stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL (Page 18)

2009-02-13 7:15 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

mindymcc - 2009-02-11 3:55 PM I attempted my first brick today...if you can count 3 minutes on the treadmill after 55 minutes on the stationery bike. It is interesting trying to run when your legs feel like lead weights! Does that ever get easier with training or it is something you just learn to push through?

MINDY - Congratulations on your first brick! I think it will get easier with training, but when I got on the treadmill after 57 min on the bike (also my first brick), I walked for a minute before trying to run. Then I had to 'push through' for a couple of minutes. After that the endorphins kicked in and I didn't want to stop heheh. . Have a great long weekend!

2009-02-13 7:24 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

GRACE -

The adjustment for clipless pedals is pretty easy (heck, even I can do it!). If it's Look pedals you have, or Look knock-offs, check the upper base(uh, top of the platform) or back for a small screw into which an Allen wrench will fit. That screw is the tension screw, and responds in the standard "lefty-loosey, righty-tighty" way. Just keep playing around with it until you get it so it holds your cleat in, but allows for quick detachment when needed.

Because I do "flying dismounts" when finishing the bike leg of a race, I need the left one to be very tight so the cleat doesn't come off as I'm pivoting most of my body weight on top of it as I dismount. Under normal circumstances I am aware of this and know to snap extra hard on the left one, but at Brierman, when I had my flat, I cruised over to the shoulder and then - mind focused on what I needed to do to get back into the race - I neglected to snap out hard enough on the left, and unceremoniously keeled over. Oh! The slings and arrows of outrageous misfortune!!

2009-02-13 7:32 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

GRACE -

Post-post notes:
1.) Flying dismounts are great time-savers --- but not if the cleat gets dislodged in the process and you have to go back to retrieve it. (I think that's happened to me three times, although on a fourth it happened, but a wonderful volunteer picked it up and ran all the way to my rack spot to hand-deliver it to me!)
2.) At Brierman, I never got back in the race. DNF. I just couldn't do the change quickly enough to make it worthwhile re-entering, so when a "sag" vehicle happened by and saw me there working on my tire, I just decided to bag the race and take the ride. That was my last event of the season, so I've had to live with that decision for too many months now. Can't wait for my first '09 race so I can evict those psyche-gremlins for good!

2009-02-13 7:38 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

elindquist - 2009-02-12 12:29 PM Steve- I did do a calorie estimation, and it said I should eat around 2500 a day, and I think I'm right around there. The nutrition journal through BT seems a little too daunting- way too many foods on there to scroll through.

ERIC,

I did the nutrition log on BT for 3 or 4 weeks just for the fun of it plus I was curious to see what my daily caloric intake was. You're right in that it looks intimidating, but I found there are some shortcuts eg typing 'muffin' in the search bar and then scrolling through the options that come up. Also I realised that the USDA listed foods (vs 'Public' foods) have the full nutritional info, which was nice because I could see if I was getting enough calcium and etc. Keeping this nutrition log and being able to see my caloric intake broken down by protein-carb-fat was useful. It looks like my average is about 40-35-25, which I feel pretty good about - the low-carb, little/no-sugar, high protein diet basically cured me of my autoimmune illness. I take about 1500 - 1800 calories a day, up to 2000 if I worked out hard that day and have regained the 1 lb I lost when I first started training. I've stopped logging my meals now though.

On a side note, when you said 'thousands of push-ups we do' did you mean you and your fiance? I can barely do 5 pushups hehe.

2009-02-13 7:49 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

mindymcc - 2009-02-12 9:43 AM I enjoyed the post on weight/nutrition/etc. While weight loss is not the main goal of doing a triathlon for me, I did think it would be a pleasant side effect. After 5 weeks of working out 6 days/week (compared to 2-3 times before my tri training officially started) I have lost a total of zero pounds!

STEVE - Great post on nutrition! I never get tired of reading everyone's posts.

MINDY - I tend to agree with your husband in the thinking that your gain in muscle weight is offsetting your loss in fat weight = zero pounds lost weight overall. After 5 weeks working out 6 days a week, you can bet your muscles have grown heaps. I think I started training two weeks after you did, and my muscle tone has improved deliciously! I don't know if this is true but I've heard/read that if you have more muscle mass, it will metabolize calories even at rest, so maybe the weight loss that you would like to see will happen soon. I like to think of this newly added muscle mass stealthily burning calories even while I am vegging out in front of the TV and snacking on popcorn hehe.

