My husband and I took up biking in 1996 and during the season we now bike close to 100 miles a week. When I started eating a very high raw diet in 2006, one thing I had to learn was how to bike raw without the questionable benefit of processed bars and drinks. It was one thing to pack some fruit and a couple of raw bars for a few hours of riding, and quite another to plan for sometimes days of riding, and then sleeping in a different motel every night. Two years ago we did a ride in the non-glaciated part of southwestern Wisconsin (read VERY HILLY)--but that's another story). I brought my trusty old Oster blender which was a wedding present in 1961. The tour guide was kind enough to buy me a fresh bag of organic spinach every day while the cyclists rode. I had brought some fresh fruit from home, so every morning I whipped up abut 40 oz. of green smoothie to give myself a very nutricious start to the eay. I also packed along some raw trail mix that I had made and packed in snack baggies. One or two of those fit very nicely into the back pocket of my cycling jersey. Then, as we rode the 45-75 miles for the day, I would buy a banana or two to eat when we went through a town and took a short rest. Occasionally we stopped for a real lunch and I could order a salad. Some of them were good, others mediocre. At the end of our riding day, the guide had snaacks wiating for us, which included fresh fruit. I remember that after one really long, hot, hilly day, he had watermelon and strawberries waiting for us. Terrific!! Then in the evenings, when we all went out to dinner, I had the biggest salad I could find, and then finished off the day with some more fresh fruit. I did 5 days on the bike pretty much that same way. The good news is that while the menu may sound boring, it filled me with just what my hard working body needed to be able to do those long, (and did I say VERY HILLY?) miles. I finished the week tired like everyone else, but positively pain free. At my age, that's just a wonderful thing to experience! I am not a very fast rider, but I can ride a long time, and now that I am 70, I am more and more grateful every day to have found the right food to give me energy, endurance, and vibrant health. The moral of the story?? Live Well ~~ Eat Raw!! ~~ and lots of it!
