2010 Molly's Mentor Group - IS ALL FULL UP (CLOSED) (Page 6)

what brand? is it your size? have you gotten on it and ridden it to see how it feels? (LBS here have a trainer they'll put the bike on for you during winter months). What's the cost after the 40% off (canadian $ ok, just let us know if the $ is CD or US $'s).

OOPS, sorry guys, The Branch is Devinci. It's Canadian made. The model is 2009 CX and it's a woman's frame and all carbon. The regular price is $2,100 and the sales price including tax is $1,490. It's a size small which is my size and they include a fitting. I of course will need pedals, helmet (unless my old one will do) and shoes.

Edited by striving 2009-12-28 1:39 PM

Does it seem weird to anyone else, or just me, that the front derailleur is Ultegra (and 6600, not 6700??) and the rest of the components are Tiagra? Is that common? You sometimes see Ultegra mixed with 105...odd, that's all.IMHO, Tania, I would wait until the spring bike show. I got my full carbon Giant there with all 105 components (better than Tiagra, not as good as Ultregra) for around the same price, maybe a little less. That's just my two cents, of course.

Good point on the size...it does look like I'm carrying a laptop on my wrist! I like it though, and I can read all the numbers without putting my old lady glasses on...a real bonus.

I wouldn'y buy it myself. All carbon is nice but I would prefer to get better components for that price.

For close to $1500 you can get brand new with Shimano 105 throughout.

http://www.trekbikes.com/ca/en/bikes/road/2_series/21wsd/

It retail in Canada for $1649 but I'm sure you could pretty close to $1500.

Resale would probably be better also.

I thought that was weird, too. Maybe they just upgraded the one component? I think 105's are good components, ultegras are better, but I've heard some people in my tri group say they're heavier (by mere grams, I'm sure). A good friend of mine said she'd never buy a bike with tiagra components again--they lose their tune very quickly, and she said it would have been worth it to upgrade to at least 105's. I would probably stick with aluminum frame with carbon components when you are just starting out. Less chance of cracking the frame when you're learning how to handle the bike, transport the bike, etc. Just a thought.

Great work through the holiday season gang! Only a few more days until the New Year. The gyms will be packed and there will be lots of new faces at your regular places. Try to be patient with the packs of people, particularly if you workout at a gym. Let me know your race and non-race resolutions for the New Year.

I have 2 questions, a trainign plan question and a nutrition question.

1) Nutrition: I workout first thing in the morning usually before having a coffee. (maybe 5am to 6am) I then savor my coffee and get ready for work if it's a work day. I then have breakfast at either 8am or 8:30am. Am i waiting too long?

2) Training plan: I am looking for a beginner duathlon training plan, any ideas where I can find one?

Edited by striving 2009-12-29 5:32 PM

A nutritionist at the school I work with talked to my soccer team about the importance of eating some time within 30 mins after your workout. I forget what the ratio of carbs to protein are suppose to be but she said things like granola bars and fruit are good. It is important for muscle recovery. Maybe if you could eat something small after the workout.

BT has some good duathlon programs for those not doing the tris. I think you may have to be a gold member to get those.As for nutrition, you should try to eat a little bit within 30 minutes of your workout. There are several "recovery" type drinks out there that are supposed to be balanced and provide you with optimal recovery. My recommendation depending on the workout is get some water in immediately and then some type of electrolyte replacement. Of course that depends on how hard you worked out and how much you sweat. You need to replace lost electrolytes soon or you may experience gastro upset and cramping. I have seen some pretty good articles on recovery nutrition and will try to post a link.Happy training.

Happy New Year's Eve! Be safe this holiday and may your new year be filled with happiness, peace and well organized triathlons. 

