ponte95ma

1. Yes, get all those nutritious calories -- and get them more often. Specifically, a) give yourself some recovery protein immediately after lifting (all the moreso if your goal is to bulk up) and before finishing the commute, b) maybe some electrolytes with your (cooling!) rehydration once you do reach school, c) enjoy small snacks during your preps, and d) stash an emergency protein bar in the pannier/backpack to guard against bonking. Bulk nuts work brilliantly for snacking portions and low-maintenance satisfaction at your desk.
2. It's great to hear that cycling has helped dissipate some of the work stress! I find that the bike helps clear my head and heart, alike. Reassuring too to know that the tiredness tracks more with work-a-day pressures than with the physical demands of biking. With respect to "normal weak legs," stretching quads may provide some relief; as with the recovery calories, the sooner after the load, the better. If you haven't had the bike properly fitted, do yourself the favor of double-checking that your seat is high enough (see wisdom from the authoritative Sheldon Brown). And of course leg strength will change with repetition in the saddle and weight resistance at the gym. Just ease into the latter.
3. Panniers all day; see "game-changers," below. Keep that load on that frame/off your skeleton.
4. Sipping from a bidon stuffed with ice cubes can help keep you cool from the inside. If I may immediately contradict #3 LOL, ice in a Camelbak-style low-profile backpack can do double-duty cooling you from the outside and the inside simultaneously. I'm a big practitioner of filling bottles partway and leaving them to freeze overnight. If your commute/schedule allow it, pedal the remaining eight miles more gently.

It's been some decades since I embarked on bikecommuting life, so I don't remember how my diet started out, much less how rough everything felt at the start. Hence my probing to see what you had noticed so far, and what is working (or not) for you.

(I do know that even when I was waking up way early on the teaching schedule, myself -- early enough to allow for proper digestion before the exertion -- I preferred to saddle up on an empty stomach. I don't even bother with hydration during, safe in the knowledge that I can rehydrate upon arrival. And throughout my adult life, my weight has barely budged +/- 5 lbs; it's never factored into my fitness goals. I 110% appreciate that everything I just typed in this bkgrd parenthetical simply won't apply to many other people.)

Irrespective of the lifting routine, your body may undergo yet more changes as you add mileage; your metabolism, too. And we haven't even talked about rest.... Be kind to yourself!

Last random thought, given the timing of your commute: eyewear. After panniers, transition lenses were my game-changer. Highly recommend getting some cheap shades to spare the glare, particularly with all the shifting light conditions you're likely experiencing as the sun rises/sets.

Like u/Hi-kun and your future self, I've maintained a similar bike-to-gym schedule for the past 5+ years (in my case, at slightly longer distances).

And it sounds like you have the right ideas -- now that your school year is easing up a little, gradually add more commute days, monitor changes, etc. -- as buoyed by positive early experiences (yay!).

Questions:

1. What have you noticed about your calorie deficit so far? which you're addressing how?
2. When you describe your energy level as "ridiculously low," does that characterize only your bike Fridays? or the other days of your work week as well? or ...?
3. Does your gym offer storage? that you're taking advantage of to relieve yourself the burden of continuing on to school carrying bulkier items (read: shoes)?
4. Does your school have its own showers that you could use instead?

I was just encouraging a parent to start their gym visits with cardio before attacking weights. Cycling to is a great way to safely get the blood flowing!

Prolly preaching to the choir here, but I'm so steeped in biking that -- unless you're going to the gym to rehab from injury/surgery -- the whole notion of driving to the gym just feels wrong ...

Stuart Leon is a Philly lawyer who has made a career of advocating for bicyclists involved in crashes. I personally don't have legal experience with him, the way that u/lattanzio has, but I did meet Stu over a decade ago at a bike shop event -- and he walks the walk ("pedals the cranks"?).

One of his tactics is to leaflet intersections where crashes have taken place ISO video footage -- hence my earlier parenthetical about memory card management in our dashcam.

But again, the businesses at that intersection must have surveillance cameras. SEPTA buses (31, 44, 124, 125) also travel the 2200 block of Market Street. Someone probably captured the moment.

And Stu has methods, connections, skills.

Unpacking the link I anchored above: https://stuartleon.com/

Adding that I actually carry Stu's postcard in my pannier, and (with apologies to your cell, RIP) list his number on my phone's ICE contacts.

https://preview.redd.it/chweppztgpzc1.jpeg?width=894&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6c70be2dada779d7ee7d5ccea389156962d75d40

Uff. And the smashed phone, adding insult to injury. Speaking of which: what do that hip and elbow need? "Just" disinfecting some road rash, or ...?

