Mndymond and Disturbed275's Awesome SBR Mentor group---Full! (Page 17)

I discovered Infinit when training for my first ironman two years and have pretty much used in exclusively for long rides.  I can concentrate the mix to about 800-900 calories in one water bottle and just take along water in my other bottles for a 3 hr ride.  I would still pack clif bars for if I got hungry but I could get through centuries just on Infinit.  I have also used Gatorade Endurance and clif shot bloks in the past and liked it.

For running I pretty much just use gels and water.  May go to gel is clif shot strawberry.

I haven't really had any painful learning experiences training wise.  I like to think I have an iron gut and can tolerate anything i toss down there.  I did a 5k a couple of years ago where I downed 10 donuts along the way and kept them all down and still ran a decent pace

So are you sure you're not pregnant? If so, I'll leave the diagnosis to the doctor in the group.  I was diagnosed with hip bursitis a couple of years ago, but my symptoms seem a little different than what you're describing.  Basically I had sharp pain right at the point of the hip that stayed localized there.  Although I think I was a weird case because the pain didn't radiate anywhere else.

As far as what to do goes I would take a few days off, maybe till this weekend.  If you've gone a few days with no pain go for a test run and see how it feels.  This sounds like something that you probably don't want to run through so if the pain is still there it may be worth getting checked out.  It's always a tough call to make.

Welcome back. Hope you can back into a workout groove!

I'm as sure as sure can be! Really, totally sure. As a 40 year old woman, though, I suppose it could still be hormone related. I took Monday off as my rest day, yesterday off as I had a severe allergy attack and was thus doped out on meds and slept all afternoon and evening, and I was going to try to run tonight. Maybe I'll see if it's any better and if not then I'll bike instead. I've been doing some of the stretches for piriformis syndrome and they may be helping. I'll see tonight I guess.

February was the first month in a LONG time that I actually got some decent training in. Not great, not what I wanted, but better than a long time. It is nice to not be sick or have an injury (knocking on wood).

I need more folks to answer the fueling question. I have only used gels when I was training for a HM. I usually don't train long enough to need any special fueling. This year will be different so I am hoping you all can give me some good info.

Sounds like you are kicking yourself enough for both of us.

Life gets in the way, just look forward and go from here. You have the weekend to get some quality training in. We can bring out boots for kicking and tasers for prodding, if needed.

For running I usually use Powerbar Gels (Vanilla and Strawberry Banana) but for riding I really haven't needed anything because the most I've biked was 45 miles.  I used a stinger waffle and G2 for that ride, but I felt pretty beaten up by the end of the ride so I know I'm going to have to do a lot of practicing with nutrition when I get on the bike for longer rides.  As far as what I know doesn't work.... eating anything other than crackers or a banana less than 3 hours before a run is a baaaad idea.  Thank goodness there are several bathrooms along my usual running route

x2. Stuff happens. As long as you get back on the horse soon!

I wish I had a CT.

Getting back on the trainer....good thing I have my guilty pleasures of The Tudors and all my True Blood seasons and now the Game of Thrones series on Tues to keep me company! Oh and I also have some special time with coach troy........haha

Looks like generally people use gels and drinks to fuel workouts when called for. Flavours tend to be personal preference across the board. I HATE strawberry. 

The one thing I will mention related to gels/drinks is that you have to be quite aware what you are unable to tolerate flavor-wise/gel wise, etc because you can have some nasty surprises happen to you on race courses. Try to do your best to experiment in training with nutrition before trying it out the first time during a race. I have quite a hearty stomach (I can take in strawberry gus but I just don't like the taste for some reason)...but some people have very finiky stomachs. A big issue happened with IM when they switched to the Perform drink because it has such a high concentration of glucose and lytes compared to most other formulations and a lot of people who tried it out for the first time during an IM race ended up with GI issues. Perform wasn't approved by the Canadian food and drug admin so I wasn't able to test it out during a race prior to IMLP last summer...I improvised a bit and knowing that I have a hearty stomach, I ended up diluting the Perform with water. So the first station I picked up a waterbottle and drank half and poured half in my aerobottle and then the next station I used half of the Perform with the water in my aerobottle and continued this way. If you tend to be quite sensitive/attached to your own nutrition then sometimes you have no other option but to carry it on the course with you. I was originally going to do this as far as liquids went for IMLP and then I realized that I really didn't want to carry around 2L of fluid on my bike in the Appalachian mountains!  

Another related thing I will mention is taste/consistency fatigue during races, specifically longer ones. By the time I hit about 20-21miles into the marathon I wanted NOTHING to do with gels anymore and did take in more solids (fruit, prezels, M&Ms). So do practice with some easily digestable solids if you are planning long races and think you might run into taste fatigue!

I'd say I only started adding things above gels/lytes above HIM level. For my HIM, and marathons for that matter, I really only used gels/powerade/gatorade, etc. With the IM training with longer bikes I started to add bananas, fig newtons, "real fruit" gummies, etc. I tend to live off the course for the most part though with the exception of some special treats!  

