GrooveTime!group - CLOSED!!! (Page 175)

BRICK IDEAS, part two

Following the first three from yesterday, here are three more. Again, these come from Andy Bullock's article "Essential Bricks" in the May 2010 issue of "220 Triathlon".

OLYMPIC - INTERMEDIATE
Session --- 20min run (steady), 30min bike (hard), 15min run (moderate), 30min bike (hard), 10min run (hard)
Time Taken For Session --- 2:10hrs (including 15mins warm-up and 10mins cool-down)
Benefit of Session --- The duathlon style of session will allow you to work not only on running quickly as you tire, and your run-to-bike and bike-to-run transitions, but will also allow you to put in a good hard hour of cycling.

MIDDLE (half-iron) - BEGINNER
Session --- 1hr bike (30mins easy, 30mins steady); 30mins run (10mins quick feet, 10mins steady, 10mins quick feet)
Time taken For Session --- 2hrs (including 15mins warm-up and 15mins cool-down)
Benefit of Session --- Practise running long off the bike and keeping up a good cadence (aim for 80-90rpm) when tired at the end of the run.

MIDDLE (half-iron) - INTERMEDIATE
Session --- 2 x (30mins bike as 15mins easy, 15mins race pace; 25mins run as 5mins quick feet, 15mins race pace, 5mins just above race pace).
Time Taken For Session --- 2:20hrs (including 15mins warm-up and 15mins cool-down)
Benefits of Session --- The race-pace training allows effort to move smoothly from bike to run. The time spent on the run allows you to settle into your race pace, making sure your body gets to this as soon as possible.

MANDY -


There you go! (Ask and ye shall receive!)

The more I run, the more I value the suggestion about keeping up a good cadence when tired at the end of a run. I almost always run at at least 88rpm (one-foot), but make it a point in the final 10-15 minutes to hit and maintain >90rpm. I took me quite a while to get to this point, but his window for good cadence begins at 80rpm, so that's a good number to aim for if you want to go this route.

Annnnnd..........how is the calf these days?

SHAUN -

An approach you might want to take is to post your situation on the forun at www.slowtwitch.com. Over the years I have found some great medical advice there, but the downside is that there are always critics. These are the ones who will scold you for even thinking about asking for on-line advice, even though no one there is claiming to be an expert.

The upside is that when you have a receptive audience of people who have been there, there is a lot of great anecdotal discussion that should help clarify your own thinking. And if you say you live in Michigan and are looking for a good sports doc who can help you with this, chances are someone will come forth with a name for you.

And I say to use slowtwitch just because there are more regulars there who have been around multisport for a long time, and probably know someone or several someones who have had hernia issues. But you might also get good responses from going to the main forum here at BT.

If my bug-in-the-ear hadn't cleared up (out?), I'd have been at my own sports doc last night about it, and could've asked about hernias. He is superb......but at about 700 miles way, that doesn't help you very much!

And for Welland, is the thought that you'll do it as long as you don't feel too much discomfort from Hawk Island? Sounds good!

MANDY again -

Initially I was surprised to read that that was your first visit to Fenway, but then I realized that it's been a long time soince (a) tickets were affordable and (b) seats were generally available. Those other stories from my own childhood and my cab-driving days and going over to afternoon games and sitting in the Bleachers for a dollar.........well, that's going back to the 50s, 60s, and early 70s.

In the 50s and 60s, when the American League had 8 teams, the Sox weren't all that good -- usually 3rd, 4th, or 5th place. They had the "Impossible Dream" season in '67 in which tickets got progressively harder to get as the season progressed, but once that was over it went back to the days of never being sell-outs.

I'm not sure when it all changed. Was it mid-70s when they had the great W.S. against the Reds, and generally became competitive with the damn Yankees? Or was it a decade later, about the time they lost the heartbreaker (Bill Buckner, bless his heart) to the Mets? By the mid-90s, anyhow, seats were harder to come by, even though Fenway was by then undergoing expansions. (How many have there been in the past 20 years? It used to be a single-deck stadium, period, with a capacity of something like 34,000. What is it now -- 40+?)

ANYHOW, I'm glad you got to get there, and hopefully this won't be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for you!

TRACEY -

Good on the new bike shoes, and let us know how the ride today worked for you!

Now, this is going back to the winter when tere was some discussion here about clip-in an clipless pedals. Is what you have the ones where there is a raised platform (cleat) on the bottom oif the sole, that sanps into its counterpart unit of the pedal? If not, then what does yours look like?

