Scott's Mentor Group-Closed (Page 2)

Hi Scott

Have you got room for a Brit in the group. I have been using the site for the last couple of years to log all my training and enjoyed being part of a group last year. It was great to share the ups and downs with like minded people who dont mind listening to you drone on about training and how you beat your swim time by 2 seconds!!

Name: Dave McNamara 38 years old

Family Status: Married with 2 daughters aged 12 and 7

Current training: Have had a 3 month break since end of the season in the UK. Partly to have a break but also due to work levels and decorating a new house plus weather has been pretty grim recently. Have started back into swimming and doing 2 distance sets of 2km a week recently just to build a base level back up. Have also done a few turbo sessions with a friend (on own can be particularly boring). Intend from 2nd jan to pick pace back up to last years levels and beyond

This years races: probably did 8-10 races across the summer this year. Found a great evening race series at the olympic rowing venue just outside London called Dorney lake. It was a 750m swim 20k bike and 5km run on flat private roads and next to lake area. It fitted in with work as they usually started around 6:30 to 7pm. I also did the blenheim triathlon which is in the grounds of a country manor that has its own lake. Great venue. I did my 1st olympic race this year as well at the London triathlon. Great race and finished in 2:43 which was below my 3 hour goal I had set.

2012 Races: Have already signed up for the London Olympic race again in mid September and will compete in  Blenheim and a number of other local races no doubt. 1st race will be early may in Stratford upon Avon that I have done for last couple of years it is a sprint 400/23/5 distance. Have my best time of 1:14:57 to beat! Its the bench mark race

Weightloss: Here comes my achilles heel. Through hard training and careful eating i got down from 235lbs to 203lbs at the mid point of last race season which was my lowest weight in years. During last 6 months though it has slowly crept back up to 222lbs. However I know with focus i can get back down and goal is to hit 199lbs by May

I hope you can accommodate me in the group and look forward to sharing my training with the group

Happy New Year

Good morning, Scott!! Hello everybody!

My name is Ashley and I am in Lexington KY. I am 34 yrs old with a beautiful wife and a 17th month old son and just found out we are expecting! I'm only going to get busier. I am a stay at home dad but work out of the house.

I am at a point in my life where I want to do something regularly that is fun, competitive, and healthy. I am in pretty good shape but I definitely have some lbs to lose. I started cycling this past June and got hooked on it. I enjoyed it because it wasn't so hard on the knees. I love the outdoors and fresh air so it is easy to get going. I feel I am decent swimmer but have never had any training. Running a couple miles is not a problem. I just don't know how to put it all together and in sync!

I want to start doing some sprints to see how I like it. I see training programs for 8 wks and 13 weeks and am not sure what I need to start with nor what it takes to be 'ready'. Anyway, wanted to see if there was room left in the group.

Happy New Year everyone!

Thanks for the support.  Great to read your "so slow almost emberrassed". 

I have been struggling with that.  My son is 27 and a regular jogger and gives me sarcasm about my lame jogging.  I know he doesn't understand because he has not yet had my troubles.  But I still try to prove him wrong and get hurt every time.  So I feel better now and will take your advise.  I did a slow walk/jog yesturday and feel fine and will do the same today.

Happy New Year!

Domenica

Hey Dave,  there is always room for someone across the pond.  Great to have aboard.  Looking forward to your contribution.  Let's work together to meet those goals!

Hi Ashley,  Thanks for joining.  Wow!  A 17 month old and one on the way.  You certainly will be busy.  I have a 5 almost 6 year old and it feels like we have 3 sometimes.  Good luck to you and your wife for a healthy pregnancy.  I would love to be a part of your team to see if we can get you to your goals.  I have a few thoughts about different training plans, so if you have any questions about how to get started let me know.  As we roll along here I will also share some thoughts that I have about putting it all together.  Looking forward to a fabulous year.  

Fantastic!  Get a few more of those.  Then, when you feel comfortable, do 3 min. walk 2 min jog slow.  Do a 20 minute workout and you are on your way.  

Hope you have room for one more like that you are close to my age as are some of your mentee's ..

Name:BigPaulD 

Good evening Scott and thanks for the offer to help. 

