Pain Cave and Winter Fitness

The Winter fitness season is upon us. You know the one where you realize you're not exercising, and then you step on the scale for that "uh-oh" moment? Where the Holidays loom large, as does your waistline. I seldom make that transition well. And this year's proving to be no exception.

In 2013, I put on a bunch more weight and burned any fitness I'd built over the Summer. I tried joining a gym. But it just didn't work. Crowded at peak times. Boring as hell. Just not my bag. Last Winter I did a bit better. Decided a combo of skiing (thank you to Vail for picking up local Mt. Brighton) and indoor cycling was my best bet. Picked up a CycleOps Fluid2 trainer. Mounted my bike up and I'm ready to go!

Only problem. Riding a trainer is boring as hell. The only place I think time passes more slowly is waiting at the Secretary of State to renew your driver's license. Even with a custom playlist on the iPod, a half hour feels like a month. But, it works. I kept the Winter Weight off, and by the time I arrived on Colorado to ski I was running the slopes from top to bottom without a stop to catch my breath. Awesome. My road cycling season starts off very strong. All good.

As my goal is to continually improve, this year I vowed to make the Pain Cave a more pleasant place. My first thought is to press a TV into service. Throw on some Family Guy or Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives and I'm good for an hour. Fortunately, due to upsizing a TV elsewhere in the house, a 32" is looking for a home. This past week a little re-org of the basement results in a nice little home exercise spot! It's not the prettiest, but it's comfy, has a fan to keep cool a high-def TV with a gazillion channels, and a DVD player. 

Will it be the solution? We'll see, but I must admit I'm looking forward to finding out! Pain Cave 2.0 look out!

-Sean-