From KT – July 27, 2014

Yo DaVita HealthCare Partners,

I am typing this as I sit next to a stream in a forest, having just immersed myself in its absolutely freezing water.  Every pore of my skin feels quite alive.

EPIPHANY !!!!  On this mountain biking/camping trip I learned of the bonus point structure of Match the Mayor, I did not realize I needed to be more specific in my reporting!  Village Vitality please go back and adjust.  Broccoli is the vegetable I eat most, let’s assume that is every fourth veggie.  I have had spinach of kale once a week.  All of my bowls of berries are strawberries, raspberries and blueberries … unless they are pure strawberries, but that also qualifies as bonus right?  Asparagus is probably one out of every four as well, but I don’t think that is a superhero vegetable.   How about zucchini, that is another one in four, those are my three most common veggies..  Tomatoes are probably one out of every 8.  Village Vitality please tell me more about this bonus system, my scores will go up!

As expected this trip has been AWESOME for exercise, great conversations about our Village … and not so good on veggies.  We are at a campsite and sleeping in tents, and dinner is cooked outside for the 14 of us by the bike guides.  We have to pack our lunches and carry them in our backpacks to eat out on the trail.

The facts:

Thursday had a banana and a bowl of fruit (but not mixed berries).  2.0 servings.  Lunch did include a zucchini/broccoli slaw, but I would only count it as one serving.  1 serving of veggies that night, peppers in case they count for bonus points.

Friday was 2 bowls of fruit for bkfast, one banana later in day, and 1.5 servings of apple.  Dinner was 1.0 serving of asparagus.

Saturday, so far, is one bowl of fruit (again, not mixed berries so no bonus points)

Much more fun to report the exercise facts!

Thursday was 18 miles with 2700 feet of vertical.  Total biking time was about 3.25 hours, plus 15 minutes of stretching/therapy after.

Friday was 27 miles with 3300 vertical, a big day with a bunch of technical stuff, so I had to get off the bike 5-6 times and walk 5-30 feet to get thru some of it.  Amazing views of Mount Hood, Mount Ranier, Mount Adams, and Mount St Helena.  I never knew that when Helena erupted in 1980 it literally blew up the top 5000 feet of its cone – – it was 5000 feet shorter after the eruption.  That is amazing also.  Anyway only 7 of the 17 riders on this day completed the full 27 miles, and I was with the first 4, so I felt good that I am hanging in there in terms of fitness.  This was a long day, about 5.5 hours of biking.

Today was about 20 miles with 2900 feet of vertical, but much less technical.  About 3.5 hours of biking plus 15 minutes of stretching/therapy.

We also had great conversations on many topics, including the village, some business issues like HCP IT, our life balance, and some of the most formative moments in our lives.  We sang songs around the campfire each night, and got to know each other better which is such a great thing for the Village.  We had attendees from Kidney Care, from HealthCare Partners, and from Paladina.

This email won’t get sent until Sunday, when I am back on the grid in Colorado.  I hope each of you have had a successful couple of days, days in which you took the small steps that can turn into big improvements in your health, over time.

One for All & All for One.     KT