I have been doing triathlon training for about a year now.  I completed a sprint tri last July 2011 (ocean water swim) and would like to do an Olympic later this summer.  I have been running on and off since I was a teen. I ran HS track and X-C then took college off.  After college started running again and did a lot of 10 k's, half marathons and two full marathons.  I then stopped running for about 15 years.  I tend to get injured because i hate to stretch.  I started running again a few years ago and started up biking and swimming about a year ago.  I am planning on trying to do a half marathon in the spring and maybe a full in the fall, if i can stay healthy.

Right now, I am swimming like two days a week, running three and biking one.  In swim workouts, i am doing usually 1600-2000 meters.  Last week I did 1000 meters fairly easily in the pool.  For bike workouts, i have ridden about 20-25 miles.  For running, I am up to eight miles at a time but could go further.

I am looking forward to receiving some feedback and maybe sharing what I have learned as well.

Peter Reilly

Tim,  welcome aboard.  I'm sorry to hear about your PF.  I certainly know how frustrating foot injuries can be.  I'm getting over a fairly serious case of Achilles tendinosis in both ankles.  Let's see how we can work together to have a strong racing season this year.  

Hey Paul,  it does indeed sound like a lot of races, but not stupid if you can get to them and through them injury free.  I would love to help in any way that I can.  It sounds like you have some good experience in overcoming injury and staying the course.  This is a true asset.  Looking forward to a strong year and good supportive group.

Hi Peter, thanks for joining the group.  Would love to help in any way that I can.  I would love to have you share any experiences and expertise that you have.  I think the group will certainly benefit from your experience.  I'm not so sure that your injuries occur because of a lack of stretching.  Research is showing that stretching doesn't necessarily lower the incidence of injury.  I would love to talk more about that.  

Hi!

My name is Olivia and I'd love to join the group.  I just signed up for my first tri sprint and am looking to find some company along the way.  Here's a bit about me:

Story: I am brand new to the west coast from 10 years in New York City.  I cook for a living, just moved to Bend, Oregon and purchased my first business: a food truck/catering company.  I have a spaniel mutt named Boo (Picabo: after my favorite Super G skier) with gumption and fun shooting out of her scrappy ears.   I have always been active and was involved in sports throughout my education. 

I love being outside and am at every opportunity.  I hike, mountain bike, ski, swim, snowshoe, run.  I'm looking forward to kayaking this year as well. 

Family Status: Single

Current training: I've been swimming a bit, running, and riding a recumbent bike. 

2012 calendar: July sprint: Deschutes Dash, Bend, OR

I missed this guy:  What will make me a good mentee:

I listen, learn, am excited about all of this, and really looking forward to having a group to bounce things off of, as so much in my life is so new right now.

Is this group still open?  I am a total newbie to triathlons - it's been quite a while since I have put substantial time into biking or swimming, but I love running!  Hoping to compete in my first tri this year!

Drawn to your group because you said your an acupuncturist and herbalist - which I love!  As a registered dietitian, I've found that it can be difficult to have a "different" view of health, but I am all for holistic progressive healing!

If you still have space, I can give you a full bio

Hi Olivia,  welcome to the group.  Good luck with your new business.  I certainly know what that is like.  I own a holistic health center and massage school.  It certainly can get in the way of training sometimes.    Let me know if you any questions about meeting your specific goals.  

Hi Kate,  yes I think you will be the last one for this group.  We now have 15.  I might keep it open a few more days to see if we can retain anyone, and if some do drop off then we can still have room for them.  I would love to see your bio when you get a chance.  Cheers.

Hello Everyone.  Feel free to ask any specific questions that you have at anytime.  I thought it would be a good idea to spend a bit of time as well discussing the progression of a Triathlon.  That is Swimming, T1, Biking, T2, and then of course running.  There is a BT thread that I think may help our swimming immensely. www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=235402&start=1  

If you copy/paste the address into your browser, you will find a great discussion on breathing technique.  Thoughts?

Hey Scott ...

I realize you hit 15, but thought I'd ask if you can take on one more. Just noticing these mentor groups now and thought I'd try your group given the Vermont connection. I'll certainly understand if you'd rather I look somewhere else to keep the numbers low. I'm pretty low maintenance and offer a solid running history to the discussion.

Let me know and I'll offer up a bio if you think you take on one more.

