stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL (Page 11)

MINDY -

5th grade play duty, eh? I taught 5th for the last ten or so years of my career, and it is a very good age. Most fifth graders are perfectly capable of carrying on an intelligent conversation, yet most of them are not so full of themselves that they are 11 going on 23 (although that's changing......). Lovely humanoids, 5th graders are!

Nicely done on getting the run mileage up to 5 miles. Between that and the swim improvements, you should be feeling very pleased with your progress and its future trajectory!

I'm off to the gym to lift and row, and then I'll try my first run in 9 days and see how the heel/achilles responds. I think it might've been cross-country skiing that strained things, and then running and additional skiing just exacerbated the problem. Well, we shall see what we shall see.

Yesterday it was a swim, then x-c ski, then an indoor ride in the evening, so that was a good return after four days of nothing. Previous to the "lay-off" it was 27 days of at least one workout a day, so those days off kind of seemed like goin' cold-turkey. So, it was sweet to be active again yesterday!

The surgery was due to my over-pronating, and it causing damage to the joints on the medial part of my left foot? It wasn't anything imminent, but she said eventually I'd need it. It just seems a little overkill for someone she just met 10 mins before... My plan is to grin and bear it, hope it goes away, and at the point I'm in a wheelchair I'll try surgery if needed (when I'm 80).
:-)

I increased my mileage up some over the past week, and will try for an 8 miler on Sunday, a week before the 1/2 mary. The roads have been terrible around here lately, all ice and slush, so running outside much is tough.

I'm a guitar player as well. Sam Bush (mandolin virutoso) is going to be in Keene on the 6th.

Good advice. I do remember reading about some Mexican marathon runners who trained barefoot, and for road races they would cut pieces of old tires into a kind of running sandal, and then threw them away after the race. There's a "unique" runner in Florida I've read about who runs 10 miles a day wearing construction boots, and does marathons on the weekends wearing the same. There's something to be said for strong foot muscles.

Jess,

I take about the same amount of break you describe. I never really measure it, I just kinda make it up as I go. I'm sure it doesn't make a huge difference. Maybe that is the case, maybe it is just swim time. oh well. glad to hear it isn't just me.

Yeh, I agree with the mental toughness steve mentioned about the treadmill. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. so, so boring. your issue is heat, and mine is cold. either way, we got our workouts in! warriors!


ROAR!!! (the call of the warrior)

i saw a few posts going back and forth about sore feet. ....that reminds me.

does anyone else get that pain across the top of your foot that feels like your shoes are tied too tight? well I did, and found the miracle cure.....no lie.

someone brought foot pain up on this thread a few weeks ago
http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...

in it, someone referenced a runners world article that talked about how to lace your shoes for different foot problems
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-267--12334-0,00.h...

I used the third on down on the above website and it IMMEDIATELY fixed my foot pain. gone.

good info, thought I would share.

LISA and JESS -

Here's something to consider as you work through those longer swim sets with "unrealistic" time standards:

I'd say that at this stage of the season, ceratinly do not worry about not meeting the goal-time, and DEFINITELY focus on form rather than speed. That is, as you proceed through those long sets hoping to meet the time posted, don't proceed at a perceived fast pace if you think that your form is falling apart.

Do either of you count strokes, and maybe have a decent idea of your stroke count when your form is just about as good as it can be? If not, try to figure it out because it is a useful bit of knowledge to have. With the "40-minute" set that both of you are confused about, it might be a good idea, halfway through the main set, to count strokes and see if you are still swimming efficiently. Whe I ewas regularly doing similar sets, I would count strokes once I felt my form was falling apart, and lo and behold, an increased count accurately reflected what I suspected -- I was no longer swimming efficiently!

Some people will tell you that once this happens, you should back off some --- and maybe even quit the swim right there. I'm NOT going to tell you to do that, but I'd suggest that you think about which is more important - getting the yardage in, or keeping decent form - whenever that happens. Nine times out of ten I would just plow ahead and go for the yardage, but now I'm not sure that was the wisest thing to do. I have read so often about how hard it is to break bad swim habits, and I have confirmed this at times when I have been forced to take lengthy lay-offs. In particular, two years ago I went about 9 weeks swimless due to an impinged shoulder, and I got some solace that once I returned to the pool, I could set about doing certain things (notably, the catch) the right way. Uh-uh. When I got swimming again, I was chagrined to find that the way I do my catch is VERY deeply entrenched in my muscle memory, and even the lay-off didn't "erase the slate clean". Waaahhhhhh!

