Barqhead's Group - FULL (Page 5)

I am having a little trouble understanding the whole training in your correct HR zone method.  After looking at several different training plans, they did not make sense because I could not get my HR low enough even though I did not feel like I was pushing myself.  (Such as my last run. ~ Any slower and I would be walking.)  I understand the whole 220 minus your age to determine each zone, but to train in Zone 1, my HR would have to remain around 94-113?  No way.  I was told I must be well above (endurance-wise) what the plans suggest (as far as HR goes) to start a plan.  It doesn't make sense to me so, I decided to get some help from an outside source.

My brother is the track and field coach at Robert Morris Univ. in PA.  He trains all of his athletes using HR monitors.  To help me out, he is going to email me an excel spreadsheet he developed.  He confirmed that my last run (avg. HR was around 150) was where I need to be.  In our conversation, he basically told me that my HR when doing easy tempo (strictly aerobic) should be between 135-150.  He later told me about the other zones, but none going higher than 180 bpm (zone 5) for my age.  I haven't received the spreadsheet yet, but will share it if anyone is interested.  He has trained many world class athletes in running, but obviously not in other tri specific events, so I don't know how this will mesh with a tri specific workout, but it will be interesting to see.  I like getting all different perspectives on things.

I know there is a really good thread on here somewhere regarding HR Zones.  I'm on my way to find that out right now. 

Got the info I needed from the discussions.  Makes me feel better about training.

Here's the link:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=25733&start=1

Good stuff! 

Pam,

This is a little off-topic but I have to ask,

Why is your nickname Barqhead?  Is it because you like Barq's root beer or something?

BTW,

I tried some of the swim drills today and they seemed to really help - especially the one about realy stretching and extending my catch arm .... and that once I plunge it into the water in front of me to just glide for a second or so ... I could immediately tell that my stroke was smoother and that I was actually punching a smaller hole through the water and that I was gliding some which helped my speed some ... versus creating a lot of turbulence my just jamming my hands into the water and immediately pulling it back ...

Wow, seeing how I have never competed in a triathlon, I am not going to be able to be very specific about times and so forth.  However, I will lay out some of my goals.

1.  Of course, as most of us do, I have weight loss goals.  I would like to get down to my fighting weight (lol).  I started training at 257...my goal for 2009 is to get down to 185 lbs.  Yeah, that's quite a bit of weight, but I am already down to about 210.

2.  Complete three (3) Sprint Tris

3.  Complete one (1) Olympic distance Tri

4.  Complete my first Century bike ride

5.  Would love to increase my running distance to at least a half marathon (without injury of course)

I know, I have some lofty goals considering this is my first official Tri season.  I feel that my goals have to be this challenging to keep me focused.

long time no write,

so little late (or early) merry Christmas and Happy New Year. let this one be your finest.

My goals:

- Have a jolly good time in the Antwerp 70.3 Triathlon.
- Finish in a good time (ll set the my goal after i get my new bicycle)

That's about it.
Of course i'll compete in some other local running and swimming competitions as a warmup for the 70.3. But the 70.3 is and will stay the ultimate target.

I've read the topic about HR with a lot of interest, thx for that!

Jonathan

Goals for 2009

1. Work hard yet injury free 

2. Lose 10 lbs before Augusta (Sept.) 185-175

3. Become a better cyclist / runner

4. If I can enter, Finish Langley Pond Oly Tri in under 2.5 hrs.

5. Complete Augusta in under 6 hrs.

6. Enjoy every other tri as I much as my first two.

Got my new running shoes today:

Brooks Adrenaline GTS 8

Can't wait to try them out. 

barqhead - 2008-12-29 10:05 AM OK, group. We are in the final throws of 2008. It is time to look toward 2009. What are your goals for the coming year, triathlon-wise? Mine are: 1. Get down to a good racing weight (138-142) 2. Increase running volume without getting injured 3. Run a half marathon under 2 hours (1:59:59 is fine) 4. Race IMCDA to the best of my abilities 5. HAVE FUN!! I know the CDA goal is kind of vague, but there are so many unpredictable things about an ironman and this is my first try at this distance. I feel like I should be able to finish within 12-14 hours, but I'll take all 17 if needed

My Goals for 2009:

Complete and Oly distance by April or May.

