Baowolf mentor group is [ Closed ] (Page 52)

Samantha, glad you got a new swimsuit!  Love the way you are allowing the right equipment to come your way.  We all love buying new stuff, but I think you savor it more when it comes a little at a time.  It's interesting how fatigue hits each of us at different points.  So good that you have Steve's perspective on that.

Mike, happy racing this weekend!  You are a speedy enough swimmer that I bet a tri top won't bog you down.  Ouch!!!  Sorry about the thorny dog walk.  Good for you being a good doggy daddy though.

My triathlon life is not too exciting right now, but I'm happy to be getting the volume I want on bike and run and not worrying about speed right now.  Got in the pool two whole times this week.  Felt smoother and more relaxed today, but not quite at "can swim all day" level so broke it up in sets of 250. 

Hrm still not 100 percent, was hoping to be gtg by now.  Oh well 55 mile bike ride this morning, may drop the run and try to hit next week fresher. 

So nubing feet on the bike can be caused from a bike fit issue, can be the bike shoe are too tight, can be a saddle issue.  I usually try to get my bum off the seat once every 30 min even if just for a second or two.  About once every 45 min I like to completely unweight each foot.  I stand up off the seat and lift the top foot so it has no weight on it to help circulation and then do the other foot.  Similarly on long rides you can stretch out your calves on the pedals and such.  If none of those help you can just get off the bike and stretch, shake those legs out and get that feeling back.  You may also want to not wear cotton socks if you happen to be doing that.  Anyone else have some ideas?

Good luck Mike!  Hope you have a great tri tomorrow!!

Steve, nice ride in spite of the fatigue/recovery factor.  Someone needs to invent a fatigue-o-meter to take the guesswork out of that.

Samantha, are you possibly pointing your toes when you ride?  Seems that could contribute to putting a lot of pressure on your lower foot/toes and lead to numbness, so thought I'd throw it out there.  I've been told I need to drop my heel and ride with my foot more parallel to the ground throughout the pedal stroke.  If your seat is too high, that can force the toe pointing.

Not that any of that head knowledge has bought me speed.  Another challenging bike ride today.  The new group I stareted riding with has gotten faster the last couple weeks, and I have not.  Dropped back a couple times, and a friend who came today and I took a couple shortcuts and caught back up w/ the group. Then she flatted and we got to have a little roadside rear tire changing session.  Noone from the group seemed to notice we were missing in spite of us yelling out "mechanical" and "stopping".  Not a feel good moment, but all turned out OK since we have become decent tire changers .  Nice and cool out this morning...a rare treat in August!

Carol - You are so right about the appreciation that comes from being patient. Because I swam so long in a suit that didn't fit well and, in my mind, made me look pretty silly when I would get out of the pool because it was hanging down to my knees now when I put on the new one I really understand the value and am so thankful. I think it will be another 'aha' moment when I get a bike. Choosing to use what I have to its fullest potential will really allow me to see the benefit of the new bike because I will understand the limitations of my current bike. Yay for a cool morning in Texas! And I'm glad to hear you are taking the season you are in to its fullest potential. When you become race focused again I think you will be ready in a way you can't anticipate.

Mike - I hope you have a blast at your sprint tomorrow. It will probably be weird when you finish because you will wonder 'how did that all happen so fast'!

Steve - glad you are training for and IM right now. That will keep us moving in a similar direction through the winter, and I was glad to hear you say you will do another mentor group next year. I hadn't thought too much about it, but I wouldn't know what to do if I weren't able to ask questions and starting with someone new would be weird. You know so much about where I've come from.

So the fatigue thing has been a weird experience. I am just tired all the time; no matter how much sleep I get. My motivation has been terrible and there wasn't a workout I did this week that didn't come without a fight.

So I'm thinking the toes going numb might be my seat, or just having my foot pushing down on a surface it isn't used to. I'm hoping to get a new seat in the next week. Carol I don't point my toes because I remembered reading a post from you saying I should not do that, so I have been training my feet to stay parallel with the ground for months - thank you!

