Who are you?

Up until recently I did not even have a digital watch. I used to time runs by noting the time when I left the house and when I got in.

But this summer I started taking my wifes iPhone with me and using MapMyRun (the free app) to log distance and time. Seeing splits is fun but all I really only use it for exact distance measurment.

My measurement of bike power is based on the question, can I catch that...:

dump truck
school bus
hippie on a fixie
kid on a mountain bike
and my favourite
dude on a mobility scooter

My brother in law is addicted to his garmin. And he takes a much more scientific approach (supliments, measurment, shakes and powders, tech gear). Which I think steals some of the joy of it all.

I fall in between both but I'm slowly moving towards Maggie.  I've been MTB a LOT and the more I do it the less technology I care about. I rarely use my HR monitor anymore and I don't care that the mileage is not exact from my Garmin because I lost the satellite signal in heavy canopy on the trails. That said I still appreciate the technology. I'm training for a 13 hour MTB race and it is way easier to determine my level of effort with the instant feedback of my heart rate. There is a small local predictor race series and it is nice to go back and look at my average times on the trail so I can predict my time for the race.

Edited by csharp1171 2013-08-09 3:39 PM

Maggie....but I like to think I have better fashion sense. For me it varies a little depending on the sport. I do have a bike computer and HR monitor; can't afford a power meter but I would consider it if I could. I'm not an experienced cyclist and still don't have an intuitive sense of pace/effort on the bike. So the electronics help me structure workouts and track progress (or lack thereof). I can't afford all the bike bells and whistles that a lot of triathletes have; that stuff doesn't really interest me either. If I had the $ I would just pay someone to figure it out for me and outfit the bike. I have zero interest in components, etc. I guess it's the legacy of my distance running background--there isn't much technology involved in putting one foot in front of the other.

As for running, I have a Garmin and a HR monitor but rarely use either for runs. I think I've worn the Garmin twice! I just find it takes away the enjoyment of it. (Yes, I enjoy running, a lot.) I know what "hard" is, and "easy", and "moderate", and I have an excellent sense of pace. I guess that comes from 34 years in the sport. Adding all the exact numbers and gadgets would make it a chore. For swimming, I have a watch (basic Timex Ironman) and the pace clock. That's it.

But you will not find me biking in a wool sweater or running in a cotton shirt. I started running before there really good clothes and shoes for it, particularly for women, and I remember too well the discomfort of running 20 miles in scratchy, ill-fitting clothes. I'm a sucker for soft tech fabrics, cute designs, and anything in bright colors that allows me to run and ride while feeling comfortable and well-dressed. You would understand this if you saw the polyester "singlets" we used to wear for cross-country--the armholes on mine went approximately down to my waist! Girls and guys wore the same uniform with the same baggy shorts that flattered no one, but particularly not a scrawny teenage girl.

Heading out to run now.....in my matching tech fabrics, with my watch and a bottle of water.

Edited by Hot Runner 2013-08-09 6:52 PM

I think I'm a Maggie by default... I have little money to throw at the sport, so I do without many of the fancy gizmos that others use. But if I have to be honest with myself, while it might be fun to have a watch tell me where I am, how hard I'm working and if I'm getting better, I'm not doing this for that validation. I'll never need the edge that technology may offer, as I'm so far at the back of the pack, a podium finish won't ever be in my future. I'm doing this for the little bit of 'me' time I can squeak out in a week. I'm doing this to feel better about myself and hopefully improve my body to outrun what a genetic neurological disease may do to me one day. I'm doing this to set a good example for my daughter about treating your body well so that it will always be able to do what you want it to do and to love it for what it is. Don't get me wrong... I'd love a bit of technology in my tri-life, but I'm doing ok without it.

I am more Simon but a bit of both

Im a bit of both I guess. Wouldnt say Simon because I'm not looking for a medical release for T.... I appreciate just doing a swim, bike, or run for the pure enjoyment of getting out, but my competitive side loves the number crunching.

