On November 10, 2019, dozens of participants of all skill levels attended and participated in Grease Rag’s 11th Annual Winter Skill Share!

At the Winter Skill Share, we tapped into the deep wisdom of our Twin Cities FTW biking community — and shared resources for riding through the Gear Swap — so that we can all have a safe, fun winter riding season.

Special thanks to our presenters Low, Liz, Patrick and France, along with volunteer reporters Kym, Noelle, France and Carolyn. And much gratitude to the incredible organizers and day-of volunteers who brought us together including Low, Patrick, Maddie, Genevieve, Lucy, Linda, JJ, Krista, Ames, Victoria, Margaret, Kat, Tina and others!

Click the links below for recaps from each of the sessions:

• Winter Self Care
• Winter Bike Maintenance
• What to Wear
• Routing and Handling
• Q&A and Group Share

If you have resources or take-aways to add to any of the posts, please email carolyn.szczepanskI@gmail.com and she can update!

Panelists for the Q&A included Patrick, Liz and France, with Low as moderator

Is it better to buy a new bike and commit to maintenance or a junker with the assumption that it will die given winter conditions?nbsp;
Liz suggested that, depending on your budget, you should buy the bike that fits your needs but even if you get a low-cost bike it’s ideal to maintain that bike so you don’t have to repurpose or buy another one the following winter! Even simple maintenance like cleaning and lubing your chain every few weeks can go a long way! 

Resources for buying bikes! 

• Twin Cities FTW WTF Bicycle Trading Post
• Twin Cities Bicycle Trading Post (be ready for white men) 
• The Hub
• Cherry Cycles — closing location = deals!  
• Recovery
• Full Cycle
• Sierra Trading Post
• Backcountry
• Moosejaw
• Used gear on REI
• Repair Lair
• Midwest Mountain / Thrifty Outfitters
• Patagonia Worn Wear
• Clothing swaps
  • Queer clothing swap on Dec 1!
• City bike auctions

How do you balance the warmth and benefits of wearing goggles with the decrease in peripheral vision if you don’t have mirrors?
Liz noted that because you have to turn your head more, you have to be cognizant of not turning your handlebars, too. It can be helpful to practice during warmer seasons so you don’t have to contend with winter road conditions to get comfortable turning your head. 

What about wearing glasses with goggles?
Patrick said they just don’t wear their glasses with their goggles. But you can get prescription goggles, though they’re more pricey. There are also inserts for goggles, that fill part of the screen. They still fog up but a little better than not wearing glasses, if necessary. 

What’s the hardest part of winter biking for you?
Having to be at work at 8 a.m., France said it’s the motivation to get up and get ready. Liz said the same: getting motivated to ride to work and then wherever they’re going after work, like to see friends in the evening. For Liz, some days it’s better to drive because staying inside and not seeing friends is more detrimental to their mental well being. Winter riding doesn’t make you a better person. If it’s not going to make you feel good to ride, that’s OK! For Patrick, motivation is a challenge, as well, but saying it’s OK to ride to work and then take the bus home makes it easier, especially on longer routes. 

What about self care? What’s your top tip?
France said it’s embracing winter; finding things that you love outside and being active helps with your spirit. For Liz, it’s baths — with with scented candles! Sitting in warm water and doing a full body inventory. For Patrick, it’s getting a Ginger Shot from Juice So Good everyday to help with internal warming and immune health!

From the group: What are your favorite life hacks or DIY tips and tricks for winter?

