The Dominon - Beginner Focused Group - Closed (Page 17)

Monty.....best of luck on your upcoming event!!!

Good luck on your 70.3. I'm sure you're disappointed not to do the 140.6, but sometimes you just have to roll with the punches.

Given that I wasn't even 7 miles into my ride, I'd guess that fatigue was a much more likely culprit than my electrolytes. I had two bottles with me, some regular Gatorade and some water mixed with Nuun's electrolyte tabs, and I was drinking a little from each of the bottles during the ride. I do have the Gatorade Endurance, but I didn't mix any since I was only planning on 20 miles. I'm not saying that it couldn't have been my electrolytes, just that it seems much less likely as the cause of the cramps. I think the fact that the first 1.7 miles was climbing hills coupled with the heat was probably what doomed my ride. Oh, well, I'll keep on truckin'! After a rest day, that is.

I experienced another first today on my training ride: a flat! I wanted to log a longer bike ride, so I decided to ride 3 loops on the course of my first sprint in a little less than a month. The bike is 10 miles, minus a little since I didn't ride up and back on the access road. So each loop is around 9.5 miles and then I'd just add a little extra distance to get to 30 miles.

I was just coming to the end of the first loop and it felt like I was riding on rough road. I looked down and the road seemed fairly smooth. Then I looked back at my rear tire and it was running flat! It sucked that it happened and I was ill-prepared to fix it. I guess the only good news is that I was only about a half mile from my car when it happened. I kinda leaded out over the handle bars to try to keep as much of my weight off the tire as possible and was able to coast back to the car with minimal pedaling.

I got home and found a hole in my tire where the air was leaking out. Then, I grabbed my crappy old road bike that I leave on my trainer and took it out for another 16.5 miles to at least get my daily total up to about 26. Oh, man, that thing is such a piece of crap bike! LOL But I was glad to have it and I didn't do as bad on it as I thought I would. Now I just have to see what I can do about fixing my tire so I can send Old Yeller back into retirement!

Congrats on a great performance!!!!!

Nice job Monty

Had a close call on my lunch-time run today. I was crossing the street, looked over my shoulder one last time for traffic, and then started to run again. Just as I turned my head forward to see where I was going, my foot stepped on a small piece of a tree branch that had fallen in the road. Nothing too big, maybe an inch or so in diameter. But it was nearly in the middle of my foot an as my weight was coming down, my ankle got turned. I'm not sure how close I came to doing damage to my ankle (possibly a light sprain), but it was too close for comfort. I'll have to check my HR data and see how high it spiked in that moment. Yikes! LOL

Ouch!

Ice, Ice, Ice!!!!

BTW....oldest son was out for a long ride this am....stupid squirrel crossed in front of him and he ran over the tree rodent! No bike crash....and squirrel disappeared to the side of the trail......and his ride Thursday he came across 2 deer.......

Wildlife and tree limbs.....wow!........

No damage done, but it felt like it was close and definitely made me cringe expecting it to hurt.

I was out for a long bike ride today and saw a ground hog bite the dust when it dashed out in front of a car. The driver tried to swerve to avoid it, but no such luck. Sorry, little ground hog, but I'm also glad you didn't dash out in front of my bike!

Yes....Remember!!!!!

Our youngest son is a full time army officer....

Tough luck for the ground hog....had one hanging around our place last year....not sure what happened to him; no longer around. Tried setting a live trap so I could relocate his fanny-no luck.....took care not to trap any skunks tho...

Took a "leisurely" bike ride with my wife earlier today; easy pace; short ride; some "anxious" car/truck drivers on one stretch....a couple were in a hurry; we stayed way outta the way!!!

Man this heat and humidity sucks. Really working on last few workouts. Recently read that training in high heat has similar effects to elevation, and high humidity maybe more so. Anyone come across similar data

It could be worse. You could have my weather, which seems to have average temps in the mid 50s and lots and lots of rain! I was only able to do about half of my training rides outdoors! Come on, man, tomorrow is the first of June and we're still getting daily highs only in the 50s?! I realize it's New England, but this is extreme even for us. Honestly, I could deal with mid to upper 50s, but we've had so much rain that it has forced me indoors.

I have read articles that say that you can get positive adaptations from training in high heat and/or humidity. I wish I could remember the article(s). If I remember correctly, you had to train in those conditions for a certain period of time and then the effect only lasted for a short period of time. I don't remember reading anything about it being like training at altitude, though.

