Destination MoP is FULL (of motivation!) (Page 5)

Hello Cynthia! How a re the new Sidi's working out for you? And, tell us all about your race this weekend!

-Heidi

Jennifer- The visual of this made me laugh- it sounds like something I'd do! For training sessions, consider taking the time to make a full change in the locker room. It will cut down on chafing and discomfort. Another option is to wear your sports bra under  your bathing suit. 

Figuring out what to wear for your first tri, is anxiety provoking for almost every woman I've ever talked with. And, we all have different solutions, based on size and comfort level.

Hello Melanie- I'm impressed that you are setting running PR's! way to go. What shoes do your wear for trail running?

Welcome to MOP.

-Heidi

Sorry Jen- I didn't see this until after I posted my suggestions

OK-Now that I'm all caught up (I think), what does everyone have planned for tomorrow?

We have our first truly beautiful weekend of the year, and my hands are tied for training  My husband is out of town- so I'm being a single mom for the weekend. I did manage to get a short run in today, with my kids on their bikes. But Jack (4 YO) is still recovering from a sprained ankle, so it was short and not very fast.

How do you like the Merrell's? I switched to five fingers a couple of months ago, and love them. Last week, I ran 3 miles an my Asics, and I was really hurting afterwards.

I'm interested to know if you're able to go back and forth between the 2 different shoes. Let me know how it works for you.

How do you like the Merrell's? I switched to five fingers a couple of months ago, and love them. Last week, I ran 3 miles an my Asics, and I was really hurting afterwards.

I'm interested to know if you're able to go back and forth between the 2 different shoes. Let me know how it works for you.

Off to the races!  I'll post a race report later today.  Hope everyone has a great day and good luck to Cynthia and Andrea in their races!

Start thinking about goals for the month of May... more on that later!

Stu

After my morning grocery run, I plan on getting in anywhere between a 6-10 mile run.  We'll see how tired the legs are.  I'll just make sure I'm always pretty close to home.

So far I like the Merrell Pace Gloves but will use my Brooks Adrenaline for today's run.  Not sure if I'm ready for more than 5 miles 'barefoot' style.  We'll see how transitioning back and forth goes.  But I am already thinking that the Merrell's will be my race shoe.  They are very light and my legs seem to sense more of what is going on.

For trail running, I've been running in Brooks Cascadia's.  I'm thinking of switching to the Merrell trail equivalent to the Pace.  My Brooks left me with a black toenail and some blisters after my 50K in March.  I won't be doing any trail races until late fall so I've go some time to ponder this.  

Well I had a really productive day yesterday (it was a beautiful day here and we haven't had too many yet either).  I had a short run and then I went to the pool.  It was just my second swim so far this year and while there I got some suggestions and tips from one of the lifeguards that also works as an instructor (free expert advice! ).  I've been a comfortable swimmer my whole life but have never swam competitively and I'm amazed by how much more there is to form and stroke that I never knew.  It's fairly challenging stuff and is going to take some practice.  I'm now taking the swim much more seriously (and after Stu's remarks) than I was originally and plan to try to fit in much more swim time as a result.  And my body is a good bit sore to further reinforce how hard of a workout it is!

Today is my long bike day.  It's another beautiful day out today so I should go out for my ride but I just last week got a new bike trainer (early birthday present from my hubby .  I never would've thought I'd get to a point in my life where I'd be so happy to get exercise equipment for my birthday!) and I'm still excited to use it more.  So I'll have to make a decision soon and get my butt moving for the day.

-Erin

Erin,

I completed my first full week of training yesterday and was thinking the same thing about the swim.  I've enjoyed recreational swimming at the lake since high school, but now realize that I need to learn how to breath.  How many days per week are you going to swim?

Matt

I'm back from my 5K.  I'm sad to say that I did not run the whole thing.  I probably walked about .1 miles.  It was an out and back course and there was no shade.  The last 5K I ran was 40 degrees.  This one was mid 60s.  I could have used a few clouds. 

First mile was high 11 min pace.  Approaching the turn around there was a hill.  I ran the whole thing but walked for a few steps after to lower my heartrate.  Walked a few steps at water stop.  Hit mile 2 marker at 25min and some seconds.  That was not too bad (for me).  Unfortunately I started doing math in my head I thought that 1.1 miles might take about 15mins and that I wouldn't do a personal best.  Then I started to really feel the heat.  I took 2-3 more walk breaks using trees and phone poles to tell me when to get moving again.  I finished in 40 mins and some seconds, so I might have gotten a personal best (39:52, I think) I I just didn't walk.  Very frustrating...

