Ridgelake's Group - Filled up with Fantastic Folks! (Page 5)

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2008-01-16 9:45 AM
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Another article on lactate threshold from the coaching group....

 

Lactate Threshold, Simplified

As we cycle through rounds of testing, we are establishing and retesting Lactate Threshold in our various sports. So exactly what is Lacate Threshold, how can we improve it?
Each time you stand up, your body produces lactic acid. At the same time, your body is able to absorb it at an equal rate. Lactic Acid very simply is the waste product of the muscles, after they have expended energy.
The effort of an easy or heart rate zone 1-2 workout does produce lactic acid. The body is able to absorb that waste product within just a few hours. The harder the workout, the longer it takes the body to recover from it.
To absorb the lactic acid the body needs the proper amount of mitochondria, red blood cells, etc (many more things that I am stating here, I am aiming for simplicity). To build the proper amount of RBC and mitochondria, we train in the endurance or aerobic zones.  
Building the proper base, allows us to develop the proper physiology to handle training at higher intensities.
The most common mistake new triathletes make is training too hard too soon. As we enter into this sport we commonly believe that to go faster you must work hard every single solitary day.
So we go out and make every workout hard. Yet we lack the proper aerobic base, the proper physiology, the proper cell components to handle that work load. It would be like building a mushroom. A great big top on a skinny stalk. Eventually the top gets too big and heavy for the stalk to handle, so it snaps.
When an athlete tries to work intensity without the proper base, then they will get injured. If the athlete works heavily in zones where lactic acid is accumulated without the proper foundation to handle it, injury occurs and progress is impossible.
How do we then improve our Lactate Threshold? There is a very simple way of looking at it. Build a proper base of 8-12 weeks in the Endurance and Intensive Endurance Zones. If you are not a beginner you can incorporate intensity sooner. Beyond that properly structure your training. Hard days hard, easy days easy. The easy days allow you to recover from the hard effort.
One of the thousands of things I learned from Coach T, is rather than stagger hard bike and run days, to do them on the Same day. If I have a hard bike on Wed, then I will do a hard run, rather than saving my hard run for Thursday. Why? Because if I stagger those workouts I am not truly recovering from the hard effort, I am just accumulating. Hard days hard and easy days easy allows for a proper recovery.
Lactate Threshold is a fun way to train by, when trained the right way. So remember, don't go all out for every workout, spend more time building the proper base, foundation, aerobic capacity, and work off of that.

2008-01-16 11:27 AM
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Howdy Peeps!

Well, after this morning's run I can (hopefully) safely say "I'mm baaaaack!"

I did 3 miles this morning and my back actually felt better after the workout than before! Monday, I did a sloooowww, careful mile and stiffened up pretty good afterward, but this morning went very well.

I'm nervous about swimming, but think I will give it a go tomorrow and see how I do. There is quite a bit of back employed in good torso rotation and of course flip turning, so I will start out slow and see where I go from there.

Interesting side effect from the morning run is that I have more energy this morning that I have had in a while.
2008-01-17 7:30 AM
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Posted by Paulo Sousa

Interactions between training sessions – Part I: Load, Fatigue and Adaptation

A fundamental problem in training planning is the way you sequence the various training sessions inside one micro-cycle. Even though this problem is present for any sport, when it comes to triathlon training it assumes a particularly important role. Due to the different characteristics and muscle groups involved in swim-bike-run, it is often hard to see how the interactions between training sessions effect training adaptations.

The training process can be loosely modeled as a series of sequenced processes composed of:

Training Load (session) -> Fatigue -> Adaptation(recovery) -> Performance

Obviously the training load imposed is a central aspect of training planning. However, fatigue plays an important role in the whole training process. In this context, fatigue can be defined as a natural response to a training load characterized by a lessened capacity for work. The evaluation and monitoring of the level of fatigue of an athlete, either quantitatively or qualitatively, a priori or a posteriori, is the most accurate way of checking the level of an athlete’s adaptation to training. Fatigue has several characteristics, but when it comes to planning training, we are mostly interested in fatigue as a function of time.

