Todd's Tri Turtles 7 (Beginner - Sprints, 5K, 10K) - OPEN

Great to see the Turtles are back!! Will need to “update” the bio just a bit; easier to do on a desktop/laptop than on my phone.

This’ll be about my 3rd or 4th time around with Todd/Turtles; if you are looking for a group to join this one is especially good for folks early into their “Tri career”!!!!

Not a great swim today; just didn’t have the energy for some reason; heading to lift in just a few.

Did a short session on the trainer then a short time on the treadmill; I guess that qualifies as a “mini” brick?

No am activity; I was a slug;

Strength workout this morning and likely nothing else until Sunday morning and Houston Half Marathon.

Take it easy tomorrow so you are fresh for your 1/2!! Let us know how it goes!

Good luck and run with the wind!!!!!

Hi Turtles,

Looking forward to another year with you all.

Rejoining the group is very timely as I have 20 days until my next race and need to refocus.

I strongly encourage anybody looking for a supportive & encouraging group to join Todd's Tri Turtles.

I'll update my profile when I have some time.

Name - Tom

Story - I have no race history. I am just starting to train and want to be a Turtle. I don't really have anyone to bounce ideas off of, so I thought a group might be helpful. Right now I am training at the local gym in a pool, spin class and treadmill. The gym has an indoor track and I plan to do some real running once a week once my shape improves. I downloaded a training app for an Olympic distance tri with a race scheduled in June and have been trying to get in shape before the start date on my app rolls over. I also hope to do my first tri in May to get a feel for them before I do my first "official" tri in June. I am thinking about a Spartan sprint in May as well.

Family Status - Married with two grown boys.

Races - I plan to do my first sprint next May and plan to add more dates for the summer next spring. I am more drawn to the faster, shorter distances. I don't think I have the mental capacity to train for the long distance races. I have been thinking about maybe trying a XTERRA this year as well.

Health - I would like to get my fat % down, but I haven't really thought to much about it. I figure the training will take care of it, provided I stick with it.

Can I be a turtle?

First off I’m so glad that Rod and Bill are in again. You guys really do inspire and push me.

Tom great to have you in the group and glad you are letting us come along with. It’s simple here, tells us what you got going both good and bad. Most important if you have a question ask, and I mean any question

Ok so now to tell y’all how my Houston Half Marathon went. First it was 30 degrees with wind, which this Texas boy didn’t like. Second, I had not run in almost 2 months so I decided to go at it to have fun and not worry about time. I decided to jog at an 11 minute pace as long as I could and then walk / run the rest. Well I made it 9.78 miles before walking and then did a 2 minute walk 3 minute run for the rest of the race. I finished in 2:31:30, and other than being sore came out of it pretty well considering I had not really run since my half Ironman at the end of September. Now the bad, I really have stopped drinking for the most part but since we had no kid with us we went out last night and did it up. So now today I’m sore and hungover, not a good mix. I’m old enough to know better but every once in a while the wife and I need to turn loose.

Todd....an excellent race report!! Congrats on your 1/2 and for the cause you supported in the event!!! And....what a great way to celebrate the achievement....”I’ll drink to that.....;0)”

Rod, great to see you on here again; wow, another race in less than 3 weeks. Tell us about the race you have coming up.....

Tom, always good to have another member of the Turtles. You’ve set some great goals; you’ll enjoy the events!!!

Yes, I know....still need to update my bio.....

Well weather here absolutely sucks; 10” of snow on 1/12; temps and wind were ok; another 3” this past Saturday but with strong winds....blizzard like conditions; so many of my strength sessions involved clearing snow; obviously all other training is indoors. My hip has responded well to the injection I had but there”s still some slipping going on in the joint. I’ll just keep on keeping on with it.

Best to all!!!!

Anyone have any experience with longer distance hiking during a training period? Do you think it helps/hurts/no issue? My is son is planning to hike the PCT this summer and I am planning to join him for the first 100 miles. This would fall just before my tentative Spartan sprint. Should I just scrap the race or would I be alright, or should I just learn to relax and wing it? At any rate, it would be about 6 days of pretty strenuous hiking, but no other training involved.

Tom....no experience with the hiking but I’d say do the trip with your son, you never know when another opportunity like that will come up!

Besides your training now will help and you can see how you feel after the hike; you may find yourself ready to do both events.

