Robin's Family-friendly mentor group - CLOSED (Page 3)

NAME:  Trainerh / Holly Pickett

STORY: In High School I ran track and cross country because that's what you did in a small town.  I didn't really like to run.  It was more work than fun.  In college and as my career after college, I was an athletic trainer (hence the screen name trainerh).  I spent all my time taking care of all the athletes and their injuries.  I became a couch potato.  I really didn't do any exercise of any sort until about 3 years ago.  I was sitting on the couch watch The Biggest loser and eating something I'm sure when they had to run the marathon.  I thought to myself, if they can run then I can run too.  I started out with the couch to 5k and worked up from there.  I focus was mainly on running distances of 5k and 10k.  In the spring of 2011, a friend approached me and asked if I would train for a Sprint Triathlon with her.  I jumped at the idea.  We training long and hard and we finished our first triathlon in October.  It was a blast!

FAMILY STATUS: I have been married for 10 years.  We have an 8 year old daughter and a 6 year old son.  My husband and I like to get out for our date nights and go for long bike rides in the summer.  We just started this this past year and it was really fun.  I find that training is sometimes difficult with the kids, but it is so much better since they are both in school.

CURRENT TRAINING:  I am currently training for a half marathon at the end of March.  After this race, I will focus on getting back into the groove of triathlon training.

PAST RACES: I competed in the Monster Tri in October and the Run In the Dark 5k in September.  In the years before that, I ran in 2 - 10k's and a 5k and 4k.

2012 RACES: Zooma Texas Half Marathon - March 31.  I'm not sure what else the future holds.  My husband is just starting to run again and he wants to run a 5k in February.

WEIGHTLOSS: I have recently lost about 25lbs.  I've kept it off since August.  Right now my goal is to maintain and tone up.

Let me be the first to welcome everybody formally!  Now that we're all here, let's take care of some housekeeping.  (I already posted this once, so if you have done this, skip to later in the message.)

If you're really new to BT, take some time playing around with the site.  There is some great information and threads out there.  Feel free to explore!

The are two things I most importantly want you to do: 

1.  Track your workouts in your training log.  You will be amazed by the inspiration that can provide!  You'll be able to see how much you accomplish, how much faster you get, how much weight you lose if you just track it! 

2.  Discuss with us!  We have some great people in this group.  Some are just beginning their tri journey, some have experience with tris but have other goals to accomplish along the way.  Comment to each other, support each other, send inspires to each other.  Accountability goes a loooonnnnggggg way!

If you haven't all ready, please add everyone as a friend and allow us to see your training logs.  Here's how:

To add a friend, click on your training log.  On the left side there is a space for friends.  Click the plus sign and add each BT name manually.  Click save friends at the bottom. 

To all your friends to see your logs, go to the settings tab at the very top, click "training log settings".  If you have made your training logs private, that's fine.  But please click "allow friends to see the training log".  That will only give us access, not the general BT public.  This will help with accountability. 

Here's our list --

Jmcgilvery (Joy)

rsreeve (ryan)

racfg

tradershez (elizabeth)

runnergirl7777 (Cori)

Cutlass454 (Kevin)

trainerh (holly)

kknickerehm (katie)

exercisegirl6 (lisa)

erika0823 (erika)

peachfor3

I'm so excited for this group!  We have big plans, big dreams, let's get going!

You caught me while I was typing...  You're in!!!!  Woo-hoo!  Please fill out your bio so we can get to know you better!!!!!  (nevermind.  you already have!)

Here's some light reading for today.  If you're brand-spankin' new to BT, this is a really handy reference.  If you've been here but have been in off-season mode, it's a great refresher.

BT tri basics article

NAME:  exercisegirl/Lisa

STORY:
I am also a SAHM. I had never been interested in sports but always had an interest in staying active and healthy. After having kids and stopping working I found that I needed something for myself. I needed to set goals and achieve them to feel human so I decided to sign up for a half marathon. After 6 months I ran my first race. It was a great feeling. Now 2 years later my kids are heading to school and I am going to be taking evening classes to finish my accounting degree. During the day I am a SAHM so it is going to be tough fitting in my work outs.