It is intuitive to everyone that different training sessions cause different levels of fatigue and that, more important, have different time-frames to recover from and to adapt to. Sessions with a higher training load take more time to recover from than sessions with a lower training load. When designing a micro-cycle routine, the temporal characteristics of the fatigue caused by a specific session need to be taken into account. On top of that, the interactions between the several Load -> Fatigue -> Adaptation processes need to be estimated in order to access the fatigue status at a given time. This fatigue status is extremely important because it determines the maximum load an athlete can perform at a given time.

Like I mentioned above, evaluating and monitoring fatigue can be done both quantitatively or qualitatively. For years and years, coaches have been predicting, evaluating and monitoring athlete’s fatigue levels in a qualitative way, in order to prescribe training. And rightfully so, since only through monitoring fatigue we can evaluate adaptation to training. Many coaches and athletes see training as a mere accumulation of fatigue, expecting that rest periods (days, weeks and even months) will be enough to recover from fatigue and allows for adaptations to training to happen. This way of thinking fails to realize that recovery occurs at all times that stress is not applied, and that adaptation to stress occurs at all times, even while stress is applied. Correctly modeling fatigue, even if in a qualitative way, is paramount for a correct prescription of training.

In the next part of this series, I will talk a bit about how to model fatigue qualitatively, and how that determines micro-cycle planning.

2008-01-17 7:31 AM
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Interactions between training sessions – Part II: Timing of adaptations

In the first installment of this series, I talked a bit about the importance of modeling the response to training load, fatigue and recovery, to the correct prescription of training. Today I will talk a bit about the temporal evolution of fatigue/recovery, which will influence adaptation to training.

After each training session, fatigue sets in and performance is diminished. The recovery process also starts as performance will slowly increase towards a higher level. The recovery phase allows for several biological adaptations to occur:

- normalization of the cell environment.
- recovery of neuromuscular stimulation processes
- concentration and activity of enzymes and hormones will be restored
- energy sources are replenished

As these processes evolve, adaptation to the stimulus (training session) is marked by an increase of performance. This is usually called the principle of super-compensation.

As fatigue is directly related to performance, and performance related to adaptation to training, then one way of monitoring adaptation would be to measure performance. However, measuring performance has its own impact on the training process. Therefore, a non-intrusive way of monitoring adaptation to training is the qualitative monitoring of an athlete’s level of fatigue.

In order for adaptation to training to occur, some requiments need to be met:
- A healthy body: Inflammation, infection, mental stress, etc strongly reduce the possibility for adaptation.
- Adequate training load: This is the most crucial aspect of successful training.
- Enough recovery: rest or regenerative workouts will make up most of an athlete’s time.

The timing for adaptation is the deciding factor when planning training on the short-term (1-7 days). For a healthy athlete, this timing depends on several factors:

- the type and duration of the workout
- the conditioning level of the athlete
- the recovery level of the athlete

If an athlete has a high conditioning level and/or is well rested, time for adaptation will be shorter. On the other hand, mental stress or lack of rest will slow down the process necessary to achieve super-compensation. The differences in timing for adaptation are due to various biological regeneration processes that take place during the recovery phase. The replenishment of creatine phosphate will take only a few seconds to a couple of minutes to return to normal levels, but the glycogen-reloading process in the muscle may last 24 hours; in some cases, it may last even longer. The production of new enzymes (proteins) may also take hours, sometimes even days, to complete (Olbrecht 2000).

According to Olbrecht (2000), the time for different types of training to reach the maximal supercompensation are:

- Extensive Endurance: 8 to 12 hours.
- Intensive Endurance: 24 to 30 hours.
- Sprints/Short sets: 30 to 40 hours.
- Extensive Anaerobic Training: 36 to 48 hours.
- Extensive Strength Training: 40 to 60 hours.
- Intensive Anaerobic Training: 36 to 48 hours.
- Intensive/Strength Training/Competition: 48-72 hours.

When designing a training plan, the time intervals between consecutive training sessions should be selected in order to respect the timings of adaptation to training for the different training methods used. Working out these timings is possibly the most difficult part of planning and it is the "art" part of coaching.