My wife thinks I'm crazy, but I will go out for workouts on the hottest and most humid days of the year. I figure, if nothing else, it's a test of my mental fortitude. If I can handle pushing my pace in 90+ degree heat and/or 90+ humidity, then I should be able to handle any extreme like that on race day!

50 sounds beautiful. I haven't gone outside for a ride in several weeks, and maybe only twice this year. I bike at night in the room over the garage.

I had seen a post by Matt Russell about his 10 mile run at 95F and 65% humidity being equivalent to 9000 feet elevation. I couldn't find a good comparison. However could find formulas for the decrease in % oxygen at temperatures and humidity. Seems humidity has a larger effect.

NP

May totals
S: 21,561 yards
B: 265.63 miles
R: 66.49 miles

Bloomsday 12K Run: 1:35:37
Troika Olympic Triathlon: 3:56:51

I've been a little quiet in the group this year, but I've still been training pretty hard. Like others have noted, the weather this year has been really bad, and I've only been outside on my bike a couple of times. In part, because we've had terrible flooding, and for months, the main north/south highway for the region was completely under water and traffic was rerouted along my regular training roads, leaving me no safe place to ride.

I ran Bloomsday again this year, my third time. I beat last year's time by about a minute and a half, which was really disappointing because last year I was sick, not paying attention, and stopped in the middle of the race to use a porta potty. This year, I ran hard, paid attention, and even passed the donut guy without grabbing a donut. I've NEVER passed up a free donut before! And yet, with all that, I still did only about a minute and a half better than last year. I guess next year I need to grab the donut!

I also did the Troika Triathlon again, for the fourth time, but the Olympic distance instead of the Sprint. It was miserable. The temps were in the low 50s, the water was about 62 degrees, which is about 6 degrees colder than normal, and it was pouring down rain. It was awful. I had trouble breathing at the start of the swim and ended up swimming about the first quarter of it tarzan style because I just couldn't breathe. When I finally got warmed up (or numbed up, as the case may be!), I was able to get my breathing down, and then I started passing people and doing great. However, my legs were cramping pretty badly from the cold, so I couldn't kick much.

When I got out of the water, I was so cold, I couldn't feel my feet, and they remained numb until the run. I struggled to get into my shoes and socks, and my legs cramping made it even harder. And by this time, the rain had turned into a deluge. I was so wet and miserable and cold and just wanted to go home. I think transition was even wetter than the lake. I couldn't get any dry clothes on because I was so wet, so I just set it all aside and stuck it out. I carried my bike through the mud pit leading out of transition so I wouldn't get any mud on my brakes, got on my bike, and rode probably eight miles, and then I was out of the rain. Again, more leg cramping from the cold. It was bloody cold! No one passed me, but I also knew I was near the back of the pack because transition was pretty much deserted when I went through.

The rain hit again when I was about eight miles from transition, but it wasn't a deluge, at least. I dropped off my bike, hit the run, and at about a mile into it, I could start feeling my feet, and my legs finally stopped cramping. Also, it had stopped raining, finally! And the sun came out toward the end of the race. I pushed myself and had a goal in mind of finishing the run in under 1:20:00, the only real goal I had for the race by this point, and I did it in 1:18:38. I enjoyed the run and cheering on my fellow competitors, so I wasn't miserable for the entire race. I enjoyed the swim once I got numb enough that the cold didn't affect my breathing, and also the bike portion when we were out of the rain.

Comparing my numbers from this race with last year's Wunderwoman Tri (same bike and run course), this year my bike was about 7:30 slower and my run 4:00 slower, so, still pretty disappointing. Plus, instead of making the podium as I have on my three previous Troika races, I came in 4th of four in my age group and way at the back of the pack. On the other hand, the weather was DEFINITELY a factor, as was my not feeling comfortable on my bike because it was only the second time this year I've ridden it outside. Usually, I'm hitting the roads in mid-March and have logged hundreds of miles on my bike, so I feel comfortable and confident. So, I know I need to work on my bike handling skills before my next race, Cd'A 70.3, which is coming up in only three weeks!

But, the good news is my swim speed has definitely improved from last year. I've been able to hit the lake for three swims this week, and comparing last year's numbers with this year's, I'm about 0:25/100 yards faster. I swam 1.22 miles yesterday in just under 45:00, so hopefully, I should be able to shave at least ten minutes off last year's swim time during my 70.3. And although my run speed is a little slower this year than last year, I think my endurance is better, and I'm OK with that. I just need to work on my bike skills now!

