Beer Drinker Appreciation/Accountability Society 3 - Closed (Page 36)

Careful, on both accounts. A road bike frame with a FF seatpost and a long stem is going to shift your weight pretty far forward, which unloads the rear wheel and can make handling twitchy - very twitchy. Riding my 60cm GT with clip-on aerobars was a bit of a shock, and ultimately took them off. Compared to my tri-bike (which has a much longer wheelbase - probably 3 or 4 inches, in a 58cm frame, compared to the 60cm road bike), the aerobars where unacceptably twitchy on the road frame. Just be careful, especially on your first few descents.

On cleat positioning, here's the gold standard: https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/04/power-to-the-pe... . To summarize, put the cleat as far forward as it will go. Unless you're using some custom-mount, custom-drilled shoes and Speedplay pedals, every other pedal and shoe combination (including my fancy Vectors and Shimano shoes) doesn't really let us set the cleats as far forward as is proper.

Disappointed... my bike fitting got moved from today to next friday I was really looking forward to it. But it does give me a bit more time, I need new shoes and I figure it is probably best to have them before I get fitted. Ohter parts of training are going well - I have to switch up my schedule though. I have my long runs on saturdays but the track doesn't open until 9 and the blue haird walkers are out in full force. I am worried that I will accidentaly run one over, they walk across the track so they can chat in groups. I try not to get annoyed but it is hard to breath through gritted teeth...

A friend of mine and I have been talking over approaching training like you are in a 12-step program. I don't know if you guys are interested in this idea but I think it has some interesting potential to help those of us that may have a hard time with competing priorities. Some components of a 12 step program and my take on relating them to training:
1. Sponsorship: find a sponsor/mentor/trainer - find someone who has experience in achieving what you want and the ability to help you get there
2. Meetings: meeting with like-minded people trying to achieve the same goal - This group fits the bill nicely, could going to the track/pool count too? Treat it like it is not an option. Share the experiences of working towards your goal, identify common problems, seek shared solutions, get support and ideas from others struggles. In some 12-step programs they expect you to attend a meeting daily for the first 6 months. That might do radical things for people who really need support.
3. Communication & frequent contact: providing an immediate outlet for those hard-to-handle lows that impact your commitment. Calling, texting, emailing, posting others in the community and circle of support daily. Yep daily.
4. Writing: putting thoughts and feelings down on paper helps us to better understand our actions and reactions in a way that is often not revealed to us by simply thinking or talking about them. Blog, tweet, journal, write in a diary, or on this forum. I know we all track our distance, time, pace, heart rate etc but taking the time to record why a workout was good or maybe why you skipped one you could have made, could tell you a lot about where your head is.
5. Reading: reading training related literature reinforces how to live the steps that we need to achieve what we want. It can provide inspiration from those that are successful and help keep you focused.
6. Action Plan: I consider an action plan absolutely fundamental to my success. I am a planner. I need that calendar with my workouts all laid out with my progression clearly marked. I think it is the science geek in me. I am all about spreadsheets lol. Even if you don't map it out for months at a time I think you need to identify and implement attainable actions. David has us all on the right track with the weekly/monthly goals spreadsheet (now I need to fill mine out consistently!).

Let me know what you guys think

I got a great 1450M with a main 750M Continous swim in today. It was relaxed, rhythmic, and I felt I could have gone WAAAAAY longer. This is my longest Continous swim ever and as I could barely float at the new year I'm more than satisfied!

I've got some catching up to do comments wise. I decided to put them all in one post this time around

Melanie-
I think your approach is spot on
1) I find this group and BT in general to be helpful in the mentoring aspect. I would like to meet some more triatheletes here in Denver however to expand my "network"
2) I am beginning to run with the Denver Trail Runners group as it allows me to meeting on a schedule (planning as mentioned in 6) weekly with other athletes. I m toying with joining a tri club or meters swim but those will cost $ and the DTR is free.
3) I think communication through BT Is huge, without the ability to express my joy/frustration/or just whatever I'm up to that day with people who care or atleast understand is huge for me. Again, I would love to have this on a non internet level as well
4) I keep a hand written training journal that had the day time distance cadence Hr max Min elevation climbed where the workout originate from etc. I find just writing these things down helps me understand my training better. It's like taking notes in class, sure you listened to the tech and completed the exercise bunting outwits it down chances are you'll remember/learn better and it's physical evidence from the past.
5) love to read. I've read as much tri & running related literature as I can find in an attempt to better understand the ideas/philosophies/and approaches people use. I find this necessary as everyone is looking for THE ONLY or BESt answer/program/technique and not the answer that WORKS BEST FOR THEM, we are all different.
6) if I don't plan, I don't do. Luckily I'm an obsessive planner. I truly believe in this step.

In short I like your approach I think it captures a lot of the commitment necessary to be successful or "push" yourself to the next level



Brad & Charles-
Thanks for the notes on cleat position, I'll definitely move forward with caution.



David-
Awesome run! I'm glad you broke the 6Mi mark and reached your goal. You definitely earned the beer.



Kevin-
Bummer about the micro tears. I hope the Asics assist you when you can return to running. I know the pain of being sidelined, even if it's just missing something you enjoy. Best of luck!



