MJEWEN Spring 2013 Mentor Group - CLOSED (Page 14)

Tony- I forgot - August is our sauna season.....hot and humid.

KenL- thanks for the article. The Tabata/HIIT concept is good and I concur with your thoughts about it. There is no individual plan, just random workouts with no particular purpose- your article nailed it:

It seems simple enough that people would know that how you plan and periodize training matters.  Training isn’t a random collection of hard exercises or workouts.  There has to be some sort of logical sequence and progression.  If there’s not, then you can expect to get exactly what you trained for, random results.

-and-
My number one pet peeve.  There is no individualization.  Workout of the day.  That's the norm.  Beyond that, everyone does the same crap for the most part.  I could go on for days on the importance of individualization, and CF and CFE fail miserably.

It's similar to what I'm experiencing with the masters swimming I'm doing..... there is no individual plan- I keep telling the coach my goals and what I want to do and we spend half the time talking about what I need and why I don't want to do what the Junior Olympic kids are doing.....

An individual plan is essential. Thanks again.....

Good morning and happy weekend everybody.... doing a 20-30 mile ride today with a group I met last weekend and maybe run later in the afternoon. Tomorrow volunteering at the Motivation Man mini-Tri...

What are your training plans??

I will be at my yoga class today, then a track meet ... run later. Tomorrow is a rest day for me. I'll be at a horse race - should be interesting!

Have a great weekend everyone! Is anyone racing? 

I had a great time!  There were about 300 runners but only 26 marathoners.  Fortunately, right from the very start I started chit-chatting with a guy who was running at just about my long-run training pace and that kept me from even thinking about the lead pack as well as helped make time go by fast.  We then came up on a pair of runners and chatted with them for a bit.  At the turn-around I think the other pair stopped for a snack or bathroom break and the guy I was running with wanted to slow the pace so I went ahead on my own the 2nd half.  And by "alone", I mean literally nobody in site.

It was an out and back course, and my wife and kids were at an aid station 5k from the start. So I got to see them twice during the race and then also at the finish line.  I was shocked they were still there at the aid station when I came back.. it was in the low 30's.. but I think they were having fun as surprise volunteers at the aid station.  It was nice seeing someone I knew at that point just before a crappy portion of the course on a windy limestone trail and after about 6 miles of seeing nobody at all.

With about 10k left one of the guys at the aid station told me there were just a handful of runners ahead and he thought I looked good so he encouraged me to try to pick them off.  I appreciated his advice... but decided to just keep the same effort level and not push.  I caught a couple of them anyways, one dude had bonked and I felt bad for him because I've been there before.  The other guy was talking into his iphone, I asked him if he was on a phone call and he explained he was taking some notes about a problem at work.  Trail runners are an interesting sub-culture. 

Trail running definitely uses muscles that don't get used on a treadmill.  It was constant winding, turning, jumping over roots, looking down to avoid stepping on something painful, etc.  However, I don't feel nearly as torn-up as I usually do after a marathon because I kept the pace under control.  With nobody in sight the last 3-4 miles and not really feeling like checking my gps watch because it was under my arm warmer pulled up over my frozen (although gloved) hands I think my pace slipped quite a bit.  I ended up being just a few minutes ahead of the group I left at the half way point and the fellas I passed on the way back but 14 minutes back from the third place finisher.  Overall, I wouldn't change a single thing about the pacing.  One thing I learned you don't do on a trail run is try to keep a flat or planned pace.... too many factors out there with the wind, winding, hills, terrain, etc.  Interestingly, my GPS says I ran 26.5 miles.  Usually I'm only about 26.3 on road courses where I try to run them somewhat correctly on the tangents.

Running through beautiful wooded trails and having to wind around and up and down is a lot of fun.  I think I have a new favorite place to put in my long-runs.  I saw four deer (they beat me.. but only over a shorter distance)

KenL - Great race report!  Awesome job on sticking to your plan and using it as a training run and not racing.  It is very tough to keep yourself in check on race day.  Sounds like a fun race I've never done a trail race but I might have to try one someday.