In the last part of this series, I will talk a bit about interactions between swim, bike and run training sessions.


Olbrecht, J., (2000), The Science of Winning – Planning, Periodizing and Optimizing Swim Training.

2008-01-17 7:31 AM
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Part III is not yet published.  I'll post it when it is. 
2008-01-17 9:43 AM
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And another good one from the coach's email group....

Yet another great post from Liz (like that's something new...)
In the past week I have gotten three of the same questions from athletes about heart rate.

In each case, the athlete had been reading other blogs. And they read that some athletes are training at higher heart rates or have higher heart rate zones. So they started to wonder if something was wrong with their heart rate because it wasn’t as high or if it indicated they were not as fit.

The answer is no.

Heart rate is highly individual. Meaning that two individuals of roughly the same age, fitness level, even gender will not have the same heart rate. Maximum heart rate is determined mostly by genetics. Your heart rate on any given day can be influenced by dehydration, altitude, age, fatigue among other things. But max heart rate likely will not change.

Having a higher heart rate (or higher heart rate zones) does not indicate a higher level of fitness or speed. Let’s see how this works:

Two males, roughly the same age, both fit. One is my husband, the other is a friend I have coached for a few years:

Chris’ max HR on the run 192 bpm
Marcus’ max HR on the run is 154 bpm

If you look at warming up in the Zone 1 heart rate zone – Chris is still in Zone 1 at 160 bpm whereas Marcus is warmed up around 124 bpm.

What does all of this mean? Chris and Marcus are different people and therefore have different heart rates. The fact that Marcus has a lower heart rate has no impact on his speed as Chris and Marcus ran within 10 seconds of each other at the same 5K.

The variance in heart rate is amazing. How we can all be human but all be designed so differently. Here are some examples of how heart rate can differ:

Marcus (M30-34) = 154 bpm
TS (M60-64) = 155 bpm
The ELF (F30-34) = 184 bpm
Chris (M35-39) = 192 bpm
RK (F20-24)= 194 bpm

As you can see, there is quite a range that crosses the lines of age and gender. It is important to note that each of these individuals is very fit – and their heart rate is not an indicator of their fitness. And so, that is why comparing heart rates or heart rate zones doesn’t make much sense. We are all different.

Not only are we different in how we are built – but our efficiency and economy in each sport is different too. Meaning that I may be able to hold a faster pace in Zone 1 because I am more efficient – whereas another athlete may fatigue quicker because of form sending their heart rate into a different zone at the same pace. That is why you also cannot compare heart rate zones to another individual or even heart rate zones to pace.

It is important to also note that heart rate will vary by sport. Your heart rate in cycling may be 10 – 15 beats lower than running. Swimming may be 10 – 15 beats lower than cycling. This is not indicative of your fitness rather the work your body needs to do in each sport. Running is obviously the most strenuous, followed by cycling, and followed by swimming which requires no weight bearing at all (easier on the heart).

Keep in mind that heart rate will also fluctuate day to day. This is where those fancy little GPS watches can actually drive you nuts more than anything else. Yesterday I went for a run. There was a two-and-a-half minute variance in my pace in the same heart rate zone (Zone 1). Why? Well, there were hills, and wind, and it was cold, and I may have been tired, or……who knows. This is why it is difficult to use both pace and heart rate in the same training session. There is a time to obsess over pace – that is on the track, on a tempo run, on a long run, during time trial intervals. All other runs and rides – let it go. Go by heart rate, go by time – let go of distance and speed.

Other factors: Heart rate is also affected by hydration. If you find your heart rate goes up the longer the workout goes on – you are likely not hydrating enough. Heart rate is also affected by fatigue. If you cannot get your heart rate up, you are likely tired. Back off or call it a day. Heart rate is also affected by distance over time. If you are on hour number 5 of a 7 hour ride my guess is you are stuck somewhere in Zone 2. There is a limit as to how long you can work in Zones 3 and above.

In sum, it’s not that your heart rate will go higher as you get fit. Rather it is your ability to produce more work output at that same heart rate. As you become more fit, you can essentially go faster at any given heart rate. You teach your body to do this by training appropriately in your zones; this is why building aerobic capacity and efficiency in Zones 1 – 2 at this time of the year is so important.