I would venture to say no one posting here can align with maggie only or else they wouldn't be entering races or looking up information which led them here in the first place.

A lot more like Maggie, some by choice, some by circumstance.

This is an interest for me, so I can't justify a lot of expense to move up from 872nd to 743rd in an Ironman finish list. I have a HRM, but the watch hasn't picked up the chest strap for 2 years and I haven't been too concerned to send it back. I do miss the speed/distance feedback I got with the footpod, but I can map the run later or now use runkeeper.

I don't need the latest/lightest gear, but I do appreciate good gear. I liken my Klein Aeolus to a '66 Stingray. A modern bike goes faster and is more efficient, but there's nothing like showing up with a classic head-turner.

When I started running back in 2005, I didn't own running shorts or wicking shirts. I had some nylon cargo shorts which I wore along with an old cotton t-shirt. Slowly, I've built up my workout wardrobe. Last fall, I was frantic because I couldn't find a box of winter gear that I knew I had *somewhere.* I could just about list the contents of the box and I started calculating what it would cost to replace that gear...but I couldn't find the box for 2 weeks.

Even when I am "following" a training plan, I take time to enjoy life including appreciating what I see while I'm out training.

There are some advantages to the modern world. We can avoid a lot of injury and sickness by following a well-structured training plan.

I guess I'm a bit more like Simon - I'm competitive (with myself mainly) so like knowing what I've done, how far, fast (for me) etc. I use a garmin 310 with HRM and use the data all the time - especially training for my first Iron distance race in a couple of weeks. I'm never going to be competing for a podium or even close. Most of it is relative cost to me - I can't justify a power meter as i can't see me getting huge gains from it, a new tri bike? Maybe!
I think as you get more experieced with your training then you can become a bit more like Maggie adn go more by feel.

It funny, I was thinking something similar over the past few weeks. For years, I ran using only a Timex trialthlon watch that I could buy at Walmart for $25. For fathers day, I was given a Timex Global whatever with a heartrate monitor and have been using it regularly. Where it used to take me 10 min max to get from the car from work into running gear and out the door is now taking twice that, with the heart rate monitor, waiting for the watch to connect to a satellite, putting on the RoadID, etc. What is this data really providing me? Is it nice, yes, but in the long run, if I do not do anything with it, I am just collecting.

Same goes for nurtition while training or racing. Used to be a time where I would run 5-10 miles regularly without a Fuel Belt, GU gels or whatever. We drank water before we started and when we were done.

Is it just good marketing or do these improvements in technology really make us better?

A little of both, but more Simon.  The Simon side was ready to pull the trigger a couple weeks ago on a Garmin Swim, but the Maggie side won out determining that I just liked to swim and didn't really need all that data anyway.

A little bit of both, but most of all have the GPS-enabled Garmin for knowing pace, distance, speed, and sometimes elevation. Mostly I like to go by feel but keep that Garmin in the forefront to gage my training so that I hold back when I go too fast or pick up when I go too slow.

definately Simon I love my gadjets, tunes and all things high tech.

If I do a run without GPS.....does it really count as a run?

Maggie, with a little Simon thrown in. I rode with the Strava App this morning, but surely didn't mind slowing down to look at the osprey perched in a big dead tree. I love seeing the world around me, hearing the what the world is saying and feeling a small bit of oneness with it.

I'm a Maggie, but with awesome full carbon bikes with the duotraps doing nothing except flashing as the pedal passes.

Simon for sure except that I don't consider myself a good athlete. I love to track data, usually showing that I suck, but I still enjoy it, If money were no object it would probably get a little insane! I already have my eye on a new Suunto ambit 2.

A minamalists Simon. I like to have some way of tracking workouts but it doesn't have to be modern or fancy. Apps for iPhone are great but I wouldn't get a garmin or anything like that. A simple watch is just fine.