Bill's House of Pain-No Vacancy (Page 5)
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Regular ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() TBriggs - 2009-04-21 7:48 PM cole18msu - 2009-04-21 4:56 PM Random question for those who are Bronze/Silver/Gold members... What does this really buy you? I went in looking for an Oly 20 week plan and I think I want to start the 3x2x2 swim focused plan on 5/4 (20 weeks until my Oly on 9/19). I can see the plan and the minutes for each session. If I were a bronze member, which is what this plan is available to, would I be able to see more details? Or does this just let me import the plan into my training schedule? Thanks in advance! I know as a silver member you get LOTS of detailed information about each individual workout. I am talking SPECIFICS on how to perform workouts for S/B/R and strength training each day. IMO it is an excellent investment, especially for beginners like myself. The performance memberships will give you the ability to import training plans into your calendar (at least from what I remember you can't do that with a free membership). All the plans at the bronze level are volume based only. Silver and up will give you more detailed plans using RPE and HR and the like. IMO, the biggest perk of a performance membership of any kind is that you can upload workouts directly from a Garmin device. |
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Elite ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Well I'm spending my day off work at home with a sick little dude (fever). My 16 month old son is running laps around the coffee table waving his arms like a chimp. He doesn't even have a run on his training plan today so clearly the fever is getting to him... Today's topic of the day will be related to cycling. If you have questions that can lead to a topic of the day post regarding S/B/R, nutrition, recovery, or planning go ahead and post them. ![]() |
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Veteran ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Grrrrrreat! So today i'm cycling, and feel like my 68-76 cadence is low. This according to the number of times i've seen 90 listed as the "right" cadence for humans be it cycling or running. My body is purely fast-twitch. Hence the sprint tri focus. Do I: 1. Simply force myself to go 90 2. Meet in the middle at 84 3. Continue as is. I'll be putting the chosen cadence in my earphones and adjusting gearing to allow me to maintain. steve Bill - Ain't sick kids fun? You want to care for them, but you don't want to catch it. Edited by EvenOlder 2009-04-22 1:09 PM |
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Elite ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() TIP OF THE DAY My son is down for a nap so I have time and opportunity for the Tip of The Day. With regard to cycling, I subscribe to the theories Joe Friel lays out in the Training Bible. Essentially he discusses relationship between you and you bike and how that relationship correlates to success on race day. Key to that success are two primary factors: your "bike fit" and your ability to generate and apply FORCE to the pedals. Bike Fit: The term is self-explanatory, but how to get it right is more complicated. There are numerous articles on the topic, and most tri shops (if not all) offer some form of professional fitting. So how do you get it perfect? Well considering the perfect fit would take the perfectly sized bike, and a fitting performed by someone who is not only trained in fitting but is actually GOOD at it the odds of all of those things coming together are slim in my opinion. But you can get it good. You might get it good by having an experienced buddy fitting you in your living room. You might be lucky enough to live near a tri shop where they can provide a fitting. But whatever the case, it's something you don't want to neglect. A bad fit not only impedes your performance by limiting the force you can generate, it hurts because you won't want to ride much on a bike that doesn't fit. And to get good, you need to RIDE LOTS. Ride lots with a bad fit and you'll get injured. So this is the first thing to get straight. I know there are factors outside of cycling that affect things, most notably economics. Bikes aren't cheap. And fittings go about $100 most places. If you have a bit of weight to lose, if you get a fitting and drop 20 pounds, guess what you need to go do again? Right. Another bike fit. But it's worth it. We all know we need the right tool for the job in daily tasks (try brushing your teeth with a hairbrush...). It's the same here. Force: Once you have an optimal fit, you can ride without the fear of power lost to bad equipment related biomechanical issues. And in terms of optimal power output, after the fit is right the rest is largely up to you. Put in the time (Time in the saddle = T.I.T.S) and do the work to develop efficient pedaling skills and you'll be strong on the bike. My favorite quote in that regard is from a pro triathlete who says "Cycling is a blue collar sport. You have to put the time in". Pretty much sums it up. Key to pedaling skills it the right cadence. (There is more to pedaling than cadence but I'll limit the discussion for today to cadence). Most triathletes pedal between 80-100 rpm. Lower range RPM in hard gears puts more stress on the leg mucles and joints, so getting off the bike and going for a run after a hard ride at low RPM is suboptimal for triathletes. Ride at RPM of 100 or more if you're not conditioned for it and while your muscles and joints are taxed less, your overall energy expenditure may be higher. So your legs won't be as fried