ROAR???

Yes, Steve, ROAR!!!!!!!


...thanks for the stroke count idea. I will definitely implement that in my long swims. How I will remember the count I have no idea. I have enough trouble remembering what lap I'm on, but I will try.

GRACE -

A quick hit-and-run now, as Lynn needs the computer. But I will return for some other stuff for you. For now, though:

Depending on the treadmill you are using, you should be able to control things by pressing "manual", then working through the cues - weight, speed, incline, pressing "enter" after each. For now, you probably don't want to worry about incline, altho' that's lots of fun to mess around with! For speed, maybe just start at 5.5 or so and see how that feels as you adjust to the manual operation. Most 'mills have easy-to-use up and down buttons for the speed. I will try to get the name of the 'mill I use, but it escapes me for now.

I shall return. And may your new seat confer cloud-like comfort!!

Would love to hear thoughts on my training plan for the upcoming 70.3 on April 4.

Below is the February training plan I developed.  It is designed to build on the running base I got during the marathon training.  The run is based on developing speed; notice the longest run is 9 miles for now.  In March I will work that up to two 16's.  No need to go past that right now.  I also have 4 x week bike rides as this will be my core bike month with Saturday's being my long rides.  The swimming is just to keep that base as well.  Trying to focus more on technique this month with swimming, and less hard swims...just more efficient swims.  I added the 2 x week club workouts because for 9 months now I have been a member of the largest tri club in the world and have yet to meet one member or do one of there meetings/workouts.  So here is to more social involvement in 2009 .

FEBRUARY IMCA70.3 Training
Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
1	S-500ydsx4 Yoga	R-3m B-60min	R-Tri Club Run (30-60min tempo runs) S-2000pyramid	B-60min R-3m	R-3 x1mile (mar pace) S-2000yds	B-Tri Club Ride (45-65miles)	B-60min R-8m
2	S-500ydsx4 Yoga	R-4m B-60min	R-Tri Club Run (30-60min tempo runs) S-2000pyramid	B-60min R-4m	R-3 x1mile (10-K pace) S-2000yds	B-Tri Club Ride (45-65miles)	B-60min R-9m
3	S-500ydsx4 Yoga	R-5m B-60min	R-Tri Club Run (30-60min tempo runs) S-2000pyramid	B-60min R-5m	R-3 x1mile (5-K pace) S-2000yds	B-Tri Club Ride (45-65miles)	B-60min R-9m
4	S-500ydsx4 Yoga	R-5m B-60min	R-Tri Club Run (30-60min tempo runs) S-2000pyramid	B-60min R-3m	R-2m	IMCA practice B-56/R-1loop or 10K race	OWS-60min

Edited by sax 2009-02-03 9:05 PM

SAX -

Great post! There's a lot of growing support (as it were) for what you say. The evidence is building that much of our lower body problems start from the bottom and work their way up - that is, weak feet are a major source of problems, and moving up just a bit, more problems can be created via weak calves. These in turn can radiate problems downward, in the form of plantar fasciitis. (Which is why a common treatment for PF involves strengthening and massaging the calf muscles.)

As for PF, what you say about going barefoot is often not the recommendation of supposed foot specialists, and yet with my PF, going barefoot seemed to help the most! To me, it makes sense along with the other set of modalities for treating PF, which work to strengthen the arch and the foot. As the foot won't get strongest the fastest stuck inside a shoe, then why not go barefoot as much as possible?!?

The other interesting bit of evidence about feet and running comes from the various camps that encourage forefoot- or midfoot-striking. The short argument here is that when we run barefoot we NEVER heel-strike, as our heels are not made for that kind of contact with the ground. So, it must follow that "natural" running is midfoot or forefoot, and that heel-striking it is a result of over-engineered shoes with big, heavy, cushioned heels that encourages striking so far back - which is a quite inefficient means of running.

In Nov. '07 I began working on forefoot running. I did this in Newton shoes, which if you know the story behind them, they are built to encourage forefoot-striking. Previously I was a midfoot-and-slightly-back runner, so I needed some adaptation. The short story is that my adjustment was tough, with protracted calf issues and my bout of PF. But I stuck with it, persisted with the Newtons, and have evolved into a more efficient runner, clearly midfoot/forefoot.

There's more to this whole discussion, but I'll leave it all here for now.

