cold, warm but not too hot, yet! Light breezes but not windy. It doesn't get much better around here.

I've been having some great short rides. Great but not epic. Just about an hour. Still trying to build up my base and working out the "kinks". Both in the machinery (bike) and the machinery (body).

My plan is to ride when it's nice and do a stat bike workout at the gym when it's not so nice. That way I'll be more consistent. I also want to cautiously get back into some upper body strength building when I'm done with my course of PT.

I'm still doing physical therapy for my right shoulder and arm pain. I may have only one more session because I'm doing so well. I only have occasionally a little tweak in the top of my shoulder which I have had for years and sometimes I still get tingling in my thumb and index finger but it instantly goes away if I correct my posture. I'm wondering if the neck traction was too aggressive today because my neck is a little stiff and sore.

I also got these 2 books by Rick Olderman from the "Fixing You" series. His thing is making you aware of your own anatomy and how it's supposed to be positioned and moving and paying attention to your posture and how you move. You do a self-assessment or enlist the help of a physical therapist to determine what your problem is, e.g. dropped shoulder blades, and then prescribes various exercises to correct it. But a big thing is just self awareness. It's already made a difference with me. You just think about what you're doing more, especially if you're have some pain while you're doing it.

So yesterday's ride was just over an hour. It was a little on the cool side so I wore sleeves and tights. Again, I just rode for enjoyment, sometimes hard, sometimes resting. And I had virtually no neck or shoulder pain! I also didn't have any discomfort in my left leg which I was worried about. Just behind the knee and my achilles tendon were feeling off, I hesitate to say "painful", and so that's why I'm taking it easy and trying to be conscious of those areas. Making sure I'm warmed up and backing off if there's a hint of a problem.

Today, as I said, I had PT so ... no ride.

I did mow the lawn though! :-)