IM Jer's group - OPEN (Page 3)

Always rom for active members.  I have slacked this week due to a Marathon and no internet access when out of town on State business, but I am back now!

2 piece tri-suit is the way to go.  Just wear it the whole race.

Remember the swim is about 10-15% of any tri.  So I wouldn't worry too much about it.  Just get through it and get on the bike (50% of any tri).

I use Tri shorts for several reasons: one most of my Tris have been wetsuit legal and they fit well inside the tight suit, 2. Like a little padding on my bum when riding, 3.  The dry fast for the run and prevent chaffing that run shorts may give.  I train in what I race in so I have a lot of $90 t-shirts from races, but very little additional equipment (except the wetsuit, the bike, the training bike, the gym membership, the various shoes, the suppliments, the nutrition, the transition bag . . .)

Caption: " I know there's nothing in it. You have everything."

Been a little slow here as of late.  Updates is that i did my fisrt marathon on Feb 9th (about a week ago) and di a 1/2 marathon yesterday.  Both were very hilly races, but the 1/2 actually felt so much better that the full.  I have a 189 mile relay run on leap day, then I can put the distance running behind me and focus a bit more on my Tri training for the spring races and the 1/2 ironamn in June and Ironman in November.

That said, I hope all is going well for each of you in your various winter training grounds.  Outside training can be har at this time of year for those in the Northern hemisphere, not because of the weather as much as because it is so dark.  It is dark in the morning and dark in the evening and the mood can drop for us at times.

With that in mind, do what long workouts you have on weekends or days off in the the middle of the day if possible.  Having a little sunshine or even just having light on a 3 to 5 hour run or bike will not only be good for your vitamin D, it will lift you mood for the week.

WaterDawg - 2008-02-18 9:00 AM Any suggestions on where a Big Dawg can buy tri shorts? The sites I have looked on stop at a 36" waist. Let's just say I would need to lube up to get in to 36" shorts. Looking for something with more in the 40" range.

DeSoto in XL should fit between 38 and 44 inch waist (Know from prior experience).  Not sure who after that.  However, Tri-shorts are now needed if you would rather do the speedo during th swim and pull bike shorts or run shorts over it for the other legs.

Lots of aches, but some I attribute to the bike ride yesterday (also hilly).  I need a week of flat training (sigh!) but in the long run the hills will probably pay ff better than flat ground anyway.

Best part about swimming is that there are no hills!

I am posting this as a reminder to myself, as well as to share it with you.  The writer posed some great questions that we all have and I think the questions as well as the answers are best if shared.  Please post a response or an idea or even a criticism to my answers so that we can all learn from each other!  Have fun with this!

Originally written by a BT friend (2008-02-21  4:50 AM)

All great questions, here are my beginner’s answers:

1.  Just add to our thread.  Only the Mentors can start the thread in the mentor group, and those slots are filled.  However, you should have a State/Country specific thread open to all members that local people can post in and it is a great way to add local friends and find ride groups, swim teams, or other training groups.  I belong to a tri club called ESCKTC (East Side Cool Kids Tri Club) in Phoenix and we have raced together, trained together, and even partied together.  We even have a volunteer team at Ironman Arizona - so it is great!

2. All swim strokes are legal in a race so alternating is ok.  One thing to keep in mind is that the freestyle is proven to be best for Tri times in this leg, but it is better to rotate strokes and swim longer than to ruin form on freestyle.  You mind will rehearse bad form and it could show up in the workouts and races later.

3. Most sanctioned tris are open water.  This is usually a river, lake, or the ocean.  Because of this, triathletes normally do not have “walls” to push off from or need to be proficient at flip turns.  Instead, we must practice sighting to avoid zigzag swimming and learn to stroke while navigating buoys where crowds tend to gather.  The “extra push” that a wall may give is absorb in the loss of momentum that turning around in the pool causes – this turn around usually would not occur in a race unless it was a pool specific sprint.  Therefore you cannot cheat your workout by pushing off a wall.  However, the main reason do workouts in a pool are to focus on stroke.  You can usually see the bottom, the lane lines, and even touch if in trouble.  This is not so in open water.  Try to get open water swims in when weather will allow and keep pool swims narrowed to stroke and breathing improvements.

4.  Actually I tend to use generic swim trunks in a pool.  I note that they have more drag.  I have even swam with a bike jersey to create additional drag.  This is supposed to help strengthen upper body for stronger strokes later in the season.  However, I always wear tri shorts in open water swims.  Anything that you can do to mimic race day behavior will alleviate stress on that day as well as answer those nagging questions of: What is I do not look like a “hard Body” in my tri shorts?, what is the thinner material of my tri shorts tears?, what is the padding in my trishorts absorb so much water that I sink?  Remember, the more you practice in race clothes, the better they feel. 

That said, you should also “practice” transitions.  This is an area where even the best swim, bike, runners can lose a lot of race time.  Things too keep in mind are: Should I wear sock while biking?  If so, how do I quickly get them on wet feet with waffle arms from just swimming?  Should I change tops from bike to run.  If not, will I bleed from running in a bike shirt, will I lose time when I empty jersey pockets, etc.