ERIC -

Last things first, I too am a guitarist - not all that good, but persistent. I fingerpick and do slide, all blues, all acoustic.
I have recently picked up my mandolin again, and am having a ball with that. It is giving me a chance to work with a pick, something I never learned how to do with a guitar do the fingerpicking emphasis. In fact, I am spending much more time over the past few weeks with the mandolin than with any of my guitars.
In summer '06, when I was just doing the odd aquabike because of a torn meniscus, I sought therapy in the form of attending Blues Week at Augusta Heritage Center, in Elkins WV. Ever hear of it? It is one of the premier music camps in the US, and offers different theme weeks - blues, cajun, bluegrass, old-timey, and others. I took as my main concentration advanced blues harmonica (my first and far-and-away most proificient instrument), and intermediate slide guitar as my secondary focus. The altter was taught by Steve James, who is also a very fine blues mandolinist and who has two instructional videos on Homespun. If you want the VCR version of his first one, I will be happy to send it to you, as I also have it in DVD. Let me know!!
What is your guitaristic genre(s)?

First things last, it sounds as if you over-pronate quiet a bit, so I would REALLY encourage you to look at some of the stability shoes I mentioned a few days ago, and maybe even consider motion-control shoes. Saucony has a good one of those as well, the Progrid Stabil. I will give you more info on these soon, as well as addresses of a couple of mail-order places that offer very generous trail periods -- as in 60-day policies. So, you can order, try them, and return them if they don't work for you. The good thing about stability and motion-control shoes MIGHT be that they will be provide enough medial support so that you don't even need orthotics. All of these types of shoes are medially-posted, which means that the midsole rubber is much denser along the medial side, thus resisting the over-pronating foot's inclination to collapse inward too much. The amount of medial posting will vary form model to model, with midl stability shoes having jusyt maybe three inches of it (that is, three inches from front to back), while motion-control shoes might have 3/4 of the medial midsole posted with the denser rubber. I'll give some more info later.

Happy picking (or strumming?)!

SAX -

Tomorrow I will be back to you about your schedule and the letter. You're an Active Force today, for sure!
(Can't resist, though, in saying that what I was planning to return to is what he says about where the foot lands in relation to the hip, which is widely-viewed as the most important aspect. And as this involves overall running posture, as well as stride length and cadence, it gets even more potentially confusing - highly fascinating, but still confusing!)

WHEEEEEEEEE!

Off-topic: Why isn't Manny biting at the Dodgers' generous offer? He may be pricing himself into an early retirement at this rate!



Edited by stevebradley 2009-02-04 6:13 AM

SAX -

Nice plan, man!

Right off I was impressed that as of Groundhog Day, you've got the swim distance for IMCA locked-in -- you now know roughly what 1.2 miles in the water feels like. All you're missing is salt water and a few hundred thrashing bodies around you!

I personally like repetition in a plan, and you have that in several places. It's a great way to compare efforts, and at least for me it forces me to work harder on each subsequent similar workout - if for no other reason than to avoid having earlier similar workouts be done faster or more efficiently than their later brethren!

Your idea of using February to work on speed and build on your running base is sound; now is the perfect time for it. And, your body is still in some sort of recovery mode from Carlsbad, so giving it a break from distance training is wise.

Your plan for two 16-milers in March has merit (going "overlong" and getting the bod to feel what that sort of time-on-the-feet feels like), but when you do them keep it really slow - or at least quite slow, or barring that, fairly slow. "Overlong" is really good as a confidence-builder for people who haven't hit the race-day distance before and are nervous about whether they can do it, but you're an old hand at hitting and exceeding the 13.1 miles you'll be doing at IMCA70.3. So, keep them in your plan-bag for now, but as they approach take close inventory of how you are feeling and don't hesitate to cut them back significantly, if necessary. I strongly feel that you could do a solid 13.1 miles at 70.3 if you did nothing more than 10-11 miles as your max distance between now and then!

The only caveat to what I just wrote is that the run, of course, will be coming off the bike, so 13.1 miles that way is not the same as 13.1 miles stand-alone. So, start thinking about bricks. I see your Thursdays set up kind of that way, but I don't know how you have those bikes and runs scheduled (i.e., is the bike in the a.m. and the run in the p.m.?) If they aren't meant to be bricks, then that's fine. But, then maybe think about using some of those Sundays for bricks.

