GrooveTime!group - CLOSED!!! (Page 247)

"Snow accumulation up to 5 inches. Lows 30 to 35. West winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts to around 55 mph."

So much for practicing with aerobars the next couple of days.  $@$%$Snow better not stay.

Yeah, I saw that and it made my heart sick.   I never really thought about water being too hot, but just yesterday a health practioner was saying we shouldn't have bath water super hot because it is dangerous for the heart.   

How'd the ride go?   We were lucky with the run.   Rain came about 2 hrs later however it is so warm the rain actually felt good.  

Today I finally acknowledged to myself that I am kind of pleased with how the running is going.   I like the process we are following which has us doing 7-8km distances already albeit a run/walk.   I liked starting with a 5km distance with a 1:1 run/walk and building like we have.   It has seemed sort of effortless to get to what we are doing now.  Had I been running on my own I might have started running 1km, then 1.5, 2, etc. etc. without the walking and I don't think I would have had the same results.  

Going to keep it slow and steady.   I wonder if there is a point where I can just keep on running?  I mean, what happens when I get to running 10 minutes with 1 minute walk?  Do I go to 11, 12, 13....?   or do I jump to running 15 minutes solid?  

Yup, saw that. Very sad. Like so many others I always assumed the real danger was swimming in water that was too cold.

Wow, it took me two days to get through all the posts, just so I could jump in and participate. I did hear about Fran Crippen ... how tragic. The article that I read said he told his coach at the last fuel station that he wasn't feeling well. Very sad.

Snow, really for Denise ... and cooler temps for all you Canadians as well.  It was 96 DEGREES here today!!! My daughter is in Saskatoon and said it was snowing there as well, just left Anchorage after 2 weeks. She should enjoy the balmy temps in Denver next week.

DENISE, I have tried the Gu Chomps and think I prefer them to the Clif Blocks ... think I tried the orange flavor. I favor the Lemon Lime Blocks over the Margarita but they are so big to chew all at once. Still think I just prefer a Fruit Leather or fruit chews.

TRACEY, great job on your 5 miler. You are going to be so ready for your 10K.

STEVE B, wow, great job on your half mary.  You're a machine!  I'll be happy if I only add an hour to your time for my half.

Good to hear from STEVE A, MANDY, and MARK.

Hope everyone is having a great week!  (I have no idea why the font changed in the middle of my typing, nor to I plan to take the time to figure it out.)

LISA

Edited by lufferly 2010-10-26 8:14 PM

ANNE, I was thinking, you seem to be about the only one of us that has their spouse training with them.  It must be nice to have that in common and be able to share that time together.  Keep up the good work!

LISA

TRACEY -

A last run on Thursday would be fine, giving you two days of non-run rest before Sunday. And if you could get in an easy bike ride, that would be great. Just keep it all in the small ring in front and one of the larger back cogs, and use it as a gentle spin to keep the legs loose.

And your overall attitude, combined with what sounds like a very well-conceived pacing plan, should make for a fine 10K day. May the weather gods smile on you!

TRACEY again -

I know there are medically sound reasons for having a wetsuit cutoff of 78 degrees at USAT races -- it's just I hate to acknowledge them becasue my wetsuit helps me in my swims!!

I have taken a wetsuit into the pool a few times, and it doesn't take long for me to feel really, really crappy. It is actually a pretty awful feeling, edging between nausea and suffocation. I mean, not really all there for either condition, but hinting that way. And finally having enough, and getting up on the deck and removing the thing -- WHEW!!!!!

I guess my pools are in the 80s, and adding the wetusit brings it up a few more degrees; what was the posted water temp at Fran Crippen's swim? Probably a degree or two higher still, plus he was covering a sunbstantial distance, plus he was exerting himself hugely. The fact that several other swimmers suffered heat exhaustion at that event is very scary.