2009-02-13 7:56 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

sax - 2009-02-12 4:26 PM

... lots of Thai food (the soups in particular) ....that seemed to do the trick.I can finally see the old 6 pack that was once there...yoga is helping me with that.

NEIL - Love Thai food too! Maybe all the spicy Asian food is why I am 110 lb on 5'6". Never really thought of it that way before but I guess it might ramp up the metabolism or cause one to perspire profusely! I wish I had a six pack too hehe - I didn't know you could get one by doing yoga though.

2009-02-13 8:38 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

I'll third the gushing sentiments about Thai food. Ever-so tasty......and the cusine is nicely devoid of my more common sin foods, such as bagels, croissants, and all of their yummilicious cousins.

ALL POWER TO CILANTRO LEAVES!!!

2009-02-13 8:43 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

GRACE -

That's a fine success story about the 45-30-25 diet curing you auto-immune disease. Sounds like a keeper plan to me!

I've told Neil that I would post something about energy stores, and that will be coming in a while (later today? tomorrow?). For now, though, have a look at the chart in the next post, and just ruminate on it for a while!

2009-02-13 9:01 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

INFO FOR ALL

As the nutrition issues are a-bloom here with lots of thought from Eric, Mindy, Sax, and Grace, it's maybe time to think about nutrition as it pertains to what your body needs during training and races. I will get some thoughts together on that asap, but for now, have a look at the chart below (adapted from Monique Ryan).

Calories Provided By Body Fuel Stores

Carbohydrate Stores
--- blood glucose 80 calories
--- liver glycogen 400 cal.
--- muscle glycogen 1,400 - 1,800 cal

Fat Stores
--- blood fatty acids 7 cal.
--- serum triglycerides 75 cal.
--- muscle triglycerides 2,700 cal.
--- adipose tissue triglyc 80,000 cal.

Protein Stores
--- muscle protein 30,000 cal.

So, here are a few quick comments:
1.) Fat is the body's greatest supplier of energy, and is easily accessed by the muscles.
2.) Muscle protein is also abundant, but tapping into it for fuel is NOT desirable - you don't want to be breaking down the source of your strength.
3.) Carbohydrate stores are relatively limited, compared to fat and protein stores. When carbohydrate stores get perilously low, that's when the dreaded "bonk", or "hitting the wall", occurs.

More later!!

elindquist

2009-02-13 9:30 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

Grace-

Thanks for the info. Yes, I was getting scared when trying to find the chicken fajita I had for lunch on the list, but was finding listings of Walrus, Seal, and Whale meat! The 'ethnic foods' section isn't kidding!

My fiance' refuses to exercise with me (long story, I've tried and tried), she does her own thing and doesn't like anyone watching.

In this boxing/karate class I take the instructor seems to enjoy watching people keel over while doing push-ups, and if 2/3rds of the class isn't, he makes them tougher the next night. Other than that, he's a nice guy... lol.

sax

2009-02-13 10:20 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

Actually...now that you mention it lately I have been "starved" during my weekly evening workouts. My wife comes home late so I try to schedule the workouts so I am finishing up around 8/8:30 when she gets home and we eat together...so lot sof times I am hungry before I even start. I am concious that that is not a good idea generally but this week the durations were shorter (relative to 10 mile mid week runs) so I could hack it.

BUT, yesterday I was starving...so before the trnr I had a snack (leftover spicy fried rice) and after about 45min of digestion I started the workout. So perhaps it was a function of nutrition. Sounds like an excuse to eat more...I can hack that. In the past (when I was keeping a journal) when I switched from 3 to four meals I was taking in the same calories +/-. As IM approaches I get the feeling I will be eating everytime I see food!

I will try to keep track of my "fueling" to see how that is affecting my performance.

2009-02-13 11:18 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

elindquist - 2009-02-13 10:30 AM Grace- Thanks for the info. Yes, I was getting scared when trying to find the chicken fajita I had for lunch on the list, but was finding listings of Walrus, Seal, and Whale meat! The 'ethnic foods' section isn't kidding! My fiance' refuses to exercise with me (long story, I've tried and tried), she does her own thing and doesn't like anyone watching.

LOL!

I wonder if kangaroo, crocodile, snake, rabbit and monitor lizard meat and organ meats are on there. Now that you brought it up I should go take a closer look!