• You don’t need to have all your winter bike gear before you try biking in the winter. You can accumulate gear over time!
• For folks who find it stressful to pack before leaving the house, it can be helpful to have a list of things to remember, i.e. gloves, thermos, etc
• Have a dedicated space for all your winter gear, like an open shelf by the door, where you can put everything when you walk in and see everything when you’re about to leave. 
• Having a sun lamp alarm clock can be great in the winter; it lights up to wake you up! If you have trouble getting up you can put one on each side of your bed!
• For waking up, you can also put a timer on a lamp. 
• Having plants in your room can help you remember living things will come back! Going to Como Conservatory can be nice, the plants and humidity, when winter feels like too much.
• To keep your hands and feet warm — to avoid getting crabby! – pack extra slippers.
• Always carry an extra pair of socks! Feet get sweaty or moist from the weather and its can be great, once you get to work or a concert to put on clean socks.
• If you don’t want to purchase disposable hand and foot warmers, you can get rice warmers, which you pop in the microwave before you head out.
• Moisturizing around your eyes and mouth, especially if you don’t like to have a lot on your face like goggles or a facemask.
• Wear waterproof mascara.
• For nose bleeds, put Vaseline on Q-tip to hydrate the inside of your nose and put a humidifier in the bedroom.
• Put some eucalyptus in hot water and breathe that in. 
• Take Vitamin D. Iron and Vitamin D don’t work well together, so take separately. Iron and Vitamin C do go well together. 
• Try meditation; Common Ground is a resource in Minneapolis with talks on the website and a POC sangha, too.
• Having a plan in case of emergency. That could be a phone charger, cash and a bus card, whatever you might need. A spare tube is helpful but in winter you might not want to change a tire outside, so know that you can put it on the bus and take it to a bike shop, or have a friend drive you home from an event if you’re feeling low energy. This can lessen anxiety and make winter biking more possible! 
• You can register with Metro Transit as a non-regular driver and get one cab ride per month through the Guaranteed Ride Home program. Info here!
• Plan meals for days you know will be hard so you have a fun reward at the end of the day, i.e. Know Wednesdays are always  tough? Treat yourself to a burger! 
• With winter biking you burn so many calories to keep your body warm, that it’s important to pack snacks for when you hit the wall or just need a little boost. Put little chocolate bars in the pockets of your bike jacket!

What’s your top snack?
For Patrick, it’s a fruity sweet snack like a Clif Bar. Because they have a long ride and often get hungry after breakfast, they make overnight oats with fruit and nuts and chia seeds so they can eat half at home before they leave and the other half at work. For France, it’s foods that are higher in fat and protein like hard-boiled eggs, sardines or avocado. Liz said they struggle with making a good breakfast in the morning so, knowing this habit won’t change, they eat a simple meal like a bowl of cereal or toast and, at work, they have a stash of bagels and cream cheese and lunch meat so they have something to eat if / when they’re hungry when they arrive or later in the morning. 

How do you carry your bike up and down the stairs?nbsp;
Remember to carry it at an angle with the heaviest part of the bike closest to your body. This could mean putting your shoulder under the saddle or under the top tube and your hand on the down tube. Take it slow and remember to manage for turns. If you have a back rack, consider taking the bike up or downstairs backwards!

Self care is a big subject but we will be focusing on physical self care, because winter bike riding! Self care is about balance. Think about what you need right now, because when you leave today, you can start your first act of self care, if you haven’t yet. With drastic weather changes, your body needs extra care because the winter months can be cold and drying, you aren’t getting as much sun, we want to warm you up and make sure you are nice and hydrated.

MOVEMENT 

A few minutes of movement will help you warm up and prevent injury, mimicking the movements in biking. Some movements for bike riding are leg swings front & back and side to side, arm rolls, squats, cat cows, neck rolls. Start rides out slower so your body has time to warm up joints, tendons, muscles to prevent injury and strains.

Foam rolling for warm up and cool downs, helps release tension in your muscles. Lymph flow and increasing circulation helps warm up the body by dry brushing, sauna, jump rope, trampoline/rebounder, self massage, la cross ball (to pin point specific spots).

SKIN CARE

Hydration is important. The skin is the first line of defense from pathogens in the body. Warming balm’s can be great for warming up hands and feet. Find some at the coop or make your own. I added ginger, clove bud and sweet orange to my last batch of whipped tallow. Olive oil infused with herbs or just a few drops of essential oils makes a great moisturizer.

WHIPPED TALLOW BALM (external use only)

Beef Tallow moisturizer is anti-microbial/ anti-inflammatory, great for winter skin and skin conditions like eczema, diaper rash (make sure to use baby safe essential oils) or just your regular face and body oil.

