Fixing A Road Bike

Check out this video from my latest bike ride.

I have signed up for Wild Wales Challenge 2013, which takes place in Bala on Bank Holiday Weekend. The ides of this training ride was to hit as many big climbs as possible. However, on my second climb of the morning, i ran into trouble with my gears. After the chain came off for the third or fourth time, i looked down to find the rear derailleur hanging off.

I was alone, at the top of a welsh mountain with a broken bike. I managed to strap it to the frame using a spare inner tube, and freewheeled back down to the closest town and ordered a taxi to take me back to my car.

I thought i had killed the bike. My bike knowledge isnt that great just yet as I havent been riding that long. It turns out this was a failsafe called a Derailleur Hanger, which are desgined to snap under increased load so that neither the derailleur or the frame get bent in the event of shock or other damage, in this case caused by the yanking of an unconnected chain.

Fast forward a few days and I have fixed this all myself. You can buy Hangers online, there are thousands to choose from, so get the one suited to your bike.

In my case, it was as simple as using a 5mm allen key to take off the broken piece from the derailleur and a smaller one to release the other piece from the frame via two tiny allen bolts. Fasten it nice and tightly together and voila, back from the dead!


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Is Starbucks Coffee Killing Your Progress?

Many of us, myself included, love a cup of coffee. Some of us even need it just to function in the mornings.

While a cup wont really do you any harm, lets take a minute to think about the colorific values.
A standard cup of coffee you make at home has the majority of its calories from the milk that you add, along with the sugar you drop in by the spoonful. Obviously adding flavoured syrups and the like will boost these values even more. Then again, this is generally ok as long as you keep an eye on what you are doing, and if you feel you dont need the 5g of sugar in your coffee, there is 20 calories saved already which you can bank for somewhere else later in the day.

But what happens when you venture out of the house? Lets say you go into town and halfway through your day you stop at a Starbucks or a Costa Coffee for example.Do you have any idea how many calories are in the Cappuccino, or that "Skinny Late" you ordered? You might have thought it was irrelavant as coffee by itself is generally very low in calories, but these drinks fron the large chains can contain anything up to around 200 calories for a regular cup!

And thats not even including the calorie dense hot chocolates or the cream filled fruit smoothies.

The following is taken from Starbuck's website (Drink name, Calories, Fat, Carbs & Protein). Drinks are assumed to be "Grande" with 2% milk.

• Caffe Latte - 240, 9, 24, 16
• Caffe Mocha - 340, 11, 53, 17
• Cappuccino - 150, 6, 16, 10
• White Choc Mocha - 510, 15, 77, 19

In recent years, large outlets, including the likes of McDonalds, down to my local coffee shops, have begun to list the calorie content of their products. Take a look next time at the large menu behind the counter. Dont get sucked in by the marketing strategies which aim to sell the most profitable drink, but be sensible. If you can afford to add it to your daily macros, then by all means treat yourself. Just dont make a habit of it, coffee is addictive and you might find that extra bit of fat growing with your intake.

Still reeeeally want a coffee? Try going black...!



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The Only 2 Supplements You Need

Thought about trying BCAA's, Testosterone Boosters, Deer Antler, Fat Burners, Natural Steroid Alternatives?

You dont need any of it!

If you work hard at the gym, in my experience there are only two supplements which work, and thats besides sweating your ass off and eating clean.

Whey Protein and Creatine Monohydrate

I recently heard Marc Lobliner call whey protein "chocolate chicken". Its not a magic formula, that when you consume a 5lb tub in a few days you grow huge. Its essentially the macro's of something like a chicken breast in an easy convenient formula. Think about it. Easting 6 chicken breasts a day wont make you huge, so why should a protein powder. 

Of course it helps. I myself find it hard to eat a gram of protein per pound of bodyweight a day, but if i have 6 servings (6x1 scoop) per day, i can get close enough on top of my other food. Please note, as whey protein is derived from milk, it is not suitable for vegans. There are other protein sources available out there which may be suitable.

Creatine should be used in the monohydrate form. All of the other forms are marketing techniques on the same product. Also, the loading phase isnt necessary. It will fill your muscles faster, but you will also burn through your stash faster. My advice is to take 1 5g scoop per day throughout your required term. There is no need to cycle either. 

Save your cash for the gym membership and rubbish gym clothes!