Baowolf's New Years Resolution Group-Closed (if are stuck with no group PM me) (Page 24)

Jay, glad you signed up and are excited about Pumpkinman!

Mike, yes, even the good RL stuff can push training back a bit. Still early, so I'm sure you will get back in the groove.

Steve, congrats on the nice run, and even moreso on that trainer ride. Hope there were at least some good movies involved.

OK, so some of you may remember me mentioning a gentleman who had recently lost his wife joining us for some bike rides last year. Very sweet, quiet Japanese man with a teenager and a couple of grown kiddos. I found out today that he is an Olympian (1964 and 1968) in the 100 M. Set Japanese national record, 2nd in an olympic heat against world record setting US runner at the 68 Olympics. Also former pro baseball player in Japan (pinch runner). He never mentioned any of this...found out via our youth pastor at lunch today, and then googled him and sure enough. Next ride we do I'm going to make him talk!

Great day today -- first time I've hit 3000 yards in a swim workout in a while. Couple with my longest run in a long time yesterday, I feel like I'm getting the groove back. Hoping for a solid week of training this week to really get me going.

Steve -- how long does 85 miles on the trainer take? Do you do a steady tempo type ride or do you throw in some interval sessions, etc? I've done 3 hours on the trainer a few times, and wanted to blow my head off by the end.

Carol -- very cool story about the new rider in your group. I'm personally stoked about getting on the road with you & your gang in early June. Can't wait!

Jay -- I may join you @ Pumpkinman, but can't commit yet. Won't know until right before the race, honestly.

Carol - Good news on that foot. You and your friend will be able to share recovery stories and help each other get through. It is funny on the olympian story how we can be active with people and not know them. Go easy on him though his 70ish years are no match for your youth.

Mike D - no figuring where life takes us. You have been here before though so pick it up, do not over due and you always seem to find the bright spot to keep you going.

Jay - Great job on registering. Sometimes I think the nerves are our higher brain function trying to tell us when something is not right, so it is nice to here pushing the button was relatively axiety free.

Phil - Heard about that story and it is very sad. There was mention of her being very active for some cause. Not only a youth but a good egg at that, very sad. It was nice to hear that people wanted to keep her work going though. God bless her, her family and friends, this cannot be easy.

I had a great weekend with about 2.5 hrs in the pool and did not drown. It has been a while between swims. The stroke was a bit week Friday so I did a lot of kicking and cut it shorter. Saturday the stroke felt much better and put in a bunch more yards with a lot of kicking. Not worried about speed, just getting in some nice long swim time. Followed that up with a good feeling 4.5 miles on the treadmill this morning.

Hello everyone!

@ Carol: glad to read the great news about your glucose tests and the long tem benefits. Also congrats on the new saddle, always exciting to change things a little.

@ Steve: yes very sad, and it is very cliche but the thought that she was doing something truly enjoyable for her must help a little. Just a little...
And 85 miles on the trainer is insane!!! How long did it take?

@ Jay: your comment about nervous registration made me smile. I also get nervous (in a good way though) just by registering to an event. I tend to register to events that will bring me out of my confort zone, as these motivate me a lot more!

For everyone else, I hope training - and life - is good. I let myself go a little last week, only did 2 bikes and 1 swim. Will do better this week, promise!
I now have a new training partner, my daughter (9 yo) had decided she wants to do a triathlon this Summer. We'll see how THAT goes, but in the meantime we spend good mommy/daughter time on our bikes, chatting and pedalling. She's good! And she has designed her own training plan with intervals mixed with long bikes. I swear I did not teach her how to do that. Impressed!!!

We had another snowstorm on Saturday and this week is really cold, but the forecast looks better for end of this week and next, upper 30's to mid 40's... Could it be spring finally arriving??? Can't wait to run again.

Have a great week!

Fellow Mentorees

I really thought even though i have minor injury this week because of last week's crash i can still complete my Tp this week. i felt week after my long run today and i need my 1 day recovery tomorrow,i missed a short swim this week. Funny thing this weekend my 20 yo Niece @Dallas went for her first Tri no training except for a background in basketball and soccer, totally smoked my Sprint numbers.

Its sad for young people to move on
http://m.runnersworld.com/general-interest/family-remembers-runners...
I remembered during my last physical i lied to my PCP that i am having occasional chest pains so they will get my EKG. I am afraid i might have anomalies like Long QT syndrome.

@Steve
Your workouts are inspiring.I am not surprised anymore with your runs , but 85 miles on a trainer!!!! you have to tell us what keeps you on the saddle for 4 hours.

@Carol
Good people always manage to find you.

