Baowolf's Mentor Group- Closed (Page 57)

Steve, congrats on getting in on that training! I looked up the website, and I think their founder, Jeff Booher, is a local here who also coaches a "Tri for Him" team. I remembered the name because his mom is a business coach and author with an office about a mile from my house. Small world. Their system looks right up your alley, and always good to get some objective, experienced input on what you are doing.

Jay, my thought would be that your swim sessions don't have to be either/or, but could incorporate some of both. Maybe warm up with short drills (25's or 50's) incorporating the head placement you are working on + maybe some balance drills. Then do a main set that pushes you endurance wise (? X 100's or whatever fatigues you a bit). Then finish up with drill 25/swim25/drill25/swim 25....again mentally focusing on what the drill is supposed to teach as you do the swim portions. If you feel like your endurance set(s) are getting too sloppy, swim 25 of a drill that helps you and then get back to it.

Did a short brick this morning (15 mi bike, 1+ mile run). Foot is feeling better, but not going to push it.

I have a swim question as well. For those of you who have done pool swim tri's, how do you enter the water? No diving allowed (thankfully...could be ugly ). But do you jump in close to the wall and then push off, or jump further out and start swimming. In the past, I've actually just quickly sat on the edge dropped in and pushed off. Noone else seems to do it that way, so I practiced jumping in and pushing off the wall and feel like that actually takes more time because I have wait to pop back up near the surface to get going. Then a friend said her coach says jump out from the wall, so no push off. Oh, and if I jump in feet first like that I hold my nose because I don't want to start off sputtering. So yeah, I look goofy no matter what!

Samantha. I did just read your post. thank you for the offer.. I haven't made a decision yet as what I, going to do but i was thinking I may put out a little extra cash and stay as close to the start as possible....

Getting some small runs in. Still very tired. Besides the baby work has been absolutely crazy, which is very good as it looks like the wife won't have to go back to work!

Haven't really had a chance to catch up so I hope all is well..

Have we heard fro Jared? hoping hes hanging in there!

Thanks Carol...spot on advice. I read this and wondered...really, why didn't I think of this myself! Apparantly I'm in a box with this and couldn't see beyond it

Sorry, no good advice on pool question. Your normal tactic seems closest to what I'd do in your shoes.

Mitch, nice to see you lurking around. We haven't heard from Jared in awhile now.

So Steve, what are the details on this venture? Congrats!

Not sure of the details, was just notified will get the details soon. It is a 20 week offseason program to work on improving speed in all 3 sports. Not sure how it will look. Unfortunately my legs were worse today than yesterday so cut the walk short and will take tomorrow off.

When doing drills I warm up for 500 yards, do drills for 500 yards then finish the rest of the swim maybe moderately focusing on one aspect of the drills I was working on. Form beats distance in most cases, so form work is important unless you have to build for a race soonish.

Bike session this AM was a blast. 8 of us on our bikes all hooked in a Computrainer where not only could we see our progress versus everyone else but there were a few big TV displays showing everyones speed, power, cadence, averages for all of those, etc. It was fantastic. it was weird having the resistance change on the trainer when you went up hill or lessen on 'downhills'. I did 30 miles in 1:38, and averaged 194 watts, and felt good. there were some tough bikers there, with one guy averaging nearly 23 mph, and another lady who is doing IM Florida next week. I'm heading back next week.

the guy who runs the session is my swim coach, so its kind of fun to get to see him outside of a pool. His wife is also a triathlete (2002 Xterra World Champion, no less) and the bike room has a bunch of framed magazine covers of them, some big fake 'checks' received for races won, etc. I think this is a good connection for all things triathlon in the area

Any school psych jobs near there? Sounds awesome.

Steve - fantastic news on that training opportunity! It's gonna be cool too hear what you learn and I definitely hope you see some quantitative results.

Mitch - When I read that your wife will be able to stay home I said, out loud "that's so awesome!" And in case you missed it somewhere I live 2miles ish from the start line, but make the decision that's gonna work best for you and your family

Jim - In one way I'm sorry your wife is not regaining her hearing and that means surgery, but in another I'm glad she has options and there is forward movement. I pray the surgery is a complete success!

Jay - I agree with CArol and STeve. I always did a warm-up, drills, then I would just swim and focus on form. I also always swim for distance not time, so I would fit it all in. Then some days I just swam because the thought of doing drills made me want to puke

Carol - Dang those injuries! Way to keep up the silver linings of life in spite of it all! So glad for your friend. That date will be here so very soon, and what a beautiful day it will be for her!

