Robin's Family-friendly mentor group - CLOSED (Page 6)

After some thorough cleaning today (instead of my scheduled afternoon swim), I'm feeling much better and way more postive.  I suppose I was feeling guilt/disappointment with the state of my abode.  Now that I'm being productive here, I no longer feel as challenged by winter or frustrated by my heavy training plan.  Cleaning worked the zpiderwebs out of my brain and I can now feel content changing my training plan. 

It's amazing what a little cleaning can do!  (although, I still wouldn't mind if someone else did it for me)

I finished my goals today (using the SMART Method) and they can be seen on my blog here.  Would love the groups feedback!

The crumby things about my obsticals is I know exactly what they are and the internal struggle I have with myself, I always end up the loser. 

• My main obsticle is lazieness, plain and simple. 
• The only way for me to overcome this is pure motivation.  If I can get myself on a roll this will not be an issue. 
• The #1 way to get motivated is to get on a plan, train consistantly, track (log) workouts and see results.
• Blowing off early morning workouts, especially swims
• Schedule swim workouts for after work
• get in a routine of getting up at 5:30AM every day
• Get to bed by 10:30 every night 
• Staying Healthy
• Stretch more and listen to my body, rest when needed

Those are my main ones.  Since I am able to schedule most of my strength and short runs during lunchtime, sometimes work obligations come up and there is not much I can control over that. 

-B

Spelling is obviously an Obstacle too

Robin - A clean house is perfect for a fresh start. I totally understand!

Brian - I totally understand the internal struggle. I will have conversations in my head about wanting to sleep in. The best I an do is to push those voices aside and not listen to them. It is so freaking hard. The only way I an get out of bed at 5 am is if I do it every morning Monday to Friday. Consistency is key, I guess.

Oh the internal struggles we face with early morning workouts, nutrition, motivation!  The life of a triathlete!

Well I have several obstacles as well! Most of them have to do with myself and lack of motivation.  But I totally agree with you Brian, once there is a plan and workouts are being logged and results are being seen, that is definitely a motivator.  Here are some of my struggles:

* I do not get enough sleep!  I have odd shifts at work.  Two days a week I work 3:30 - 11:30.  SO on those nights I dont normaly go to bed until 12:30.  Then I am up the next day at 5:15 to lifeguard for a triathlete swim program at 6:00.  It's crazy but I don't really know how to fit more sleep into my schedule.

* Lack of motivation - I am my own worst enemy and can talk myself out of anything!  It's awful and I really just need a kick in the pants and a plan.  If I have a plan I tend to do better because I know what I need to do and I like the accomplishment of getting it done.  If I dont have a plan then I kinda just wing it and may decide to workout or not.  Ugh!

* Taking on too much!  I have a problem with saying no to people and I am a huge people pleaser so I want to make everyone happy even if it means sacrificing training time.  I wear many hats:

*Mom, Wife, Grad Student, School Administrator, Youth Group Leader, Lifeguard, Triathlete,

I need to be better at making my training a priority and not something so non chalant.

Those are just a few.  I am sure I could go on and on.  I just need to get better focused ad get out of this funk and get training already!

Erika

can I whine for minute. We were talking about obstacles and I guess this is a big one for me. I am still sick 15 days after getting this cold. It is so frustrating. I took 1 full week off and now today I had to cut my run short due to coughing yesterday I ran 8 km coughing the whole time. I feel fine the whole day but when I try to run I get a rattle in my chest. i know that it will take time but I have a 10k in just over a week and I am worried. What if I don't make my time? I guess my time goal is more important to me then I thought but mostly I am worried I will still be sick. ARGH!! How do I fix my running plan that I have set up? Next week I have a recovery week but after that, I guess I will have to modify the mileage since I am not running as much now?

Sorry for the rant!

Robin, I enjoyed the workout with both run and bike. Run was first. Early December I joined a local gym, they had an awesome special $80 for SIX MONTHS!! That includes the personal trainer to help me when and as needed. Pretty sweet. I joined because I know my arthritis gets extra whack in the winter and I was afraid the icy temps would keep me from exercising or running enough. Plus I'm not adventurous enough to ride a bike in the snow. Maybe I'm weak like that, LOL.
 The only downside to the gym is no pool. So I will use the local YMCA on an as needed basis.  I am still relatively OVERWEIGHT, so the gym will probably be good enough for now, as I really need the excess of cardio and weight training to get my extra bulk off.    I am still finalizing my goals, and as you suggested and requested I'm looking at the races I'm interested in and trying to narrow my choices for weekends which had/have two races I'm interested in.  Also I found through that research that one of the triathlons I want(ed) to do was only 7 days from the full marathon (would be my first) I was interested in. As well as one other triathlon being the exact same day as the half marathon (also would be my first of those) I wanted to do. So its a matter of making some decisions.   Spoke to the husband and some friends and I'm now much more confident I have some childcare coverage which was a big concern before.   I actually let someone watch my kids for two hours last week, a HUGE step for me, and I was so worried.  She said they were SO amazingly well behaved and they're welcome anytime I would like for as long as I like. I was impressed since she herself has three kids.  I guess my hard work with my kids has paid off.  
So I should be back posting some more details pretty soon. I haven't forgotten things, and the past three days have been spent not sleeping and with the flu. First my four year old and then me. YUK.  Today is going to be my last recovery day from this flu, and I might do my yoga dvd today so I don't totally miss out on activity.
As for that workout with bike and running I did the running first.  The trainer wanted my first week to be cardio only. That was fine.... and I did the running then the bike. I understand in a race I have to do it the other way around but I was just trying to get both into the same day, and same workout. 
Monday this week, JUST before the flu hit us, I did bike, run, and weights. He's giving me three weights workouts for my upper arms.  Then in another week we'll add a couple more. I am all gung ho, but glad he wants to pace it, pace me.  I'm not all that great in shape but like I told the trainer, I can do more than I look like I can do. :-) 
Hope everyone is having a good week and my specific goals should be here very soon.

