Slornow and Wannabefaster's Winter Mentor Group-CLOSED (Page 47)

Eight mile easy run this morning. Did some bike maintenance this afternoon as well as some chores around the house. Yesterday I noticed a "knot" above my right achilles but below the calf. Same calf I've had problems with. Really worked on it with Stick, roller and self massage/destruction   It didn't bother me at all during the run but I think I'm going to try to get in and get some ART done on it.

Jim-have thought about you many times over the last few days. Great to have you back. Hope you have been taking care of yourself and not just everyone else during this difficult time.

Jamie-Nutrition....big issue and hugely important. I can't address Ironman distance as I haven't done one. For half ironman distance I will be figuring out how many calories per hour on the bike I need to take in. You will be on the bike the longest so it will be most important in getting your nutrition right. Some people do only liquid, some do liquid and gel and some will add in some easy digested solid food...like Honey Stinger Waffles or something similar. I will plan on using liquid and gels to get my calories and hydration on the bike and then waterand gels...probably with caffeine on the run to pull me through. 

I have used primarily Accelerade in races and training but have switched to Fluid brand products. I like the milder taste better. I have used a variety of gel products over the years...Accel Gel, GU and Honey Stinger gels. You will want to try a few during training and see what you like both from a taste standpoint and also what "agrees" with your stomach.  If you plan to live off the course in your longer races then you will want to try what will be available during the race.  

12km (7.5 miles) on the treadmill today... tough but survivable 

The missus has been convincing me to do a HM with her in late May... this is going to be one hell of a busy summer!

Scott

Blanda-that is a GREAT picture. Very cool....looks like so much fun.

Monday already? Hope everyone gets the week off to a good start.

Jim, glad to see you back. Under the terrible circumstances, I hope all else is well.

Blanda, that's a great picture! Looks like that sort of race is a lot of fun to participate in!

Nice tips on nutrition, everyone. I've been wondering the same thing recently (mostly cause I talk to Jamie a lot during our long runs) I've heard great things about Coke. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has attempted using whole foods instead of the more processed stuff like Gu.

-Nate

On the topic of nutrition, what do you do, if anything, for a sprint.  I have only one one and I only took on some liquids in transition.  I didn't carry anything on the bike or take anything on during the run.  It seemed to be ok but a sample of one is not much info.

Also, what are your favorite race day liquids?  I want to try a few on the next few Sundays since that is generally my longest workout of the week, a long ride with my LBS group.

Randy-thanks for the tips on race day nutrition. I'm going to start trying out Perform and see what I think, since they'll have that at the race. I'd really like to live on the race nutrition, since that will be a lot easier to plan on, but I'll see how I stomach it during training.

Rene-I'm doing IM Raleigh (June, hot) and Ironman Louisville (August, HOT). I'd love some details on your nutrition plan, if you get the time. Luckily, I've eased myself off of caffeine, but I have been using the PowerGels with one hit of caffeine in them.

Stuart-I don't take anything during a Sprint. Based on average times, I'd say you don't need anything. I'd say it's also hard to digest anything during a Sprint bc your heart rate will probably be high the entire time. Again, that's just assuming you have an average time, if you're going to take longer, you might re-think my advice. 

For liquids, I'd think water would be best. Again, you're looking at around a ninety minute workout in a Sprint, on average, so I'd think you don't need electrolytes or Gu, or anything other than hydration. Your mile may vary, but that's what I'd say. 

Stuart-for a sprint I will carry one bottle with a fairly light mix of a sports drink. That allows me to get in something to drink on the bike. Frankly, for most sprints we could probably get by with just water but I like to take in a few calories on the bike as I usually don't do anything but water on the run in a sprint. If its a longer sprint...say 20 mile bike and 4 mile run I will sometimes do a gel during the run for an extra boost.  I would suspect more people overdo it in terms of hydration/nutrition in a sprint than get less than what they need.

Brands of drink..I've used Accelerade for years. I rarely used it at the recommended strength. I like the taste but feel it can be a bit strong when mixed as directed. Recently I have been using Fluid brand products both during and after workouts. They have a milder taste and are basically clear in color. They are not carried in as many places but can be ordered directly from Fluid. www.livefluid.com or I think Swim Outlet also carries Fluid brand. I really like the raspberry lemonade flavor in the performance drink that is to be used during exercise. You can order a pack with 8 single servings of the different flavors to get a feel for what you like.  Definitely, try out what you are going to use on race day and make sure it agrees with you.

Short swim at lunch is the only thing scheduled for today. Going to the chiropractor tonight for some ART to work on the knot in my calf.

