Counselor's Group - FULL

Hello Dennis,

My name is Michael and I am a 23 year old university student from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. I thought I might be a good fit for your group because you regularly deal with students and may be better aware of some of the issues we face. I find most people I ask for advice make it sound like being a student is the easiest thing in the world and that it shouldn't be hard for me to find time to train but it just isn't the case... at least not these days!

I'm a beginner in the truest sense of the word... I've never entered a race. I've always enjoyed jogging and love road biking. My swimming is probably my weakest, though my foundations are good as I used to be a lifeguard in high school.

My goals are to run a half marathon on May 27th and complete an Olympic distance triathlon this summer. I'm not sure if I should try competing in a sprint distance first to get my bearings but I'm confident in my ability to train for an Olympic distance.

My biggest personal challenges with training are nutrition (at 6'4 and about 150lbs, I'm tiny... not a problem you hear a lot about around BT) and keeping weight on while training. Also motivation seems to be an ongoing issue... whether its coming up with a reasonable balanced routine or just making the trek to the gym I'm far from consistent. Add to that the extreme winter (its been hovering around -5 degrees F here in Ottawa for the past couple weeks) we're having here and my training "routine" is disappointing at best.

I've recently started recording my activities in my training log but I'm not sure what kind of time commitment I'm willing to make at this stage, I'm just getting used to the idea of heading to the gym, fitness room and pool just about everyday.

Anyways... I look forward to learning some things from you! More important I'm hoping this will provide me with a place to just check in and know that someone else may be in this with me. I hope there will be some more joiners, the more the merrier!

Best,
Michael

Dennis,

My name is Kyle, I'm 21 and from Texas. I am currently a full-time student and have an almost full-time job ha. I have always been active but am currently trying to focus it and compete. Running has been my thing for sometime, but I want to get into triathlons. For some reason I have began having problems with my knees and so I have not been able to run what I would like, but before I was doing 10 mi+. Marathons are also a goal of mine, but triathlons may let me take it a little easier on the knees.
I do not have much cycling experience, but I'm confident I can pick it up. My swimming will take a lot of work though I am sure. I'm 6'0 and weigh 140 lbs, so I'm definitely a thin guy. This is due to an insanely high metabolism, the fact I'm always doing something, and probably also not good nutrition.
I'm here for any tips and suggestions you might have. Thanks a lot.

Kyle

Hi Dennis and everybody else!

I'm Alice, and I'm from Port Elizabeth South Africa. City and host to Ironman South Africa! I am 23 years old, and had a brief affair with triathlon in 2001. 6 years later, ater a months training, I've just finished an olympic distance triathlon, and am looking for friends and mentors to learn from and share experiences with. I am also a student, and finding that triathlon is helping me to be far more disciplined in other areas in my life.

I look forward to learning from each other!

Hello Dennis,

My name is Chris and I am a 48 year old from Lincolnshire in England, where I work for my local council as a Community Warden. I am very much an outdoor person and enjoy traveling to new places.

10 years ago I was quite fit for my age, due to me cycling everywhere, but in the last few years circumstances in my life have led to my weight increasing. I now weigh 209lbs which is quite a lot for my height of 5'6''. I am really trying hard to lose weight as my goal is to get fit and take part in triathlon. I find motivation difficult due to work and family commitments, but I am determined to succeed.


Any advice or tips would be most welcome

Thanks
Chris

Hi Dennis,

I was just wondering if you could tell me if it's okay for me to train with a headache, stuffy nose and slightly sore throat. I'm not sure if it's the beginning of a cold or flu, and obviously would prefer not to stop training.

Cheers
Alice

Welcome! I work with many college students at the local university. They are all enginnering students so their work load is very heavy. I suggest a beginner sprint program. Most want to start higher thinking it will be harder BUT it's not really. Sprints are fun you will meet people and be able to ask questions. Training indoors is ok. Try to find a used trainer.do some running and hit the pool. Swimming will keep you in great shape. There is a free sprint program on this forum it's great.

Find a sprint triathlon to do www.trifind.com This site has a free sprint program. It's a very good place to start. I suggest not to run two days straight until the knee thing gets better. Stick to the sprint program. The sprint tri will give you a carrot . Something to focus on.

Any questions at this time ?

Find a sprint . Sign up it will give you something to shoot for. Try running (slow) 1 min and walking two min. There is a free sprint program on this site.