As athletes, I know we have strong feelings about numbers. To some extent, how fast and far we go is a measure of our self-worth in sport. It’s important to us. But at times you just have to let it go, accept that it will change (day to day) and some days you’ll be fast and other days you’ll be…slow. Day to day numbers don’t matter. And the best athletes let the numbers go. They realize that it is patterns and consistency over time that count not numbers from each swim, bike, run.

Be cautious about comparing numbers across blogs. The nuts and bolts of another athlete’s training doesn’t really have much relevance to anyone else – except that athlete. Numbers really don’t mean much. What counts is what you do on race day. I have never shown up to a race and known that it would take a xx:xx 10K to win. Pace, numbers – don’t really count. What counts is how you respond to the race day – the conditions, the weather, the competition and yourself.

The next time you train – rather than worrying how fast how fast how fast how about worrying about how to climb that hill more efficiently or correct flaws in your form or smooth out your pedal stroke or have someone watch your swim stroke. Added up these are things that will make you fast in numbers. That is how you get to the heart of getting fast.

2008-01-18 7:23 AM
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2008-01-18 2:56 PM
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Interesting article.

The one and only thing I have done to change my running form in the last 3 months has been to try to take 180 steps per minute. If I do that, I don't have knee problems during the run. My foot strike is more in the middle now, not heel to toe. Works for me. I've read this in a few other places too.

Joann

Glad to have you back, catjammies.

PS, I'm onboard with the chocolate milk recovery drink!
2008-01-18 3:44 PM
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Thanks for the great LT and HR info, Rob. I have put it to use and will keep you posted.

Now, lets talk about my favorite subject, FOOD!! I had no idea that you should eat WHILE you work out. I have been fueling up beforehand, maybe eating between activities, but during? So when I did my almost 2 hr bike yesterday, a trainer at the gym told me to eat some goo (yucky) right before I started and then shot blocks(yummy) every 15 min to sustain about 250 calories per hour of exercise as well as at least 16-20 oz of water. This seemed to match the article that you posted, Rob, and it worked great. I guess I had no idea how to go about this. I drank my chocomilk recovery, got home and did not want to eat a roasted pig. It was an amazing revelation and felt great.

My long runs are working up to an hour pllus so next I will be trying to eat and run...hmmm.....someone may get hurt since I scare people when I chew gum and think. I tend to gulp air when I try to drink and run and wind up burping for a mile, so I tend to stop and drink when at the gym. Any great ideas now that ya'll have too much info??


Everyone have a great week end! We may get some sunshine, Jo

Edited by teresa 2008-01-18 3:48 PM
2008-01-18 4:12 PM
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teresa - 2008-01-18 4:44 PM Thanks for the great LT and HR info, Rob. I have put it to use and will keep you posted. Now, lets talk about my favorite subject, FOOD!! I had no idea that you should eat WHILE you work out. I have been fueling up beforehand, maybe eating between activities, but during? So when I did my almost 2 hr bike yesterday, a trainer at the gym told me to eat some goo (yucky) right before I started and then shot blocks(yummy) every 15 min to sustain about 250 calories per hour of exercise as well as at least 16-20 oz of water. This seemed to match the article that you posted, Rob, and it worked great. I guess I had no idea how to go about this. I drank my chocomilk recovery, got home and did not want to eat a roasted pig. It was an amazing revelation and felt great. My long runs are working up to an hour pllus so next I will be trying to eat and run...hmmm.....someone may get hurt since I scare people when I chew gum and think. I tend to gulp air when I try to drink and run and wind up burping for a mile, so I tend to stop and drink when at the gym. Any great ideas now that ya'll have too much info?? Everyone have a great week end! We may get some sunshine, Jo

I'm far from an expert on eating and exercising.  But what I know is this:

For sessions that are under 1 hour, don't bother eating during.  Water sure.  But food probably not.

Two hour sessions are more borderline.  If one has eaten well the day before and a couple hours+ before exercising, energy (glycogen or carb) stores are already pretty high.  The body thats reasonably well fueled has enough carbs for at least a couple of hours of rather intense exercise.  

