Cardio - Bugs and All

I decided to do cardio today on my bike. Outside in the Alabama heat. It's 99 degrees with a heat index of 105 degrees. Typical August weather.

Last year at this time, the state was suffering a drought unlike anything we'd seen in 50 years. The temperature soared over 100 degrees for nearly two straight weeks. The Georgia governor was even so kind as to loan the state water. And the lake was so low that our marina sent all its speed boats back to Florida. Today's heat reminds me of the sweltering mess that we had last summer. The only thing it was good for was barefeet, sundresses and watermelon in the cool air conditioning.

Since cardio is supposed to be only 20 minutes, I figured I could handle the heat and get it over with pretty quickly. I just didn't feel like running on the treadmill AGAIN. And I was excited about riding on my new bike. I've only ridden it twice since I got it back in May. Alabama is not exactly mountain biking country but my neighborhood has plenty of room for road riding.

Around the neighborhood lake I went. Increasing in speed with every minute until it was time to back off for a quick break. The heat made my skin drip and my hair plaster against my head. My lungs burned and my quads agonized with every revolution. Now, if you remember the movie "The Incredibles," there is a scene where Dash is running through the jungle and runs smack into a bug swarm and flips over and over before spitting and hacking out the bugs. Evidently, the neighborhood lake creates these little bug swarms EVERYWHERE! A swarm hit my face about every 10 seconds. The nastiest bunch of little, black bugs you've ever seen squashed against my sunglasses and forehead and lined my forearms. Ewww! Finally I took a turn into a new section of the neighborhood without any access to the lake and was home free. I did the last 10 minutes of the run bug free!

Either way, the ride was the best one I've had in weeks. Heat, bugs and all!