Gearwhore/himself Group - FULL (Page 5)

I'm guessing you guys may read the forums on the site more often than I do and may have already seen this, but looking around I just saw this one that pertains to running and where (which HR) to train. It reinforces the fact that you don't need to gun it every time out there. Included in the thread is another link to a thread called "The Cult of Kicking @ss" or something like that, which is success stories of BTers that have dropped time off their run splits by training in the proper aerobic zones (read: slower). Take a look if you have time, otherwise read thorugh Mike's (Ricci) initial response to the poster:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=64059&posts=7&start=1

Fred - for your seat woes, have you considered taking your bike in to your LBS (local bike shop) and asking them to help you make the right adjustment? Without knowing much more, it's difficult to say where the problem is coming from and to be honest, outside of some general thoughts, I'm not qualified to make that assessment even if I were able to see you. There is a specific range of angles that your body should comply with (given your flexibility or lack thereof) to make the bike comfortable. My suggestion would be to talk to someone at the LBS, tell them you don't need a bike fit, but explain where there's discomfort and why and see if they can take a quick look at you and recommend a position (higher and back a little, etc. - or even position it for you) that feels better.  Aside from that, it doesn't appear that you have a lot of time in the saddle and a lot of the awkwardness can come from getting used to a new position. Once you talk to the LBS or find a position that feels okay, stick with it for a little while and build up the time you spend riding gradually so your body can adapt.

Is there any specific pain that you're feeling while riding? Or does it just feel a bit off in general?

Ryan's on this one, so I'll just add the following link, which is a great article on how to properly fit a tri bike:

http://www.slowtwitch.com/mainheadings/techctr/bikefit.html

When you're done reading that one, browse around the slow twitch site, it's full of great info for triathletes.

The only thing I would add, for Fred specifically, but for everyone getting into the sport - some of the best money you can spend on cycling is getting a bike fit.  Being comfortable on your bike is paramount, and the only way to do that is to find an experienced bike fitter and have them size you up properly to get the proper seat height, reach, stem angle, etc.

Keith -

First, go read the November Chat with Coach Kevin Konczak here on BT:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1053

After reading that, I would add that the purpose is to build kick leg strength.  The added resistance of the fins builds your legs, which is great for all around conditioning, but specifically helps prepare you for the rigors of open water swimming.  Having said that, triathlon swimming almost always means open water, in a wetsuit, and kicking is not a particularly useful component.  Kick for body balance, not for propulsion.  With that in mind, determine whether you really want the fins.  I have them, but I have every dumb training tool I can afford.  I do like getting through my kick sets faster though, for what it's worth.

Finally, don't kid yourself, the chics dig you already.  They're just going to appreciate how much more of "you" there is to dig in those jammers.  I recommend wearing them to work and asking for opinions around the office just to build your confidence.

This is the $64,000 question of triathlon: am I training too hard, not hard enough, or just right?  If you feel like you're not training hard enough, you might try bumping it up a notch and then monitoring how you feel.  If you get really sore or extremely fatigued, then you're going too hard.  If you ALWAYS feel fresh and well rested and never sore, you're not training hard enough. 

After you do this for a little while you start to figure some things out.  One of the things that you'll learn from experience is how you feel at the beginning and the end of a training cycle (the micro-cycles of 1 week, the medium cycles of a month, and the macro-cycles of a year).  From week to week, you'll have days where you feel great, and others where you're tired, and that will usually be tied to hard workout days.  In the medium cycle, you'll start a three week period feeling great, and then be pretty damn tired just before a rest week.  At the end of a season, you'll feel worn out and "thin" - and after a month off, ready to get back to training. 

I'm not trying to over-complicate the answer, but you've basically stumbled onto the triathlon equivalent of "what's the meaning of life?"  You have to be willing to experiment with your body to find the answer.  You have to be willing to push a little bit too far to find out how far is too far.  You have to vary your workouts, and adjust timing, and move schedules.  It's all part of the game and there is no easy answer.  If the answer was easy, everyone would be Peter Reid and the sport would be boring.

Sorry, I know that answer didn't help much, but that's about how I size it up.  I say try going a little harder and see how you feel, if you're not being challenged you'll get bored and you won't meet your racing expectations.

http://www.getdunked.com/pages/default.asp?page_id=GWTFG53481&sid=ZCMRB32112

 Is this the professional way of getting the "LT" test???

Yep.  Those VO2 numbers would be interesting too.  Not much help in training, but interesting to show genetic capacity.