Food takes time to get into the body/muscles.  It takes away energy and blood to digest it.  So eating will reduce performance in these shorter sessions.

Now, for longer sessions, like 3 hours +, yes, the body will need carbs.  Gatorade is good.  Gu.  Some food.  Whatever feels good. 

I think it was the Hammer Nutrition article that I linked to earlier that outlined some of these issues.  But from what I know, a couple hours should not require food.  More than that, then yes.

Maybe experiment some and see what works for you.

2008-01-20 9:54 AM
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Ok, review for the week.  What went well?  What didnt?  What got in the way of making all the workouts we wanted?

I'll start first.  I was able to get out every day that I wanted to.  Running coming on well.  My ear infection kept me out of the pool. So I'm bummed about that.  I should be able to get back into the water this week though.

The weather (bitter cold) will keep me inside for much of this upcoming week.  Hopefully, I'll get in some decent runs though. 

 

2008-01-20 10:28 PM
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I started with a solid week, but by friday the bug caught me. Up all night with stuffed head, ears, etc. So my week end was a bust. Monday is a new week, so hope to finish by hardest week of the month strong.

I have been having a mental block about swimming and have used the excuse of the cold coming on to avoid much last week. I need to get over that and hope to make next week better than the last.

Hope everyone has a happy Monday

Edited by teresa 2008-01-20 10:29 PM
2008-01-21 3:36 PM
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The week went better than expected for me. It started slow - headcold didn't let up for a long time, so I figured it might be a rest/sick week. But once the cold left, I felt pretty good.

Running has increased to 1 mile without walking, which is a nice milestone for me (no pun intended). I'm focusing more on running and strength right now, to build a fitness base, but try to throw in a bike or a swim when scheduling permits.

Doubt and discouragement tried to creep in this week: Why am I doing this? Is it worth the effort? Is working out making me sicker or stronger? The guy with the cane is lapping me on the track... etc,

But I was able to fend off these feelings and I feel much better for the struggle: I'm doing this for myself and my family and my future health. It will be worth it, and it's already worth it. I'm the most active/fit mom at the preschool ice skating class, and the other moms are half my age. etc...

So, all in all, it was a good week.

Hope you're all doing well. Keep up the good fight.

Joann
2008-01-21 4:17 PM
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SpokaneJo - 2008-01-21 4:36 PM  I'm doing this for myself and my family and my future health. It will be worth it, and it's already worth it.  Joann

It will be worth it.  But more importantly, you're worth it.

 

Keep it up. 

2008-01-22 1:22 PM
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A good article that I came across discussing changing diet and exercise habits, etc.

 

http://health.msn.com/weight-loss/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100159420

2008-01-23 7:43 AM
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Cycling Cadence and Pedaling Economy

Lance Armstrong's miraculous comeback from cancer and his domination in both the time trials and the mountains of the Tour de France have inspired many cyclists to imitate his extreme high-cadence style. The world watched Jan Ulrich appear to struggle up the climbs at 80 rpm while Lance rode away from him at 110 rpm. Many people wondered, Why doesn't Ulrich just shift to a smaller gear and spin faster?? Hasn't Lance proven to the world that very high cadences are better?

The answer is no. Lance rode away from Ulrich because he produced more watts per pound of bodyweight ? because he is a stronger cyclist - not because he has discovered a secret that Ulrich doesn't know. Should you mimic Lance's high cadence? Maybe . I can't tell you that, but I will give you some information that will help you figure it out for yourself.

When you pedal a bicycle, your muscular system produces power to propel the bicycle and your cardiovascular system delivers oxygen, fuels the muscles, and removes waste products such as lactic acid. Selecting your optimal cadence is a matter of keeping these two systems in balance. The optimal balance is different for each person.

Spinning at higher cadences reduces the watts-per-pedal-stroke, a measure of the force required to produce a given wattage. This makes the workload more tolerable for the muscles. Most experts believe that this is because fewer fast-twitch muscle fibers must be recruited to create the high torque levels required at low cadence. Pedaling with a too-low cadence increases reliance on fast twitch fibers, causing premature lactic acid accumulation, which makes your legs burn.

