Fred D and Queen Zipp's SWIM, BIKE RUN consistency thread.... CLOSED (Page 15)

Cool!  Where you going?

Ha!  Unfortunately, nowhere.  I get to work with the four countries from the US.

I agree.  I took the whole summer off from swimming and trying to do a "normal" workout just wasn't happening.  Just enjoy the feel of the water.  25's may seem really short, but helps keep good form instead of slobbering through a 200.

x3 (or whatever). Today was my second time back after a long time off.  I kept having to remind myself that at this stage I just need to get in and swim and not have any expectations apart from just swimming for a while.  There is a time for insisting on high expectations, but at first you need to just get back at it however works for you.

I would have treadmilled it yesterday, except my treadmill is not set up right now!  It's out in the garage covered in junk...  It was 40 degrees (which is very cold for me) and I didn't want to leave the house!  But I did, and it was fine.  Gonna have to do it again, it's 30 degrees right now, but should be up to 40 in an hour or two when I go run.  I don't enjoy running in cold weather (anything below 50 I consider cold), the worst part is my nose.  It just gets all dry and ouchy inside.  yuck.

So, this weekends project is going to be to uncover the treadmill, and find a friend to help me move it into the house where it's nice and toasty. 

Looks like everyone is having a great training day!  Good Job!

I did a 40min run in the dark this morning (6am) at 1:30 intervals (1:30 run/1:30 walk)--Week 2 of C25K.  I don't know if I'll ever like running, but maybe at least not loathe it if I start slow like this.  Then, it was off to a busy day teaching my two new courses for the semester. 

I used to be a "run outside at all costs" kind of girl, but I've changed.  If the footing is clear, I head outside regardless of temperature.  If there is snow or ice, I use the TM.  I have Stabillicers (similar to Yaks), but they are heavy and still change my gait too much for me to think it's worth it.

Both.  I run on the 'mill as a routine part of my running to give my legs a bit of a rest since the treadmill is usually softer. When I lived in the PNW I ran outside in everything.  Just this Christmas I ran for 13 straight days on packed snow and ice.  Slow down and be mindful.  As long as its not a sheet of ICE you can do it.

Rachel,

I echo what Suzy and Jeremy say about runnig in bad weather.  We seldom get snow here in VA.....but 3 years ago I was training for an early Feb half marathon and we had a moderate amount of snow.  You have to take this with the undrestanding that there aren't that many plows and what we do have focus on the main roads so all  the secondary and neighborhood roads turn to slush by day and ice overnight.....I did 80-90% of my training runs on the treadmill for that race.  I did a couple runs in slushy conditions which definitely slow the pace.  My race was in Georgia, which had no snow but was a whole lot colder than I was told it would be.  High winds....but a good race and I would go back to do it again.

I am generally very cautious about running/walking outside in the snow or ice.  I took a bad spill once, so whenever there is anything on the road, I'm inside (hopefully not on the couch!).

I read a while ago on another site that there is an "ideal" temp for running outside (55F if you are interested).  What do you guys think?  Do you have a minimum temp threshold for you to go outside?  I saw a couple of guys over in TT talking about going out at -12F, which I think is crazy!!  Is there a down side to training outside when it is really cold?  I've been doing my runs outside so far, whatever the temp, but bike inside unless it is really nice because of the wind chill. 

Gretchen,

I concur about the "ideal temp" as you posted.....Much over 75 and the heat/ humidity turn my love for running into a slog-fest to live through.  Much under 40 and I am layered up like the old cartoon character in Fat Albert and can't move.  But, I think it's an individual preference for how much a person can/ will train outside.  

A lot of my friends who live farther north than me ride their bikes all year.  I can't handle being cold on the bike.  My limits for cold weather biking are pretty small.  

Train smart to the conditions and to your tolerance.  

Tris are not canceled because of rain.....only thunder or severe extremes.  Kristen did a du at a race I did the Oly a few years ago where it was over 100 degrees at the start.  Water temp was over 90.  It sucked.  Best part of the day was ice sponges being handed out.  I had about 4 of them in unusual places to try and keep cool. It didn't make it any safer for us out there.  Horrible. 

for running, my happy zone is between 50 and 80 degrees.  Lately it's been closer to 40, and I've had a hard time convincing myself to get out the door!  I do fine in hotter temps, just sweat a lot and go a little slower.

For biking, I actually don't like road riding at all, no matter the weather.  I just feel so vulnerable out there!  Seems every few months there's another local cyclist killed by a driver around here.  Granted we probably have way more cyclists than the average county, but still...  I'll stick with mountain biking or being indoors on the rollers.  for mountain biking my ideal temp range is about the same as running.  50 - 80.

I've raced in the rain, and in 100+ temps.  I'll take the rain. 

That's exactly what we have, and why I'm uncertain if I'll make it out.  It very rarely gets so cold here that I'm unhappy running in it (tonight it's -6C and that's unusually low by our standards), but ice makes me nervous.  Having just left work (it's 1am) the footpaths were incredibly slippery.  Unless something significantly changes before the morning that'll be my run out.

I also won't go out on the road bike if it's really cold, but that's not because of the temperature, but the chance of frost.  All it takes is one patch of black ice and I'm done.  That's why we bought the mountain bikes - I've been out on sheet ice (off road) and managed (although it wasn't fun), so we can handle a lot more different conditions over the winter.