I wonder what ever happened to Mitsy? I also hope Jared is enjoying and surviving this huge life change.

Pam - I hope your enjoying the busy fall with your kids and all other things!

Things continue moving forward for the Master's degree, but I'm not sure if they are going to accept my bachelor's degree. There are a couple hoops I get to jump through and right now I'm just thankful the door hasn't shut. I'll finish my first week of CASA training tomorrow and I have enjoyed what I'm learing. I'm still getting in some runs and that makes me happy. Things haven't changed with my wrist, so I'm taking care not to irritate it. Who knows maybe it'll heal before the surgery. Actually the biggest problem with all of it is I've been planning to drive to CAnada to watch a friend graduate from RCMP school on the 16th of November for months. That's two days after my surgery and a 13 hour drive. I'm not making a decision and if I can make it happen I'm gonna, one-armed and all. But there is another side of me that hesitates because I really don't want to make a foolish decision, but being there for her is so very important to me. Decisions :P

The day I crashed my bike and broke my collar bone I drove to the ER, got exrays, drove home and then did a restraint training the next day. So um you can do stuffs with your arm in a sling. I even walked 20 miles a week with my arm in a sling the week after the operation. We just take care of yourself, people respond differently to anasthesia.

Good morning everyone! Another lovely day at work but at least I was taught how to access some of the internet at work.....that helps time go by when you're in a boring spot (like today)

Mike: That spin class sounded great and it seems like you enjoyed it!

Steve: Stay in Cali! You don't want to come here and live on the East Coast. The biggest regret of my life is moving back to Mass after living in Arizona.

Samantha: I'm glad to hear that you're going forward with your school plan! As far as seeing your friend; Steve is right about anasthesia effecting people differently. Kiley told me that I woke up angry after my surgery....I remember coaching my sons basketball team that night and saying bad things to a referee...I felt like I was drunk. I think 2 days should be enough for you to recover from those effects.

Carol: Are you doing the sprint today? If so, good luck!

Pam: I think this is Ragnar weekend...hope all is going well.

Jim: I'll PM you the diet first and send it via email later. I can't access my main email account from work...I'll try my secondary account later.

I have made a decision about my life as currently constituted. The wonderful Commonwealth of Mass has decided that they are only going to use roughly the top 10% of the promotion list that I took a few years back. The prior two lists have been used for 5 years and nearly exhausted. I scored in the top 25% of all testers but the state wants money...so they are doing a new test in March. I've been putting up with my current work assignment because I didn't want to have my family deal with unknown shift/days off for a new prison to relocate to...and then another to be promoted to. This decision by the state makes my life easier...its time to go to another place where things are a lot more laid back and better for me workwise. I will probably have to start working on 2nd shift for a little while but I do have enough time to win a day shift bid eventually. I won't be taking anymore prmotional exams; this transfer that will happen in early 2014 will be the last time I put my life in a state of flux. Kiley understands and supports the decision but I dont think the kids will enjoy NOT seeing dad at home after school everyday.

In other news...my son has part 2 of his competitive soccer tryout today. I guess he played the kid in town who is by far the best player in his last rec league game and was impressed by him. I was told he was making some good athletes look foolish and could bend his kicks at age 8...pretty impressive. I'll be a nervous dad today for sure with my sons tryout. My daughter got her first assessment for gymnastics and did pretty well. Oddly, she does great on the bars (which is pretty hard) but not so great on things that should be easier. All I know is that she loves going and I see improvement.

Finally, my beloved Red Sox have lost their last 2 games.....I blame myself because I didn't post GO Sox!!! in our mentorship group...so now that's taken care of

I hear ya about politics on the East coast, I was in NY for about 7 years. Unfortunately things in small towns are pretty crazy politically too if you haven't lived in town for more than 6 generations.

Well 7 mile walk, slog jog today with 3 min jog 2 min walk. This week is set to be 3/2 and it felt alright. Yesterday's 30 mile bike was at 19.5 mph, but much longer than I remember 30 mile bikes to be. So hopefully in another 2-3 weeks I will be at straight jog and be able to start picking things back up some.

Yohoo...Pam, our Ragnar veteran by now. How did it go?

Samantha, hope things work out for your trip, but know you won't do anything to jeopardize your healing or safety . Glad the CASA training is going well, and hope that the path is good for your Master's program!

Jay, glad you have made a job decision that will hopefully lead to less of the bad kind of stress so you can pursue more of the good kind of stress .

