Scott and Kelly's Mentor Group- Closed (Page 2)

Is there an ideal time to put a HIM in before a full? Is it necessary? Is it hard to be motivated for a HIM after a full?

Hey our IMs next year are the same day. Great goal!

I have definitely experienced this before. I'm usually pretty good about staying consistent with the nutrition. It helps to have a wife who only eats vegetarian and avoids processed foods at all costs.

My goal for the 2014 season is to first, finish CDA and second, to crush my Vineman time of 14:08 by training smarter, but especially by racing smarter. I do not want to set an actual goal time until I know my travel schedule for work next year. If I end up spending three weeks in a foreign country in May my race may suffer.

My other goal is to return to healthy eating consistently. Mainly, to take the time to plan for healthy snacks during IM training, because any quickly available food will find it's way down the hatch 6 weeks out from the race.

I've read alot about putting a HIM in before a full. I'd have to look up the ideal time, I think it's around 8 weeks. It many be very helpful, but it is not necessary. I did not do one prior to my first IM. And I probably will not do one prior to my next one, due more to logistics and cost than anything else. I would make sure you do a tri sometime in the lead up to it to at least test out all of your equipment, especially if you get something new.

Motivation following the race will depend on you and your family. I went into a black hole for training and was happy to have a respite from training in order to enjoy other aspects of my life.

 

Ideal time?  Eh.....Before is a good fitness test and you can use it to make sure your stomach is going to be able to handle what you plan to put in it for the full.

 

I found it hard to get up for my half after my full.  To be quite honest I was probably burnt out though.  I trained for a half at the end of 2012 (20ish week plan), took 2 weeks off, trained for IMTX in May of this year, took 2 weeks off and went right into training for the half the end of this past season. 

 

ETA:  6-8 weeks is probably an ideal time before.  Misread original post, sorry.

Edited by uhcoog 2013-12-27 9:50 AM

Thanks for the responses. I will have to look at the calendar!

Real name: Crystal, but you can call me Crissy
(Super happy this group is open)
Age: 40 -although I think I could still pass for mid 30's :-)

Background: I got into endurance sports about 5 years ago. My husband had been doing adventure racing and running the local half marathon for a few years before that. He kept telling me I'd like it, but I kept saying who enjoys sweating and being hot for more than 30 minutes - and anything near or over 2 hours was INSANE. Well, that was until I finally decided to try an adventure race. I started learning how to run long distance. I had no idea how long it would take my body to get used to using slow twitch muscles. I was strictly a fast twitch kind of gal, and sprints were my specialty. It took me many months to learn to run slow enough so that I could keep running. I didn't know the first thing about learning to build endurance. Flash forward 5 years to today and I can tell you that one adventure race hooked me in the world of endurance sports. I have competed in too many adventure races to count, from short 1.5 hour long events to 12 hour races. 2014 might hold a 24 hour race - still on the fence on that whole lack of sleep thing. Last year was my first official year of toad triathlon and my focus is strictly on sprints - but I need to follow an oly training plan since I need to train for my crazy adventure racing. I just don't enjoy racing solo in a tri for more than 90 minutes. I need someone to talk to - I'm a chatty person on the course. Oh, and this fall I also added cyclocross racing to my list of athletic attempts.

Other things to consider: I work full time and have two girls, 9 and 12.

2013 races: Ummm...several off road adventure races and urban adventure races. And I think I did 4 sprint triathlons. I think I finished in the top 1/3 (age group) at most of the races, but I really need to go back and look. I think I have my tri races all posted on this website, so feel free to double check!

2014 races: I will be doing 1 indoor tri in February to get my baseline fitness. I did it last year as a non-intimidating introduction to swimming, I'd like to see some improvement over last year. Other than that, I don't know yet. Still figuring out how to cram it all in. My priority this year is to actually put together a racing calendar, and for the first time, an actual training plan. More importantly to follow that plan and eat better. I tend to half-azz it in all areas. These 3 areas are where I need the most help.

General overview of current training protocols, any other info that you think is interesting and/or relevant: Um..I have none at this time.

