Runnertridu Girl Group (Page 2)

Michelle WAY TO GO!!!! on your age group win!!!!! How long have you been at this??? 1 1/2 - 2 yrs??? What's next?? :-)

The strength and stamina you and Jeff have inspires myself and others to want to do better/work harder. Can't wait to see your race report.

Thanks!

1 1/2 - starting swim in Dec - Biking, Last year
Next up - Short Course Du Natls July 29
Then Big "A" Race 1/2 IM - SteelHead Benton Harbor, Mi. August 5

I'll post a full race report once I get the splits - also some fun details like falling on the beach!! Wet suits do bounce!! LOL

OK - troups

Here's the good, the bad and the ugly!!


http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...

Enjoy!

Michelle, Checked out your race report. WOW 5th overall!!! What a Great race you had.

Now after checking out your bike and run times, I'm wondering how many miles/hours per week should I be riding to increase bike fitness steadily without injury? Any suggestions on miles or how many times/week I need to ride would be appreciated. Bike gets fitted tomorrow.

Does running get faster/easier with more biking/leg strength? My last run after a bike ride was faster than I normally run w/o riding first. I'm hoping this is the case. My goal for this year is to start running a 8+ min pace consistantly(8:30"s would be nice) instead of 9:00 or as in the last race 10:30's Uuggghhh!

Denise

Hi Denise:

There are a million ways to answer that question about how many times a week - I started working with my coach last year in March - his programs have worked very well for me - Jeff - aka Leap also works with a coach.

Looking back @ when i started - have a big running background - i eased into biking riding 2 -3 times a week. 45 min - 1 hour

My goals were to get faster running and try multi-sport - sooo i had run focus to start - then set goal for a Duathlon - started to do Brick workouts
Also started with heart rate training - setting training zones for running and cycling, I live by these!! It has made me a better athlete and keeps me injury free.

Benefits of Bricks - Running and biking - longer workouts less pounding and leg turnover - first few Bricks were 30 z-1 biking then 30 min z-1 runnning - these have morphed to 4 hour bricks getting ready for 1/2 IM. It's been a year of consistant training - i think i have missed maybe 2 workouts in the past year and 1/2 - (6days a week)

I do listen to my body... if i need a day off - I take it

We also included weights and core - I only do them 1-2 X per week - Really don't like it :-( don't tell the coach!! (although i think he knows, it's the only time i whine)

An average week last year looked like this:

Monday Off
Tues - run 1 hour z-2 w/ 4 5min pick ups
Wed -Bike 30-40 min
Thurs - Bike 30 - run 30
Fri - run 1 hr
Sat - bike 30/run30 both z1
Sun - run 1 hour zone 1

Not much intensity but building a solid base - key to staying injury free -
These workouts were a challenge but not sooo hard - i've always felt - not over trained on race days because of the work/rest ratios.

I could go on for days... Jeff any input??
I also base my training on my set goals for the season - i selected races back in Nov of 06 for 07.

YES!! you will get faster biking and running - i do not speed work and have dropped min off PR times!!! Higher cadence cycing and running! It's all about leg turnover!

Questions... are you bored yet??LOL


Edited by michlmead 2007-06-18 5:43 PM

Denise,

I'll answer your questions first, then comment on Michelle's 'novel'.

First of all, as Michelle said I work with a coach who writes my plans. Trying to juggle marathon and tri training and build in intensity/speed/base work in all three facets plus strength/core was just too much for me. I decided to leave the plan building to the expert. I also work out with my coach a couple days/wk so she can see how my body is holding up to what she's putting it through.

That being said. Good biking/running comes with building a good base. All of my bike/running for about 6 months (till I could bike outside) was almost all zone 1/zone 2 (go all day) intensity. Once you have built a base, we added intensity. How many times/week? Each week was different, but I'd say I biked and ran 2-3 days a week. Usually one ride was long and slow, the other short and fast(er).

Yes, running will get easier/faster with leg/biking strength...to a point. Unlike Michelle, I am HUMAN and have seemed to peak at reducing my running times. My biking times are still getting better. I will tell you this. When I was doing strictly running for marathon training I was putting in ~35 miles per week for a typical training cycle. Now that I'm multisport training I put in about ~20 miles per week of running and have the SAME race results for my marathons. Yes, your biking will help your running and it's easier on your body (till you crash, of course).

Now, on to Michelle's comments.

My background is mainly self trained marathoner. Running 4-6 days per week. No strength/core or biking. I too eased into biking a few times a week.