but overall you won't have as much left in the tank. You find what works through practice, with the goal of finding greater "economy". Economy here refers to getting the most distance covered with the least energy expended whether it be in the water, or on the bike & run. Being comfortable at 80 rpm on flats and 95 rpm on hills has helped me to be more economical under a variety of conditions. So I practice doing both, whether I'm on the road or on the trainer. I don't have hills here, but I have headwind. So when I'm into the wind I increase my rpm as I would on a hill. I'm fortunate to have a Computrainer to simulate hills, and what works there translates to what I do outside pretty well. So to summarize, two concepts that will make you a better cyclist: 1) Get a bike that fits and get yourself fit for that bike. 2) Find your optimal cadence that allows you to run off the bike. Of course once you do those things, RIDE LOTS. That's all for now. Post your questions or comment on how you've had success or difficultly with bike fitting or cadence. Have a good day! |
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Elite ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() EvenOlder - 2009-04-22 1:06 PM Grrrrrreat! So today i'm cycling, and feel like my 68-76 cadence is low. This according to the number of times i've seen 90 listed as the "right" cadence for humans be it cycling or running. My body is purely fast-twitch. Hence the sprint tri focus. Do I: 1. Simply force myself to go 90 2. Meet in the middle at 84 3. Continue as is. I'll be putting the chosen cadence in my earphones and adjusting gearing to allow me to maintain. steve Bill - Ain't sick kids fun? You want to care for them, but you don't want to catch it. Timely post Steve! Yeah they're fun. Of course he won't eat HIS lunch. But I sit down with a bowl of curried quinoa and he wants MY lunch. I got him his own bowl... ![]() |
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Extreme Veteran ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Is there an easy way to figure out your RPM? all I know is that I am a lot slower on the bike than most |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() JeepFleeb - 2009-04-22 5:15 PM etselec444 - 2009-04-22 5:10 PM Is there an easy way to figure out your RPM? all I know is that I am a lot slower on the bike than most Best option is to buy a computer with a cadence sensor. You can try counting every right or left pedal stroke for a minute, but you'll be focused on that instead of actually riding so it may not reflect what you normally do. And you'll have to keep doing it when you want to measure. It's worth $20 to let a computer constantly calculate and display it for you. Exactly. No need for anything fancy. I had a $$ wireless model and it's in my closet in favor of a cheaper model. I have the Cateye Atrale 8. |
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Regular![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() I am glad cycling is the topic today. I just finished up with an Isolated Leg Training session on the bike where I would unclip one foot and spin with the other. I never realized how choppy my pedal stroke was. Session prescription can be found in my log. I do believe that incorporating a drill such as this into warmups/cooldowns could be another great way to improve efficiency on the bike. Any thoughts? |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() TBriggs - 2009-04-22 6:06 PM I am glad cycling is the topic today. I just finished up with an Isolated Leg Training session on the bike where I would unclip one foot and spin with the other. I never realized how choppy my pedal stroke was. Session prescription can be found in my log. I do believe that incorporating a drill such as this into warmups/cooldowns could be another great way to improve efficiency on the bike. Any thoughts? One leg drills are a great way to improve pedalstroke efficiency. But dude... you're gona lose your mind when I bring the Computrainer up to the assessment room. Check this out: This is a Spinscan analysis. It breaks your pedalstroke down into 12 bars for each foot. The bars in the graph each graphically represent your power at that position in the stroke. Low spots = deadspace. And your "spinscan number" is basically your overall efficiency. With focused drills you'll see that graph flatten out and the number comes up, and you're more efficient. So on the trainer we can do focused drills for say 20-30 seconds at a time until you get what efficient pedaling feels like for you. That way when you're out on the road you can work on it based on feel. Man I wish everyone in the group was local! We could make a day of it. |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() |
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Regular![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() THAT IS WICKED AWESOME!!! |
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Veteran![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Cadence report: So i mixed some music to all be exactly 90BPM. And tried hard to have my right foot press down per beat. The report: 1. At 39.47/12mi, I was way slower than last time 2. I was much sweatier and more tired 3. I felt like I couldn't keep the cadence even - always either speeding up or slowing down to meet 90bpm 4. Despite shifting into easier gears, the effort needed to maintain 90bpm fluctuated much more than I would have guessed. The route is FLAT, so the wind must be the variable as the road curves. Basically, 90BPM felt way too fast and totally sucked. I was in the 2-4th easiest gears. Normally i'm in the 2-4th hardest gears on my 53front/12-25 rear. I'm probably gonna try 80BPM next ride. It's a little faster than what I've been doing, but not much. I'm trying to keep the forces down on the ol' joints, but 90 just isn't gonna happen right now. steve Edited by EvenOlder 2009-04-22 6:54 PM |