Edited by crissy_jo 2013-12-27 9:18 PM

I know people really like doing a 70.3 distance race before a 140.6 distance race but they are very different animals. I actually prefer to see people do Olympic distance races in the build up to a 140.6 (especially if they are volume limited as a 70.3 race will require some taper time in and some recovery time going out that could be better used building volume).

Would love to join this group!
NAME & Background: Brenda from Ft. Myers, FL. Last year I celebrated by 51st birthday by doing my first sprint tri on Captiva Island in September. Started swimming in July and bought my bike the same month. I was so excited about the training that before I even did that one, I signed up for an Olympic Tri in Clearwater in November. I completed both with the biggest smile on my face. I've been doing half marathons for about 6 years now, but have always wanted to be a "Triathlete"! I try to do at least 3 half marathons a year, but now I'm looking to mix that up with a few tri events. My hubby is supportive, but doesn't train with me.

I currently run with a group of ladies 2-3 times/week; swim with a coach 2 time/week and bike with the same group or other groups 1x/week. I also work out with a trainer 1x/week, but he's not into the tri scene, but I've been working out with him for 4 years now.

I definitely struggle with weight and currently have an additional 15 on me and like Kelly have been struggling with the whole hormonal issue for the last few years.

2013 Races: Captiva Sprint Tri; TriRock Olympic; Sarasota Half Marathon; Key West Half Marathon and doing my next sprint Tri in Naples in 2 weeks.

2014 Races: Already signed up for Sarasota Half & Athleta Half, but no tri races yet. I'll definitely do the Captiva Tri again and really wanting to do my first HIM. I do have the itch to do an IM, but need to get a few more under my belt.

I did get a Garmin 910xt and need to be more diligent about recording my workouts. I'm much better in the endurance department than in the speed. My motto has always been to be "fit & healthy and keep having fun". I want to do all these sports as I age (always inspired by those I see that are 70+).

Cheers, Brenda

2014 Goals.

The first goal is to make race training a routine. Too many things have gotten in the way of making any kind of training routine in my life, so this year is the year it becomes a permanent fixture in my life.

I absolutely want to make it to the start line of a Sprint, Oly and a HIM this year, and I am signed up to do it. And, of course, getting there healthy is a priority.

Some of the smaller goals are to swim 2112 yards continuously in front crawl. This I cannot do yet. I am throwing in 50 of breast for every 100 of front crawl right now, in my main sets, just to get through the work outs. This is up the last two weeks from a 100/100 split. This will be the next goal attained. Today I got 1500 yards of a 2000 yard swim in front crawl. I am getting there.

I also need to get to a suitable race weight. yes I need to lose some weight for health reasons, but let's face it... I will be faster at a lower weight and these are all races.

I am a foodie by nature. An Irish kid who grew up on steak and potatoes. But changing my diet last spring to an all organic, pescetarian diet has helped my health considerably, but not my weight. ( too many carbs ) So this year I would like to "Eat to live, not live to eat." This should be easy with a two workouts a day routine. Eating to fuel the next workout will be something I have to do to continue the routine. But I look forward to it.

My inaugural season will revolve around the HIM on September 19th. So all goals and priorities will deffer to that race. That being said, I will run under 5:30. That happens to be the best time the owner of my company has ever done, he will be racing with me this year. We are not the kind of company that allows the boss to win! In my head, I think I can get to a 5 hour HIM. However, staying healthy and getting to a 5 hour HIM may just be working against one another. So i will reserve the right to lower the time of this goal prior to June 1st.

As always, any advice or criticism is always welcome.

Scott,

Its the breathing that is killing me and the cardio more to the point. To answer your question, No I have never had a formal swim lesson. However, it is my companies business to employ swim instructors and to train lifeguards, so I have had a number of quasi qualified people watch me swim. We are only about a half hour to the beach here in NJ and I have even had some open water instructors take a look. Everyone says my form is pretty good, a few points I can improve on for open water, rolling my hips more, and really stretching after recovery for open water swimming. I am told I swim too fast. And in my words, I only had one speed a few weeks ago. It was fast enough to leave me pretty winded after a 400 swim, which is what we qualify lifeguards on. lol.

So, I am learning to swim a more consistent pace. Couple that with stretching after recovery, rolling my hips more, getting a straight pull to engage my lats more, I sometimes forget to consistently breathe. Its a work in progress!