Steve, the road back can seem so long. Glad you are heeding the messages your body is sending and still making forward progress.

Yes, today I did the Monster Sprint tri. Highlights: 1:29:46 (predicted 1:30...do I get a prize for that?). 8 out of 23 in AG. I think my best avg MPH on the bike ever (don't laugh when you see the number....it's about personal improvement ), run sucked (no big surprise there). Swim, yeah, it's a pool swim so traffic jams happen. Also think I took it too easy out of the gate, never really felt breathing challenged at all....but live and learn. Had fun racing with a few friends who also have T1 diabetes. Nice to be able to speak out loud the decisions re: insulin doses, carbs, disconnecting, reconnecting, etc. that always go through our heads. Race report and pic of me and a few of my buddies is here: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...

Hello Darling Group.

I want to catch up on everyone but right now, I'm a tired puppy so I only saw the last post. Yay, Carol!!!!!!!!!!!!! Excellent job on predicting your finish time and very good AG placing. I want to read your race report but it's going to have to wait until my eyes and brain are actually functioning.

I had a blast at Ragnar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Loved it! Promise I will write up a race report later but having 7 hours sleep in 66 hours leaves me foggy and tired. Hope all is well with everyone

Edited by Pink Socks 2013-10-27 7:03 PM

Carol - Great job! Yes you get something for that!

Pam - welcome back!

Jay - I hope you find what will work for you and your family, and if living somehwere else would bring joy and peace I say move.

Steve - slow and steady is your game. way to keep at it!

Thanks for all the votes of confidence about being able to drive away two days after surgery. It'll all be interesting. I'm feeling frustrated. The grad school I'm trying to get in to doesn't know if they will accept my bachelor's degree. So I'm supposed to submit all my transcripts and diploma to a organization called WES to have them review it all. The cheapest package is $100 and the package they recommend is $205. I hate making these kind of decisions, and I am frustrated that my degree is providing me a more cut-and-dry acceptance. The hardest part is knowing people who have gone to other big universities and used the exact same degree. Grrrrr...

Just realized I've been active for almost a week . Swim today was brutal. Not long, but the 30x50 on :55 set in the middle just crushed me. I'm feeling like I have a long way to go in the pool to regain my form, but I'm averaging under 1;40/100, so who knows.

Carol - nice job on the tri. Loved the RR!

Steve -- there's space, but I think the commute would be a bit much for you.

Oh my, finally got caught up on the posts and began typing and lost it. :-(

I probably won’t get a RR up for several days. Got a lot of sleep last night but still not firing on all cylinders. Unpacked, washing clothes, and now I need to repack because I’ll go to my mother’s tonight so I can take her for a procedure tomorrow morn.

Steve, awesome job on being accepted to the coaching program!!!! Definitely let us know what you think.

Jim, so sorry your wife’s hearing hasn’t improved but glad that she is happy with the process of moving forward with the implants. Praying that it can be done by the end of the year.

Samanatha, best of luck with the surgery and then the long drive. I think it’s possible and I know that you will use good judgment. Be careful tho while doing this to insure you don’t get the rest of your body out of alignment. I’ve had to drive with my left foot multiple times and I always had to check myself to insure I wasn’t messing up my back, shoulders, hips, etc. You may have to take a few more breaks.

Mike, that is awesome on the bike training!

Jay, good luck on the job situation and finding the right place to be.

Carol, love the picture in your race report! Sorry tho that the vibe was more subdued this year. I know how that feels when it's not as much fun as before but still fun....but dang, just not like before. Way to Go tho with making your lemonade out of the lemons.

Quick post as I have a dentist appt in 45 min. I did 13.1 today with a friend of mine...I told her 12...we tried to map out the NBHM course for 12 but failed. My legs totally died during this run (1.5 miles of hills at mile 10 isn't doing me any favors lol) Its a hard course with a big hils, rolling hills, flats, so I'm not that disappointed (plus Steve's insight on length of time before I feel like myself sobered me up) Today's mantra: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I'll take on the same course next week and see if I can improve

Pam, congrats on your Ragnar relay! Look forward to hearing about it when you have time. Hope things are going OK for your mom.

Ugh, Samantha, sorry about the fees just to figure out what will work for you re: the master's program. I must be getting old because I'm more and more astonished at what things cost and it just seems like everyone is trying to make a buck on stuff that used to be free. But as with your IM, I have no doubt that you will persevere, and that God is in charge of the outcome.

