GrooveTime!group - CLOSED!!! (Page 178)

*holding head in shame*

I'm sorry Mandy and Steve. Next time I'll know to call you both as soon as I finish the race and have collected my thoughts. Please send over your phone numbers so I don't make this mistake again.

SHAUN,

GREAT RACE!!!   Well done for a first tri and a guy that was not going to go all out.   All three legs were great but your swim was awesome.  

Can just imagine the results you are going to post next year.  

SHAUN!

What an auspicious first triathlon.......and associated race report!

Really, really impressive swim and bike, and an a.g. finish comfortably in the top half (44%, to be precise) -- not many people nail that type of peformance first time around. Surely now, wiith a few hours of reflection since you posted, ya gotta be thrilled with how it went, yes?

I think it's pretty coomon for triathletes to feel the worst about their areas of strength, which for you is the swim and bike, of course. We not only have high hopes for those, but theya re alos our bread and butter if we hope to place well. So, when it doesn't fully unfold as we might hope it would......

But for you, your swim was in the top 25% of the a.g., and the bike was top 28% or so; nothing really to be disgruntled about those, Shaun!

I can't really explain the quad matter, but my guess is that you have a strong swim kick and today was the first time you have had to bike after a hard-effort swim. You might have to monitor this some and fine-tune your swim effort so as to have more quad left after you're out of the water.

As for taking time in tranistion, that was the way to play it today -- and maybe for the next few as well. In time you will get good at working through your checklists as you finish the swim and the bike so you will know exactly what you have to do in transition. So for the hat question, you will know as you approach the end of the bike whether you want it or not. I don't know how long it took me to feel I had transitions down to something approaching an art, but it was maybe 20 races or so. And even then, I can still screw up and either mispalce something I need, or reverse a decision I had made only minutes before. (For me, the fly in the ointment was siunglasses on the run, and last season I decided that unless it's a completely sunny oly or half-iron, I'm not worrying about them. That resolved one perennial problem!)

Ah-ha! That part sabout the time-trial swim start option explains something that confused about on the race timeline. I can't tememebr the exact wording, but did it transpire that the time-trial people went AFTER the male and female waves?

Good work on the nutrition -- sounds like you nailed it! (And that IS a nice freebie, HEED and a flask. Props to Hammer for being overly generous today!)

Finally, your followup thoughts are excellent, and zero in on several worthy areas to focus on -- not just for H.I. next year, but as you move through this season.

Great job, shaunmarxnumber607fromtroymichigan!!! Enjoy dinner!

TRACEY -

Yes! This happened to one of the women in the other group, and it really annoyed her. There she was, training like a demon, and gaining weight. It wasn't consistent, but from when she began training seriously to when it leveled off some, she saw about a 4-6lb gain (if I remember correctly). The weight finally started to come down in the fall as she was training for her first half-marathon, but I don't know where she is at with at right now.

You've told me before that you do a fair amount of strength work, so maybe for you part of the "train gain" reflects added muscle mass. Is that a possibility, you think?

Finally, for some of us training can really stoke the fires of hunger, and if I'm not careful I can eat much more than I really need to. The advice to snack (graze) when needed doesn't work really well with me, as I can do that 'til the cows come home!

ANNE -

By the time it stopped raining/drizzling, the temp had dropped to 9C......and I chickened out. Brck-brck!!

So, I will try again tomorrow for a hill ride and figure out exactly where I am when I'm aggressivley out of the saddle. Sorry!

TRACEY again -

One-legged drills work best on a trainer where you can hook the top of your foot over one of the supports, but it can also be done with nothing to hook the feet on, and they just stay kind of crooked-up behind thre pedal they are no longer attached to. An empty parking lot is the safest place, but a scant-used road with wide shoulders is also good....enough.

Silly Sox loss today, but the real focus is on the Celts tonight!!!

MANDY -

Many thanks for scoping out the course and the motel and eating options! To reward you efforts, I am going to phone Windham Way in a while and see if they will have me. (Good about the Dunkin' Donuts.....but is it open by 5, or 5:30? Huh? Huh? )

Any slight improvements for the calf? And were you able to schedule one of those ART people?

MANDY again -

Excellent ride and swim, too! And I was just telling someone earlier today that I figured Sebago Lake would be cold next week. Shows what I know!