FAMILY STATUS: Married for 6 years. Mom to a 5 year old and almost 4 year old.

CURRENT TRAINING: Right now I am training for a half marathon in February. It will be my third half marathon. In the past I have been dealing with nagging pains due to running (shin splints, tight glutes, etc.) so my plan is running 5 days per week and running easy. So far it is working out well. On January 15 I will try to beat my current 10 km time of 59 minutes. I am also trying to fit in swimming whenever I can. Also I just got a trainer for my bike so hopefully I can fit that in where possible.

2012 RACES: February I will run my half marathon and beyond that I am looking at entering my first triathlon. I am going to do a sprint tri in June and an Olympic in September. I am a beginner swimmer. I took my first lesson in February 2011 and have been trying to swim 2-3 times per week. Also, road biking is new to me. I have done a lot of mountain biking in the past but just got my first road bike in September.

WEIGHTLOSS: I am working on losing that last 5- 10 pounds and the holidays are not helping.

Robin,

Thank you so very much for offering this mentor group!  I am so looking forward to a fantastic 2012 race season and being held accountable for my training and weight loss.  Thanks again!

Erika

WHEN CAN YOU START being mentored CONSISTENTLY: today!

NAME:  runnergirl7777/ Cori

STORY: I have been a runner since I was 10 years old.  I am not fast -- but am a decent long distance runner.  I have always loved to bike and find it very enjoyable.  This year I want to get serious about combining the two sports.  I love to weight train -- sometimes it is very hard to find the time to do a lot of all three.  Swimming is my worst sport.  I don't even like to put my head underwater in a lake.  I know -- pathetic.  I can swim in a pool ok -- but it is slow and I am a sinker. 

FAMILY STATUS: Married for 19 years, have an 18 year old & 13 year old daughters.  You know how they say raising teens is hard -- yup it is.  But, I love them dearly. 

CURRENT TRAINING: Re-started my duathlon training today -- had a rough 2.5 weeks of sickness and eye-trouble.  Hope to participate in a duathlon in March of 2012.

THIS YEAR'S RACES: I ran a half-marthon this year, but not an official race.  Did not race at all in 2011.  Just competed against myself.  I have ran in past races: 10 mile and 5K's.  I have issues with actual races that I need to overcome.  I know this group will help me with this!

2012 RACES: I need help motivating myself to sign up! 

WEIGHTLOSS: Dropping 15 would be great.

I apologize for not posting much today.  I promise we'll get 'er going.  This cold I have has put me in a daze.  I haven't had one like this in a long time, and I suppose now is the time to get one.  My 8-week bike focused maintennance plan starts on Jan 2. 

In the meantime, focus on what your goals are for the year.  That's the first topic I want to focus on.  I'm a firm believer that if you don't have a plan, you won't reach your goals... but you can't make a plan if you don't know exactly what your goals are.

Many of you said you have races lined up already.  Or that you want to get faster. Or that you want to drop some weight.  That's on ok start.  Discuss with yourself what you specifically want.  How many pounds?  How fast do you want to be?  What distance race to you want to complete?  Then ask this...  How am I going to get there???  What can I do to reach that goal?  Don't worry if you don't know the hows and whats yet.  We'll help each other get there. 

If you are aware of the SMART method of goal setting, use that as a basic formula to get your brain going.  We'll post our goals (not our resolutions) soon. 

S -specific

M -measurable

A -attainable

R -realistic

T -timely

As an example, I set a goal to run 1000 miles in 2011.  It was specific, I could measure my miles, it was doable provided I didn't injure myself, it was realistic -many people go farther than 1000, and I had a deadline.  More on how I achieved it later.....