Jim, glad to hear that your wife is moving forward on the implants. Such an unexpected and life changing thing that has happened. Also very glad you have a goal to work towards with CDA!

Mike, glad you are back in the swing. You have really hit upon some great resources with the masters class and the indoor cycling group.

Jay, from this outside perspective I'm amazed that you have already built back to 13 miles. Nice to have some running partners, time on those long runs goes so much quicker with some company.

Steve, any word on your off season training plan? Looked at your log and your run/walks are looking pretty brisk these days!

Mitch and Jared, hoping all is well in baby central! Can you guys post a pic of the little ones?

Been thinking about Ken and Mitzi.....wondering how they are doing. If you guys are lurking, come say hi .

Thanks for your kind comments on my sprint this weekend. Went to the podiatrist yesterday. Xray is clear, and arch pain is officially dx as plantar fasciitis. There is a knot of scarring right where the heel joins the arch. Soo...ice, stretching, foot roller, etc, and not running unless/until no pain. My running shoes were apparently "deader than a doornail", so new shoes. My podiatrist is a runner, ironman, etc, so trust her advice. I set some volume goals on swim (113,000 yards) and bike (2,000 miles) by the end of the year, so at least have something to obsess over and keep me sane over the holidays . Running goal is to set myself up to rebuild in 2014, but not going to tempt myself to too much/too soon by signing up for any races.

Oh Carol, bad news Very sorry to read that but hopefully some R+R will help you get your run back on I also think you made a typo unless you really are trying to get to 113,000 yards in 2 months.(that would be crazy impressive!) I get the running shoes being dead too; it seems like my right foot hotspots are due to dead Asics. I asked my running partner yesterday at mile 11 about it....showed her my soles and she wanted them RIP'd on the spot. I guess I'll have to get new shoes soon.

Today my legs are junk I did some lifting weights, 30 min on the bike, and a quick swim. Besides the legs, I'm also going back to my bodybuilding diet; I've listened to all of you and accepted that I need carbs....that diet allows me carbs. Unforutnately, that diet also requires I eat every 2-4 hours so I was starving during my bike ride. I forgot that I used to have to bring a protein shake to the gym when I did this diet previously.....so I wouldn't run out of energy if I was near a meal...OOPS

I'm moving forward with trying to go to a new institition. I emailed HR and requested two prisons I would like to transfer too. Of course, I won't know if they did it for a few days; God forbid we send a courtesy email to let you know you're all set.

Hope everyone is having a good day!

My wife and I watched an interesting running video lastnight. They evaluated fast runners (faster than 3 hour IM mary) and looked at how much elevation they got during their stride. Even with runners of the same speed, some had a significant vertical elevation gain in their stride (gazells) and others had almost no vertical gain in their stride (gliders). The gazels had a slower turnover rate and went farther in the air than the gliders. So at a 6:30 mpm pace a gazel may have a turnover rate of 85 strides per minute where a glider would have a 105 stride per minute rate. Not surprisingly as they both run the same pace, the gazel (slower turnover) is traveling farther in the air (5 feet or so total between foot plants) than the glider (4 feet). The gazel likely uses more energy, but it is unclear whether the springs in their legs make this minimal. As a runner passes 6:00 and closes in on 5:00 mpm the turnover rate of 110 or higher for the gliders becomes no longer possible and from I think it was around 5:30 to 4:30 none of the runners are gliding. At the sub 5:00 mpm pace the gazels were covering 6 feet between strides in the air. Keep in mind that if you have a lot of elevation gain in your stride but cover less than 5 feet in the air, you are likely using more energy without getting the bang from moving forward while in the air, so bad. Now I want to go video my running to analyze it. The take away was that if you are a glider and running at a 6:30 mpm pace or slower that may be more efficient, but going faster could be a problem. Not a problem for most of us. Just interesting. For gazels if your body is not at a forward enough angle, you are more of a pogo stick than a gazel. The mechanism has to do with properly loading the calf, thigh and hip muscles on the plant so that it unloads on the push off to generate the stride.

Anyway to answer the question, I picked a coach today who is supposed to be a bike guru. He is sposed to learn me to be a cyclist if it kills me.

And try to not put more than 350 miles on a pair of shoes..... will cause pains to occur.

Edited by Baowolf 2013-10-30 1:34 PM

Glider, gazelle....I think I'm more of a 'lumber-er'. Andy updates on that runner type?

Lumberer= death marcher I was doing that on my run yesterday