Baowolf's Fun In the Sun Mentor Group (OPEN) (Page 6)

WooHoo Carol!!!! Great week of workouts.

Mike, so glad the run was good.

Had the trail run tonight and no broken bones and no falls. :-) Whew, tho, they weren't kidding when they said single track. We all ran about 300 yards and then came to a standstill entering the trail. I was behind one woman who was really holding us up but I couldn't find a way to pass. Finally we had a 10 yard wide section and I went around. Led the way for a pack of 10 or so and then stepped off for a few seconds to insure I wasn't hold people back. Then I gradually picked off people. Not many but some. That 4.5 mile trek seemed more like 10 miles tho. I must admit tho that the very few times that I could take my eyes off of the roots and stumps, it was awesome to see people on the switchbacks. Sometimes I couldn't tell if they were ahead or behind. Pretty fun.

Oh Phil, I forgot to answer your questions about hubby's mentor. Yes, he was in Boise for a HIM and wrecked at mile 52 of the bike. Two or 3 days in the hospital. Had to talk wife and others via phone on how to disassemble the bike. He really doesn't know whay kind of condition the bike was in after the race and now he is really worried because of their disassembly.

Pam, way to get your trail run done! It sounds challenging and enjoyable! Tree trunks and stumps scare me. I'd probably get hurt if there are too many. Way to go!
And Carol, nice to see you logging all those workouts. I hope you are liking the warmer summer temps.
And taper madness men-- Keep the Faith! Like Carol said, the hay is in the barn!!

Thanks everyone for your kind words of encouragement! I'm excited (and a bit nervous) to get deeper into my training. Today I headed to the gym to do a swim and run workout. The weather here in Orlando has been incredibly hot, so I've been running on the treadmill a lot. I was able to run just under 2 miles and swim about a 1/3 of a mile. I enjoyed the challenge of doing both in one workout.

I have a question for all of you: how often do you incorporate strength training into your routine? I'm training 5 days a week, most days I just do one discipline but on one day I train in two. I'd like to keep doing strength training but I'm not sure about the best way to work it in. Thanks for your help!

Congrats on your trail race, Pam! It is sort of surreal seeing the runners ahead and behind like that. Glad you took in the scenery and had a good, and injury free run.

Christina, glad to hear you are progressing well with your plan! You will likely get differing opinions about combining tri training with strength training. So this is just my personal opinion based on what works (and more importantly what led to injury) for me. I really neglected doing anything other than swim/bike run (mainly run), and wound up with a string of injuries and chronic pain that took me out of running for the better part of a year. So I'm personally trying to rebuild from the ground up right now. My suggestion is to keep something in there primarily for core and to keep your muscles balanced. Swim/bike/run don't have much side to side motion, so some muscles can get neglected over time, and put too much strain on others. Quads, glutes, hamstrings, calves, etc. get plenty of work with tri sports, but hip stabilizing muscles for example not so much. My "answer" right now is incorporating yoga in the evenings. Time will tell whether it works well, but I like the combination of core/strength/deep stretch for some of those neglected muscles that it brings into play. I'm using a "Rodney Yee AM Yoga" DVD and like that it's a different emphasis each day, and that it's only 20 minutes . If you want to keep lifting in the more traditional way, then I would emphasize upper and core and go lighter on leg work that further stresses those muscles that are already used so much in run and bike.

So IMCDA is this weekend. Looking forward to stalking our racers! Also glad Mitch, Steve and Samantha will get to meet

Thanks to all for the encouragement!

Christina : Hi and welcome! I x2 on what others have said, this is a great sport, so much fun (a bit addictive I must say) and you will get to meet the most amazing people! I am still amazed to see all these athletes willing to share their knowledge and tips. It is indeed a very welcoming sport.

Carol : you had a great week and seem to be on a roll! Way to go!