Wow Shaun! Awesome job on your first race! And considering you had those hernias too... You finished really well in the swim too, considering the problems you said you had with sighting and what not. Congratulations!

Shaun!

Congrats on an awesome finish.  Great race report too - it really sounds like your nutrition was nailed down and that the groin/hernia behaved! 

That is crazy that the guy stopped right in front of you!  The quad thing...maybe a few swim/bike bricks would help sort that out?  Just a thought.  SO cool to hear your name, right?

Congrats again, you did awesome!

Mandy

Steve  B!

Oh yeah, I was there so I thought I would check it out - stay anywhere you want  , I hadn't really been to Windham before so I didn't know or else I would have suggested it first.   I will find out if DD is open early - I think they are, the one in Skowhegan is....that is way up north compared to Windham. 

The ART guys are not open on the weekends, I am giong to call first thing tomorrow morning.  The calf is....better.  I haven't run on it yet...I am a bit hesitant to run on it until I get someone to look at it (only 5 more days!) - my stride is all messed up, I can't push off very well...it is so tight - I foam roll, stick, tennis ball etc it...I can't wait for them to get their hands on my calf, really!!

Not running in my training is really screwing me up mentally, I am trying to get past that right now.  Like today it was a downpour, and if I didn't have people to meet I probably wouldn't have gone out for a bike, but would easily have gone for a run.  Ah welll...

Cheers!

Mandy

Nice job Shaun - you are a TRIATHLETE.

That's OK.   I would have chickened out too.      It was quite cool here today as well and rain in the morning.   Have seen some of the results from Milton today and yesterday's Woodstock race.  

A friend and I have a habit of checking out the race results of the races we don't do to see where we would have placed.   We both made 2nd!       Ken laughs at us and says we should just give up racing and e-mail our times in. 

I was playing around with the elevation chart for Peterborough and Muskoka on mapmy ride today and Peterborough has total elevation climb of about 1050 feet and Muskoka has only about 750ish, but there are steeper climbs in Muskoka, although they are not long.   Peterborough has alot of longer, gradual climbs; in fact there are none steep enough to warrant a detailed analysis on the chart.    We've decided to go to Peterborough on the 23rd for the day.  

If you do have a chance for a hill ride tomorrow, that would help me for Tuesday but not to worry if you can't.  

Shaun-

Super Job and Race report

MANDY -

I understand all your thoughts about running. It is the ONE thing that can be done just about always, and for those of us who actually enjoy the act of running, it is the ace up our sleeves. A humanoid's best friend (well, for those who enjoy it.....)!

How much of the claf problem is tightness, and how much is flat-out pain? Or does the tightness morph into pain pretty quickly? I'm mojoing like crazy that you are ready to perform at Pirate!

ANNE -

Well, the plan still is to do a ride today, and somewhere with some semblance of a hill, or two. The weather is pretty sweet, and this afternoon will be sunning and windy, wth a high of 19 or so.

Maybe all of us reace result voyeurs need a support group -- or intensive counseling! I do that sort of thing, too, and probably spend more time roaming through results than is good for me! Sometimes, though, for races that I really wanted to do but couldn't or didn't, it takes me a while to get to the results; it hurts too much to look at them! I really like Ken's suggestion of what you and your friend should do!

(And now, i think I will case out the Woodstock results! )

Hey Steve!

Yes, all systems are Go-ish.  Head is fine, bike is fine.  Shoulder is getting tested tonight at the pool - the scabbing has broken up enough to move the shoulder without too much discomfort.  

Had a pretty good ride this weekend - 60 miles in 3.5 hours.  I tried a new route up Encinal Canyon - wow, that was a tough climb.  Looking forward to doing it again.  5 miles of climbing - grades of mostly 5% to 7%.  It was a great ride, coming out of the fog at sea level into the sun and baking for a bit.  Then back down to cool off and a long flattish ride from there. 
(http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/malibu/823127592673251569)  I was tentative on the downhills at first - but by the time I was headed back from the turnaround, I was staying aero and being as aggressive as before.  I was a bit uncomfortable on the last 10-15 miles - I could probably use a few more shorter rides, but I'm concerned about my mileage heading into Vineman, so I'm gonna try to push through.

