Julia's Group - Full (Page 2)

OK, first - to reply to an inspire - click the "blog" button and it will reply in MY inspire so I see it pretty quickly.  BUT if you have questions that everyone might benefit from hearing the answers to, post it here!!  I get an email every time there is a post here.  The questions you asked are apporpriate for everyone!!

So swimming lingo, drills, sets.  for the most part, I'lls tart witth the basics

s-swim; k-kick; p-pull;d -drill; I or IM - Means individual medley, which is butterfly, backstroke, breast, free in that order so a 100 IM is 25 (or one pool length) of each stroke;  (e) - evens (o) - odds; ri - rest interval; so- send off.  fr - free or crawl; nf - non free.

so if I say I did 5x100 (e)s, (o)IM @2:00 so (or sometimes I would not ON 2:00)  It means that I did a set of 5 100's (which is 4 lengths of the pool) the evens were just swimming (or free or crawl) and the odds were IM's and that I started each 100 2 minutes from the time I started the previous one.

Drills - first let me say that there are a TON of different drills out there and all of them are good for different things.  The problem is that if you are doing the drills incorrectly, you may not bel helping your stroke...

CF - closed fist drill.  This is BEST if done with something in your fist.  Like tennis balls, or I use my swim gloves balled up.  You basically do your normal swim motions, but with a closed fist.   Ususally this is best immediately followed by normal swimming - like do 50 CF and 50 s back to back so you can feel the difference your scull and pull make.

Scull - or sculling drills.  You can scull in front (arms just about straight) to strengthen your catch, at the mid (arms almost straight underneath you) to strengthen your mid pull, or at the rear (again arms almost straight at your hips) to strengthen your finish. 

zipper, thumb drag or side touch drill.  This drill helps to get your arms bent on your recovery and keep your hands close to your body.  Pull as normal, but after you finish drag your thumb up along your outer thigh, hip, side to your armpit, then reach out in front. 

The fingertip drag and armpit touch drills do almost the same and achieve almost the same thing.  Fingertip drag, you just drag your fingertips along the water as you recover.  Armpit touch - well you touch your armpit on recovery!

Catch up drill - is supposed to help you NOT cross over - but I'm not convinced it works for a few reasons - it also tends to cut your rotation.  Anyway, this is where you stroke with your left arm and recover it to the front, but don't start your right arm stroke until after your left arm is already completely recovered.  When you do this drill, make sure you try to get some body rotation - it is a little strange, but if you don't rotate, you'll never know if you were crossing over or not.

single arm drills - can be done 2 ways - with the arm not used either out in front, or down by your side.  Keeping your latent arm by your side will REALLY tell you where your weak part in your stroke is.  Especially if you do it with a pull bouy! 

Ask me if you have more questions on specific drills, specific workouts, or if you want me to write a few workouts of specific lengths.  There are great resources on this site as well as in many books (like the TRIATHLETE's Training Bible which I HIGHLY recommend)

#1 choice would be to get a fluid resistance trainer for your own bike and ride it!  You can get them anywhere and they don't cost much for a decent one.  I have one from PErformance Bike http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=20982&subcategory_ID=4120  Is the one I have - It's around $150.  You hook your bike up to it and you can change the resistance and use your clipless pedals, plus it ALWAYS fits correctly! 

#1 choice would be to get a fluid resistance trainer for your own bike and ride it!  You can get them anywhere and they don't cost much for a decent one.  I have one from PErformance Bike http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=20982&subcategory_ID=4120  Is the one I have - It's around $150.  You hook your bike up to it and you can change the resistance and use your clipless pedals, plus it ALWAYS fits correctly!  You can add a cyclometer too - if you get one with rear wheel speed sensor and cadence (about $30 at PErformance Bicycles) you can also get your distance and cadence on the trainer!

Second best option is for any bike with pedals or VERY tight cages so that your feet are positively attached to the pedals.  As you progress you will want to do ILD's or SLD's (isolated leg drills or single leg drills).  Let me know when you are ready for some more intense workouts there!!

