Todd's Tri Turtles - (Beginners, Sprint, 5K, 10K) - CLOSED (Page 34)

Looking at your log, you pretty much did a triathlon (indoors) a few days ago. And I think you've already ridden and run the bike/run portion of the triathlon.
If you're in this triathlon (http://mallardpointonline.com/lameduck), it looks like if you can get through the relatively long swim, you should be in great shape!
Don't forget, you'll be getting a shot of race day adrenaline, which will help a lot.
You can do it!
Moreover, I'm counting on you for inspiration, as my race is the same day!

Thanks! you have the details correct. I did do an indoor mock tri last week. We shall see how it goes i guess.

Any advice on dinner before race day, breakfast, and fuel during the race? I was thinking whole grain pasta tossed in garlic and bacon pieces. Breakfast pranutbutter and honey sandwich and a banana. Gel before swim and another halfway through the bike? I have two chocolate Gus but have.never tried them out. Im a tad nervous although my stomach is pretty bullet proof. Im also kinda out of time to try one out during training since Im done with longer workouts. Should i maybe take a gu and go for a short run?

First off, what distance is your tri? What are the weather conditions going to be? What will the course be like? For instance a hilly course will take more energy then a flat course. A windy and/or hot day will take more out of you than a calm and temperate day.

Personally I stay away from a large and heave meal the night before. Even the night before my Ironman I stuck to my usual supper amount. But its also important to remember that everyone is different and you have to do what is right for YOU. If you are used to training with a gel half way through the bike than that is what you should do on race day.

As far as what to eat I'd stick with the whole grains and stay away from the processed and high sugary foods. That will prevent your blood sugars from spiking and crashing later. Same thing with your race day breakfast. Like I said, what works for you on your tough training days should be used as a base for your race day.

Best of luck to you!

Beth

Beth, Its a sprint. Temp should be mid 70s to low 80s. The swim is 950 yards open water bike 10 miles on brutal hills and run 2.75 on the same hills. This race is known as the toughest sprint in the state and debatable on being the toughest sprint in the country. The hills are brutal. I expect my time ti be in the 1:30 range but it would be 1:15 (id be stoked) up to 1:45+ I have a couple gus but i haven't tried them out yet. I may have one tomorrow or Thursday with a light workout and see how i do. I ran out of gas on the run portion of the practice run and home that doesn't happen again, and this time we are adding the swim.

The rule of thumb for nutrition is: Don't try anything new. So feel free to read my thoughts, but when in doubt, stick with the rule of thumb.
I don't do anything special the night before, except to avoid alcohol.
Your race starts at 8, so you could have a pretty normal breakfast around 6 a.m. Be sure to get some protein at breakfast. (Typical breakfast - bagel, cereal, toast, OJ, coffee, etc. - is all carb, no protein.) Also be sure to have some fluids. When we awaken, we've been 8-10 hours without liquid, so we're pretty dehydrated.
If I'm in a pinch and don't have time to make breakfast before a workout, I have toast with a TINY amount of peanut butter. The PB gives me some protein.
Would be good to have about 100 calories of carbs about 15 minutes before the start. GU is one product. Gatorade's G1 (look and taste like gummy bears) is another. A banana or a half-bagel work, too. Typically these pre-race nutrients have no protein, because when you race, your body burns carbs first. If I'm feeling a little weak pre-race, I'll have a Clif bar or something with like 10 grams of protein - never one of those monster protein bars; too much work for the body to break down.
I would recommend strongly against taking GU for the first time before a race. I bought some for my daughter, but tried one out of a spirit of mateship. It tasted like a slimy orange. I didn't even let her try it. She would have disowned me.
I like the Chocolate Mint GU. Even so, I like to rinse the taste out of my mouth. They are an acquired taste, to put it mildly.
The received wisdom is that you don't need to eat or drink during a sprint, since it's under two hours. In any case, you won't need any protein - only carbs, because that's what your body wants to break down. I always have water on hand for a swig during T1, to rinse salt water out (a problem you won't have). Wouldn't hurt to have a prepackaged G1 or GU around if you feel weak, but I don't think you'll need it. Your times, etc. show you're in pretty good shape, certainly good enough to finish without a nutrition crash.