Bill

Tom, I agree with Bill 100%. Family time trumps all and you will be getting a workout in everyday you are hiking. See how you feel after and then decide on the Spartan race (wing that part). I will say though that I have mixed feelings about spartan races depending on your goals and desires. They are a good way to come up with a goofy injury, which I have seen. That said I’m thinking of doing a 3 mile mud run with some from the gym, but it will be a slow, no person left behind event, and almost seven months before my main race for the year.

Hi Turtles,

Welcome Tom, great to have you join us.

My next race is a Mini Sprint on 10 February. It's 150 m swim in the bay, then a 7 km ride on what should be a fast course followed by a 2.5 km run. I'm concentrating on Mini Sprint races this year as my knee continues to give me trouble but I can train comfortably for a 2-3 km run without too much pain.

I'm pleased to say that my swimming has improved this year but I still wait at the back of the pack at the start line so I don't get caught up with those aiming for the podium. It probably costs me a minute or two so I might have to reconsider so I can improve my finishing time.

The weather here is very hot at the moment. Over 100F and it's only getting down to 85F tonight. I'll do a run on the treadmill in the air conditioned gym and plan to get up early for a bike ride tomorrow. Probably go for a swim too but that will be to cool down rather than for training purposes.

UPDATED BIO BELOW:

NAME: Aussie Turtle / Rod

STORY: I'm 61 years old living in Melbourne, Australia who took up triathlon in 2014 because I like a challenge and I needed to loose weight. In 2014 I made a new years resolution to complete a triathlon and lost 25 lbs over 10 months while training. During a light training run before the race I hurt my knee but determination (perhaps stupidity in hindsight) saw me complete the race anyway. Unfortunately that injury put me out of action for a while. Predictably most of the weight went back on but after a few failed attempts I'm now back in action.

I spend a lot of time planning and preparing so I'm ready for each race. Must be my background as a Project Manager.

I've completed a duathlon (run/bike/run) and a triathlon over the Mini Sprint distance so far this summer. I'm planning at least 4 more races by early April.

I've set myself 3 fitness goals this year: Complete 5-6 races this season and remain injury free, Run 1000 km & Ride 2500 km

FAMILY STATUS: Married for over 36 years, with 2 adult sons living with their partners.

CURRENT TRAINING: I try to get 3 swims, 2 bike rides, 3 runs and 1 -2 gym sessions a week . I train with a tri squad once a week Fortunately I'm retired so I can find the time.

2019 RACES: All Mini Sprints as I want to keep injury free.

WEIGHT LOSS: I lost 15 lbs in 2018 and aim to loose another 7-8 lbs in 2019 and keep them off!



Edited by AussieTurtle 2019-01-24 1:27 AM

Thank you for the input guys. Yes, the hike is a certainty. I wouldn't miss it for anything. Todd, you make a good point about the Spartan race and injuries. I may have rethink that one. I was planning it because we don't get a lot of race opportunities in NW Montana and this particular race is only 6 miles from my house. I have wanted to participate in it for several years and with my current training I thought I may be in good enough shape to actually do it this year. I guess I will continue to classify it as a possibility.

As a side note, does anyone listen to the Triathlon Taren podcast? I just recently found this one and have enjoyed the topics and information.

Here's my "story"......

Name: Bill/2NewKnees
Age 67 Retired

Story: Growing up I was involved with the typical activities like baseball, basketball, some football, and running track while in HS. In my adult life work schedules and family obligations limited my sporting activities other than playing softball.

During one of those softball games in 2000, I blew out my left knee; tore the ACL and cartilage and had surgery to repair/6 month rehab. I did recover to play one more season. As a part of my post ACL repair rehab, I did some light jogging. That eventually turned into more running on a regular basis.

Our daughter swam while in college and she encouraged me to join her for a 4 mile race. Her swim coach required the team to run the local event. Since she was close by we were able to train together. I was very nervous the day of my first event but finished it; so I began to run in similar races.

My sons and I ran in several events over the years. My oldest son convinced me to try a 1/2 Marathon with him in 2011; we trained together and successfully completed the distance (I sure felt my age after that!!) Both my sons and I registered for the same event in 2012; ironically they both ended up injured and were unable to do the race; leaving their "old man" to run it by himself!! That 1/2 was the last stretch event I was able to train for prior to my knees giving out .

My left knee was replaced in Feb 2013; recovered from that, did a little bit of biking and walking. My right knee was also very damaged and it was replaced in Sep 2013. Thus...my name...2NewKnees !! All of 2013 was a rehab year for me; in January 2014 I upped my exercise schedule. We joined a local gym; I contacted a friend who is a Masters Swim Coach and he started me on my swimming activities. It took me a year to improve my stamina in the pool. We continued to ride bikes when weather permitted and was pretty consistent on walking. Having done many road races I missed "competing". So I decided if I'm going to work that hard at something, I might as well try to train for an event of some sort.