My coach also trains me by Heart Rate zones. Let's bookmark this one as it's a big subject all on it's own. Each bike/run I perform, has a purpose and specific HR zone. I too feel like the way these zones are used I have been able to incrementally increase intensity over time and work harder with lower HR and stay injury free. I'm a big proponent of HR training and would be pretty much lost without my monitor.

I don't do quite as many brick workouts as Michelle (may explain my lower ranking) but do LOTS of two a day workouts. 3-4 days/week I'll be doing two facets in a day. Swim/bike, bike/run, core/run, you name it. I too have been VERY consistent over the past couple of years. I rarely miss a workout and am hardly ever sick.

I agree completely with Michelle. Listen to your body. If you're sore/tired, take a day off. There's no sense in doing a workout just for the heck of it. Most every one has a purpose so I never just go through the motions to get the miles/time in.

I also (did) average 1 hr of core/strength per week. Until this winter I had never done strength work and so I don't crave it as much as run/bike/swim so it's tough for me to build a good habit of it. Core strength training is tough, but really good for all facets. I really think having a good core helped me adapt to staying in aero position for 5+ hrs. I also have incorporated plyometrics - they're my favorite! All sorts of different jumping/lunge/Bosu types of drills make these workouts fun. Like Michelle, I whine alot during strength/core/plyo's - but coach knows it's a good type of whine.

My coach has been training us for IMWI since the day we signed up back in Sept 06. We're 9+ mo's into a year long plan. As races opened up, we signed up for them and she worked them into the plan. I'd be lost without a coach building my plan to incorporate my racing/base building/strength/intensity.

Lots of info above. Perhaps we can build a list of items to elaborate further and address one at a time more in depth?

Coach (how to pick one, etc)
Plan concepts (base, intensity, build phases, rest weeks, etc)
Race day (could be split up into prep, transitions and each facet)
HR training (VO2 testing, zone training, etc)
Goal setting (setting them properly, measurable, realistic, etc)

Can you tell I'm a 'list' guy?!

Think I'll stop now and wait to see what you all think.

Jeff

LOL - you call mine a novel!!!
Denise may not come back!!! Just kidding... can you tell we like to be students of our sports???

I'm glad you are both so knowlegable and EAGER to share J/K :-) had to make some kind of wise crack abut the "novel" thing. Honestly though, I'm eating it up.

I have talked about learning more about heart rate zones and working with them but haven't checked into yet. This will be on my "to do" list for when I return from vacation. Know a gal that coaches and trains using zones. I'll have to give her a call.

Coaching??? Not sure I can afford it or have the time to trek into the big city of Austin several times a week. Are you both working out with a coach directly or via email, telephone etc... or all the above? What does something like this run on the average?

Also I can see my approach to training has been all about the miles. Michelle's seems more time and intensity based. I gotta start thinking different. Think I got into this trap when I started running with my Garmin. I do have a Timex Ironman with the heart rate montior, GPS and data recorder so I can start playing with it now. Just gotta figure out find out my max HR and zones.

Like Jeff I started out running and building toward a marathon on my own and no real core or weight training. Although I have only done one marathon, I was very happy with the time but knew I could've done better had I worked more core.

Thanks for all the advice so far. Keep it coming!!!! I gotta run now , got an hour drive into Austin to have my bike fitted. BTW my back wasn't quite as sore on yesterday's ride, made it 13+ miles. YEAH!!!


Denise

Here's my coaching 2 cents.

Find a coach that's in tune with where you want to go. I hooked up with HH because she's competitive and would drive me outside my comfort zone and get me into the top 25% of my AG.

My coach never really named a price/month so I did a little research and came up with an amt to give her. Rates here in MN were 75-200 per month depending upon options. She provides: Monthly training plan that is fit to my races and work schedule. She is also available for phone/email at any time and responds in a reasonable fashion. We also do a couple workouts a week together just because we live near one another. Truthfully, the custom plan is the most valuable part of things, followed by availability for questions, then workouts.

----------------------
Back to Denise's comment about approach to training. I'd have to agree with our coaches in that training is really intensity/time based. Truthfully, I pretty much know how far I'm going to be going at both biking/running for any given intensity. Again, the idea is that by adding intensity (via intervals), over time I'll be able to go further in the same amount of time at lower intensity. Training at lower intensities for longer periods of time also helps you go faster at higher intensities. Seems odd that you can run/bike slower to get faster, but it works!

Next subject: How to determine your HR zones for both bike and run.

Just got back from the bike shop. :-(

There's not much adjusting that can be done for my bike. They don't even make the same type of head post my bike has. Seems it was one of the first hybrid type bikes over 15 years ago. So got a new seat and adjusted the head post/handle bars (not sure if I'm even naming the right parts right) down a tad, seat was already in a good position , but this is still almost totally upright. Then had the fitting specialist show me several options in bikes and explain them. Next he fitted me to a couple road bikes (didn't want to go the hybrid route again) and he mention that a tri specific bike might be more than I want, need or could handle at my level of training and involvement. What do you two think???

