Brian and the Tri Tarts Group - Full (Page 14)

Nice ride Brian! I like the black and white...looks sleek!

I think I found a tri club! I had been digging and digging around and finally found one that I think will fit my needs. There is an outing on Sunday so I'm going to go and meet folks and see how I feel about it.

 One more thing - today's schedule has a bike ride   I want to get out and ride my bike of course instead of hitting the spin bikes or upright bikes at the gym.   I hear VA's law is that you have to have certain lights to ride in the evening, that true?  I'm going to research that today so I can get them if I have to have them.   Anyway, safety wise...any tips for riding in the evening other than the lights thing?  I'll probably get home from class around 7pm if traffic cooperates with me.

I don't ride after dark.  Be very careful, wear something reflective, get a light or two and assume the cars don't see you.

Yeah apparently you have to have lights here, so that's definitely going to get done.  The other stuff is smart too.   I'd prefer not to ride at night, but with my work schedule being how it is, I may have to some days, at least it's staying light later, so hopefully not too much.   

Or maybe I will just keep getting off work kind of early-ish and I can ride at 4pm like I did today   So I haven't ridden a real bike since August...I rode 5 miles at the beach and that's it.  Before that...not since freshman year of college, LOL.  This was clearly an experience today.  But it was fun and I enjoyed it.  I just have to keep riding so I get the confidence in my ability to stay upright   Road bikes are so different than your average kid bike you have growing up...not bad, just different.  I plan on spending enough time on my bike that I will be very used to it very fast!

I have been riding for three years and still do not like riding on busy roads. Drivers are too distracted. When I can I do stick to trails or country/less traveled locations even if it means driving there first. 

If you want to get a really good understanding of how to use the gearing, I recommend Spinervals DVDs.  I spent almost all my time in the SCR before seeing these.  Now I am in the BCR at least 50% of the time.  Judi and Brian can are probably better able to shed light on this as they are more experienced bikers.

I borrowed a workout one of the guys on my friends list does. It's a "big ring" work out best done on a flat road.  Warm up in an easy gear, then start big ring  biggest gear in the back x3 min, working down each gear to the smallest one every 3 min changing gear.  When you get to the smallest ring in back hold it for a 10 min time trial, then go smallest ring, easy gear for a 5 min recovery and repeat again.  This work out takes a little over an hour to go through.  You'll learn which gears feel more comfortable to ride in and which ones take more effort on your part quickly. I frequently do this on my trainer but a long, flat road would be effective too.

Experienced rider?  I bought my road bike in March '06.  So, I'm pretty new at this too!  That said, I just ride.  I ride long, short, flat, hilly.  I ride slow. I (try to) ride fast.  My first triathlon (Sprint in June '06) I was able to average 19.4 mph.  I didn't do any fancy "workouts" or "intervals" or any other of that mumbo jumbo that gets thrown around this site.  Back then, I used to think anything over 20 miles was a LONG ride.

• Apr: 112mi
• May: 24mi
• Jun: 135mi
• Jul:  23
• No riding from July on as I was changing jobs and moving family from MN to IN

In 2007, I got a little more serious and consistent.  But still, no set programs; just got out and rode my bike.

• Mar:  50 miles
• Apr:  138
• May: 191
• Jun:  302
• Jul:   284
• Aug: 156
• Sep: 35

As you can see, signing up for a half iron distance race got me in the saddle quite a bit more; including multiple rides of 45+ miles in June and July.  Still, I rode quite a bit less than most people doing HIMs.  However, two things influenced that.  I was still learning to swim and I was training (putting base miles in) for a fall marathon.  Oh and a 3rd is working 50+ hr/week and having a wife and two kids that I want to spend time with.   I know I have a lot of room to improve on the bike.  However, 19.5mph on a HIM and 21.2mph on an oly bike is not too bad for a 37-year old man. 

I did buy myself a trainer for Christmas this year (nearly two years after getting into this stuff).  It's helpful, as I'm getting time in the saddle during the off-season for the first time.  It's also nice to have the option to train whenever I want too.  I also try to mix up my time on the trainer, working in more interval type work - mostly to break up the monotony.

BTW, ALL of my trainer rides (so far) have been on my MCR (middle chain ring) - just going to stiffer gears on the back cassette when pushing into zones 3 and 4; always keeping cadence at 90+.  I'm just cautious going to big ring stuff while my mileage is still low.   It is a good way to build strength and help you with hills and muscular endurance.  Just make sure to warm-up and cool-down with some high cadence spinning in lower gears.

