Gordo Byrn's Group - FULL

"Total Newbies" - dang!  Guess I'm out....  

This should be a great opportunity for some....Thnx!

If you are accepting members, I would like to join your group.

I have been "walking/jogging" 5Ks for a few years.  I suffered with a kidney stone in June, and 3 doctors in 2 days said I needed to lose weight.  I started looking for something other then running to keep boredom down and came across BT.  I started the 22 week couch to Sprint Program.  I was doing the 3 events until the pool got too cold.

I have not done any exercising on an actual bike, I use my elliptical machine as my bike.  I am looking to add toe strap pedals to my bike and start using it after Christmas.  I have lost some weight, but need to continue.  My doctor's reports are getting better, but still have some medical problems I am working on find the solution.

I am planning on running a 2 miler on Saturday, with a time of under 24 minutes.

I am looking to do my first Tri in the April-June time frame.

I am 46 yr old male, married 4 children all teens or older.  Desk job, with most workouts in the morning.

Otter, would love to have you in the group.

Writebrain, you're welcome too if you want -- it's an open group and you hit it first.

Would like to get some ladies into the group as well, about 50% of my past clients have been women.

Cheers,

 g

Recently I got bitten by the Endurance bug. I was looking into cycling and found this beautiful thing call Triathlons..... I have been training for about 3 months with strength training, and starting my running and biking.

 I was a swimmer al through high school and swam competiely since I was 6... So I have a great swimming background.... Once I graduated High School I became a slump. I picked up a nasty habit of smoking and I recently quit (50 days).... I feel much better and I am on the team to become more fit and train for everything....

 I have goals that a normal person cant imagine. I want to by 2011 do a complete ironman. I also want to do endurance races to push my body to the max. I am a very active person but I need direction in my training.

 My first race is May 3rd of 2009 and it is at Ohio State University.... It is a sprint.... Thought it would be a good stepping stone. Let me know if I can join....

X3!  I won't take away from the newbies either...but it sure would be cool!

Newbies, PAY ATTENTION!  Join THIS group...Gordo is a legend.

i am.... 

a total newbie, well to tris that is...transitioned from running exclusively.

currently focused on sprint distance tris  -   gonna compete/complete my very first sprint tri in August (setting an intention here!) w a mini sprint scheduled in April just to get my feet wet

and im a woman.

may i join?

-----

with all the responses i thought maybe you might need more bio info.

i started my journey of personal transformation, Nov 2006.  I was on the cusp of turning 40 (that June) and internally i knew that my life needed to take some new direction. 

i lost 62 pounds, and started running.  talk about new direction.  i was never athletic, never pursued anything athletic, ever in my life.

i started running and low and behold i LOVED it.  i used a beginners runners plan from runnerworld.com and went from a non runner to running 2 miles in 30 mins (that took 3 mos to accomplish)

then i started training and ran a 5K, and then another.  i was an runner turned competitor, turned athlete.  who knew?

the follow year, i ran my very first 10K and then that evolved into running multiple 5s and 10s, culminating in running a 1/2 marathon this past June.  ive come a long way!

my original intention when i started running was to do sprint tris.  so after my 1/2 training was over, and running a personal best at 10K here in PGH shortly after, i felt i had fulfilled some goals.

i started on a new path, and set my sights on tris, though somewhat 'forced' to by a dx of mortons neuroma.

since October, ive been working a 20 week trng plan, working on my base in swimming and cycling, since these disciplines are new to me, and working on restoring my base in running ff the flare up of a mortons neuroma.  thankfully w orthotics and preventatives ive been reasonably pain free.

the neuroma prevents me from running exclusively.  ive found the tri trng to be an excellent fit.  ive  found the 3 disciplines well suited to my temperment and feel much more balanced since starting the tri trng.

that's my journey in a nutshell.

im sure that we'll have the opportunity to get to know one another more over the coming weeks and months. 

Take advantage of THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE LEGEND! Gordo, you are going to have a ton of LURKER'S HERE!!! Including myself.... I am tempted to make a new sign in name, and become a rookie!

Since you are offering......I'm in then!  Great.   Wow.   

Can't wait! 

I mostly race at the Sprint distance.  Love the sport but need some focus and help with nutrition and techical side of things.....

Maybe you can coach me/advise me on the best way to formulate a Jan - Oct???  training plan(s) with focus (proper tapers, base, speed work, etc...plugged in at the correct times). 

Brief 411 on Writebrained (John)

-big boy (235) - working hard on the diet thing (down from 263)

-running is my usually my strength

-swim skills are emerging

-bike conditioning (poor) - in-door trainer is set up though...

*averaged 7:30s in a hilly 5k last month, running about 3 times a week, swimming 2 times a week, trainer rides when my lower-back allows it

*I'm not afraid to train hard, just want to make sure I'm efficient/productive with my time

Thnx again for jumping in on this program, Gordo.   Great to have you on-board.

