Barqhead's Group - FULL (Page 3)

Alright!!

I'm already started to get stoked and all fired up again!  Looks like we have a full group now and already some great advice and tips from Pam and I see that there are several team members that seem to have quite a bit experience and/or expertise in various disciplines already.

I forget which one it is by name, but the fellow from Western NC who spoke about the White Lake HIM ... I'm not sure, but White Lake ... is that up near the mountains or is that out closer to the coast?

I think there is a place called White Lake near Elizabeth City out near the coast, and it is a man-made lake just for swimming .... is that the place you are talking about or something else?

Either way, I was thinking the same thing we I asked to join this group - since Pam is in S.C (i'm thinking Greenville area??) and I'm from K'ville, NC ... and so I was thinking it would be great if several of use could try and plan on a common race that we could do together ...

..perhaps not everyone's A race, but maybe some smaller sprint or fun event to run and kinda use it as a good "getting to know you and meet you" type of event.

Another thing I'm excited about is the fact that Pam says we will really focus on running and really work on that (which is my weakest link...) but also like the fact that she says it is really the bike that is the most important segment of the triathlon ... which also happens to be the event I avoid the most and hardly do any bike training right now.

I also believe in bricks, esp. the bike/run brick.  I did these almost exclusively in the final weeks leading up to my first sprint tri and I think it really helped prepare me.  Even now when I'm out just primarily getting in a bike ride, I will go out for at least a 1 to 1.5 mile run off the bike just so I can train my legs what it feels like to run after biking.

I'm really interested in the running plan Pam talked about earlier ... I've never done any type of plan other than just go out and run a certain distance and have gradually built from .25 a mile, to 5 laps around a 400m track, to 7 laps, to the whole 12 laps or 3.1 miles, then 4 miles, then 4.25 for a few weeks, then finally busted out and tried a 7 mile trail around Salem Lake and made it!

But I know nothing about 5x30 seconds hard, 5x1 minute recovery, etc .... I thought that was onl;y useful for folks that could already run a marathon or a fast 10k or something ... and does doing that type of running really help with an endurance run?  Have I been getting bad advice from others that tell me unless I'm training to run a 400m or 800m sprint or race a 5k or 10k that those Interval type workouts are no good - that all I need to do is just run for distance ...

By my calculation, I think it was 5 miles, 4 miles, and 10 miles for a total of 19 miles per week.  Is that enough distance per week?  I was currently aiming for 20-25 mpw in hopes that this is what I need to prepare for an Oly in late April or early May.

Anyhow, just so excited to be getting started fresh and new this year and to be part of a Mentored Group - I am just so thrilled!!!

My posts and workouts may be a little spotty between now and first of the year because of the Holidays ... but have faith in me ... once we kick this thing into full gear I will be such a dedicated maniac animal .... besides I also have a bet now with someone at the YMCA about losing weight ... we start Jan 5th and the first to lose 5% body weight wins .... the loser buys pizza!!

My weightloss goal after that is to finally get down to 215 lbs. ... right now I'm 250 lbs ... been stuck there since August 1st ... was 313 lbs. back in Jan 08 ...but by the end of July I plateaued out pretty badly ....

See ya!!!

Just remember that losing weight too quickly, like any sudden change to your body, can be dangerous. it can cause you to lose muscle and may also injure your heart and other organs fairly quickly. But as long as you don't expect an overnight miracle you'll be fine of course.

I'm also curious about the running(how many miles a week, the type of training; interval,..)

A general question. i just stopped working out in the gym. so i'm fairly muscled, i'm just wondering how much muscles that i need to 'maintain'. i mean, muscles make you heavier and some have absolutely no significant use in tri. i know abs and backmuscles are important but which other muscles should i train? anyone got an idea?

Okay, Kewl!!

This just might be the change-up I need right now on the running.  Because of the weather and it's dark by the time I get home, most of my running lately has been on the treadmill at the YMCA - and as everyone knows ... running on those things can get BORING real quick.

So, maybe by changing from running a certain distance to these interval types of runs will make it easier to get through.

