guncollector's group -- FULL! (Page 3)

I go to Roadrunner Sports, I tend to stick with places that know what they are doing and offer great value. I have been to others but I get a weird feeling that they are pushing a certain brand for promotions. I wear the Neutral + Shoes and have the following. 1.Addidas Adistar cush 6(2nd fav)2.Saucony Progrid Triumph 5(least Fav)3.Nike Airmax Moto +5(3rd Fav)4.Asics Gel Cumulas 9(Most Fav). Although the Asics is super lite I love the cushion.

Also what stretches do you do, I am doing most of my runs at the track beside young speedsters so I need to look like a runner doing them and not an over-aged non runner father.

Oh, and I do have knee issues, I have to be very careful when running not to get sloppy and my knees always get sore on my long runs. I think my weight is my biggest contributer, I would like to be around 175-180 and currently about 192-195.

Jeremy,

Our thoughts and prayers are with your mother and family. 

Matthew,

Welcome aboard! 

I watched Evolution running DVD this past weekend, is anyone familiar with this method of running?

I tried it at the track last night, it seemed simple enough doing some running in place drills, but actual running was a different story. I find it difficult to bring my legs up behind me toward my butt, however I am sore in my glutes and hamstrings and not my knees today, so I guess I'm on the right track! The whole cadence thing does not seem like a big deal, I tarted at 170 and stayed fairly consistent until the last 1.5 of 5 miles.

 I looked into Evolution Running because of my lack of running form and soreness of knees on longer runs. Has anyone else followed Evolution Running?

This past weekend I also modified my Specialized road bike so that it is more comfortable in the aero position. Changing out the seat post and aerobars has made a huge difference and it is way more comfortable! I went to a Profile Design Carbon forward seat post and Profile Design T2+ bars. My geometry is very close to a tri bike, I can notice an immediate difference in the pedal angle and it is very comfortable to get down on the bars. I can change back to my road bike configuration in a matter of minutes so I'm very pleased with the modification!

Stu,
I read excerpts from websites and books on Chi, Pose and Evolution running, more or less all the same principles, IMHO.  I forget which one it was but, one of then stated practice in sand or dirt if possible and lean forward, this forces you to rotate the hips to lift up the leg, think football player running through tires.  I did this a few times and that's when it came to me.  The act of lifting up your knee and dropping your foot down requires your core to get more involved.

Good job on the cadence, I'm usually at 170 on my training runs these days, I use to be less then that and had sore thighs from too much vertical motion or calfs from too much heal strike.    Today my form has modified to the point of max efficency for me, I notice that when my HR is getting high and I'm struggling a bit that I can refocus, by counting strides, feel on my hips rotate to initiate the pull and lift of my knees a bit more and my HR will settle down ~ 5 bpm without loosing speed.

Regarding your bike, sounds like you found the sweet spot!  Opening up you hips while getting more aero on a RB will allow you to hit the run a lot fresher.  Just be careful when looking over your shoulder while on the AB as the RB frame geometry (rake) is different than a TB and is a lot more twitchy, unstable.  Otherwise you have the perfect blend of functionality.  I would suggest a fitting for both positions so you have a direct reference to switch back and for between.

BTW, your rocking your training!

Thanks Don, just trying to be at the level I feel I should be at. Also trying to get down to 180 and currently at 195.

When is the best time to incorporate drills, I really need to work on my lean and hip rotation to bring my legs up. I am not sure if its bad but I have a extremely short stride which does not allow my knees to come up high or go back far. The runners on the DVD make it look way too easy. Last night 4.8 Miles seemed to take forever, I cant imagine what its like to train for a marathon.

You need to think Harley V-twin cruiser frame and a Honda CBR sport bike frame!  One is made for quick turns and handling, the other is a dream to sit on and cruise.  Some goes for TB vs RB.

Pro riders do ride TT/Tri type frame geometries (per ITU rules), in TT (time trails) for the aero advantage. In a pack though a TB is not comfortable as the leg/hip/torso angle is not made for riding up on the handlebars.  Also it's a safety issue with aerobars in close quaters, that is why ITU trialthons (Olympics) where they allow drafting the bike cannot have open aerobars and such.  That said I know of at least one 70.3 tri that the triathletes use a RB, Monaco, it fits exactly into what Bikesport says below.  There is a lot of threads on this issue on BT if you search around.