If you are relatively new to these, keep the run portion small to start with - almost ridiculously, embarrassingly small. So, for a brick after a 60-min ride, start with a 5-minute easy run, or maybe an easy mile. The focus on this should be two-fold -- getting the feel of running off the bike, and working at transitioning from the bike to the run. Of course, I have no idea how your turf is set up, but for me to do these at home I finish the bike by riding down our gravel driveway, around the garage on the grass, dismount, haul the bike up the back deck and into the house, change quickly, and reverse it back to the road for the run portion. A week or two ago I wrote the description for those killer bricks I perversely love, the ones called "icks", and for those my t-zone is the back of my car, where I put the bike each time I'm off on the one of the icks' vicious little runs. And even if you have to drag your bike into your house, for security reasons, just remember that even that process is likely less time-consuming than what is required for most transitions at races. (If I ever wanted to compile a list of the Ten Most Absurd Transition Settings, I would have to struggle to cut the list down from 25-30 solid candidates. Seriously.)

So, for your first brick runs after moderately long rides, keep them short - especially if the rides themselves are at a brisk pace. Do a few of these, topping out at maybe 15 minutes of running -- and easy running at that. THEN, plan for one where the run is longer --- but make sure the ride is at an easy pace, almost a long recovery ride. By this point, 3-5 shorter bricks into it, your legs will have a good idea of what you're expecting of them, and be more willing and compliant.

The good thing about a half-iron is that for most people, the run is long enough so that pacing is required right from the start. So, what that means is that after the 56 miles on the bike, there is not a strong urge to tear off at a blistering pace on the 13.1 miles of the run. In other words, your running legs aren't required to be at top form right from the first step of the run. For me, I find running off the bike to be the most demanding in an olympic- or international-distance tri. The bike is long enough so that I am somewhat drained, but the 10km of the run is short enough so that I realize I don't have that much time to catch people, if necessary....but long enough so that I have to sustain a pretty hard effort for an uncomfortable period of time. For HIM, though, it all levels out a bit more reasonably.

Let me know your brick thoughts, as well as your previous experience with them, okay?

Finally --- No rest days? Maybe think about the odd one here or there - or do you just know that some will come up as a result of life's obnoxiously sudden little demands? I'm sure you've heard that some of our best fitness gains come friom the times at which we are resting, and that is very true -- kind of hard for those of us who are obsessive-compulsive about this stuff to fully embrace, but true nevertheless!

Again, nice plan! Your goal-setting and being able to think into the near-distant future (that would be March) is solid, and you clearly have your eye on the prize. Nicely done!!

Sunny California, sunny Casselman -- what's the difference? WELL, I'LL TELL YOU THE DIFFERENCE! THE DIFFERENCE IS THAT IT'S WARM THERE AND BLOODY MISERABLE -19 CELSIUS HERE, AND YOU'VE GOT AN OPEN-WATER SWIM SCHEDULED FOR THE END OF THE MONTH!
ARRGGGHHHH!!!!


Have a nice day.

Edited by stevebradley 2009-02-04 7:12 AM

GRACE -

Well done, you cupid, you -- You managed to introduce seat to seat, and created a marriage seemingly made in heaven! Upon waking this morning, does everything still feel fine?

I don't think I mentioned this before, during the initially round of saddle talks, but in '00 when I first started riding after decades without, my transition to a skinny saddle was not very pleasant. I have likely blanked-out the details, but I remember several rides that were either uncomfortable, uncomfortabler, or uncomfortablest. So, if you are feeling good this morning, and well into the day, and definitely into your next ride, then I think you've got a keeper in the new saddle! Ta-da!!

Edited by stevebradley 2009-02-04 11:42 AM

bump

(We are sinking inexorably towards the bottom of the list, and so as to keep up appearances, a subtle bump is required.)

YIKES! In January, my 4 long runs made up 57% of my monthly total. I knew this wasn't good, but it is SOOOOOO hard in the winter. it is so easy to bag the smaller runs and just gut out the long one. sure way to injury, I know. I have recently made BIG changes in my routines to really focus on injury prevention. Monthly massage, regular stretching, regular chiropractor and daily foam rolling.... now to just stop begin stupid with training!

these are great rules of thumb. thanks, steve

a personal share.....

i just found out that if you do three tris in a year (i guess they have to be specific usat approved races) you get a usat rank. steve, I am sure you knew this, but imagine my surprise to learn that I am a nationally ranked triathlete (as I have told anyone who will listen today).....okay, the rank is not great, but i get to say it anyway

there is another push to do atleast 3 tris this year, folks!!!....oh, and I think you have to be a usat member.