As part of preparing for the Oly, I want to build up till my long run is 10 miles.

If the mileage goes as planned and I complete the Oly then I'm looking at running a 1/2 Marathon by Fall of 2009.

I started at 313 lbs. in Jan 08, by the end of July was 248 lbs ... been hovering around that since ... so I want to re-focus on the weight loss and get down to 215 lbs. by April 26th ... my birthday.

Also a part of preparing for the Oly, I want to be able to swim 1 mile non-stop, and to bike for 40 miles non-stop.

...

BTW, love the story about Barq and Barqheads ... that stuff is priceless...

..

Barq, I am looking for some very specific information regarding nutrition, but I think I have the basic knowledge as far as percentages of fat, carbs and protein.  Additionally, because I am still in the Sprint stage I haven't fretted a whole lot about it because the length of training and races haven't really required me to plan for the "long haul".

I have restricted my calories quite a bit, my RMR is 2250 calories per day, I subtracted 500 per day.  That would put me losing roughly a pound a week, with no activity.  Then I throw in my workouts and the pounds are falling off.  I pay specific attention to the quality of the calories I eat, trying to get the most bang for my buck.  The higher the quality the more food I get for less calories. (Lean protein/whole grains/lots of green veggies/and low fat dairy).  I also try to save the bulk of my carbs for pre and post workout for fuel and recovery.

My specific questions that I have relate to restriting calories too much and sacrificing muscle at the expense of trying to lose weight.  I have on occasion smelled ammonia in my sweat and that worries me, as I don't want to lose any muscle mass.  ANy suggestions on which book can help me fine tune my restricted calorie diet to both lose weight and retain my muscle mass?

Funny note-  In 4 months I have not had one single cheat day, I am living on will power...lol.  Well, the other night my daughter and I went out for pizza, a well deserved break.  I left the pizza place feeling like I was o drugs....I was high as a kite!  I can only guess that it was the rush of insulin and/or other reactions from the calories and carbs...but man it feel good.  Then of course, the guilt!  lol

I eat 6, sometimes 7 small meals a day.  I take my allotted calories and break them down so I get roughly 250-300 per meal, 6 times a day.  I often throw in a chocolate protein shake with a scoop of peanut butter after my long workouts and a lean body or something after a short workout.

I drink roughly .75 ounces of water per pound of bodyweight (a bodybuilding formula I was givn years ago)...that puts me drinking about 150-160 ounces or eight (8) 20 ounce bottles a day.  Yeah, that's a lot!

I also take GNC Mega Men Sport vitamins...which cause a severe discoloration of the urine, so it's hard to judge my hydration level by that.  I can usually tell by though, by how I feel and my nail bed color.  Of course, drinking the amount of water I drink, I hardly think dehydration is an issue, considering I am not in the IM or HIM distaces.

I just need to fine tune my diet.  I have been told the ammonia smell is beause my body was using amino acids for fuel and ammonia is a by-product of that metabolic process and is escreted through the sweat glands.  Any truth to that?

MsFugitiveHunter ...

I've also done some recent research and reading about nutrition and in particular about protein, burning muscle vs. fat, the 3 forms of energy use in the body, and the smell of ammonia in sweat.

It is caused by burning proteins or amino acids ... and opposite of what one might think, you DON'T take in more protein but actually take in more carbs.  I was thinking if I'm starting to burn proteicn then I'm not getting enough ... but taking in more protein just makes that much more available t burn ..

The reason the protein is being burned for fuel is because you are running low on carbs (glycogen/glucose) .... so like Pam was saying ... bump up on a few more carbs.

A couple of articles I read say that even though you are burning some protein and get that ammonia smell it is not likely you are actually burning up your muscle cells ... that things would have to be pretty drastic for that to start happening ... although it is possible ... but if you are eating those 6 to 7 meals a day and keeping a close eye on your calories and portions of carbs, proteins, and fats ... I seriously doubt you are lacking so much carbs and protein that you are catabolizing your muscles for fuel.

