Destination MoP is FULL (of motivation!) (Page 10)

Steve - nothing wrong with walk breaks.  In fact, a great way to up your eventual distance is to run/walk longer with more frequent (or longer) walk breaks.  When I am going from, for example, a normal training distance of 4mi to say 8mi, I will often run/walk that long distance and slowly shorten/eliminate the walk portion.  Walking is really good for us!

On the OWS, given your current comfort level, I'd suggest for the first few times out just finding an area where you can swim a fair distance (say 100 yards), but still be able to stand up anytime you'd like with the goal to be getting used to OWS.  Your long term goal should be to be able to swim "any" distance with a nice, relaxed stroke and relaxed breathing (and that would include flipping over on your back, side stroke, breaststroke, whatever works).  btw, getting a coach / instructor to look at your stroke early on is a great idea too :-)

Like the visualization for the HIM!  [and for me, after doing the HIM, the IM seemed even scarier than I originally imagined!]

Your training is looking super so far - really nice and consistent, which long term is the key to success!

Stu

I've had a slightly strange few days of training.  Nothing's been quite according to plan, but not necessarily in a bad way.

Saturday I couldn't do my planned swim because the pool was closed, so it became a rest day.  Sunday was meant to be a rest day (I was on nights this weekend, so not great for getting a lot done), however I decided to get up after 4 hours sleep and go cycle the steelman route with my husband and some friends.  I thought I'd be a bit too tired, but actually, it was the best ride I've had in ages.  The guys set a really fast pace, and it took me a little while to get warmed up, but once i got going we were doing about 17-18mph consistently, despite some strong winds etc.  Unfortunately towards the end my husband got quite tired and I landed up dropping back with him and slowing down so he could draft me back to the start.  I felt like I could quite happily do the loop again (which is a good thing, because the steelman is 2 laps), and my legs weren't at all tired.  We then ran 3 miles of the steelman run route, just to see where it went, and again, my legs felt great.  I'd have done more, but my husband didn't want to hang around and wait for me (humph).  I then went home, slept another 2 hours, and then went to work...

Yesterday I slept half the day, having finished my set of night shifts at 7am.  I'm having a rest week, and was quite tired, so just planned to swim.  Landed up doing 350m and then deciding I couldn't be bothered, and went home.  Sometimes you just have to listen to your body.

It's OWS tonight, so lets see how round 2 goes :-)

@Stu (re: food cravings): I definitely have had a lot more frequent cravings as well now that I'm working out and probably my metabolism is running faster.  One thing I've been doing is keeping a lot of fruit on hand, especially grapes.  Then when I have an after dinner craving I'll eat fruit.  It's sweet so it's almost like dessert. 

@Heidi (re: tri registrations): Like Christine said I've got a 5k I'm signed up for next weekend.  I'm not sure I'm quite ready but it probably won't kill me!  And I'm still thinking about the Norway Tri on July 9th, it's a few weeks earlier than the first tri I have registered for, the Tri for a Cure on July 31st, so I'm still playing it by ear to see if I can be ready earlier.

@Heidi (re: on tap for today): I took an unplanned rest day yesterday because my legs were still fairly sore from my weekend run and bike.  So today I made up the run I would've done yesterday.  I was due to run 2.9 miles but not long into it I felt super tired and crappy.  I only ended up running 1.5 miles and was pretty disappointed in myself, especially with the 5k coming up so soon.  I'm thinking maybe I was dehydrated and that's why I felt so fatigued.  I'll have to do better about eating/drinking properly before my workouts so they're not wasted like today was.

@ Heidi - hope your finger is better.  I am registered for Washington DC Tri June 19 (oly), Iron Girl Columbia August 21 (sprint), and Nations Tri Sept 11 (oly).  So 1st tri of season is 6 weeks away.

@ Jennifer - glad a mantra helped your workout.  Another one that works for me is "my feet are light, my feet are light".  Then there is always the ever faithful "I am a warrior!"  I've not come up with a female equivalent to warrior that quite works for me.