OK so K-Kick is either using a kick board OR (preferable and once you get better) kick only either on your back or on your side.  Kicking is VERY important.  The biggest thing I see is people who bend their knees too muck when they kick.  This is a problem, because it means that you are dropping your hips, which means you are creating a whole bunch of drag - plus the kick is very inefficient.  Another way to practice kicking is to hold on to the side of the gutter at the pool (one hand on the gutterholding on, the other hand under the water pushing up against the wall) and kicking.  You kick should originate from your HIPS, not your knees.  If you were local, I'd love to get together for a swim session...  BUT...  Anyway, a swim lesson or two can go a LONG way. 

Pull - yes, pull ONLY.  ONce you are very strong, you can accomplish this simply by crossing your ankles, but this makes your hips drop.  The best way to do this is with a pull bouy.  Some pools have them for use, but you can also buy them at most places that sell swim suits for a few bucks.  You put it beween your thighs to keep your hips up and it also keeps you from kicking.  To build strength, you can also use paddles or gloves, however, I would NOT recommend that until you are confident that your pull is mechanically pretty good and also that you are strong enough.  Shoulder injuries can occur if you pull too much too soon.  Sorry about the multiple replies, but my internet connection in Aspen is causing funny things...

I also just looked and there are some GREAT articles on the site for swimming.  At the top of the screen click on the "articles" then scroll down to training, then swimming.  There is a good article on kicking with a video and also http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=181 has some good info for beginners.  This site has a lot of GREAT info!!

YEAH!!  I think I finally found a person that might actually solve all my problems....well, maybe just my physical injury problems!  I've floated for years from podiatrist, chiropractor, p.t. etc.....everything has helped, but not for long periods and not significantly.  I have a really good feeling about this one.  He was AMAZING!  He was thorough, went through everything with me and I think will really push me.  I have totally felt everything has been connected for a long time, but no one ever could piece it together....maybe until now.  So now I am changing my biomechanics, increasing my strength in my glutes and quads and working through this.  Yeah, so I celebrated through a tough spin class that I started before the class started and made it through the whole thing without a whole lot of pain.  Yeah.  So my advice for you is don't settle for anything less, seek and you shall find!

 Kersten

So, how much time should you spend in the pool....  Good QUESTION!!  The first thing to think about is the distance you want to race, and how good you are right now.  Diane & Mike are going for a sprint tri - so the swim should be either 500 or 750yds.  If you are a pretty good swimmer - if you know you can swim 750 with no problems, without stopping and it is your strongest suit then you don't have to start swimming yet if you don't want.  Keep in mind, that the sooner you start, the better you will be.  BUT if your goal is just to finish and you absolutely HATE swimming, but you are good enough to cover the distance, then it is really your call. 

That being said, I would recommend getting in the pool as soon and as often as possible and here are the reasons.  Running is HARD on your body because of the impact.  Biking is not as hard since there is no impact, but you are using some of the same muscles that get pounded in running.  Swimming is a great way to build cardio strength without hurting yourself.  This is a great time of year to start building some base work and swimming should be a part of that.  There are lots of plans on the site that give you balanced work betweek cycling, swimming and running and then there are some that favor one of the sports.  And when I say balanced, I don't necessarily mean time wise, but the # of times you do the sport per week.  It ALL really boils down to how much time you want to spend TOTAL.  So first question - how many TOTAL hours do you think you are going to commit to training and then how does that break down.  For instance if you say OK 7 hours per week and it will be 7 one hour sessions.  First I would recommed doing 6 workouts per week with a 2 hour ride over the weekend.  The other 5  workouts might be 2x run, 2x swim and 1 more bike.  (Or 2 more bike and 2 run, 1 swim, or maybe one is a cross train day)  If you can get in that ONE longer session some time (and make it on the bike because for a triathlon, that is where you spend MOST of your time).  Some people focus on thier weakest sport for emphasis and to get better, while others choose to put the extra time in to thier best or easiest sport just to get in the higher cardio ranges. 

OK, so back to the real question - yes yo can be effective if you don't swim much until later if you are already a decent swimmer.  I took this approach last year, because I know that I'm a great swimmer and that all the work in the world was only going to get me seconds, not minutes, like work on the bike and run - NOW I'm in the pool constantly because I use it to keep the impact down.