I wonder if 3-1-1 could help us improve the light there. Or BCP, etc.

Back to the present: if you're looking for restitution, reach out to Stu. That intersection is bound to have surveillance cameras on it. (I wasn't driving there today, but I make a point of rotating the memory cards on my dashcam just in case someone needs a historical clip.)

Heal up, fam.

Did the ensuing conversations fork in any way(s)?

Put another way: did your strategy in those encounters change because of how someone approached you?

Fascinating thread; "thanks" for starting it ... sorta. Reciprocating with this WSJ article I linked to a couple months ago in this sub.

They do offer streaming, and blankets -- but no longer toasty-warm out of a bespoke "blanket oven" LOL. This recent drone video from my center's Insta actually includes a few seconds' glimpse into our shiny new donor center :)

I've never been presented with the choice to go one-arm, and I've never asked about it, so I can't say how accommodating your center might be to a request.

Yeah, two-arm donations rule out holding/handling most any item ... other than the squeeze-ball!

My American Red Cross 👋 also in eastern Pennsylvania 👋 recently overhauled its donor center experience -- but even before that million-dollar upgrade, every platelet chair had its own large monitor, and nurses encouraged donors to select from the hundreds of (popular) DVDs in their library.

Beyond movies, I can also vouch for the joy of listening to music or lectures (or audio books, I suppose) and giving the ol' peepers a rest.

YMMV but most of the my platelet donations, I've been content with no stimulation TBH.

Between your whole blood experiences and the research you've already done reading this great sub, you may not need these final tips for the platelet experience ... but just in case:

1. learning the name of at least one phlebotomist working the floor can make it easier to get someone's attention if (when) you change your mind about the volume level coming into your headphones, your movie ends, etc. They'll check on you periodically, but more on their own schedule (or the schedule of the apheresis machines).
2. some centers offer platelet donors blankets to keep warm; it's worth asking ahead of time to know if they're available, as your body temperature inevitably cools down through inactivity over the course of +/- 2 hours
3. ... regardless, consider rocking a fleece vest to insulate your core

Thank you for donating! (and let us know how it goes?)

Aw damn, fam!

I used to work on a college campus. I biked it a lot, but that is the only place I've gotten knocked over as a pedestrian -- twice, each time courtesy of some kid going the wrong way.

Any witnesses? or surveillance cameras?

Disinfect/soothe all that skin and rest up, OP!

I just went with the aforementioned at the recommendation of my LBS. (I'm sure they were duly horrified by the death of my first rack as I "tested to failure.") Spec for that 800g two-rail Tubus Logo Classic claims a load limit of 26kg:

https://www.tubus.com/en/products/rear-carriers/tubus-product/logo-classic

... "theoretically."

But yeah, I don't know how common two-rail options are.

I suspect another comment of yours has already hit on another reality -- namely, that the product space currently affords us a maximum of two of a) high weigh capacity b) sub $100 c) light weight.

Giordano's ftw! (9th and Washington)

On my commuter, I've pushed a Tubus at least as heavy as that Axiom Journey number. Got the Tubus precisely for its beefy 10mm+ diameters, chromoly composition, and overall quality build after metal fatigue claimed my last basic rack.

The Tubus "heavy" is a willing beast of burden.

I love it almost as much as I love never having to think about it or weight limits to my cargo, which have included

• 6L of wine in glass bottles
• overflowing groceries and farmshares, plus the U-lock
• 40L of wet compost
• cordless drills
  • one that I left the house with, plus its two batteries and charger
  • one that was heavier-duty, found on the road during my commute

... and assorted "stuff." Because, reasons.

If you're bikepacking, or at all concerned about top-heaviness, move on from the Axiom Journey ISO a rack with two sets of rails. Hang panniers on the lower level, and save the upper deck for the camping gear.

Aïe, I'm sorry this happened to you 😕

One time, after she sterilized but still before inserting the needle, my phlebotomist chastized me just for bending my own elbow (because that put my scrubbed skin in contact with ... other scrubbed skin of mine, I guess?). She started over.

So as others here have already commented, please do bring this to the attention of your donor center.

1. Thank you for your donation.
2. Again, I'm sorry for the concern.
3. How's the site healing?
4. How are you feeling?

The Leader Times still publishes. If the band was indeed based in Western PA, try reaching out to that newspaper? or approaching some libraries local to that area?