@Isabelle
Great experiences training with your kiddo

@Jay and Mike
Goodluck at Pumpkin man!!!

@Phil
Goodluck to your races!!!! i used to watch dragon boat races before i migrated here.

Spring is around the corner everyone!!!

Happy Training!!1





Edited by strykergt 2014-03-24 12:34 PM

Holy cow, Steve! 85 miles on a trainer is amazing! And then you followed up with a butt-kicking run. Looks like you are ready to do some serious racing : )

Thanks ya 4:25:00 on the trainer. I usually try to throw in 2x 20:00 at z4, 3x 15:00 at z3 and survive the rest. This time I just tried to keep it steady between 19 and 20 mph as I tanked so much at the end of last week's drainer ride. I actually listened to 1 hour of Spanish tapes and 3.5 ish hours of the Bible on disc. The sad thing is that I still need to do a lot of building, need to fit in 8 more hours of workouts per week and I may need to take some graduate classes for my Tier 2 School Administration Credential. Fun. I am really not fond of the fluffy lets share our feelings about learning classes, but we see how it goes. Soon the yard will need some attention too. There is this 2 foot diameter stump that I should probably dig out one of these days...weeks.. I looked at the peek build week for my IM plan and it is 260 miles on the bike, 54 miles running and 13,500 ish yards swimming. Sounds like um fun....

Watch those shoulders in the pool after not swimming much to swimming lots can mess your shoulder up, unless you are young. Try to get in some light shoulder work to balance those muscles and do some shoulder stretches.

I am getting anxious to see our runner at Boston. Are you in taper mode now?

Carol - the 'confidence even misplaced' comment made me laugh. What great news on your opportunity to get such a great new pump and have it covered. It will be fun to hear about the positive impact it will have on your life! What kind of saddle? You'll have to tell me how you like it. That man sounds like a fantastic person, and it is really cool that you know him and will get to chat him up again.

Jay - I am more with Carol, but of course when signing up for a race that you haven't done before comes with many unknowns. Feeling nervous can be a great fuel to keep pushing hard in your training. And HIM is really a big commitment of distance. YOu are so very normal! I'm glad you signed up. Can't wait to see you on the other side of the process!

Steve - You.....I dont' even have words to say how I feel. Race day is gonna be awesome! I'll need a motorized scooter to catch you on the run to say hi!

Joe - I'm struggling with my hand. I mentioned we are looking at additional surgery and that is still on the table. Then in the last week or so I've become unsure about the original surgery site being healed, so we'll see where that leaves me. So glad you didn't drown.

Phil - yes, that is sad news.

Mike - Yay for your first 3000 and longest run! I'd be feeling good about that progress too!

Linda - Boston is just around the corner..woohoo!

As I mentioned, my hand/wrist situation continues to be an adventure. I find it weighs heavy on my mind as it continues to affect my job and life. I'm also having a difficult time being motivated to do anything but run and with all that is happening with my hand I wonder if I'll even be able to do the HIM, and since I'm not feeling up to it today I don't know if I care. And that sorta bothers me as well. Not sure why I feel so uninspired. I'm glad to say my running is going well. My long last week was 9 and it went smoothly. On another note, I am proud to say I've made it to the interview phase of the graduate school application process. It will be a 3.5 hour group interview and April 3. So far I'm not nervous

Great job everyone!

Plenty of time to become nervous later, no need to worry atm Samantha. My knee had me on quite the emotional rollercoaster last year. In the end there is just faith to carry you through. However things turn out, you will be you and God has a plan for you. But why does gaining faith and patience take so blooming long and why is there so much uncertainty involved.. right? Peace, that calm you had for your IM training, race day and after... all that can be used for your hand issue, trusting that it will work its way through, just follow the plan (God has an awesome training plan, I just wish you could print it out for 6 months rather than just having it evolve during each day.)

Steve - lol on the print out. I'd like that one too. I have said that I do not argue with god's plan. It would be nice if it was a little easier to understand/envision.

Samantha - Swimming was your strength, maybe next to that bike so it would seem like you will manage just fine. Train your weakness and trust in your strengths.

I pushed some heavy wattage on the bike machine this morning and sweat like crazy. Looks like my area will be spared the any significant snow. Yay! It is a bit cold today but nicer weather is in the forecast. Happy Training All

Steve-!!!!!!!!! your a baller on that trainer. Its cool that you listened to the bibile for a while. That something that I could do during the workout on the trainer. Your peak ironman plan is scary!!!! I know you can do it though. Thanks for being real though talking about life stuff and training. that is still a struggle for me. I am getting in every week 4-5 times of training but I may miss my double workouts and it seems that somethings happens like yesterday and I miss a day of training. I guess you just keep pushing forward.