  John

Hey Gordo,

If you looking for total newbie's looking to do their first TRI that would be me.  Short bio - live in Sarasota Florida with my wonderful wife and 16 year old son.  I also have twins that both have graduated from college and are out of the nest.  I just turned the big 50.  In July of last year my daughter got married and about 12 months prior to that I decided that I wasn't going to roll down the isle at the wedding.  At that point I was up to  260.  Joined the gym and over the course of 11 months lost 40 pounds.  After the wedding I put on 15 pounds and headed back to the gym.  I found it rather boring doing the trend mill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.... day after day.  One day I got on my bike after 15 years and loved being on it.  While google'ing bikes one evening I come across beginnertriathlete.com and go intrigued with it.  I joined and I'm having a blast.  In fact, my wife says I have become nut about it.  I have my first sprint tri scheduled for Superbowl Sunday and I need all the advice I can get.  Would love to become part of your group.  Let me know if you have room.

Thanks,

Jeff      

Gordo,

would love an opportunity to be in your group if there is room.  I am an ex college and professional indoor soccer player, who after some injuries, medical training, and kids, let myself go physically over the last 10 years.  I started running for exercise after my last child was born and fell in love with the alone time, fitness, and stress relief it brought me.  Last year got into some 5k and 10k races, and now want to transition to triathlon after the encouragement from some triathlete friends and neighbors.  Also, old injuries prevent me from comfortably running more than 3-4x/week.  And I have always enjoyed cycling and swimming.  I have a goal of completing some sprints and potentially some oly distances this year, with the ultimate goal of a HIM in 2010.  I will take any advice and encouragement I can get this season.

Brian

You come with High recommendations - how can I turn away?

Can I join your group? I'm a total newbie to triathlons, however, I may 'tri' an Oly this year... but that's a big issue of mine - too much too soon - as evidenced by 2 stress fractures occuring in my first (and only so far) marathon in May '08.

A bit of history: I was a lifetime couch potato til about 3 years ago... lost 50ish pounds using diet and moderate exercise... about 1 1/2 years ago, I started running with a goal of finishing a Marathon... did that in May... after taking 3 months off (due to injury) I decided that I need to re-focus my training with more x-training - I know - how about a triathlon!

During my down time, I gained 10 pounds. So, now I have about 20 pounds to lose. I've had trouble losing weight while training... maybe you have some tips?

I joined TnT to get coaching on bike & swim... they "say" they can take me from "couch to oly" but they also won't let me do oly without an eval... so we'll see.

I also want to run a Half Marathon in June... I joined BT as a gold member... then joined TnT, and now I'm joining a Mentor group...As you can tell, I'm enthusiastic, but I need FOCUS - you could probably help me with that too!

By the way, I'm SLOW - it took just over 6 hours to complete the Marathon, I run a 5k in about 35 minutes... swimming - well, it's coming along... and biking - I bought clipless pedals that will be installed tonight - wish me luck!

If I'm too much of a mess, let me know, I'll find another group... but I hope you'll take me... Thanks for your consideration!

Diane

Hello, would like to join if there is room.

My name is Melissa (Mel) married with two little girls and one BIG dog.  Have always wanted to do a tri since I was little but never thought I would/could. 

Growing up my family was always active I was in the pool as soon as I could crawl.  Swam all growing up (OW and pool) and was on High School team.  After HS just didn't make excersizeing a priority and started gaining weight. 

Fast forward about 10yrs and 2 kids later and had put on about 70lbs.  Just got fed up with myself and decided I needed to lose weight and get back in shape.  Around Jan08' started a lower calorie diet and running mainly on treadmill (did too much too fast and hurt my knees).  But I was losing weight and keep up with the diet, then found BT and started the couch to sprint plan 20wk to take it slow on the knees.  With the goal that this summer I want to do a couple of sprints.  I'm about a month away from completeing the c-s plan and am planning on getting a trainer to start working on the bike part of things.  I've also lost about 60 of those lbs and want to get rid of the last 10.

Thanks for reading and please let me know If I would be right for this group and if you have room.  Thanks again,

Mel

Gordo!

I was hoping the mentor program would start up soon, and seeing your name pop up was like a light bulb for me. I've been reading some of the material you've got out there on the web and noted the time and thought you take posting here on the BT forums and have been so far impressed.

I guess my story is that I'm 31 years old and trying very hard to make a major lifestyle change before I've damaged myself irreparably.

I played lacrosse in High School, lifted weights twice a day and ran almost every night.

I got to college and let myself go for some reason. Put on 60 lbs stopped working out/running and was basically a total wreck. I figured out towards the end of my schooling that I was on a bad trend and started running again (bout 25 miles a week) lost 50 lbs was doing great, then I met my wife.

That isn't to say it's her fault, we're both to blame (she was a college field hockey player and in increadible shape) for getting married and forgetting that we're both athletic individuals.

So, we've been married 6 years now and recently came to the realization that the trend we're on is to be sedintary, fat and most likely die an unpleasant and early death.

That is the rollercoaster.

SO! We made a decision to change and find a lifetime sport we could enjoy together. We chose triathlon.

The plan is to do the Wildman Triathlon in the middle of March for our first, then possible 2 more sprint distance races this year closer to home.

