kaburns1214 and UHCoog's Mentor Group-Closed (Page 2)

NAME: Terra99 (Brian)

LOCATION: Sugar Land, TX

STORY: Last year was my first year doing triathlons. It all started on October 31, 2011 when I decided to do something about my weight and health. At the time I weighted 294 lbs. During the first quarter of 2012, I started doing some running and started looking into triathlons. I continually challenged myself along my weight loss journey by signing up for a string of athletic events that I felt would be too hard for me to do, only to seek to prove myself wrong and do them anyways. To date, I've completed a regular road run of every distance up to and including a full marathon, I've completed a 5k, 10k and 13.1 mile mud run/obstacle course run and I've completed 2 sprint triathlons, 1 olympic triathlon (well okay it was a duathlon on account of bad weather) and I attempted, but failed Oilman 70.3 last year. To date, I've lost about 112 lbs and I'm still working on it.

FAMILY STATUS: I am married, with two kids aged 6 1/2 (boy) and 11 (girl).

CURRENT TRAINING:  After failing the Oilman last year, I've decided to back-off for this year on the triathlon push and I am focusing more on strength training and continuing to lose weight with a focus on running events and mud runs. I intend to come back to a triathlon focus in 2014.

Planned 2013 RACES:  5k fun run 5/4, Volunteering(Not participating) at Ironman Texas 5/18, Spartan Sprint 5/19, Sprint Triathlon 6/2, GoRuck Challenge 6/22, Spartan Super Sprint 9/14, Tough Mudder 10/5, Half Marathon 10/27, Spartan Beast 12/14, Marathon 1/1/14

I've been looking for some events for July and August, but haven't found the right one yet

Beyond 2013: By the end of the year, I expect my current weight loss and strength training goals to be complete. I intend to be able to complete a half-ironman in 2014 (Aiming for Galveston) and a full ironman in 2015 (Aiming for Texas).

WEIGHTLOSS: With approximately 112 lbs down since I started losing weight, I have about 20 more lbs I need to lose. I have not been doing very much strength training whatsoever and have made nearly all my workouts heavily cardio focused. While I KNOW the value of strength training as part of the plan to lose weight and be more fit, I just haven't been able to get it done, but I'm planning to kick off a P90x to break that mold and then stop doing long endurance runs only and start to put in some speed/sprint workouts.

PROBLEM AREA: Biking. This was the reason I failed Oilman last year plain and simple. The hills totally destroyed me. I'm a slow, but confident swimmer. Compared to my swim and my biking, my run is pretty strong. I just can't seem to get over the hump with biking and I know it's plain and simple because I don't bike enough. Even leading up to Oilman, I did some decent long distance biking but not enough of them and I never put in hill workouts. I toyed around with spinning classes last year, but never really performed well enough to be satisfied. My goals with triathlons are to finish, not to compete and to do that I just have to get stronger and have better endurance on the bike and then start hill training. My first step towards that goal is going to be to get an indoor trainer so that an inability to leave the house long enough to get in a long ride will not be a barrier for me anymore.

Yep.  Anything north of Richmond is iffy.

Welcome aboard!

What does a typical week of trianing on the bike look like for you?

True yankees are from New England.  If you rooted for the Atlanta Braves (or the Richmond Braves) as a kid, you just can't be a yankee.

Right now, my bike is put away and I've laid off the bike most of this year except for beginning 2 weeks before the Sprint Tri I did earlier this year and I'll pick it up again briefly before my next sprint tri to shake the rust off before the event. Prior to Oilman last year I was doing Spin Class for about an hour twice a week Tuesday and Thursday AM and alternating weekends I was doing long rides which started at 2 hours and ended at 4 hours (the opposing weekends I was doing long runs). For the weeks I didn't have a long ride planned on the weekend, I was trying (but often failing) to find some time to get at least a moderate ride in during the week. Having a bike plan is something I definitely need and is why I'm looking at an indoor trainer (Scott recommended a couple to me through another site I'm looking into), because frequently I'm finding when I have the time to bike, it's either too dark out or I need to stay at home and watch the kids.

LOL.  Cindy, my wife, will tell you anything outside of Texas is the North.

Name:  DDVMM/Michele

Story: This is my 3rd season of triathlon. I was diagnosed with metastatic thyroid cancer in 2010. To commemorate my 1 year survival I did my first half marathon, but was intrigued by triathlon. I did a couple sprint tri's that year and last year I did an oly distance. Because of Kelly and this group, I signed up for a HIM in June. I am certain I never would be participating in that length if it weren't for this great mentor group/leadership!

