I would like to join this group.

Name is Monica; user name is monicamm68

I am single and got into tri's about three years ago. This past season I wasn't able to compete due to various foot/knee injuries that I am trying to address with consistent strength training with a personal trainer that incorporates lots of core work into his total body circuits.

I am registered for the Shamrock HM in March and White Lake HIM in May. I am still looking for a "practice" tri prior to the HIM and just a fun one after.

Currently I am doing Jorge's cycling plan for HR's and trying to run 6x/week and swim twice a week. This week is messed up because knee swelled up for whatever reason. I think it might be another infection. See MD on Thursday.

OK, Ernesto, I'm ba-a-a-ck with all of my questions.  Time for me to get better, faster, stronger on the bike. 

I have a road bike that needs a new chain, cassette and crank to be put back in original condition as an entry level road bike.  It's a Specialized Dolce, about 7 years old with a triple crank and a Sora/Tiagra component mix.  As you know, I'm looking around at road bikes because I've heard that you need to put endurance miles in on a road bike.  I also have a new Specialized Comp tri bike that I love riding and I use on all my outdoor rides right now.

I know you're really sold on the Computrainer and I've done a little reading on it.  Would you recommend that I get a Computrainer and use the tri bike on it?  Would you recommend that I get the road bike fixed and use it on the Computrainer?  Do you recommend that I do most of my riding on the tri bike?

My goals are to do a HIM this coming season and an IM next season.  After that I'll probably drop back to sprints and Olympics.  What are your recommendations?

Went for a swim today (best option in 11 degree weather).  I'm still not getting anywhere.  For those of you who don't know I only started swimming freestyle a year or so ago and it was a huge transition..  I spent years underwater diving so this has been a tough transition.  

I had Scott watch a few times but he doesn't see anything wrong.  I know I am still stroking to often and the end of the pool doesn't get any closer.  I am attaching the like to the you tube video.  From there you can see the one from several months ago.  I don't have a swim coach so I am flying blind on this area.  I know something isn't right.  Any insight yo all can give is greatly appreciated.  

Scott took this video from today's session...  Not sure if you can actually get anything from it but here it is.  I plan to get back in the pool on Thursday..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3q9eHGtkqA&feature=youtu.be

 Also I was looking at the book:  

Racing Weight: How to Get Lean for Peak Performance

 Does anyone have any knowledge of this book???  I started taking Endurox R4 as a recovery shake after workouts of more than 1 hour.  Scott started that as well.  Several Ultra runners that I know suggested it vs Milk (as I can't take it the extra fat).

Name: Scott Putnam

Story:    I've been a runner since my first year of high school track in 1988.  Over the years I've raced just about every distance from 1 mile to the marathon.  In 2005 after setting my PR in the marathon, I decided to look for a new challenge in triathlon.  After a year of nearly drowning in the pool and learning to ride a bike again, I completed my first sprint tri in 2006, then my first HIM (5 hr 46 min at 2006 IM 70.3 Florida), then I attempted my first IM at IM Germany in 2006 which resulted in a DNF due to (mainly) the onset of hypothermia (long story).  In 2007, I successfully completed my first IM at IM Arizona in 15 hr 38 min.  In the summer of 2007 I moved to Los Angeles thanks to the Air Force and training became very difficult due to the pace of travel for work.  In 4 years I flew over 364,000 miles on just United Airlines to give some perspective.  In late 2007, I attempted IM Florida and got a DNF due to intestinal issues during the race.  I attempted IM France in 2008 on little to no training due to traveling and got another DNF (but had a nice vacation).  My last tri was back at IM 70.3 Florida in 2009 and finished in 7 hr 3 min.  In 2011 I only competed in running races (5k, 10k).

Family status: I am married to my amazing wife, Jennie Putnam.  We have 2 children ages 8 and 12.  Jennie is fairly new to triathlon and we are trying to learn how to balance both of us training for triathlons at the same time.

CURRENT TRAINING: Now that I am no longer traveling for work (I currently teach at the US Air Force Academy) I'm excited to get back into training.  Since moving to CO in July, I've been doing purely aerobic running and cycling at my MAF while adjusting to the altitude.  I'm also trying to get back into swimming...only been in the pool about 5 times this year including today.  The current plan until the end of March is to train for a 10k race while doing swimming and cycling as cross training.  At the beginning of April we'll start a training plan to prepare for IM 70.3 Boulder in August.  For the Half IM, we'll be using a training plan from the following book (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/triathlete-magazines-essential-week-by-week-training-guide-matt-fitzgerald/1101094902?ean=9780446696760&itm=1&usri=triathlete+magazine%27s+essential+week-by-week+training+guide).  I've used it before when I completed IM Arizona.

