Eriq's Mentor Group - CLOSED (Page 14)

IN SWIM RELATED NEWS...

Kevin Koskella, of triswimcoach.com, is offering a free 5-day program. I am in no way affliated with Kevin, I just read his blog, watch his youtube videos, and have used his program. I've had some good results using this program, along with my coaching, and have seen my swim improve by about 30 sec/100 yds this past year.

I'm not exactly sure what is part of the free 5-day program but figured I'd share it with you guys. Check it out at...

www.triswimlessons.com

Thanks for the info on the swim class.  I need that since my swim time is about 35 minutes for a mile.  So around 55 sec. to 1 min per 50m. 

I do agree with the curse.  We are finally back in our house so things are slowing down there so I could start training and then after my run I ended up feeling sick with the fever and body aches which ended up growing into bronchitis.  So with all this happening my training has slacked over the last 3 weeks.  So with all that I have decided to drop to the Half instead of the full.  I should be more attentive to putting things in here more often now, rather than just reading.  This next week I head out for a week in New Mexico for training so on my long days I will be in a plane and a car so I will have to do some switching around.  The good thing is the base has a fitness center and I will have nothing else to do but train. 

I have been trying to get it at least one to two swims a week, along with two runs, and two bikes.  This week I am going to drop back in my training 6 weeks and start again fresh since I am only doing the half instead of the full.  This will put me right on track to be ready for the race then. 

hey people. it's hump day. hopefully those of you on vacation are not reading this. and for those who aren't on vacation, hopefully your training is going well.

as for me, i took today off. i usually have a swim but my neck/pinched nerve thing is still bothering me. biking and running is okay but just can't get in a good swim. i tried on monday and had the numbness come back. oh well.

the rest of my week is nice and easy with a focus on recovering. i have a one of those fun color run type deals with the wife this weekend so that'll be fun. i'll share a pic or two.

hope all is well with you out there!

Danelle – vacay! Hope you’re enjoying/enjoyed yourself! =)

Jana – some long bikes. How was the 40 miler? and how's the clipless? i've fallen on many occasions. once when teaching my wife how to use em. haha =D

Brian – some nice sprints on the bike. How outdoor training treating you? And how’s the swim and the breathing coming along?

Tony – only saw a bike and a run. But I’m sure you’re kicking butt out there.

Brian K – good to hear that you’re back in the house. I’d say good call on going down to the half. No reason to rush it as you might have a race you’ll dread or worse yet, injury. Sending you positive energy to get back on track.

Jeff and Allie – I’m pretty sure you have a half marathon tomorrow. Good luck and have fun!!! =) let us know how it goes.

Who’d I miss?!

Good luck to Jeff and Allie tomorrow! Would love to hear a race report of how it went.

My legs got really sore (quads and calves) from skiing-geez, not like I've been sitting around not doing anything before this trip! Granted, we ski pretty hard, but still, my legs felt dead on my first run in a week today. I couldn't run with my running group today, so I decided to modify my usual long run day and add some speed-got this idea from Greg McMillan's post about a run he did: warm up about 2.5 miles, 3 miles @ marathon pace (7:45), 2 miles @ half-marathon pace (a little slow, 7:23), 1 mile at 10 k pace (7:02), with .5 rest jog in between. Finished with a 4 mile cool-down and I was toast. Probably went too hard too early and started burning sugar. Not a good thing when I didn't bring any fuel besides flavored water with me. Looking forward to a 37 mile ride tomorrow.

Saw this interesting article and thought I'd post the link for anyone who is interested. 10-12 hour a week IM training sounds too good to be true, but the science behind reasons to not over train deserve at least a cursory glance. Anyone have any other info to share?

http://robbwolf.com/2012/09/21/10-ways-ironman-triathletes-avoid-chronic-cardio-self-destruction/

Today, my wife, some friends, and I did a little fun 5k. Nice to take a break from all the serious training and have some fun. Here's some pics and a vid of the little party at the end.

Before

After
 

http://youtu.be/hsyxFSRgs9k

We did it.  13.1 in 37 degrees and 15 + mph wind.

But we did it and had fun.

We ran 9miles at 9:45 -10 min pace and then due to some bathroom stops we had a slow mile and the file mile up a hill was slow but all good.

We did it!!!

We have both signed up for the MA season opener Tri in Hopkinton.  Did it last year and water was cold......but we are ready to get the TRI season going.

Nice to have a half under our belts, we laughed as last year we did a 2 miler in manchester new hampshire after skiing the day before.  I was more tired last year after the two miler than after the race of 13 miles today.......guess we are in better shape.

Cheers all

Eriq - I don't like running outside when the temp is below 40, and recently, when the temperatures have been over 40, it's usually a bike or swim day.  It's supposed to be in the low-to-mid 40s here this week, so hopefully my run days fall on the warmer days.  Fingers crossed.  Swim coming along fine.  Upto to HIM distances without getting too winded, so that's good.  Need to continue working on technique, but overall, I'm ok with where my swimming is headed.

Those bike sprints are really tough.  Last night's session was really hard - my legs were tired to begin with and by the time I got to the 3rd 2.5 minute sprint interval, my legs were just about toast.  That said, I powered through it and did ok.

BTW, do you have a view on what's better in terms of interval training?  ie. shorter or longer intervals?  As you can see in my logs, I try to incorporate both into one workout.

Thanks!

Interesting article, thanks.  