Anyway, so now I know that I need to acclimate to the weather and do some hills.  Both were/are in the plans for upcoming weeks, so I'll keep working at it.  I just signed up for another one 5/22.  I drove the course on my way home and there should be some shade and there are 3 hills!!!

Off to shower then do some gardening.  I also plan to get my bike rack on my car so I can take my bike to work for lunch time rides starting tomorrow.

 ~Andrea

I just returned from my training run.  Went pretty well.  Cloudy out.  Good pace.  

Now it's time to help daughter bake cupcakes from scratch.

Andrea,

It sounds like you did great.  Don't beat yourself up about not getting a PB.  You were dealing with new conditions and you kept yourself moving by allowing yourself some recovery time.  Sounds like a very sound strategy to me.  Improvements will come over time, but don't expect them EVERY time!

Thanks for the link Stu.  It's very sound advice.  Unfortunately the event that I'm doing doesn't have any drink stations on the bike, and only has limited water on the run.  That's why I'm making plans for energy gels and also carrying as much fluid as I can on the bike.

Today I did my long bike.  I wasn't actually meant to do it this week till Thursday, but my husband had arranged to go out with a bunch of friends after I'd finished work, so I thought it would be fun to go out with them.  It was a good plan as we did some good hills.

I had a night at work two weeks ago when I was sitting watching someone sleep for the entire night (making sure someone in custody with a head injury didn't die on us), and after 5 hours found I'd read the entire triathlon magazine I'd brought along, so landed up putting together a complete training plan until october.  It takes into account what events I have when, what shifts I'm on, how far my long runs need to be etc.  This is my first week of actually trying to follow the plan, so we'll have to see how it goes.  But I guess what today has told me is that I still have to be flexible.  It wasn't a huge change, it just means I'll be doing my trainer session on Thursday when I was intending to do the long bike.

A question for people who've done the longer events before:  how far did you go for your long bikes before the event?  I've got a good idea of where I'm aiming with my runs, but I don't really know what to be building up to on the bike.  Any insights would be very welcome.

Looking forward to race reports...

Andrea - nice job today.  That you were right at your PB on a more challenging course and under more difficult decisions is definitely another step forward.  Sounds like you're on track for your training going forward and you'll have another crack at it in 3 weeks.  Have fun biking at lunch.  I really enjoy a mid-day exercise break - hope you will too!

Stu

Race went really well today for me.  Good to be back out there... 7 months since the last tri, so it was fun just being part of it.  My primary goal was not to have any back issues, and thankfully it held up well... phew!  My overall time was 1.24+ which was just under my goal time of 1.25 and 3 minutes faster than last year.  Apparently it was a fast day for the course, or the field was stronger as most winning times seemed to be better than last year.  I have to wait for my splits as I screwed up my Garmin timing, but as soon as I have those I'll put together a full race report and provide a link.  I think my big improvement was on the run, but I'll have to wait and see to be sure.  Overall though, I couldn't be happier, especially given my training challenges this past month.

Angel's Race

btw, last year's race report was very helpful for me to review as it reminded me of a couple of issues on the bike course that I would have forgotten otherwise (like how to avoid the cobblestones).

Stu

Yep, you might look into a 3rd water bottle holder if you don't already have one.  I went through 4 bottles of water on my bike/HIM and was quite thirsty when I finished.  It was pretty hot that day though (and don't forget the sun tan lotion).  I generally keep a bottle in my set-up area as well.

Stu

I had worked up to 46 mile rides on the weekends and it wasn't enough, or I hadn't done enough hard training over the winter.  I think had I been consistently doing hard 30-35 mi rides as a base and then did a few long ones (50+), that would have been sufficient.  I did get through the ride alright, but had nothing left for the run.  Got alot of feedback from people when I told them my riding distance that I hadn't done enough... but truth be told, I just didn't have enough time to fit it all in and I kind of jumped into the HIM last minute, so the majority of my training had been more for OLY distance, rather than HIM.  My goal was to finish, and I did. It wasn't pretty though.  It was also a tough day with 20mph winds (including a tree falling down across the road).  So there were alot of factors.

The other strategic error I made was that I spent too much time standing (mashing) on the bike rather than spinning and balancing pulling and pushing in my pedal stroke.  I think this also contributed to my legs (and back) being shot when I got off the bike.  I learned alot doing the race, and I think you always do with your first race at a new distance.

Tom, any thoughts for Rach?

Stu

Goals!