THIS YEAR'S RACES: "A" races will the Cooper River Bridge Run 10k in March (in SC), The Boulder Half IM in August and the Denver Rock and Roll 1/2 Marathon right after.  There is a Sprint and a Oly that will actually fit into our training perfectly that we will add.  Not to mention a few road races for time trials.

WHAT WILL MAKE ME A GOOD MENTEE:  I've had enough bad race day experiences to know I don't know everything about triathlon and I'm open to helpful advice.  My biggest weakness is nutrition, the fourth discipline of triathlon.

2012 GOALS:  My main goals for this year are to get back to training consistently and get back in race shape after four years of pretty spotty training.  I'd like to get back to running sub-40 minutes for 10k and sub-6 hours for the Half IM.

Thanks Chris...  

There isn't a master's program where I swim..  The base is great but has serious limitations for dependents.  Scott showed me a link that I may look into on the first of the year.  They do private lessons for triathlon specific swimming.  First I need to figure out which kidney to give up in order to afford it...  

I looked back at some race logs and found a 1:26/100yds in the HIM I did; so I don't have you by much .  However, I apparently hadn't trained at all for several months prior to the race, so I can certainly go faster.  I am happy to try to answer whatever questions I can about swimming.

With the marathon... again, a story of inconsistent training.  I only did two long runs before the event, and didn't run a single time for the last 3 weeks before the race.  I believe I was at around 1:40 through 13.1, and that felt comfortable, so I think a 3:30 is reasonable.  At about mile 15, I started having significant problems with my right hip and thigh.  This is what destroyed my time.  I chalk it up to lack of training and simply not having my body ready.

I therefore add to my goals for 2012... consistent training.  This has been a problem for me ever since I started tris. 

Hi Mitch.  Sounds like a plan.  I won't be starting the cycling work until after Christmas.  I don't have a trainer yet, but I have it from a reliable source that Santa may leave one for me under the tree

For those of you who don't yet have the Maffattone book recommended by Ernesto and other returning mentees, I purchased the Kindle version on Amazon last night for $1.99 !!

I don't know if it's always on sale like this, but if you've got a Kindle and don't have the book, 1.99 is a pretty good deal (list price is ~$23).

Joyce, Mark, Joe, Monica welcome to the group. Jaclyn, welcome back. During the day I will sit down and answer individual responses (I usually never take more than a day), work has been tremendously hectic sine September and it will not change much until mid March.

Don't think that I forgot.

Running at 8000 feet above sea level observation:

I noticed during previous trips here that every time I run, I have a headache and feel like getting a flu afterwards. It lasts for good few hours. The longer the distance or harder the effort, it becomes more pronounced. It is as if the body is fighting accumulated lactic acid or some other undesirable elements. (thank god for paracetamol)

This time it is not different... The only thing I can do about it is not try to beat any PBs and just lower the effort.

I wonder if Scott or Jennie experienced similar thing in Colorado..?

I hope you don't mind if I chime in here. I watched the video and your technique has a bunch of extra movement causing you to create a drag. For instance, your kicks are random and tend to spread and flare out.  This is causing drag and that will slow you down.  It's kind of hard to see but are you keeping a straight arm during your catch (the pull under water)?  If you bend your arm at the elbow and use your upper arm and forearm to pull the water, you will generate some power.  Doing finger tip drills will help keep your elbow high. Drag your fingers tips along the top of the water as it comes out of the water.  This helps the arm recover during long distance swims.  Your shoulders will love you more.

What is your distance per stroke? It looks like 30 according to the video.  Count how many strokes it takes you to go 1 length of the pool.  Now, try to reduce that number.

Try bilateral breathing. If you only train to breathe on the right, what happens if you have somebody splashing water in your face during an OWS?  Or, if the waves come in from the right.  Try to breathe like this (R, L, breathe-R, L, R, breathe-L, R, L breathe-R, L, R, breathe-L).  You will be breathing more than what you are doing. Exhale most of your air before taking another breath.  Very controlled and relaxed.   

Swimming is about being efficient. Think of it this way.  When a baby learns to walk, they look very stiff.  Every muscle in their body clinches and tense up.  The problem is that not every muscle group needs to be engaged for walking (and swimming).  When the baby practices and focuses on which muscles actually make him move, they get rid of the other wasted effort. Doing this they looked more relaxed and their energy is efficient.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for the heads up!  I definitely will get it for my iPad... Totally off topic but I just read hunger games... Great book. Very quick / easy read.

