jsnowash's training group - FULL!! (Page 28)

DebTri - 2010-08-09 7:56 AM Keiren --

I sent you the link to results in another note, but here it is again...  (you did great!)

http://www.dqtridu.com/kin10Results.htm

Jenny --

Thanks you, I would love to join the group.  I think I'm this for the long haul and it would be nice to have the support of you and the group.  A little about me....

I'm 48 years old (49 in a few days).  I've been married for almost 28 years and have two grown children.. daughter 25 and son 21.  My husband and I split our time between Florida and New Jersey.  My husband owned a business which he sold about six years ago and we were fortunate enough to be able to retire.  I was concerned I would be "bored", but have never been busier.    

I've always been active and actually enjoyed working out.  When we began spending time in Florida I was thrilled to see what a healthy lifestyle so many of the people lived and it has been really inspiring.  I joined the Masters swim team about three years ago and met the most amazing group of women.  Two of which are Iron men (women).  I've been spinning for close to 15 years now, and loving that, so the biking has come easily to me.  Running however, is a different story.  I broke my foot last year, had to have a pin put in and was in a cast for 12 weeks.  So, that was my excuse not to run.

About 3 months ago I decided to bite the bullet and try to run.  That was after I committed to participating in the Miami Nice Tri in August.  I was actually not too bad on the treadmill, but once I went outside it was so much more difficult and I was just dreadful.  I think I'm making progress, but it is so hard for me.  My heart rate sky rockets and I'm breathless even at the slowest of paces.  I wear a Garmin and my average heart rate doing a 5k at a 12 min pace can be around 180.  My exercising heart rate has always been high, but it's starting to concern me, so I think it's time to have some testing done when I get back to Florida.  

I did my first sprint tri earlier this month and 2nd one yesterday.  I'm exhausted, but I really enjoy the challenge.  I love both the swim and bike.  I know I could push myself harder on the bike, but like you, I hold back.  Part of it is the fear of taking a nasty spill at such a high speed.  In both races I saw people wipe out and it was scary, so at this point I'm ok with playing it on the conservative side.  I plodded away at the run and ended up doing what I think was good job.  It's a wonderful feeling. I want to continue to challenge myself and I really enjoy being surrounded by like mind people!  

I signed up for the Silver membership and have decided to follow the Sprint to Oly training plan.  After I take this week off!  My goal is to do a Oly distance before I turn 50 next year and perhaps HIM at the age of 50.  I could certainly use any pointers and encouragement from the group.  If you can tell me how to enable the "logs" and "races" buttons I'll do that so you can take a look at what I'm doing.  

Thank you again for the invitation to join and I look forward to getting know everyone. Cheers.  Deb



 

Keiren - 2010-08-10 4:45 AM Hi everyone,
Congrats on Steelman Jen & Fernando. It was an Olympic, right? Where was it held? Congrats on breaking your goals, Jenny. I did the DQ Kings Grant Tri. It really was a last minute decision. There were about 200 entrants. As with the other DQ events I've attended, it was very well run. It was a beautiful day which, I'm sure, helped my performance. I needed some confidence building after the NJ Tri. I felt good on the swim (even though the pond was gross). At the end I got kicked in the mouth, which stunned me and slowed me down a little. I felt good on the bike, nice smooth route. Although I didn't walk during the run, I was still very slow (39 min). I need some sort of running plan, I continue to struggle. Any thoughts or suggestions?

DebTri - 2010-08-10 4:56 AM Keiren --

I sent you the link to results in another note, but here it is again...  (you did great!)

http://www.dqtridu.com/kin10Results.htm

Jenny --

Thanks you, I would love to join the group.  I think I'm this for the long haul and it would be nice to have the support of you and the group.  A little about me....

I'm 48 years old (49 in a few days).  I've been married for almost 28 years and have two grown children.. daughter 25 and son 21.  My husband and I split our time between Florida and New Jersey.  My husband owned a business which he sold about six years ago and we were fortunate enough to be able to retire.  I was concerned I would be "bored", but have never been busier.    

I've always been active and actually enjoyed working out.  When we began spending time in Florida I was thrilled to see what a healthy lifestyle so many of the people lived and it has been really inspiring.  I joined the Masters swim team about three years ago and met the most amazing group of women.  Two of which are Iron men (women).  I've been spinning for close to 15 years now, and loving that, so the biking has come easily to me.  Running however, is a different story.  I broke my foot last year, had to have a pin put in and was in a cast for 12 weeks.  So, that was my excuse not to run.