I did 1 hour and 45 min on the trainer today while watching a movie Snow White and the Huntsman.  After the ride I rewarded myself with a couple of Guinness Extra Stouts with dinner.  I hope everybody had a great weekend of training.

Hi all!

Just wanted to let you guys know that I've encountered a little speed bump on that highway of life.  I was diagnosed with prostate cancer on Friday.  Now you know why I had to take that week off - the doctor didn't want me to tear anything after the biopsy.

Luckily, the cancer is tiny and contained within one side of the gland.  I am in the process of reading, investigating, searching, etc.  I have to become an expert so that I can make the right decision on my treatment.  And wouldn't you know that my wife is out of town for this whole week!  Thank goodness for Skype and cell phones.

That said, I still plan on working out (how could I not) but I'm not sure what my racing season is going to be like.  My posts may become sporadic but I'll be lurking and learning from you guys.

I did a great trail run on Friday afternoon.  2 miles of uphill (I think the avg grade was a little over 5%) along a gurgling creek (sounded great), followed by 2 miles of relatively flat and then a mile or so of downhill.  I sure needed that after a week of no hard exercise.  Also did my first mountain bike ride of the season today.  My stats were 1:12:55, 8.84 miles, 7.5 mph avg speed.  Can you tell that there were some major hills on the ride?

Congrats on that trail marathon.  I think I would like to do one of those one day!

KenL - I googled the trail you ran to get an idea of what a trail run is  …. Wow, that is some serious trail running….. in the low 30’s?? holy cow.  Well done and great report and insight on trail runs …

Denise…. Great to hear the training is coming along nicely.  I cant speak for anybody else, but I have never denied being nuts……

Ken- I am so sorry about your diagnosis, but it seems like it was it diagnosed in good time so that you can beat it quickly. Great trial run and ride…….

Emile - Guiness extra stouts…mmmmm. The perfect recovery drink….

On Saturday I did a 20 mile bike ride, later in the morning ran about 2 mi to the gym, did some dry land workout, swam 800 yds and ran about 2mi back home. On Sunday I volunteered at a local mini tri – it was very interesting being on the other side of the even - cheering and encouraging the participants - it was quite a nice weekend.

Ken: sorry to hear about your cancer diagnosis, please keep us updated.  

Denise:  I am in the same boat as you... don't really have the extra money now to spend on a bike fit but needed one.  The guy I bought my bike from told me about this site: http://triracebook.com/index.php  You have to create an account on the site and then can use their online tool to get some info on adjustments you can make to your bike.  It works by uploading a picture of you on your bike.  I made a few adjustments to my bike and it seemed to help.  I'm sure a professional would do a better job, but you might find it useful like I did.

KenH - Sounds like they caught it early which is always good.  I will keep you in my prayers.

Denise - Great to hear from you!  31 degrees is VERY COLD on the bike!  Your tougher than me I usually draw the line in the low 40's and then only if it is sunny and not much wind.  To be honest with you I usually look for an excuse to ride the trainer than outside if it is below 60.

Terry - Sounds like you had a great weekend!  What a workout on Saturday!

KenL - Bike fits can be costly but worth every penny in my opinion.  Something to think about if you don't want to spend the money for a complete fit right know is get a saddle and cleat fit.  You can usually get one for about $50 (at least around my neck of the woods) and to me getting your saddle and cleats set correctly are the most important part of the fit.  To illustrate how important a good fit is I went in last week to change saddles.  I'm still trying to find the correct saddle on my new bike.  The guy that did my fit(who I trust) was gone that day and another guy at the store put the saddle on and said he had to raise my seat post and move it foward a touch due to the difference in the saddle sizes.  I was a little leary of this but thought he knows more than me.  Well all of a sudden I started having calf tightness on the bike which lead to a sore achilles.  I thought it was the bike but wasn't sure so yesterday I rode my road bike instead and no problems.  So I'm conviced it was from the guy changing my fit.  I've already scheduled an appointment tommorow to have my guy look at my saddle position.