Re couples exercising togetherness: that can be difficult. I remember Spencer my then-fiance trying to teach me how to ski and kayak - was a recipe for nuclear meltdown of catastrophic proportions. Especially since I was his first student hehe (nothing like learning how to teach by teaching me!). Five years down the road we exercise together and it is worth all the effort talking things through to find something that would work for us both. Maybe your fiance is just shy about working out with you since she doesn't want anyone watching - at least she works out!!

Your karate/boxing class sounds hardcore! I wonder how he would react to having a 5-push-up-me in his class hehe.

2009-02-13 11:20 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

stevebradley - 2009-02-13 10:01 AM INFO FOR ALL .. Fat is the body's greatest supplier of energy, and is easily accessed by the muscles...

STEVE - thanks for all that great info!

elindquist

2009-02-13 3:02 PM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

Grace-

That's the fun part, we have high-schoolers through grandparents in the class. It's a great mix. I think there is one 17 year old who weighs 130 lbs and is going in the Marines soon who can actually do everything they ask. The rest of us just laugh.

2009-02-13 5:32 PM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

GRACE -

You're welcome, and really - there IS more to follow. I'm just cogitating* on it, as well as trying to get past the vague queasiness I'm feeling at the thought of monitor lizard organs.

Lynn and I spin in different recreational orbits. I do my multisport stuff, and she amuses herself with weekend and week-long canoe trips, and the odd kayak jaunt. She seems to derive a lot of pleasure from these activities. It's the damnedest thing!

For all my love of being in the water, I dislike boats quite a bit; actually, quite a lot. I don't fold well into canoes, and from childhood experiences in rowboats I learned to distrust them -- too many episodes of a lost oar of a sudden but long-lasting thunderstorm while we were at one end of a lake, and having to tow the boat back by hand, scrambling over rocks or scuttling through the lake-side vegetation. Plus, boats on the ocean (I'm thinking medium-size oceanographic boats) activate my motion sickness tendencies in a heartbeat, and there just ain't nothin' worse than motion sickness!! (Well, maybe monitor lizard organs.....)

* By "cogitating on it", what I mean is that I'm trying to figure out how to say what I want to say without all of my usual verbosity. (You know my "style" by now -- if, say, 20 words will do it, then why not use 45?!) I really do want to learn to not be so cyber-chatty, although there is a very good chance that I can't actually help myself. By I do NOT want to make you all crazy by having to wade through my blahblahblahblahhing, so.......

Edited by stevebradley 2009-02-13 5:38 PM

triingforme

2009-02-14 4:33 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

Good morning Steve,

I am so excited! Thursday I attended the tri clinic and we went over bikes and cycling gear. He showed us how to do indoor brick training. (Get on a stair climber and kick it up to 125 for 2 minutes and then run 2 laps (2/10ths of a mile, my gym have a small indoor track) and repeat x2. Over time increase time and distance). The instructor was very informative and also brought in a few local triathletes to show off their bikes and gear. Pretty cool.

Yesterday I finally bought a pair of cycling shoes. Now I get to practice falling over, wait, I mean riding with them.

I am supposed to have my long run of four miles today, but it is raining pretty good so I might be rescheduling for tomorrow. We'll see. Also today is our first bake sale to raise mony for Team In Training. Since it is Valentine's day I am hoping we will do well.

Have a great day.

Patricia

2009-02-14 8:10 AM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

PATRICIA -

That's a very innovative - and effective - indoor brick. Talk about taking full advantage of one's environment! It just goes to show that it is not always about having the best gear and the most elaborate training facilities.

I guess your rain is part of the rain that Lisa will be experiencing, oh, along about now. She had said the rains would start about halfway through the marathon, which began at 6:30. I sent some positive mojo her way earlier this morning; I hope it all got to her!

A bake sale of Valentine's Day -- PERFECT timing! You'll get all the desperate men who woke with a start this morning in realization that they had acquired nothing for their sweetie. Uh-oh! And then they'll stumble upon your bake sale and gladly lay down a king's ransom for some goodies; sounds like a seller's market to me!!

Congrats on getting the cycling shoes. Ta-da!
Yup, falling over is probably inevitable; it sure was for me. The good thing about it, though, is that it happens at complete standstills, so it's more an embarrassment than a source of deep pain. Think of it as a rite of passage!

It is said that there are two groups of people - those who have crashed, and those who will. ("Crash" defined as happening at speed, as opposed to the standstill tip-over!) So far, very remarkably, I am still in the latter group. I have had a couple of close calls, such as going over wet train tracks that run diagonal to the road, or whipping through a big patch of sand or garvel that has found its way onto the road, but so far I haven't gone down. Wobbled widly and THOUGHT I was heading for the pavement, but not yet. Whew!