Also the design benefits us because we have to get off and run!  Out there somewhere in web-land is a study that shows for Pro-elite level triathletes that a TB not only saved some time in the bike due to better aero positioning, but amazingly saved up to 5 minutes in the 10k run, with most of that saving coming in the first half of the run.  That's how much fresher the leg muscles are vs RB setup.  5 minutes is huge in an Oly distance for elites.  Now are we getting 5 min worth, doubtful, but I know I can hammer on a TB and get off and run better than when I had my RB!

From Bikesport:

While triathlon bikes offer a strong set of advantages for anyone wishing to ride comfortably in the aero position, it is important to be familiar with the limitations of the triathlon geometry.

Triathlon frames are at their best when riding on flat to rolling terrain (like most of Michigan, Northern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois), where there is no need for high speed cornering, and where the cyclist will not be relying on other riders to draft off of. If comfort and efficiency are your primary concern, a triathlon geometry frame may be a good choice.

Triathlon frames are not intended for use in group rides where drafting at close proximity and lightening fast handling are important. Triathlon frames are not optimized for high speed cornering, such as criteriums. Triathlon geometry bikes climb best when using a different technique than road climbing.

Core is all encompassing for your midsection and very important as Ron stated.  BT has some good, no rephrase, great stuff on this in the Articles section (see top of your log).

I started with this routine last March, killer WO.  Since then I've derived 3 main core WO templates from this by adding in some other exercises so that I don't get bored with the same routine.   

I do core as a dedicated WO.  I include stretching between exercises, Pilates and some Yoga to.  I often will use a core WO as a primer before a run, this gets my core temp up and I'm loose and ready to go.

Something to be aware of.  When I first started in 04 I was lifting more often then I do these days.  I have a fixed amount of time to WO with each week, +/- an hour or 2.  My pendulum has shifted to more endurance training and I use my core WO as my "lifting" exercising.  In my core WO I include pullups, deadlifts and once in awhile Squats.  You'll find camps on both side of the fence for this issue, I do what I can!

Can I get a input on this ? The reason I ask is I want to make sure I have everything laid out to include my other races which I am waiting to register on, , maybe get some feedback on race schedule also ? As of now I am registered for my first three races this year and 1/2 Mary in October.

If I'm reading your Blog correctly, it looks like you're race schedule is as follows:

5/08 - Wildflower

8/08 - Folsom Oly

9/08 - Pacific Grove Oly

So, you've got a 2-to-2.5 months to "fill in" between Wildflower and Folsom.

First of all, Wildflower is going to be the toughest race on your schedule. Period. Tougher than the half-mary you're planning to run in Dec. I haven't done the race (work-scheduling conflict for me every year), but know plenty of people who've raced it and the feedback is universally the same...tough. Hilly. Windy. Hot.

I'd say take a week off after the race...some light, active recovery if you must, then spend the next 2.5 months or so before Folsom doing an Olympic maintenance-type training plan--gradually extending your runs in preparation for your half-mary in Dec. If you find you need to "cut back" on something, then cut out one bike or one swim session each week.

But, whatever you do, don't stop biking or swimming. You can cut back on them, or alternate swim- or bike-emphasis weeks. You'll have built a nice base of sport-specific fitness up to Wildflower, so don't throw it away.

Funny thing about triathlon training, though, is you just don't know where your fitness level will be in May/June. When I started in Summer '06, I was training a Couch-to-Sprint in May '07. By June '07 I was shooting for a Half-Iron in Sept. My point isn't to boast, but to show the amazing synergy that is triathlon training. If you train and rest correctly, you will build fitness oftentimes more quickly than you can imagine.

Good luck!

[brief hijack]

Faeron, you can't do better than Ron & Don and the rest of these fine fluffy fellows.

Donto--Faeron's my running partner, and you know all the stuff I post around here--you can only imagine the kind of patience and fortitude she has listening to all that carp for like, 20 miles.

Ron--thank you so much for doing a mentor group. Great topics in here and I will be lurking!

[/brief hijack]

BTW, a good rule of thumb for post race is take a day off for every hour raced, then ramp back up slowly as you recover, basically inverse of the taper.

I looked your planned chart volumes, are you following a training plan or doing it yourself and working around a personal schedule?  Some weeks in the next few months I question, such as at the end of Feb where you have 2 weeks of 400 &415 minutes then jumping up to 610, then back down again to 370 min followed by 2 more at ~580 min.   Your doing a lot with running volume in the big weeks vs the lower vol weeks, just be careful.