Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Life After the Ride

Over 1 month after our trip, and you may wonder how we're doing! Well, here's the update on a few different things:

The Well

We are still blown away and incredibly blessed to know that our friends and family helped us raised above and beyond the cost of rebuilding the well in Nicaragua! Thanks again to everyone, and we pray that the well will be a huge blessing to the people of Nicaragua.

Real Life

The stagnancy of work and the complexity of "real life" was a tad bit overwhelming at first, but we are finally getting used to life out of the saddle. But our trip wasn't without effect! David and I now feel closer than ever, and we have a greater passion for the people around us. We also have quite a few new inside jokes, and a ton of stories to keep us smiling. We're so glad we did what we did when we did it. It was an awesome accomplishment but we're already looking forward to whatever adventure life has next for us.

New Muscles

While biking became easier with daily (all-day) practice, I'm afraid running became harder. My first few runs after our trip were laborious and felt like sprints. My body had become used to the slow and steady aerobic exercise of cycling, and all my stabilizing muscles had grown quite weak with disuse.

Not to mention clothes that no longer fit. Who knew my back muscles would develop so much that I would have to get a bridesmaid dress altered for my best friend Kat's wedding a week after the trip. That, and none of my jeans fit anymore due to my bulging thighs, haha.

Here are the numbers behind the changes:
  • My calves gained almost 1 inch
    • Before the trip, the right was 1/4 inch smaller than the left, and that evened out by the end
  • My quads gained almost 2 full inches in size each
  • My waist gained 1 inch, and my chest/back gained 1.5 inches
  • I gained about 10 lbs by the end, while David lost 10 and has probably lost even more since then


Latah

Of course, our dog has fully forgiven us for leaving her with her Auntie Dez for two months and we've given her enough hugs and kisses to make it up to her.


Planning Your Own Trip?
Email me at two.to.tandem.trip@gmail.com, or keep an eye out for future informational posts for prospective bicycle tourists, i.e. tips on packing, planning, training, and surviving :)