MForger18's Group- Closed- Find your seats bc the shows about to begin (Page 3)

Suzy - thanks heaps for your help. I think I will try to do as you did. Just ride it for little times & get the feel for it before trying to do too much on it. I am getting it fitted today too which should help. Also, I love the idea of only having on foot clipped in. I'm sure that when I do take that step, that's something I will also do....

As for when sick, I have a headcold right now. I have found though, that if it isn't the flu (aching & shivers) that I can still workout & it doesn't make me any worse off for it. In fact, if I was to lay on the lounge I'm convinced that would make me the sickest of all!

I just got my wife her first pair of cycling shoes. She always used cages on her pedals before but I finally convinced her to go with clip ins. SO much better when riding.

I dont know if you guys saw my log today but I lifted for the first time in a long time. Because of my back, and they closed the gym at work for renovations, I just havnt had the motivation to actually lift...until now. I have the bug again, partially for the tri season and partially because Ive gained 10+ lbs with the back injury/holiday eating frenzy.

Anyway, Im doing basic circuit training. I hate having to come up with weight lifting workouts and this is NO thought involved.

I know Im opening up a topic from earlier but-

What are you guys doing in terms of weight lifting/ strength training now? I know Aimee has a race coming up so she's probably not doing too much, but for those of you that are on your Off-Season are you lifting at all?

The debate if strength training is actually beneficial for tri's goes on and on, and I really lift for injury prevention and bc I need to have some strength for work. DO you guys think that it is beneficial to triathlons based on your experience with it??

What do your workouts look like??

When I start to feel sick I'll take a few days off and get some much needed sleep.

In my first year of racing I didn't workout at all and found myself to have alot of injuries.
Since lifting and doing core workouts I have not had a injury YET. Knock on wood

Mace

Hey guys...happy belated holidays to everyone. I hope everyone has a great new year.

Well my Christmas has been crappy so far. I took off the entire week, and as you can see from my logs, I haven't gotten to work out at all. On Monday, I was carrying my bike over to my brother's for a nice long ride. I just purchased a new bike rack to attach to my jeep, and the bike rack did not work the way it was supposed to. The bike fell off the rack on the middle of the highway, and my tri bike is now totaled So I've been out shopping for a new bike, but the stores out here have nothing in stock as their waiting for the 2008 models. Then to make things worse, I've gotten a cold and haven't been able to run or swim for the last few days.

Well, I plan to hit spin class tonight at least, and I'll be out bike shopping again later today and tomorrow. I'll post pics of my totaled bike later when I have a minute to upload them.

Congrats on finally getting back to the gym!

I actually try to hit the gym about 3 or 4 times a week. I'm probably in the same camp as everyone else and don't think you get a great benefit in your splits from lifting, but I do think lifting will benefit you in injury prevention in the long run. Stronger muscles and joints should balance out the pounding your putting on your body from the endurance workouts and that seems like a good thing to me. Good luck with the back!

Hey Paul,
Sorry to hear about the bike, that really sucks. It is one of my worst fears that my bike will fall off my rack and Im listening to every noise it makes when Im driving. Was any of the bike able to be salvaged? Maybe you could still use the components and just get a new frame/fork/and wheels. Let me know what you are looking at and if you are def going for a full bike.

Whats up guys any tarining going on this weekend?? Hows everyone doing?

So sorry to hear about the bike!!! That would just make me want to scream!! Have fun replacing it.

As for weights, I don't really do any, but I do a body pump class once a week. Does that count as weights? I guess it is in a sense.

Training this weekend....well, yesterday was my biggest riding day yet by far - almost 1 1/2 hours on the bike. rode to the pool, swam 1.5km, then rode home, then another ride in the afternoon. My brother in law is mad on mountain biking. I said I'd love to go sometime. So somehow we ended up planning a ride today!!! Yikes! So we are going on a ride that normally takes him about 2 hours, so my guess is that it will take us about 3 hours. There are lots of hills. I'm very nervous but excited too. I hope my legs can hold out. I wouldn't have ridden so much yesterday if I'd known, but I can't miss an opportunity! So taht's my training today - wish me luck - I hope it doesn't end in disaster!!!

OMG...just noticed I got into the Escape from Alcatraz....have to sign up before 1/1 not much time to let it sink in. Has anyone done it?

About weight training, I am a notorious slacker on weights and core unfortunately. The day after a weight workout my legs feel like they weigh three times as much as normal when running. My experience, great for the swim, great for the bike, don't think it does my running much good.

Wow..your bike totalled, that is such a bummer!! I would cry on the side of the road for hours. Good luck with your search for a new bike.

Sweet....Escape from Alcatraz is on my life's to do lists. I catch it every year and it looks like a total blasts. I'm not sure how I could train for those hills though.

My wife and I visited San Fran last year and all I could think about was what kind of shape you'd have to be to work out around there. We rented a tandem bike to bike the golden gate bridge, and she's not a fitness person, so I was carrying all the weight but it was still tough! Have fun training, definitely a carrot to keep you motivated.

Well, the frame, wheels, and crank are totalled. I could probably salvage the aero bars, rear derailers, and seat post, but since it was an entry level bike (Felt S32), the components aren't worth a ton to begin with. I'm going to go bike shopping this afternoon and talk to the guys at the store to see if it will save me any cash to strip my old bike and just purchase a new frame and wheels.

