Rowdypaint's Mentor Group- Sorry, we're full... (Page 2)

First of all welcome!  Second...as far as the open water thing it really helped me to start out swimming in places where I could touch for a fair distance...there are some areas of the lake here that have larger areas that are only 4.5 to 5 feet deep for 400 to 500 meters so that you can still swim but can touch easier...that made it feel somewhat more like a pool to me and helped me deal with my fear of it. 

Katie - Thanks for the advice!  I'm really new to the site (I had tried it earlier this year but then fell out of using it and am trying to get back into it) so I generally don't know what I'm doing.  Hopefully I have my log set up correctly now but I still haven't figured out how to send anyone a message (and it's not that I'm computer illiterate...I'm actually a software engineer for a big website!).  Have a great weekend!  The weather in my neck of the woods is supposed to finally cooperate with being outdoors!

No problem...I never know if it is that people don't realize that their logs are set to private...or if they actually want them to be private...I just left you an inspire so it looks like you are all ready to go now!

Actually I had 2 stress fractures on my right tibia after the Marathon... My Sports Med Doc never addressed the problem, just made sure it was healed, and got me back to running... so, when I started having the same shin pain (leading up t the sfx) again, I looked for a better solution. I KNOW it's not a sfx this time... I KNOW how that feels!!! So, On advice from my coach & LRS & PCP, I'm going to one of the BEST Physical Therapists (in the world - according to Tiger Woods). He recommended that I don't do any road biking or running while going through therapy. Thus the DNS at the race tomorrow. So, I'm limited to the Pool right now, and I haven't done that lately either (family issues have me pretty busy)

By the way, I forgot to mention - I'm SLOW... no, even slower than that! I would put myself in the front of the walkers... In the water I'm REAL slow, on the bike I'm hoping to be in the MOP, but haven't done any racing... but my aim is to finish, then work on speed...but, In the meantime, I'll be looking for some type of swim coaching/instruction

OOPS forgot to mention FAMILY: I have a live-in Boyfriend - his exercise of choice is Swimming (& Dirt Bike Riding), I have 2 sons, neither of them live with me right now, but I think my 18 year old may move in with me soon... And I have the most adorable little chihuahua that likes to sleep right between my Boyfriend and I...



Thanks for taking me on as a Mentee

What a cute dog!

What's on the training plan for the weekend?  How about other stuff?  Anything special? 

This is a rest week for me, so I feel like I'm not doing anything at all.  I have a 30 min run and 90 min bike.  Not sure which day each will happen; that's kind of up to the weather. 

Other than that, I have some papers to proof and turn in for a grad class I'm taking.  And my in-laws are coming up from NC for a visit.  I've been frantically cleaning the house tonight, but it doesn't look really that different.  Oh, and hopefullly tomorrow I'm going up to Minneapolis for lunch with the MN BT group. 

Have a great weekend everyone! 

Happy Saturday everyone!  I went for a run this morning...it was really painful!  but at least it is done!  I got a road bike for Christmas (2008 Trek 2.3 WSD) and my husband insisted that I go clipless at the same time.  Last night I took Raven (thats her name) out for the first time (I had been riding her on  the trainer all winter).  I think the seat was a little too high and I initially had a really hard time getting on and getting off.  The first time I unclipped fine, but my foot didn't reach the ground and I fell   My DH went and go tools and lowered the seat about a 1/2 inch and after that I had no problem getting on or unclipping to get off.  Have many of you had experience with going clipless?  I am sure it gets easier...my only problem is that the place I have to ride regularly is really croweded with bikers, runners, walkers, tourists etc.  It is supposed to rain tomorrow but I think I am going to take her out to the suburbs the next nice weekend and try spending some real time on her on the trails.

Hope everyone has a great weekend and gets out there and trains hard!

Going clipless...  Ah, the joy and shame.  I started using clipless pedals on the sping bikes at the gym, so I had some idea about how they worked, but that first ride on a real bike was kind of embarrassing.  I rode around in the yard a bit and fell over a couple times.  Then we went for a ride, where I fell again.  That month I think I fell 4 or 5 times.  I'm a spaz, what can I say?  Just develop a routine and don't change.  Brake, unclip left, left foot down, unclip right, stop.  If I vary from that, there are no guarantees that I'll stay upright. 