I think that Tania was asking about eating before exercise? So, according to the "Paleo Diet for Athletes" book, depending on the intensity of the workout, you will need to ensure that you've replaced the glycogen stores that were reduced during sleep. For sure you'll need to hydrate to reduce protein breakdown during exercise. If you can't tolerate solid food before exercise, have a smoothie or even an Emergen-C drink. Get some carbohydrate into your body and you'll have a way better workout and you'll recover better, too. With the carbs, though, you should also get some protein to lower the glycemic index of the carbohydrate you've just taken, because this will slow the release of sugar into the bloodstream and delay fatigue. As soon as your done exercise, you need to have some carbohydrates, protein and water. This is what I do, which may not appeal to anyone else - but I actually look forward to it. I make a protein smoothie every morning with frozen fruit, orange juice, pomegranate juice, a banana, a scoop of protein powder (I use Vegan Protein by Greens) and a tablespoon of flaxseed oil. I make enough that when I come back from my workout, I just have a bit more of this. I also drink at least 750 ml of water. For swim workouts, I put Emergen-C in my water bottle because I'm prone to cramping and it's a good source of electrolytes. I have to say with this protein shake, that I'm not hungry again until lunch time or beyond, depending on what my morning workout was like. I almost have to force myself to eat after a workout - and if you knew me, you'd know that that's just weird!I think it really depends on the length and intensity of the exercise, though. Experiment to see what you can tolerate - I can NOT exercise without food in me, but some people get really queasy...I think that at the very least, some gatorade or Emergen-C should be taken in first thing. I really believe that it will reduce fatigue and help with recovery. That's just my two cents.Pamela

Happy New Year's everyone! Hope you are all having a fun night. Tomorrow is the start of getting ready for the 2010 Triathlon season. No more excuses for me.

December's totals:
Bike:	5h 26m 34s  - 110.75 Mi
Run:	8h 36m 43s  - 57.07 Mi
Swim:	5h 00m  - 14650 Yd
Strength:	2h 50m

2009 totals
Bike:	206h 03m 13s  - 3266.81 Mi
Run:	120h 13m 27s  - 748.01 Mi
Swim:	106h 04m 09s  - 285224.2 Yd
Strength:	43h 55m

 

Someone once told me that having a coffee and then a bottle of water right after is useless since the caffeine negates the effects of the water. They said it would be better to have the water before. Is there any truth to this? I have two coffees in the morning and I probably don't drink enough as it is so I am thinking of rearranging how I drink in the morning. Comments?

This article is pretty good about nutrition before, during and after a workout. It tries to answer alot of the questions I have seen everyone posting here.http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1793

Question again. Last year I was experiencing edema and was prescribed compression stockings. I hear they are now the craze for runners. What is the reason?

They are supposed to promote faster recovery with faster blood supply to the compressed area. I personally have never tried them, but a few of the folks I train with use them. I have to say of those I know using them they are in their early 50s and I am not certain if their age is one of the reasons for why they are using them or not. There is a lot of debate right now in the triathlon community about whether compression is really beneficial. If you have to wear them to prevent edema, then my recommendation is keep wearing them. For me, I haven't tried them so I really can't weigh in on whether they help or not.  

Thanks Molly, I don't have edema anymore so I don't need to wear them and thank goodness, they are the most uncomfortable things around! They cost a fortune so I thought I would have a piece of triathlon wear that I wouldn't have to buy...lol..

One of my coworkers found that soccer socks that are a size to small (instead of expensive compression socks) work well in preventing his calves from cramping up during his long runs (he does marathons). I don't know if it really works but he seems to think so.
  So, I've been trying to train my dog (a small dog called a Feist) to run with me and I think she's finally starting to get it. She ran 4.3 miles today and rarely stopped. I even managed to tire her out!
 

Great job everyone. It's a new year and time to get rolling on our training. For those of you doing triathlons this season, I was planning to post some information about transitions. Just a few things that I have learned from coaches and from participating in events that I thought might help. If there is something specific about transitions that you want me to include, please let me know.

Molly if you can provide some ideas on how to train for transitions when it's all done indoors and my gym doesn't have a pool. Then again, I haven't made it to the pool yet so I may stick to the duathlon idea.

My brother wears his compression stuff - socks and arms - for recovery only. I've worn compression socks during long runs, mostly to help with a calf injury, and I quite like them, but maybe it's a placebo effect? I usually leave the socks on for a couple of hours after my run to help with recovery, too. Again, maybe a placebo effect...