As for the walking and running, start adding in short segments of jogging to your walks.  Go for a 20' walk, but after 10' add 2' of jogging, then walk 8' to cool down.  Then next time add in 2 segments of jogging.  Once the 2' doesn't seem too bad, try to increase to 5' of jogging.  Once you hit 10'  do your jogs in 10' jog, 2' walk and start increasing the total time to 40-50 minutes. 

When you say you have trouble breathing, do you mean when you run??  Are you originally from Colorado??  If not, how long have you lived here??  Or did you mean trouble breathing when you swim?  If you are talking about jogging and you just started, 2 things - ONE make sure you've checked out with the doctor.  THEN If you sLOWLY break into it you should be gradually breathing easier.  One way to judge is you heart rate too.  It will probably take you up to 3 monts to get your body ready to exercise.  Make sure you keep your HR in control.  When you do the walk/ jog sets, keep track of your HR and make sure you are recovering before you do another jog set.  In other words, if your HR walking fast is at 140, then you start to jog and it spikes to 170, let it stay there for only a minute or so.  Walk until it comes all the way back to 140 or 145 before trying to start another jog set.  It might seem slow progress at first, but trust me, at some point you will see much bigger changes and eventually you will be jogging at 150 and talking through it. 

The other important thing is SLEEP and NUTRITION!!!  If you start an exercise routine and don't get good sleep or nutrition, you will only get sick on top of it all   Take care of yourselves

For those of us who struggle from time to time, this will make you appreciate what you have.  It will make you think I CAN and I WILL, rather than doubt yourself.  This is an amazing story and I hope you all take the time to read it and watch it.  (I hope it allows me to copy and paste!)  It gives you a little perspective...or maybe a lot more than a little!  Make sure you watch the video...it really was amazing and worth the time!

25 January

MILINET: Marathon Father & Son

================================

Can World's Strongest Dad

[From Sports Illustrated, By Rick Reilly]

I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay For their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots.

But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.

Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in Marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a Wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and Pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same day.

Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back Mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. On a bike. Makes Taking your son bowling look a little lame, right?

And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life.

This love story began in Winchester , Mass. , 43 years ago, when Rick Was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him Brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs.

"He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;'' Dick says doctors told him And his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. ``Put him in an Institution.''

But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes Followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the Engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was Anything to help the boy communicate. ``No way,'' Dick says he was told. ``There's nothing going on in his brain.''

"Tell him a joke,'' Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a Lot was going on in his brain. Rigged up with a computer that allowed Him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his Head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? ``Go Bruins!'' And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the School organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, ``Dad, I want To do that.''

Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described ``porker'' who never ran More than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he Tried. ``Then it was me who was handicapped,'' Dick says. ``I was sore For two weeks.''

That day changed Rick's life. ``Dad,'' he typed, ``when we were running, It felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!''

And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly Shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.

``No way,'' Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite a Single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few Years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then They found a way to get into the race Officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the Qualifying time for Boston the following year.

Then somebody said, ``Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?''

How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since he Was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick Tried.

Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironmans in Hawaii . It must be a buzzkill to be a 25-year-old stud Getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you Think?

Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? ``No way,'' he says. Dick does it purely for ``the awesome feeling'' he gets seeing Rick with A cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.

This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best Time? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world Record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to Be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the Time.

``No question about it,'' Rick types. ``My dad is the Father of the Century.''

And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a Mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries Was 95% clogged. ``If you hadn't been in such great shape,'' One doctor told him, ``you probably would've died 15 years ago.'' So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.

Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston , and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland , Mass. , always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father's Day.

That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy.

``The thing I'd most like,'' Rick types, ``is that my dad sit in the chair and I push him once.''
And the video is below....

or if having problems with the video above you can click here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4B-r8KJhlE

YES!!  The sculling is somilar to that vidoe.  The keys is to Keep your hands strong.  I don't use a putt bouy - I just kick and keep sculling with both hands out in front.  Cup your hands and really FEEL the water.  You should feel this in your forearms by the time you are done with one lap.

Bikes are one of my favorite things to talk about.  This is what got me started on Triathlons!  One of the great things you have going for you is that triathletes are always buying new, better bikes, so pretty often you can find a great used one! 

