STEPH SPRINT FULL Let's do this thing! StephSprint group FULL! (Page 31)

I know what you mean and I often wish they could just hear my thoughts. Getting words out can be too hard. 

Well the results are in:  Drum roll please ..........

33:32 .. so I pretty much crushed lasts years time. The race went as I was hoping it would. For comparison here are my 2011 times:

Swim (train wreck) 10:56

T1 1:24

Run 26:44

This years time:

Swim 10:29 Not much faster, but it was nice and easy and I swam the whole distance.

T1 1:17

Run 21:47 (PB)

I am happy (ecstatic more like it) with the results, especially the run. I had some cramps in my side during the run, not too bad and easily manageable. I  am pretty sure they were from eating/drinking too much before the race.  The swim was good.  I am very slow, like the turtle, but that is ok for now. Gotta float before we swim.. right?  I made it the whole way with out stopping or completely loosing it (I have a overly active imagination that stems from watching too much tv, so my mind starts to mess with me) and that is a huge improvement. There was a portion where the water got so muddy it was like swimming with your eyes closed. Not fun, I had to look up at the surface as looking down was too freaky.  Thankfully this lasted only for 50 feet or so.   The biggest most noticeable difference was getting out of the water.  I wasn't wiped and still had tons of energy.  I was breathing a bit heavy, but I think that is to be expected.   My transition time was still slow.  My neighbor offered his bucket-o-water to rinse my feet so that helped, but it just takes me too long to put on socks, tie my shoes, and put on my shirt.  I am thinking stretch laces and no socks may be the way to go. The fastest transition time was 17 seconds. How does one do that??  Just amazes me.  Some of these racers are just like light speed.   Even as I passed them on the run, they were like flying.. I could swear their feet weren't even touching the pavement.

--Cheers Marcus 

Great job Marcus!  Sounds like a great race.  I dont know about running with out socks on.  Sounds painful, but I see most serious tri athletles do it, oh my poor feet...lol.  I use Yankz quick laces and I love them.  At first it took some time adjusting them just right, but once I got them right, they feel great. 

Okey

Good Job Marcus. Another vote for socks on!! UNLESS you lube the shite out of your shoes. I have never done that, but have gone sockless and regretted it. Blisters. Practice putting your socks and shoes on out of the water. Roll them half way, and get those drawstring laces.  

I did a killer swim/run yesterday. 1000yds OWS(continuous)  then a 5 mile trail run. Out of the water I realized I didn't untie my shoes before hand. And when I untied them, they untied into a knot. Wasn't practicing transitions, but it was a good reminder to set myself up better next time. Tried some ginger, but I don't think I swam far enough for a good test of it.

Have a good weekend everyone. 

Got in an OWS this morning.  Lake Michigan was actually quite tolerable water temp wise.  Little bit of chop, but a very nice swim.  Now if I can just do that two weeks from now in the relay.  

Did a nice 3/4 mile continuous OWS today before playing with my kids at the lake. My nephew(12) was about to follow me out when his Mom called him back. He probably wouldn't have made it the whole distance. My son(6) is now able to swim about 10 yards. He just started being able to do that this week. I couldn't be more proud. He is swimming underwater too. My daughter(4) is a little water bug herself. She will be swimming by the end of the Summer. Too much fun, except when I almost got run over by a kayaker. Luckily I stopped to let them go by. She said "I used to be a swimmer, this is a hard swim". I smiled and agreed, but in my head I thought "You almost ran me over". Good thing my sighting is improving. Time for a bike ride through town. Hopefully no similar incidents.

*Saw an old friend there today, and he GAVE me a season's pass to the lake. Cool. 

I did a 10k at the gym yesterday and felt like I crossed some magical barrier into being able to call myself a runner. I've done a 10k in a race, but never done one for training, and this mental block and reluctance to actually consider myself a runner just fell away yesterday. The run felt good (even while stuck on a boring indoor track!) and I felt fantastic afterward. So, this week, I'm calling myself a runner.

After next Sunday, I'm adding triathlete to my athletic titles. What an amazing physical and mental journey this is! (And, we bought a house! We move in a month, between my two triathlons. I'm thinking packing may become packing/training).

Vermont State Parks - Emerald Lake State Park

Great scenery and the water is green like an emerald, not green like a swampy murky snapping turtle muck pond. A cool little island out in the middle too. I am planning on taking the family camping there soon, but I'm not a fan of the mass campsite format. I usually hike about six hours into the woods before I begin looking for a campsite. With the little ones it is probably a good idea to start here though.

ETA: Nice work on the running Steph and Amy

Catching up on what's been happening!  Congrats on the races, OWS, and training progress!!  Eveyone has been doing such a great job.

Wish my week last couple of weeks had been better...

amazing how a week of holidays (away from home) can destroy an entire training routine... grrrrrr..... lost momentum, and broken routine, takes a while to build back.

Was doing so well, and have hit a wall now.  I have my plan, and I am trying to get in my training, but it's not working quite as I hope.  Oh well.... soon enough.  tomorrow.  there's always tomorrow.  :-)

Congrats on both the run and the new house. Holly cow .. moving in a month.  Very exciting!