Family Status:  I've been married for almost 15 years, and we have 4 wonderful (most of the time) active children - 13,12,9 (going on 30 and only boy) and almost 5

Current Training:  I am training for Eagleman in June under the coaching prowess of Kelly and Sonic Endurance! She is awesome. If she writes it out - I do it. 

2013 Races:  Sprint tri - Manassas 5/12, Eagleman 6/9, Queen of the Hill Tri 6/29, Iron Girl Sandy Hook 9/8, MCM 10/27 - and considering Maine Rev3 Oly in August

Weightloss - I am always unhappy with my weight, but I am probably within 10 pounds of goal. I eat a clean diet 90% of the time, but have a sweet tooth.

Just wanted to add that I have been with kaburns1212 mentor group since the beginning and this is the BEST mentor group ever! Welcome to all the new members!!

Edited to add - I am one of the 'older' triathletes in this group at 43 - I like to keep up with these youngins'!!

Man the trainer is maybe the most valuable piece of equipment I have as a dad with an 8-5 job.  Getting outside during the week really isn't feasible, so all my interval and strength work is done on the trainer during the week and my long rides are done outside on the weekend.  Also when you get to the HIM/IM level the long run and the long ride really need to happen every week.  I know a lot of people who do both on the weekend.  Personally I like to have at least a day between the two with that day being a recovery focused swim (ie drills, form work, long steady state) or a flat out off day.  You really don't want fatigue from one affecting your performance in the other.

How would you fill in nutrition for this: 2-2 1/2 hour bike ride outside with 25 minute run after. Banana for breakfast with 1/2 cup coffee. Skratch in 2 24oz water bottles. Would you bring other nutrition? I was considering a Kind bar or jelly beans for mid way? I don't like gels/chomps/etc.

Also, any advice on transitioning from the trainer to the first outdoor ride? Why am I anxious about this?

1. 2 bottles should be fine.  Once it gets hot I'd transition to 3 just in case.  I'd take a bar or two.  Eat half at 45 minutes in and the other half at 1:30.  You may need something else, but that's pretty user dependent. 

2. Anxiety is normal.  How long has it been since you've been outside?  Change = anxiety for a lot of people, especially triathletes because I find we're more creatures of habit than most folk out there.

Do you have metrics you train by (HR, power, RPE)?  Here is my issue with group rides:  I go out for a given amount of time and a plan for my heart rate zones.  When I get in a pack it all goes out the window.  If you're disciplined enough to stick to the plan (at least loosely) riding with others, especially those slightly faster than you, they can be productive.  That said when it comes to training metrics there is a reason the plan is the plan and if you're going to just throw it out why have a plan?

I like to ride with a core group of friends on the weekend.  We all have coaches and we all have different things we're doing out there whether it be intervals or long/slow, but we're all out on the same route so if there's an issue there is someone there to help.

Welcome, welcome

So Kristen posted up her weekend plans.  What's everyone else up to?

I'm going to head to the IMTX course tomorrow and knock out 4 hours.  Great thing about that course is that there are places to cut off miles if you need to shorten it.  Bad thing is there are no shoulders and locals that hate cyclists.  I have a shortish run afterwards.  And then it's into full on taper mode.  I have random off days coming up which really throws off my groove and makes me a bit cranky.  Haha. 

Not sure if I mentioned it before but there apparently is a mud run in one of the town the bike course goes through on the day of IMTX.  It should make traffic REAL fun.

I'm in for another round.  (And count me among the Southerners also - I live in Maryland, but I'm FROM Georgia.  You can take the boy out of the South, but you can't take the South out of the boy, and all that...)  

And now we DEFINITELY have to have a DC/Richmond-area meetup.  

More bio details to come shortly, but I have to pack to go race tomorrow!

Date night with the wife tonight

Sat = 1500m swim in the morning, yard work afterward, taking the dogs to the battlefield trails near my house for some canicross/jogging, enjoy caps vs rangers game,  and then grilling some chicken & potatoes.

Sunday = load smoker with brisket, more yard work, mountain bike at local park if I can convince my friends to join me, enjoy brisket.

A fellow smoker, excellent!  This will be my first time with any non poultry in the smoker.  Done several full chickens and full turkeys.

Brisket is the best, but I'm a Texan so that's a given with me.  I have a smoker.  Favorites are brisket, jalepeno sausage, and pulled pork.  Brisket is just a pain because it takes so damn long.  Especially since I prefer to start it the night before.  You really have to carve out a day around it.

Definitely send me some info for brisket in the smoker.  I'm just going off of what I've read in a few forums.  The wife is a little wary, never had brisket, so I want to wow her with her first try.