To answer your question - my road bike is an Orbea Mitis.  I think it was the best bang for the buck that money could buy!!  For $1,800 I got the bike with Shimano Ultegra component (the components might be JUST as important as the frame!!) and the pedals and a pair of bike shoes.  I rode that bike in EVERY tri last season until my last one - when I broke down and "needed" a tri bike.  Then I bought the Kuota K-Factor - again it was bang for the buck.  Granted I spent a lot more money on it, but at the end of the day I got more vs. come of the other bikes inthe same price range - then I got race wheels for Christmas.  OK, enough about my bikes...

A couple of notes on road bike vs tri bike.  What kind of bike is your current commuter bike??  I know you said 24" wheels, but what is the frame like- is it comfortable, does it fit you well and is it relatively light??  The key is that you don't want to be out doing long training rides on a tri bike all of the time -and you definately don't want it if you are going to ride hills.  I stuck a pair of aero bars on my road bike and it got me through my HIM NO problem.  It also gets me through every hilly ride out there.  I guess where I'm going with this is that if your road bike is THAT awful you might consider just buying a really nice road bike that you can put aero bars on for races and occasionally for training.  A middle of the line road bike will be less expensive or about the same as a lower end tri bike and you will get more versatility and better use out of it.  BUT if you are serious about having a tri bike - there are a ton of great ones.  I would look around on ebay and craig's list.  And if you don't see any listed on Craig's list put a want ad listing there.  You might find someone who is your size and buys a new bike every year becuase they need the latest and greatest thing!  IF you decide to buy new - what is your price range.  I can give you some help with road and/ or tri bikes but I will tell you this - the FIT is the most important thing.  I would get decent components - Shimano makes several lines of components, the top 3 being 105, Ultegra, and Dura-Ace (D-A being the best)  I would try to stay with 105 or better.  OR Campagnolo makes AWESOME parts, but I would try to stay with Chorus line or better, once you go below that it gets a little sketchy.  The newest is SRAM and I've heard lots of good things about thier components as well. 

OK next question - wetsuits.  YES!!!!  MANY local running, biking, or tri shops that have tri gear rent wet suits.  I rented twice before buying my own.  Here is the key - again - FIT.  Make sure it is one size tighter than you think it should be   Two things happen - one when you get in the cold water, you shrink.  I'm not joking you will actually get smaller and it won't be so tight.  and tow - if it is too big it will create more drag and cause more harm than good.  I have 2 wet suits - a full long sleeve and a full leg, but sleeveless.  I like the sleeveless for the greater mobility in my arms, but if the water is getting down tot he low 60's - especially in a longer race I would go with full sleeves.  Although you might not like the feel at first if you are a good swimmer, it will pay off in the long run.  Cold makes your body move slower - PERIOD.  Also, when you get out of the water to transition, if your core is cold or your arms are cold, you will have a lot more trouble getting your suit off, getting your shoes on.  Your dexterity and balance get jumbled up if you're cold.  PLUS your body will be wasting precious calories trying to warm up rather than trying to swim, transition, and bike

At the bottom of my message, you can click on the 'logs' icon then click on the 'inspire me'.  Or If I leave a message in your blog, you can click 'blog' (not reply) and it will go to my inspire me blog that way too! 

so about the swimming - it is SOOOO hard to give swimming advice without seeing you swim.  I can tell you a few more drill for rotation, for sculling, and for other areas, BUT if you are not doing them correctly, you are just creating more harm than good. 

That being said - for ROTATION do a pause drill.  In other words - put your left arm out frontand your right hand by your side and do about 4 kicks, thentaka stroke, bring your right arm to the front, stretch it out and finish fully with your left hand by your thigh - this should put you on your left side - take a breathe and about 4 kicks then rotate again.  Do a few laps like that, then swim a few laps normally, but over emphasizing the rotation.  Do it EVERY time you swim and after a bit, hopefully it will incorporate itself into your stroke.  Again, it is VERY hard for me to tell if this will help you since I can't see you swim. 

My next race is the Lake Havasu Olympic (they also have a sprint though!)   March 24th, Lake Havasu, AZ.

I'm making it a gals weekend with another one of my girlfriends - anyone else who want an early brush up race is welcome to join the gals!!  After the race we are driving up and spending 2 nights in VEGAS

Sounds like fun.  Hopefully it is warmer than when I was there a few weeks back.  Thanks for all the great info!  I just found out there is talk that the Hoyts will be at the HIM I am aiming for....