You're not trying to touch your foot down while still on the seat, are you?  You should just barely be able to touch a toe down while seated, not put the whole foot down.  You have to get off the seat to do that.  Sitting on the seat with your leg extended (6:00 position), the leg should have very little bend, almost straight.  If it's bent, your knee is going to start hurting.  A seat that is too low puts strain on the knees.  There are LOTS of bike fit articles out there to look at.  Here's one to get you started.  http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/sport/a/bikefit.htm

No part of my foot, toe or otherwise would reach the ground while I was on the seat...when we lowered it I can touch my toe down, but not my whole foot...It may need to come up a little bit but I think it was too high where it was given that there was about a half inch between my toe and the ground when I was on the seat...I am planning on taking it into the shop for its spring tune up so I may have them look at the fit real fast.

I rode indoors yesterday because it was raining and gross...now I am on call at the hospital having a grand old time.  Hope everyone is ready for a great week of training!

Happy Monday morning all. Raining here and I'm feeling lazy. I did get a swim in yesterday. I only managed 400m. I'm trying to learn to breathe on my right side too, as I've always only breathed one way. I only swallowed one gulp of water and at one point ran out of breath and had to stop midway to catch my breath. I felt a little silly, but I think everyone else was preoccupied with their own swims. I really had no idea I was in such bad shape. My mucles functioned all right and my form is okay - meaning I felt like I was fairly smooth through the water - but my cardio is horrible. I'm 36, but I felt like a 73-year-old pack-a-day smoker...lol...oh well, I'm sure it'll get better. My tri is in September, so I have lots of time.

Katie- I fell off my bike a couple of times last year using cage toe clips. I stopped and my feet stayed on the pedals and gravity took over. i had a HUGE bruise on my hip/thigh. I couldn't stop laughing, though...I couldn't believe I actually tipped over. I don't even have a bike right now as that one was stolen. I'm on the hunt for something fairly cheap as far as the price of these go. I hope your Trek works out for you.

I hope everyone has a great week. Talk to you soon.
Cindy

P.S. - I will open up my training logs. Just don't laugh... ; p

What a cute little pup. It looks like most of us have dogs/animals of some sort.

I have added you all as friends to my training log.

Talk to you soon.

I hope everyone had a great weekend!  I got a run in on Saturday with my dog, but we ended up walking a bit of the route - my dog seems to have infinite energy/fitness but he was so hot he just couldn't keep going.  We set up a little pool for him in the yard when I got home and he just laid down in there as happy as could be.  As for me - the hills in my neighborhood did me in - gotta get off the treadmill so I can handle them!

I wanted to add my 2 cents about clipless pedals.  I hadn't ridden a bike in years when I got my mountain bike and my friend who was helping me pick it out suggested I go clipless.  I guess it was an easier transition just because I wasn't used to riding without them.  I did have to adjust mine because I was getting a bit of knee strain from the position of my foot, so you should definitely make sure you're comfortable.  My friend made my release a bit loose at first so I could pull out much easier while I was getting used to them - I think that helped.  I had him tighten it up once I was comfortable riding and sick of accidentally releasing from my pedals going up hill

I trained not at all.  Perhaps I was just making sure I didn't fall over, too.    (teasing)

I imagine that I'll have to wait a bit before I go clipless.  Same goes for a wetsuit.  And a road bike.  And awesomeness.
Too expensive for now.

Hopefully my "insulation" will keep me warm and buoyant enough on the swims without the wetsuit. 
My running shoes will double as my biking shoes too, if only to save time in T2 (all theory, of course).

HAHA!  I just found out that my son's baseball practice is canceled today, so I'll get the kids to bed early and ride FOREVER (practically) on the trainer.  Yay, me!

Hope everyone had a decent weekend.

I'm a rarity, I got the clipless pedals, and put them on my bike and I haven't fallen off yet... (I may have just jinxed myself) I had more problems starting with them than stopping... Then once I started, the first time I rode, I couldn't stop... I thought I'd be stuck on the bike FOREVER! But, I finally got it unclipped  LOL

The one trick I was given that REALLY helped me is I was told to make sure I lean the same way as the foot that I unclipped when stopping... if that makes sense... In other words, if you unclip your right foot, and lean left... you WILL go down! I conciously think about which way to lean, and I've done well so far! What's fun is when you need to stop quickly, and you forget that you're clipped in... I've managed to get out of them even in that situation... lucky I guess!