Maybe in cold-water extremes we (humans) know when to bail, as the warning signs seem more apparent. There are the obvious physical ones, such as ice-cream headaches and the point at which you begin to lose contact with the extremities. It's along about that point that I wonder if I also begin to feel just a touch lightheaded.......and then I head for shore. My two late-season swims (Oct 10 and 13) were in 55/56 water and slightly higher air, and I didn't get to any of those points. But seeing as how I didn't want to, either, I pulled the plug on OWS for '10 at that point!

ANNE -

The ride went well. Windier than I wanted and I just didn't feel I had my cycling legs, but it was good to get out there and feel I cheated Mother Nature! I had no gloves or arm-warmers and rode sockless, and all I had on top were a long-sleeve jeresy and a thin cycling vest -- in fact, what I wore at 9RunRun. I might ride again today, although my big winds will probably move in before I return from a swim/lift in Ottawa.

Tough call about when to go to just straight running. You've had lots of success with the way you've been doing it, which you acknowledge, and you mention planning to keep it slow and steady, and it's still October, so there aren't any great pressures to make big jumps. You might want to try something intermediate between 10 and 15, maybe a 2-minute jump at some point and see how that works out.

As with most things, I find it much easier to preach than to practice. During many layoffs I have been way too antsy coming back from the setback, and while I have been SOMEWHAT cautious.....I probably could've/should've been more wisely cautious.

But if you are still finding contentment in bumping up by one minute increments, then jsut keep doing that until you feel a gnawing need for more. And it's possible that as the weather continues to get less conducive to running, you won't feel that urge quite so much --- for a few months! Really, this is the perfect time to be doing what you are doing. It's great for a very slooooooow build, and also for recovery from setbacks from jumping too quickly, if you do that. That is, if you jump from 10 to 15, and end up compromising something, there's still tons of time to rest from that and dial things back some and then pick up where you last left off.

Ahh, the slog days of autumn!!

LISA -

Glad you're back! You were on my mind lots on Sunday when I was doing my halfmarathon and I was thinking about you and St. Judes. That just about five weeks away, yes? How are you feeling about it? Have you drawn good strength form having done the 10-miler? I am contemplating a 10-miler on Nov 21 in prep for anothe h-m on Dec 11, and that just seems like a good idea. So, I'm hoping that your own recent 10-miler has been good for your psyche as you look towards St Jude!

Saskatoon!! I love Saskatoon! We lived there in '77/'78 or so, and I cried - literally- when we left. Actually, at that point Lynn had already moved to Toronto, and I was driving there on my own. Heading SE from Saskatoon there is one small rise on the highway wher you can still see the city skyline (ha!), and I stopped and looked back at it and shed a few tears.

Lynn and I met in Edmonton, where I'm sure your daughter will be in a few days. Edmonton's a more happening place than Saskatoon, to be sure, but Saskatoon just suited my mood. The winters there are brutal, though, and there is really no respite from it. At least in Edmonton, there are some effects from chinooks, but Sakatoon is just to far from the mouuntains for any warming effects.

In general, is he loving the touring? How much of a grind does it get to be?

Have you "adopted" the Rangers yet? Better say yes!!!!

The Catch



It's about to happen. This group started 11 months after the other group, but this post will bring the count here up to just one behind the other group. I have been watching this for a couple of months, and maybe about a month ago I guesstimated that The Catch would happen about Nov 12.....but here it is likely to occur later today.

Nice work being yakkily prolific, gang!!

TIED  Who wants the pull-ahead honors.

It won't be me. To do so would seem like an infidelity!


(And I'm very conscious of this post being the next one again, as I just posted over there, which is why I'm here now as an "Edit", rather than a a "DENISE again -"!)









Edited by stevebradley 2010-10-27 9:55 AM

Had the most hilarious swim last night.  Getting chilly, by LA standards in the evening (low 60's).  No big deal.  But yesterday was WINDY! 

So much so that the leeward side of the pool was full of debris.  So, I'd be swimming along and about half way through the length, I'd inhale and then spit out pine needles.  Inhale...spit out pine needles...inhale..well, you get the picture. 

