Slornow and Wannabefaster's Winter Mentor Group-CLOSED (Page 50)

I'm sick.  It was inevitable with all the craziness over the last month.  But I slept pretty much from Friday afternoon through Saturday afternoon and I think I'm on the mend.   I was on track to do a 5k next Sunday but I think I'll skip it now.  I haven't done a thing since Wednesday

Michael great on the tri!

So I've been swimming with the Gale Bernhardt program that you set me up with and my t pace has been improving - keep in mind before last August, I haven't really swam (swam?  swum?  did swim?) since  was a kid.

I'm psyched that I'm showing improvement

I need a wetsuit too and this has been recommended to me by a few people.  For a first suit they say it's perfect.

Michael/d3-I went with an Xterra sleeveless for my first wetsuit. Just recently got a Desoto. The Xterra was good and reasonably priced. No complaints. Only reason I got the Desoto was I felt I needed a full sleeved suit for some of my races this year. 

Anyone that is about to swim or race for the first time in a wetsuit. TRY IT OUT BEFORE RACE DAY. Wetsuits are great as they make us faster by improving body position. BUT, they can feel very restrictive and that combined with the unfamiliarity of an open water swim can cause some people to hyperventilate and/or panic. Practicing in open water would be best but at a minimum try it our in the pool.

Dave-sounds like a great trip. Hope the shoulder isn't anything major.

Randee-nice work on the swim improvement. Hope you feel better....busy time of year for you.

Mary-I don't like riding in the wind either. Good work keep it up.

Nate-tough question. If you are currently swimming 3X week and given that is a strength for you I might consider adding or adding to a workout. If you are currently doing 2X week I would add the 3rd swim. If you add a workout or add to a workout I would try to do so in such a way that it does not adversely affect your ability to complete the next days workout/s.  I would also be careful about adding much in terms of intensity with the additional workout.  I can see adding an extra 30-45 minute really EASY run helping....probably more so than an easy spin on the bike.  

Yeah, I'm always ready to drop a swim. I think there are gains to be made by swimming 3x week as compared to more maintenance with 2x. Maybe you could do 5 workouts every 2 weeks...split the difference

And, I'm back! Nate was kind enough to pick me up from the airport yesterday (thanks again), and I was able to get home and get on the trainer for my three hour ride, which was actually easier than I thought it would be. I just put on the basketball game and pedaled the hours away.

I'm a little daunted now, because this week starts the 2nd phase of my training plan. Every run includes some tempo work, and I add a 3rd swim, while also increasing the workout distance from 2,500m to 3,000. Luckily, I feel like my body had adjusted pretty well to the workouts I'd been doing, I just have to re-adjust a little!

Nate, I like Randy's idea about doing 5 swims every two weeks; that seems like a good compromise.

Also, as far as wetsuits go, I have the full sleeve XTerra and it works really well. It rubs my neck really badly, but, otherwise, it's pretty comfortable.

Thanks for all the wetsuit advise. I have two different Tri Shops in the DFW area that let you try the wetsuit in their endless pools before buying it.

I might actually rent one of their wetsuits and if I buy it within four weeks the rental fee is applied towards the purchase price.  The first shop has Orca, TYR and 2XU suits and the other shop has 2XU, Desoto and BlueSeventy suits. 

Starting in April we will have Open Water swimming practices. With the water being still a little cold :-) I decided to get a wetsuit now instead of waiting until closer to Ironman 70.3 Austin. 

Jason - I have looked on the ST forum but it seems all the people there are skinny guys ... :-)

Rene - I might have to check that out ... thanks! My first open water race is in the beginning of May. Its the Texasman Olympic distance and the water last year was pretty cold ... I rather swim that one with a wetsuit this time and I want to be able to do plenty of OWS sessions beforehand.  You know the lake since you have done the Disco before and its the exact same race. I also heard that the lake in Austin where the Ironman is held is pretty cold at the end of October .....

Mary-Fantastic! Thats huge. Keep it up.

Got my workouts done and made it to daughter's soccer game. Tomorrow is swim and bike. 

Good job Mary! I struggle with the swim, too. It seems no matter how hard I push it or how long I swim, my times just don't seem to drop. But I am able to swim farther distances. I know, from my running experience, that a breakthrough is coming. It will be so nice. I'm glad for you.

Speaking of swimming, I still can't rotate my left arm from my snowboarding injury, so the crawl stroke is out for now. I was able to do a weak breast stroke today. I can't fully extend my left arm for a streamlined profile when I push off the wall. I stopped after 800 yards when my shoulder began to ache. It's going to be a slow recovery. I followed this up with an hour trainer ride that actually felt good. My plan is to keep pushing hard with the bike and run segments and try to slowly catch up on my swimming when I'm able.

Early morning swim workout completed. Still tired from the race on Sunday. I also went to the chiropractor this morning and he had me sweating like crazy ... quads, hamstrings, quads ... I still have a run workout today which is going to hurt. 

Mary - Good job on the swim ... love seeing improvements ... 

What else is everyone up to?

Mary, great job! There's nothing better than seeing improvement in what you can get done. I was having the normal, "How much do you exercise?" conversation with someone this weekend; it always comes up when they hear I do triathlons. I told them what I do, and they asked me how in shape I was to begin with. I told them that I *thought* I was in good shape, I'd done a half-marathon and was running regularly, but I found my limits pretty quick in the pool. The first workout was 10 minutes, with breaks each lap! I count any swim progress as a win!

Speaking of swimming, I started my new swimming routine this morning: 3,000m workouts, three days/week. I was actually surprised at how good I felt this morning, especially after getting up at 4:35, but I'll see how those same muscles & joints feel this Thursday and Friday! 1 hour run tonight, and my Tuesday is over.

Sorry  hope you're feeling better today

Mary, awesome job!  Just like Dori says "just keep swimming!"

As for me, I think the snot is all finally draining out of my body.  My nose looks like rudolph but I can breathe and I actually went to the gym this am.  I did 2 treadmill miles.  Actually felt pretty easy.  I guess sometimes taking 6 days off isn't a bad idea  I have PT tomorrow.  My lower leg gets achy after workouts and PT.  They say that's normal.  I just have to get to 5k distance!!

Oh on an unrelated note, there is a Sandy Hook benefit 5k on the 23rd (I can't go) but it's worth mentioning that this event is nearly sold out at 15,000 runners - FOR a 5K!!!  CRAZY!  They are expecting 65,000 people in the "city" of Hartford that day between family, friends, spectators etc.  That's insane for our little state!