Jen,

Have you tried the Total Immersion books/videos? I learned to swim when I was young, also a fellow diver, and always considered myself an above average swimmer (among the general population). However, once I started to train, I found I could barely go 100 m and my arms/shoulders would be dead (nothing like a good dose of reality). I believe a coach its the way to go, but in my case my schedule did not allow it (at least for now), so the program helped me a lot.

I spend 4-5 weeks doing the drills from the Total Immersion book and it has helped a lot (I also bought the video). I did it by myself, but having Scott assist you once in a while would be even better. The book stresses body position (less drag), body rotation, and stroke length. After the 5 weeks (which ended 2 weeks ago), I was able to swim longer with less effort, at a slighter faster pace, and my arms felt much better. 

The drills start from basic BASIC drills (like swimming in your back), and built slowly. But each drill has a purpose, so don't skip anything. Me, being impatient, probably went through the drills a little faster that I should have, and still got a lot out of it. And even better, now I think I understand what I need to do, I can "feel" when I am doing things wrong, or when my body gets in a bad position, so I can correct it as I go. Also, before the book I tried bilateral breathing and it was a big mess. After the program it was almost easy (almost but not quite).

If you cannot take lessons in the near future, this might be a good way to improve your swimming "on the cheap". I bought the book from Amazon (for about $12), and the video from Ebay.

Samy

Hopefully room for one more

Name: Todd

Story & Family: Got into Tris as it sounded fun. I am married with 4 kids. 17, 15, 15 boys and 4 yo girl. I am into more the Sprint and Oly races. Dont have any plans do do longer. Just really dont have the training time for them anyways. Played Baseball in college and needed to get back into shape after letting myself go.

Training: This is going into my 4th season racing. Last season was a mixed bag of improvments with moderate race results. Just couldnt get all 3 sides to come together at the same race. Working with power last year really helped.

WeightLoss:  I'm 5'11" and currently hover around 200-210.  I think this is one of my biggest limiters but I slack in the eating right department. 2012 is the year to fix that.

Thanks for the heads up Shelby!  I was about 1/4 way through my big Maffetone book and suddenly lost it somewhere in the house, so I just got the digital version for $1.99 right now!  Anyone else looking to get the book, here is the Amazon link:   http://www.amazon.com/Big-Book-Endurance-Training-Racing/dp/1616080655/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324482411&sr=1-2
 

I have not signed up for the race, but was going to sign up after the 1^st.  I think it will be a good first race (300, 6mi, 2mi).  Not sure on what training plan to use.  I looked on the site and found 3 that looked pretty good for me.  The 3 that I am looking at are “Michael Pates total sprint – 22 weeks”, “The original 13 week sprint training” and 16 week sprint -2X Balanced”.   I was thinking of doing the “Michael Pates total sprint – 22 weeks” and starting on week 7 so it will finish the week of the race.  I like how it has the running broken up into walk/run intervals.  I am new to this and my knowledge is low.  I purchased a book a week ago called Your First Triathlon, by Joe Friel.  I got it in the mail yesterday, but have not started looking at it.  I will start my training on Monday Dec 26^th.   I am open to your advise let me know what you think. 

Thanks Samy and Cason..  

All feedback is greatly appreciated, that's why I love this group.  As for the Total Immersion, I do have a video.  I watched part of it last year and was working some of the rotation drills this past summer but someone said I was then rotating to much and only my head should move.  I will look into the book today and may even break the video back out before tomorrows session.  Thank you all again.  

Mark- When we first arrived I did experience something like that.  For several months it felt like my body was trying to fight the flu and it lead to me missing workouts because I thought I just needed rest.  

As for today's workout Scott and I did a Spinervals session on the trainer.  It was Recovery and Technique working on pedal stroke with lots of 1 leg drills..  Great way to wake up.  I can't get my garmin to upload for some reason but the workout is posted.

We started the day off with Spinervals 8.0 which involved some one legged drills and super spins.  9.92 miles for me in 45:05.  HR seemed a little higher than normal this morning.

Yesterday was an "easing back into the pool" workout for me.
150y warmup
5 x 100y freestyle
150y kickboard
150y cooldown

Chris,

Thanks for mentioning that.  Any idea why if I manually upload a workout it puts it on the wrong day?  This morning's bike workout showed up for Thursday when I uploaded it.