About 3 months ago I decided to bite the bullet and try to run.  That was after I committed to participating in the Miami Nice Tri in August.  I was actually not too bad on the treadmill, but once I went outside it was so much more difficult and I was just dreadful.  I think I'm making progress, but it is so hard for me.  My heart rate sky rockets and I'm breathless even at the slowest of paces.  I wear a Garmin and my average heart rate doing a 5k at a 12 min pace can be around 180.  My exercising heart rate has always been high, but it's starting to concern me, so I think it's time to have some testing done when I get back to Florida.  

I did my first sprint tri earlier this month and 2nd one yesterday.  I'm exhausted, but I really enjoy the challenge.  I love both the swim and bike.  I know I could push myself harder on the bike, but like you, I hold back.  Part of it is the fear of taking a nasty spill at such a high speed.  In both races I saw people wipe out and it was scary, so at this point I'm ok with playing it on the conservative side.  I plodded away at the run and ended up doing what I think was good job.  It's a wonderful feeling. I want to continue to challenge myself and I really enjoy being surrounded by like mind people!  

I signed up for the Silver membership and have decided to follow the Sprint to Oly training plan.  After I take this week off!  My goal is to do a Oly distance before I turn 50 next year and perhaps HIM at the age of 50.  I could certainly use any pointers and encouragement from the group.  If you can tell me how to enable the "logs" and "races" buttons I'll do that so you can take a look at what I'm doing.  

Thank you again for the invitation to join and I look forward to getting know everyone. Cheers.  Deb



 

guticur - 2010-08-10 4:58 PM Congratulations to all those who raced this weekend. 
Jenny: great job. Your limited training is probably better than any of our "all out" efforts!
I have posted the details of my race at the Race Link page, and some data in my training log, but I wanted to share some thoughts with the group.
I had set the goal of coming in under 3:15, and would be ecstatic if I broke 3 hours. My time was 2:59:10.
When I stopped my watch at the finish line and realized this, I was so happy and proud, specially since it was a much harder race than I expected.
For the past 6 weeks I thought my training had been pretty solid, and I expected to cruise....boy was I wrong! Then today when I saw my rankings (41/44 in age group, 197/231 gender and 267/355 overall), I was disappointed (to be honest)......then I reflected, and like any other human being I rationalized. After work I went for an unwinding jog and rationalized some more. I came up with tons of excuses: Really dedicated athletes sign up for Olys (less newbies like me).....As I came out of the water my HR was 186 so I slowed down......I didn't know the bike course which was hillier than expected......doing 2 loops in the run kind of psyched me out cause I kept thinking "I have to come through here again" etc., etc.,etc.  
As I settle down I'm starting to see it differently. Even though 266 individuals beat me yesterday, I actually beat thousands more that were still in bed or spent the day in the couch watching TV (this is quoted from a great article published in this site). I have gone from feeling like I would die while doing a 5k race last November to were I am now. I have lost almost 30 pounds in the process. Had you asked me a year ago if I could travel 33 miles on my own power in under 3 hours, I would have laughed to death.
This race is actually not only a goal, but a motivation to improve even further (yeah, yeah...I know I suck at running). It also has renewed my appreciation and admiration for all out there that attempt this adventure, yourselves included.
So keep up the good work gang. Barring injury, I have some PRs to take care of in the next year or so.

Fernando
PS: That HIM I thought I would do next year might have to wait a little longer......reality check: Triathlons are tough....those who attempt them are thougher  
PSS: Can you believe I actually run to unwind....now that's progress!

DebTri - 2010-08-09 7:56 AM

Keiren --

I sent you the link to results in another note, but here it is again...  (you did great!)

http://www.dqtridu.com/kin10Results.htm

Jenny --

Thanks you, I would love to join the group.  I think I'm this for the long haul and it would be nice to have the support of you and the group.  A little about me....

I'm 48 years old (49 in a few days).  I've been married for almost 28 years and have two grown children.. daughter 25 and son 21.  My husband and I split our time between Florida and New Jersey.  My husband owned a business which he sold about six years ago and we were fortunate enough to be able to retire.  I was concerned I would be "bored", but have never been busier.    

