Poll results & other stuff

Well, the results of my Achilles poll so far seem to lean toward treating the injury...rest and medical attention. Which I kind of expected--the "no pain, no gain" folks would have been driven away by my lackadaisical weight loss style long ago. :)

I probably will go to the doctor next month* if it doesn't significantly improve by then, but for now I've been treating it with rest and anti-inflammatories. It was a little better this morning, I think, but I'm not going to go run marathons or anything. Kristi mentioned swimming in the comments, which is a great option that I had completely forgotten about. Not only is it zero impact, but it'll also build up my swim endurance. Currently, I'm at absolute zero on that, so there's nowhere to go but up. I'd to do a sprint triathlon sometime next year, and working on my swimming while I'm temporarily off the exercises I normally do seems like an excellent way to go. Right now, I'd consider one non-stop lap a victory. Hell, I'd settle for a length.

I am going to keep riding on weekends, and going to the spin classes on Mon/Wed. My Saturday ride keeps a pretty slow pace lately, so I think I can keep that up without putting undue strain on the tendon. Also, work is preventing me from doing any weekend rides until August anyway, so it should heal some by then. The spin classes don't really stress it either, except during the out of the saddle/high resistance drills. If I keep my entire workout seated/low resistance and just alter my cadence to match the class effort, I think I can still keep them as part of my routine.

Of course, you know that part of the reason I'm keeping the cycling in is so that I can get to 5,000 miles on my bike by September. At last odometer check, I was at 4,605. The actual total is a bit higher, since my computer has been temperamental lately. For the last couple rides, it's been pretty consistent about recording speed/distance, but before that it would just check out for as many as 20 miles at a time. I've decided that for new-bike purposes, computer malfunctions won't factor in--only the recorded miles count. Of course, my new-bike deadline really isn't going to matter much if I can't run in the duathlon in October anyway.

In non-bike, non-injury news, I picked up my new car today! The truck did not blow up in the parking lot, nor did it start randomly shedding parts on the way to the trade-in...maybe it wasn't conspiring against me after all. The dealership put my new hubcaps on last night, and they stayed put at least until the truck wasn't my responsibility anymore. Here's hoping the new owner won't have any further trouble.

I also detailed it myself last night, which was kind of fun. Normally, the only work I like to do on my car is signing the credit card receipt at the dealership/car wash/repair shop/whatever. Cars just aren't really my thing, and cleaning one out and returning it to showroom condition on a 95-degree summer evening is not my idea of a good time. However, by the time I stopped by the dealership and had the hubcaps put on, it was too late to go to the detailing place. So I stopped by the Walmart for some basic supplies (armor-all, upholstery shampoo, wheel cleaner), ran the truck through a car wash on the way home, then set to work on the inside. In just about an hour, it was spotless and new-car-smelly, and I had saved $50. Woo!

I'm not sure yet whether I like the new car...it rides lower than my truck, which takes some retraining. I find myself still wanting to push up with my left leg and vault myself into the driver's seat like I did with the running boards on the truck, which is not really necessary or comfortable, and looks supremely dorky besides. The feel while driving is completely different...the suspension seems more bouncy, which is suprising to me since I'm going from a light truck to something more car-based. You'd think it'd be a smoother ride, right? There are things I do like about it...the stereo has an aux port for my ipod, there's enough cargo space inside for my bike so I don't need to worry about stopping somewhere on the way home from my rides, and--most importantly--it gets double the gas mileage. So I think I'm going to like it, after the initial break-in period.

I also took my son to the doctor this morning, where we found out that the sinus infection we thought he's had since this weekend was actually a raging case of tonsilitis with a side of severe nasal allergies. The solution was the same as a sinus infection, though--antibiotics, rest, allergy medicine refill. He's supposed to be feeling considerably better by Friday, and I certainly hope so. I used to get either tonsilitis or strep throat every single winter until I had my tonsils removed, so I feel for him. It's a miserable, miserable way to spend a week.

Song o' the Day: Welcome to the Black Parade (link removed)

*Due to a change in work schedules, that's the soonest I'd be able to make an appointment.