After riding the road bikes a bit......WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!! I didn't know biking could be so comfortable.

Looked at a couple "Specialized" models. Liked the Dolce, the 54cm fit better than a 51. So think I'll start looking at used bikes. Thinking that the $700 - $1200 range is way more bike than I've ever had and it would probably work for me for a few years or at least until I get better at triathloning. Oops that's gonna hurt the coaching budget a bit. Gotta find a way for my business to fund my new habit.

Edited by drhodes2 2007-06-19 4:55 PM

Not that I've ever been short on words, but I'd listen to the folks at the bike shop. If you feel they interviewed you properly, got to know what you plan to use the bike for, and know about how much you want to spend they should be able to point you in the direction of the bike that best fits your needs.

I'd say you could probably pick up a decent road bike and it'd kick butt on the old hybrid you've got now. You won't have to drop 1k on it like you would an entry level tri bike and you'll have $$ left over for shoes/pedals/computer/indoor trainer.

When you find a way for your business to fund your tri habit, let me know I'd love to tell my accountant.

Have yourself a great evening!

Asking my accountant tomorrow. What kind of business do you have? I've got storage and doors and windows. My husband was thinking at least I could shove some advertising dollars for my race entries if I put the company name and number on a shirt or something.

Been looking online at used bikes in my size and drooling for the last several hours. Been checking ebay and Craig's List. I'm thinking at this point almost any REAL road bike would be better and hoping to find one a year or two old at close to half the original price.

Michelle, which do you think would be better for me at this point, The Marble Falls Triathlon or the Iron Girl in Irving, TX? Assume I don't have a new bike yet.

Denise

Edited by drhodes2 2007-06-19 9:53 PM

Hi

I ride a Specialized Dolce - it has been a great bike for me - the fit is the most important part!! I'm looking at tri bikes now - not sure if i really need a tri bike or maybe an upgrade in road bike (ie carbon frame) they are soooo light.

I did not have a ton of $$ to spend - i look at it if you have the engine (that's the key) I pass alot of $4-5,000 bikes!! Will a lower end model you can also upgrade the wheels, seat, cranks and pedals - that's what i did with mine as funds became available!!

My 2 cents!!

I like to do local races - you get a lot of support - my favorite 1/2 marathon runs right past my house too!

BUT it's also exciting to travel to a big event.

If it were me - I would do the one close to home first - That's what I did - you get the home court advantage, I think!!

You can't really go wrong - it's all about the experience - putting it all together on race day!!

Do you have the Dolce, Dolce Elite or Dolce Comp?

Been kinda quiet around here as of late. Michelle must be off swim/bike/running somewhere.

Denise, did you pick up a new bike?

I'm pretty much fully recovered from the long bike/marathon weekend. I'm pretty surprised how good I feel, but I'm sure I won't have really spunky legs for another couple wks.

I am on track to post a new milestone with respect to monthly bike mileage - 500 this month. I'm pretty stoked as this is about twice the mileage I was doing last year at this time.

What have you all got on tap for the week?

Hey,

Been in training!!! Ride just the entry level Dolce - did upgrade my crank, seat, and got a set of racing wheels. That made a big difference...

Got some big volume in the coming weeks!! Can't wait to get to it!!!

Love those spunky legs, Jeff!!

M

The week
MOnday off - or recovery ow swim - my choice
Tues 1:30 bike z2 w/ 5 3min z3-4 100+ RPM 6 min recovery
Wed - swim 2500- weight
Thurs - 1:30 run w/ 10 mile z3 run test - bike 30 after
Friday - swim 3000- weights
Sat 3:00 bike w/ pick ups z 2 - 1 hr run z-1-2
Sun 0 1:30 Bike - run 30

That's the plan - will switch the bike to wed - to ride with spin group if I swim today - will swim today!!

M

Edited by michlmead 2007-06-25 4:07 PM

Jeff:

That's fantastic!! It's fun to look back at the first season - see how much better the training has gone w/ little base under your belt!!

Heart Rates Rule!!!

M

Base building isn't always that much fun, but sure pays off in the end.

Time for a HOT (90+) zone 3 run. Gotta go!

Hey guys... New to BT and Multi Sport. I've checked out the Mentor groups and got a warm and fuzzy here. After a short bio if you'll have me I'd like to join, even at this late date....

Check out the piece entitled "SALVATION" in the articles section, its still on the Home page, for an in-depth on me. I'm the Eric J Goldstein that wrote the piece.

