kenj mentor group - back for another great season! CLOSED (Page 44)

I know for those of us that are not comfortable in the water it is easy to worry about swimming.  But, Brian is absolutely right, you should stick with the bike plan and only make up the swim if you can without missing a bike or run.

Weekends coming, I know Becky has a HM, is anyone else racing?

I have a 5k, but it is going to be the last 3 miles of my 10 mile run and I have been given explicit instructions to run it at an easy pace. 

For me....I prefer a more consistent time based intake fuel system.  I like to try to get close to 300cals per hour through gels/drinks.  That way it factors in things like tough sections of course, or other problems.

Sometimes that wall comes around mile 20 regardless.  The last 10k of a 26.2 is widely known as one of the hardest things to do physically and mentally.  The littlest thing you may have doneor not done the previous 20 can have a huge effect on that last 10k

Have great races!  I think there are a few 1/2 marathoners out there this weekend...

I've got a 50k trail run Saturday, but I definitely won't be "racing" it.  Its supposed to snow, then turn to cold rain on an already icy trail.  If I don't finish it, I at least want to get in 2 loops to fit in a long run.  Its ~10mile per loop so my full course would be 3 laps.  I'm pretty bummed by the weather and I'm only doing it to make sure I get in a long run since I went really light on the plan for this week in anticipation of this.  So I figure if the weather is crappy, better to be on a trail then on roads dealing with cars. If I do finish it, it will be my longest run to date :-)

The thing about nutrition is that it is very individual.  What works for me, may or may not work for you.  Try different things and see how you feel.  One thing I will always try and do if at all possible is to live off the course.  So, I will find out what the race organizers are serving and try and train with it.  This way if I can make it work, I don't have to deal with the hassle of carrying everything with me. 

One thing that does help me though at the IM distance is uncrustables.  For those of you unfamiliar, they are basically frozen PB&J's.  Throw one or 2 in special needs bag on the bike or in the back jersey pocket and they are usually thawed out by about a third of the way through the bike.  Gives me a little bit of something in my stomach that it will tolerate and soak up some of the sports drink or gels. 

Nutrition is a great topic for this group to discuss though as people try different things that work or don't work, share them here!!

I would think that starting the third lap on a cruddy day would be one of the more difficult things to actually do!

Best of luck Bill!!

Honestly it's not that bad here.  Nothing that we aren't supposed to be used to anyway.  Roads were unplowed this morning, but there was only like 3-4" on the ground.  My truck is AWD so no big deal really.  I just bought the wife a Volkswaon Tiguan AWD on Monday.  She is abosolutely LOVING it this morning!  

I definitely think hydration will be a concern for me - I am just not used to pushing the fluids.  It is so cold here, that I usually don't even feel thirsty. Maybe knowing this I can avoid it.

Payday's are my go to "solid" food - love the sweet/salty mix and they don't melt. Also really enjoy shot blocs on the bike (too hard to chew on the run) - It is a struggle not to eat them as candy whenever. If I can find any more candy cane gu's I will buy a box of them!

I agree with Ken on this. I've spent a lot of time trying out different combinations and what I found that works (granted I might find something else in the future that works better) is to eat 1 energy gel every half hour. every 3rd gel has caffeine in it. I know this doesn't sound very high tech considering what available but the gels are easy to carry most courses offer them. 

The only thing I did last year during my HIM was eat a power bar on the bike. It was purely for a mental boost which I sorely needed considering what a disaster the first lap had been. Having a bit of solid food in me helped to warm me up and generate a little fire to finish the race. 

When I was training for my marathon I read this article and used the chart as a starting point:

http://www.marathonnation.us/long-run/marathon-nutrition-protocol-for-success/

One of the very well known amateur fast guys on this site once told me that the biggest mistake new racers make when they go long is too much hydration/nutrition. 

Sometimes what we like to think is a nutrition/hydration issue, is really a fitness/training issue.  So we overcompensate.  If you haven't gone that distance before regularly it's just going to hurt!  What we do will drain you of energy.  Sometimes you'll even cramp up or lock up.  A lot of times in race situations we are not only going longer, but faster than we normally do in training.  Well.....something has to give!  If you aren't used to it the possibility of not having the fitness to do it is a reality.  Speaking of reality.....most of us really don't have the time to dedicate to truly prepare ourselves to "race" these distances.  So when we try to do so, we load our bodies with nutrition/hydration and hope we make it through.  This is why you always hear about stomach issues, bloat, etc as excuses after a race.  Don't get me wrong!  I'm just as guilty here.  The simple fact is, we are doing something our bodies are not meant to do.  If we aren't training like we are racing frequently, we really are only prepared to complete, not compete in these events. 

So, maybe, instead of trying to figure out how much we can put into our body during a race, we should be trying to find out how little we can put in our body and make it through.  Fitness and training is IMO, the real answer.  Your body can only process so much nutrition and hydration in a given amount of time.  Chances are much more than 300cals per hour or 12-20oz water per hour is just backing up in your system and causing problems.