Steve - what would I want to consider putting in a special needs bag for my HIM?

I did an 11.3m run today and a 2700 yard swim. Both went well. The last couple miles of the run was hard on my knees. Could be part of the building fast process or I need new shoes. I've been running in the same shoes for over two years, I think. So hoping to get me some new ones soon.

Just over a month til race day! Night!

Race was FUN today. FUN. I felt good on the swim & bike. Run was slow, but I embraced it, and just ran along at my pace, and enjoyed it. I needed that today. It really set me in a positive mindset about what I'm doing with/in triathlon. I didn't break any records, and my run was actually pretty slow (brutal R calf cramps killed me), but I didn't care. felt good, had fun, and I beat everyone sitting on the couch . Race report tomorrow.

Race report is up!

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=455565&posts=1&start=1

Sounds like a really fun race weekend for Mike, Joe and Joe's daughter!  Way to go one and all.

Mike, read your race report.  Loved your attitude both going into ane emerging from this race.  And some of us can only dream of your "slow" bike and swim paces .

Sorry to be a debbie downer here, but I've been feeling really exhausted.  Could barely function yesterday, and am skipping my planned run this morning.  Blood glucose levels have not been playing nice, and that tends to really wear me down physically and mentally.  Got in a lot of sleep last night, but slept through the alarms I had set to test and adjust insulin, so woke up high (again) this morning.  Ugh!  Roller coasters are fun, but not this kind.

Carol - if you are a debbie downer then what might I be? That is how I felt with my last post. Anyway, with the added dynamic of being diabetic and terribly hot weather you really are doing awesome! This too shall pass.

Mike - great race report. I chuckled when I read you almost ran out with your helmet on. You never know with those run courses, they can be pretty dangerous and you would've been prepared . So glad you had fun. And yes, drink water!

Over the last week I believe I mentioned to you I had decided I was committed to going into my HIM using the bike I have. Financially a new bike plus all the other little things was not going to be possible. I handed it over the the Lord and said I am thankful for what I have and will use it to the best of my ability and its ability. The other day I told someone it would take a miracle from God to have a new bike before race day. Last night I got an email from a friend and they want to buy me a new bike. They told me go pick it out, buy it and they will send me a check. How's that for a miracle and an amazing gift! I can hardly believe it. I can't wait to share with you all what I end up getting.

Mike, awsome swim and bike.  Run will come along, it just takes time.  If you look at where you have come from that is an awsome race and yes hydrate. 

Samantha, send pictures of you on your new P4 with full disc.... J/K.  Wow.  Talk about some support from your friends.  You might want to talk over with them how much bikes cost and find out what they are willing to contribute $$ wize.  I am not sure that everyone thinks of a bike costing $1500 to $2000 for a nice entry to mid range tri bike.  They might be thinking $200 to $400.  You don't want to hurt generiosity like that.  Maybe take them to the bike shop with you to look over what is there and have a final chat before a purchase. 

Carol, I hope some day to be as positive as you are on your down days.  Life is a road, ups, downs, fast spots, slow spots, potholes.  Remember to enjoy the view along the way.   

Joe, grats on a good 5k.  You can see from your pace info that you have a fitness issue at that pace.  With more weekly run vollume you can hold sub 9:00 for all 3 miles.  If your vollume is low for a 5k or 10k you want to start a little slower and then build speed throughout the race.  If you have good fitness for the distance you can pretty much hit a 5k at LT from the gun and hold till the end.  It takes a lot of fitness to be able to do that though.  Now you have a nice goal to break, 27:00 5k in the next 6 months or 26:00 by this time next year. 

Carol – You are inspirational even on your down days. It is a pleasure to have the benefit of your insights.

Samantha – Your passion shines through. Look forward to pics of you and the bike.