I guess I'm saying that if you're just starting out, ride as much as possible and keep it as fun as possible.  Don't worry to much about BCR, SCR stuff for the first year or two.  You will make big gains just by consistently training.  The secret to consistency is making it fun.  If by having planned sessions of intervals and chain ring specifics is "fun" then by all means go for it.  I sort of do this by "accident" by sprinting up hills or chasing other riders out on the road - that's my idea of fun. 

had another great swim! went 150yds i am getting nervous though because my distance is coming along fine...but i'm SLOW. I believe my 150yards today was around 4 or 5 minutes. I know it's baby steps and at this point, I feel confident that I will be able to swim 400m before june 1st...which is NOT how I felt on January 1st. i'm not doing any drills right now, just swimming my two favorite strokes - freestyle and breaststroke. i have the TI book (borrowed from a coworker) which I haven't had a chance to read yet, and i am bidding on freestyle made easy in the picabo street auctions, so hopefully i'll win that. i am having trouble visualizing the drills I read about, which is 90% why I don't do them. the other 10% is that i don't know what my problems are so i don't know what to do. i know my kick isn't the greatest, but i've spent a lot of time reading about that and trying to focus. other than that....i dunno what i am doing right or wrong.

and one more thing.  i got my Anerobic Threshhold tested in november.  according to the test, my AT was 192.  from what i've read, AT is a good approximation of LT.  In trying to figure out my zones, i got the following:

 z1 - 127-163

z2-164-174

z3-175-183

z4-184-191

z5-192-196

so i'm really trying to do this base thing because i know that it's the only way i'll get to the longer distances that i want to do in the future and because i don't want to burn myself out before race day.  from what i'm reading, i should stay in between 127-163 for max base building...but it's okay to to up to 174.  is that correct?  for some reason, i think i mixed myself up about what the numbers were.  is it really okay to go into z3 ever?   

Kim

Great news on the swim! All freestyle or combination? I know it is slow, but it is definite progress.  I think that is probably my speed or a little faster. 

I think the bike work out you outlined is too tough.  I have 2 rings like Judi and don't spend nearly that much time in the smallest gear while in the BCR.  Too hard on the knees for me.  I would start out with a beginner work out and work your way up if you want to.

You are doing great!

PS I cannot answer the LT question.  No clue there.

The longer distances today, one 150 and one 100 were both all freestyle.  I'm glad to hear that your times are similar to mine...makes me feel like I'm not SO slow   It is good progress though, so I gotta keep myself remembering that.

I will remember that on my bike when I get back on it.  It's really cold today  and I got home from work too late to get outside, so I did my workout on the upright.   I hope to get out and ride later this week.

AND I just signed up for an indoor tri in March   I'm really excited about it b/c I think it'll be good to just get out there and do the three events back to back to back and kind of get the psuedo experience of a tri.  This is the shake down:

Good to hear the GI thing was better on your long run.  Hopefully you can replicate this on your next one.

I hope your back loosens up and get's happy again.

Awesome job on the swim!  Swimming is technically very challenging for most of us (except those fish who've swum laps since childhood).  So, those little wins mean quite a bit and add up over time.  You'll be in great shape for that 400m on June 1.

I get a little confused with AeT vs. LT.  There are numerous threads on BT about this - search them out at your own risk. 

For me, I focused on being on the upper end of Z1 November through the beginning of January.  Now, I'm pushing more into Z2 runs with less time in Z1 as I prepare for my 1/2 marathon in April.  I also work in once/week tempo runs into Z4 - but I have a decent (not like Suzy though) base of running.  I often drift into Z3, even Z4  on hills during my "Z2" runs.  No big deal though.  Over 80% of my running minutes in 2008 are in zones 1 and 2.

I'd say try to focus on keeping it on the upper end of Z1.  Use that as your "home base," then go be feel and listen to the signals your body sends.  If you're feeling good, increase your time in Z2, perhaps pushing to the upper range of Z2.  If your having one of "those days" that its just "not working," keep it in Z1.  For most of your running, breathing should be steady and unlabored.  If you're getting out of breath, you're going too hard.

Its most important to be able to finish the workout (e.g. all 30min of run) and come back the next day feeling energized and ready for more.  Don't push so hard that you can't finish or feel so fatigued that you miss your workout the next day.  That would be counter-productive.  The way you feel will be as good or even better indicator than your HRM.  Still, keep the data and you will begin to get a better idea how to correlate perceived exertion and HR.

Right now, you're focus should be on running longer with more consistency.  Keep the intensity low as you build this.  You'll get faster at the same HR just through this volume increase.

I have no professional certifications to substansiate any of this. 

That's a tough one, with lots of different opinions, mostly because everyone is a little different.  I venture to say that the more fit one is, the less benefits from exclusively training in Z1/Z2.  Still, for even the most fit endurance athletes do the majority of their training at Z2 intensity.  As one becomes more fit and their body more capable of handling the stresses of "speedwork" it becomes more practical to increase intensity.  Notice, that after about two years I've begun a running program that incorporates Z4 tempo runs (2x/month), Z4/5a mile-repeats (1X/month) and strides (2-4X/month) or short bursts of speed within longer, slow runs.

I think you're repeating the 5k distance race.  So, maybe just aim to finish with a smile on your face on 3/16.  For the 4/6 race, go easy for the first 1.5mi, then go harder on the 2nd half knowing you can do anything for 10-15 minutes and push through to the tape.

For your triathlon, take it easy on the swim, bike and 1st half of the run.  Treat the 2nd half of your run, like the 2nd half of your 5k and go for it.  Whatever you do, make sure you have energy to run the last 200 yards with a smile on your face and enjoy the moment.