I've always been active and actually enjoyed working out.  When we began spending time in Florida I was thrilled to see what a healthy lifestyle so many of the people lived and it has been really inspiring.  I joined the Masters swim team about three years ago and met the most amazing group of women.  Two of which are Iron men (women).  I've been spinning for close to 15 years now, and loving that, so the biking has come easily to me.  Running however, is a different story.  I broke my foot last year, had to have a pin put in and was in a cast for 12 weeks.  So, that was my excuse not to run.

About 3 months ago I decided to bite the bullet and try to run.  That was after I committed to participating in the Miami Nice Tri in August.  I was actually not too bad on the treadmill, but once I went outside it was so much more difficult and I was just dreadful.  I think I'm making progress, but it is so hard for me.  My heart rate sky rockets and I'm breathless even at the slowest of paces.  I wear a Garmin and my average heart rate doing a 5k at a 12 min pace can be around 180.  My exercising heart rate has always been high, but it's starting to concern me, so I think it's time to have some testing done when I get back to Florida.  

I did my first sprint tri earlier this month and 2nd one yesterday.  I'm exhausted, but I really enjoy the challenge.  I love both the swim and bike.  I know I could push myself harder on the bike, but like you, I hold back.  Part of it is the fear of taking a nasty spill at such a high speed.  In both races I saw people wipe out and it was scary, so at this point I'm ok with playing it on the conservative side.  I plodded away at the run and ended up doing what I think was good job.  It's a wonderful feeling. I want to continue to challenge myself and I really enjoy being surrounded by like mind people!  

I signed up for the Silver membership and have decided to follow the Sprint to Oly training plan.  After I take this week off!  My goal is to do a Oly distance before I turn 50 next year and perhaps HIM at the age of 50.  I could certainly use any pointers and encouragement from the group.  If you can tell me how to enable the "logs" and "races" buttons I'll do that so you can take a look at what I'm doing.  

Thank you again for the invitation to join and I look forward to getting know everyone. Cheers.  Deb

Keiren - 2010-08-09 7:45 AM

Hi everyone,
Congrats on Steelman Jen & Fernando. It was an Olympic, right? Where was it held? Congrats on breaking your goals, Jenny. I did the DQ Kings Grant Tri. It really was a last minute decision. There were about 200 entrants. As with the other DQ events I've attended, it was very well run. It was a beautiful day which, I'm sure, helped my performance. I needed some confidence building after the NJ Tri. I felt good on the swim (even though the pond was gross). At the end I got kicked in the mouth, which stunned me and slowed me down a little. I felt good on the bike, nice smooth route. Although I didn't walk during the run, I was still very slow (39 min). I need some sort of running plan, I continue to struggle. Any thoughts or suggestions?

guticur - 2010-08-09 7:58 PM

Congratulations to all those who raced this weekend. 
Jenny: great job. Your limited training is probably better than any of our "all out" efforts!
I have posted the details of my race at the Race Link page, and some data in my training log, but I wanted to share some thoughts with the group.
I had set the goal of coming in under 3:15, and would be ecstatic if I broke 3 hours. My time was 2:59:10.
When I stopped my watch at the finish line and realized this, I was so happy and proud, specially since it was a much harder race than I expected.
For the past 6 weeks I thought my training had been pretty solid, and I expected to cruise....boy was I wrong! Then today when I saw my rankings (41/44 in age group, 197/231 gender and 267/355 overall), I was disappointed (to be honest)......then I reflected, and like any other human being I rationalized. After work I went for an unwinding jog and rationalized some more. I came up with tons of excuses: Really dedicated athletes sign up for Olys (less newbies like me).....As I came out of the water my HR was 186 so I slowed down......I didn't know the bike course which was hillier than expected......doing 2 loops in the run kind of psyched me out cause I kept thinking "I have to come through here again" etc., etc.,etc.  
As I settle down I'm starting to see it differently. Even though 266 individuals beat me yesterday, I actually beat thousands more that were still in bed or spent the day in the couch watching TV (this is quoted from a great article published in this site). I have gone from feeling like I would die while doing a 5k race last November to were I am now. I have lost almost 30 pounds in the process. Had you asked me a year ago if I could travel 33 miles on my own power in under 3 hours, I would have laughed to death.
This race is actually not only a goal, but a motivation to improve even further (yeah, yeah...I know I suck at running). It also has renewed my appreciation and admiration for all out there that attempt this adventure, yourselves included.
So keep up the good work gang. Barring injury, I have some PRs to take care of in the next year or so.

