I got back on the bike today for the first time since Wednesday evening and for only the second time this month. That’s not typical for July and no, the weather doesn’t get all the blame this time. I lost Thursday and Friday to a medical procedure that was long overdue. I turned 59 in June and should have had my first colonoscopy a decade ago. I finally got the job done yesterday. And it went well. It’s true what they say: the preparation is worse than the procedure itself. I spent most of Thursday in bed or in the bathroom, and by the time I had a meal on Friday afternoon I had gone almost 48 hours without eating. In that span I lost 6 pounds! A lot of that was just water, for sure, but not all of it. It takes more than a few calories to keep me going even when I’m not doing anything athletic, so I burned off a little fat.
As I recover from the dehydration that accompanied the colonoscopy, I will gain back some of that 6-pound weight loss. That’s OK; I’m more interested in the How and Why of the weight I won’t gain back. Should I experiment with intermittent fasting, which has shown a lot of promise as a weight loss tool? One day per week without food wouldn’t be that unpleasant—I didn’t feel uncomfortably hungry at any time during my colonoscopy prep—and it could coincide with a rest day in my training plan. I did have noticeably less energy on Thursday and Friday, which says something about the extent to which I rely on carbohydrates for fuel. I’m sure part of the reason my weight hasn’t really come down this year is the absence of longer, slower rides on which fat is burned preferentially.
Whatever adjustments I may make to my diet and training, I have a good digital scale that I should be using for more than just overall weight. I bought the scale in May 2014 to replace an inaccurate analog scale. It’s pretty sophisticated but I have asked it to perform only its most basic function. Most of the research I’ve seen on the subject concludes that while digital scales do a very good job with total body weight, they are not very accurate with lean muscle weight, body fat percentage, hydration status, and other metrics. Nevertheless, I’m going to track my own numbers for a while. Even if the absolute values aren’t very accurate, the trends should be trustworthy. Up and down should still work.
Garmin offers a scale like mine but includes wireless data uploads to Garmin Connect. I would love to have that feature, but I’m not ready to pay $150 for it. I may be ready to pay $150 for Garmin’s blood pressure monitor. It also works over WiFi with Garmin Connect and it has come to my attention at a time when I’m somewhat dissatisfied with my existing monitor. I have high blood pressure and I probably should be checking it more than once per week. My current monitor is a little clumsy, though, so I use it with some reluctance.
Friday’s colonoscopy was the latest in a series of important investments in my health that go back to last year. As I said before, it doesn’t make sense to worry about cycling performance if the very foundations of health are crumbling. So, there’s more to come. I will have a routine checkup with my primary care physician on July 26 (with blood tests a day or two earlier) and a dental cleaning on July 30. And then I should be done with pokings and proddings for a while.
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