• 4-ounces grass fed beef tallow (I get mine at the coop)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (extra-virgin, cold-pressed)
• Few drops of lavender essential oil (I only use enough to cover up the tallow smell, essential oils are concentrated enough that you don’t need more than a few drops. Try lavender, it’s calming and good for your skin. Ginger is warming.)

In a double boiler add beef tallow and warm until melted, add olive oil and essential oil. Let the mixture cool for about an hour at room temperature. After an hour, whip with a hand mixture until to get a frosting-like consistency. Place in a clean jar & store at room temperature, fine to store in the fridge if you have extra. 

HYDRATION

Ideally, you would drink half your body weight in ounces, so if you are 150 pounds, you should be drinking 75 ounces of water. If you are having diuretics through out the day, you have to make up for it, by drinking 1 and 1/2 more water. So if you are drinking 8 ounces of coffee, caffeine, sodas, juice, you want to add on another 12 ounces of water. Drinking enough water in a day can be hard, so I try to stay away from the diuretics. If you are eating fresh non processed foods, the water in your meals count. Drinking spring water, filtered water would be ideal. Adding lemon and sea salt helps with electrolyte balance as well as broths. I like to add bone broths/fish broth/mushroom broth for extra minerals and protein.

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN BROTH 

Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon. Makes 1 gallon.

• Saved bones from 2 pasture-raised chickens fed non-GMO feed
• 1 pigs foot or hock, from hogs fed non-GMO feed and/or chicken feet and heads from 2 chickens
• ¼ cup vinegar
• 1 onion, cut in quarters (no peeling necessary)

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker and fill with filtered water. Cook overnight on low. In the morning, allow to cool. Use a ladle to remove the broth, ladling through a strainer into a 2-quart Pyrex pitcher.  Place the pitcher in the fridge to cool the broth. Fill the slow cooker again with water and cook overnight on low.  The next morning, allow the broth to cool and remove the bones with tongs and a slotted spoon. Ladle the broth through a strainer into a second 2-quart Pyrex pitcher and refrigerate. The first pitcher of broth should gel very well; the second will gel but less so. You may remove the fat that congeals at the top of the broth but it is not necessary. Use the broth within 3 days or transfer to containers (graded 2, 4 or 5) and freeze.

DIY IMMUNE BROTH

Borrowed from Urbanmoonshine.com

• A selection of medicinal mushrooms: 5-6 slices of reishi, 7-10 shitake, 1 large maitake, could also add in turkey tail
• 10 slices of astragalus root
• ½ bunch of celery, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 red or yellow onion, chopped
• 5-6 garlic cloves
• 3 quarts of water- adding a little more as 
• needed while it simmers.
• 7-10 springs Parsley
• 3-5 springs of sage
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Optional add-ins could be: nettles, burdock, turmeric, ginger.

Combine everything in a large pot and bring to a boil. Cover, and let simmer on low heat for 2-3 hours. Keep an eye on the water levels; you may want to add a bit more. Once the time is up, remove from heat and strain through a strainer or cheesecloth. Use as is, or in soup, or freeze for later use. All ingredients can be found at the coop or health food store like The Medicine Tree or Tao Foods.

Your more likely to get sick if your lungs and sinuses are dry. Netti pot, facial steam with eucalyptus essential oil and humidifiers can help keep you lungs and sinuses moist.

FOOD

Eat breakfast high in fat and protein helps with blood sugar balance and will give you more sustained energy through out the day, as opposed to high carb.

I’d start with a 30/30/40 diet and figure out what works for me. 30 fat/30 protein/40 carbs (whole grains and veggies). Depending on your activity level, you may need more or less of those numbers. Food plays a huge role on winter activities, because it effects your energy level, your muscles, your circulation…

Eating mindfully, chew your food is easier on your digestion. If you chew your food to a soupy consistency, the enzyme salivary amylase helps break down carbohydrates to use as energy and as the food goes through your digestive system it breaks down fats a proteins. If your digestion is working properly, you absorb the nutrients better, which helps your body function better.