I did however look up Master's programs in my area last night. Not A One! There are a bunch in Philadelphia, about 45 minutes with no traffic, up to a hour and a half. And a few in NJ, but north and south of me by an hour. My bike is in the shop for a tune up right now at Brielle Cyclery. Thats the home of Jersey Shore Tri Club. When I pick the bike up I am going to ask for some recommendations. They use a swim coach and I am hoping I can at least get someone to work with me a few times. If you have any advice on where to find a qualified coach, i am all ears. It is absolutely something I would like to do.

It sounds like you just need to build up your endurance. Definitely get some pointers on your stroke from whomever you can because training a lot with poor stroke mechanics will make you less efficient and could leave you injured.

Are you in Monmouth or Ocean county? If you go to jersey shore Tri club on Facebook, they are very active and swim at the Monmouth YMCA a couple times a week. If you PM Howard Stein, he will give you tons of info- he is the president. I'm in ocean county and swim with a group in Manahawkin.

I agree with the need for additional endurance. Start with 10 x 50 and build up. You want to feel comfortable with the pace you are swimming at. If you feel that you "must" swim fast to stay a float you like have a hip drop issue and need to propel hard in the front to keep from having you legs fall to the bottom. An easy way to check and see if your hips are dropping is to swim with a pull buoy. If you are much more comfortable and swimming is easier with a pull buoy you likely have a hip drop (which can be corrected with specific drills and practice).

I am actually in Mercer County. Right on the boarder of Monmouth County. I think the Monmouth County YMCA is in Freehold, NJ. ( About a 25 minute drive & where my wife's family lives) And that is where my boss, who is racing with me swims. This charity team that has been put together for Princeton 70.3 has a group of guys that train with Jersey Shore. My fear is that I cannot keep up with that level of swimmer. But, I will look into it thanks! I was on their website last night and did not see that. I will check their Facebook page tonight. Thanks for the heads up!

Back again! I'll post a quick bio later tonight or tomorrow.

Now we are onto something. I do have a pull buoy and I do use it for pull drills. I am more comfortable using it. However, today's swim I was concentrating on using my hips to propel myself a bit. That was very comfortable to me. I was also able to focus my pull to my lats and not my shoulders. This also felt much better. I swim a bit straighter as a result. Go figure. While I do not think I was swimming fast to stay afloat, this hip drop issue may need some attention. I have never swam competitively and hence I have never done any formal swim practices, so it is all new to me. To be honest, I only did the first 2000 swim to be sure I wouldn't drown during the race. The good news is I made it through the work out. Any drills to correct the hip drop issue would be appreciated.

I do think it is an endurance issue. While I was exhausted last week at the end of my long swim, this week I felt good enough to run 5 miles afterwards. And more importantly, I had no soreness or pain. I was sure I would be sore after that kind of work. In my simplistic mind, that told me I was doing an adequate job at swimming properly.

I have reached out to the Jersey Shore Tri Club to see if I can at least start swimming with them a couple of times a week. Thanks everyone for all the help. I will keep you up to date with my progress.

What is your head position like when you are swimming freestyle? If you are looking in front of you then your hips will sink. You should keep your eyes more or less on the bottom of the pool. When I was pretty young one of my coaches gave me a ping pong ball to keep under my chin so I would keep my head down.

As ugly of a picture as it was, I used a tennis ball recently for a few laps to be sure my head was in good position. Holding the ball in place was comfortable, so I assume its in half way decent position. I am sure it could be corrected, but it isn't terrible. I read in one of the BT articles about the tennis ball idea.

My goal, or goals, are fairly simple. Enter the Tri Boulder in June, as my first triathlon. I'm a very good biker, and decent runner. Need to work more on the running, and the swimming, and string it all together. The Tri Boulder is in June, and is a sprint. So that gives me 6 months to ready for that. Then I'll go from there.

Agreed. Despite really looking forward to the Florida Keys Ragnar in February, I am having a hard time getting motivated to get out the door since Florida.

My (sorta) tri related goals for ths year:

1. Sub 30 minute 5k. I was so focused on distance and endurance last year; this year I want to get faster.
2. Get below 200 pounds. This should help tremendously with goal number one.