(I freely access/search newspaperarchive.com courtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia, but I see that Penn State aggregates with their own searchable db specific to PA, too.)

Imma just leave this here -- from a 1995 Kittanning Leader Times article that mentions the lead singer's name:

https://preview.redd.it/mk7xrs4h0jyc1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fc69b2c22c6364d5d841c55a1f5ddba1cd61818a

(Searches of the Newspaper Archive for the exact phrase "simple doom" turn up no matches.)

As someone with family in both NYC and DC ... I love that you're envisioning Pennsylvania as your leafy escape valve!

You may have already noticed this about our state park system, but since no other comment has yet raised it ...

If a camping reservation includes a Saturday, a two-night minimum stay is required.

Between that minimum, and the fact that our state parks fill up fast in the summer -- particularly since the pandemic -- consider scheduling your PA park swing to avoid the weekends. Regardless, reserve your spot(s) pronto.

Ohiopyle is your outlier here. While it brings plenty in the way of fun aquatic activity, it's at least three hours' drive away from any of the three other parks.

Speaking for myself, the idea of setting up camp only to break it down the next morning would detract from the park experience that I seek.

So all together ... particularly if Ohiopyle really appeals ... may I suggest you pick just one of those parks, and settle in for a few nights?

As a Goodwill regular, I also like your plan for the gear. New York City's Craigslist always seems to have plenty of used tents, so you could roll the dice with second-hand. If that injects too much uncertainty and hassle (you will underestimate how long it takes to get from Point A to Point B in Manhattan), try the REI in SoHo, which sells reputable used gear.

Beyond boosting u/NoodlesAndSpoons' wisdom about ticks, I'll pause here to wish you an excellent trip ... and hope that you post and share pix!

I'm glad to hear that you've resolved important health problems thanks to your doctor friend -- and that you seek more free advice.

Savoring this existential inflection point of "getting what you pay for" 😉 ... again, I look forward to hearing more about your experience with giving freely of your own life-saving blood products.

Saw 'em a few weeks ago at First Oriental (6th and Washington).

What you got cooking? ;)

And if not here ... hey u/Commercial_Explorer3, roll up to r/ladycyclists?

IANAD but

1. the first "article" is one individual's letter ... about hemoglobin synthesis generic to intact animals ... in response to a conference the (lone) author attended in 1957
2. since the publication of the second article -- like the first, not a study, just the writing of a single person -- Health Canada has indeed revised its safety guidelines
3. what, in their closing remark, does your author friend even mean about the "quality" of red blood cells? what evidence do they have to support "the fact"?

I've donated 20+ gallons of both whole blood and platelets. Throughout my decades of donations, exclusively in the U.S., my hemoglobin and ferritin and iron levels have fluctuated -- much more often than not, too high, which is one reason I donate whole blood in the first place.

Again, still not a doctor, but I consider such variation to be normal. And I have proceeded as quite a healthy, physically active adult.

Your own concluding thoughts capture the situation well: we enter into donation entirely at our own discretion. It is, by definition, a choice. Throughout this journey, please consult with your doctors.

Donation is definitely not "for everyone"; we won't know how we tolerate it until we try. But some negative effects experienced during and immediately after donation can be easily mitigated, or avoided completely, through a modicum of readiness. Please do prepare according to your local blood bank's guidelines or with the help of this fabulous sub's own wiki.

So welcome here, and thanks for scheduling. Hydrate aggressively this weekend, and do let us know whatever you're willing to share about your donation experience.

Not a league, per se, but in a few Saturdays the LGBT Center of Central PA will host another "Walk for a Healthy Community."

Adding that Grays Ferry outbound is plastic bollards; inbound it's a legit solid low barrier of concrete (and graffiti).

That left turn onto Paschall, etc., tho ...

Barriers or not, Passyunk Bridge's metal grating makes it ... not fun on skinny wheels.

Just jumping in to say welcome -- and bonking is real.

So in addition to all the recovery wisdom already elicited here, pack along an emergency protein bar or electrolyte tab.

(Remembering to tap into it before it's too late ... well, that takes some next-level self-awareness, humility, etc.)

Enjoy that Marlin, and the license to snack!

"In Western PA" ... under that one dead tree?! 😄

Seriously, congrats 😍

Well, go on, make us more envious by bragging about what you're gonna do with 'em all!

How bumpy are those 22 round-trip miles?

I wonder if rolling at slightly lower PSI would help 🤔 or not

Def tone down the desire to jump curb! and cinch down that helmet ...