For some reason I was under the impression that 20-25 mpw running was just barely sufficient and that I really needed to be doing 30-35 mpw in order to be ready for an Oly distance.  I'm basing most of my thinking on some posts by a couple of others here on BT that seem to be real, life time, running experts.  One has in his tag line something like "the only way to get better at running, is to just run..." and I think his main thoughts were that intervals and such were okay, but that to really train for an endurance run ... to just get out there and run as long as you can.

Looking back I think I probably did reach the 20-25 mpw pretty quickly ... considering I only started running in August of this year and my first run lasted only 0.25 of a mile!

Anyhow, I've tried to get a 7 mile run in on Sat or Sun, outside around Salem Lake, and then about 3 nights of 4.5 to 5.5 miles on the treadmill and 1 night of at least 6 miles and one time I did 7.5 miles on the treadmill ... whatever was needed to put me in that 20-25 mpw range.

It was good for a couple of weeks then I was getting some pain, backed off a little, came back strong, but then backed off again because the sheer boredom finally was getting to me and I just couldn't force mself to run 4, 5, 6 miles on a treadmill.  The mental part was the hardest, my legs and lungs were fine ... I was just simply running out of the will power to stay up there on the treadmill.

The last  weeks I've been doing shorter but faster paced runs, like 1.5, 2, and 3 mile runs ... but at a pace 1 minute to 1 and 1/2 minutes per mile faster, and have gotten back to doing more weight lifting before my runs ... so trying to make the run shorter but more intense.

I think I'll try this interval plan for a while ... it should make the time go by and if you say it's okay to not worry so much about the mileage on those days and just get in the prescribed time ... intervals ... then I'm going to try this for a while.

Thanks for the response and input ... I really appreciate it!!!

Kevin

I also personally believe strength training is important - for many reasons.

As far as triathlons go, I can see where picking the right muscle groups to build and those to leave alone becomes important, but if you build the correct muscles ... the muscles will take care of themselves as far as speed.  It is true that muscle weighs more and may add some extra body weight, but I believe if the right muscles are built and built correctly (with lighther weight and higher reps and even some "speedwork" in liefting) that the extra muscle will take care of itself ... meaning you might add 5 or 8 lbs from new leg muscle ... but if it is good leg muscle it wil give the added strength to power itself and overall you shouldn't lose any speed.

Now, bulk up your chest and look like Arnold and yes, that will slow you down.

Also, I firmly believe that doing strength training followd immediately by cardio training the the ultimate best way to burn calories and shred fat.  That is the single biggest difference for me in my weight loss from Jan to July this year (where I lost 65 lbs.) and from August till now (where I have lost Zero pounds).

I used to walk a couple of miles warmup, then hit the weights for 1 to 1/2 hours hard and heavy nearly every single day, then finished off with 32 minutes on the Elliptical.  I changed it up some, some weeks I walked 4-5 miles first, then weights, some weeks couple miles walking then weights, some weeks weights first then 64 minutes on the Elliptical.

Almost without fail the weeks I lost the most weight were when I lifted first and then 60+ minutes of cardio.  Second place was walking warmup, weights, then 30+ minutes cardio.  Third place was 4-5 miles walking then weights.

But even in the 3rd case above, I was still losing every week ... since I dropped almost ALL weight training starting in August, my weight has simply flucutated in a 4-7 lb. range - my eating has even been healthier choices ... I may be taking in a few hundred more calories ... but I'm burning twice the extra I'm taking in because of the extra S/B/R that I've been doing.

So, I firmly believe in the line of thinking that strength training boosts the metabolism and helps chew through fat better when done right before cardio ...and that it keeps the metabolism elevated for 24-48 hours after the weight lifting.

This is about the only thing that can explain the huge difference in my personal results, unless I somehow caused my body to slow way down on my Basal Metabolism Rate by cutting out too many calories and going into too heavy of cardio training too quickly (I decided Aug 1st to tri train and my first race was 6 weeks later ... so I trained like a madman ... hours of training per day ...) ... so this would be the only other explanation ...

..

Okay, gonna crank up my strenght training.

 Just had my first bad tri training. went swimming again and i couldn't complete 100yards. I blame my bad diet.
On the other side, studying idn't really going great.

Gonna try to get my mind of the bad stuff and focus on what Santa has brought for me(BBB sunglasses for on my bike and spd clips).

greetz

Yay for tri-related christmas presents!

