Asphalt Junkies Spring 2013 - Closed (Page 65)

I think that yes!  You were kicking the trash out of that trainer!

I had a ride on the schedule last night but I decided to skip it for Lis and Kyrie (youngest daughter) and we went out for pizza at our favorite pizza joint.  Hey, it was their choice and it's a recovery week for me.

The bad side of the meal was that I'd already eaten more yesterday in junk food than I normally eat in a 2-3 weeks.  I ate a danish (and a banana) during the early part of a staff meeting.  Then our lunch wasn't bad, a roast beef and cheddar wrap, until I ate a gargantuan chocolate chip cookie.  Oh and then there was the large piece of cake with butter cream icing.  Then to top it all off I the dinner last night involved garlic cheese bread and double crust, extremely cheesy pizza.  I think I ate more calories yesterday than I eat in 3-4 days normally.

I may not approve of what I see on the scale next Wednesday!

Long run coming in an hour or so but it's only 12 miles today.  Next week it's right back to business with a 16-17 miler and all the other brutality that's involved.  The good news is that the pool may be loosening up.  I checked the schedule for next week and I can get 2 swims in as well as at least 3 bikes and I will get 4 runs in.  The pool is the bigger deal though.  I haven't been to the pool nearly enough since the beginning of the year.

Just checking in. I've been keeping up with the group but we've been sick. I've been dealing with a 4 day long really painful sinus headache. My son was hit with the flu - out of his class of 21 1st graders only 8 showed up for class on Wednesday. 50 students were out from the elementary school by the end of that day and this is a really small school. Wicked stuff and just hit out of no where. And I don't even want to get started about the garbage can - I mean dog. He thinks with his mouth, eats everything and has had quite a bit of tummy trouble himself this week.

So far the only thing that helps my sinus headache is Excedrin but I'll take any other suggestions. I've tried Tylenol Sinus but that made it much worse. I'm thinking about calling the doctor's office to talk to a nurse for advice before the weekend comes.

I've been faking my way through some lame workouts but no pressure for distance or performance goals.  My headache always feels better during the workouts but as soon as I stop there it is again.

Dirk I'm pretty sure you'll be able to swim, bike and run all those calories off but I do hear what you are saying. When I have days like that and am totaling up the calories I'm thinking why did I eat all that stuff and yesterday was one of those days. I'm giving myself a pass since it was Valentine's day and you should probably do the same.

Dina sorry to hear that you guys have not been feeling well. I hope you and your family are feeling better and soon. Take care of yourself. I can also relate with you on the dog. My dog is the same way, I don't think I could ever feed her enough. She has a voracious appetite. Honestly I've never seen anything like it.

Stumbled across this in my FB feed - made me laugh and had to share! Are you the tri-dork? - http://triathlon.competitor.com/2013/02/features/triathlife-are-you-a-tri-dork_70536

(Tri-Dork.jpg)

Don't beat yourself up about it.  You can only process so much of anything you eat in one day.  Because it was only one day I bet you don't see much if any increase in progress at all.

ONLY 12 miles!?  I'm getting back up there.  January really put a halt in my running, but I'm feeling better about it now. 

Agree with Jonathan Dirk.  There's actually some evidence that an occasional binge is good for your metabolism.  Key word - occasional.

I was cracking up at the "only 12" as well.  And thinking about how so many of the junkies are really cranking out the consistency this year.  Most impressive.  I can't wait to see some race results, particularly Matt's half marathon.  You will leave me in the dust this year Matt.

That sounds far more severe than the norm.  If you are willing to take the medicine, request a prednisone dose pack.  It will give you dramatic relief with the sinus crud/crap/cement!

It's the most aggressive treatment for what you've got, but it sounds like the most aggressive sinus infection too.  Hopefully you can then function.  BTW, you should also take an antibiotic for this.  Even if it's viral, you will develop a secondary bacterial infection from all the festering mucous up there if you don't.

How's the knee?  Been doing any leg extensions for your VMO?