What should your plate look like? 1/2 veggies, grains. Eat a variety of color, cooked and raw to get a variety of nutrients. Probiotic rich food like, kim chee, saurkraut, yogurt… 

Eating for the season keeps you warm. Save the salads for summer time, unless you’re having a warm salad. Eating soups and whatever foods are in season, like root vegetables, cooked vegetable, winter squashes, broths. Making soup can be easy, especially if you have a crock pot…. Makes meal planning for the week easier, unless you have some kids. lol.. you know what you’re putting in your body.

CREAMY CHICKEN AND MUSHROOM SOUP

4 servings, Chelsea at doyouevenpaleo.net

This dairy free soup uses cauliflower and potatoes to  create a creamy base. Feel free to remove the potatoes and use a little more cauliflower if you prefer!

• 1 tablespoon ghee or extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped (~1 tablespoon)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 5 cups broth (I used homemade bone broth)
• 1 cup yukon gold potatoes, cubed
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped into large chunks 
• 2 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• Fresh parsley, finely chopped, for garnish

Heat ghee in a large pot over medium heat. Add  onion and saute for 5 minutes, until soft and  translucent. Add garlic and cook for an additional  1 minute. Pour in broth, then add potatoes, cauliflower, thyme, sage, and rosemary. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the broth to a boil. Boil for 10-15 minutes or until the cauliflower and potatoes are fork-tender. Meanwhile, add chicken breasts to a small pot and sprinkle with salt. Cover completely with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Simmer for 12 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and shred using two forks. Set aside. Carefully add the entire contents of the potato, cauliflower, and broth pot to a high powered blender. Add 1/2 cup mushrooms to the blender. Blend for 4-5 minutes, until mixture is completely smooth. Return the cauliflower mixture to the pot. Add mushrooms, chicken, salt, and pepper to the soup, stirring to combine. Cook over low, stirring frequently, until heated through. Serve sprinkled with fresh parsley.

Teas, tinctures and supplements would be a good vitamin boost for winter, if the foods aren’t cutting it. I generally go for nourishing teas like chamomile, calendula, milky oats, nettles. Also teas high in vitamin c, like rose hips, elderberry, hibiscus. Warming teas with ginger, fennel, cardamom and cinnamon, boost your immune system with some fire cider.

FIRE CIDER

borrowed recipe from IG: @rosemarygladstar

• ½ cup grated fresh horseradish root
• ½ cup or more fresh chopped onions
• ¼ cup or more chopped garlic
• ¼ cup or more grated ginger
• Chopped fresh or dried cayenne pepper ‘to taste’. Can be whole or powdered. 
• Optional ingredients; Turmeric, Echinacea, cinnamon, etc.

Place herbs in a half-gallon canning jar and cover with enough raw unpasteurized apple cider vinegar to cover the herbs by at least three to four inches.  Cover tightly with a tight fitting lid. Place jar in a warm place and let for three to four weeks. Best to shake every day to help in the maceration and reserve the liquid. Add honey ‘to taste’.  Warm the honey first so it mixes in well. “To Taste’ means your Fire Cider should taste hot, spicy, and sweet.  “A little bit of honey helps the medicine go down……” Rebottle and enjoy!  Fire Cider will keep for several months unrefrigerated if stored in a cool pantry.   But it’s better to store in the refrigerator if you’ve room. A small shot glass daily serves as an excellent tonic Or take teaspoons if you feel a cold coming on. Take it more frequently if necessary to help your immune system do battle.

SPICED ELDERAPPLE CIDER

borrow recipe from IG: @thatfoodgirl, foodgirl.com

Perfect for cold weather gatherings to keep your guests healthy…cinnamon, glove, ginger and star anise are natural immune boosters and prickly ash berries are a surprise ingredient to add warmth to this tasty sipper.

• 6 Cups Apple cider
• 1/4 cup dried elderberries
• Juice and zest of one lemon
• 1” chunk fresh ginger root, sliced thin
• 1 Star anise
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 6 whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon prickly ash berries or bark

Simmer all ingredients together in a sauce pan and serve warm. It’s best if it simmers for at least 30 mins and wonderful served in a crock pot for gatherings. Can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator and reheated when you are ready to serve.