I did a 42 mile bike this past week and long run of 9 miles at 8:05 pace. I felt good.
I ended up buying the 56 cm Specialized Transition Expert. I really like it. I just need to figure out what I need to do with the other one haha.
Everything is going great so far.
One more thing my little princess will be 6 months old on Thursday!!!!!!! Crazy!

Steve, for Boston I am 3 wks. 6 days out. My taper for LSD runs started 2 days ago. After this week, I will be officially in taper mode.
I can only imagine balancing the IM buildup that you have. Adding the large volumes for bike and swim to the run, wow!

Jared, you can only do what you can do. The main thing is to not get discouraged. You can finish your race on less than 100% compliance with your training plan, but the closer you follow it the better. Try to not miss your long workout each week, shift it to a different day if you have to. 8:05 for 9 miles is pretty fast, I have only gotten to that point within the past couple weeks. You are going to do just fine in your races I am thinking.

Woot Boston in 3 weeks. We are going to have like an entire page of stalking posts for you to read when you get back. Your training is crazy consistent, I have never been in the kind of run shape you are in now. It is a mutual hat tipping. Go rock Boston!

Go rock those hills in Newton, Linda!!

Nice evening run tonight. Realized this afternoon after receiving my 'packet pick up' email that I'd signed up for a 10k on 4/6. OK, forgot about that. Should be fine to do it. won't be super fast, but I know the course well since its mostly on roads where I do all my run training. I can walk to the start which is nice, and there's a nice irish pub right on the way home which I may just have to stop by for a pint post race . Guinness is a great recovery drink, no?

LOL, true, though sometimes not so sure it would be good to be able to see too far ahead. Keeps me realizing who we are and who He is .

Joe, glad you got a break on the weather. Spring is bound to come around to stay soon. Sounds like you're doing a great job hitting the bike. LOL, yes, even at 70 without much bike experience our resident olympian did pretty well. Never would have known he was much over mid/late 50's!

Samantha, it's got to be hard to hang onto your HIM goal with the hand not cooperating and being so uncertain. I think someone else mentioned working on running as you have seen that as your weakness. Could you possibly set one or more run only goals? Maybe a half marathon with a time goal?

Yes, Mike, I need to begin formulating the perfect "Tour de Grapevine" for you! I've been pretty boring lately...mostly riding one loop by myself when the weather is right. Probably time to think about putting it out there again to see if we can get a little group going on Saturday's. Enjoy the 10K and the pint!

Linda, I so want to see good things come to you on race day! Love your training consistency and humility.

Jared, congrats on the bike! And wow, just wow, has it really been that long since your baby came along?

Off for a jog/walk before the day's onslaught of Dr. Appts and work deadlines. I took my walk breaks down from 0.25 to 0.1 last time, so now actually jogging the better part of 3ish miles. Gotta love the marathon to couch to 5K plan!

Fun family fitness discussion last night. My 11 year old daughter & I went over her school phys-ed fitness evaluation. They do a springtime thing during PE where they have each kid do sit ups, pushups, run 1 mile, and do some other run type event to get a fitness baseline. Each child gets an evaluation (just results of the tests) and if its a 'needs work' 'good' 'excellent' category. She need to work on running (like her Dad!) and wants to run a mile in under 10 minutes at the follow up in 8 weeks. So she and I started working on a plan to get her there. Should be fun -- its will be a modified 'couch to 5k' thing and won't take us long, but she's all for it. Also will help her with her tri schedule for the summer. Looks like 2 kids tris this year, both in July.

I'm thrilled we had zero snow last night despite predictions of up to 6". I finally feel like winter may be on the way out. I hope.

Will jump on the trainer tonight for an hour or so, and run tomorrow.

Would love to beat my time from my last 10k (last year).

MD

Steve - You are so right and I know what you say to be true because I've seen it play out so many time. But it would be nice to see the plan written out. And when I step back I have to say there have been so many good and cool things that have come as a result of this injury.

Joe - Great thoughts on my strengths. I have considered that and it was comforting to be reminded.

Jared - Enjoy the new ride! I can hardly believe its already been six months since your daughter was born. This is a fun stage!

Jim - Guinness? Yes! I love hearing about you working with your kids on running and tris! I hope you beat you time also!

Carol - bringing it back to reality - I love that about you. And if we knew what was going to happen we'd probably worry more about how we were supposed to help make it happen. haha. I am planning for a HM in May and I haven't even considered a time goal since it will be my first HM not preceded by swimming and biking, but maybe that'd be a worthwhile thing to think about. And it is good for me to get better at running, yes ma'am! So good to hear running coming back to you.