I don't think you need to do this from a fitness point of view.  You can't really make up missed workouts per se.  However, if it will help motivate you to not miss them in the future, I don't see that it is a bad thing.  The only caveat would be that I would then question the validity of the testing next week a little.

Thanks Jeff, my headache has finally been much better today as the day goes on so I am hoping the worst is over. I did not call the doctor since things have gotten better but I have my fingers crossed because I still feel a lot of drainage.

My knee is feeling really good but this week is a bit of a wash for workouts besides my 6 mile run on Sunday. I have not been on my bike at all, only run one other day and I've also not been to the gym for any workouts with weights due to all the illnesses we have going around. Yesterday was the only day I made it to the Y and after I swam my head was throbbing so bad I just couldn't take anymore. Maybe that is all for the best in the long run though since my knee does feel really good. Thanks for asking! How is your knee?

I need some group intervention.  I haven't worked out in a week.  All my time the past week has been given to work and then my wife who needed me to be there for her in a rough time.  Now I'm in a funk.  I'm physically and emotionally drained.  So, go ahead and hit me with your best pep talk... ha!

On a related note, I'm wanting to start Jorges but still trying to wrap my mind around it and make sure I understand it.  I've read all the posts in our forum and looked over the plan and still dont feel like I totally get it... here are some of my Q's:

-Looks like most of our group has power meters.  Is anyone here doing Jorges w/ HR?

-I have a Fluid 2 trainer.  Can you add a power meter to that or would I have to buy a whole new trainer equipped with one?

-Are any of you doing some of Jorges workouts on the road (off the trainer)?  Seems like this would be hard to do.  Do you just write on a piece of paper and stay focused on the clock?

-I remember reading somewhere that Jorges is 4 workouts per week, but that it wasnt a big deal if you missed 1 of the 4.  Any of you have comments on this?

-How flexible are the workouts?  If I miss one, should I do it next day or just skip and stay on the schedule?

Thanks friends!

Go do one workout and see how you feel.  It might just help you get out of your funk.

Jorge's plan:

I use HR.  I don't have a power meter.  Some people are using Trainer Road for their power info.  I only have time to do two of the workouts on the plan.  Each week, I always do #1 and then I pick #2 or #3 depending on how my body is feeling.  I never do the long workout because I ride outside for my long stuff.  I write the workout on a piece of paper and tape it to the wall.  For the intervals, I put the corresponding number of pennies in my bento box.  I throw a penny out after each interval.  If I don't have any more pennies left, I thank GAWD I don't have to do another interval.  

Wow!  That's really awesome.  I keep hearing awesome things about Rev3 in general.  They seem to really have a dialed in approach to the event and catering to athletes AND families.  Something I will come to appreciate in the next few years I'm sure!

I'm off to hike Mount Chocorua tomorrow.  Should be a beautiful day and I'm psyched to get back outside and in the mountains.

I understand how you feel Will.  It's tough to miss an entire week and you feel like a super slug.  In my case, I just pick the next workout and go out there easy and get it done.  You have to get back on the horse and do something good for yourself.  I do commend you for putting family first though.  That's oh so important if you want to continue this hobby.  

You can definitely miss one of the 4 workouts in Jorge's plan.  I don't recommend missing the long ride on the weekend though.

Like a couple of others have stated already, get out there and do a solid work out.  You don't need to do anything hard or particularly long, just something with enough duration to shake you loose from the stagnation.  Running seems to be the one thing that grabs me after I've had to take some time away from training most of the time.  You won't really get a pep talk from me, but you may get a horse whip if you don't get out there and get moving.

I used HR for Jorge's last year and it was murder.  Power or HR really doesn't make much difference other than the length of the test for HR is 30 minutes of TERROR rather than 20 minutes of torture.  There should be links in the main program page to provide examples for how to use it.  You can also check this link to get some more details about the plan.  The link is the thread used in 2011 for support and there are 40 pages of Q&A to help you understand all of it.