And tonight, my fifth Grumpy Grouch 5K Fun Run. It's still cool, but no rain, at least. I'm just going to have fun and afterward go out for a huge plate of barbecue ribs.

Edited by burner2 2017-06-02 11:47 AM

Swim: 2h 40m 57s - 7450 M
Bike: 9h 17m 59s - 157.92 Mi
Run: 7h 37m 23s - 52.03 Mi

My swim total was almost identical to last month, which isn't a good thing. Between illness and weekends spent visiting family instead of training, my volume was really down. I'm going to do my best to work in swims around my schedule. Plus, now that the weather is (slowly) warming up, I can try to get my butt out of bed early one morning a week and swim with my tri club.

My bike total was almost the same as last month. Weather and family life worked against me here. I did log about 1 mile more this month than last month, but I was hoping for more. I also took a couple days off before my half marathon and then another 2-3 days after for recovery, so that took a little chunk of time out of my workout calendar. I did manage to extend my long ride to 38 miles and am planning on making that 41 today.

My run total was down by nearly 10 miles. Some of that is due to the fact that I was doing my long runs as part of my half marathon training in April and I didn't do that in May. A total of 52 miles isn't bad, but I'd like to see that closer to 60. Again, now that warmer weather is here, I'll be adding a few miles as part of brick workouts. Plus, now that I don't have any long distance runs (half marathon distance) on my calendar, I won't be losing big chunks of time in my calendar spent resting or recovering.

I set a schedule of goals for my training at the beginning of the year. Despite some interruptions in May, I'm still on target for what I feel I need to accomplish in order to be prepare for my first attempt at 70.3. And now that race season is here (first sprint in two weeks!), I think it'll help keep me focused on my goals and help me commit to putting in the work.

May's totals
Swim: 2h 10m - 3550 YdBike: 5h 47m - 80 MiRun: 7h 27m - 25 MiStrength: 15m Elliptical Training: 40m

Hi All,

I have been reading all the posts and am amazed by some of the times and distances posted. Today is a big day as I have registered for the FirstTry Triathlon on June 17. It is a Super Sprint with a 300 yd swim, 9.1 mile bike and a 2 mile run. It has been a long journey to get here and amazing since I could not walk 1 flight of stairs without being winded 18 months ago. I am now down 145 lbs and continuing to lose slowly. My training has been progressing well and while I am not fast, I just keep moving forward. Looking forward to posting my first ever race report!

Have an awesome day!

Carl

Carl, I cannot wait to read your report! How exciting! And congratulations on your lifestyle change!

Carl.....best of luck on your upcoming race!!!!

My May Totals.......

Swim.......................7Hr 46Mins.................15,500 Yards
Bike.........................2Hr 47Mins.................34.31 miles
Run/Walk................10Hr 44Mins................37.24 miles
Strength.....................4Hr 05Mins

Swim totals down just a bit due to pool closures and some shorter swim sessions; bike totals way down....Walk (for me) up a bit.

Looking into a couple sprints for later in the summer. Started outdoor swims at nearby park last Friday/another good swim yesterday there. Water was perfect!

Happy training to all!!

Forgot to post about our ride last Saturday.....a ground squirrel was standing in the middle of the trail as we approached.....he dashed to the side then turned around and headed back the other way....right under my wife's rear tire....he went tumbling big time and just enough for me to avoid hitting him again while I followed her; that makes another "wildlife" encounter by this group in just a few weeks. Wife was devastated but told her at least she didn't take a tumble!



Edited by 2NewKnees 2017-06-07 10:26 AM

I've abstained from buying a wetsuit to this point in my 3-plus year triathlon "career", but that streak has come to an end! The race director for my first race emailed participants a few days ago and casually mentioned that the water temperature was "still in the upper 50s"! I have debated whether or not to just try to tough it out. I mean, I grew up in Vermont, damn it! We're used to colder temps than these "flatlanders". But then I reminded myself that I probably never swam in water that cold, even in my youth in the Green Mountain state. So today I went to the tri shop that is affiliated with my tri club and bought a wetsuit.

The funny thing is, I already owned neoprene shorts, so I was looking at maybe getting one of DeSoto's sleeveless vests. But when I got to the store, the owner showed me some full, sleeveless wetsuits that were lower in cost than the DeSoto vest. Between my club discount and the fact that she gave me another 10% off because the suit was last year's model, the entire purchase including sales tax was $137! So I feel pretty good about the purchase. I ended up getting the Aquasphere Pursuit.

Some club members are meeting for a swim later tonight, so I'm going to go an at least give it a quick test run to see how it feels.