I ran 8.5mi this morning and tomorrow is my day off. 

Yes, Saturday's workout was brutal. I took Sunday and Monday off and will probably have an easy day tomorrow.

Normally Monday is a day off but my body tells me to "stop it." I had a great nap Sunday afternoon and slept really well last night. Feel much better today and ready to get back at it.....

General Question: how much time do you take off after a long/hard workout/event and do you get right  back into it, or do you ramp up again after a day or two off??

Ken H - Sorry to hear about the cancer. I will say a prayer for you. Sounds like you are on your way to learning all you can about it. 

Not sure what to tell you guys/girls about bike fitting. I had mine done by the bike shop but the couple of things I remember were:

The top post needed to be about an inch from my crotch area when I was standing flat footed on the ground. This means I can barely reach the ground with my tiptoes when I am on the seat.

The seat should be at a height that your legs are ALMOST fully extended when your foot is on the pedal and at the bottom.

Your handlebars should be just below your seat level so that you can tuck into aero position. 

And there was something about running a string with a plumpbob from your knee down to your toes to check the alignment or something.  I think it was to make sure my knees weren't past my toes.

PLEASE do not take this as a definitive answer. This is just what I can remember from my fitting.

Mike,

The closet bike shop is in flagstaff which is 95miles away. We are going to go visit next week during spring break so I am going to ask if anyone in my area is training. My dentist trains for triathlons(good thing to talk about when getting a filing) he mainly just shows up and races and just bikes a lot. I have been talking with him a little but he lives the next town over. Most of my training information has come from here and other things that I have been reading. I have been focusing on running this month to get better at it. So far so good I find that running next to people helps me out because my competitiveness kicks in and I don't want to be left behind.

Em

Tony - Thanks me too!  I'm sick and tired of driving back and forth and wasting my time and gas to figure this out.  Although I'm also tired of going numb when I ride.

Just got internet access for the 1st time in Fla. We flew in on Sat and no time for any workouts.  Sun was a 10k run on the beach followed by a 30 mile bike ride on my rental Fuji.  Mon was 5 mile run and another 30 mile ride.  Tue (today) was a day off off from running but a longer 50 mile bike ride.  Today was finally sunny, Sun & Mon were warm but overcast for my workouts.  Swam some in the pool on Sun and in the ocean today.  Soaked up some rays on the beach today.  

KenL - Thoughts and prayers are with you. 

KenW - Great report on your trail marathon.  I just agreed to be a pacer for a friend doing a 100 mile ultra trail race in Sept. 

Terry - Volunteering definitely gives you a different perspective of a race.  We should all volunteer at a race at least once a year.  I have always enjoyed my volunteer experiences.  Recovery wise, I am like Emile, I tend to do active recovery and just go easy if the same discipline or moderate if one of the other two.

Denise - You've been given some good basic fitting advice by Tony.  A professional fitter can cost some $ but can help riding more enjoyable.  No harm in trying to do a little on your own. 

Emile - I've ridden 110 miles over 3 straight days on new saddle on my rental bike with no problems.  I feel very lucky to have never had a saddle issue with any of my stock saddles on my tri bike or road bike or tandem.  I know a few who have struggled like you to find a saddle that works.  I hope this is the one! 

Mike - 30 miles would be a good chunk of the race.  Even at a slow pace I would have to put in some decent training to run that distant and still be able to walk the next day.   Are you going to work it into training for a marathon?  If I was going to train to run that distant to be a pacer I would go ahead and put a marathon on the race schedule.

I hit the pool this morning for a swim workout and then switched out a scheduled run for an hour on the trainer.  The new saddle worked out well for me today.  I sat on my sit bones a little different on this saddle which caused a little discomfort towards the end of the ride but there was no numbness!