Also went up to canyon country to the north in the car on Sunday to scope out a few new routes.  I'm looking for rides where I'm not driving for 40 minutes each way so it'll limit the time I'm away from home.  Canyon Country here looks great for a couple of reasons:  15-minutes each way by car (I can actually ride from home and back for the longer 80+ mile rides), and it's canyon country, so in the summer, it'll be HOT.  I'd like to get at least a couple long rides there before Vineman, as I hear that can be a scorcher.  Only concern is that the route I hear the most about is 2-lane with minimal shoulder - which is a bit worrisome.  At the same time, it's in the middle of nowhere, so when I was driving it, I saw maybe 10 cars total on the road.  It's windy, hilly, back country stuff, so I think I'll give it a shot and see how it works out.

Running is behind where I want it to be right now - I have to really hunker down and focus on that at this point - ramp the mileage without risking injury.  As expected, the run is the thing that is taking the longest to come back online.  With just 6 weeks to go, the run is the thing that is concerning me the most.  Did a 5-mile "brick" on Saturday - meaning I ran with a friend about 3 hours after finishing the ride.  Legs has stiffened, and it was not a great run, but we got it done. 

Mark,
Sorry to hear about your loss.  Our thoughts are with you and your family.

Great Job Shaun!  Now, time to get healed!

Speaking of weight talk....

Weighed myself today.  I've gained 6 lbs since IMSG.  What a wake-up call.  Time to get back to the plan.  Mileage up, calories down.  I've got 6 weeks to ideally lose 6-9 lbs. 

Mark-

So sorry to hear about your loss.

Best wishes,

Mandy

Thanks for the mojo!  The tightness messes up my stride and leads to pain fairly quickly...weird.  What really puzzles me is that biking doesn't bother it in the least...

I have a 9:30 am PT appt on Friday AND an 11am ART appt FRIDAY!  The places are fairly close and 11am was all the ART had open on Fri when I am in Portland...SO, it has to work.  Hope I am not cutting it too close, but usually PT is @ 1hr...So....If I can get to both places that should help! I wish I could go TODAY!

Thanks for the info!

Cheers,

Mandy

SteveA:

Your rides always sound so scenic and beautiful (except for the one in which you almost got cozy with the side of a car!)

I see you guys talk about hill grades a lot. How do you determine the grade of a hill? Thanks!

Tracey

Had a pretty good swim/ride brick today. I couldn't make it to the beach so I tried as much as possible to simulate open water in the pool. I kept my eyes closed when I had my face in the water, but then opened them as I turned to breathe. I also sighted every 4th stroke, watching the cone at one end of the lane and my towel hanging up at the other. (Understanding of course that the buoys at Escape are going to be up to 100 yards away, not 25!) I could feel my legs dropping a bit every time I lifted my head to sight, but luckily I've found my lower body to be pretty buoyant as I've gotten more experience with swimming, so they came right back up. And the form didn't seem to suffer too terribly from my head coming out of the water frequently. I was expecting much worse, but I only added 5 seconds to my 100 yard time. I'm hoping the wet suit in the race will help make up for that.

Ride was good. I'm getting used to the feel of being clipped in. I fitted the shoes more tightly so I could have a better feel of the foot/pedal connection. Also, I took a tip from the Idiot's Guide to Triathlon Training and envisioned my heel pulling toward the back of the shoe (toes pulling away from the front) at the 7 to 9 o'clock positions. That made a BIG difference, especially on the hills. I'm finding that now that I'm riding clipped in, I think I need to raise my saddle height a bit more to really get a powerful upstroke.

I put a new saddle on my bike last week and I'm loving it! With the stock seat, every ride was painful and riding on the drops was near impossible. With the new saddle it's like I'm not even aware that there's a seat under me.

That sucks!    You might be interested in checking out my log today.   I had my RMR tested and a bike LT test.    Your nutritionist says some interesting stuff.  The kinesiologist said that the reason we get hungry is often a combination of training at an intensity too high for our current fitness level and not eating enough.    If we train too hard, we burn more carbs.   Body won't even touch the fat.  

For my current height and weight I will now be eating 2150 per day and losing 1/4 pound per week.   That is assuming that my 2150 calories are "quality" carriers - no crackers, white breads, processed foods, etc.  

I'm going to have to start tracking my food as well - no more winging it.