Hi-C Vitamin Tonic Tea

borrowed from IG: @the_medicine_tree

Protects against cold and flu

• 4 parts Rosehips
• 3 parts Hibiscus Flower
• 2 parts Lemongrass
• 1 part Cinnamon Chips

Make as much as you’d like and save in a jar. When ready to use, steep 2 teaspoons in hot water for 20 minutes. Strain in cup and enjoy!

REST & ROUTINE

Sleep is really important. Getting enough sleep with help your energy level for the day. If you can’t sleep, try calming teas, give yourself time before bed to wind down. Read a book instead of your smart phone. Do some mindful breathing. Maybe you can get a massage from your partner or self massage. Aromatherapy with essential oils can be calming. Journaling or making a list can get things out of your head so you can have an easier time settling into bed. magnesium before bed. foot bath, epsom salt bath

Developing a routine can help make your life run smoother. For example sleep better… But having your things ready the night before can be helpful.  Having your keys in the same spot every time. If you plan on winter bike commuting, there are a lot of extra things to think about.

CLOTHES

Dressing for the weather is an act of self care. There’s no such thing as bad weather, but bad clothes. I think that is true for the most part. If you dress in layers, you can always tear some off. Wool hats and gloves and sweaters. Good boots are super important, bad shoes can really ruin your activities. I’m sure we all know that from experience, right? Waterproof/all weather with enough room for circulation in your toes. If all those warming techniques aren’t helping you, its okay to use hand and foot warms. Have fun outside and make sure to get some vitamin D! I would recommend taking vitamin D as a supplement in the winter since its hard to get in food and because of lack of sun to skin exposure.

BALANCE

Since self care is about balance and giving yourself what you need, it’s always going to change. If you are already a really active person, maybe you need some rest days. If you are always tired, but your activity level is low, maybe you need to add some activity in your life. Join a gym or try a new activity through community ed or continuing education. If you spend a lot of time alone, maybe make a friend date. If you are always out and about with other people, maybe try spending some time alone. Do a 30 day self care challenge and see how that works for you. If it feels good, keep doing, if it doesn’t…

Well, it appears that the winter winds are finally howling towards us (at least for a few days). Just in time, I made a batch of Spicy Apple Porridge to fuel me up. It turned out so well that I wanted to share the recipe. Minnesota apples, cinnamon, star anise, nutmeg, and cardamom combine with grains of your choice for a breakfast delicious enough to pull you out of a cozy bed. Plus you can make it ahead of time.

Ingredients:

• 4-5 tart apples, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 brown sugar, palm sugar, maple syrup, OR honey
• juice of 1/2 medium lemon
• a whole star anise
• 3 green cardamom pods, split open
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. fresh grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups mixed grains such as millet, barley, wheat berries, rye berries (I used millet and barley)

Put the star anise and cardamom pods into a spice bag or tie up in cheese cloth for easy removal at the end. Then combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan with enough water to cover them. Bring to a simmer and let cook for about an hour, until grains are tender and mixture looks porridge-y. While cooking, periodically check to make sure there is still enough liquid. You can eat this hot, warm, room temperature, or cold. Rewarm with a little water or milk for a hot breakfast or lunch. Try toping it with yogurt, raisins, nuts, lemon zest, or more maple syrup for even more tastiness. You can also experiment with adding cranberries, ginger, or dried fruits while you cook the apples and grains. This recipe makes about 5-6 cups of porridge.

(My porridge was inspired by Martha Shulman’s Apple-Spice Breakfast soup)

(Read Part 1: Saving Your Skin in Winter)

Hello again! I hope that everyone is ready to delve further into the winter skin care discussion with part two of my Saving Winter Skin blog posts. If you missed part one you can read it here. Today’s post is about saving your face from the harsh elements – which we all desperately need this week! I’m going to talk about the science of skin sebum, mention a few of my favorite products, and leave you with some dietary suggestions to help improve your skin.

Why our skin dries out in winter:

Winter is rough. There’s very little moisture in the air, our indoor heating systems continuously blow more hot, dry air through our homes and offices, and us cyclists expose our faces to whipping winds on a daily basis. All this dryness sucks the moisture right out of our skin, leaving us with dry, flaky, and even chapped skin. These weather conditions will especially exacerbate certain skin diseases such as eczema and psoriasis.