Your trainer may have a way to convert your data into power numbers as well.  Someone has posted before the site that has a long list of manufacturers and models that have been tested to get fairly accurate numbers for the conversions, so don't lose hope that you can't use power.  In order to use it correctly however, you may need a ANT+ device to use it.  (Someone else can check me on this.)

You can do the WO's on the plan on the road or trainer but the targets will be a little more difficult to hold solidly on the road because of elevation changes.  I have applied some of the principals used in the plan out on the road but I've not used the plan outside at all.  The trainer is the easiest way to hit the focal point of any given WO because the conditions remain consistent throughout the entire cycle, provided you make the required checks at least every other ride.  (Checks include: tire pressure, tensioner adjustment, etc.)

I am able to program my watch with each of the WO's so that I don't have to do anything other than check my watch occasionally.  If you have a device such as a Garmin 305 or other similar device you should be able to program the specifics into it's particular platform and hit the road or trainer.

Flexibility is very good.  You can choose to do 2-4 WO's a week.  That said, I would make sure to get at least 3 rides in each week including the long ride.  The long is key to your focus this year if you are going to get that IM in the fall.

x2 on Rev3 events. I've only heard good things about Rev3 and they are definitely family oriented. One of these days I will have a chance to do one of their events. I think it's great that they are interested in what the athletes think about their events and the fact that they are willing to listen to them.

Will not much more to add to this as I think everybody kind of covered this. I think it's great that you put your family first over your training. Life happens and sometimes training has to take a back seat. I would just get moving and ease back into it whether it's swim, bike or run. Just get out there and do something.

As far as Jorge's plan goes I think the group covered it pretty well. It's a pretty flexible plan, you can do two, three or all four days if you want to. I think it really comes down to how much you want to get out of it. You can get a lot out of it even if you did two days. It's probably geared more for the trainer as well. For me I usually write down the workout and lean over and look at it when need be. I am pretty much focused on the bike computer when I am doing the workouts.

My set up is a kurt kinetic trainer with the kurt kinetic bike computer which can measure power. It's a cheap alternative to an expensive power meter. It also has the HR monitor which is nice I can do it all with the KK computer and not have to use my Garmin.  I am doing the 4 workouts per week and I move them around as necessary but I make sure to get all 4 in so I stay on schedule. For me I feel like this is my ticket to finishing Wisconsin which to me is all about the bike. After almost 11 weeks complete I can say I notice the difference and it is paying off for me. I can't wait to see what I can do once the spring weather rolls around and I can get outdoors and ride.

Will, I used HR one year and pseudo power the next.  Pseudo power is really Trainer Road, which essentially converts the speed of your wheel into a wattage, given you have an ANT+ speed sensor.  It very much depends on a perfectly consistent setup, which can be tricky.  HR should be fine.  IMO, with Jorge's plan there really isn't much difference, pain is pain.  If you miss a workout, just move on to the next one.  But given you are doing IM this year, try as hard as possible to not miss the long ride.  I think the mileage trumps the at-and-over threshold work for you.  I actually want to talk about this topic (proper work level for biking) and I'll try to formulate a reasonable question for everyone tomorrow.  My own mind isn't completely sold on the right way to attack bike training, so I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts.

Also, kudos for taking the time to do what your wife needed.  Of course way more important than training.

And I get the mojo loss - I'm trying to get out of a 2 month sort of doldrums myself.  Let's just agree to hammer through it and spend the next 2 weeks being consistent and getting back on the horse.  I'll check your log every day and ping you -  good or bad.

Thanks for the encouragement friends!  I got a 2 mile swim in tonight (at a bit faster pace than normal).  I feel much better!  Going to try to get a bike ride in tomorrow.  

Yogi - I think I want to do what you are doing... 2-3 trainer rides following Jorge's plan and then the long bike on the road Friday or Saturday (maybe still trying to follow the plan?).  I think most of you know I'd like to go for an IM later this year.  Since I have limited time, my plan is to get as strong as possible on the bike... then just wing it on the run (catch a cab?).  Would love to hear from some of you w/ exp how little run training you think I could get by with.