Q - Eating breakfast before commuting

I'm curious about all these great life-changing claims that are
made for it.

It may not change your life, but it will make it more interesting.

--

_______________________ALL AMIGA IN MY MIND_______________________
------------------"Buddy Holly, the Texas Elvis"------------------
in.edu__________

I wish to thank each of you who took the time to reply to my question.
Your comments have helped ease my mind about this issue. I'm now one
step closer to making the decision whether or not to commute.

Cheers,
Harry

HarryB wrote:
Background: My wife and I purchased a tandem this fall and have done a
little (~400 miles) riding.

400mi is not necessarily "a little"; that's more than many people will
ever do in a lifetime.

I have so enjoyed the biking that I'm
considering commuting to work (about 20 miles round trip.) I'm 50

Good for you!

Question: Presently I eat a cold cereal breakfast before driving to
work. I'm wondering if it is "ok" to eat a breakfast just before
getting on the bike and riding 10 hilly miles. (I've heard that one

Only you would know what is best for you. Some people can't stand
riding after a meal; me, I get nauseous riding on an empty stomach.
Since you've put up many miles, you might already have some idea about
how you fare with/without a meal.

shouldn't exercise immediately after eating a meal, but maybe that is
an old wive's tale?) It would be possible for me to eat a breakfast

That's mostly a concern when swimming, for obvious reasons. A wonderful
aspect of cycling is that, no matter how exhausted you are, there's a
minimum speed that you can maintain (almost) indefinitely, so that you
never really end up "stranded" out there.

after arriving at work, but I'm concerned about not having the energy
to ride 10 miles without a breakfast. Since I would need to leave the
house at about 5:00am, it might make a difference in my decision to
commute if I would need to wait, let's say an hour, between eating and
riding.

My advice would be to give it a try. Pick a day off and make the ride
first thing after you get up. If it doesn't work for you, try a light
breakfast (maybe also a fruit, unless you're on an Atkins diet), or take
along one of those breakfast bars. Don't be afraid to experiment; just
make sure you allow some extra time for your ride in case things don't
go as you planned.

And the best of luck to you!


--
Frederic Briere *

= IS NO MO http://www.abacomsucks.com =

"Elisa Francesca Roselli"
wrote in message ...

Bruce Frech wrote:

And enjoy the commute. It will make wonderful changes to lots of things
in
your life.

What wonderful changes?

o It makes a complete, clean break between your work life and your home
life. I have found that if I take the bus home from work, I carry work home
with me in my head ("if only I had said XYZ at the intradivisional
meeting...") and right into the house. Ditto things that happened at home.
But you can't carry these thoughts in your brain as you bike. When I come
out of the parking garage of my building, the cars whizzing down Second Ave,
and there's taxis pulling out and buses pulling in, and panel trucks parked
illegally loading something. I have to focus, NOW, on traffic. If I'm still
feeling warm and logy from sitting before my computer, the cold air and rain
hitting my face is like someone splashing cold water on me -- wake up! This
clean break is good for your mental health. When thoughts of that
intradivisional meeting float back into your mind, a couple miles later, you
have perspective on them.

o It builds bicycling, and therefore exercise, right into your daily
routine. You don't make the decision to ride your bike twice a day. Rather,
riding your bike is what you do without having to decide. You don't look out
the window and think "cold", or "rain", or "dark" and then think, "oh, I'd
rather not bicycle". Instead, when you get dressed on that cold, rainy dark
morning, you pull on your warm tights and thermal jersey, and ride. Oddly,
you find that cold, dark, or rainy isn't such a terrible thing to ride
through after all. And you get a work out every day, without having to pay
for, or go to, a gym.

o You get to be outdoors everyday. This can be tremendously grounding. It's
also wonderful to be aware of the seasons as they change. Many of us cycling
commuters are celebrating that each and every day it gets just a little
lighter for the ride home. Here, the trees are full of fragrant blossoms,
and in certain neighborhoods, ornamental plums are very popular as
landscaping trees. You'll ride on certain streets, and your nose will be
filled with their scent.