Well, so far so good with my knee.  I didn't get into too much detail in my intro, but I suffered a minor knee injury two years ago, trying to do tae kwon do with my son.  I had just started training for the 2010 season and things were going good.  About 3 weeks into TKD, my knee began to hurt.  Didn't think much of it, just took some ibuprofen and iced it after both TKD and running.  During one run, about 1/2 mile from my house, I couldn't stand the pain from it and ended up walking back home.  Went to the doctor and was referred to an orthopedic surgeon.  Did an MRI and did not find a tear, but did notice that my knee cap was missing almost all of the cartilege from behind it.  Did 4 months of PT with little success.  Surgery was a last resort. 

Had the surgery done last February.  Orthopedic would not give me his blessing to start up running again.  Decided to take up mountain biking, but still had a desire to compete in triathlons.  Decided about two months ago that I wanted to give it a tri again and went out and got fitted for a good set of shoes at a reputible running store.  The first time running in the shoes was on a treadmill and my knee felt fine after about 25 minutes of running / walking.  Tonight was my first outdoor run and it felt good to get back out there. 

I've never been a runner.  Prior to training back in 2009, the most I've ran was probably playing softball.  I never dreamed I would say this, but I've truly missed running. 

Sorry to ramble, but I just wanted to share a little more background about me that I didn't get in my intro.

That's fantastic, Kevin!!!!!   Congratulations!  That must feel fantastic to run without pain!  (Hopefully I can feel that again!)

Kevin also brings up a great point!  While running is the "simplest" of the three, and by simple I mean no lessons involved or high-maintennance gear, it can take the biggest toll on your body.  If you haven't done this yet, go to a reputable shoe store for running shoes.  Not a sports store like Dicks, Sports Authority.  Go to a running store.  The people there will analyze your gait and your pronation and choose shoes that will work for you!  This is especially true if you have joint or feet issues.  You may pay a little more for your shoes there, but you'll be amazed by the difference you'll feel when you're in the right shoes.

Robin, I downloaded the software so that I could download the data from my Garmin.  It's communicating, I click Upload workout, but it's not storing.  Any tips?  Katie

NAME:  kknickrehm/ Katie Knickrehm 

STORY: When I started excercising in 2008, it was out of desperation to get some control over my lifestyle.  I was quite inactive and had terrible eating habits.  A year and a half later, something clicked and I decided that I wanted to try and run a 5K...then trained for a half marathon.  Well, it was too much, too fast.  I was dealing with several injuries(PF, IT band, and quad issues that I was seeking physical therapy for).  My husband started running and he completed a Triathlon Sprint.  This seemed like a great way to cross train and prevent injuries.  I did my first super sprint in August of 2010.  I was hooked. 

FAMILY STATUS: Married for 12+ years.  Have 6 children, ages:  10, 8, 7, 5, 3, 7 months.  Husband is extrememly supportive of my training efforts.  I believe my family has benefited greatly from having making 'myself' a priority.  I feel I am a better mother because of it.

CURRENT TRAINING: Right now I am running every other day.  I have moved to Jeff Galloway's program (walk/run) to try and build up miles, endurance, and burn fat.  Two of my runs are at least 45 minutes.  Ever other weekend I do a 90 minute run as well. 

PAST RACES: 2009:  5 K's  - 2010:  Half Marathon, 3 Triathlon Sprints

2011:  I started walking when my baby was 1 week old and completed the Ramblin Rose (Winston-Salem when he was 2.5 months old.   Angels Race (Winston Salem), Take Flight Triathlon, and Sumter Triathlon in October.  I competed in the Athena category and placed in 3 of the races.  I should point out that they were small races!

2012 RACES: I'm planning it now.  I'd love input on how others space and plan races. 

WEIGHTLOSS: I am down 50 pounds from when I started making exercise a priority 3 years ago.  I have 50 more to lose.  This sport has been a wonderful motivator for me. 

That's awesome that you have such a great supportive family!!!  It makes exercising so much easier when you know they're behind you 100%!

As for the Garmin, I have no clue.  I don't have any of the high-tech downloadable stuff.  In the forums page there should be a link for technology help.  I am also aware (I think in Tri talk) of some threads dedicated to that lately.  Sorry I can't help with that!

