how many muscles are in the human body?

I'm sure someone out there knows the answer, but really, don't tell me.
All I know is that every single one of mine is aching.
Not as much as yesterday, thank goodness.
Hardly at all now actually.

The reason for my discomfort?
The bike.
And myself of course.
I rode on Saturday, further than I've ever ridden since I first got on the bike.
Heh, I'm such an over-achiever....

Anyway, earlier this year, I'd bought a basket to go on the front of the bike.
Nothing as simple as the old-fashioned sort that just hooks over the handlebars.
Oh no.
This complicated little s*** of a basket needed a fixture fitted to the handlebars with power tools.
I don't have any.
Plus I looked at the instructions and they might as well have been written in Klingon for all the sense I could make of them.

So, Saturday.
I put the basket in a big old garbage bag, (bright yellow, for easy visibility by passing motorists), and decided it was now or never.
I was riding into town and get this basket fitted.
Off I went.

Stuck to the footpaths and bike tracks through the parks as much as I could, and walked the bike across intersections.
(I'm a safety girl...)
Getting into town was easy, getting the basket fitted was easy, getting home again, not so easy.
The roads aren't flat!
The way home involved more than one gentle upward slope.

I'm telling you, my thighs were not happy!
I took it as easy as I could, getting off and walking the bike several times, once even stopping altogether and resting.
But I made it home, and straight away, lay flat on my back with my knees up on pillows for an hour.
When I got up again, my thighs were fine.
So I went about the rest of my day, eventually getting to bed around 11pm.

Sunday morning dawned and I tried to roll out of bed.
And discovered that my upper back and shoulders were quite stiff and almost painful.
I had to lie there and gently stretch my way into the day.
I knew the best cure for this was to get moving, so after a hot shower, I took a gentle stroll around the block.
Later in the day I took another walk, then a third stroll around the block just after the sun disappeared.

I'm still a bit achy, (but not as bad as when I hurt my back), but no real damage has been done and I was able to work today .
The best part?
The basket is fitted and I don't have to ride that far in one hit ever again if I don't want to.

The lesson I learned?
Well, knowing me as well as I do, I probably didn't learn a damn thing....

Comments

  1. I love the lesson you learned. I have learnt that one so often myself that I ought to know better.
    I hope the stiffness and soreness leaves you completely very soon.

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  2. but you know that you can do it.

    And that is AWESOME.

    x

    (LMAO at my word verification - commie!)

    ReplyDelete
  3. The lesson you (should) have learned, is that you're awesome. You rode a bike into town and now have your Klingon Basket (that name's going to stick now) fitted. Now we need photos of the purchases and finds you put in the Klingon Basket once your muscles stop screaming and you get back in the saddle again.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh come on now...Glenelg and the sea are not that far away... :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Have you carried a baguette in your bicycle basket yet? You simply must, and get someone to take your photo while doing so.

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  6. EC; stiffness almost completely gone now, the soreness in some areas is a permanent thing, but I'm used to it.

    Kelley@magnetoboldtoo; yes, I can do it, but I'll choose not to until the muscles get more used to riding.

    Kath Lockett; I'll be Back In The Saddle (that's a country song BTW, sung by Matraca Berg) as soon as the temperature cools down a bit. Or on Friday, whichever comes first.

    Tempo; at this point Glenelg might as well be on the moon, but I'll persevere.

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  7. Ouch. Maybe some Arnica might help those muscles heal up. But....way to go. A picture of you on your bike would be delightful..maybe with some flowers in your Klingon Basket.

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  8. Ouch, at least you did it ! Hope you feel better sooner . Bosito eucalyptus cream rub is fab for sore muscles.

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  9. Is it one of those wire baskets that can be detached to use as a shopping basket?
    They're great! :)
    Your muscles will be fine, they're just waking up after a long sleep lol.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Next thing we know you'll be delivering pizzas :-).

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  11. Hi River,

    You're putting me to shame. My excuse? It was -4 degrees here last night.

    How long can that excuse last?

    :-)

    Cheers

    PM

    ReplyDelete
  12. Lesson you SHOULD have learned? Ask Grace to fit it.. I have power tools and manual tools. I could have dropped by to do it for you :)

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  13. Andrew; a baguette? no, not yet.

    Delores; yes, the Arnica is helping.

    Trish; eucalyptus rub might be fantastic stuff, but I really don't want my bed/bedroom smelling like a sports clinic. I have other products which don't smell quite as strong.

    Jayne; yes it is a detachable basket. It looks awkward on the bike, because it sits up so high, but it'll be great for things like milk and bread and the sunday paper.

    Windsmoke; delivering pizzas? No chance, I'd get lost and no-one would get their pizza before the food got cold.

    Plasman; that excuse won't last too long, spring is on its way.

    Grace; damn, I forgot you had stuff like that.

    Ann O'Dyne; I have no bathtub. Muscles are fine now anyway.

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  14. One of life's great lessons. What looks flat in a car is a bloody great hill on a bike.

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  15. JahTeh; yes, there are now veritable mountains between me and my city. Hmpf!

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