Good to have you back here, and glad that all is going well for you! Enjoy your long run (I'm still nursing my Achilles), whenever it happens!

Edited by stevebradley 2009-02-14 6:56 PM

elindquist

2009-02-14 9:38 AM

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Subject: Open swim

Another odd question?

What are the general thoughts on swimming alone in lakes, etc?

Once it warms up, I want to get some open water swims done, but the logistics of finding someone to swim with seems daunting.

Also- If it is 90 degrees on race day, should you still wear a wet-suit, or just a normal suit?

nhangen

2009-02-14 12:47 PM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

Wow! After reading through the last few pages, I'm now convinced that Steve is the busiest man alive!

Sorry for my hiatus...we were without water for 4 or 5 days here and the work has picked up since we found out we were coming home in April. So that's good news and bad news.

I've had a terrible week of "training" if you want to call it that. Between the no water and the busy stuff, my sleep, nutrition, and training schedule is a mess. You ever get those moments where you just aren't "feeling it?" That's where I'm at right now.

Looks like all of you are doing great with your training and race stuff. Happy V-Day to everyone.

Nathan

ThatGirl

2009-02-14 2:53 PM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

gracetaBitha - 2009-02-13 8:00 AM

mindymcc - 2009-02-09 7:19 PM ...I did 30 minutes on the trainer and then rode up and down my street practicing getting my feet in and out of the clips. I'm sure my neighbors thought I had lost my mind!

MINDY - your strategy to familiarise yourself with the clips first was probably what I should have done the first time I took my 'new' bike out on a 10 miler. My only other prior experience was clipping in and out of the 'eggbeater' pedals while on a trainer. I could barely get my left foot clipped it and it was near impossible to clip out even with my hardest ankle-wrenching twist (and accompanying grunt). I fell twice at cross junctions on this ride. Both times I was trying to unclip my left pedal to put my left foot down, and both times I fell splat on the road. It was a strange feeling, like a slo-mo experience similiar to falling off a horse. I have since found out that 'It wasn't me' - my husband told me that those eggbeaters were c-r-a-p and put in different ones. I've been practising clipping in and out with these ones (on the trainer) and hopefully won't fall on my next ride!

I got my pedals put on today and I'm planning on falling over repeatedly tomorrow! I'm supposed to do a 90 minute ride tomorrow, but I'm probably just going to go repeatedly around the neighborhood... I'm glad that there are a few other people in the group making the transition right now too!

I'm coming off an unscheduled rest day yesterday - I'm feeling kind of under the weather (nasty cold). I ran through it for 6 miles on Thursday, but had chills yesterday and figured I should rest, especially since we're still early in the program... I was kind of bummed about missing yesterday because I hit every other workout for the week, and I like being able to check everything off the list

Hope everything went well at Myrtle Beach today Lisa!

2009-02-14 2:56 PM

in reply to: #1962013

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Subject: RE: Open swim

ERIC -

Neither question is odd; in fact, both are great questions.

My answer to the first goes against the common grain of it NOT being wise to swim alone in open water. However, I do it many, many times each season, and in hundreds of o-w swims I have never been accompanied by anybody. (There may be people kind of nearby, but they don't know me from Adam.) Were I to wait for somebody with which to swim, I would never get into open water!

My two swim places are not entirely safe; in one, especially I am in deep water a fair way from shore for quite a while. The other spot, which is the one I use 90% of the time, is a bit more secure, as the water is not terribly deep (maybe 10-12 feet at the deepest, and at its furthest point from land, maybe 100 feet. (I'm a terrible estimater.)

Over the years I have become a bit more cautious. My main go-to place is in a somewhat sheltered bay along the St. Lawrence River, but it faces WSW and often the water can be very rough due to strong prevailing winds whipping down the river. In years gone by I would venture into just about the nastiest rough water there was, figuring it would get me ready for just about any race condition (Musselman 1/2, last July, comes to mind), but in the past two or three years I have passed on these types of swims. If there is a question about the possible roughness of the water, I will bring along my running stuff and opt for a windy run instead of a wild swim, if need be.