Steve & Mitch : what an inspiration you both are. I will think of you and send you good vibes next weekend. Be proud, whatever the results are, because your perseverance, hard work, vision and intelligence have brought you ready and healthy to the start line. Now enjoy and have fun!!!

Last weekend a few people I know were in Mont Tremblant (70.3) and did amazingly well. I hope I can be part of this event in the future... Maybe next year to celebrate the big 4-0??

As for me, tummy aches and general fatigue got the best of me last week and I missed a few workouts. I am back on the saddle for this week though, had a nice 1750 yds swim with fast intervals yesterday, a run tonight. I am also officially signed up for the oly on July 20, so better get in gear!!!

Happy training and racing!

Still room for one more?

Reading this thread and it seems like a good group of people. I am a newbie when it comes to triathlon's - just completed my first one June 17th - clearly BOP!

:-)

A little about me... Cancer survivor (2011 - Burkitt's Lymphoma) - Heart attack survivor (2013 - stent in LAD) - Started back on working out / dieting in October of last year.

Chronic yo-yo dieter. Have recently shed quite a few pounds. Currently at 5' 8" and 195 lbs. Target goal is 175.

A friend asked me what was up next to keep me going and suggested sprint tri's here: http://www.windingtrails.org/index.php?id=315

I purchased the TI swim videos and have been working in the pool 2 - 4 times a week. Only completed 2 OW swims. One practice and one race. I finished the swim without stopping (not good form but kept going) and had plenty of energy to continue.

Being a compulsive sort, I signed up for five of the sprints. I just completed my first one and it was a kick in the pants. This turns out to be mountain biking and trail running, which I had never done. I have exactly 2 trail rides (one practice one race) and one trail run which was more of a walk since the bike burnt me out. You can read a bit more about it here: http://dennisbosse.com/health/first-one-books

I have this week off and will do the next one on July 1st.

Last week I took off Wednesday after the race.
Thursday was 12 miles (road) on the POS bike I have - it's a Walmart special about 15 years old.
Friday I jogged 5 miles - still at a slow pace but good workout.
Sat / Sun - OFF (other commitments).

Today [Monday am] 4 miles jog all within target heart rate. Hope to get in the pool later this evening. Hopefully tonight I pick up a new mountain bike. :-)

I am looking for info on working out in between events? The next few are every other week.. my last 3 will be 3 weeks back to back.

I started training for the triathlon a bit late. Didn't really follow a great plan. Just kept going. I am focusing more on aerobic conditioning (bike / run) and adding in 2 total body weight sessions / week for strength.

I have another goal of completing a century bike ride in August. I have a road bike that will get tuned up and will start to add miles on the bike too.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Comments?

I enjoy and benefit from strength training so I incorporate it into my regular schedule. I try to lift at the gym 4 times a week. I will drop to 3 times per week during heaving training, early taper, and recovery phases. The strength has helped me in all 3 disciplines of triathlon. It also has helped me in my job as an elementary school teacher. I am always on the go.

Hrm, in getting the house set for us to leave it I did some scrubbing yesterday...which put my back into spasm all day today. Very not cool. Icing atm. Hopefully this clears up in a couple days... cuz that's all I got left... payers welcome.

And plenty of room common in the water is fine. You have overcome so much. Make sure your training is within the recommendations of your doctors.

Strength training and triathlon training are tough to do. I'm finally getting my tri training in while also helping my wife with a powerlifting routine I created. If you want to do this, you need to be smart. For example, doing shoulders and then trying to swim is a bad idea....however, doing back and then swimmng is doable (for me) Another example, heavy squats followed by a long run/long bike can be done but you're performance will suffer. I believe that training like this helps you because it prepares your legs for that weary feeling you get for race day. The bad part of this is that you're increasing your chance for pulls and strains. A better way maybe a small brick on a leg day....that way you get your lifting in and you can try to use the bike/run as a way to loosen up your lactic acid from leg day so you won't experience DOMS.