Scott-
Good luck trudging in the snow! Hope all is well and safe out there



Gretchen-
There is something in the air! A bunch of my friends and myself were out of commission for up to 2 weeks due to illness. Wishing you a speedy recovery and successful training post illness.



Mark-
No worries on not hitting the 1500-1700 swim mark. It was smart to listen to the body and not push it.



Jeff-
Good luck with the new work schedule. I've worked similar shifts in the past and finding time for GOOD sleep can be a bear sometimes. I'll have to revisit BORN TO RUN again. I was much less concerned about form when I picked it up the first time.



Alex-
Best of luck with the ITB. It seems all of us should spend more time in the water so hopefully you can see some considerable gains while you give the legs a break.



Alan-
I don't think I ever officially welcomed you. Looks like you got a good brick session in lately. Congrats.


Juan-
If your feeling "winey" and want a pairing Underdog goes pretty well with Montery Jack cheese. My local beer store did a beer and cheese event recently. Flying dog makes some pretty solid beers.


Cheers and happy training,

Great post, Brian! I fully agree that this virtual communication systems is tremendously useful and highly motivating. If you don´t have tri-friends around, I find it difficult to explain other friends or even family how excited you can about new PR or even new gear (toy) you bought - also, I also think that as a begginner in this sport, all tri-athletes have 6 hours a day to train and do full IM ,while here I find people who struggle to balance their busy lifes with a passion. Meanwhile, enjoy a few beers (or wines, or bourbons). On top of this, the web is full of attractive training plans and information.

Terrible week as I am traveling in India for work, so as I do not want to risk my life biking or swimming in the ocean, today just did 6k run in the trainer (booooring...zzzzz). Not even a cold Kingfisher as I am in a dry state, alcohol ilegal. Ready to go back and go on ski trip with the kids, at least healthier exercise! Enjoy the weekend.

~9 mile run today. My treadmill and I are developing a real hate-hate relationship now - but Old Man Winter has really earned my ire, since today's high is 10 degrees.

Tried a new Scotch ale yesterday, from Arcadia, but it didn't really resonate with me, and I usually like scotch ales. Didn't finish the glass, but I did finish the pizza, which left me feeling guilty and miserable. And they screwed up my order, so the pizza was mediocre, and I still ate too much, of crappy food. /headdesk

The week started off decent with a strong swim on Monday. Tuesday, however, I woke up feeling awful. Made it to my physio appointment and managed to pinpoint my knee issue when running (I have a knee issue when running :P). Some stretching of the MCL and Hamstrings should take care of that problem. Today has been the first day I've woken up not feeling like someone pummelled my head with a sack of potatoes. Starting Monday I'll be on back on the training. This is the first recovery week of the training season coming up so it should be fit well coming off this bug that's bogged me down for the last 4 days. It's also reading week so I get a bit of a mental recovery as well.

My husband broke my heart on V-day. He called me while I was at work and told me he had really bad news, my dog was hit by a car and died instantly. Frickin worst V-day. I hadn't had Zooey long but when I was really sick she laid with me the entire time. When I was alone, too sick to even sit up and everyone was at work she was there, spooning me an keeping me warm! She was here on earth, did her job and now she is gone! F**K!!!!!

Anyway the shepherd is whining and missing her best bud so we are going to go on a recovery run...to recover from our loss.

9/28 today with a double. I will be on week 19 of free HIM plan on this site. Loving all the swim. I need to spend a few minutes catching up on all the posts. I drank too much Thursday and couldn't/didn't work out Friday. That doesn't happen often, but when it does, I go big or go home. Long trainer ride tomorrow.

I'm really sorry to hear about this. I'm glad you've still got the Shepard to keep you company. It's amazing how much an animal can touch our lives. Best of luck to you.

Yoga this AM and a 5 mile hike with the GF and dogs this afternoon. All around a good day, we will be going for a swim tomorrow AM

I ran but not outside...just didn't feel like fighting the wind.

Sorry for your loss Cynthia. That really sucks.

Ahh OUTDOOR! We are all jealous!


I signed up for a sprint at the end of APRIL. The BlasterBlast Triathlon. This will be super awesome. It is the first race of the season for me and at the college I graduated from. Nothing like returning to the Alma matter for tri. I'm stoked!

Hi All:

I updated the weekly Goal page. Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Atf3WryluKZedFQwci1LRFc...

Luckily for me - I didn't accomplish any of my goals, so it was easy writing them up this week! (Sounds like a Coors Light Penalty to me)

I'm back... I spent the first part of the weekend at a job fair hoping to have a few interviews. After only getting 1, I spent Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday working to improve my portfolio with the hopes of making something happen. While the work I did yesterday may help me land a teaching gig - its got in the way of working out and eating well. So, I turned over a new leaf and am hoping to eat better this week.

This morning - I did an hour long ride on the drainer which I had to cut short thanks to pain in my hip. I was hoping the new pedals would make a difference but only time will tell if will inf act happen. With the hope of beating this hip pain - that's back with a vengeance after over doing it on my long run last week, I'm going to start icing it 3x per day.

Have a great week everyone!
DQ

Mark - Good luck in the race this weekend! And I will pray for rain!

Alan: Glad you are feeling better! Hope you got in a good workout today!