Oh, I went and volunteered at the race on Saturday - one thing I found out DOES NOT WORK is to clip your shoes onto your pedals, then try to put them on while riding???... I saw more people have to stop because the shoes got tangled, one guy had his shoe fall off the bike, he had to stop, pick up the shoe... it was rather amusing...I didn't see anyone fall from trying to do that, but I'm sure I wouldn't be the first either...  I'll take the extra 30 seconds, put on my shoes, then clip in - Thank You!

I haven't done cardio in it feels like FOREVER! I'm looking into taking swim lessons or joining a Masters team... I know my swim needs help, and while I'm grounded from riding & running, I should swim! Starting tomorrow I'm back in the Pool!!! (today I have volunteer work)



Edited by Cardholic 2009-04-20 1:11 PM

I live in Seattle.  Today was beautiful and I actually ran 3 miles!  Well almost.  I ran to the high school track (1 mile), did 1 mile of intervals (ran 2x400 and 2x200 with walking in between to complete the mile) and ran 1 mile home.  And did it in about 30 minutes.  I need to catch up on swimming this week as I was away over the weekend. My friend who backed out does have a 1 year old, so that's a pretty good excuse.  I am going to check the local bike club website and see if there is a bike ride coming up in the next few days since it's supposed to be nice.

Good training everyone!  Question for this week...

How do you stay motivated?  For those of us who have been doing this a while, it seems kind of like an ingrained routine.  But for people just starting out, motivation can be a challenge.  What motivates YOU to get out there and train? 

Knowing that I can't cram for the race... I must train for it properly, or there will be injuries to deal with... that's what motivates me normally...Plus, if it's written on a schedule it's more likely to get done than if there is no schedule... it does become part of a routine, and I make time for it... BUT, this past 3 weeks, since injury plagued me, I haven't been motivated AT ALL!!! SOOOO, I'm interested to hear what motivates others...

The things that motivate me are never wanting to gain back the 40 lbs that I have lost since I started working out and eating better and still wanting to lose the 20lbs that I still have to go to my goal.  Everytime I even think about skipping a workout I think back to how bad I felt before this and how I do not want to feel like that or look like that again.

That works now...but what worked at the beginning when I was just getting started (and to be honest still works now as well) was to sign up for an event.  If I pay the money I am more likely to train, and if I have a defined date when I have to be ready by I am more likely to train as well.  So I try to space events out throughout the season to keep me motivated. 

Lack of motivation is actually my biggest problem.  I find myself getting sucked in to working long hours because I love my job and also I don't want to lose it in this economy!  Once I've worked an 11 hour day I just can't manage to go work out.  I have been trying to go during my lunch break instead so I actually get some time at home, but it always seems like stuff comes up (like my current chest cold that's preventing me from breathing).  I am also too competitive, and disappointed with where my fitness is now compared to where it was, so I get discouraged easily.  That also disappoints me since I never used to quit on myself...

I have a similar attitude to Katie's. Sign up for it and you feel compelled to train for it. Don't want to walk in not prepared, don't want to quit either. I totally understand the not feeling like it (this a.m. for example), especially after a long day's work. I find I like to work out before work when I can. The high is a great start to the morning. I feel better all day long...that's addictive...and I am NOT a morning person by any means...I snoozed the alarm this morning and didn't want to go, but I just thought about how disappointed I would be in myself, not being able to fill in my training log, and not getting stronger and better.

Having all of you to encourage me, though, is a huge motivational boost too!!

X2 - it's all in the paranoia!! 

I don't want to look like a COMPLETE fool (no more than usual, at least), and I want to ensure that my delusions of adequacy are a little closer to reality

How many of you have done a half-marathon?  How long had you been running before you did it?  How long did you train for it?  I think I want to give it a go, but I am not sure...There is one my husband is doing in September...I am not sure if I could be ready in time.

I've done 3 Halfs and a Full...

I'm not sure of your current level of fitness, but in my experience (and I'm not the mentor here) If you started training now, September is definitely doable! Most programs want you to be running about 20 miles per week before starting the program, but there are programs out there that will start from couch... just depends on if you want to SMASH the HM or finish it...

Hal Higdon has 12 week Novice programs that start at 10 miles per week... So, you have plenty of time to get there!

Thanks Pattie

My trainer gave me some great tips about swimming today. How to use my hands for better energy savings. Also breathing techniques that really helped. But I could still use all the help you can send!!!

Thanks
JS