Wetsuits are not life preservers, but they do offer a fair bit of buoyancy. I guess I use this for rationalization, figuring that even if I got into some sort of trouble, I could work through it for a while by having some sort of buoyancy advantage. For what it's worth (probably not a whole lot....), I ALWAYS wear a brightbrightbright swim cap in open water - the fluorescent orange and green ones stand out a long ways off. (I would also worry some about mammoth sturgeons in the St.Lawrence, but I'm too excited at the thought of seeing one to actually worry about it!)

If it was 90-degrees on race day, yup, I'd wear a wetsuit. HOWEVER, if the accompanying water temperature was 78 or above, I would not wear one. Remember, USAT rules prohibit wetsuits if the water temp is 78 or higher, and as I do these things competitively I would not want to have my results not counted. (USAT will not strictly prohibit the WEARING of wetsuits, but they won't count the results of a person who wears one, and the results won't appear in the race results, if the water temp exceeds 78). Some race directors, I believe, will not even allow wetsuits if the water is really warm, as there are physical and health problems that can result from overheating in a wetsuit in warm water on a hot day.

I opt to wear one on hot days just because of the advantage the buoyancy gives me. In races, 90% of my propulsion comes from upper body and rotation; I use my legs hardly at all. I have a lousy kick anyhow, so I figure why should I tire my legs if they aren't going to help my swim much, and will just be more tired for the bike and run? But without a wetsuit, I DO have to use my legs quite a bit, so given what I just said, that is not an optimal situation for me.

A real trip is to use your wetsuit in your indoor pool. Mercy! I did it a few years ago when I was comparing two wetsuits during the winter, looking for the most comfortable one for the up-coming season. What I was really interested in was shoulder flexibility and overall constriction, and while I succeeded in this I felt miserable in the process. I now have some idea what fighters go through when they wear the rubber suits as an aid to cutting weight!

Note: Even for Timberman sprint, with its short .3 mile swim, I am figuring on wearing a wetsuit. It is possible that the time I take to remove it (although I'm quite quick at this) confers no time-savings over the fact that it heped my swim by that many seconds. Still, I use it just because it makes me a more efficient swimmer.

2009-02-14 4:47 PM

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

INFO FOR ALL - ENERGY STORES FOLLOW-UP

A bunch o' posts ago, I posted a list of how many calories are provided by the three energy stores - carbohydrate, fat, protein. While that is maybe useful information, just sitting there in a vacuum doesn't help a whole lot. So, i will try to explain it a bit and put it into some sort of practical perspective for you.

CARBOHYDRATE STORES
The general rule of thumb is that under normal circumstances, our store of carbs can fuel us for only about 90-120 minutes - but less if the activity is very intense. When our blood glucose levels are depleted, we often "bonk", an ugly situation in which we lose focus and have to slow down or stop altogher - unless we can refuel with carbohydartes. When muscle glycogen gets depleted, we "hit the wall", which is just about as ugly as bonking. When the wall is hit, it is just plainn difficult to move forward - the mind might be whimpering "yes", but the body just cannot respond. But again, we can alleviate this problem by consuming carbohydrates. The absolute worse that this happened to me was at Atomicman 1/2iron in '02, and about 6 miles into the run I was a goner. But I made it to the next aid station, drank whatever energy drink they offered, ate a Hammer Gel that was offered, and took a second gel with me. I began a very slow run-type thing, and within a few minutes I was moving okay. i had the second H.G. with water at the necxt aid station, and for the remainder of the race I was fine - not peachy-keen and not moving at a blistering pace, but fine enough to move along at a pace with which I was content.

So, for races that you KNOW will take you over 90 minutes (some sprints, all olys and beyond), it is critical to start fueling as soon as possible. I always preface my race with a gel about 15 minues before the swim start, and will usually add a second one (a) in the final mile of a sprint bike, (b) about halfway through an oly bike, and (c) about halfway through a HIM bike, along with a third in the final mile of a HIM bike. In a sprint, i will have a half bottle of HEED, an carbohydrate electrolyte drink, and I may or may not drink all of this. On an oly, I will have a full bottle and WILL drink it all. On a half - well, the nutrition for that becomes much more complicated. For the run - nothing except water at aid stations for a sprint, nothing but a combo of water and energy drink for an oly, nad for the half, again, it gets complicated (and in some cases messy, if the stomach is wanting to boycott most ingestibles!).

Just as a quick summary, I work very hard to make sure that my blood glucose and muscle glycogen levels don't get exhausted, as I have "hit the wall" more times than I care to. (Less "bonking", however.) And I do this by taking in what, for me, seems to be the correct amount of carbs in the form of gels and drinks (at least for sprints and olys; for HIMs and IMs, I am much more "creative"!).