Troy

Hey Troy.  Welcome.  I would love to have you part of the group.  Your running expertise will be welcomed in the group as we have quite a few people who seem to be running focused.  Would love to get a bio when you get a chance.  Thanks.

Domenica-

I am also just entering the Tri world and am at ground zero. I was wondering if you have had any luck finding a mentor in the Chicago area.

Clark

Scott-

First question is within the Coaching world would you recommend a local coach? I live outside of Chicago and am just starting into this crazy world of S/B/R.

Thanks,

Clark

Excellent ... thanks for taking me on, Scott.

NAME: BernardDogs/Troy Headrick ... Burlington, VT

STORY: I'll be 45 in March and have been a runner all my life. Ran cross country and track in high school and then joined a non-varsity running club in college where I increased my distances. I've run races from 5k through the marathon distance ... a bunch of each distance. I was planning to increase my distances and remain exclusively a runner ... training to run a Grand Canyon Rim to Rim to Rim run with friends this May. But I was sidelined after two Spring marathons this year with Plantar Fasciitis. I took 4 and a half months off from running and worked with my PT to get the PF back in shape ... and bought a road bike to maintain my fitness.

I hadn't ridden since college, and was instantly reminded about how much I love being on the road. I picked it back up quickly and one of my riding partners suggested I join the Master's Swim group now that I was 2/3 of the way through the SBR disciplines. I began that in October as an absolute hack in the pool and am slowly becoming more proficient.  

FAMILY STATUS: I have been married to an amazing and supportive partner for the past 12 years. I have two daughters from my first marriage who live with us ... the oldest just finished her first semester at the University of Vermont. She is also a runner and we enjoy runs together whenever we can. My younger daughter rows in the fall and throws disc/shot in the spring. She avoids running, though. My wife is an all around fitness type person ... enjoys boot camp, yoga, and running. She especially loves running in costume.

CURRENT TRAINING: I train most days ... taking the occasional day off as my body tells me to. I run  6 days per week and am currently averaging in the 40mpw range. I currently bike 3 days a week, exclusively on the trainer. I've gone the past week without a trainer and am waiting for my replacement CycleOps Fluid 2 to arrive. Looking forward to setting it up with Trainer Road and taking on the Sufferfest workouts while learning about my power. I swim 3 or 4 days per week for an hour at a time with the Master's Swim group. I can usually get in 2200 - 2500 yds of swimming and drills in that time.

THIS YEAR'S RACES: I ran a 5k yesterday at our First Run and was pleased to see that my speed seems to be returning after the PF injury. I was only 20 seconds off of my current AG PR. I'll  run a half marathon in April and then our hometown marathon at the end of May before jumping into the triathlons.

2012 GOALS:  I'm hoping to PR in the half marathon ... and will give a PR in the marathon a shot as well. That translates to a sub 1:27 half and a sub 3:10 marathon. We'll see.

We're hosting the Age Group Triathlon Nationals again this year, and I'd love to qualify this year when it would keep me from needing to spend our fitness budget on traveling with a bike. I honestly don't have a good sense of whether or not that is a realistic goal. I think I can compete with the bike and the run, but will need to see how my swim shapes up over the next 3 months.

I'll also be volunteering for IMLP with the hopes of registering for IMLP 2013. 

WEIGHTLOSS: I would still like to lose 10-15 lbs from what I gained as my running stopped. I carry a bit of a paunch and would like to lose that completely. The swimming is definitely helping.

WHAT WILL MAKE ME A GOOD MENTEE: I thrive in this sort of group accountability environment. I feel I have a lot to offer with regard to running ... from shoe choice to injuries to increasing mileage load at a healthy rate. I enjoy meeting people from around the world who share my love of fitness. Some of my best friends are those I've met on a discussion forum at Runner's World for the Boston Marathon. Many of us travel around and race with one another. 

Looking forward to sharing the journey with you all! 

Hi Domenica ...

Don't be so quick to scapegoat your age as the source of your running woes. I know plenty of people well into their 60s and a few into their 70s who remain very competitive.

Can you speak more specifically to what hurts and what injuries you've sustained as a result of running? Do you happen to know anything about your foot strike or anything else about your mechanics? High arches? Flat footed? Don't worry if you don't know ... we can get it figured out.  

I often find that people who ask me about these aches and pains have not paid deliberate attention to their equipment (shoes). Let's start there.

Troy