Pedaling with high cadence, however, does waste some energy. Imagine setting your bike up on an indoor trainer and cutting off the chain. If you spun 100 rpm, the workload would be zero watts, yet your heart rate would elevate significantly above resting. Just moving your legs fast does use energy. Research has consistently demonstrated that cycling at 40 to 60 rpm generates the lowest oxygen consumption for a given wattage. Pedaling at too high a cadence overloads the cardiovascular system?s ability to deliver oxygen to the muscles. The most obvious symptom of this is ventilatory distress.

High-cadence pedaling works your cardiovascular system more, but reduces the relative intensity of the leg muscles. The key, then, is pedaling with enough cadence to keep your watts-per-pedal-stroke at a level that your muscles can handle, but at a cadence that will not overload your cardiovascular system. The optimal balance is different for every rider.

Lance Armstrong has an extraordinary cardiovascular capacity. His heart and lungs can deliver enormous quantities of oxygen to his muscles. Yet Lance does not posses huge, muscular thighs. His muscles are much more likely to be overloaded by high watts-per-pedal-stroke than his cardiovascular system is to be overloaded by the oxygen demand of the workload. Therefore, high-cadence pedaling, even at a slightly higher energy cost, is most effective for him. Jan Ulrich, on the other hand, is not gifted with the cardiovascular capacity of Lance, but has much greater muscle mass in the hips and thighs. His legs are able to withstand high watts-per-pedal-stroke, so he correctly minimizes the wasted energy to prevent cardiovascular limitation. Both Lance and Jan pedal using the cadence that is most effective for their unique physiology.

Each cyclist brings a unique set of genetics and training to the sport. The basic rules are, if your legs hurt more than your lungs, increase cadence. If your lungs hurt more than your legs, use a lower cadence.

If you decide that higher cadence pedaling might be more effective for you, now is the time to accustom your body to the different demands. Until you have learned the skills to pedal at very high cadence for long periods of time, you will be less efficient. Begin to develop leg speed now and it will be smooth and natural by next year's race season.

Each athlete must experiment to find the cadence that works best for him. As you experiment, keep the following factors in mind.

Plan to train at different cadences: Riding at a certain wattage at 100 rpm and the same wattage at 75 rpm produce different benefits. Specific, targeted training at higher and lower than your race cadence will pay big dividends. Even a high-cadence cyclists needs to do some low-cadence training to develop torque.

Train like you race: While this may sound contradictory to the last statement, it isn't. Specifically targeting a particular system with over-cadence or over-torque workouts is an excellent approach, but much of your riding should still be performed at close to race cadence. An athlete training efficiently performs 70 to 90 percent if his training significantly below the wattages they will be required to produce in competition. Many get lazy on their long, slow rides and pedal at a lower cadence. The reduced cadence may, in fact, be more efficient at the greatly reduced wattage. Remember, though, that the purpose of these workouts is not to be efficient during the workout, but to make you more efficient at race intensity. Disciplining yourself to maintain race cadence even when riding slowly is critical.

Give high-cadence time: If you decide that higher race cadence might work for you, understand that it may take months for your legs to develop the skills to create wattage efficiently at higher cadence. Cardiovascular conditioning also takes time to develop, so start well before the season and be patient.

Try weight training: If you find you lack the super cardiovascular power to ride efficiently at high cadence, weight training can help you develop tolerance to lower cadence, higher watts-per-pedal-stroke riding. In fact, weight training has been shown to increase cycling efficiency for almost every rider at every cadence.

Most likely beneficiaries of high cadence: Those most likely to benefit from increasing cadence are those whose cardiovascular capacity exceeds their muscle power: women, small or thin riders, former runners, and masters riders. These athletes should work to develop a higher cadence style, but should still incorporate specific high-force workouts to increase their ability to create torque

Analyze whether force and burning legs or ventilatory distress is most likely to limit you at critical points in races. If your legs limit performance, higher cadence may improve your results once you have adapted. Decide for yourself what style is likely to work, plan a program that will prepare you before your important races, and get started.