Did the swimmers mile yesterday of 1650 with a long of 350. The same "zen" I had the last time wasn't there....however, I did get my 2nd wind which was a big positive. I usually ladder up to 350 so I was getting tired on my set of 250 and 300 but I got my 2nd wind and my 350 and warmdown were some of the better sets I had all day. I'd like to think that's a good thing as I move forward.


Carol: Very happy you're finding your groove again and your foot/glute isn't acting up. You're determined to work in your Yoga stuff huh

Steve: Bummer about your back; prayers coming your way for quick healing

Pam: Congrats on your trail race; bigger kudos that you even do them (I've never gotten into trail running)

Dennis -- welcome!! Amazing story of perseverance on your side. Lots of good folks here so whatever your questions or concerns, someone here will have an answer.

Steve -- hope today is a new day for your back! Too close to show time to have anything go wrong!

Jay -- glad the pool is becoming a more friendly place.

Had a mixed bag of a weekend. My sunday ride was sidetracked by an early AM hot water heater problem which resulted in leaking water, frantic calls to the plumber, and a general big mess. Did get out for a run on Saturday and again yesterday, though. Will bike tonight. Also went to the beach for a nice open water swim and that lasted about 10 minutes. Water temp of 58 was just ridiculous. Instant ice cube. Yeah, maybe I'm a wimp, but I need to get over it, as I have a race this Sunday at that very spot (local sprint race). I'm heading back again a couple times this week to try to get used to it as much as I can. To say its a bit of a shock would be an understatement . Brrrrrrr!!!!

Steve, Steve, Steve.....housework will kill you. Put that mop down! Seriously, praying for you and Mitch to arrive at the start healthy. Say hello to Samantha for me!

Jay, great progress on your swim! Having those last sets feel better is great. LOL, yes, I think I'm finally embracing the yoga...actually look forward to it now.

Mike, yes, hard to torture yourself with those cool water temps too many times. You're a strong swimmer, so betting you will be fine on race day regardless. Speaking of which, good luck!

Dennis, welcome! You sound quite determined (ummm....yes....signing up for 5 tri's does show some determination). Since the races are so close together....I would think of at least some of them as training days with company and refreshments. In other words, don't take more than maybe one day off training beforehand so that your overall training doesn't take a hit. Same reason for not going all out in all of them. If you do, you will likely need some rest at least the day after. Maybe train through the middle ones, and then go all out for the last one.

Zero to 10K is going well, though it's early on and the run intervals are very short. A ride, a swim, and yoga on tap for today. On site work for one client cancelled....she broke her ankle in 3 places and is having surgery....ouch!

Steve, I hope you are feeling better now. Everyone is in my prayers for good health and successful racing and training.

Pam: typical cyclist. biker gets injured, and cares more about the wellbeing of his bike! Too bad it was at mile 52! A few more miles and he'd be done with the bike leg.

Christina: Everyone gave very good suggestions. I was certain Jay would have a bit to say since he seems to be the powerlifter with the most experience in the group. I specifically focus on lower back, and upper body, but no more than twice a week at peak training, to balance my body, and get more reps as opposed to heavier weights. There are plenty of muscle groups that cycling and running don't hit.

Isabella, hope this week is a bit better for you! I had a horrible week last week, but mostly self-inflicted. Lots of friends visiting from out of town, and grad parties, and world cup matches. I spent more time drinking socially than exercising. Oops.

Dennis: welcome Sounds like you've persevered a lot. 5 tris in a season is simply incredible! Good luck on all of those and with training. You won't be able to call yourself a beginner triathlete after this summer! My first road bike was a $129 Walmart bike (Huffy GMC Denali, this 'road bike' was 31 lbs!), too! Didn't do any races with it though, because I upgraded at an LBS as soon as I got hooked. Seems like your training is going very well. You already got 1 sprint under your belt so you know what to expect. As Jay told Christina, work on your weaknesses, and improve your swimming technique.