Steve – Thanks for the new time goal suggestions. I have really made run fitness a focus of late. Part because of my daughter’s interest but also because knocking off 5 minutes on the run would bring my sprint time more the 50% closer to the under 1:30 goal (recorded 1:37). Add a couple minutes on the transitions and a little on the bike and swim and I’d be there. The funny story behind the pace might be that Bianca took off on me from the start, plus there were some nice down hills the first mile. Well I caught up to her about mile one and did not look back. Of course the up hills to complete the loop caught up to me.

Anyway my run plan is to run a 10K Sept 8 (Crime stoppers Event) , I might have mentioned, and then a half marathon October 14^th (Shades of Death HM). I will leave the time goals open for now, since my base is thin but think there should be time to build. With 8 wks to go and some 6 mile runs and a 7 mile run under my belt, I might need to stretch a week or two but should be able to get 3-4 10+mile runs in.  During the week I want to get out there 5x at more low intensity since that seemed to work well for obtaining my weekly high of 15 miles in a week working with Bianca. Thought?

Joe, your 5k time gives you a 10k time of 1:01:39 (9:55 mpm) and a 1/2 mary time of 2:17:26 (10:29 mpm) based on Mcmillans run calculator, which assumes you can get fit enough in time.  For the 10k and half mary think of them as tempo runs with the tail cut off.  Start off at a slightly harder than comfortable pace and slightly increase your pace every half mile, the trick is you don't taper back down at the end you just keep building.  Your HR will continue to go up, but your speed will flatten and come down some.  For the half mary you want that slight increase every mile and then once you get to mile 6 hold there for the rest of the race, push the last 3 miles if you can, but those will be the hard miles so a hard push will result in a net slower pace. 

I am in the same spot as you with an early October HM and still recovering from my HIM.  The difference is that I have a thick base, so I can build back up faster.  When you are looking at paces in the 10 mpm range your biggest benefit will be from getting in more miles rather than doing speedwork per say.  Don't be afraid to do some tempo runs or put some hills in your runs.  Definately get in at least 10 runs over 10 miles.   

Larry - Nice run! When is your race? I am just learning about the calculator and like what I see.

Steve - Ok first reaction, are you nuts? There are 8 maybe 9 weeks to race time which means I might need to run 2x 10 miles in a week. I took the time to look at the McMillans and do some replanning. It does not look terrible. Not sure how my body will react but willing to give it a go. I already have 6.2 miles on the road so far. With a 10 miler and one other 4 mile run I hit 20 miles for the week. Nice milestone!

Joe, you have a recent long run of 7 miles.  So this week 8, next 9, 7,10,11,12, 7,5 race for long runs.  That works.  But you are going to need to support that with weekly runs of 3,4,4,3,8, then 3,4,4,3,9, then 3,4,5,3,7, etc.,.  You just tag on 1 mile or 10percent to your long run each week and up 1 mile in 1-2 runs per week.  If you want to do it right.  You can do the half mary on less, but your pace will be much slower than that of mcmillans.  This is pretty duable if you are not doing a lot of bike and swim. 

My long runs before the half marry will be 12,13,8,14,15,9,16,17,12 Race or some such. 

Tempo run for me today: 1 Mile WU then half mile splits splits: 9:31, 8:48, 8:30, 8:08, 7:51, 7:28, 7:20, 7:43, 7:55, 8:05, 8:11, 8:26, 8:09.  I will work on making that a bit faster over the next 3 months.  Have my IM plan finally worked out after looking at lots of stuff. 

Joe, I'm either going to race November 24 or Dec. 1, haven't decided which race yet.  Thanks for asking.

Mike, I just read your race report.  Great race and great attitude.  I am trying to teach myself to think about the long haul and not immediate goals, and always having to have a certain time on runs, etc.  Good luck in keeping up the lifestyle. 

$150 for a FULL??? Whoa. Sprints in my area are 75-100 a race.

Love the "really good dinner" comment. No doubts!

Ran 4.4 miles this AM, an did it in under 40 minutes, as opposed to the 47 minutes in the race Sunday. no cramps or walking this time certainly helps.

Off to see Bruce Springsteen at Fenway park tonight, so there will be no early AM workout tomorrow