Meulen's 'Let's tri this Thing!' beginner mentor group-CLOSED (Page 39)

Lesson's learned from my first outdoor training ride of the season (yesterday):

1. 45 F is not as warm as it sounds when yr going 20mph w/ a cold side-wind!

2. Training on a road bike is *not* the same as tooling around town on a single-speed, no matter how many hills you've muscled up in the past.

3. Riding outdoors is sooooo different than riding the stationary bike at the gym.

4. I'd forgotten how quickly my hands go to sleep when riding in the cold & with my weight so forward on my wrists.

5. I'd forgotten how uncomfortable bumps & cracks in the road can be on your Business!

6. My new bike computer rocks and I should have gotten one years ago!!!!! I got the Sigma Sport Cadence (BC1609) and while it doesn't have a heart rate monitor component, it currently does more than I can track right now so there is room to grow. It has the following specs, cost $94 and took me about 30 minutes to install:
Speed; current, max & average
Cadence; current, max & average
temperature
clock
stopwatch
countdown
trip distance
total distance (odometer)
dual bike memory
a good backlight
and it's wireless.

The only other feature I would have liked would be a lap/split timer option. And the only at all negative comment I have so far is that you can only view speed+ one other feature at the same time. So I kept cycling through the options out of curiosity (cadence vs. time vs. clock, etc) but it was pretty easy to do that while riding.

Meulen - 2011-04-04 12:00 PM One thing that really helps me when I'm on a plateau with weight loss is a looooooooooooong easy workout. Spending 3 hours in a day at around 120-150bpm HR does wonders. Sometimes, I can even see a difference when I'm done. Of course some of that difference is water weight, but still. The challenge is to not "inevitably cheat" as Henry mentioned, when your done with that workout. Workouts like that make me want to eat anything I can get my hands on!

Yes! I have been micromanaging my food, which even I'll agree isn't sustainable long term for everyone, but if you're planning a long workout like that, I find it helps to plan in advance what you're going to eat afterwards. 1, you don't have to think when your brain is in that post-workout, can't-function, high and 2, you are less likely to over-indulge.

Meulen - 2011-04-04 12:23 PM

QueerDrummer - 2011-04-04 12:12 PM

Meulen - 2011-04-04 12:00 PM One thing that really helps me when I'm on a plateau with weight loss is a looooooooooooong easy workout. Spending 3 hours in a day at around 120-150bpm HR does wonders. Sometimes, I can even see a difference when I'm done. Of course some of that difference is water weight, but still. The challenge is to not "inevitably cheat" as Henry mentioned, when your done with that workout. Workouts like that make me want to eat anything I can get my hands on!

Yes! I have been micromanaging my food, which even I'll agree isn't sustainable long term for everyone, but if you're planning a long workout like that, I find it helps to plan in advance what you're going to eat afterwards. 1, you don't have to think when your brain is in that post-workout, can't-function, high and 2, you are less likely to over-indulge.

hahahahahahhaha!!! I wish it were that easy!! yesterday: 1. swim for 1 hour 2. ride the bike for 2 hours what did my nutrition plan look like: 1. eat a light breakfast before swim 2. eat a powerbar to re-fuel for the bike ride on the way there 3. come home eat peanut butter and jelly sandwhich on wheat, cottage cheese and peaches 4. eat a sensible dinner what I actually did 1. light breakfast before swim 2. powerbar on the way to the ride 3. Chocolate milk recovery drink and, peanut butter and jelly sandwhich on wheat, cottage cheese and peaches 4. 4 Recees' eggs, 1 bowl of ice cream, cajun chicken penne pasta, one captin morgan and coke, one, cherry coke!!!! -total gorge fest!!!!! I suck!!! I need to find things to keep me busy when I'm not working out. It just so happened I had something planned to do that. However, I couldn't find the tool that I needed to complete a project. I got frustrated, had a drink and "fell off the wagon"! Darn OCD personality!!!!!