Steve: that's bad news about your back. I too can get lower back spasms on occasion and fall back on some low-impact exercises I learned in physical therapy. Or I just take some ibuprofen! Sucks that it's so close to race day, but rest up and you'll be great.

Yesterday was the start to a new week, and forget the past week. Put in a quick 2000m in the pool (outdoor meter pool) before subbing in for another soccer game in DC. First time in the pool since my shin injury in May, but it felt good after the warmup. Kept my pace around 1:40/100m. I'm gonna try finishing this month strong.

Back still sucky today so I found a masseuse to abuse my back for an hour. Too soon to tell if it will help, but boy she put an hour into abusing those muscles, hopefully that gets them to relax a bit and work out. I will be doing ice and heat and such. It is up behind my shoulder blades. Noting that my bike seat is slightly off due to the prior bike crash I will be replacing that when I can, but not wise to use a new saddle for an IM a couple says away even if I could find a saddle. I also went to a running store in Reno when I got my eyes checked. It was interesting because they assessed my gate differently than the last gate analysis I had done in 2007. She said that you look at your foot when it if fully loaded on the ground, not how it looks in the air. This resulted in her suggesting I move from a support shoe to a neutral shoe. So we see how that goes. Not sure what using too much support does to your legs, but it could cause some issues she said. The prior analysis looked at how my feet got to the ground in the air running barefoot. This lady put me in neutral shoes and looked at how my foot loaded onto the shoe of each foot as I had my full weight on the foot. The 2nd approach makes sense to me. So if folks have had gate analysis done... might want to think about how they did this. This winter I also put a lot of time into dialing in my bike height, and location from the aero bars. I moved it 1 mm per week based on feel and such and ended up raising the seat about 1/2 inch and moving it forward 1/4 of an inch. Oh well almost time to go pack.

Steve, that is good news that you had a massage and you are ready to pack! Go get em!
Gait analysis is interesting. I, like you, had one without shoes first, then one with shoes at a well known Newton (minimal) shoe store. My left foot was awful on landing so I've tried to correct that and strengthen my hips, glutes, and feet. I now wear neutral instead of support shoes.

Alright I am going to assume my back will be fine and if so here is the game card to check out my times on race day. I did CDA 4 years ago with the following times (the bike course has changed so... we see if that impacts anything).

Swim 1:33
Bike 6:33
Run 4:24
Total 12:40:48.

So those are the times to beat for me if I am at 100% if not, well it is to beat 17 hours 8). Grab that popcorn the game is afoot.

Gentlemen -- Go out and have a fantastic race this weekend. Swim like a shark is chasing, ride like you stole the bike, and run like the wind. You'll be great, and can't wait to stalk you online all day

I have my local sprint race this weekend, and it should be fun, despite the 58 degree water temp. It will be a very quick 400 yard swim, or maybe I'll just jump from iceburg to iceburg around the course.

Masters class was a torture session this AM. 3100 yards of timed 100's, drill, and stroke work. Had a brutal calf cramp on my final time 100 which still hurts. However, I did have the best post workout endorphin rush in ages. Got to work and sat down, and boom -- super mellow, easy feeling everywhere, and I'm not even in Colorado .

Thank you for all the encouragement! I am definitely nervous these last few days. Pretty much packed up and I leave tomorrow morning at 7:30 am!

I have to keep looking back at my logs to be sure i can make it! Taper brain is horrible....

My bib number is 1868.

Here's my aprox times...

Swim 1:15-1:20
Bike 7 plus hours, prob 7:15 ish
5 hour marathon??

Now that I put that down, seems like a lot. My A goal is just to finish the race in under 17 hours....have fun and stay healthy....

Like the plan Mitch! Those times would bring you in about 13:30/45 with transitions. And still leaves you 3+ hours to spare. Have a blast. Can't wait to hear about your triumph!

Back still fried... Mitch may well beat me ...

Good luck to those heading out to comps this weekend.

