Maine Rob's Group - Closed (Page 4)

jennifer65 - 2010-01-10 4:01 PM Well, i have done some stuff for the last week. For this upcoming week I intend to keep up with my  Leg/back stretches, do the core ex again at least once, do at least one actual triathlon sport (its starting to thaw a little here, and look at my nutrition -it could have less fat and more veg in my diet for a start.

And keep reading about what everyone else is doing. I am finding it pretty motivating.

J 

Great! Small changes in the diet routine can make a big difference - substitute a few healthier things when you can, and it starts to get easier to more routinely make better food choices.

Nice wetsuit, by the way .

Zane - a waterslide? Seriously? That sounds hilarious - then again, I did a race last year which involved sliding down a hill either solo or with a partner before each leg of the race.

Finding that balance between staying consistent and beating yourself up when you miss a session is tough.  I've been training for tris for five years, and still feel that guilt some days if I miss a planned workout.

Ed - Zane gave some good advice on deciding whether to get a tri bike versus a road bike, but if you do decide to get a tri bike, the Felt S32 is a great choice.  That was my first tri bike, and it served me well for several seasons, including my first ironman.  As far as tri shorts, as long as you have some bike shorts then I wouldn't worry about getting tri shorts yet.  Like Becky mentioned, they are usually more expensive than bike shorts, and don't seem to last as long.  I have several pairs of cheap bike shorts from performancebike.com which have been great for everyday training, and have seen thousands of miles.

Ronda - if you can find another bike from a friend, or from craigslist, that would be great.  Having an ill-fitting bike will be very difficult to train and race with.  I would probably avoid super cheap bikes from discount stores, as I have seen a lot of problems with those (such as poor shifting).  Keep up the great work with the running too!

Becky - you're doing great with your training, and congratulations on keeping away from the soda.  Consistency over time will get you to that IM goal.  I remember freaking out when I was training for my first, especially at this time of the year, as I knew some people who were doing much more intense and long workouts. I stuck with my own plan, and things turned out great for me. Of course, freaking out and worrying is as much a part of IM training as swimming, biking, or running, so it is to be expected .

J 

All that work to get it on, and you didn't even get to try it out - that's tough.  They are a lot easier to remove after swimming in them, if that's any encouragement.

Way to get out there and do the run, while having some good family time! When the weather is decent I do the same thing with my 9 year old, although now that she has a bigger bike with gears, it's getting harder to keep up with her.

That's great about the swimming Jim!

The log is just a tool, so you can use it however you want. Of course, how can we harass you if you don't use it .

Nutrition sounds good - it is tough to avoid some of the good stuff, especially on the weekends. I'm going with a group of friends on a snowmobiling trip this weekend, and we'll all be staying in a cabin Saturday night with lots of beer, steaks, and other food.  A little splurge once in a while is ok, right?

It's certainly understandable to not want to go out when it's really nasty weather, but everything you do now will make it easier for you in the spring .

Oh come on people, the running pants don't even come into consideration until it's at least below freezing .

Ronda - that's great about the bike! Like Becky said, just polish it up, make sure the brakes work, and get to it.

Jennifer - let's see that treadmill work tomorrow! Having a partner with similar goals can make a huge difference too.

Jennifer - hooray on getting to the gym, even without support today!

Ronda - that sounds about right for the first time back on a bike in years. You know that old saying, "it's as easy as riding a bike?" Well, it turns out that that saying is highly misinformed .  They say you have to "earn your seat", so keep at it and push through the initial discomfort, and it will get easier.

I've never done a specific mud run, but I've don long trail races (anywhere from 6 to 20 miles), some of which had many miles of nasty, mucky, suck-your-shoe-right-off-your-foot kinds of mud.  Wear an old pair of running shoes, and get ready to laugh.  You will fall, slip, slide, and end up needing to be hosed off before you get back into your vehicle, but it can be fun.  Unlike some road races, where there is a lot of intensity from start to finish, a mud run cannot be taken too seriously, and you just take it piece by piece and get it done.

On a related note - doing trail runs, especially on rough or mucky terrain, is a great way to change up the running routine, and is great for strengthening a lot of the stabilizer muscles that we don't use in day to day road or treadmill running.  Plus, running through the woods and the whole being out in nature thing can be kind of cool, too .