Here's a youtube I saw and it is hilarious (About Ironman training)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6derUz9_k0

TTYL!

That's one of the reasons why we're here!!!!  Rant all you want!  Get it off your chest!  I did it yesterday.  Dumb question, I know, but have you gone to the doctor?  Chest colds are horrible and they take a long time to heal.  Provided you're not overdoing it, keep your runs low and slow.  Don't worry about pushing pace, walk when you have to.  Just try to keep what fitness you do have and when race day comes, adrenaline will kick in to help. 

If it helps in any way, my very first tri I was coming off of a cold.  Runny nose, chest congestion, but I felt ok thankfully.  I successfully finished.  It can be done, just listen to your body.

Prayers for your healing!

Wow!  WIth the exception of the flu, it sounds like it's been a great week!  That's awesome that you have a personal trainer when you need one. (so jealous!)   He will really get you off to a great start.  Does he know your marathon/triathlon goals?  He'll be able to guide what you do towards that end. 

I'm excited to hear what races you pick.  If your "A" race is your marathon, it will be important to focus on that.  Have you used the race finder at the top of BT?  You can search by state.  Another great place to look is trifind.com.  This site lists tris that aren't necessarily listed on BT and they also have listings of other races --marathons, duathlons, etc. 

Congratulations on having a willing sitter and fabulous kids!  You've reached a milestone already--well mannered children that you don't have to worry about!!!  Way to go!!!!

Great video, BTW.

Hi All...I know all about the struggle with getting up before the sun rises to do my workout....I slept in on Tuesday morning and did my run during my lunch break--at noontime. I won't be doing that again for several reasons:

Not sure if it was because I was tired, but the run was just exhausting that at 1.16 miles, I had to stop the treadmill and take a breather for about 30 seconds and get going again til I finished my 1.75 miles. Maybe I was just hungry for lunch or my sugars were low. Not sure what it was, but getting up at 5 am to do my run is a much better sacrifice than doing another lunch time run. I much rather prefer to get the run done in the am before I start work and then I can enjoy the rest of my day. In a little less than 2 weeks, I'll start my training for my Olympic Tri that I'll be doing in May--Wildflower--so I know getting up in the AM to do my run will be even more important so I can do my bike/swim in the evening. Plus, our local gym has a great "kids gym" as my son calls it for him so I know he'll enjoy going to the gym with me while I do my evening workouts.

Best wishes to you all and keep up the training!

It's fabulous Friday!  Take time to brag.  What excellent thing did you do this week?  Training related, or not!

5k before yoga today-- it felt like I was running on rested legs!  I still have my problem area, but it wasn't too bad.  I focused on form and cadence.  I think my running form changed helping to cause my issue.  But I stayed focused on runnnig right, and it felt SOOOO much better while I was running!

Realized I needed to change my training plan and did so. 

I have a rockin' mentor group!!!!!!!  You girls (and guys) are awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was heading out-of-town with my family, and we had to leave at 8 am.  Knowing that the likelihood of running once we got to our destination was slim to none, I opted to drag my butt out of bed at 5:30 am and run in the dark.  I was so happy to have that under my belt!!!

Obstacle:  My husband and I have 6 kids, ranging from 10 to 8 months and we've chosen to homeschool them.  I really try not to complain- they are awesome and we have been abundantly blessed.  However, it does make trying to stay on the right training track and nutrtion track a challenge. 

Another obstacle - I did my first try on the trainer a couple of days ago - and wow, is that the pits!!  Does anyone else feel this way about it?  I am they type of persont hat would rather run in the freezing rain then run on a treadmill in a gym.  So maybe I need to just bundle up and ride my bike even if it's cold, but the road are clear.

I just finished the season with 4 tri-sprints.  I have a triathlon book - but would love some input on what is the best plan to go from here to maintain endurance while burning those calories.....

I echo most other obstacles that have been mentioned.  I think we all struggle with making time to train and balance with family time/obligations, jobs, school, ect.  In my opinion, learning to balance those things will be a challenge for the rest of my life, so I might as well accept it and deal with it.  We all get the same 24 hours in our day, so we can just do it, right?!  

Oh man-time is pinched right now too-I'll be back later for a more cohesive post.   