You would think that simply hydrating our skin more would combat all that dryness. While that is entirely true, the key here is that we need to hydrate our skin with water AND oil. Oil? Yes, oil.

You might have heard in commercials or magazines that people tend to either have dry, oily, or combination skin. Well, oily isn’t the most accurate term for it. Technically our skin doesn’t produce oil – it produces sebum. Sebum is primarily composed of tryglycerides (~41%), wax esters (~26%), squalene (~12%), and free fatty acids (~16%)[i]. So the key to winter facial skin care is to replace the lost water AND sebum content.

Some of my favorite products that keep my skin healthy in winter.

How to keep your skin hydrated:

Ditch the Soap: Soap is notorius for dying out the delicate skin on the face. There’s no reason your face should feel tight or raw after washing. A better method is to try oil cleansing. The oil cleansing method is based upon the theory that “like dissolves like”. Therefore instead of using harsh soap based face washes (or even gentle cleansers such as Cetaphil that are filled with propylene glycol and parabens), you use a mix of cleansing oils such as caster, jojoba, almond, or coconut to break down the dirt, make-up, and extra oil deposits in the skin, and then use a hot washcloth to steam the pores open and wipe away the excess oil. This method doesn’t destroy your natural sebum production like traditional face washes, and therefore leaves your skin more naturally hydrated. More detailed instructions on the oil cleansing method and how to mix up the best oil cleanser for your skin type can be found here.

My personal mix is 2 parts Heritage products band castor oil, 1 part Heather Loraine brand almond oil, 1 part Heather Lorraine jojoba oil, plus 10 drops each of Veriditas Botanicals brand tea tree and lavender essential oils. I mix them together and refill an empty jojoba oil pump top bottle. Then I put it in a cute owl planter that I never planted anything in it I started using this method a 1.5 years ago and my skin has never been softer or smoother.

Water + Oil = Love: Another thing I did after switching to the oil cleansing method, was start moisturizing with a combination of hydrosol and oil. Since our skin is made up of oil and water together, the best way to replenish lost moisture is with oil and water together. Seems almost too simple, right? You might be wondering what a hydrosol is. They are the water byproducts from essential oil production[ii]. They have many of the same benefits of essential oils, but in a milder, water based concentration. Many of the best natural estheticians recommend spritzing your face with hydrosol before applying your favorite skin care oil to damp skin. The combination of water and oil help protect the sebaceous layer of tissue better than oil-free moisturizers or plain oil alone. Lots of people have recently been turned on to jojoba oil because technically it’s not even oil – it’s a wax ester – which makes it more similar in chemical makeup to our skin’s sebum than traditional carrier oils like almond or coconut oil. This filtered organic jojoba oil might be a good one to try if you tend to have “oily” skin and are afraid to try using an oil for a moisturizer. It is lighter and absorbs more quickly.

My favorite products are the Veriditas Botanicals brand lavendar hydrosol mixed with Aura Cacia brand rosehip seed oil. The lavender helps calm my sensitive skin and the rosehip seed oil contains a high amount of free fatty acids (those things that help make up sebum!) and is good for dry skin.

Moisturize from the inside out: If we’re dehydrated on the inside, it’s going to show on the outside. This means drinking enough water (especially if you’re riding long distances daily), eating foods high in water content (fruits and veggies), and eating enough dietary fat. Essential fatty acids and cholesterol are of vital importance to the integrity of the skin barrier[iii]. Some foods that are helpful for moisturizing and protecting your skin: salmon, mackerel, walnuts, free-range eggs, butter from grass-fed cows, and flax and safflower oil. Taking an omega-3 supplement such as fish oil can also be helpful.

My favorite supplements are the Green Pastures fermented cod liver oil for fish oils, and wheat germ oil for a vegetarian alternative.

Protection: One of the best ways to save your face is to protect it. I’m a big fan of merino wool neck tubes worn up and over my nose during the briskest of days. They’re breathable, lightweight, and incredibly warm. I hate having my neck exposed when I’m riding (my Chinese medical fear of wind exposure causing frequent colds and flus) so my merino tubes is my best friend. I also make a point to keep extra rosehip seed oil or Waxalene at work so that if my face feels chapped after riding, I can apply some as soon as I’m inside.