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Master![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Looks like I need to invest in a cycle computer that features Cadence. I have no clue about what my cadence is. I do however, try to find a gear that I can easily spin without getting dropped by the bunch I usually ride with - even if the speed gets pushed up. I do know that my cadence has increased as I used to really grind out the big gears but I was getting some real soreness in the quads. No I spin more and suffer less. The problem I encounter is the higher the cadence the higher the heart rate and, although my legs feel better I don't necissarily have the fitness to continue higher cadences for long periods. |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() Iron_Gus - 2009-04-22 7:31 PM Looks like I need to invest in a cycle computer that features Cadence. I have no clue about what my cadence is. I do however, try to find a gear that I can easily spin without getting dropped by the bunch I usually ride with - even if the speed gets pushed up. I do know that my cadence has increased as I used to really grind out the big gears but I was getting some real soreness in the quads. No I spin more and suffer less. The problem I encounter is the higher the cadence the higher the heart rate and, although my legs feel better I don't necissarily have the fitness to continue higher cadences for long periods. Gus this is a perfect illustration of the fact that there's a "range" within which you will find your comfort zone. Too hard = pain. Too fast = fatigue. The money is somewhere in the middle. You'll get there. ![]() |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() EvenOlder - 2009-04-22 6:53 PM Cadence report: So i mixed some music to all be exactly 90BPM. And tried hard to have my right foot press down per beat. The report: 1. At 39.47/12mi, I was way slower than last time 2. I was much sweatier and more tired 3. I felt like I couldn't keep the cadence even - always either speeding up or slowing down to meet 90bpm 4. Despite shifting into easier gears, the effort needed to maintain 90bpm fluctuated much more than I would have guessed. The route is FLAT, so the wind must be the variable as the road curves. Basically, 90BPM felt way too fast and totally sucked. I was in the 2-4th easiest gears. Normally i'm in the 2-4th hardest gears on my 53front/12-25 rear. I'm probably gonna try 80BPM next ride. It's a little faster than what I've been doing, but not much. I'm trying to keep the forces down on the ol' joints, but 90 just isn't gonna happen right now. steve That's the best way to do it Steve. Gradual change... |
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Expert![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() On Biking, I really enjoy it, I bike to work in the summer a 20K round trip, great way too get the stress out, and/or get mentally prepared for a busy day. I consider the bike to work part of my training, but I think maybe I should do more rides expressly for training. What do you guys think? I don't want to wear myself out with commuting and training, along with simming and running. But I do want to be properly prepared. Second thing, I am on a Trek 7.3 hybrid right now and I know that it will for sure get me through this season and hopefully a few sprint distance races. I have a freind selling a cervelo prodigy road bike that he got for a steal of a deal as a member of a race team, and I think I could get a great deal on a very well maintained used bike...making sure of course that it was a proper fit. I am not really sure what the, and if there are, differences in road bikes and tri bikes besides the aero bars and configuring the seat position...so the question is when I do move up is the used road bike a good idea or should I look into something Tri-specific, if there is such a thing . Thanks guys, lets keep it up...I really feel like I am part of a team and it is really keeping me motivated so lets keep going strong! |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() justinfss - 2009-04-23 10:31 AM On Biking, I really enjoy it, I bike to work in the summer a 20K round trip, great way too get the stress out, and/or get mentally prepared for a busy day. I consider the bike to work part of my training, but I think maybe I should do more rides expressly for training. What do you guys think? I don't want to wear myself out with commuting and training, along with simming and running. But I do want to be properly prepared. Second thing, I am on a Trek 7.3 hybrid right now and I know that it will for sure get me through this season and hopefully a few sprint distance races. I have a freind selling a cervelo prodigy road bike that he got for a steal of a deal as a member of a race team, and I think I could get a great deal on a very well maintained used bike...making sure of course that it was a proper fit. I am not really sure what the, and if there are, differences in road bikes and tri bikes besides the aero bars and configuring the seat position...so the question is when I do move up is the used road bike a good idea or should I look into something Tri-specific, if there is such a thing . Thanks guys, lets keep it up...I really feel like I am part of a team and it is really keeping me motivated so lets keep going strong! I raced my first season on a 25 pound $200 mountain