Yes, while running is the simplest of the three sports, it really is the hardest on the body. That has been my experience. I have never been a speedy runner, nor have I ever put in a lot of miles. I really didn't understand why I kept getting injured. I am now following the theory that you should run more to get faster. I am trying to run 5 days per week at a very easy pace. Like 2 min/mile slower then my 10k time. I have only been following this since November so I will let you know how it goes. So far so good. I just hope that it translates to a faster 10 k time in January.

Katie, I found this article. Not sure if it helps, but pretty descriptive on how to upload data from a Garmin.

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1504

Exactly.  

 There's a phrase you'll find on BT quite often: 

If you want to get faster at running, run more.  If you want to get faster at biking, bike more.  If you want to get faster at swimming, take lessons. 

Swimming is similar to golf- a very technical sport.  If you are not sure of your swimming abilities, you may want to research adult swim lessons or masters programs.

With running and biking, you need to develop the muscles that carry you through those motions.  Your body gets there by doing it.  Speed and endurance will not happen quickly, but it will happen if you keep plugging away at it.  Whle we're on the subject, if you're looking to increase running distance, it's a good rule of thumb to increase your weekly mileage no more than 10% per week.  So if you ran 5 miles this week, do 5.5 the next, then 6.05, then 6.6, etc. 

Biking is my weakest of the three.  Before triathlons, I rarely rode my bike.  I started getting into it by taking spin classes at my gym.  I couldn't actually ride my bike when I started training due to weather, kids, and lack of an indoor trainer.  Spin class helped me get moving in the right direction.  When the weather broke, I was finally able to go out and follow my training plan for it. 

Just like running, you never want to always go all-out, every time.  After a base is built up, it's good to mix up your weekly workouts: have a long bike ride, an easy recovery ride, and a  speed or hill day.  But for base building in the beginning (say that 5 times fast), 30 minutes a few times a week sounds good.  If it's too easy, go longer. 

Always start low and slow.  It's better to build slowly and safely than to go all out and injure yourself!

I used a training plan last year so I knew how far to ride each time.  I agree with Robin, you want to mix up hard riding and recovery rides.  I love the bike and feel like it is my strongest part of the race.  I found it fun to ride with others, but it is easy to ride alone also.  I was spoiled last year because the bike part of one of my sprints goes right by my house so I had tons of practice on the route, but I recommend riding a variety of routes also.  I knew that mine had a few hills, so I practiced hills over and over again.  Some of my races this year are flat, but one I know has a "hill" I would consider a small mountain, so one of my goals for this year is to practice on that size of hill a lot before that race (I have plenty of time-that race isn't until Sept. 1 luckily.)  Don't forget simple safety stuff like wearing a helmet, carry a cell phone and water/snacks, and always tell someone where you are going!

So I am getting up bright and early tomorrow morning to get my first swim in in months.  Swimming is my strongest of the 3.  I can swim with the best of them.  So I am looking forward to a nice swim.  

Then.....

I need to know where to go from here.  The training begins the 1st of the year.  I have 5 solid months before my first tri along with the goal of losing 25 pounds.  Running is my biggest struggle.  It just doesnt come naturally for me but I know the more weight I lose the easier it will come.  I have my bike all ready for the trainer.  I guess I just need a plan...ideas, suggestions!  In the past I have just started my training 8 weeks before a race and went from there.  But with a marathon being my A race in October I need to start now!

What to do???

Well, since your marathon is your A race, and you've confessed running is your weakest, I'd start focusing on running. What's your longest tri you're going to accomplish? I'd definitely check out the plans from BT.  They have running focused plans for tris.  That will give you a good start to your run training and go from there.  Plan your early in the year workouts to fit your tri needs, then depending on when your tris land in conjunction with your marathon, when your tris are finished, you'd have a good grasp on consistent running, then jump into a marathon plan.  

Does what I typed make any sense at all?

This is the direction we're heading.... goals, and a training plan to get there.  I'll write my goals down tomorrow so you can see how to splice things together (if you've never done it before).