FAT STORES
The table I posted earlier shows that fat stores are the greatest source of energy, having about 80,000 stored calories. (And even in the scrawniest athlete, fat stores contain their largest source of stored energy.) The first of the fat categories that the body taps into during exercise is the muscle cells, which in the earlier chart are the muscle tricglycerides. And these, like the muscle glycogen cells above, need to be replenished after training or a race (see below). After a certain point, if the activity goes on long enough or is intense enough, the fat that is stored in the adipose tissue gets tapped into - this is the whopping 80,000 calories in the chart. When this happens, the stored fat is converted to fatty acids which are then transported to your muscles. So, as I said to somebody (Sax?) a few days ago, it's GOOD to have some fat of the old carcass!

MUSCLE STORES
The 30,000 calories in the muscke stores may look generous, but to access it requires breaking down your muscle protein, which, if dobne often enough can weaken both your body (in terms of body stress and functional strength) and your immune system. Protein can safely provide about 5% of your fuel during long training sessions, but even though 15% is posssible, it is definitely NOT ideal, for the reasons just mentioned. The best way to avoid the breakdown of muscle tissue for energy purposes is to keep your carbohydrate consumption at sufficiently high levels.
It is highly recommended that athletes make post-workout or post-race recovery a priority, and the general rule here is that there is a "window" of no more than 60 minutes in which the body can make optimal use of added protein and carbohydrates. I SWEAR that I recover more quickly (usually meaning to go right out and work hard again the next day) if I take care of this properly after a workout or race, and there are lots of ways to do this. One is to drink a recognized and formulated recovery drink, such as Recoverite, Endurox, or the blend from InfinIT, among others. Another approach is to go inexpensive, and just drink choclate milk - look at the protein and carb content in a small bottle or carton of chocolate milk, and it's impressive! The formulated stuff also has added goodies by way of amino acids, which are part of the parts of muscle protein that can be converted to glucose for fuel.

Uh, any questions?

I hope at leats a small amount of all that is useful, and while now in the Long Winter Of Our Training it may seem a bit obscure, it will become mush more important as you begin racing in -- gee, not all that long from now.

Class dismissed! (And I apologize if any - or all - of this was just way too boring and pedantic.)

2009-02-14 4:54 PM

in reply to: #1962289

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

THATGIRL -

Two quick ones:
(1) My first few "rides" were cruises around the parking lot of the church next door, just practicing clipping out of and into the pedals. Boooooooring.....but pretty effective.
(2) Okay, I've turned my back and am not looking. QUICK! Check yesterday's workout off the list!

And this - Good choice on bagging the workout, given chills from the day before.
Do you know the general rule for training when feeling lousy? It is that it's okay to train if ALL your symptoms are from the neck up. If ANY symptoms are from the neck down, take it all very, very easy - to the out of just resting and recovering.

Get well, TGJ!

2009-02-14 5:08 PM

in reply to: #1962164

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Subject: RE: stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL

NATHAN -

Not optimal at all, being without water for all that time! Yikes! What are your average daytime temps there? Hopefully, not stifling!

Yup, I definitely get those moments when I'm not "feeling it". That is one of the "occupational hazards" of all this endurance stuff we do. I have been in a protracted one vis-a-vis my swimming, and even though tere are some encouraging improvements in a couple of small areas, this is just not enough to stoke me to hit the pool with enthusiasm. In fact, usually its' a case of being in the pool for just a few minutes, and wondering when is the earliest I can justify getting out!

Self-motivation is often a real bugger, and even when I'm feeling big-picture motivated, the small picture is the one that I have trouble getting psyched about. (This may be part of what is meant by "the devil is in the details"). Truthfully, each passing off-season I'm finding it harder to maintain maximum motivation. I get the stuff done to one degree or the other, but too often the fire just isn't there.

In your case, however, I am sure that it will all pass. There are so many externals there that are affecting you, it's no wonder that you say your "training schedule is a mess". The really remarkable thing about you is that you have managed to work so steadily and determinedly up to this point, and now in this "down" time you've got to keep your focus on where you've been and where you're planning to go, as opposed to where you presently are. (I'm referring to training here.)

Come April, I fully expect that you will hit the ground flying in terms of training. Between now and then things may catch up to you and you'll feel that it's all just a colossal struggle, but work through this as best you can and set your sights on the renewed vigor and enthusiasm you'll have once you get home.

And Happy V-Day to you, too!