Fernando
PS: That HIM I thought I would do next year might have to wait a little longer......reality check: Triathlons are tough....those who attempt them are thougher  
PSS: Can you believe I actually run to unwind....now that's progress!

guticur - 2010-08-09 6:58 PM Congratulations to all those who raced this weekend. 
Jenny: great job. Your limited training is probably better than any of our "all out" efforts!
I have posted the details of my race at the Race Link page, and some data in my training log, but I wanted to share some thoughts with the group.
I had set the goal of coming in under 3:15, and would be ecstatic if I broke 3 hours. My time was 2:59:10.
When I stopped my watch at the finish line and realized this, I was so happy and proud, specially since it was a much harder race than I expected.
For the past 6 weeks I thought my training had been pretty solid, and I expected to cruise....boy was I wrong! Then today when I saw my rankings (41/44 in age group, 197/231 gender and 267/355 overall), I was disappointed (to be honest)......then I reflected, and like any other human being I rationalized. After work I went for an unwinding jog and rationalized some more. I came up with tons of excuses: Really dedicated athletes sign up for Olys (less newbies like me).....As I came out of the water my HR was 186 so I slowed down......I didn't know the bike course which was hillier than expected......doing 2 loops in the run kind of psyched me out cause I kept thinking "I have to come through here again" etc., etc.,etc.  
As I settle down I'm starting to see it differently. Even though 266 individuals beat me yesterday, I actually beat thousands more that were still in bed or spent the day in the couch watching TV (this is quoted from a great article published in this site). I have gone from feeling like I would die while doing a 5k race last November to were I am now. I have lost almost 30 pounds in the process. Had you asked me a year ago if I could travel 33 miles on my own power in under 3 hours, I would have laughed to death.
This race is actually not only a goal, but a motivation to improve even further (yeah, yeah...I know I suck at running). It also has renewed my appreciation and admiration for all out there that attempt this adventure, yourselves included.
So keep up the good work gang. Barring injury, I have some PRs to take care of in the next year or so.

Fernando
PS: That HIM I thought I would do next year might have to wait a little longer......reality check: Triathlons are tough....those who attempt them are thougher  
PSS: Can you believe I actually run to unwind....now that's progress!

DebTri - 2010-08-10 8:15 AM Thank you all for the warm welcome.

Fernando & Jenny --  I am in awe of both of you.  Such an amazing accomplishment and you should both be so proud.  I think many of us suffer from the feelings that we are just not quite good enough.  It's funny how we focus on the small percentage of people who are better than us rather than applauding all that we've accomplished.  I think many triathletes are type A personalities and as such always striving to be the best.  A good thing, but can sometimes get in the way of what's really important.  Again, you guys did awesome and I hope I have as much success when I attempt an Oly distance. 

Jenny --  I liked the suggestions you outlined for Keiren and I'm going to incorporate them into my training.  Keiren and I sound like we are very much in the same place when it comes to the run.  I have a question for the group... What do you think of  the run/walk approach vs. consistence pace when doing daily workouts?  I totally get that to be a better runner you need to run a lot, but I'm wondering if one strategy helps build endurance better than another, or does it not matter.  For example, let's say I'm going to go out and run 3 miles.  Now for me, if I want to run the entire time I have to keep it at a pace of ~12/min which takes about 36 minutes.  If I do 2 min run/1 min walk for the 3 miles I finish more quickly, not by much but a few minutes, and my average pace is about 11 min.  I prefer the run/walk because I think I push myself harder knowing there's a break coming up shortly.  So I'm curious to see what you guys think.