Skibumm

Sounds like you had a great day with the family.  Any tips on teaching a little one to swim? My daughter is 2 1/2 and I am trying to get her more acclimated to water.  She is getting there a little bit more each time we get in the lake.  Right now I am trying to get her to blow bubbles, but she is not getting it. Every time I show her, she just does raspberries and giggles. 

Steph

I like the new avitar.

_________________________

I was at the pool this morning and holly cow it was packed.  It was the same last Monday too, but this time I decided to stick it out until I could get in a lane. I have never seen it like this before and I may need to change my training schedule to find a better pool time.  In any case, I got in a nice long swim, 1200 total with a 1000 yard continuous swim.  It was a first and I felt as if I could keep on going and going and going.. 

Next Saturday is my first tri.  Already getting all jittery.. excited.. anxious.. kinda like the feeling you get when you have too much coffee.  This is a sprint and I was wondering what everyone does for nutrition during the race. When do you eat and what do you eat?

stephsprint - 2012-07-16 3:20 PM This how I get myself in trouble. How I ended up doing 5 half marathons last year.... BUT, I'm thinking of signing up for a 70.3 in May. Once my International is done in November, all I'll have left is running events all winter. 1.2 mile swim... doable. 56 mile bike... also doable (I'm sitting down, after all) and then a 13.1 run (sticky part). 10 months to prepare. What do you all think? My friend wants me to do it with her...and train in secret (she's already disclosed that she needs to tell a couple of people) but that should last about a week. ) THAT would get me going... right?

I think you already know what I am going to say.  Dew it.. Dew it!!  (sometimes I wish I could convey the sound of the voice I hear into text, when will we have that technology??) 

Where is this race being held?  

stephsprint - 2012-07-16 2:20 PM This how I get myself in trouble. How I ended up doing 5 half marathons last year.... BUT, I'm thinking of signing up for a 70.3 in May. Once my International is done in November, all I'll have left is running events all winter. 1.2 mile swim... doable. 56 mile bike... also doable (I'm sitting down, after all) and then a 13.1 run (sticky part). 10 months to prepare. What do you all think? My friend wants me to do it with her...and train in secret (she's already disclosed that she needs to tell a couple of people) but that should last about a week. ) THAT would get me going... right?

Tell you a little story about what I did yesterday.

Since I am unable to race this year, I did the next best thing and spent the day at Ironman Racine 70.3 cheering on all my friends. (I was in charge of bringing the after race beer and keeping it cold. No small task given that it was in the mid 90's).  Anyway, one of the friends, was doing her first 70.3.  A little history.  She is 44, is constantly battling her weight and was NEVER athletic in any fashion before deciding to take up running a few years back.  Running lead to a sprint tri, the olympic and yesterday she finished her first 70.3.   She knew she wouldn't be fast and set a goal to finish in under 8 hours, which she did by 13 minutes. Myself and 2 others met her at the final mile and ran her in, us 3 non-racers ducked off the course at the finisher's chute, but ran along the fence cheering.  My friend burst into tears as they called out her name just before crossing the finish line. To be honest, we were all a bit emotional. We were all so proud of her!  What a great day.

So, the point of all this rambling is....go for it!!!

PS. IMHO... Don't train in secret.  The best way to stay accountable is to let people know.  And if you let the right people know you also get a built in support crew for training. 

PPS: Another friend came in 2nd in his age group (55-59), coming in at 5 hours, 15 minutes.  He is one fast dude.

Laughing!! That is about the best you can hope for. Splash Dad is a great game especially if you do a big stumbling dramatic fall into the lake when you get splashed. Right now you are aiming for her being comfortable in the water. Get a life preserver vest and have her float around with you. You have no hope of her actually swimming this year, and possibly not even next year either, but I could be wrong. Swim lessons with a reputable instructor, preferably some one she knows, will go a long way though. It is all about having fun at this age. Invite another little friend and their parents along. Better yet, make a new friend at the lake. Sounds like you are well on your way already with some good progress though.

Race jitters? I LOVE THAT SH*T!! Nothing better than race morning driving to the event. Get some Guns n Roses or anything head banging with angry lyrics on the radio and beat the heck out of your steering wheel playing drums. Visualize yourself kicking arse. -- As far as nutrition goes, just some water or Gatorade, or whatever you've been using during training. Nothing new on race day. A Sprint is too short for in race nutrition to work properly. A Shot Block or something (train with it, but I like Gatorade Series 1 pouches) 15 minutes before the swim and on the bike might help, but definitely drink some water about halfway through the bike. At these distances, you will do well with some sugar and water.  -- The most important thing is to have a good breakfast, I like a small serving of scrambled eggs with cheese and spinach. There is a good reason why Popeye eats it. NOT a good idea to carbo load Friday night either. But Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday carbs are OK.  Be done hydrating 2 hours before your race, and avoid drinking too much more because your bored. KEY POINTS: Nothing new, good breakfast, hydrate well beforehand, say thank you to every event staff you see, have fun. Good luck. We expect a full race report. LOVE those jitters. 

--Steph: DO IT!