Either way, it should make a big difference for you, streamlining the transfer of power from your legs through your feet and to the pedals and cranks. Zoom-zoom!!

TRACEY again -

I'm impressed! That's a very comprehensive Athlete's Packet, and I feel very confident with those people. They seem to have covered all of the bases, and then some. Cool beans!

(On the downside, my printer is being balky and not printing it. Bah. Time to shut it all down, start it up again, and hope for an improved performance!)

TRACEY -

My printer printed, so I'm now armed with all 15 pages. Knowledge is power!

I definitely want to figure out where exactly the "no pass" zone is near the turnaround. I think I will email the RD and try to get this all figured out -- and then either ride it or drive it on Friday to get the visual firmly in place.

It's going to help you a LOT to have sampled those waters. Good work on getting in there already -- especially since your first time in was probably when it was about 4-6 degrees colder than it will be next Saturday. Brrrrrrr-illiantly executed, Tracey!

I have the ones with the cleats that snap into the pedal. I'm finding the snapping in and snapping out to be surprisingly easy to do. For some reason I was envisioning more cumbersome hardware that I would have to somehow manage to attach together while teetering on the bike. All I really have to do is place the ball of my foot down on the pedal (provided the pedal is facing up) and apply just a bit of pressure, and snap!

Yes, that is a nice packet isn't it? I haven't had a chance to look at all of it yet, but I've got it printed out and and will be poring over it later!

I seem to recall the road leading to the turnaround point (which is a fairly small parking lot at Little Harbor Beach) to be fairly narrow. Maybe that's where the passing isn't allowed. I imagine if a rider starts passing in the road, it would be tricky for everyone to manage the small circle you need to make in the parking lot.

Good luck this weekend Shaun. Try not to aggravate those hernias!!

Did any of you ever see Spellbound? It's a documentary about a few kids in the NSB. If you haven't checked it out, I recommend it.

It's fun reading about everyone training for their races and feeling the excitement you all have, but I feel a bit out of it, with no running and no race until June 20th.   I haven't even registered for it yet, because I am so up and down about my swimming and have even started doubting my cycling.   But I did have sort of a good ride today - 40km of mostly hills and managed to keep an avg speed of 26km/hr.   If I can manage to swim 2km in OW this weekend, I will register on Monday.

STEVEB - We are heading to Muskoka on Tuesday morning now since the weather is looking better that day, although it seems to change hour to hour.      I was practicing some of the tactics you suggested on my hills today.  

I hate to even mention my knee because whenever I say it is feeling good - then it isn't.    BUT, it does seem to be coming along - had a bit of setback from the 3hr hike last weekend but seems to have bounced back quickly.   Feeling strong and stable.  

Hope I get my spirit back. 

Thanks for the brick info, it is really awesome.

The calf.  Stupid calf.  I have a PT appt in a week (it takes FOREVER to get into anywhere here) and I will see what they say.  I have asked for x-rays and MRI's and stuff and no one seems to want to do it.  Fine.  I just want to know what it is and how to fix it, that is all I want to know and I am beyond frustrated.  

My plan is to run Pirate.  Or walk.  Whatever.

I will finish with a smile, that is all I am sure of.  I hope I can run it though.  The thing is, I am thinking about hammering on the bike as hard as I can since my calf is shot anyway.   Bike course pre-view this weekend, I will ride the run course too as a refresher.    I will give you a good report, promise!

And I am taking my buddy Molly out for her first OWS on the course before her first OW triathlon! I am sure you will get to meet her sometime on race day.

Cheers!

Mandy

ANNE -

For what it's worth, I think you made the 10,000th post of my mentor group "career" -- spanning this group and the other one. So, thank you for that! It's worthy of a celebration, perhaps, but I have no one with whom to celebrate right now. Aw, I guess I'll wait for 20,000!

But, I'm sorry you feel out of the loop, kind of, although I can relate to that from times of previous injuries, and definitely during the meniscus aqbk season of '06. My 2 cents tells you to register for a couple of things ASAP, just to get your name there and the commitment set.

The 20th is Guelph, yes? Isn't that just a 1500m swim, with Peterborough being the 2000m? If so, then set this weekend's OWS on 1500 ---- which you and I both know you can do, anyhow. That'll give you what you need for Guelph, and then in the two weeks after Guelph you can nudge it up to the 2km for Pboro. That'll give you two races in the next four weeks, and there's nothing at all shabby about that!!