jsnowash - 2010-08-10 7:20 AM Keiren, Yes, Steelman was an Olympic Distance race - it was held at Lake Nockamixon State Park in PA. Really nice venue for the race!! So sorry to hear you got kicked in the swim! I've had it happen a time or two in races too - never a pleasant experience! I hope you're okay! As far as a running plan, all I can say is just that getting better at running takes time.... The best thing I think you can do is to slowly work on increasing your running volume and frequency. I've made solid gains in my running speed over the past year and a half simply by running MORE - most of it at an easy, aerobic pace. For my "maintenance" running over the winter, I was averaging 20 - 25 miles per week. Over the summer I've been > 30 miles per week most weeks, and I'll likely nearly double that by the time I reach my peak training for the marathon. If you were to look at my training logs, you would see that many of my training runs average well over a 10 min/mile pace - but I can run a stand alone 5K at a sub-8:00 min mile pace. Certainly not a blazing fast time compared to "fast" runners, but a lot faster than I was when I started!! The adaptations gained from lots of running miles help me run quite a bit faster in races than in training. In looking over your logs, it looks to me like for the most part you are running 2 - 3 times per week, somewhere in the range of 2-3 miles per run - does that sound about right? My suggestion would be to begin by adding a 4th run of maybe 2 - 2.5 miles. After you get comfortable running 4x per week, begin lengthening one of your weekly runs. Add maybe one half to one mile per week until you get one of your runs up to the 5 or 6 mile range. Hold steady there for maybe a few weeks, then begin working on lengthening a second run to maybe 4 miles per week. When you are consistently over 15 miles per week for a couple of months, then you can think about adding some minimal speedwork to your run training. You can start by adding short (30 sec) strides or fartleks, where you just pick up the pace for 30 seconds, then go back to your easy running pace. You can just throw a few of these into some of your weekly runs, probably your short or mid distance runs to begin with. Another type of run training I think is helpful for race preparation is a "progression run", usually done as part of a mid or long distance run. Start out the first third of the run at an easy pace (from the zones presented in this article, up to low zone 2), run the second third at about a zone 3 effort, and final third at zone 4/5 effort. This is good training for helping maintain pace toward the end of a race/training run without the strain that holding that pace for the entire run would cause. One progression run every few weeks would probably be plenty for starters.... But I wouldn't start doing ANY kind of speedwork until you have increased your volume and frequency. Trying to run too fast too soon is how most people end up with running injuries, IMO. Hope that helps!!!

Lovey - 2010-08-12 9:22 AM

Question:
Iron Girl is on Sun 8/22 and I am also training for my half mary on 10/16.
Being that this week long run is a week before IG, do I just shorten my long run or still do it? Its suppose to be 8-10 but I wouldn't go more than 8. Should I go even shorter?
Tonight I have a 5-6 mile run with my group.

jsnowash - 2010-08-12 10:39 AM



Lovey

I think it depends on a couple of factors....

1) Is one of these races (Iron Girl or the Half Marathon) a higher priority for you?

2) How long does it take you to recover from an 8-10 mile run?

I can tell you what I did prior to Steelman - I did an almost 15 mile run one week out from Steelman, but that was because a) My marathon prep is/was higher priority than my results at Steelman; and b) I knew that if I did the 15 miler at an easy pace, I could recover fairly quickly, at least to the degree that I felt I needed to and still do reasonably okay at Steelman. Had Steelman been the higher priority race, I probably wouldn't have done a 15-miler one week out...


So - I would say that if Iron Girl is your higher priority race and/or you feel it might take you more than, say, 2 or 3 days to recover from the long run, then shorten the long run. If the Half Marathon is higher priority and/or you think you can recover quickly from the long run, then keep the run as long as you can. You might be able to do the long run, then take it easy the rest of the week to taper for Iron Girl, and pick your training for the half marathon back up when Iron Girl is finished.

Hope that helps!

Lovey - 2010-08-17 12:26 PM Race day on Sunday. I did shorten my long run to 5 miles. I did the final group ride on the course on Sunday. I rode it 10 minutes faster than I did the week before. It was the first training ride I did with a group. I usually ride by myself or with one other person. Today is a rest day. I really don't know how to really taper as I wasn't following a specific training plan. My runs were based on my half marathon training plan and I just shortened my 8-10 mile long run the week before race day (that was Saturday). My bike training is my own plan of 2x a week, once on the course and another shorter weekly ride or spin class whichever my schedule allowed. My swimming was a swim training class 2x a week and I added a third swim following the Swim Zero to One Mile program. Never got to a mile nonstop though. My plan this week is Mon - rest Tue - AM swim class (per instructor: open water similation in the pool) / Wed - bike easy 10 miles (easy terrain) / run a slow easy 3 miles Thu - AM swim class (per instructor: open water similation in the pool) Fri - run a slow easy 3 miles, (run Thursday instead and rest Fri ??) Sat - rest Sun - RACE DAY Thoughts on my taper week? Lovey