Today I finished the Bike-A-Thon I challenged the TriGirls to do this month. The challenge was to ride your bike every day for at least an hour -- or ten miles. You could do your time on the trainer, in a spin class, on your mountain bike, or on your road bike. I did mine on the road bike, by and large. I did every single day -- I didn't miss a single workout in January. I am very proud of myself, especially this past week when the thought of climbing on to my bike and riding was just not very appealing.

While riding these miles, I burned approximately 8000 calories per week. I spent 48 hours and 34 minutes on the bike, and I rode .... ready for this? 467.13 miles.

I had an easy time of it the first week. It wasn't bad, and I was moving right along. The second week was a little harder, but not that bad and I did a couple of days of Mt. Lemmon. The third week was tough. I was getting a little tired. I did all my rides, but my pace had dropped a little bit. The fourth week was tough. I did the riding, but several of the days were very slow. Today, the final day of the challenge, I rode 40 miles, and it was a long day. There was a terrible wind for the first half of my ride today and my average speed dropped... nothing like steep hills with 20mph winds to slow you down. However, I was pushing so hard against the wind that I burned 2800 calories in today's ride alone!

Halfway through January, I eliminated sugar from my diet. This caused massive depression and withdrawal. I have said before that life is not worth living without sugar. It was a time that left me a little on the testy side. That has passed.

So, what was the result of all this work and diet tinkering?

I gained 6 pounds.

My coach is now asking me to eliminate bread from my diet. I feel a little testiness coming on....