But what does happen, is since you are running low on carbs and having to burn up the protein you take in ... that leaves less protein for recovery and to re-build torn down muscles from your workouts.  So normally after strength training or strenous enough cardio .. there is some muscle breakdown ... and your body repairs that muscles and tries to repair it back a tad bit stronger and bigger ...(hence how body building works .... but you probably know that) ... but since you are burning up some of those proteins ... there is less to do this muscle repair and for general overall recovery.

So, you will start to fatigue sooner, your recoveries will take longer, and you won't build new muscle or even fully repair torn down muscle ... so over time there will be  big fatigue factor.

A Nutritionist told me that if you are active, you need about 0.8 to 1.2 grams of protein per 1 Kg of body weight (or 0.8 to 1.0 grams if you are get that ammonia smell easily or you don't have a clear urine at least once a day - means Kidney's aren't filtering out all the unused protein).  So someone around 100 Kgs. or 220 lbs. needs 80 to 100 grams of protein a day.

Carbs needed each day is figured a little differently ... the standard most used is to calculate that 60% of your calories should come from carbs, and if for example you eat 2000 calories a day, 60% times that is 1200 calories .... then divide that by 4 because each gram of carb has 4 calories .... so 1200 calories divided by 4 grams per carb = 300 grams of carbs to take each day.

And this may be about what your are doing ... by dividing up your meals into 6 or 7 a day and dividing up the calories, etc .... but what these guidelines don't take into account is the heavy exerciser ... these values are for the standard, average Joe.

But, if you are doing heavy exercise and actually burning 3000 or more calories per day (vs. the 2000 that is typically used as an average daily amount for most people) .... well you have to take into account that you are actually burning 3000 or more calories ... and so you will naturally need more carbs .... for fuel .... so 3000 times 60% is 1800 calories ... divided by 4 cal. per gram a carb .... = 450 grams of carbs per day you need ....

.. so that is quite a difference from 300 grams to 450 grams of carbs ... and that 150 grams of carbs that you are missing might just be the cause of the protein being burned and the ammonia smell.

..

P.S.

People who want to lose weight will cut calories ... including carb calories ... but for endurance type athletes .... you will need to cut less of the carb calories and cut more of the fats and proteins ...

You can still cut short some of the carbs and may get the ammonia smell once in a while and faintly  ... like this article was saying ... as long as you are getting some sound nutrition is not likely at all you will burn up your muscle ... so some protein burning is okay ....

I've read it also helps to make most of your carbs complex carbs ... and since they digest slower and won't spike your insulin .... then you will be less likely to store fat ... which of course will help with weight loss ...  so even if 2 people are taking in 300 grams of carbs, but one is mostly simple carbs and the other complex carbs .... the one taking complex carbs will lose fat easier ...

...

Mythbusters...lol, I like it!  I guess when you endure the challenges of a triathlon, you learn to make notes and file away the important stuff.  I have learned that no matter how hard I train or how much I think I know...it seems that nutrition is probably the most overlooked aspect of most training programs.  I mean, you can will or force your body to run that extra mile, or swim that extra lap...but when the body is out of fuel, it is out of fuel and no matter how strong you are or what kind of shape your in, you can not prevent the body from shutting down.

Like Barq said, enough of the technical stuff for the day, it is party time!  I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year!

My training for today, well, I am supposed to have a 48 minute bike ride.  I may or may not fit that in today, I have quite a bit on my plate today trying to figure out which party to attend....lol  If I don't fit it in today, I will probably take the bike ride tomorow, followed by a short run (a brick).

Hope everyone has fun tonight and makes it home safely!

Hey everyone!  I made it safely home from the beautiful Florida Keys.  It was rough leaving the 80 degree weather and coming home to temps in the 20s.  Looks like there's been lots of good discussion while I was away.  All the nutrition talk makes me feel like getting my biochem book out and studying up on metabolism.  But it's New Year's Eve so I think I might just go have a drink instead.

Y'all have a Happy New Year!