Edited by RZ0 2013-07-24 8:59 AM

Thanks for the detailed post! That's what i was looking for. Thanks for everything and good luck to you too on Sat!

Corbet - not sure if it helps but right.there.with.you. I'm having stress dreams about the swim for my race. Ugh.

As it has said before, just trust in the training that you have done and try to enjoy the race! I'm sure you will be able to do it!

Corbet, I think you'll be fine, you've done the hours, put the work and now it's time for the fun part. +1 to not doing anything new nutrition wise, and just go for it. For my half marathon I just had normal pre workout brekky (coffee only), 2 gels during the race, and that was fine, I had enough gas in the tank. Just do whatever you're used to, good luck, and have fun!

Today was my first pool swim since my race and a week of getting sick. I was slow, slow, slow!!! But I got the 2000 meters knocked out in about one hour. My arms are still a bit sore from the swim but it felt great to be back in the water.

Beth

Congrats! First comeback workout is always hardest - and most rewarding.

Mini-tapering today for Sunday's race. Worries:
1) Should I wear a wetsuit? Probably gain a little speed from the buoyancy but lose more peeling the thing off in transition. Water will be approx. 70 degrees. (Yeah, I'm a wimp.) Air temp will be about the same (cloudy).
2) Ocean swim. I've gone to the beach and swum in the ocean, but never more than 50-75 yards. In a pool or a lake, I can swim the distance (400M) OK, but . . . those waves. Also never done a running start into the water. Hope to practice that Saturday afternoon.
3) Not real clear how I'll do on the bike. Don't have enough timed rides to know how fast I'll go.
4) Little stuff. Haven't practiced transition this time. Have never worn a race belt. Practiced riding and running sockless, but worry that I'll blister on the ride, which will leave me in a state.

I'm addressing these by:
1) Will probably swim 50 strokes, figuring if I can stand it, I can do without the wetsuit.
2) Planning to finish my strokes at mid thigh or lower, turning my head back. Also may dolphin through some of the waves. Concentrate on proper breathing.
3) I'll do my best and let chips fall where they may.
4) I have a written plan for preparing the transition area (found it here:http://bit.ly/91ZQAh), making sure I can find the belt quickly. Bringing socks in case I need them.


Edited by RZ0 2013-07-26 4:23 PM

Well I am officially a triathlete! My overall time was 1:29 and change. Im not sure the official time or splits yet. My goal a few months ago was 1:20 and potentialy the podium. This mornings goal was to finish and i would be happy under 1:30. Well I was under 1:30 and i think i placed 4th in my age group (dangit) The swim sucked 900 yards and i think i came out around 23 minutes. The first time i have swam that far lol. I did quite a bit of side stroke and back stroke so i could catch my breath. I haven't got the breathing down for anything over 250 yards. The bike and run went fairly well I could have pushed harder i paced myself to much. I got one under my belt so I have a better idea of what to expect for the next one.


Edited by corbetjackson50 2013-07-27 3:28 PM

Hey Gang !!

I'm sorry I was away for such a long time but I have all kinds of events going on in my life withing the last couple of weeks,
and they are quite life changing but I'm glad to report that none affected my will to do my very first Triathlon. First off I will be
a daddy for the second time :0). Then after working in the Airlines for my entire life it looks like I will be making a career change after
14 years ( I'm 33 now ) and I'm a mess about it honestly. I'm going from suit and tie to boots and shovel, But it's all in an effort
to provide for my family and I have to do what I have to do sort of speak, and the money and benefits are fantastic.

Now as far as my training goes, I had a friend at work but me in touch with a great friend of hers who is multi Ironman finisher and
who is currently the swimming and athletics coach for a prep school here in NY and he has offered to help train me and it
has been amazing for the last 2 weeks. I feel very blessed to have met him and being that I'm only 2 weeks away, I'm not as
nervous as before. This week I will be going for an open swim evaluation with him at Coney Island beach to get an idea of what
the real deal will be like come August 11th.

I have been reading and I'm bringing myself up to date with everybody's progress and I plain to bring my training log up to date since
I kept it updated via mapmyride. Once again sorry I dropped out but I needed some time to clear my head.

