I had been coveting this spin video for awhile and was excited to find it under the tree this year! (Okay, we didn’t have a tree, but you know what I mean.)
This is a three hour spin workout and what makes it hard is what makes his other On the Road video hard—you don’t get a break. Most of Coach Troy’s videos are interval work. You spin hard, then you rest. But with the Virtual Reality videos, you’re pedaling the whole time, which is harder than a standard spin video and harder than an actual ride outdoors.
The beauty of the landscape in this video is what makes the time pass. The ride starts and ends at the site of the 1980 Olympic Games in Lake Placid and for three hours you ride the roads of the Ironman USA course through the surrounding hills. I’ve never been to the Adirondacks before, but I found the landscape and architectural styles similar to Vermont, leading to moments when I caught myself looking for covered bridges!
I ignored Coach Troy’s gearing advice and simply focused on the road, switching to easier gears on the downhills and harder ones on the uphills to mimic what I would be feeling on a real bike ride. I got so into it that I caught myself waving to other cyclists, but the stuck-up jerks didn’t wave back. Their loss.
By the last hour, I was feeling this workout. Part of it was that I had done a long run yesterday and slept badly last night, but a lot of it was also just the effect of spinning my legs for three hours straight. Coach Troy likes to say that three hours on the trainer is the equivalent of four on the road, and given how many of these turns and downhills I would’ve coasted in a real road ride, I believe it.
Great spin video! Highly recommended! I understand Coach Troy has a Tuscon Training Ride video in the works and I can hardly wait!
Showing posts with label product review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label product review. Show all posts
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Product Review: LightWedge
You know the drill. One of you wants to sleep, the other wants to stay up and read. But you’re away from home, at a hotel, a relative’s house or in a tent. Lamps aren’t in convenient places and going to another room to read might not be an option.
But luckily for us bibliophiles, some clever person invented the Lightwedge! It’s a thin piece of plexiglass, lit by an LED powered by four AAA batteries. Just put the Lightwedge over your page and turn it on!
I bough the paperback size Lightwedge and it’s pretty cool. It’s small, light, powerful, and fits in a book just like a bookmark. It’s much more convenient than the book lights that were around in the ‘80s. If, like me, you like to read in bed all cuddled up with book, blanket and cat, the Lightwedge doesn’t get in the way at all. And you can keep it in your book when you’re not using it.
My only quibble is that the light arcs of the two LEDs overlap, creating a faint wave-patterned shadow on the page. This is an extremely minor flaw though, and overall, this is an excellent product. Four AAA batteries give you forty hours of light. That’s a lot of late-night reading while your spouse snores in the dark!
But luckily for us bibliophiles, some clever person invented the Lightwedge! It’s a thin piece of plexiglass, lit by an LED powered by four AAA batteries. Just put the Lightwedge over your page and turn it on!
I bough the paperback size Lightwedge and it’s pretty cool. It’s small, light, powerful, and fits in a book just like a bookmark. It’s much more convenient than the book lights that were around in the ‘80s. If, like me, you like to read in bed all cuddled up with book, blanket and cat, the Lightwedge doesn’t get in the way at all. And you can keep it in your book when you’re not using it.
My only quibble is that the light arcs of the two LEDs overlap, creating a faint wave-patterned shadow on the page. This is an extremely minor flaw though, and overall, this is an excellent product. Four AAA batteries give you forty hours of light. That’s a lot of late-night reading while your spouse snores in the dark!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Product Review: Java Juice
I’ve been playing with this new coffee product for almost a week now. I gave packets to my husband and a friend at work, hoping for additional input, but my beta testers have yet to try it, so this review will have to be solo.
For starters, it’s convenient. I love being able to empty one of the single-serving pouches into a cup, add hot water, and have a perfect cup of coffee. It’s more convenient than instant (no messy powder, no stirring!) and tastes a lot better. It also saved my butt at a morning workshop earlier this week. I didn’t know if there would be refreshments available, but I did know that there was a water cooler with a hot water tap. So I slipped two pouches of Java Juice into my purse, and sure enough there was no coffee at the workshop. But there was coffee for me, and boy did I feel smart!
The only thing I’m a little unhappy with is the taste. It’s far better than instant, and it’s better than most office brews, but it’s not up to coffee shop standards, and it’s slightly bitter. The thing I love about cold-brewed coffee is its lack of acidity, so I was hoping Java Juice would have that same mellow flavor. No such luck. It’s no more acidic than a typical cup of brewed coffee, but anyone with fond memories of real cold-brew will be disappointed.
Nevertheless, I love the convenience of this product. Since the packaging is rather wasteful, I'm going to explore doing my own cold-brewing at home, for day-to-day coffee drinking. But I’ll be buying more of these Java Juice packets for our upcoming road trip and for office emergencies, like workshops where there is no beverage setup. It works well with hot or cold water, so I really can't go wrong with this stuff. I don’t need to ever again find myself someplace where I can’t have a decent cup of coffee, and that’s a good thing!
For starters, it’s convenient. I love being able to empty one of the single-serving pouches into a cup, add hot water, and have a perfect cup of coffee. It’s more convenient than instant (no messy powder, no stirring!) and tastes a lot better. It also saved my butt at a morning workshop earlier this week. I didn’t know if there would be refreshments available, but I did know that there was a water cooler with a hot water tap. So I slipped two pouches of Java Juice into my purse, and sure enough there was no coffee at the workshop. But there was coffee for me, and boy did I feel smart!
The only thing I’m a little unhappy with is the taste. It’s far better than instant, and it’s better than most office brews, but it’s not up to coffee shop standards, and it’s slightly bitter. The thing I love about cold-brewed coffee is its lack of acidity, so I was hoping Java Juice would have that same mellow flavor. No such luck. It’s no more acidic than a typical cup of brewed coffee, but anyone with fond memories of real cold-brew will be disappointed.
Nevertheless, I love the convenience of this product. Since the packaging is rather wasteful, I'm going to explore doing my own cold-brewing at home, for day-to-day coffee drinking. But I’ll be buying more of these Java Juice packets for our upcoming road trip and for office emergencies, like workshops where there is no beverage setup. It works well with hot or cold water, so I really can't go wrong with this stuff. I don’t need to ever again find myself someplace where I can’t have a decent cup of coffee, and that’s a good thing!
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Cool Product Idea - Java Juice
I read today about a new product: Java Juice. It's little single-serving packets of concentrated coffee that you can add to hot or cold water to make a quick cuppa joe anytime, anywhere.
Check out their site! Intriguing, isn't it? I once worked at a restaurant that had concentrated coffee that you could mix with hot water, and it was quite good. If Java Juice is anything like that, it's going to be fab!
I have some on order, so check back here for a product review sometime within the next seven days!
Recent Workouts
Sunday: 50 minute spin
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 4.5 mile run
Wednesday: 5 minute stairmaster (while waiting for an elliptical machine), 30 minute elliptical
Check out their site! Intriguing, isn't it? I once worked at a restaurant that had concentrated coffee that you could mix with hot water, and it was quite good. If Java Juice is anything like that, it's going to be fab!
I have some on order, so check back here for a product review sometime within the next seven days!
Recent Workouts
Sunday: 50 minute spin
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 4.5 mile run
Wednesday: 5 minute stairmaster (while waiting for an elliptical machine), 30 minute elliptical
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