Okay, wow, that last post was absurd, and I am sorry.  I start off on a ramble and then have to run!  Okay, so here is my humblebrag-I just jarred 5 jars of homemade pasta sauce!  Who knew canning was so much fun?!  

Which brings me to another obstacle.  I love food.  Not in a "eat 4 cheeseburgers from McDonalds quick before someone spots me" type of way, but in a "I could spend my entire day shopping for fresh ingredients, developing some crazy complex meal, cooking it, and enjoy it with a lovely adult beverage" type of way.  I love cheese.  And wine. and chocolate.  and cookies. And good beer (not really a beer snob....really!)  I love to enjoy meals!  I hate counting calories, and discovering how much saturated fat cheese has in it, and leaving it off of my meal.....but I do it.  So my two favorite hobbies don't mesh and that is an obstacle.  Usually what I do is focus on fresh/healthy meals during training, and learning to make complex Julia Child's during off season.  Maybe I should do it the other way around so I don't gain weight during off season?!

I also agree that sickness is another obstacle that I face.  I think, with little kids in the house, that is going to be a given!  They are little germ-monsters, and no matter how often you wash your hands, they will, at some point, smear something you touch with their snot.  I think my main debate is "am I too sick to workout?"  I am terrible at telling!  I ran my first half marathon with tonsillitis.  It wasn't too bad when I started that race, but it took me FOREVER to get over since I wore myself down so badly by finishing that race.    

Anyone have anything good going on this weekend??

 Shon

Katie - good job getting your workout in before your vacation. I am the same way, I would much rather brave the cold, snow, rain, whatever then run on the treadmill. The time I use my treadmill is first thing in the morning because I am too afraid to run outside at 5 am.

I had a really great run this morning. After complaining yesterday about still having a cough I went out for a nice long run this morning and it was awesome. My legs felt good, I had a  ton of energy and best of all no cough.

Shon - I agree it is so hard to determine if I should exercise or not. This time I decided to start exercising again because my energy was fine and I didnt have a fever, it was just a leftover cough. I was a little worried there that I was going to make it worse though.

No big plans for this weekend. I just started my classes last week so I guess I will be studying and taking it easy.

That's how I usually find out what works for me too -- trial and error!  Now you know better! 

Shon- being a foodie is probably a good thing if you look at it the right way.  You love fresh and you love creating great meals.  There are so many recipes that are healthy out there that I wouldn't dare to try just because I'm a lazy cook.  I'll cook well for my family, but I'm not going to spend 3 hours of my day cooking a new recipe.  That's a desire I'd love to have.  I'm sure you'll find tons of great new healthy recipes to try (without cheese, and chocolate, and...)

(oh, and I am a member of the Good Beer Club.)

Have you checked out the "nutritional cafe" section of forums yet?

Well, I got in my last long run before my 10km race next weekend. I ran a couple of km at race pace and it was pretty tough. I guess I am just going to have to see how it goes next weekend. My main goal is just going to finish strong. My secondary goal is to finish in under 57 min. I really want to start the year off strong so if I don't finish in my time goal I will still be happy.

My legs were pretty tight on my run today because I added strength training and biking back to my routine last week. This week I intend to go out a bit easier. My goals are to do a few shorter recovery runs with one run on Wednesday where I do a couple km at race pace. I will do 3 bike rides with my ride on friday at a very easy pace, also I plan to only do strength on Monday not on Friday. Does this sound ok? I want my legs to feel fresh and not dead? Would you alter this in any way? Thanks for your opinions.

Hi everyone --

Sorry I was absent last week -- AWFUL week.  But, hoping this week will be better!  How about this road-block: 18 year old daughter totals car at college!  That put a HALT to my week until today. All people involved were not injured -- but her car sure was.  

Decided on a plan:

1/2 marathon training Jan/Feb/March (because more running really helps my mood)

duathlon training April/May (with a Duathlon on May 5th)

That's my starting plan.  Would like to add a couple more duathlon's and maybe a tri later in the season.

I love the running goal of 1,000 in 2012.  Making it mine!

I am awful with this too. I usually eat nothing. However, since I am starting to have longer workout sessions in the morning I am debating this same question. My usual weekend breakfast before a long run is toast and peanut butter. Hopefully we get some better suggestions.

To add on to this question what do you have for recovery after a hard workout? After weights I have a protein shake but I am looking for recovery after a long bike ride or run. Should I stick with a protein shake or have something different?

Sorry guys, I was off at my in-laws this weekend and didn'th ave a moment to even check in. 

Lisa- your plan seems just fine for this week.  Just make sure your bike is very easy and restful.  Can't wait to hear how it goes!

Breakfast- I'm the type of person who likes consistency and ease in the morning.  It doesn't bother me to have the same thing.  I have 1/2 c. of oatmeal made with 1/2 c. of almond milk.  Sometimes I throw in 1/2 of a banana or a handful of walnuts/almonds for some flavor.  It's enough to get me through the workouts, but light enough and easily digestable. 

After my workout (if it was a greater intensity in summer) I would make a green smoothie with spinach, oj, protein powder and whatever fruit I had in the house.  You may also find your body doesn't like certain foods after workouts.  My stomach could only handle the smoothies or straight oj.