Here are the two bikes I'm looking at :

http://bikemart.com/itemdetails.cfm?catalogId=39&id=1958

http://bikemart.com/itemdetails.cfm?catalogId=39&id=3166

Anyone have any experience with either of these two bikes. I ride a Trek road bike, and my old tri bike was a Felt, and I really like these two brands, but I'm not that fond of the Equinox. Any other suggestions?

I'm afraid I don't know anything about bikes to give advice - but they both look great! I'm drooling over them!!!!

Hey Guys, sorry I havnt been around the past few days, I have been at work, literally. Today is the first time that I am home in 2 days, and yesterday I had worked 22 out of the last 26 hours. Finally I got cut loose. The funny thing was, I was not even at the Times Square Celebration.

Anyway, Ill be checking in on everything shortly but...I have to go back to work.

Bert, Thats awesome that you got into Alcatraz. you are going to have a blast.

Hope everyone is training well.

Happy New Years everyone. I've picked out the races I am going to enter this summer. See below:

2/3 - Livonia Rec Center Indoor Tri
6/22 - Big Fish Tri
8/24 - Island Lake Tri Series #2

I am also going to participate in the MUP bike tour in July. It is a 7 day bike tour accross the upper peninsula of Michigan...I found out about this last year but wasn't able to do it because of schedule confilcts.

I also found it ironic that we were just talking about what to do when you have a cold...because I woke up to a nasty one this morning!

Mattt - that's crazy working hours!! Thanks for taking time out for us at all!!! We really appreciate it!

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170182021531#...

if anyone can tell me if they think this bike looks any good I'd really appreciate it!

Hey Linda,
The Orbea Mitus is a great bike. They make one of the best aluminum frames out there, esp for road bikes. The shop that I used to work at sold Orbeas, and I have nothing but great things to say about the company- from the customer service to the workmanship of their products. My Tri bike is actually an Orbea Ordu.

Heres the bad news...if its for you, it will be too big. I can tell you that right off the bat. At 5'6'' the top tube will be way too long for you, and Orbea's sizing is a little different. A 54 size bike is actually a 55 cm Top Tube. Im 5'9''-5'10'' and I just barely make a 54 and if I want to ride aggresive its impossible. The Orbea Rep's were actually telling me to ride the 51 in a road bike. My tri bike is a 51 already but you usually size down a little bit.

Sorry for the downer but I hope it helped. Let me know if you have any questions.

Hey Paul,

I gave a quick look at your bikes also but Im going to get more info from a buddy of mine tommorrow. Both bikes look good but I dont know the details of the companies, Im going to call a friend who sells those brands, or at least used to.


***I see that a few of you are in the markets for new bikes. Remember fit first, looks second. Well, budget needs to go in their also but you get my point. I probably should have put that in my bio, but I worked at a high end bike shop for a little over a year but the shop went more into coaching and less retail. Oh well. I have a ton of knowledge on bikes and the industry and can help guide you in the right direction.

Between myself and friends I can usually get parts pretty cheap and have stuff laying around. No promises that Ill have what you are looking for but its worth a shot of you need something.

I'll post a "bikes" discussion with a few questions and we'll see what we are riding, what we rode in the past, etc etc (but not til tomm- its 12:30am and I just got home form work but I wanted to check up on you guys.)

Til Tomorrow, Good Night

Well since you brought it up Matt

I am in the market for some racing wheels if you know anyone with some lieing around. Probably looking to spend around $300 to $700.

Oh, btw Happy New Year everyone!

Paul, I dont have any laying around but Ill ask around. For that price, you are probably goign to get the best bang for your buck with some '07 or even '06 clincher wheels that are light weight. It will be tough to find Aero wheels but you never know, keep checking the classified's here and at slowtwitch. Do you ride 650's or 700's?

Yes, def possible. The spinervals are great for now but nothing substitutes actual road riding. You want to increase your power and that would be hitting the BCR hard. You want to get used to spinning in their. The less that you have to go into your SCR during a race, and the earsier you can spin, the faster you will be. Going from 17.5-18.5 will not be difficult. Dont neglect your small ring, recovery spins and hilss are great but the power lies in the BIG RING.

Another way to gain speed on the bike is group riding. Hit some rides with the roadies and then you will learn how to ride at a higher HR in that uncomfortable zone. The last thing you want is to get dropped from a pack and then struggle to back in. You will learn to maintain speed.

Getting aero bars will help improve your TT riding also. You want to watch out though bc you dont want to be too far stretched on a road bike, and aero bars can do that sometimes. One thing that the aero position is great for is maintaining your HR to smooth out the peaks and valleys. If you are racing long course, you want your HR stabalized and you really cant mash in th aero position, esp up hills.

The last thing that you want to do, esp for DU's is BRICKS. As the tri season approaches, you should try and get a small jog afetr almost every ride. With the running miles that you put in I doubt that this would tax you at all. Not long, just about 10-15 mins, just to get your legs used to that feeling off the bike. As a Boston qualifier I am going to say that running is your strong point, so keep it strong. Have the same feeling at mile 1 of the first run throughout the whole second run. Minimizing the transition feeling from bike to run will help with that.