Oh no! Yup, I know what those days are like. Although I rarely have enough free time to need distraction. But I do seem to get all the way through the day and then crash at dinner if I'm gonna crash. Of course that's the worst time to do it too!

mcommend - 2011-04-03 7:29 PM Congratulations Sarah!  That's great work!  That is the one great thing about training in Pittsburgh - what other people consider hills often turn out to be nothing    I can't go within 20 feet of my house with out encountering some major hills.  Good luck with your recovery!

Yes, way to go Sarah.  That was a great run.  And I totally agree about training around Pittsburgh.  I just signed up for one of my races this summer.  This will be my fourth year doing the race.  I have always said that I do so well on the run because it is flat as a pancake.  I noticed that when I signed up this year, the run is described as rolling hills!!  Not compared to where I run!  Just think how strong you are making yourself!  Great job.

My week this week will be a little crazy between a church meeting and work training, I am not sure where and when my workouts will fit in.  I am glad this is a bit of a recovery week.  Isn't it frustrating when life gets in the way?  Add to that the fact that it snowed here on Saturday, hailed on Sunday, was 72° today, and they are calling for snow tonight and tomorrow!  When will my bike ever get off the trainer??

Happy training!

Karen

Brian,

You aren't kidding about there being a lot of triathlon/ outdoor sports around here.  I can't believe how much.  Also nice to be able to train year round.  The problem is, everyone here that is into it is so far advanced of me I can only hope to keep up.  These people are dedicated.  There is a guy that is running 6 minute miles every week in that group I told you about.  Many are under 8.  This is for 5k.  I have a hard time keeping 10 min/miles.  Also, the fastest swimmer in my Oly Tri made it through in 13 minutes.  Are you kidding me?   I also wanted to ask you something.  Is it possible like Henry said that if I eat too few calories per day that I won't lose weight.  Every calorie calculator I see says that I burn 3000 calories per day before I work out.  Sometimes I burn 1000 calories in a workout session.  I only eat 2000-2500 per day.  I would think I should be losing weight like crazy.  Also, when I test my fat% either on the scale or manualy, I come up with 12%.  Yet I still cannot get below 195lbs.  My scale seems to go up and down 5 lbs all the time.  I can be 195 one day and 200 the next even though I ate well and exercised.  This is so confusing.

THANK YOU!!! This is what I tell Michael ALL.OF.THE.TIME! He either eats a banana or NO breakfast! He eats a handful of spinach and a clementine only for lunch and a regular dinner with a smoothie and usually popcorn or multigrain chips and hummus for a snack. He is 6 foot 2 and starves himself and wonders why he doesn't lose weight. I'm not kidding!!!

You are right on this one. When eating for athletics or weight loss (similar strategy, sometimes a different nutrition balance depending on the sport) you want to eat the bulk of your calories in the morning and early afternoon. Like Brian said, this basically jumpstarts your metabolism and helps your body burn calories more efficiently. You don't need to starve yourself to lose weight, and in fact when you do this you are more likely to just be losing muscle instead of fat. When your body goes into this "starvation mode" it holds onto fat rather than burning it. Not the result we want! I aim for 500-1000 calorie deficit per day which equals 1-2 lbs weight loss per week. I think Dale mentioned he goes up & down about 5 lbs regularly. This is actually really common and generally attributed to water weight. I think even pretty lean people can fluxuate that much. Also, experiment with calorie intake. It's almost impossible to be completely accurate in estimating calorie burn, but it's easier to track calorie intake if you write everything down or enter it into a website. I use www.livestrong.com/myplate to track my food but they *do* over-estimate calorie burn so if I'm using it to track activity I usually enter about 80% of what I actually did. If you set your goal and after a week or 2 feel sluggish or aren't seeing any changes, try adding 50-100 calories/day for another couple weeks. I just added 100 cals/day for the last week and I dropped a pound but more impressively can see the difference in muscle definition.

Erin is soo exagerating.  I also have another clementine in the morning  If I need more calories would it work the same if they came from beer?  I already know that answer, but it sure would be nice!  I do not normally eat like this, but I am trying to sort of cleanse out my system and drop a few pounds.  I do not want any major losses, but it will be easier to run with less weight.  Besides, I can avoid paying a fortune buying some expensive carbon parts for my bike by just eliminating my own weight...lol. 

maybe you would lose some weight (not that you need to) by going to the reiki lady at my school. i just had a session and now i feel nauseated. it's suppose to eliminate your toxins. i think all my toxins are going to come out of my mouth soon.