2008-01-23 9:10 AM
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I tried a spin class this morning. First time I've ever done one, and it was good. I'll definately make it a part of my routine a couple of times a week. I don't know why I havent tried this sooner because here in Colorado, much of the winter is not at all condusive to biking.

The back is still pretty stiff most of the time, but I am able to do workouts, so hopefully will continue to strengthen it and get past this.

Thanks for the constant supply of articles, Ridgelake!!!
2008-01-23 10:23 AM
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BTW, the part about weight training and improved biking from the Meirke article is rather controversial.  The local coaches in the area present some rather compelling data and studies that show that weight training does not, in fact, improve cycling in reasonably well trained athletes.  Only in lesser trained athletes, where most any exercise is an improvement, will the weight training show positive benefits for endurance cycling.
2008-01-23 10:24 AM
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Dave, glad the back is feeling well enough to get out there.  Spinning is good, especially for tempo work and the like. 
2008-01-24 10:38 AM
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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!
Thanks, Rob, for all the articles. I'm one of those "why?" people and you have answered a lot of questions.

I also bought the book on how to run while drinking jack daniels...no that's not right...Running by Jack Daniels. Great book as far as the science of it all. Who knew so much goes on just by running??? I'll be glad to share it with anyone who is interested when I'm done. It explains why different types of training are important and how to go farther faster.

Have a good rest of the week.

2008-01-24 11:31 AM
in reply to: #1173880

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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!
Been a bad week and a half for me... work has been insane, literally meetings from 8am-6pm every day, including over lunch... I have managed to get a few 20 min exercise sessions in, but it has been really difficult. We just kicked off a new project and there are a million things to do... expect it to calm down again in a week or so. I am going on a cruise to the caribbean, from tomorrow until a week from Monday, so am hoping I can actually keep up with some sort of training schedule.

2008-01-24 12:52 PM
in reply to: #1173880

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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!

teresa - 2008-01-24 11:38 AM Thanks, Rob, for all the articles. I'm one of those "why?" people and you have answered a lot of questions. I also bought the book on how to run while drinking jack daniels...no that's not right...Running by Jack Daniels. Great book as far as the science of it all. Who knew so much goes on just by running??? I'll be glad to share it with anyone who is interested when I'm done. It explains why different types of training are important and how to go farther faster. Have a good rest of the week.

Teresa, another great book on answering "why?" is Joe Friel's Triathlon Training Bible.  He made a point to have scientific basis behind most every assertion he makes.  It makes for some excellent reading.

2008-01-24 12:53 PM
in reply to: #1174052

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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!

brideout - 2008-01-24 12:31 PM Been a bad week and a half for me... work has been insane, literally meetings from 8am-6pm every day, including over lunch... I have managed to get a few 20 min exercise sessions in, but it has been really difficult. We just kicked off a new project and there are a million things to do... expect it to calm down again in a week or so. I am going on a cruise to the caribbean, from tomorrow until a week from Monday, so am hoping I can actually keep up with some sort of training schedule.

Brad, I had a feeling that your schedule got nuts.  But GREAT job getting in those 20 minute sessions!  They do count.  And they do add up.

Carribean cruise?  Need a stow-away?   Have a WONDERFUL time!!  Wish I could join you!!

2008-01-25 9:04 AM
in reply to: #1174052

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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!
brideout - 2008-01-24 10:31 AM

I am going on a cruise to the caribbean, from tomorrow until a week from Monday, so am hoping I can actually keep up with some sort of training schedule.


I was lucky enough to be able to go on one last year to the Western Caribbean. It was so cool to work out in front of a wall of windows looking out over the big blue ocean in the early morning. Pretty interesting, though, on the treadmill. With the slight pitch of the boat, I was wandering all over the belt. They had a running track and spin classes too! Enjoy!

Where will your cruise take you?
2008-01-25 9:43 PM
in reply to: #1098972

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Subject: RE: Ridgelake's Group - Filled Up with Awesome Folks!

Just don't do the long run on the running track, LOL. Five miles on my Half training and 9 times around for 1 mile. My wife got dizzy just counting the laps for me.

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