I don't have any other info to share other than my experience training for IMFL last year.  I averaged 6-9 hours per week last year.  I had one 10hr week, but that was a one-off.  I knew I wasn't going to win, podium, get a kona spot or even finish in daylight, so I did what I thought was needed to finish.  I was aiming for 15-16 hrs, and beat that.   If you want a Kona spot, 10-12 hrs per week will probably not get it done.  If you want to have a good day and cross the finish line standing up, then 10-12 hrs per week is probably doable.  In that sense I agree with the article.   

oh yeah running in temps like that... i cant even imagine. good to hear about the swim coming along.

as for bike intervals, my view is the same as with all other workouts, they need to have a purpose. so if you're looking to increase power or VO2 max stuff, then shorter intervals. if you're looking to work on endurance, then longer intervals at a lower RPE. so something like 10-20 mins at RPE6-7. then there's also the middle where it's like 5-10 mins of RPE 8 stuff.

but there's also ascending and descending type stuff. so you can do a long, hard interval like 20min of RPE 8. then go 15, 10, 5. believe me, the last 5 min interval will be tough.

Well, I'm going for both, so I guess I'm on track.  I haven't thought about it in terms of RPE, but perhaps I should.  it's a good idea.  

BTW, it's apparently supposed to snow tonight and it's damn cold today.  I guess I'm running indoors this week...at least for the early part of the week.  Hopefully the weather improves by the weekend.  

Rest day for me today.  I'll probably do some core and back exercises, but that's about it.  

Happy Monday to all.

Hey all.  Still fairly cold here in NY/CT, so I'm still running and biking indoors.  More snow is forecasted for tonight!?!  It's spring, right?  Hopefully Mother Nature decides to change her tune before long.  I'm ready for better weather!

Hope everybody is doing well.

hey party people! sorry for being quite the past week or so. life has been hectic. between 12-14 hr days at work, i barely have enough time to sleep and get my training in.

my shoulder/neck/hand numbness issue has gotten better and i can actually get through a swim without having a problem.

this is my first week back after an easy week last week. i think this will be my last block of base building type stuff but we have added some intensity. tues i had a 3x15 min steady state run with 5 mins rest. i actually clocked all the intervals at sub-7:10/mi pace so i was super stoked with that. i've had some longer bike intervals with some intensity like 20-30mins at tempo wattage. swim i'm happy just to get through it without the numbness.

hope everyone else's weeks are going well. it's spring so for those in colder places, here's to hoping it warms up.

and did anyone see caroline steffan's favorite bike out?!?!
3x30 mins at IM, 70.3, then Oly pace. rest 2 hours. do it again. rest 2 hours. then do it a third time!!!
I'm not even brave enough to even attempt the first repeat. HAHA!

Hi all,

Eriq - nice training paces.

I am fully recovered from the half.  Did a nice 10 mile ride yesterday at 29:13 with a 1000 yard swim.  Today was 75 min ride and some channel surfing.  We have another storm coming so stuck inside.

Feeling good and looking forward to May 12th, New England Season opener.  Now it is time to work on speed......more soon.

Hi all

Great 5 mile run this morning.  Sunny and 38 degrees, it was actually nice.  Incorporated .25 tempo paces after first two miles - all in the 7:35 - 7:45 pace,  6 quarters.  My first official speed work out.  This is after a visit at New England Tri Expo at MIT with my kids yesterday.  We picked some races to do together and it got me out the door this morning.  Heart rate was good would go up from 140 to 150 with temp but come down nicely.

Goal is Season opener in 7 weeks to run 22min 5k(ok, really want 21 but since this is my first speed session). 

Hey all.

The weather is finally starting to get better around here, so I'm looking forward to some outdoor training before long.  yay!

Overall, training is going well.  Been focusing on biking and running.  I ran 7 miles on my treadmill on Sunday night, and it felt pretty good.  I could have gone longer, but didn't want to add too much mileage too quickly, so I stopped at 7.  Probably will add another mile or two in the coming few weeks.  

This will probably sound weird to anyone who isn't a triathlete (or long distance runner), but I'm looking forward to my first outdoor HM training run of the season.  When I was in IM training mode last year, I ran at least one HM each week, so it'll be good to get back to that level of fitness.  Fingers crossed for continued nice weather!

All that said, my focus this year is to build more of a biking base...I think this is probably my biggest area of potential improvement.  To that end, I have a 1.5 - 2.0 bike ride (indoors) on my agenda tonight.  Have a couple of James Bond movies rented from the library to keep my company.  

Hope everyone is well.

hey everyone! hopefully spring is treating everyone well.

as for me, work is hitting the busy season so we've been working 12-14 hr days, 5-6 days a week. my body is taking a beating and i havent been able to get all my training in. i even missed 2 days last week. i think i missed like 2 days all of last year.

things have definitely adding up and taking a toll on me. today i had 2x20 min run intervals at steady state pace, fast enough where it's uncomfortable. and i got maybe 12 mins into the first one and then fell apart.

i think i may need a whole week of nothing! =P

I have been absent from posting but have been reading a few times a week.

My training is going well, I am starting to reduce the amount of bike/swim as I prepare for a half marathon mid May. I have made noticeable gains during the winter specifically on the swim. I am anxious for the ice to thaw and hit open water. We have 40 degree temps here  so I plan on taking advantage of it until the next round of snow next week. Run and bike that is, wont be swimming outdoors until mid to late May.

Keep on keepin on