I am recovering from a volunteer "Habitat for Humanity" day yesterday.. Not used to "working". Lol.. I did get a new bike - entry level mountain bike - and took it for a spin in the woods / road on Monday night. Will make a big difference next Tuesday!

Will be running tomorrow am and pool later in the day. Hope to find more bike trails over the weekend.

Best,
-Dennis

Managed another lunch time run today, and it was great. Quite hot out, however, and needed to cut it short by 5 min, but I got out there. I've been running every other day for the past couple of weeks so far, and at times I feel like its going in the right direction. Want to keep this schedule, get through my re-build to 5k, and then start building a good base. Looking forward to getting back to a place of injury free running, and pumping out those long runs on Sunday AM.

Hang in there, Steve. Still a few days to the race, and betting the massage might make it worse before it gets better.

Mitch, sounds like you are chomping at the bit and have a good and realistic plan. Won't be long before you can leave all the taper worries behind and just be in the moment out on the course.

Dennis, congrats on the new bike! Have fun breaking it in!

Mike, so glad to hear that you are running injury free. Stick to the plan, the plan is your friend!

That's what I'm telling myself too. My run intervals in the Cto10K program are up to a whopping 90 seconds now that I'm in week 2. But nothing hurts, so I'll be patient.

Sad news here that a mountain biker was found dead in a ravine off the trails on the north side of our local lake. He was riding with friends, fell, and hit his head. He told them he was OK, and then they got separated and he never came out of the trails. Took a couple of days to find him.

GO STEVE AND MITCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll be praying for health, safe trips, and a great race. Please tell Samantha that we said Hi. Will be stalking both of you on Sunday. I've been talking about painting my bedroom for years so since I was planning on watching the computer all day Sunday, I decided to paint Sunday so I'll be right by the computer. I bought the paint tonight so I'll be checking on ya'll. With the time diff, I hope I can watch ya'll finish. Go slay it gentlemen.

Welcome Dennis! And congrats on the new bike.

Christina, didn't realize you were in Orlando. Glad to have another Florida girl here.

Mike, best of luck on your race. With your speed, you'll be out of that cold water in no time.

Oh Carol, that is so sad about the mountain biker. Prayers for his family and friends.

Regarding the gait analysis, I was in stability shoes for years and then when I had another one done, they moved me to neutral shoes too. From what I remember, they said oftentimes as people run more, their running economy improves and they began running more neutral. At least that's what I remember.

So after telling Christina what you shouldn't do if you want to incorporate weight training into her routine....what do I do? Go out and run 9 miles 1 day after a heavy leg day! Do as I say, not as I do. Believe it or not, the run was actually pretty encouraging because I was keeping a decent pace for the first half of the run but I decided to change the course to a more difficult one for part 2. The results were predictable; my legs got really tired and I slowed way down...but I survived it and am feeling encouraged with my running. I had my first non treadmill sub 10mm since my achilles injury; it was only 3 miles but still a good feeling. I was also sub 10 for first half of today's run....so Steve's advice of putting in miles and staying patient appears to be working. Prior to my run, I got in a quick 700 in the pool. I've come to accept that I'm the tortoise when it comes to swimming...people just lap me over and over again but I just do my thing. I'm a little scared to see HOW slow I am. I did get in a new long distance of 400M so things are starting to come together. Now, I need to motivate myself to get on the road with my bike. My get in shape mentality has always been running...hence why I'm running way more than biking.

Steve/Mitch: The time is quickly approaching. I hope you enjoy CDA and hanging out with Samantha and each other!

Dennis: As Carol said, have fun with the new bike. If you do get hooked, you'll eventually want to find a road bike for yourself. There are plenty of people in the group that know a lot more about bikes than me.

Mike: Nice job getting out there and running. There isn't much enjoyment getting out and running in this heat/humidity. Keep it up!

Carol: See above lol! Stay with your program you've got yourself on!