And what a difference the wind makes.  Half the pool was very comfortable, half was freezing.  Like you  were swimming through a thermal in open water.  So, each length was like brrrr....ahhhhh.... brrrr....ahhhh....

So, I took the opportunity to do intervals.  Swim fast it he cold parts, slow in the warm parts!  LOL.

NOT FUN, not fun at all.

Nevertheless, I will stick to college ball as well.

MARK -

Thank you for breaking the ultimate tie, and now I can return and not feel quite so unfaithful to the other group!

STEVE -

You are a swimming epicure -- chlorine soup garnished with needles de la pine! Oh, yum!!!

STEVEB,

St. Jude's is just over 5 weeks away.  I was feeling like I'm not as prepared as last year, but when I looked at my logs from last year, I'm just about right training mileage wise.  I'm a little worried that I'll be missing a longer run (was hoping for 9 to 10 miles) on November 6th, as I'll be in Denver, and not sure I can do that kind of mileage the day after I arrive at that altitude.  But I already have a 10 mile run in, which I didn't have at this time last year.  This Saturday the temp is supposed to be down into the 40s, so hopefully my long run will go well, and I'll feel a bit better about things.  I didn't get as long a run in last week as I'd hoped for because my running partner had to cut it short at the last minute.  Plan on building again to 11 miles on November 20th, then tapering for the race on December 4th, with a 5 mile race on Thanksgiving. 

Alison's actually made her Edmonton stop, and will be coming back to the states for awhile after Saskatoon.  She'll be back in Canada (Thunder Bay, Quebec City, and Halifax) the 3rd and 4th weeks in November.  Some of the cast is renting a beach house for the week they are in Nova Scotia (which will be our Thanksgiving week).  She is having a good time on tour but I do think it gets a bit tiring being around the same people 24/7 (and some with rather substantial egos!). 

And, yes, definitely pulling for the RANGERS!

LISA

Edited by lufferly 2010-10-28 8:23 AM

Well, as Chick Hern might have said if he were covering my training:  This session's are in the refrigerator: the door is closed, the lights are out, the eggs are cooling, the butter's getting hard, and the Jell-O's jigglin'!

Good final hard session last night.  40 minute TT on the trainer last night (w/ 10 warm and 10 cool before and after), and then 3-miles as fast as I could go.

Averaged 18.5 on the trainer, and 7:50 pace for the miles with a 15-second walk each mile. 

Now, just some maintenance until race day.  Left shin is barking at me (bone, not muscle), and the right hammie is twitching, but not causing any real discomfort.  Lots of ice and stretching and both should be OK come November 7th. 

LISA -

No need to fret about that Nov. 6 run seeing as how you ALREADY have a 10-miler in place! That gives you 5+ weeks to la-di-da that mileage up to where you are feeling a bit more comfortable, and that's just a nice chunk of time. Well, okay, subtract a week or so for some kind of taper, but 4+ weeks is still a nice chunk of time!

Someone I trust (can't remember who [maybe Mike Ricci from D3?], just know I trusted their opinion) once told me that to race at altitude you either have to get there several days early and get properly acclimated.....or you get there as late as possible and do the thing before the effects of altitude can manifest themselves. I understand the first one -- after all, that's the Conventional Wisdom -- but the second one leaves me a bit baffled. My best guess is that some of the negative effects of altitude are cumulative and that it takres a day or two for them to assemble and wreak havoc. Have you ever heard of this perspective on dealing with altitude?

I am NOT advocating that you arrive in Denver and do a 10-miler almost immediately....but I'm just wondering if there really is a second way to beat the altitude miseries.

That's an interesting trio of cities Alison faces on her return to Canada! TB is just kind of Out There, attached to the far western shores of Lake Superior. Yet, it obviously has a venue that is worth performing at, so what do I know? QC is beautiful in the Old Town, and getting up on the ramparts and looking down on the St. Lawrence River is kind of neat. Halifax is often denigrated for being boooooring and stuffy and unfriendly, but I think that's a bit harsh. The coast at either end of Halifax, and especially to the south, is really nice; having the beach house ought to be a trip!