I'm a 47 year old forever adolescent married for 25 years, to the same woman(!) with a 23 year old Daughter and a 20 year old son. I grew up as the only competitive sibling of three learning to swim in the surf of Rockaway Beach, NY at age 4. Went on to compete through college.

I ran distance till the age of 23/24 and cycled the 'City constantly. But somewhere between marriage, kids, career and....life I went couch potato. Was a Bodybuilder and Certified trainer in my mid 30's.

More than a couple years back I found myself in a bad place, again its all in the "SALVATION" piece, and thankfully found myself back to the very same bike I rode when I was 21. I got back into the game with a vengeance losing 35 pounds, training and riding like an animal, racing my first Road Race last season and got onto a Sponsored Bike team (Toga/Gotham). I'm now in my first full season of Bike racing having fun while taking a fair share of butt whuppins.

I am about to enter the multi sport arena with a Duathlon July 22nd and a Tri Aug 19th, both sprints. I started running again 3 weeks ago and can comfortably do 2 miles at sub 9 minutes and will be upping that distance this week. The cycling is no problem for me, I ride metrics regularly and can TT a relatively flat to rolling course in Aeros avg'ing close to 21mph for 15 miles, I simply haven't used the Aero's for a longer ride yet.

I start swimming in two weeks....

I guess that's enough to ingest for now.....

Eric J

Welcome Eric!

You didn't mention the line of work you're in, but based on your 'Salvation' article it looks like you're a writer! Very nice.

Michelle is an ACE at duathlons so she should be able to add value in that respect. I haven't done one myself but may someday.

I'm sure you have plenty of people to tap into for first tri advice, but I'm not too far removed from my first so can add plenty in that arena. I've also trained for all lengths of tris and put in a few marathons so can help you out with respect to juggling the two.

Your strong biking background along with already strong running #'s plus a swimming background should bode well for tris. It's a matter of putting a plan together and doing some bricks!

Again, nice article and welcome to the group.

Jeff

Welcome Eric!!!
We are warm and fuzzy!! Jeff's my trusty co-pilot... we try to navigate the multisport worlds!!
Having a blast!!!
Love the Du and Tri - Nice work sooo far!!

Hope to be able to help - we are all learning from each other!!

M

I am also wondering if you have room for one more at this late date. If my math's not off, I don't think there are five here yet. Here is my story for your consideration:

Name: Jessica

Age: 30

Family: Husband of (almost) 7 years and two 2-year-old, adorable kitties

Occupation: Lawyer

Back story: I played soccer and ran track throughout middle school and high school (in the Cleveland area!). I went to UNC-Chapel Hill and was not good enough at either to compete with the likes of Mia Hamm and Marion Jones. I kept up running in college and added in weight training. Ran 5ks, 10ks, 10 milers and marathons in my 20s. I starting getting the itch to try multisport last fall to try something new, so in November I convinced my husband to sign up for the NYC Triathlon with me - the rest of his running group was also on board. At the beginning of the year I bought a heart rate monitor to use training and realized how high my resting heart rate was running (115-120). After seeing a few doctors, I was diagnosed with Graves Disease (hyperactive thyroid gland) at the end of February and treated with radioactive iodine at the beginning of March. In the past month, I have swung from hyperthyroid to hypothyroid and just started taking synthetic thyroid hormone yesterday. Now that my health is on the upswing, I am eager to get back into serious training rather than maintenance. I did a sprint triathlon earlier this month and did better than I expected considering my health issues (1:25 for a 750 m. swim/12.5 mi. bike. /5k run). We have NYC (Oly distance) coming up on July 22 (which is DH and my 7th wedding anniversary!), the Reston Triathlon (~Oly distance) on Sept. 9 and the Army Ten Miler on Oct. 7. I like the discussion you all have had on heart rate training and hope to train that way now that my heart rate is where it should be (~53-56 bpm resting). I am also interesting in training as efficiently as possible since work keeps me very busy. I am reading Joe Friel's Triathlon Training Bible and Gale Bernhardt's Training Plans for Multi-Sport Athletes right now, and they are useful for training tips. I have kind of come up with my own training plan based on a few things I have found on this site and others, but am thinking of converting to one of Gale's plans. Oh yeah, we are talking about doing a HIM in 2008. I have been bitten by the tri bug!

I look forward to getting to know you all if you will have me! If not, I will try to catch you all in the next cycle of these things!

Jessica:

WELCOME!!!

Glad to have you!!! From Cleveland area - gotta have you in the group!!!
That's a great time for the sprint-- some natural talent based on the bio!! Also the heart of an athlete goes a long way!!

Adding you to the list!!

Michelle