So, I completed 2 Sprint Triathlons spring of 2015. I walked the 5K portion of the events because of my knees. Even though some folks who have had total knee replacements continue to run; I'm pretty much limited to Sprint distances (unless I'd go the Aqua Bike events route sometime down the road).

Family Status: Retired; Happily married for 48 years; 3 children, (2 sons and a daughter); all married; 4 grand kids; and 2 Vislas!

Current Training: My goals are to Swim 3 times/week; Bike Trainer 3 times/week; Walking 5-6 times/week (Treadmill when weather doesn't cooperate) & Weight lifting 2-3 times/week

2014 Races: A local 5K fundraiser in May, 2014; I walked the event

2015 Races: Pioneer Sprint Triathlon 4/23/15; Miami of Ohio Sprint Triathlon 5/9/15; completed both in under 2 hours even walking the 5k portions

2016 Races: None due to my father's illness. He passed away in mid May. While I continued to "train" after his passing, I just never got back to the point of doing an event; plus bike time was almost non existent.

2017 Races: Pioneer Sprint Triathlon 4/30/2017; completed this one again, with my son this time; improved my time a lot INSPITE of wearing my bike helmet BACKWARDS for 1/2 of the ride....good grief....how stupid!!! Might have knocked another minute or two off my ride had I not had to correct the helmet. )!!!!!

2018 Races: None.......no excuse.....

Weight Loss: I've been able to keep my weight fairly stable with the swimming, biking, walking and yard work! Although I started using Fitness Pal last spring. I've actually lost a few more pounds....good result.

What Will Make Me a Good Mentee?: The fact that I want to complete additional events and need additional insight on what to continue to expect. I hope to register for that April/early May sprint event again.

This will be my 5th time around on BT(third one with Todd).....I still feel I'm in that "beginner" group category since I've only done the 3 sprints; and I'm wanting to get back into the game in 2019....

Edited by 2NewKnees 2019-01-24 4:45 PM

Rod...sounds like a great event; envious of that warm/hot weather; -5F here this am!!

Take care of that knee.....I certainly understand the need to keep events to shorter distances!

Tom,

Yes I listen to Tauren from time to time but I have watch way more of his YouTube videos than anything. He does some good reviews and as a matter of fact I just watch his video on the Sketcher Ride Shoes that I just bought this past weekend.

Next, if the Spartan race has been a goal of yours for years and something you feel you can be ready for then go do it and keep injuries in mind. To me the way you described the race this time was much different. If this has been a goal and something that you have seen as a dragon you need to slay, that is much different. If it is your current dragon then you probably should. When we are able to slay dragons along the way it is very rewarding and further motivates us to work hard and continue. What I mean is completing that race may get you more pumped up about a healthy fit lifestyle and propel you to your next challenge instead of continuing to wonder if you can do it. Ultimately only you can know but I had to add that in with your additional info.

Rod....read some news about a large area power outage in Australia....did that affect where you live? Hope all is well...

Hope everyone is doing well and working hard. Well I’ve signed up for another half marathon in April. I help with the race every year and have to handle road closures and so forth for the event. This year however I’m going to be doing all that in my running gear and then when everything starts I’m doing the half. I plan to do a few group rides before then but that’s the only thing I’ve paid for so far.

February Group Challenge - Do at least 30 minutes of exercise / discipline 5 times a week for the month and log it. Remember to go in an inspire others when you get the chance.

Will do Coach.

There were black outs and brown outs the other day in our state. Our area was not impacted but others close by were.

I'll try and avoid any political bias but the facts are the State Government wanted to be seen as "green" and closed the main power plant which was coal powered. The consequences were outages to many homes and industry during a period of peak demand for cooling.

We were lucky it was only 1 day of temperatures up to 47C (117F). Sometime it can be that hot for 3-4 days in a row.

February Group Challenge accepted. I'll even update my training log!!!

I'm 56 and looking to TRI again. I had a few good years in 06 to 08 then downhill a lackluster marathon and knee surgery deflated all the want to I guess. Well it is time to tri so here I am. My goals for this year are to do a Sprint in April and finish in September with an Olympic. I had shoulder surgery in June, and I need to cut back on the wine loose some weight and find steady training.

Do you guys have any tricks or tips on how to keep pace while lap swimming? When I swim laps I never really know how I am doing until I get done with my set and take a rest. I would like to somehow know while I am swimming what my current pace is.