bike that had been in my storage unit for 5 years. My rationale was I wanted to make sure I was going to stick with it before I dropped some cash. At the end of my first season I got a sweet deal on a used tri bike from a BTer. MOST importantly, it fits like a glove. So I'm all for it if it fits. As far as road vs. triathlon bikes, that's really your call. There are bikes we like to refer to as triathlon bikes, and road cyclists will call "time-trial" bikes. Same thing. If you're doing a lot of commuter cycling, a road bike is going to be the way to go. Riding in traffic on a tri bike, you'll want your hands close to the brakes anyway so you won't be down on the aerobars. Commuter cycling is a great way to get in some time in the saddle. You'll need to accomplish the key workouts in your plan, but you can most likely safely count commuter cycling against your total volume of aerobic work for the week. Aaron may chime in here and give you his opinion on getting in other types of bike work while commuting. I don't have experience with it and his knowledge base is deeper than mine... so for how count those miles, I'll defer to his opinion. I agree about the motivation. I know you guys are looking at my logs so I need to get my training in! ![]() I'd like to hear more from a few among us who've been silent since singing on to the team. Hopefully they're too busy training to post. ![]() Edited by Bill 2009-04-23 10:46 AM |
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Veteran![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() One of my staff asked me what i was doing. How do you explain your knees moving up and down at 80bpm while you are sitting in a chair imagining riding your bike? |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() EvenOlder - 2009-04-23 11:05 AM One of my staff asked me what i was doing. How do you explain your knees moving up and down at 80bpm while you are sitting in a chair imagining riding your bike? I've given up trying to explain my disorder training to people. |
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Extreme Veteran![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() EvenOlder - 2009-04-23 10:05 AM One of my staff asked me what i was doing. How do you explain your knees moving up and down at 80bpm while you are sitting in a chair imagining riding your bike? That's too funny ![]() |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() etselec444 - 2009-04-23 11:56 AM EvenOlder - 2009-04-23 10:05 AM One of my staff asked me what i was doing. How do you explain your knees moving up and down at 80bpm while you are sitting in a chair imagining riding your bike? That's too funny ![]() I vote for Flashdance... |
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Elite![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() TIP OF THE DAY
2) I “pre-eat” before going to restaurants. If I know I’m going to eat something that may be very high calorie, or a place with baskets of chips and whatnot on the table, I pre-eat. By that I mean about 30 minutes beforehand I have an ounce of raw almonds or a slice of whole grain high dietary fiber bread and chase it with a 12 ounce glass of water. That usually has me feeling half full, and it seems to wake up my “I don’t need any more food” mechanism a little faster than had I been stuffing my face with chips.
3) I have learned to sloooooooooow down when I eat. I knew I had a problem when my little girl got in the habit of asking me why I ate so fast. I find if I eat lunch with a co-worker or someone who will talk to me during lunch that helps me slow down. How much does it help? I often get a sandwich in our cafeteria. If I eat alone and I lose focus on eating slow I eat the whole sandwich. If I’m eating with someone and I stay on task I am full after half a sandwich. That’s 50% less for those of you who are keeping score.
4) I watch the glycemic index of what I’m eating. I’ll save a detailed explanation for another nutrition topic. But basically I want to eat carbs that don’t raise my blood sugar too fast. The glycemic index (GI) is a ranking of carbohydrates on a scale from 0 to 100 according to the extent to which they raise blood sugar levels after consumption. Foods with a high GI are those which are digested and absorbed quickly and result in significant fluctuations in blood sugar levels. Low-GI foods, by virtue of their slow digestion and absorption, produce gradual rises in blood sugar and insulin levels. NOW that’s not to say I never eat high GI foods. Quite the contrary, I eat them frequently. Right after exercise, that’s when I eat high GI carbs (usually 80 grams) and protein (20 grams) so I’m getting the recommended 4:1 carb to protein ratio for optimal recovery and glycogen synthesis. About 90 minutes later, I eat a good meal with my low GI carbs and protein. The cool thing about doing that is I can find a way to fit in foods I used to binge on, like white bread or flour tortillas (low fat). When I was at my peak weight it was nothing for me to eat a dozen flour tortillas as I drove home from the grocery store. No I eat a few after I train. And I still lose weight while enjoying foods that I like.
That’s it for now. There’s so much information I’ll try to keep it in manageable portions. If you want further reading, check out any of the articles here on BT by Marni Rakes. She taught me everything I’ve listed above. She does nutrition planning through BT if you need help with that, and she’s very knowledgeable and personable, and if you asked me about who to go to for help she would be the first person I’d suggest without hesitation. |
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