Gray Guys/Girls Masters Focus Triathlete Forum (all levels welcome)--CLOSED (Page 43)

James, this was a good workout week for me at least!

Weight  no gain     5

Workout 635 minutes = 21.66 points

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                   26.55 for the week!

I agree!  Whenever I read an article like the one referred to, my first question is always, "What is the author's agenda?"  Once you know that you can generally determine the BS factor pretty easily.  I suppose it never occurred to people as they read the scare tactics type of articles that it is not in Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Powerade, Gatorade or any of the other drink manufacturers interest to produce a beverage that may actually be toxic.  Kind of bad for PR when people start dropping over after drinking something you made.

They had 2015 registration open until 5/5.  I don't know if that was just for 2014 participants or not but I had the opportunity to register for next year.  You will not regret doing this race!  I think there was only about 40' of elevation change on the entire course and half of that was as we went under the grandstand entering the speedway.  The entertainment is priceless along the way.  This was my first 'long' race and it lived up to every bit of hype I read prior to the race.

Hope to see you there next year!

Also, we stayed in Caseyville, IL on the way out, just the other side of St. Louis from you I think.  They had Weather Channel on a TV in the office when we checked in to the hotel and as the clerk ran my credit card, a tornado warning was issued for the immediate area.  The clerk said, "I will give you a room on the west side so you can see it coming if it comes to that!"  Not often you get that kind of hospitality!

Happy belated birthday James!

I find myself pondering what is wrong with us that any of us might consider a 14 mile run a good way to spend a birthday?

Hey James -

Thought I would take a second and pull from my college days to look at the science behind why you might want to use a HR monitor on a run (or a power meter on the bike).

As you probably already know, your body breaks down glucose for energy, and a byproduct of that process is lactate, also known as lactic acid. For each lactate molecule produced by the body, one hydrogen ion is also formed. Hydrogen ions lower the blood pH and make the muscles acidic – hence the term ‘lactic acid.’ This acidity irritates muscle nerve endings and causes that pain, heaviness, and burning sensation in the muscles mistakenly attributed to lactic acid. During easy running (or any other exercise), your body reconverts and recycles lactate back into energy and carries away hydrogen ions with it. The production of lactate, and the clearance of hydrogen ions, will remain relatively constant while running at an easy aerobic pace, which doesn’t require a huge demand for energy. As you continue to run faster and demand more energy, the production of lactate will slowly increase. At some point - your lactate threshold - whether it be too fast a pace or holding a steady pace for too long, the production of lactate will soar and your body will no longer be able to convert lactate back into energy. At this point, lactate can’t grab its hydrogen ion to reduce the concentration of hydrogen ions in the muscle cell. Once you get to that point, you can DRAMATICALLY slow your pace in an attempt to clear the excess Hydrogen ions or your body will simply begin to shut down. In any case, it will be nearly impossible for your body to return to a lactate steady state until you stop exercise. So much better not to get there in the first place.

I think it is good to occasionally train without a HR monitor or power meter.  It is absolutely beneficial to learn how to listen to your body.  During a training run (or ride) if you over-cook it, you can learn from that mistake. On race day however, if you make the same mistake, your day is done.  Oh sure, you may still finish the race (likely in far more pain than necessary), but any chance for a good finish probably died when you started to play in zone 5.

I won't speak for anyone else, but I will not compete on a bike without a power meter and I will not run a race without a HR monitor.

Hey Steve -

Just watched stage one on TV.  I have no idea how Cavendish pulled out the win.  He was behind until about 2" from the finish line!

I am planning to go up to Wrightwood for the stage 6 finish at Mountain High on Friday and over to Pasadena for the stage 6 finish Saturday.  It is really cool not to have to travel to Europe to see the world's best cyclists!

I hear you on being on the racing sideline. I have had to cancel out on all my races this year because I was way overestimating my healing time.It is hard to be forced not to play with the rest of the kids !

Sorry about the loss of your local athlete. That is tough. really tough.

Frustration sets in again this week, then was conquered and then tried to rise up again. I keep looking at where I was supposed to be now and where I actually am. Not that that does a lick of good. I still do it to my detriment.

433 minutes = 14 points

.5 pound lost = 5

no gain = 5

24 total for the week.

James,

Here are my challenge update numbers from the last three weeks.

Weight gained 1.3 pounds - minus 13 points

Workout 617 minutes - 20.6 points

Total - 7.6 points