Weekly Newsletter: April 29th - May 5th, 2024

This week, Keith put in a big effort to get back into riding shape and Lindsey finished her 18th book of the year!

Check out our new posts and videos 🆕 🎥 📝

Utah Adventures With A Friend: Part 3

Yi visits us in Utah for a road trip. This is part 3 of the multi-part series.

Keith and LindseyLindsey Huster

Spending a lot of time reading 📖 🤓

We have both been spending a lot of time reading over the past few weeks. Lindsey has been knocking out books left and right since she got her Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition. She has now completed her 18th book of the year! Keith is getting close to finishing his second management training book.

First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently

Gallup presents the remarkable findings of its revolutionary study of more than 80,000 managers in First, Break All the Rules, revealing what the world's greatest managers do differently. With vital performance and career lessons and ideas for how to apply them, it is a must-read for managers at every level.

Buy on Amazon

This book focuses on how traditional expectations of how managers should behave and what managers should focus on are flawed. If I had to summarize this book in one sentence it would be that "great managers should focus on developing their team's strengths, not fixing their weaknesses".

So much pasta! 🍝 😋

For date night this week, we decided to check out Brick Oven, a famously local Italian eatery in Provo, UT. Brick Oven is known for two things; delicious handmade pizzas and an all-you-can-eat pasta buffet plus salad bar. We wanted to try both but we quickly realized that would not be feasible in a single trip. So, for this time, we both decided to sample the never-ending pasta and salad buffet.

We didn't take many photos since there were a lot of people in the restaurant. The salad bar reminded us both of the salad bars that we used to eat at in Indiana. There was everything you could ever want to add to a salad. The pasta bar offered several varieties of pasta. Upon picking your pasta, the chef cooked it in front of you, topped it with your choice of meatballs or sausage, and then highlighted the dish with a delicious slice of garlic bread pulled fresh from a massive brick oven. Finally, you could choose between one or more of the many sauce and cheese options to finish off your pasta.

Needless to say, we both ate way more pasta than we should have. We finished off the night out by taking a stroll around the block to try to help settle our stomachs. 😆

Enjoying the sun before the storm hits ☀️ 🚴‍♀️

A large winter storm (wait, isn't it May?!?!?) was forecast for the end of the week so we decided to get out and enjoy the sun while we could. Keith has also been wanting to ride his mountain bike to get a better sense of how his recovery is progressing (more about that later). So, we decided to take a leisurely ride from our home to the Utah Lake Shoreline Trail.

This is our local trail that runs along Utah Lake. It is a short bike ride from our house and it's quite stunning to be on the shoreline during sunrise or sunset. We both rode together until we reached the end of the trail. At that point, Lindsey rode back to a grassy area near a park to get some sun. Keith continued on his ride until he reached the Murdock Canal Trail. This is the beginning leg of his usual training route.

Tour Divide training update 🏋️‍♂️ 😅

Keith has been putting in a strong effort to attempt to recover in time for the 2024 Tour Divide. In general, he is feeling strong and his fitness is returning even quicker than we expected. Below is a breakdown of his training efforts and an update on his targeted milestones:

Weekly Training Efforts

• Monday (4/29): 12.5 mile (20.1 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 125 watts average power
• Tuesday (4/30): 19.5 mile (31.4 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 172 watts average power
• Wednesday (5/1): 17.7 mile (28.5 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 143 watts average power. Also, 1 hour of post-ride knee rehab exercises.
• Thursday (5/2): 23.2 mile (37.3 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 199 watts average power
• Friday (5/3): 19.5 mile (31.4 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 190 watts average power
• Saturday (5/4): 22.5 mile (36.2 kilometer) outdoor ride @ 110 watts average power
• Sunday (5/5): 17.4 mile (28 kilometer) indoor Zwift ride @ 165 watts average power

Milestones Update

• ✅ May 3rd - Must be able to ride the indoor trainer at 100W or more for at least 1 hour without any immediate or latent pain.
  • ✅ Keith has well surpassed his power and duration targets.
  • ⚠️ He is not experiencing any "pain" while riding. However, his patella tendon is showing signs of strain as his knee becomes red after he completes a ride.
  • ⚠️ He will continue to monitor the patella tendon inflammation as he continues with his training efforts.
• ▶️ May 15th - Must be able to ride his usual, 50-mile outdoor training route without any immediate or latent pain. Must also be able to hike on a relatively easy trail (Lower Battle Creek Falls Trail) without any pain.
  • Update coming soon...
• ⏸️ May 31st - Must be able to complete the >100-mile Utah Lake Loop without pain. Must also be able to hike a moderately strenuous trail without pain (e.g. Grove Creek Trail).
  • Update coming soon...

Due to the patella tendon inflammation, Keith has decided to take the next two days off from any riding or working out. The hope is that a couple days of rest will allow the tendon to calm down and finish healing. He plans to attempt to ride again this coming Wednesday (5/8). If the patella tendon is still a problem at that point, some very difficult decisions will need to be made...

Upcoming posts and videos 👷‍ 👷‍♀️️

Lindsey is working her way through the series of posts covering our friend Yi's visit to Utah last summer. Be sure to subscribe to our blog so that you don't miss out. Keith has been extra-focused on recovery efforts so he is unsure when he will be able to work on any posts in the near term. 🥺

We hope that you are enjoying our newsletters. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers as Keith continues on his recovery journey. What are some of your favorite local restaurants? Do you have any suggestions for any other springtime activities? Let us know in the comments section below.👇 💬