Having to put Vlad in right field last night didn't work out so well, did I?

STEVE -

I'm not much of a believer in afterlifes, but if there is heaven that Chick Hearn is smiling down on you for remembering him; you git Chick's mojo to help you through Silverman!

Sounds like a plan, going into maintenance mode -- especially if the hammie and shin are barking and moaning. Are you hoping to get there a day or too early, or just kind of cruise in the night before?

And I can't remember -- is this a dress rehearsal of sorts to see if you want to do the full next year?

Hey Steve,

Yep, plan is to take off from work on Friday night - get into Vegas late on Friday Night.  Register and set up bags and such Saturday.  Race Sunday.  Drive home Sunday night.  Be sore on Monday.

Next Year - I think I've got it planned already (whew...thought I was becoming Type B there for a second!).

R&R - November 8th - January 1 - run/bike/swim only when I feel I must or go crazy.  If I'm not smiling when doing it, I won't do it.

Pre-season - January - March (lifting, light run/cycle/swim, general fitness kind of stuff).  Slowly begin building swim/bike/run so that I'm comfortable entering the base phase.  Slowly build to 45-60 minute runs and 1-2 hour rides.  Strength training, light weights, etc. 

Begin 33-week IM specific plan on April 1st (more on logic in a second)

Vineman - mid-July (HIM - a good 3.5 months of solid training should put me in good shape for it)
Nautica OLY - September (just a tradition now - consider it a hard brick day)
IMAZ - Late November (A Race!)

There are a few other small local Oly and HIM stuff in late August/early September I might want to hit if I feel good about it.  Pumpkin Man is a month out from IMAZ (at least it was this year), so that might be on the list for next year as a long, easy brick day.

I figure a 33-week program is a good idea of the summer, as it will afford me the 30-week plan (which seems typical) but also gives me 3 weeks of vacation/travel time.  The more I read about recovery, I think it might be mentally and physically beneficial to take a week off between base, build and peak sessions.  Or, at least take those weekends off from long mileage and just let the body heal more.  I was always stressed when travel or sickness got in the way of a long weekend session, so I'm going to build in some buffer so I'm not stressed and force myself to take some weekends down for R&R



Really getting psyched for Silverman...and for a few weeks of couch time thereafter! 

STEVE -

"Be sore on Monday"? Never!

Congrats on having a plan for '11 already in place! I vaguely remember many years ago when I was capable of such a thing at about this time of the year, too, but those days are long gone. I now like to think of myself as a true artisan, taking the time to craft a schedule to perfection. Think the glorious cathedrals of Europe, or the great pyramids of Egypt -- years in the making!

Seriously, your plan sounds really good, every step of the way.

Your R&R scheme is excellent; I wish I had that discipline!

The actual race schedule is modest in the sense of not going overboard on racing, but rather having an "a" goal and some intelligent choices leading up to it.

The Vineman-based training is REALLY nice, and if you can stay healthy and avoid race-dy "mecahnicals", you'll have a great day there. Not only is the 3.5 months gonna work, but you'll arrive at Vineman HUNGRY to atone for missing it this year. ROOOOOOOAR!

Finally, making a 30-week plan a 33-weeker with 3 weeks built in for recovery is very smart - especially for the reasons you state (and again, I wish I had your discipline about that!). I don't doubt that you'll return to action from those mini-recovery periods very renewed and focused and ready to leap back in. Nicely conceived!!

Hey - have you guys heard about the "Ironman Access" program - I guess it's causing quite a fuss - I saw a couple of funny you-tube satires on it but I won't post them cuz they've got some nasty language - haha

Denise

http://www.examiner.com/triathlon-in-washington-dc/is-the-ironman-access-membership-program-worth-the-cost



http://www.examiner.com/triathlon-in-washington-dc/ironman-access-program-canceled-due-to-outrage-the-triathlon-community


Edited by LadyNorth 2010-10-29 6:50 PM