Tri for fun - Full up, closed (Page 13)

We're rooting for you Suzanne..and great job on the run....very good indeed!!

www.swimplan.com

I have yet to actually follow through with any workout, since I haven't started using a real lap pool yet, but they look good... and free!

Sure you do!  you can do anything you put your mind to!

Try this....
http://ruthkazez.com/ZeroTo1mile.html

It is whati have been using and it is amazing!  My wife works a swimmer who swam for Purdue...he reviewed and recommened changning the breaths to 5-10 sec rest.  he also suggested i start in and end in the deep end.  he said never touching the floor or hanging on teh walls will better prepare you for open water swimming.  It is amazing how the program works!

I highly recommend it!!

Good luck!

I was planning on posting the first week's numbers on Saturday using everyone's training log.  So please make sure you are posting your workouts on BT.  IF you are not posting, please send me a PM before Saturday with your totals. 

Does everyone want me to post the totals more often?  Yeah engineers love numbers.  Sorry but as you might notice, I love numbers.  Gives you an idea of what I do for a living. 

Thanks for the sites, Dan and Suzanne.  I will definitely take a look at them for next week. 

I swam 500 yards this morning, breaking every 100 yards while the person beside me swam down and back (about 45-60 seconds i'm guessing).  All in all, I was in the pool a little under 30 minutes.

After my first morning of swimming, it has become clear to me that I need to consider some  equipment.  First, my eyes are killing me.  I definitely need goggles before getting back in next week.  Am I ok with thinking that most any pair from the local sports store will work, or are some really better than others? 

Second, I need decent swim trunks (i.e. some that don't fall off every time I push off from the wall).  Since I am going to be spending money anyway, any suggestions on what I should be looking for long term?  (And those little speedo things that Micheal Phelps wears are not an option at this point.  I would get probably be fined and banned from the pool for life.) 

Go team 2!!!

David

David,

I am not the most experience swimmer but get goggles that don't fog up and that are shaded.  This will help during open water swims or if your pool is outside.  I prefer a shaded pair.  I have friends that reallylike the mask type goggles vs the little ones that Mike Phelps uses but I haven't tried them. 

Swim trucks.  I will probably never wear a speedo either.  I swim in what I think they call a "square leg".  They look like boxer briefs.  Here is the website. 
http://www.trisports.com/mensswimware.html

Others prefer "jammers" and this is like spandex down to your knees.  I haven't tried those.  I have also swam in standard board shorts and I have to be honest, I don't notice that much extra drag but then again, I am not that good of a swimmer. 

Anyone else? 

Hey Jonathon
Don't think I am some strange person trying to give a man advice on swim trunks...

As the parent of a male swimmer, I have heard/seen more than I ever wanted to, believe me!! When the kids bend forward on the starting blocks to dive into the pool...you can see too much.

I would strongly advise finding a swim shop that can help you learn about suits rather than going to a dept store. Find a swim shop that has a selection of male suits and try some on. If they are too loose they fill with water and...well....you get it. They have to be snug. Alot of the masters who don't want to wear the skimpy ones, wear the "bike short"style with longer legs. I have to admit that I actually wear a pr of tri shorts over my women's suit because there is NO way my 50 year old butt is being exposed to the public during a flip turn -- no way!! Teehee. Tyr/Speedo etc make great suits that hold up to an amazing number of swims in chlorine, IF you spend a little extra and get polyester rather than lycra(very short life).

I am totally with the advise above re goggles, too. Get a good pr!! When you are at the store, you take them out of the pkg and try them against your face. They should suction on around your eyes if they fit well. The nose pieces on some are adjustable or interchangeable. The goggle straps are adjustable too. My 11 year old and I wear the same size and model...so you do have to try different ones to see what you will like. And you might get to the pool and find they just aren't right...then spend another ten bucks, and try a different one, because once you find the type you like, they will last a LONG time if you look after them.

Only two things you need...a good suit and good goggs. Happy swimmin!!

I haven't used any other sites, but I really liked swimplan.com.

They give you options of distances, strokes (it took me a while to figure out that "freestyle" or "free" means "front crawl"), equipment, etc. The plans are easy to request and really clearly laid out.

I liked this site and since you can start your own plan for FREE, it is totally worth it.

The other site listed looks great, too...

Keep up the poolin'

Ann

Jonathon
I highly recommend jammers.  I get mine at Dicks Sporting Goods.  They wear out every 6 months, so check you butt in the mirror.  I never thought to check and apparently I was showing way too much for some time.  It is amazing the difference the jammers make compared with swimming with trunks. 

To anyone looking to improve their swim, I highly recommend Total Immersion "Triathlon Swimming Made Easy".  It is available at their website.  I did not find the DVD terribly useful, but I went through the book and I got from being totally gassed at 50m to about a 2 min/100m ave for "long " swims of 2000+m.  I am by no means a great swimmer, but to get from zero to MOP, TI is the way to go.  I probably need a Masters swim class to get better, but MOP on the swim is OK with me.

Keep S/B/Ring.

Rob

Apparently, if you wipe a little baby shampoo on the insides before your swim it prevents fogging.  Never tried it, but have read that it works.  Next time I will try it and report back.

All of this talk about swimming makes me want to jump in!  Maybe tomorrow...

Nichi

I would like to just do laps and not do work, though.  I have my swim lesson on Saturday-then I will work!

Hoping everyone has a fabulous weekend!! Train on

Thanks, Ann! 
We are going to a movie tonight-sherlock holmes.  It's been a long time since we have gone out to a movie! 

tomorrow is swim class and long run and probably a nap! 

You have a nice weekend, too!
Nichi

So my wife works at Carmichael Training Systems - they provide training and coaching for endurance athletes.  Today she surprised me by signing me up with a coach/trainer for my birthday! 