To put things in perspective for you a bit, 5 hours (300 minutes) of training is really the very least training you could do to comfortably complete an Olympic distance race.  My average training load this year will be something like 11-12 hours/week, with some weeks approaching 16-17 hours.  Now, that represents sort of the heavy end of the scale for training, and the only folks who would train much more than that (20+) are getting ready for an IM, are VERY serious about their racing, or just have too much free time.

As to days off, the norm is one day/week.  Two is really more than you need, assuming you are otherwise healthy and can get more or less normal sleep.  I can understand the attraction to 2 days off, my only point is that you don't NEED two days off. 

The basic structure of any triathlon program is 3x/week in all three sports.  The literature repeatedly says that to make progress in all 3, you need to hit all 3x/week.  I would even go so far as to say that this basic structure has reached the level of common knowledge within the sport.

So, what your coach is telling you is all by the book stuff, nothing unusual here at all.  Still, that doesn't mean you have to adhere to this advice 100% and follow the rules absolutely.  We all have other commitments in life, most notably family commitments and professional obligations.  I would never presume to make decisions for you about what is "right" and "wrong" when it comes to sacrificing time with your family or for work obligations.  If you can only get 5 days/week of training in with 2 days off, and a total of aound 5 hours of training, that's fine, keep up that program.  You might consider readjusting things a bit so that you get more quality out of your shorter sessions, maybe consider giving up the weight lifting, and it sounds like a serious discussion with your coach is in order.  But don't let the way that everyone else trains control the decisions that are unique to your life.

Having said that, I think there are obvious consequences.  Unless you're just plain physically gifted you're probably not going to be winning your age group on 5 hours of training per week.  After all, there are plenty of guys like me out there putting in more than double that volume, and it's almost inconceivable that they won't be faster.  But there are all kinds of athletes on the course.  Some are there to cross the finish line no matter how long it takes.  Some train to go a little faster than that, but realize they're not challenging the leaders.  Others push themselves to complete exhaustion and love the physical challenge of race day, even though they're just competing against the clock.  And, it goes without saying, there are plenty of athletes trying to beat the other competitors and pick up some hardware on race day.  Every one of these athletes is out there for a good reason, none of them are right or wrong, and they all deserve at least some recognition for tackling the challenge.

So, instead of setting rigid time goals, you might just aim to finish an olympic distance race.  You'll get in good shape, you'll be healthier than you were before, and this provides a great way to lose weight.  But you'll most likely be racing toward the middle or back of the pack.  And that is perfectly acceptable, just be realistic about the choices you are making.  I'm one of those people who is all about recognizing and living with the choices and sacrifices we make.  In that regard, I don't question people who make informed decisions and accept the consequences.  So, for you, I think it's just fine to keep doing what you're doing, so long as you don't get done with a race and complain about how slow you were going, not winning, feeling mediocre during the race, etc.  Train as much as you can, have fun and get in good shape, and enjoy race day with no rigid expectations.

James,

It's good to see your reply from Adam. As long as you are meeting the goals you set forth for yourself then you are accomplishing what you set yourself out to do. I do find it easier getting an extra workout in each morning. I'm not sure on your family siutaion and if you need to be there in the morning but if you can spare the time that is where you may find the additional time to get out there. It is hard getting up extra early when you arent used to it... its just like getting into the routine of training. It will take some time but it will be second nature after a while to get up that early. I need to be at work at 7am every day so I get up pretty early! On the other hand I do not have any children so it's not like I have many other obligations in the morning. Just keep up with what you are doing now. If you want to cut back to one rest day a week later on then go for it. If not then you are still accomplishing your goals. After that you are only exceeding them so there is no need to get down about it. Keep up the good work, we are all on the same ship here. Also thanks for all the support you have been giving us in the inspirations, its good to see we gained a positive player to the group. Have a good afternoon boys!

I'm not sure what you mean about Chicago being boring - I mean really, is there a more exciting team in the NFL? From week to week you never know what you're going to get. Grossman could throw for 300 yards and 5 touchdowns or he could throw 4 INTs and have 2 fumbles. If that's not excitement, I'm not sure what is! Still though, I may be cheering for the Bears even though it pains me to do so as a Packers fan. I'm indifferent in the other game but I think the Patriots will pull it out in the end.

I'm reconsidering whether we really want Ryan in our group.  How can a Packers fan root for Da' Bears?!  That's blasphemy!  And the Pats are going down, down, down!  There is no way they can hang with the Colts in the dome.  I also like New Orleans, just as a feel good story in football.  Should make for some interesting games. 

Everyone have a good weekend, I have friends in town and won't be online until probably Monday (although the last time I said that I was checking BT in 12 hours, so whatever).