I'd like to suggest to the group that we all create monthly goals for ourselves.  I can see from your logs that some of you are already very goal oriented.  Goals generally give us motivation and guidance for what we hope to achieve long-term.  Personally, I like to have some long term (meaning 1-2 year) goals or objectives... (e.g. what are my overarching objectives to give me a sense of purpose and direction), and some monthly goals (e.g. what are the concrete steps I'm going to take this month that give me a better chance of achieving those long term goals).  Then, each week I'll review how I did on my monthly goals in my logs and actually write it down.  I find the process of communicating (granted mainly to myself) in this way helps keep me accountable.

A couple of tips on setting monthly goals:

Generally it is good to make goals positive statements (e.g. I will do this as opposed to don't do that).  For example, "don't eat late night snacks" might be better as "if I'm hungry at night, I'll eat fresh fruit".  Also, for things like weight loss goals, we know that weight loss generally means more calories used than calories calories consumed.  So, if you use weight loss goals, make sure in your mind (or even in your logs!) that you translate that into actions.  I often find myself too scale focused (result oriented) instead of action focused (eating and exercising better).  Better to focus on actions that are within your control than on the results.  Results come from good actions :-) 

For those new to Triathlons or exercising, I think goal #1 is just getting into a good rhythm - finding what works for you and building on it.  Something that feels sustainable for you.  Things like choosing a plan, deciding when and where to do your workouts, etc.  Basically making your workouts part of your everyday life :-)

So, after I have coffee, I'll write a post about how my goals last month worked out and what my goals are for May.  If you're a January MoPer, perhaps you could join me with the goal review/goal setting.  If you're new to MoP, enjoy reading and then think about what goals you'd like to set for May and share those with the rest of the group.  [For those in our Jan group, I posted a summary of the goals, but I think for the summer group, I'd rather focus on our own communication to the group].

This also seems like a good time to mention two things:  One, please use the training logs here in BT.  Personally, I love seeing the graphs build as the week goes on and letting it add up my year-to-date totals, but the main reason is so that we can track each other's progress and learn from each other's experiences.  Also, on the same page, farther down on the left, is an area called friends.  When you have the chance, please add the folks from this group to your friends list.  That way, if you have the privacy settings on, we can still view your logs and send inspires and all that good stuff!  For those that use the training logs, I will definitely stop by your logs once/week and offer congrats and/or suggestions.  I'd love it if you'd do the same for me!  We're in this together!

Stu

Wow... they found Bin Laden... in a mansion in Pakistan no less. 

Stu's April Results / May Goals

So, April (actually starting end of March) was an epic fail in reaching my goals.  It was supposed to be a month of intense (for me) training for the HIM, and instead I spent most of it nursing my back.  Mid month I was really quite down about it, especially after deciding to bag May's HIM and going back up to 200lbs (being down a bit and eating tend to go together for me).  Aiming for the HIM gave me alot of motivation for training over the winter, and I am thankful for that, and though I think I could probably finish it again this year, it would have likely been the same result as last year and that wasn't my purpose in doing it.  I might think about one in Sept if training goes well over the summer.  Anyway, about mid-month, I realized that I had become a bit too focused on the racing and the weight and not enough about the process.  My reason for doing triathlons originally was to be more healthy.  And ultimately, doing or not doing an HIM has very little to do with my health.  My health is driven by consistent workouts and better eating.  So, I had to decide if not being able to run or bike or doing an HIM was going to be an excuse for not working out or eating right.  And, for a couple of weeks, it was.  But somewhere in the 2nd week of April, I reoriented a bit and decided if I could only swim, then I would swim and that was great.  Focus on what I could do, rather than what I couldn't.  Took me long enough... but then, I'm an obstinate kind of guy ;-)

So May goals are a bit more basic for me.  Work on my flexibility, core, back and knee.  Those are basic building blocks for me to be able to do the tri training.  I can't be lax there.  I'd like to get back to 30 hours of training overall in May - so about 7hrs / week or 1hr/day.  Get back to more healthy eating.  April wasn't very good there.  More fruit and veggies.  Whole Foods salad bar for lunch :-)  Also need to find a good biking route.  I realize one of the reasons I'm not biking outside is I'm just tired of the dog attacks.  But I need to find a good 2 hour weekend route - I'm missing the long bike as part of my workouts.  Last goal is to help others enjoy the tri lifestyle and that starts with this group.  So, I'm dedicated to try to assist you all to achieving your goals! 

Okay, there's my intro for what I'm hoping we all can share each month.  And as we progress during the month, if you feel great about a particular workout or result, share it with us!  If you're struggling with something, share it with us... someone in here probably has struggled with it as well and may have a suggestion, or at least you'll know you weren't alone :-)

Hope everyone has a great day.  So, what are YOUR goals for May?

Stu