@ Steve - I think it's pretty cool you are already looking past your current race with respect to future HIM!

Tomorrow will be a rest day.  No bike commute, no other workout.  

You're off to a great start, Steve!

And, YAY for Jamis! I did my first Tri on a Jamis Coda. It was a 20 mile, very hilly course. You'll be fine without a Tri bike. My husband rides a 1980-something Giant, flat bar road bike, and he beats me every time we compete

I'm struggling with getting my training in right now. Heck, I'm struggling with time to get here, right now. Please don't think I'm abandoning you.

I'm super busy with the 1/2 mary planning, smashed finger (that's still bleeding off and on), sick dog, job interview this Thursday, and my MiL is having bi-lateral masectomies this Friday(lots of pr-op stuff to prepare). So, I apologize that I am not responding to all posts.

I promise, I'll be more active after this week or two.

Heidi <hug>.  Deep breath.  One thing at a time.  We'll all be fine here.  We're just gonna train away and do you proud.  No need to apologize.  Take care of yourself and those around you who need you now.

Stu

To answer your question:

1st Sprint Tri is this Sunday - swim is in a pool not OWS  I went yesterday and did my bike inspection and got it tagged.  I am nervious, but excited already and it is only Wed.

I have not done a OWS - I am scarred to try yet.  I am not swimming very far with out stopping but, getting better.  This weekend will be a good test! Have had a sore back for 1 1/2 weeks and is finally starting to feel a little better.  keeping my fingers crossed that it is great by Sunday.

Question: I had vein surgery early last year on one entire leg and on long runs I wear compression sleeves (calves).  Do you think I should wear them for the tri on Sunday?  If so when do you put them on?  I have not swam in them so not sure if they will create any drag or not.  I just know it will take to much time in T1 to put them on.

I won't even attempt to answer your questions about the compression sleeve but I will say Good Luck this weekend!!  

Good luck this weekend Valerie.

Here is my thought process (from a person who hasn't attempted a Tri yet)...

What are you goals?  For me its just the challenge to finish and have as much fun as possible.   So what if its takes a 5 minute transition, relax have fun.  I would rather be as comfortable as possible during the run.  And I don't think I would trust them on in the pool.  OK, now for the vets to answer.

-Steve

Agree with Steve. 

Steve, congrats on your life change...trust me its ever changing...I started my change just over a year ago!  I am a jogger walker, but in my tri last week my kid told me I actually looked like I was running! Anyway, congrats and and good luck!

Hang in there kiddo...only do what you can...its hard as the mom/wife, we think we need to be everything for everyone...we don't it just feels that way.  You take care of you and your priorities as you see fit. 

Good luck on the job interview, you will do great! 

Saw the doc on Monday, all my blood work was great!  Some more test were done and found out my blood pressure has dropped tremendously and my heart rate was only 42.  So consensus is that I may now be sooooo friggin' healthy that my meds are adversly affecting me! Woot Woot!  Hoping that is the case, Doc instructed me to cut my blood pressure meds in half and start there.  Gosh how cool is that?! 

So not allowed to train this week until we get the results back and see if the adjustment makes a difference.  If I have to feel like crap then I really hope this is the reason. 

For this reason I adjusted my race calendar.  I will do my first Oly in Sept instead of June; it will be in San Diego, my old home town before moving to the God Forsaken desert.  Then I will also be able to spend a week with one of my kids and the lil punk n' a half...,my grandson. 

Good luck to all with your upcoming races!

Just practice the various senarios with your sleeves, in water, outta water, in transition....set up a mock transition and see how it goes.  Try swimming with them and see how they feel.  Good luck!

Good news!  Kind of wish they had a "Like" button on these posts.

Would rolling up the compression sleeve like hose in your transition area speed things up?

Got my ground chia seeds in the mail today.  Tried a drink.  It was interesting and actually not too bad.  I used this recipe (http://runningquest.net/2009/07/16/icy-chia-fresca/).  

I'm going to mix some up right after my commute to work for a few days and see what happens.

