A few months ago we bought a Wii. Then we got the Wii Fit. FabHub has been very good about using the Fit even on the weekends. I on the other hand have been using it too during the week, but weekends are more for the games than the Fit. FH has also been doing more of the aerobics, but I don't really like that feature and switched to non-Wii running, walking, and bike riding. I still do the yoga stretches and some of the strength stuff while remaining accountable to the Fit scale and graphs, which by the way are not very happy at the moment.
Over Christmas we sort of went nuts. Academy Sports had our favorite shoes, Asics 2130s on sale, FH actually found some in his 4EEEE size! So now he has a pair for around town and one to be fit in. I already have a pair and am using last years model for casual use.
Then we looked at the treadmills available in the local stores. The sports store had lots of fitness apparel, but their selection of fitness equipment in the treadmill department seems to be on the low-end of the scale. Kind of wobbly, narrow belts, light weight frames, and electronics. The prices were all under $1000, but maybe should be more under $500. The other store option that we could find was Sears. They had the Nordic Tracs on sale, and the T7 Si won us over.
Wide and long belt, solid construction, nothing wobbled, good feel to the electroics, and a nice salesman. Load it up! Why buy it? Well, it seems my concerns about the Fit aerobics have been heard. FH wants to start being more mobile and the treadmill will put some forced effort into that plan. Personally, I like the idea of being able to mix up my early morning bike rides with a run or uphill hike, so this will work very nicely.
I really thought that was the end of our shopping adventure, but then FH says, let's go to the bike store and get my birthday present too. Oh Boy! The guys are going to call me crazy on this one. This is another area where the sports store seems to be low end. Most of their models are similar to another more popular store's selection.
The local bike shop carries a couple of brands - Giant and Specialized. Jimmy, the owner, first talked us through the different types of bikes and their materials. Then he threw in some prices and since we didn't run screaming into the night he showed me some models. I liked the Giant FCR 3, road bike mixed with mountain bike.
Light frame, road tires, flat bar, low gears, and strong brakes. It was almost closing time and though I know he would have stayed late, I wanted to do some research and told him we would be back on Monday. He probably thought we were not serious.
I looked up the Giant and found the price he quoted fair with other specialty stores. Then I went to the website the guys bought their road and tri bikes on and compared the specs with what was available there. The quick look I got showed that the price was less than $100 different. Plus Jimmy would make sure I got the right size and tune it up everytime I bring it to town. So we went back to the bike shop on Monday and bought me a bike.
Oh yeah, a while back I bought some Pearl Izumi bike shoes on a nice clearance sale. I like these shoes because they have recessed clips. The tread on them is deep enough that with if I have to get off the bike and walk I can without having the metal clip protuding under the ball of my foot. They even have some flex in the toe area to make walking or a little running possible. They are really classified as mountain bike shoes, but they were great for me. Now I just have to figure out how to use. It has been too cold to even think about going out there and trying them out.
The new bike had regular pedals and when Jimmy found out I was interested in changing to clipless, he threw in the Shimano pedals. Yes his mark up was obviously plenty. I am happy though. These replace the normal pedals. The shoes have clips on the bottom that snap into the spring loaded brackets on the pedals. They can also be loosened so that I can practice releasing myself. What good are they? Since they attach the shoe to the pedal it lets a person pull up on the pedal. That way there is power both by pushing down and pulling up. Might help me with the hills too. I know I will need it. Jimmy also told me to take it slow at getting used to that, it is a workout on the legs.
He also gave me a lesson on shifting and since I won't be able to come back in a month, how to adjust the cables if they stretch. I took it out in Mom's neighborhood when we got back to the house. I need to learn when to change gears, but I did manage to climb the hill without getting out of the seat. My hills seem possible now!
So what has happened since we got home? Day one and the treadmill has about 2 hours on the clock. It is just as we had hoped. Solid frame and plenty of motor to keep us moving and climbing. The bike is lounging in the garage for a few days yet. We had snow and very cold air temps today. I am looking forward to the first sunny and dry day.
Now if we can get the food intake sorted out we might actually get fit!