I hope that some of these tips are helpful for you. If you have any questions about the body care products or supplements i mentioned above, please feel free to comment here. Thanks and happy riding everyone!

[i] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebaceous_gland

[ii] https://www.mountainroseherbs.com/learn/hydrosols

[iii] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24299153

As much as some of us might dislike it, winter is officially here. And the combination of the harsh winter weather with exposed skin during winter riding equals dry, scaly, winter skin. After years of working in the health and body care section at the Wedge, I’ve tried almost every natural weather resistant cream out there on the market. So in order to save you time, money, and the sampling of thousands of testers, my next few posts will be my two cents on the best ways to soothe and protect your skin during the winter riding season.

Best all purpose winter cream: Walexene

This product promotes itself as the natural alternative to petroleum jelly and I have to say that it’s has become my favorite go to cream for almost everything since I found it. It has a very thick texture (almost like whipped butter), smells like honey (there are only four 100% natural ingredients: soybean oil, beeswax, rosemary oil, vitamin E oil), and absorbs completely into the skin within a few minutes (avoiding the greasy feeling some oil based creams leave behind).

I primarily use this for hands, feet, elbows, knees, lips, and cuticles. This cream is great for any area of the body that needs a heavier and more protective layer during the winter months. And while you could absolutely use this on your face, I tend to break out easily so I think the heavy quality of this cream wouldn’t work well for my skin. (Exception: this would be perfect for protecting the sensitive skin around the nostrils that tend to irritate easily when you’re sick and blowing your nose frequently, or get irritated when breathing heavily through a wet scarf.)

The website lists several other possible uses for this petroleum jelly alternative, including: removing make-up, hairline skin protection when dying hair, cradle cap and diaper rash treatment for babies, hair styling aid for unruly flyaway’s and split ends, and many more.

While their list is impressive as is, I’d like to add a few cycling specific uses:

They state that you can use this as a weather protector for leather work-boots or baseball gloves, so I figure why not also use it to condition and protect leather saddles? I don’t have a Brooks saddle (insert wishful thinking here), so I haven’t tried out this theory yet, but I have used Waxalene on my beloved Frye harness boots and it worked great.

They also state that you can use Waxalene to prevent wet-suit rash by applying it to your neck and other tight spots. They write that the product won’t deteriorate wetsuits like petroleum products do. While wetsuits are made of neoprene and chamois are usually made of synthetic foam, this still got me thinking that maybe I could use it as a chamois cream. However, I’m somewhat skeptical. Someone once told me to discontinue using coconut oil as chamois cream because the oil will speed up the deterioration of the chamois over time. But since I found the Waxalene, I’ve done a bit of research and haven’t found any sources stating to specifically avoid oil based products on chamois. I even found a few other natural oil based chamois creams including, Booty Balm, so I’m tempted to try the Waxalene the next time I need a chamois cream. If not directly on the chamois, I think this cream would at least be great to prevent any inner thigh chaffing that occurs when riding in everyday clothes.

If any of you have insight into the oil based vs petroleum based chamois cream discussion I’d love to hear your thoughts.

So that’s my two cents, my love letter if you will, to my favorite all purpose winter skin protectant: Waxelene. But you might be wondering: What about the sensitive skin on my face? That’s the only part of me that deals with weather exposure when I’m riding! I promise I have more thoughts on that topic too, but that will have to wait until a later date… (read Saving Winter Skin pt 2! Saving Face!)

Humorous truth about preventing thigh chafing.

Like perhaps 80% of human beings, my thighs rub together when I walk. Despite the fact that there is a weird craze for “thigh gap” among fitness bloggers, I have never cared about it one way or another. Honestly, it’s just another lovely piece of body diversity. Plus, the more I bike, the bigger my thighs get as I pack on the muscle.