Brian,  I don't know what it is.  All the calculators say I burn 2800 and in some cases 3400 per day before the exercise.  This is from many websites including this one.   I am 6 foot 2 inches and weigh at my latest low weight 195.  My job is more active than most.  I spend half the day driving and the other half walking, hiking, crawling, lifting and carry 20+ pounds with me everywhere I go.  I don't tell the websites that I am active.  In fact on this site, I am listed as 5 Moderate( Some Activity ).  This website lists it as 3060 calories per day.  I probably shouldn't be complaining about the weight because I am not fat.  I just have like two or three pounds right at the belly button.  It is practicaly nothing. It's an almost six pack and has been for a year.  I get complimented on how fit I look all the time.  It just sucks to get almost a six pack and never a six pack.  Its probably just genetics or something.  Anyway,  how did you figure out your Resting Calorie Burn?  Are there any sites that are close to correct?  Do you use this site and if so, how off is it compared to your actual calorie usage?  What is the best way to figure out what I burn during a workout.  My heartrate monitor is always close to the numbers listed on this website in my training log.  I don't really know another way to calculate it.

Michael:  It sounds like you are the same height as me.  I am 37 not sure about you. I eat way more than what it says you do.  This is how I normaly eat.  7:00 Breakfast - 200 cal.  10:00 Snack - 250 cal.  12:00 Lunch - 500 cal. 3:00 Snack - 250 cal. 7:00 Dinner 750-1000.  That gives me a total of 2000 - 2300 per day.  These are days that I don't cheat and eat doughnuts.  I try and get at least 5 - 6 days a week without cheating.  I am at around 12% body fat.  I exercise around an hour a day most days.  Some days a little more, some a little less.   I think that because of our size and weight that we require more food than smaller people.  Our muscles are bigger and longer.  Have to be to carry our weight around.  I gave up on lightening my bike.  I figure if I outweigh the competition by 40 pounds, what's the point in having a bike that weighs a pound less.  I guess so I only outweigh them 39 pounds.   I tell you if we strapped a 40 pound backpack on them and had them run with us, they would be slow too.  Not to mention the joint pain.

I'm not trying to sound rude at all, but don't you agree that 160 pounds (what your goal weight is) for a man who is 6'1" is pretty thin? I'm sure you have a small frame and it totally works for your body/bone structure and how much you train, but on average- that's a pretty low weight for a guy who is around your height. Michael would look anorexic, but that's just his body type I guess.

Dale- Michael is also 37 too!

Meulen - 2011-04-06 11:27 AM

libramom - 2011-04-06 10:12 AM

Meulen - 2011-04-06 8:51 AM

shrevemaintenance - 2011-04-05 10:27 PM

� Remember, I'm not to far from where your at! A little over a year ago I was 6' 1" 185 at 35 years old.

I'm not trying to sound rude at all, but don't you agree that 160 pounds (what your goal weight is) for a man who is 6'1" is pretty thin? I'm sure you have a small frame and it totally works for your body/bone structure and how much you train, but on average- that's a pretty low weight for a guy who is around your height. Michael would look anorexic, but that's just his body type I guess.

Dale- Michael is also 37 too!

I agree!! At 175 I actually had a friend ask if I had cancer!! LOL I'd be really thin at 160 that's for sure. According to Freil, author of Triathlete's Training Bible, I should be at 140!!!! That's ludicrous!!!! I'm a pretty average build to be honest. But in our sport, being competitive means being seriously thin and looking almost sick. The top performing athletes will tell you that they are on the cusp of being so thin they are sick. I don't want to be on the cusp, where I would be at 140. I think 160 is a good compromise for my lifestyle. I still enjoy food and beer!!!! especially beer!!! and don't have the kind of dedication to be at that level that would warrant me being at 140. And I won't have the desire to unless someone pays me!

i didn't even know that was humanly possible to be that height at 140 pounds unless you are completely not eating anything...ever. sure doesn't sound like a healthy triathlete to me! gross.