@Cynthia - wow... that's great news!  What a relief!

@Valerie - I love the pre-race anticipation.   Enjoy your first one.  Look forward to the race report. 

On the compression sleeve, I don't wear them, so no personal experience, but a good question. Did some reading and it seems all over the board - everything from you'd be disqualified in the swim to don't wear it at all.  Here's my $.02 (and I doubt it's worth even that).  First question to ask is, do you want to/should you wear it on the run?  If yes (which I presume it is), do you care about your time?  If you are concerned about your time, I'd lean toward wearing it in the swim (presuming it is okay with race director).  The drag might slow you down 30-40 seconds in a pool swim, and I'm guessing it will take more time than that to put them on.  Frankly, I'd just want less things to think about in the transition.  Try to keep transitions as simple as possible.  Then again, I'm an old guy.  We can only keep track of one or two things at a time and one of them is usually food :-)  Anyway, I'd definitely try it out in the water before the race to see what you think. 

@All - thanks for the thoughts on the cravings.  I'll test out a few things and see if it makes a difference.  If nothing else, at least I'm thinking about it.

@All with back issues.  Came across a post recently that talked about the yoga position - pigeon pose for helping with lower back.  I've been trying it for the last 3-4 days, and it is helping.  Here's a link to a website.  Clearly yoga websites are not designed for people like me... lol.  I really like the idea of yoga, but feel very out of place the few times I've tried a class and the teacher spends half the class shaking her head at me saying things like "do the best you can" or "if you're having trouble with that, try this simpler approach", etc.  But it is clearly a good addition to your weekly routine if you have the time and inclination.

Pigeon Pose

So, who else is racing with Valerie this weekend?  Racing season is heating up.  Literally as well.  I went out for a long run today - hydration and sun are definitely coming more into play.

Stu

Mr. J Apple.... as I have previously mentioned, food is a frienemy to me...I love it and can easily go over board.  What has helped me is to never deny myself anything! (only child syndrome) But always add to your plan.  Add water, add veggies add timing to when you eat, add, everything good for you.  Then when you have a craving have whatever you want.  Start small, add more if your craving has not been met.  Of course I have not lost my last 15 pounds but I did lose 65 over the years. 

And with the yoga, what you don't like is what I love about it; I just get to learn about my body, where its at, how I feel....only do what I can do.  Embrace the love buddy.  But then on the other hand if its not for you  don't force it.  Hope your back feels better soon.

@Valerie - I don't know what the local rules are like over there, but I have a couple of friends here who wear compression leggings, and just have them on for everything.  I don't think they've found they make any real difference in the swim, but help sufficiently with the run that they're worth having on all the way round.  My husband's trying them out at the moment.

@ Cynthia - that's such fantastic news.  Way to go with the fitness!

I'm having a non-week training-wise.  Missed yesterday's track session because of a funeral. Only going to manage a really short bike trainer session today.  But I'm on a rest week, and trying not to do much before sunday's sprint tri, so I'm not going to sweat it.  Short gentle workouts are probably the way to go.  It's just weird to think that last week I ran nearly 25 miles(!) and this week so far I've done 4.5...

I've developed a kink in my neck/shoulder area.  It's tender and driving me crazy. 
 
Time juggling is going surprisingly well this week.
Mon-lunch swim, evening ex class
Tues-lunch bike, evening pickup at airport
Wed-lunch run, evening soccer practice for son
Thurs-lunch bike, evening parent teacher conference
Fri-lunch or evening run, 1/2 day of school, work from home
Sat-rest (soccer, swimming for son)

Sun-4.5mile run

Everyone have a great weekend.  We are leaving early in the morning for Knoxville, Tn and the Olympic Rev3 Triathlon.

It is on Sunday but we need to get my wife, Kelly, in the water early to acclimate to the wetsuit.  She has never wore one. 

Also, good luck to all competing this weekend.  Since I pulled my back out two weeks ago my training has not been up-to-

snuff so just finishing will be fine for this event.

Take Care

tom