I bought "The Feed Zone". Its a cookbook and it has some interesting "portable" nutrition ideas to supplement all the gels, etc. Mainly relevant for cycling because people tend to have difficulty tolerating a lot on runs, especially protein. I'll prob try some things out in there since it can get quite $$$ buying gels, energy bars, etc. 

Doesn't sound like bursitis (which is a major pain in the a$$ too!). Sounds like piriformis/sciatic nerve related pain--especially with the weakness and shooting pain down the leg. The sciatic nerve runs through the muscles of the lower back/buttocks area and can become irritated due to muscle injury/tightness/spasticity, etc. 

I would agree with Neal's advice from above and would also suggest possibly taking an anti-inflammatory live Aleeve (Naproxen) for 5-10 days twice a day with food to help settle the inflammation down. If you have stomach issues take it less often or with an antacid. If it continues go to your GP. ALso STRETCHING STRETCHING AND MORE STRETCHING. You can google good stretches for sciatic nerve pain (also referred to as sciatica...which they don't like as a term in medicine...but whatever). It is a relatively easy fix with stretching and getting the inflammation down and avoiding triggers like large increases in mileage, etc. It is muscle based compared to spinal column based from a disc/ lumbar spine issue. 

Okay everyone! QOTW: Out of S/B/R, which is your weakest discipline and how are you trying to make progress to get stronger? What have been your key moments to this point that you feel have been breakthroughs for you in this weak discipline?

I have to get to bed now. So I will answer within the next few days!

Thanks. I think you're right. I've been trying some stretches but I should do more. I did a walk/run on the weekend and it felt okay-ish but if I touched the area at all it would flare right up, like touching it caused a cramp/spasm. Anyway I'll keep working on it.

As for the QOTW: Swimming is my weakest discipline. I'd like to add "by far" but that would give too much credit to my bike and run! I plan to swim every day this week as it's my kids' March Break so it's easier to get to the pool. Like a little pool blitz!

My weakest is B.  The last tri I did (4 years ago) I was 13th in swim, 56 in run and 111 in bike.  So, I have a lot of room to improve there.  I've just been riding more.  Even did a spin class.  I think it's just more time on the bike that I need.  My husband commented that I was way faster when we went out two weekends ago- so I think it's paying off.  I also hopped on the elliptical last week and my HR was 10-15 pts lower than it would have been 6 months ago- so I feel I'm really getting somewhere.

I also bought aero bars and got them fitted this weekend.  Took them out for an inaugural spin Sunday and they felt really good!  While I was at the shop getting fitted I did also put down a deposit on a new mountain bike - so we'll see if I like it when it arrives in a few weeks ;-)

Oh, and I think my husband has caught the bug as he's planning to enter an Xterra too!

Great, nothing like a QOTW to make me feel guilty Of the three, swimming is far and away my weakness.  To be honest I haven't being spending any time trying to make progress with the discipline.  In fact I think I have only swam 2 or 3 times since Ironman last September.

That said, I have had breakthroughs in the past.  I couple of off seasons ago I went to a heavy swim focus, essentially doubling my typical monthly volume.  By the time race season rolled around I knocked 10-20 seconds off my 100 yd pace in races.  So I know I can make improvements if I work at it.  It's just a matter of getting motivated to do so

Hey guys,

Here is my answer to my QOTW:

My weakest discipline is running. Been that way for a LONG time. I normally come out of the water top 5-10 depending on the race field size and then a bit in the bike...but the run is where I lose the most. I've mentioned it before but for IMLP I was 300/2500 for the swim and I ended up 1750th or somewhere around there....that's a lot fo ppl that passed me. haha.

I have gotten quite a bit stronger over the past 4 years of triathlon in running. I normally spend winter on a run focused plan and then cut back a bit as the year goes on. Last year was one of the best running wise. I ended up PRing my 10km time in triathlon...still haven't done a solo 10km since to determine my "new" 10km time.

Need to get my weight down a bit to cut down more time I think...as well as running consistently. Its hard this year to this point, but I really just need to make it a priority and get er done. Even at the end of a day of standing around and on tired legs. NEED TO GET ER DONE!  

Great! Always nice to get friends and family involved in the sport too! Haha.

You've got it right. The best bang for your buck as far as improving your bike is to spend more time in the saddle! Keep working at it!

There has been a shift by a lot of pros to doing the majority of their training rides on the trainer. For safety and for better focused training sessions where you don't have to worry about hazards, wind, etc. 

I generally only ride on roads with wide shoulders. We are lucky in Alberta to have wide shoulders on a lot of our secondary highways. Still busy with cars, but I feel okay on them now. I was a bit nervous at first! 

I see you have signed up for a marathon Robin! That is great! (FB told me so!)

I am not sure what I was/ am thinking. I have very little time to train as it is. At least it is in October so I have plenty of time.