Birkierunner's (Jim Kelley) General + Long Course Group (OPEN) (Page 2)

Aaron and Anthony...still plenty of room in the group, so welcome! 

Elizabeth and Larchmontri we have plenty of room so welcome

Hi Beth - still plenty of room so welcome.  I've held off answering some questions until we get a little more critical mass so don't feel I've neglected your questions so far.  Things have been a little hectic with the holidays.

Greetings,

Just finished the base phase(10 wks) of my plan, had something going on for the first 3 weeks so didn't really follow the plan until week 4. All is well the training load at this point is pretty much what I'm used to. Haven't really worried/worked to much on nutrition at this point but from here on I'll get more serious about it on the long days. From my HIM experience's 700-750 calories on the bike usually keeps me happy 2:45 is my best, I'm guessing I'll need to up my hourly intake a bit.  Entered the Florida Challenge 70.3 for March, it's close to home and fits where the plan calls for a race, looking forward to it.   

Anthony, from your original bio posting it sounded like the half ironman was more your goal race but in this recent post it sounds like the Chicago Oly is your "A" race...is that right?  The answer to that will influence how I answwer this question.  If I had an athlete that had an Olympic as their goal race I would probably not have them racing a HIM to get ready for it.  Instead, I would do more sprint and Oly races to get the intensity level up; and also there is much less time required for recovery from the shorter distances and you don't need to spend much time tapering either.  By using sprint/Oly distances as your B and C (importance level) races you can incorporate them as part of your training to prep for your A race.  By racing a HIM you will spend time tapering for that race (diminshed training opportunity) and will require a lot more time to recover.  The week after the HIM should be spent resting for a couple days and then easing very gently into workouts for "active recovery".  Depending on how hard you race the HIM it will take a couple weeks to get back to normal training.  If the Chicago Lifetime is your goal race but you still want to do a HIM then I would probably opt to race the Rev3 (assuming its a HIM?) in June to give more time before Chicago.  Finally, I wouldn't spend 2 weeks tapering for an Olympic...that's waaaay too much quality training time lost if you taper so far out for a shorter race.  The week prior is plenty of time.  Hope this helps.

Sounds like you're on track!  Nice job!   What is your nutrition strategy for your HIM as far as composition? (i.e. gels, bars, liquid, etc)

Anyone have any questions on how to navigate around the BT site?   Be sure to log your workouts so that it gives a better picture of your training which will make answering questions easier.  Also, feel free to visit other group members' blog to provide encouragement or to say hello!!   I will make a table of group members with links to their blogs to make this easier.  If anyone has any privacy concerns that is totally understandable and there is a feature to make your blog private.

Is that Paris, TN or Paris, France?

Kristen, what was your nutrition strategy for the race where you said you were under-nourished?

Great to have you join us Nat!   I like your profile photo - we don't get the deep powder too often here in the Upper Midwest.   An August HIM will fit in with our group and look forward to watching your journey.

Hi Jim,  I'd love to join if I could.  I'm new to this website and the mentor program; but a tri-team member told me about it last season and it seemed like a great thing!  (I was paying a coach through Training Peaks that I cannot afford this season).  I did my first sprint the fall of 2012 and loved it; but the season was over.  I signed up for Lake Stevens 70.3 for 2013 and completed it.  I also did two more sprints and two Olympics to prep for Stevens last summer.  Since then, I've been a slug.  My husband had some health issues and so between the lack of time and the stress, not only did I do nothing athletic, but I gained about 30 lbs.  I am registered for Calgary 70.3 this July.  I need to drop the 30 lbs to fit into my wetsuit! LOL!  I would love any tips on training programs, nutrition, etc...or just general accountability.  If this group will work for that and you'll have me, I'm all in!  Thanks and Happy New Year!  Erika

Sorry - looked at the other posts and realized I may not have given enough info. 

Story - I turn 50 in January and live in a pretty rural area near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.  I am a lawyer, working full time in Spokane and CdA.  I've got two kids at home who are involved in a ton of things.  Between work, kids, and commute, fitting in workouts is always a challenge, but I managed to do it last season.  I was a gymnast in college and h.s.  I marathoned for a while in my 30s, but then the docs said "no more running" b/c I was bone on bone in my knees.  (arthritis).  I gained tons of weight, but then lost it (50lbs) before entering the race season last summer.  I realized that my knees could tolerate jogging 2 times a week, so I'd found a new sport!  Yay!  It is just awesome to be out there again. 

Current Training - 4 days/week - 3/4 mile swim, 3-4 mile run, 45 min bike (snow on ground, so stationary or trainer).  Will be ramping up all of that beginning next week.  I've been a sloth.

This year's races - So far, I've registered for Calgary 70.3.  I'll probably do a Sprint in March, an Olympic in May and a half marathon in June.  I'd like to do an Olympic in August and another half IM in September...maybe the Black Diamond.  

Weight loss - has been a constant issue since the birth of my son 17 years ago.  I've had moments of glory and moments of disaster ever since, relatively speaking. 

Thanks for the additional info and welcome to the group!!

Thanks for including me in the group!  I'm the newbie regarding blogs and this site...no clue how to use it at all, so any tips you have will be welcome.  (They can totally wait till after the holidays!)  I'm happy (thrilled actually) to let you and the other members of your mentor group see my posts; but I don't want them out there for the world to see. Will love any and all input though...