Birkierunner's group - ROUND 2 - CLOSED (Page 11)

He's in the pool Trix...which means you'll never find him

Hey, nice job on getting out there! How big was the race?

Rule 3.4.d. out of the USA Triathlon rulebook:

Good to know, tnx Birki

Though reading some of the race reports mainly the 50Mile/100Mile people are"being helped by pacers" so it's interesting why USTF has different roles and approach than USAT(?)

Z. 

Good question...I know the reigning 6-time (I think) champ of the Western States 100 uses a pacer for the last 30 miles.

That's more of a safety issue I believe.  We are not allowed to have pacers the first 50 miles of most 100 mile races and it's rare to have pacers in 50 mile events, at least the ones I've been in.  Races actually provide pacers at the 100 milers.

In the pool, eh? Never find him, huh??  Hey Birkie, are those articles done yet?? 

ouch...working on one as we speak..on a Sunday...smartazz

ahhhh....welcome to the world of bricks (a training run immediately following a bike session).  It will take some getting used to, especially in a race setting.  You should try to incorporate regular brick sessions so that your legs can adapt to the run immediately following a bike session.  This can be as simple as an easy 15-20 minute run following a long bike, or up to an hour run following a bike during IM training.  The key during training is to get changed into your running gear as quickly as possible to simulate T1 in a triathlon (i.e. don't wait 20 minutes).  In your first few bricks don't worry about going race pace on the run...just get used to the act of running after a bike. 

I only do 2 duathlons a year, usually the first 2 races of the multisport season.  So, I don't have a huge database to call upon but I find that the 2nd transition to run is tougher.  I actually like the run to bike transition in T1 because your legs are warmed up from the run so you can start hammering on the bike right away.  It takes a little longer to get your running legs back after T2 into the last run leg. 

The issue of "salt" as an ingredient can be tricky when it comes to endurance sports.  The exact type of "salt" is critical.  I don't know the details off the top of my head, but I have an article somewhere that discusses this.  Has to do with sodium, potassium salts, etc.   But, it sounds like getting enough electrolytes might be a key thing for you to nail down and experiment with during training.  Have you ever used Endurolytes (by Hammer) or something similar?  They probably discuss them on their website    

opiejoe - 2008-02-12 6:17 AM another group question? Do you have a coach or do you self coach? My brother is coaching me through my first HIM in May-also running it with me. With 10+ years of IM events I think he's qualified ! Also, as I have stated before I hired a swim instructor in Jan. I think without the two I would probably overtrain and end up injured at some point or drown with the swim stroke I started with

What kind of IM finish times has  your brother had?

I'm not using a coach for my overall training, but I do have a swim technique coach.  Two years ago I purchased an advanced IM training plan from Rich Strauss at Crucible Fitness (now Endurance Nation). Last year I bought sort of a plan from a 2x IM Canada winner, but it wasn't a very coherent package and his communication skills weren't great so I dropped him.  He had some killer indoor bike trainer workouts that I'll use this spring though.  Using a combo of these 2, along with some marathon training workouts from Daniels' Running Formula, and a swim training template I've devised from talking with my swim technique coach, I'm putting together my own plan for IM WI '08. Here are the weekly hours I'm toying around with right now:

opiejoe - 2008-02-12 6:17 AM another group question? Do you have a coach or do you self coach? My brother is coaching me through my first HIM in May-also running it with me. With 10+ years of IM events I think he's qualified ! Also, as I have stated before I hired a swim instructor in Jan. I think without the two I would probably overtrain and end up injured at some point or drown with the swim stroke I started with

What kind of IM finish times has  your brother had?

I'm not using a coach for my overall training, but I do have a swim technique coach.  Two years ago I purchased an advanced IM training plan from Rich Strauss at Crucible Fitness (now Endurance Nation). Last year I bought sort of a plan from a 2x IM Canada winner, but it wasn't a very coherent package and his communication skills weren't great so I dropped him.  He had some killer indoor bike trainer workouts that I'll use this spring though.  Using a combo of these 2, along with some marathon training workouts from Daniels' Running Formula, and a swim training template I've devised from talking with my swim technique coach, I'm putting together my own plan for IM WI '08. Here are the weekly hours I'm toying around with right now for the build-up to IM WI.  I may not be so drastic with the reduced volume for rest weeks, so I'll be tweaking it as the summer goes along

(Road to Madison 08a.jpg)

Not usually, I just use the plan as a general template, and also....life gets in the way.  But, there are certain workouts I try to follow as close to what is prescribed as possible.  Otherwise you likely won't achieve the intended effect.  During spring-summer I don't have time to do other activities other than s/b/r....that's why my garden is full of weeds and why we are about to run out of seasoned firewood with another 2 months of winter left to go   (I've started stocking up for next year though. I'm a firewood scrounger and hate to pay for it)