Unfortunately, though, my thighs are the bane of my existence in the summer. It wasn’t so bad when I lived in the Pacific Northwest and the temperature rarely went above 80 with little to no humidity- I just wore pants or leggings and had no problems. But last summer, my first in the Midwest in over a decade, I quickly realized that summer pants were unbearable but when it was hot, my thighs would rub together and create a small, raw, painful fire in my nether regions, whether riding my bike or walking. In the past I used Lanacain or Monistat Anti-Chafe Cream (femme sidenote: these products also work great as makeup primer!). Those were ok, but they needed to be reapplied regularly and didn’t work very well in the humidity. Then I discovered… BODYGLIDE.

BodyGlide changed my damn life. I bought a package of it at the Runners Room in St. Paul after reading about it in a comment (!) on The Hairpin. It’s shocking to me that the wonders of this product are not better known to non-runners, but this stuff is made of goddam magic. It was about $12, which sort of seemed like a lot (it comes in a deodorant sized stick), but it’s a year later and I still have a ton left. A little goes a long way.

The “glide” in the name is a bit of a misnomer, as glide implies, like, some sort of slickness. No, BodyGlide forms a waxy protective barrier that stops your skin from getting too sweaty or sticky or friction-y so you don’t get chafed. You will not be slip-sliding around as I feared. I’ve only ever used it on my thighs, but I hear it’s also great for shoes that pinch, bras that rub, etc.

Using BodyGlide means I can spend the summer wearing clothes that feel good without unwanted pain. It means I can be a proud chubby lady wearing whatever the heck I please while I show off my glorious (un-chafed) thighs. Even if you don’t have a lot of chub rub when you walk, maybe your thighs rub on your bike saddle when you wear short shorts and it doesn’t feel good- well, now your problems are solved!

So, friends, go forth and enjoy a summer of mini-skirts. You can thank me later.

Ride to eat, eat to ride? Whatever your philosophy, being a badass WTF cyclist requires a lot of energy. And you’re probably busy, so it’s nice to have something you can grab without any work. In my opinion, these granola bars fall between ride food (eat while you’re rolling) and wrench food (cookies eaten on a first or third Thursday). Perfect pre- or post-ride or during a quick rest stop, occasionally a little too crumbly to eat while rolling. Sometimes I put them in with my lunch.

The easiest recipe I’ve found comes from pinkleo on Craftster. I’m sorry it isn’t vegan. Suggestions for vegan granola bars are welcome in the comments. In an honest estimate, this recipe takes me less than ten minutes to measure and mix everything. Add a few minutes for pressing it into the pan and leave it in the oven for a bit while you go clean your bike or something. Here’s an adapted version:

• 2-1/2 cups oatmeal (NOT instant!)
• 3-4 cups mix-ins
• Spice (for example, 1 tsp cinnamon)
• 1-14 fl.oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
• nonstick cooking spray and/or parchment paper for pan

What are the mix-ins? Dried fruit, nuts, seeds, shredded coconut, chocolate chips…
I like a balance of

• 1-2 cups dried fruit
• 1 cup nuts
• 1 cup shredded coconut, if using only 1 cup of dried fruit
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds or wheat germ (truth: I usually forget to add these until I’m already cleaning the kitchen)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Spray a 9X13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a large bowl mix together oatmeal, mix-ins, and spice. Stir in vanilla and sweetened condensed milk. Use the back of a spoon or your clean fingers to firmly press the mixture into the 9×13 pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until bars have just started to brown on the edges (err on the side of underbaked–they will be a little more crumbly but not burnt). It is easiest to cut these while they are still warm.

The bulk section is your friend for bars like these. It’s a good place to pick up just what you need, especially for a new ingredient or something you don’t want a whole jar of. This recipe is very flexible, so you can keep the ingredient list very short if you want. My recent combinations are
–mixed nuts, raisins, cranberries, sunflower seeds, chocolate chips, coconut, and cinnamon
–slivered almonds, apricots, cranberries, cherries, and chocolate chips
–mixed nuts, apricots, cherries, coconut, and chocolate chips
Up next? Maybe a GORP combination. Good old-fashioned raisins and peanuts (but I’ll probably add cinnamon and chocolate chips). Pinkleo shares additional suggestions at the end of her post as well.

Some questions for all of you:
–What would you put in your granola bars?
–What should I do with my empty oatmeal canisters?!