Holidays have been a struggle to get the training time in, I know I need help with my diet, I always need motivation, I've got some swim experience from a LONG time ago, am brand new to cycling and my running has always been very unstructured (and challenging right now because of my weight: 5'7"/226lbs).

My final thought is that I have always been a team motivator. I struggle to self motivate but thrive in a cooperative environment. I know that is difficult in distance sports, but I feel a mentor program like this might just be what I need.

SIGN ME UP!

-Doug

Is there still room? 

I'm a 43 yr old female who has also let my fitness go big time.  I used to be very diligent with my running/biking/weights and hockey.  Somewhere that motivation switch got turned off and I'm still looking to find it.  Every year I tell myself this is the year I'll do a tri.  Well the years come and go and still I still haven't trained for/attempted a tri.   I would love to join your group if there is still room.

Dee

All you newbies getting to join this group are very, very lucky. I've been reading everything Gordo's been writing on BT and have read his book cover to cover twice.  You could not pick a better mentor.

Thanks Gordo for giving up your time for this community.

Gordo-

I'm interested in joining up!   Do I qualify as a 2nd year tri'r?  I'm a mom of 2 who completed 2 sprint tris last year, June and Sept, as well as a mini in April.  I suspect I'll have about the same schedule this year - though if we're not on travel will try to do a few more sprints mid-summer. 

After my Sept tri I thought I'd train to do a 10K on Tgiving - but ended up eagerly pushing too hard (or something) and injured myself.  Followed that with a nasty cold and I only did the 5K on Tgiving with my worst time ever!   I'm now back to very slow, very short runs but feeling well so ready to keep it going again!

I have no interest in increasing my races to longer distance - time commitment would be part of the challenge, but I'm also not interested in OWS in coooooold water which all Oly's around here seem to be!  Swim is my weak one and the sprint length (400yds) in warmish lake water seems a challenge enough for me.

 -Cynthia

If there's still room I'd love to join the group.

Never done a tri, so I'm absolutely in the newbie category. I did run a half marathon about 10 years ago, finished but tried to prepare in 6 weeks and had an awful experience. I quit running not long afterwards. Kept breaking down because I was going too far, too fast. 

In August of this year I'd finally had enough of bad lifestyle choices. I quit smoking on a Thursday night, bought running shoes on Friday afternoon. I've worked my way back into it and I've done a couple 5ks. I've lost just at 30 pounds since August. Added swimming\biking October to cut down on the pounding. Running every day is a bit much for me right now. Just broke 1000 meters swimming and typically have a long bike on Saturdays of about 15-20 miles. But no idea of how to pull all three together and train. I just go with the flow (yeah I know, not the best plan).

Short term goals for 2009 are to do the first tri (actually I'm signing up for 3 sprints and MAYBE two olys). Not trying to place first, just finish strong, have a good time, and enjoy myself without injury. Long term is to live a healthy and active lifestyle...

Good afternoon Gordo,

 I would love to join your group.  I am a total newbie to the sport.  I just last month was trained enough to cover the bare distance of a sprint and still have a way to go.  I am just looking to cross the finish line.  I want to do 3 tri's this year and a local bike casual ride. Weight loss is not my top priorty, the pound will shed as the traning and diet continue. I look forward to this.

 Scott

Gordo,

Would love to join your group.  I'm over two years removed from my very first sprint. So I'm basically starting over from scratch.  In the winter after the race, I had my rotator cuff done and missed out on that follow '07 season.  Moved, new kid and lots of travel for work had me in a state of molecular flux.  So time to get back on the beam.  To be honest.  I would like to compete in sprint distances again.  Planning on attending a "Tri Boot Camp" in March (in Philly) and would love to push to do an Olympic distance at some point (maybe late in season).

I just started a sprint program this week to get me through winter and was thinking of moving into an Olympic program after that.  I understand if 1. I'm not fully sprint focused and more importantly 2. not the female participant you are looking for.

 Best regards,

Phil

Mr. Byrn

not sure if I qualify as I have done 3 sprint races this year but would still call myself a newbie as there is so much to learn.

If there is still room I would love to join your group

thanks

Dave

As your group is now closed I guess/hope I am in so am going to post a bit more about myself.

I am 38 live in Essex, England and work in London for a Japanese bank. Married 2nd time around to a wonderful lady and have 4 children.

I still consider myself new to triathlon as I have only done 3 sprint races after being persuaded to try it by a friend on the commuter train who had wanted to do one since he was at college and was approaching 40 so thought he better get on with it ! At first I was only going to do the training to keep him company so we both followed the 20 week sprint plan from BT and after 8 weeks I figured I might as well do the race. HOOKED. since then I have kept the training going and managed to do 2 more races this season.

My aims for 2009 are to do a couple more sprints including a return to the first one as I bonked bad on the run and have a need to do better this time and enjoy it more. Then I want to do a couple of Olympic distance races in July and September so my training is going to be based on getting up to that distance and being able to maintain/improve my pace from the sprint distance

I started my training log in October so all can look and see how I am doing.

Good luck everyone and to all the total newbies, don't worry it is not as bad as you think it might be but be warned you will get addicted and will spend more money on kit than you thought possible. :-)