Well I've been MIA for longer than I like to be.  Short version: DH accidentally gave the dog (yes, the one with the torn acl) his meds instead of hers.  Naproxen can be fatal to dogs.  Luckily I figured it out about 45 minutes after it happened and she spent the weekend at the e vet getting fluids and anti ulcer meds.  She's home today and has a follow up appt at our vet for bloodwork.  If her numbers are good then she's in the clear.  **fingers crossed**  Anyway, that and a trip to NYC to take my cousin (bride to be) out to dinner really wreaked havoc on my schedule.  But I'm back in the swing of things with a decent spin this am.

SO what did I miss?

Randy: congrats on your daughter's scholarship - that's fantastic.

Jamie: nice job on the 5K!  Nate you rocked it too!

Scott: Spring is near!  Nice to get outside

Stuart:Good idea on the quick run right after a ride.  

Mary: 9 miles is fantastic!  Keep it up

Blanda: congrats on the good race!  I can't wait to MTB again soon and chase you down the rock gardens

Jim: glad to see you back.  I hope you are all doing ok

I don't want to be away this long again - missed far too much!!

Oh and for nutrition, I swear by HAMMER Nutrition!!  Perpetuem has been awesome for me on long rides and the hammer gels are the only ones my husband can stomach (FYI if anyone has sensitive stomach issues)

Thanks for the input.  I will try a few of your suggestions to see how it works for me.  That said, for the sprint I will do like I did last time and just take a quick hit of hydration in transition.  I will keep the pound plus off the bike.

Did my third straight day of 25 mile ride and then a run immediately following.  I did a minor course change that moved the distance up from 0.97 to 1.12 miles.  My ride was OK but the run came in at 10:08 or 9:03/mile.  I am happy with that.  Tomorrow I will do a short ride and the 3 miles running. 

One thing I am finding is I really could use an active rest day more often than I am taking them.  Not sure which will yield better results: push hard now without the rest (7 weeks to my first event) and use the last two weeks to taper down or take them now.  Which will yield better quality workouts and end result?

What is your weekly plan like now, as in how many rest days? And what makes you think you need more? I'm not saying you don't, just trying to get an idea of what your average week looks like now.

I am using a modified Oly plan since my early races are all sprints.  My Oly is not until Nov.  The plan calls for one rest day a week.  For quite a while I was not taking any.  Now my effort level and fitness are both improved so do feel tired on days like today.

Back in the day this was quite normal but I am a few days (aka decades) older now.  When I train hard for several days in a row my times across the same course decline.  I am OK with it because it is certainly something I can live with.  When I was swimming it was accepted that you swam fatigued, especially early in the season for the payoff later at the championships.

This is a new sport for me.  Do I keep pushing and get the rest as my event approaches like I did knowing that the long term benefit is there?  Or, do I take that one rest day a week and perform better the other six days?  Example, I rode each of the last few days on a reasonably hilly course, 25 miles.  Sat was at 18.25 mph, Sun & Mon were 17.25 mph.  My run at the end of each was about a mile but faster each day.  Just not sure what to make of it.

I hope that makes sense to you.  Appreciate the insight.

Stuart-rest and/or recovery is very important in the overall process of improving fitness. We stress the body then allow it time to adapt and recover so it is better prepared to deal with more stress next time. I'm probably butchering this but I read something that made alot of sense...something along the line of: we don't make gains while we are training we make gains while recovering from the training.  I would incorporate frequent rest or active recovery days in your plan. Pushing straight through for 6-7 weeks and then tapering just before the race will not yield the same benefits as incorporating periodic rest. Plus, you will likely get burned out on the training and have plateaued at some point in your training We all get preoccupied with getting in our miles, yards or hours and sometime srest gets pushed aside.  Give yourself a rest day regularly. If you feel like you "must" be doing something then maybe an easy swim, yoga or light stretching.

One other thing to be careful about is trying to PR every one of your runs. Don't get preoccupied with how long it takes to complete the run. Remember keep easy days easy

Mary-most plans have some sort of periodization where there is an easy week after 2 or 3 weeks of gradually building volume. Allows the body to rest and adapt as discussed above. The plan is "big picture" so be careful not to overdo it during an easy week as it may keep you from being able to hit the workouts down the road. 

Had a killer ART session on my calf this afternoon. No run scheduled until Wednesday so still have a couple of days to work on it. Probably will head back in for another session late in the week.    

I would ABSOLUTELY take one day off per week, if you feel like you need it. Even if you're not going 110%, that rest day is needed to get stronger. You're tearing down muscle throughout your workouts, and, especially with running, your joints need time to absorb the workouts, since your aerobic fitness will adapt much quicker than your tendons and ligaments. Especially since your race is so far off, I'd take a marathon approach, not a sprint. You're in this for the long haul, so take the time your body needs, and it'll pay off later in the year. 

That's my two cents, hope it helps!

Rich Roll was just saying this the other day on his podcast: Most people go too hard on their easy days and too soft on their hard days. It can be tempting to always get better each run, but that's just a race injury in the short-run, no pun intended!