A couple pics one from before I got on the pontoon shuttle to the swim start. The other obviously at the finish.

Great job making the turtles proud! But with a 4th place, I don't know if you qualify as a turtle.
Maybe a terrapin?
Congratulations!

Good to hear from you again. Looking forward to seeing the training logs.

My official time is up:
Swim 23:26:00 (bad very bad)
T1 2:01:05 (I was happy with this given the.swim)
Bike 36:54:0 14.6 pace (slow bc of hills 3rd in age group so Im happy)
T2 1:38:00
Run 25:08:4 9:40 pace (happy seeing as i walked up a couple of the steep hills. had quite a bit of gas in the tank after i finished. Wish i would have pushed a little harder. Still 3rd in age group.
Overall 1:29:08:4 happy i was under 1:30 that was a goal i had been mentioning to people last week. I missed the podium by 1:46 and know i could have easily made that time up on the bike and or run even either my failed swim.

A couple pics one from before I got on the pontoon shuttle to the swim start. The other obviously at the finish.

Corbet, congrats and great freaking job. What an accomplishment and great time for a first especially a hard one. Sorry I was not there for you more leading in but I knew you could knock it out of the park if you put ur mind to it. Now you to can inspire others, great job.

I will be back at it full time on Monday and sorry for neglecting the Turtles while on vacation and doing my half, but y'all stayed the course and have done us proud!!

Woo hoo Corbet! Congratulations on the great finish and a very respectable time. What a fantastic feeling!

I've had a bit of fun this morning as well, I went on a 40km charity bike ride. Non competitive, very friendly and chatty, but the whole course was rolling hills (and twice as far as I have ridden during workouts) so now I ache something terrible. It was good to get out and stretch myself, though, and I'm feeling quite pleased with my effort. Rest day tomorrow then a nice swim I think.

If your like me you like pics, so here you go:
Out of the water

Off the bike

On to the run

hills!

Sounds like a fun ride, Taringa.
Had my sprint tri today. It was . . . well, I didn't get a flat tire. And my wife points out I didn't have a heart attack in the swim and didn't break my collarbone falling off the bike.
This was a mini-sprint, with the swim only 400 meters. My goal was to break 1:15, and I made 1:15:25.
At least, that's the time on my watch. But that's the only time you'll see, because I forgot to put the timing chip on. I realized it about two minutes before the race, with no time to run back and get it. Kind makes it hard to get psyched up.
That time, by my reckoning, would be good for about 24th in my age group (50-54), out of 36 or so.
My performance overall was OK, though the swim was awful. Poor sighting and I think I've seen butterflies travel more direct routes. If you remember the old Family Circus cartoons where the black dots would show how Billy would go down the block via the playground, the woods, a couple mud puddles and a stop to pet the neighbor's dog - that was me.
The good news was I rode faster than I thought I would - averaged 20 mph (again by my clock). The 5K run was about what I thought it would be - 25 and change, or right about 8 min/mile. Again, you guys will know this, but without a chip timer, nothing will show up in the official result.
Now, fellow turtles, the reason I forgot about the chip was I failed to get to the race early. I got there about a half hour before my wave started. That was not enough time to lay out my gear and get everything ready. (I didn't want to get up before 5 a.m. We had to drive through fog in an area we didn't know.)
Anyhow, please learn from my mistake. The night before, take care of EVERYTHING that you can - like putting air in your bike tires, attaching the race number to the bike, etc. And get to the site early - I should have arrived an hour early. I would have been bored part of the time, but it would have given me time to make sure I had everything taken care of.

UPDATE: Sadly, a gentleman who left in the first wave with me died of a heart attack during the swim. My wife had said she had heard about a man pulled from the water getting treated. I just found out he died: http://news.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/2013/07/south-kings...
Makes some of the problems I ran into seem petty, which I guess they always were.

Edited by RZ0 2013-07-28 5:17 PM

Quite a hill you're running up there. I see what you were talking about. Again, well done!

Yeah some of the more experienced guys were telling me i was crazy for making this my first race.

Edited by corbetjackson50 2013-07-28 10:51 AM