The coach is a triathlete and competes in Xterra's.  I can't wait to start working with him next week!

Man....you gotta love a wife like that!!!

Now off to run!

Hey Dan
What an awesome suprize....great job. I just finished reading through a book on the Carmicheal and it looks fabulous!! And safe in terms of slow jumps in workouts, etc.

Congratulations big time!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRRRTHDAY TO DAAANNN...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUUU...

now just pretend to blow out imaginary candles


Edited by arny 2010-02-06 2:20 PM

Re engineers and numbers:

Do engineers THINK in numbers?
My brain loves words...numbers don't mean much to this brain...but I get the sense that the brains of "number crunchers" / people who love stats, must be wired differently...?
Maybe I gotta a few wires loose? Hmmm(laughing)

Well, I have to say with a sigh of relief...THANK YOU FOR NOT MAKING ME TRY TO DO THE STATS...phew!! Thank you for doing the number crunching for us all

Edited by arny 2010-02-06 2:27 PM

Hey Group.I was just reading through the last two days posts and you guys are awesome. I love how you guys help each other out and I am amazed at what a resource you all are.Way to go!

I just got back from 9 hours of defensive tactics for the sheriffs office here in town. I have started through their cadet reserve program and it is difficult but a lot of fun. I got thrown around more today than I have in a long time.But it was fun.

I promised a while ago that I would help all of you shave minutes off of your triathlon times. ready for the secret???? Get faster at transition. There are some easy ways to do that with a little practice. WInter time is also a great time to work on this because you don't even have to be outside.

Trick #1 - Wear socks on the swim. The reason is simple.When you exit the water you run through grass and gravel back to transition. You can either take the time to rinse, wipe and dry your feet or simple whip off the socks, step onto a towel then put on your shoes and socks. Not only does it save you time but it saves a lot of discomfort which in my book is more important.

Trick #2 - Body glide is not just for your body. If you put it around the top of your shoes your foot slides in much easier and you don't have to fight that as much.

Trick #3 - Make sure your wetsuit fit you well and practice getting in and out of it several times. Make sure too that you practice when wet. It totally changes how it comes off. I even trimmed back my sleeves and ankles to a wider part of the suit so that it wasn't so narrow and prone to tear.

Trick #4 - Get a number belt. They are cheap and allow for swapping, taking off or putting on clothes without worring about the shirt thats too hot but has your number pinned on it.

Trick #5 - Take time to analyize anything that does not work perfectly.And I mean perfectly. The shifters on my bike were just slightly out of tune and every once in a while I would drop a chain. I told myself for the longest time it was just the way it was. WRONG.I took it into a bike shop and for 2 minutes and no cost they fixed it.

Trick#6 - My last one for the day. Race day is never the day to try something new. Most of us know this but I want to reemphasize this. Speaking from experience, when your body is under stress it acts differently to foods and you can loose precious hours sitting in the porta-john contemplating the very small amount of tissue left on the roll. It is also not the time to try leaving your shoes clipped onto the bike and try to do a running mount. Even something as small as going sockless. If not practiced don't do it on race day. These examples are just a small sample of the many dumb things I have tried. The food was simply a different flavor of gatorade.I switched back and no more problems since.

Well I hope that is something to contemplate. Please give this some practice. If it doesn't save you any timebut makes your racemore enjoyable then thats all I can ask.

Keep up the great work everyone. I have another full day of academy tomorrow but will probably check in tomorrow night.I ear theres a football game tomorrow or something.Not even sure who's playing.

Thanks for the tips.  Is it hard to swim with the socks on?  Seems like it might take a little getting used to. 

As to race belts, may I recommend putting it on under your wetsuit.  I forgot mine coming out of T2 in my first Tri, and ran back in to Transition to get it, screwed up the timing and messed up my head for the whole run.  I am such a noobie.

Sorry to my team that I haven't done anything the last 2 days.  I am dealing with back pain.  I have 2 old compression fractures in my L-Spine and have been having some pain for the past 1-2 weeks.  It feels fine when I run or bike, but then hurts like heck the next few days.  I am taking my wife/doctor's advice and taking it east for a few days.  Plan on hitting the Trainer tomorrow and Running Long on Monday. 

Great work everyone.

OK, so I am somewhat of a Math Geek, so I ran the numbers and here they are.

Team 1 (davidson3, nichip, vtgirl, mdslnger, leclerc457)= 87 pts
Team 2 (Jslacker, Arny, Holt1997, Jonathan Swift)= 71.1 pts

I calculated each sport for each person first the got the person's total, then added each total to 1 decimal point.

Example, for me:  I swam 2000meters.  2000/1920 (1.2miles)= 1.04x7pts=7.3 pts.

I did the same for miles biked/56 x 7 and for miles ran/13.1 x 7.  Other sports was 1pt/hr.

This is only the first half.  The Colts led 10-0 in the first quarter, then Drew Brees took over. 

Team 1 this means we can not let up.  Team 2 there is still alot of time left.

Play on!

Wow, thanks for running the numbers for the first week.  It looks pretty close so far.  If you haven't reported all your numbers, please do so.  This is going to be a close competition. 

Great Superbowl game last night.  Unfortunately, my team didn't win but I am happy for Drew Brees (Ex Purdue QB great) and the NO Saints. 

Great work everyone on the first week!  This second half will surely be a close one - hopefully closer than the super bowl!!

Nice job David on the swim...you are gonna love that swim program, is am starting week 5 now and it is just amazing how it works!

Thank God for indoor trainers...we have about 4 inches of the white stuff on the ground but i was still able to get in 13 miles this morning!