When I laid my head down on my pillow for a few hours of deep sleep last night, it was lightly raining with no apparent intention of stopping. My alarm went off as planned at 4am, and I did not even need to leave the comfort of my bed to know how powerful the rain was pounding Tokyo. There will be no cycling today, and potentially for the foreseeable future if the weather forecast is even remotely accurate. By all accounts, Tokyo's rainy season is in full swing.
Now that rainy season has officially commenced I need to consider an alternative cycling plan until I can ride more regularly again. As I have said previously, I really dislike the gym, and actually find it far more nerve wracking than enjoyable. Conceptually, I have no problem with the gym, but for some reason it really ends up spiking up my anxiety.
Being locked indoors, with people surrounding me while I attempt to live within my own little workout bubble, is what appears to bother me more than anything. When I am out cycling, I like to ride solo so I can focus on what is important to me. Plus I also get the opportunity to listen to podcasts and ebooks rather than being forced to make small talk while riding. If I am out riding with friends for pleasure it is one thing, but if it is with a cycling club then I almost feel the same as being inside a gym.
Such is the life of an introvert who is truly only comfortable around people for whom he is intimately familiar.
But I really do need to devise a plan for getting some spinning done during this annoying rainy season. I will likely need to hit the gym, potentially riding an indoor stationary bike for 30-50k at a pop, combined with some elliptical action, and rounding it all out with weight training - something I should be doing anyways.
During rainy season in 2020 I had started doing some dumbell workouts at home. I have two 15kg dumbells, and ran through about six different exercises, doing three sets apiece. The affect was immediate, especially after doing three to five sets of ten rep squats. I distinctly remember having trouble walking down my stairs because my quads were on fire with pain. If memory serves, I did not even try to cycle while my legs were screaming at me in horror.
In the meantime, I am going to continue staring out my window overlooking Tokyo and yearn to be out cycling along the Tamagawa, meditating to the calm surroundings while completely unplugged from the universe.
Rain rain go away ...