Linda - It is exciting to know someone who is running Boston this year. I hope you have your best marathon yet!

Three day weekend and a trip to Montana to watch a friend get married coming up in T-1.5 days. Happy training all!

Jay - get ready for pumpkinman! i signed up for a few events myself, another local half mary in May to take another stab at getting under 2 hours. I also signed up for a few events at a local swim meet on April 5 (though not nearly as nerve-racking).

Steve - your use of 'sucky' is a great adjective for an 85-mi trainer ride!

Carol- awesome story about that olympian! I'm always more star-struck by athletes than I am with other celebrities.

Carl- who doesn't lie to their doc? Stay healthy!

Linda- please wave at every camera so we can cheer you on from the comfort of our couch. Though you might have to wear that same highlight green shirt in your profile because I won't regonize you otherwise. I'm always praying I don't injure myself from my various activities. Knee ligament tears freak me out, because they happen instantly, in basketball, or tennis, or soccer (or even dancing, as my friend tore his during a wedding!).

Sam- sorry to hear of the tough situation with the wrist. Good luck with school

Mike D- I want to convince my nephews to do a tri now. My 10-year old neph already does road AND single-track bike races!

Jared, awesome bike! Buying bikes always excites me, even if I'm not the one buying. I couldn't convince my fiancee that I needed a new bike this year, but I ordered some Ritchey carbon tubular wheels this week. Next step is to get out there when the weather warms up. I've only been using my commuter beater this year.

Mike, I love love how you made an action plan with your 11 yr. old daughter and you are going to work together to get her mile time down! I teach 5th grade and the kids are very aware of their times in the mile. But many students either seem to accept or feel badly about those times. You are a good daddy!!!!

Thank you to everyone for your "good luck" thoughts for my Boston race. Of course I am nervous, but it is nice to know that other athletes understand that. You all rock!!

Thought folks may like this article on 'mental toughness' and running.

http://running.net/read_feature/what-mental-toughness

I think spring may be upon us. Talk of busting out tubular wheels and such .

Rode 24 w/ a friend today and had such a good time I think I'll go with a group for 30 in the morning. Ha, I guess I'm the opposite of mental toughness because what makes me want to ride in the morning were the words "ideal temperatures" and "very little wind". Plus I need to start scouting out the "Tour de Grapevine". Big recently completed construction project around here, so it will be good to key off the group on their current route. I noticed the other day that they have added a separate path for bikes/pedestrians across a major highway. I'm not big on hopping on the sidewalk as part of a road ride, but this is a welcome addition because that crossing leads to some nice riding but was always nerve wracking.

Very quick checkin since I've been MIA for so long. Last week we spent son's Spring Break at the in-laws condo for the last time; they sold it yesterday. I'm going to miss my early morn runs to Pier Park, watching the sun rise over the lagoon, running down the middle of the street, and feeling like I own the town. Oh well, things change. And while I was so excited to finally pick up my run volume, came back to town and had an epiphany that it is now time for me to change jobs. So the running came to an abrupt halt again while I'm trying to update my resume when I'm not working. Up early this morn for a 10K race and not only is flooding outside but the lightning is awful at 6:40 in the morn. Not even sure if I'll be going because they will probably have to cancel the race. If it was a normal race where only the more hardcore sign up, then they would probably have it with lots of warnings. But this is our big race for Springtime Tally - tied with a parade and other things - so we have a lot of people that run only this race (the 1 mile or the 5K).

Steve, you are slaying it on your training. Wow!

Carol, great news on the tester/pump!

Catch up on all later.

Nothing like starting your Saturday than with 2 hours on the trainer. now a quick clean up and off to the tri expo in Boston.

Weathermen need to get a clue -- forcast today was 45 and rain. Its currently sunny, blue sky, and about 46, and its not eve 9 AM!

Tour de Grapevine! I like it! Is there a place I can rent a bike, carol? I can bring my own shoes & pedals.

The weather was highly cooperative and the lightning stopped. The rain even stopped for a while for the start and it didn't quite flood during the race. So we had the race and it was great. Thought I'd get a PW but instead got my 10K PR. I only slowed down once when I had a lot of speed coming down a hill and was going to have to make a turn on the evil white lines. Hubby slayed it and beat me by 9 freaking mins. Subs, bananas, water, apples, coffee, and beer were all available after the race. The post race party is getting better and better every year.

Edited by Pink Socks 2014-03-29 9:39 AM

Congratulations to you and your husband Pam! What a great way to start a weekend!