Really and truly, aquabikes are every bit as valid as duathlons, both as competitions and as tests of one's own fitness. And with tat in mind....

I see no reason at all for you to doubt your cycling! You've not only done a huge amount of it in the past two months, especially, but it seems to be quality stuff. Sure, some ofm it might be saddle time, but you also seem to be very committed to incorporating some actually WORK into your rides, dutifully focusing on different skills and techniques. And with an eye to Pboro, what you did today is excellent -- 40km of hills, averaging 26kmh. Fine stuff, Anne, to be sure!

And I will say NOTHING about your you-know-what for fear of jinxing it......but it sounds as if the rest is indeed paying off. "Strong and stable" are the descriptors you want to hear!

And you know where you should be along about now --- www.trisportcanada.com. Oh, and have your credit card handy!

MANDY -

I'm sure I've mentioned ART (active release technique) before, and if I haven't, I apologize!

But I just went to their website (www.activerealease.com, and found the names and contact info for two practicioners in Portand who are certified in both Biomechanics and Lower Extremities.

Dr. Garrett Lewellen
Cornerstone Chiropractic and Rehabilitation
49 Dartmouth Street
207.828.8777

Dr. Jamie Raymond
Raymond Chiropractic
611 Brighton Ave
207.773.4651

ART works great on calves, and everything you have said makes your problem sound all soft-tissue, so in the hands of a good ART person you should get some help. There is also one in Sherbrooke, which the Find a Provider feature on the ART webiste says is a bit closer to Caratunk. If going to Sherbrooke is easier than bopping down to Portland, let me know and I will send that contact info to you.

If you do talk to one of those two guys, emphasize that you want ART, not chiropractic. The latter is good for lots of stuff, but for a calf problem what I'm siure you want and need is ART. This is the practice that is somewhere between massage and rolfing, and while some of the maneuvers can be a bit "rigorous", it is all good and VERY beneficial!

Illegitimum non carborundum!

STEVE -

Just checkin' up on ya!

--Head okay? (No headaches or dizziness?)

--Shoulder okay? (Range-of-motion back where it should be, and soreness mostly gone?)

--Spirit okay? (Confidence no longer slightly shaken?)

--Bike okay? ($12 repair successfully completed?)

TRACEY -


Okay, I see that -- the turn from Greak Neck Road onto Stockton Short Cut Road, and then onto Little Harbor Road and a circle of sorts. I'm hoping the no pass zone is short, like maybe just the approach to the circle thingie.

On a kind of related note, there is much wailing from the studs over at slowtwitch about a speed limit that will be enforced along part of the Mooseman 70.3 bike course on Sunday. It is apparently a very steep descent with dicey pavement, and the speed limit is set for 30mph --- and people are complaining about that. A rider doing a training ride there last week crashed and was badly hurt ---- and still people are complaining. I would think most people can go with a speed limit of 30mph for a few hundred yards when safety is an issue, but I guess not. Dodoes.

Terrible about that teacher in Fitchburg, huh?

COOL! I have heard you mention ART before.  Thanks! I will definitely check them out.  I will call ASAP and try to get to one of them the same day as my PT appt down there.  That would be convenient! 

So today:  I fell off my bike in my driveway (ego hurt, not body hurt), my wetsuit zipper came unhinged (and I believe is unfixable ), and I burned my dinner on the grill.  Boo.

Good news: I have a BlueSeventy sleeveless wetsuit I can use.  Bad news: I promised a friend she could use it since I had that nice long sleeved one...and I really like that NeoSport one I had...

Any thoughts on if an unhinged zipper is fixable?  Like by, say...next weekend?  I contacted my rep from NeoSport who gave me the wetsuit (he is just a friend of a friend who is a NeoSport rep, heard I tri'ed and needed one, so he got me one for FREE) but I kind of feel like a schmuck - "Hey Chuck, you know that wetsuit you gave me about a year ago?  I broke it, and I have a tri next weekend in coldish water...ummm..."  I don't even know how it happened - I went to zip in and the zipper came up but the back was still open. GRRR.  I guess if he can't do anything then I will get one but man, that SUCKS!

Mandy

Sorry you're feeling down Anne.

I REALLY need to get with the metric system so I can follow your training reports!

Glad your knee is feeling good for the time being.

Yes, very sad about the teacher. And the school's graduation ceremony is tonight.

Hmm, the only thing I can think of is maybe you can take the wet suit to a tailor. I have no idea really if tailors fix zippers but it's worth a shot...