As for the swimming - don't let a bad swim session get you down.  Just like running and biking, if you want to go farther it helps to slow down.  And if you can only go 100yds without stopping; swim 100yds, rest for 20 secs, repeat.  The goal with a set like this is to swim at a speed that you'll be able to maintain for the entirety of the set.  As you get more comfortable in the water you can start increasing the distance you're swimming without a break or maybe try a ladder - swim 100yds, 200, 300, 400, 500 with :20 rest in between each.

There is a great thread in the "tri talk" forum about swim form.  You might want to check it out. Linky.

x2

One day you will be out swimming, thinking about getting 100, 200 or even 300 meters in and then all of a sudden ... like having an epiphany ... you will discover your breathing technique and get the right stroke cadence for you (I think most common for endurance swims is a 2-stroke) ... but all of a sudden you'll jump from a 300m swim to a 1000m swim .... all just because you get your breathing down and you get settled into the right pace.

Then distance almost becomes a non-issue ... you'll increase distance by leaps and bounds and it will get to a point that you stop because your hands go numb, your feet cramp, your goggles leaked in too much water or something ... not because your winded and can't continue ... then at that point is when more form and technique refinement is needed to start adding speed to your swim times.

Hey Pam~ 

I was just wondering if you can give me some good routes to ride in Gville.  I live in Greer (off Batesville Rd.) and ride across 14 through the airport and down Brockman McClimmon sp?.  I go between BC and Fed Ex.  I can get in about 26 miles after a few out and backs before returning home.  Any rides you can recommend in the 30+ range?  I don't know the roads that well.  I want something that I can just get out and cruise in the aerobars.  I know where every mountain bike trail is in western NC and SC though!  Ha! Thanks.  Oh, where do you swim?  I assue the Y from your previous posts.  I am over at Sports Club Five Forks.

Hey Pam~ 

I was just wondering if you can give me some good routes to ride in Gville.  I live in Greer (off Batesville Rd.) and ride across 14 through the airport and down Brockman McClimmon sp?.  I go between BC and Fed Ex.  I can get in about 26 miles after a few out and backs before returning home.  Any rides you can recommend in the 30+ range?  I don't know the roads that well.  I want something that I can just get out and cruise in the aerobars.  I know where every mountain bike trail is in western NC and SC though!  Ha! Thanks.  Oh, where do you swim?  I assue the Y from your previous posts.  I am over at Sports Club Five Forks.

I know exactly where McKinney Rd. is.  I am the golf pro at Holly Tree Country Club.  Thanks for the info.  I have heard of the Vineyards before, but did not know where they were.  I was thinking it was more towards Donaldson.  I know the Carolina Triathlon guys have a group ride out that way.  Thanks again.  Have a Merry Christmas.

x3 on the christmas gifts.  I have my fingers crossed for the Garmin 305 and some new shoes.  Isn't it funny that most "normal" people get candy canes and chocolate at Christmas time and as triathletes we get Gu! - Sounds funny.

Swimming is funny like that.  The bad diet is a good excuse, but swimming is another animal.  Sometimes you just have bad days.  If you think about it, you use almost every muscle in your body in one way or another and if they don't all work the right way at the right time, it could throw everything off!!  If I feel I am going to have a bad day, I resort more to technique work since swimming is so technical.  Forget the distance and work on the correct motion.  You will benefit from it later.  Swimming is the only area I do that with though.

Yummy!!

Gu is guuuuud!!  But personally I like some of the new Power Bar gels ... esp. the Banana Strawberry ... has more Sodium and Potassium than Gu and Hammer and if you sweat profusely like I do you will like the extra ... plus I think this flavor is the best I've ever tasted ... plus this particular flavor also has caffeine in it (not sure the exact mg but it says a 1x shot of caffeine) ... plus they are relatively cheap ... can be had at Walmart for about $.97 a piece.

..Hey, I wonder if I was to heat up my chocolate mint protein shake mix in the microwave ... if it would be just like drinking hot chocolate ???  Do they make sugarfree marshmellows?

I could curl up in front of the fireplace this Xmas with my cup of hot protein shake and gel pack and be in harmony with the Holiday spirit!!

..