A note on fitness: I've been riding for a little over a month now. And I don't mean just in training for the LIVESTRONG Challenge ride--I mean at all. I hadn't been on my bike in almost 2 years.

Having a deadline like a big event always helps you focus and improve your effort, but in this case I've been really surprised by how large a health benefit I've enjoyed in such a short time.

Before I started riding I'd been hobbled by a bad knee injury that just wasn't healing. I used to run (when I worked out at all), but the blown knee has made running impossible. Combine bad eating, no exercise and a bad attitude (felt hopeless with a bum knee), and soon I was woefully out-o-shape.

Then I started riding.

What a difference!

I have to give credit here to the much-maligned City of Irvine, and the greater O.C.: there are a LOT of great bike trails here, and especially out in the east end, where all the roads have decent bike lanes. Having a great area to ride has made all the difference in the world. I hated riding in LA, and as a result stopped riding--but here it's a pleasure. And the O.C. enjoys an even greater minutes-from-the-mountains-or-beach ratio than LA--it's very cool to do some great mountain biking at altitude and then roll down to the coast.

And I haven't gotten any tickets yet.

So in about six weeks I've dropped more than 10 lbs, and with the combined increase in fitness, it feels more like 20. Having turned 40 this year, I wondered if I'd ever get back to decent fitness. A steady program of biking has really opened my eyes--I honestly didn't expect this great a benefit!

It does help if you can stay on the bike.

Deep sand--it gets me every time!

p.s. It's our seventh wedding anniversary today--love you, baby!