Quite honestly, often the best part of my day is spent on my bike, riding to
or from the office.


--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato and .net for .com

Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm
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On Sun, 14 Mar 2004 15:18:54 GMT, "Claire Petersky"
wrote in message
xJ_4c.6241$J05.79906@attbi_s01:

Quite honestly, often the best part of my day is spent on my bike, riding to
or from the office.

Yes! Amen to all of that. It's only when you stop driving
weverywhere that you realise just how horrible driving is compared to
cycling. With cycling, the process itself is enjoyable. You're doing
something you want to do in time you would have wasted anyway just
getting to work!

My commute now includes a stretch on the train. I get to read books
with no small people clamouring for my attention! Great! And then I
ride the 20 miles home and arrive feeling tired, hungry, healthy,
happy and glad to be alive.

--
Guy
===
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

In article QZ04c.5284$zS4.47882@attbi_s51, "Peter Cole"
writes:


I really got a kick out of this. I don't know how old you are, Mike, but I
suspect things might change as you get older. I'm 48 and I'm riding
between
250 and 300 miles per week with the 25 year old racer dudes in my area. I
can do it, but I absolutely MUST have fuel.

Being an old fart is a state of mind.


You said it. Most days I don't feel older. Only now it takes me about 16 miles
to warm up.

To get back to food. I've done it both ways. Just don't gorge and you will be
fine. A little cold cereal with a banana and soy milk or yogurt keeps the
stomach company. "Little" is the operative word. I go with two thirds cup of
wheat bran with one third cup of soy milk and the banana. Why third cup? It is
an old protein measuring scoop. Some days I throw in a few walnuts or dried
cranberries for variety.

I've read advice to not eat before exercise as a weight reducing trick. Also
they usually recommend eating within an hour or so after exercise for best
benefit. I met one rider who takes only protein smoothies on his days off.
For longer rides after you have used up last nights meal you need carbs to keep
your noggin working.

Elisa Francesca Roselli wrote:

curious about all these great life-changing claims that are made for it cycling to work.

1. No worry about bus being early or late. You can pretty well commute
to work within a given time each day at a pace of your choice.

2. Fresh air.

3. Passing friendly people and other cyclists offering and
reciprocating daily greetings.

4. Found objects. Most cyclst find interesting objeccts in their daily
commute. Some for the taking and some for observing.

5. Bus transfer doesn't expire when you are on your bike. You can stop
and goes as you plase. Independence.

6. Exercise is good and important for us at all ages but particularly
when we get older and can sometimes be less physically active. Cycling
helps.

7. Buses are noisy. Bicycles are not.

8. Cycling saves money. A 20 - 30 minute bus ride is 2 dollars

9. You get to pick your route and scenery.

10. When you have cycle commuted to work, you are ready with
fresh energy to tackle the day with an enthusiasm that isn't quite
the same if you drive or use public transportation. If you observe
drivers and those that use public transportation, they just don't have
that same look of enthusiasm that a cyclist has.

On Sun, 11 Apr 2004 05:02:23 GMT, occupant
curious about all these great life-changing claims that are made for it cycling to work.

1. No worry about bus being early or late. You can pretty well commute
to work within a given time each day at a pace of your choice.



all true. it is now faster for me bike to work then take the bus. took a bit but
now it saves me time. my only complaint is th bus is handy for reading time.

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

Claire Petersky wrote:
Bicycle commuting is the greatest -- I hope you really enjoy it as much as I
do.

You said it! I could not agree more. My favorite part of bike commuting
is the ruby slippers it gives me. I've been doing 50 miles with 3000 feet
on the way to work, which is ten level miles as the crow flies. When it's
time to leave work, I get on the bike, I blink, and a moment later I'm
home -- with no recollection of the return trip.

Doug