Where should my helmet and sunglasses be when I exit the water?  Wear should I put my wetsuit?  Is it ok to bike with grass on your feet?  Practicing transitions will answer a lot of these questions before race day!

5. Should I stop at distance or time in a workout- Here is a true story for you.  Last year at the Lost Dutchman ½ marathon, in Apache Junction, AZ a little over 1/3 of the participants were taken off course by the rabbit (guy on bike with the front runners).  Because of this, they stretched the run from 13.1 miles to about 15.5 miles.  For the elites in the front this was not a big deal as they could discount there times and blame the race director.  However, for those age groupers towards the back of this pack that were looking for the race of the year from this event, the extra couple of miles forced some to walk, others to quit, and still others to turn in times per mile (not race time) that was extremely slow at the end.

I mention this because you never know what can happen in a race on race day.  Always, let me say this again – Always! Train the full time of your workout even if you have done extra miles, laps, lengths.  The difference will not over train you, but it will help make sure you finish on race day.  If you use a BT plan, they are all geared towards timed workouts even if you complete the task, you are expected to still put the minutes in – this goes to aerobic training.  Keep in mind that even “Sprints” last over an hour so aerobic matters much more than anaerobic until the last few minutes of a race.

6. There is an evil empire out there conspiring against those that are working on fitness.  This empire intentionally offers tempting treats right in the spring training time to derail the best of us and reclaim their cookie thrown of power!  Of course I am kidding, but treats from the neighborhood kids, girl scouts, boy scouts, church fundraisers, bake sales, Easter candy, and all of the rest do put us to the test.  Here are a couple of ideas that may work for us no matter how weak our inhibitions:

Buy a box of the Girl Scout cookies and donate them back to the girls that sold them to you.  After all they like the cookies too, and they can probably afford the calories more than we can.  You could even open them there, have one (1 – that is spelled o.n.e.) and let them share the rest.  You support the troop, get a sugar buzz, and do not have extra thin mints around calling you name while you sleep at night.

1. Bring a healthy baked good to the bake sale and only take a taste of what you brought.
2. Drink lots of water.  Keep hydrated even in the winter.  We often mistake thirst as hunger and binge eat on junk!
3. Plan a recovery meal for after you long workouts.  If you know what you are going to eat before the three hour bike ride, you are less likely to come home and eat the three boxes of girl scout cookies because you have “spare calories”
4. Eat lots of fruit.  We need to feed the sugar craving and fruit is not only sweet, it is full of water so it hydrates as well as fills the belly.
5. Sometimes we eat.  Pick a day every couple of weeks where you can eat what you want in very small portions.  If you do not completely deny the goodies in life, nutritional eating will be easier to accomplish and simpler to make into a life style.

Hello I am ceasar, I am completely new to triathlon and was wondering if I could join your group. I am inspired with all the stories I read here.

 A bit more about my self. I am 27yrs, 195lbs. I play almost every sport for fun only. I am not competetive. But I want to get in better shape now.

I am a vegetarian. I do yoga regularly so flexibility is not a problem for me. I want to belive that I am made for endurance and not sprinting. I believe in genetic disposition of the body. I want to train for triathlon. As i said this is my first or seond day, and I found these forums. I have access to a great gym and 1.5hrs every day of the week. I am single so I have a lot of time. I want to do it right . I don't have a bike , plan to buy one soon (recommendations welcome). I can swim. and I love to run. But I run too long and keep hurting for 2 days. Then I realized that I was doing some thing wrong.

recently I found out about V02 max and anerobic threshold , so I am a little better educated now. Plan to get a heart rate monitor soon. (recommendations welcome again)Please advice on how to go about with a training plan. I was always a good student, and I will be one here too.  Your mentoring will be greatly appreciated.

Is this group open, if yes I would love to join.  I am a 30 year old female in the Chicagoland area.  I have been married for 5 years with a 3 year old son. 

STORY:  I had a very scary and almost fatal pregnancy three years ago and was the heaviest I had ever been 225lbs.  Six months after my son was born I took the advice of my (super fit, super serious) sister in law and joined a gym.  I started working out lightly for about a year, but kept it going every Monday through Friday.  The last two years I have been really working on my running, I found that I really enjoy it the most.  I ran two 5ks and decided that there was a whole world of fitness I had not experienced yet.  Recently I met a fellow BTer who is a seriously triathlete, he introduced me to this world.  He has helped me so far with training,etc. but he has his own group and he's more "elite" than I am.  I have been training for 4 weeks now and I feel great, I registered for two triathlons, The Naperville Sprint in Naperville, IL and the US Subaru Women's Triathlon in Naperville, IL.  I have a few 5ks and the Shamrock Shuffle I am doing as well in between. 

I am looking for support, advice and some direction and most importantly MORE people who are into this AWESOME sport. 

I just purchased my first Road Bike a 2006 Women's Specialized Dolce and for Christmas I am "hopefully" going to get my Xterra wetsuit. 

My long term goal is to complete the Galena Triathlon in 2010.

Meg

Trimom78