Hi, I'm Audrey. I'm a 24 year old student in Texas. I've been a teensy-weensy bit overweight all my life, until 2 years ago, when I became just flat out overweight. I decided to do a triathlon last summer, and have been gearing up to actually train for a triathlon since then. I'm now back to just a teensy-weensy bit overweight

I grew up swimming, but never for any length without stopping. At the beginning of last summer I had never run for more than 5 minutes at a time, and hadn't been on a bike for about 12 years. I am one week away from completing the couch-to-5k running program, and ride my bike almost daily (as transportation, though, not training). I was going to wait until next year to do a triathlon, until I looked at the training programs and realized I can do the minimum requirements already.

I'm not really interested in being competitive (yet) but more on just being able to finish the event not last.

I would say no. Get well then start training. Sounds like you have a fairly bad cold. Your body is not ready to train. If you do you may get worse then have to take more time off.

Ok, I have a couple questions,
1) my knees hurt. What to do? I did not run for almost a full week last week, should I take more time off? do shorter runs? bike around town less?
2) what is a decent (but slow) time to finish a sprint in?

Find a sprint tri signup and use it for motivation. Use the sprint program on this site. Everything in moderation.

Hi All,
I've started training for my first sprint distance tri...scheduled for mid June!
It will be in Central CA, so weather will not be a problem...but I do have some questions..I feel a little silly asking them, but here it goes!
swim, bike, run...ok in that order...so clothing??? Wet suit or not, do you change clothing, or wear a whole tri suit?
Any way, sorry for the silly questions, but I have been really curious...I am planning on visiting and watching a few tri's befor my scheduled one...but was hoping for a "quick" answer...

actually I have been wondering the same thing, not a silly question at all...same ? for shoes

thanks! I feel a little better now! Hopefully our questions will be answered!

Amyinsr and running85:

I'm not an expert, nor even the mentor for this group but its hard to tell which questions he's been answering and I can try and give yours' a shot.

I would highly recommend a wet suit as long as its allowed in the race, most races will make it explicit either way. Wet suits not only keep you warm but help a lot with buoyancy... a surprising amount actually... which can come in handy, especially if swimming isn't your strongest sport.

As for the clothing thing, I'd probably recommend wearing the same thing for the bike and the run, a tri suit or just a pair of bike shorts and a top. As long as they're comfy there's really no need to change. A good hat for the run is handy to keep the sun out and absorb some of the sweat, keeping it from your eyes.

Shoes: I believe an important investment is a good pair of bike shoes and clipless pedals. Tons of racers don't wear socks on the bike, I think that's just a convenience thing of a quick out of the water and onto the bike transition. Then, taking a second to check your feet when you're on the bike to run transition will let you spot any blisters or sore spots. You can throw a little cream or a bandaid on to protect them during the run... but always take the extra 10 seconds to make sure your socks are on properly with no bunches and that your shoes are properly done up 'cause your feet might hate you otherwise.

Thats pretty much all I've got not sure if it really helps but I'm sure Counselor will have more to add.

Michael

Michael,
Thank you, your response was very helpful to me. Although, I still am a bit confused (I know I really need to go watch a tri in action), but where and how do you change from the swim to run? Do you just peal everything off right there? Do you have your sports stuff under the wet suit?

Amy,

No problem... Generally speaking most people wear a tri-suit or something along those lines under their wetsuit... but I'll leave it up to our mentor to clarify here. There are also some good articles on this site here's a couple:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=...

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=...

There's tons of references to transitions in the beginner articles section.

Now that I think about it I'd love some clarification on this too... is it wise to wear bike shorts or the like under a wetsuit during your swim?

Cheers,
Michael

Michael,
The articles were perfect!
Thank you.
Amy

Hi

Im new to Triathlon and looking for some help. Im 15 pretty young still.I live in Mission British Columbia Canada, an hour outside Vancover. I am 6'0 and weigh in at about 155. I am already pretty healthy and have just started swimming although it is still weak i plan on making it a strengh. My cycling is fairly strong i have completed a century ride with my dad , who also does tri, and plan on riding more when spring comes around. As for my running i have always been an avid runner and can easily run 10k. My goals are to compete for wins in all mt sprint distance tri's which might not be hard because all of the triathlons in my area my age group is slow... also i would like to race a half marathon by the end of the season

Graham

Counselor -

I'm spanking new to Tri training....starting today. I've spent the last 6 weeks building some strength and endurance to get prepared for beginner tri training.

24, 6', 180lbs, male, newly wed, vegan

Let me know.

I've been looking for a group to join, and if this one is still open, I'd like to become a part of it.

I'm a beginner tri guy, but I've been running for years. I tried to break into the sport a few years back, doing some senior swimming at none other than Counselor's "back yard"...that would be Drury University. Unfortunately, time was not on my side and I'm just now getting back to "a dream." : )

Well, I'll share more if there's room for me to join. This sounds like a great group!

Dan