running2far's Group - Closed (Page 7)

I've been buried at work, really cutting into my play time

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I too have been busy with life-- but I've gotten some a good running foundation going this month, despite the craziness. We put an offer on a house 2 weeks ago and close in 2.5 weeks if everything continues to go smoothly! Which means moving in the beginning of March-- and THEN maybe life will settle down? Nah, probably not... :-)

Ok kidoes, I hope everyone is doing their homework out there, it's been so quite?
Anyone have any races coming up soon???

No races on the calendar? That would explain the lack of motivation in the group
Homework for the week...
1. Come up with at least one race for this year and write it down. Doesn't matter if it is a 5k in 6 months from now.
2. Come up with a way to be ready for that day.
3. Share that goal with the group, it will make it real....
Come on people there is reason you joined this website and this mentor group. My guess is it has something to do with triathlon????? 

Ok who first??? 

I have a race, Feb 26-27! It's a 202-mile, 12-team relay race.. should take us about 32 hours to complete. And should be a blast! I mentioned it in a previous post... it's the Ragnar Relay del Sol... http://www.ragnarrelay.com/delsol/index.php.
In other news, I'm headed to New Orleans tomorrow morning to celebrate Mardi Gras!! My mom lives there, so I've got an inside edge... and the Saints just won, which will make the whole thing even more exciting, I'm sure. Not sure how much running I'll get in, but oh well.

Next Race is the March Madness 1/2 Marathon. Its the 'toughest' half in Illinois. All hills. I do it every year as a test of fitness, to measure improvement.

My goal is run 1:31:29 to break the 7 min barrier. My be ready for the race includes target pace long runs. I'm trying to spend extended amounts of time under 7:15 on my Sunday long run. The thought of this goal when I started running is crazy. 2002 I ran 2:10 or something close to that....

Lots of work ahead of me with only a month of so to get ready. The long run this week might be scrapped due the blizzard we had this week...we'll see if the sidewalks are clear by Sunday.

Who's next?

Awesome! Keep us in the loop. How did you improve your speed?? That's a huge jump!My next race is Show Down at Sundown 1/2 IM on march 27th. It's a tough course with some of the bike being the same as the SilverMan course. It's 5 weeks before the IMSG race so it's a B race warm up to try everything out. I'm heading to St George this Saturday to ride a loop about 56 miles and one loop of the run 13.1. Should be a fun day and I'm excited to see the course again.Will you run the treadmill if the snow isn't clear?

Its hard to imagine being doing triathlons in March, when I look outside my work window and there is a foot of snow on the ground! Jealous.

I saw some gains between 2002-2005, just ran the Chicago Half Marathon every year. Didn't really follow a plan or anything just ran every summer.

Most of my speed surfaced in 2008 and 2009, I added tempo work and V02max intervels along with constantly running 30+ miles a week. Its getting harder and harder though to take time off, I was once able to shed 10 mins every race. Now I celebrate 2-3 min PRs. (1/2 mary distance).

So I went to St George yesterday and rode one loop of the course (50 miles) and ran about 5 miles. I was disappointed with the quality of the road, which is almost all chip seal ad very slow. Is there any benefit to altering tire pressure for this type of road? Thoughts anyone?

It would be very difficult to get any factual information on varying tire pressure tests given you don't have access to the roads on a regular basis. I generally just run my tires between 110 -120 psi.

What tires to you run? I would focus more on making sure I'm making a quality tire choice. Good mix between low crr and puncture resistance. Biketechreview.com has a few tests on tires.

I run Bontrager Aero TT in the front 700 X 19 and Bontrager Race X Lite in the back 700 x 23.

http://www.biketechreview.com/tires/AFM_tire_crr.htm

I don't have much knowledge as it relates to PSI. I would say, if you aren't flatting to get everything as is....Bontrager makes fast tires. I would stick with those. I would get new tires before the race though, put about 100 miles on the tires and then race them.

do you use paddles on your drills?  is this recommended for beginners like me to improve the pull?

I don't, but I do some laps with closed fist to work on that motion. I would say that if the paddles are helping you there 9is nothing wrong with using them, but like everything else make them a small part of your routine so you don't hurt your sholders.

If you use padddles, your paddles have the finger band + wrist band. Just use the one finger band. If you have issues with your stroke, the paddles will fall off. Or if you want to earn your black belt. Do not use any bands to get the paddles on.

As Jason said, Fist drills help with your pull and the feel of the pull more than swimming with paddles. If you really want to help your pull do some reading on High/Early Vertical forearm.

http://www./articles/2010/02/04/swimming-early-vertical-forearm

I quickly found that link, but I'm sure there are countless others. You want turn your forearm + hand into your paddle. When you drop your elbow during the catch you lose your "paddle"

thanks guys, I used the fist drill over the weekend

I did notice that I was doing the straight arm pull.  will continue to work on this. 

13 weeks till my first tri!

New Month - New Goals! I know we've got a couple of being doing a Sprint in April and of course IMSG is on the horizon....What are your goals for this month?

Mine: March Goals

1. Lose 5 lbs. Dropped 8lbs in January and then used Feb to maintain.

2. Run 100 miles.

3. March Madness Half Marathon: 1:31:35.

4. Hit my 3 Bikes a week. I tend to drop one....

5. Swim 30K

Very quantatitive goals this month. I had an okay Feb, hoping with some improved weather and some more stability work on my hips March will Rock!

What about YOU!

Then there were 2....

Re: 2 - You've got about 5 weeks to drop the weight. You want to 'settle' into your weight for about 3-4 weeks before Ironman. 10lbs is doable but don't go crazy either, workout are king for the last 8 weeks.

By the end of the training, you'll be exhausted but so will the family. Try and plan something for them after Ironman as their reward for putting up with you You're gonna need some downtown after Ironman anyway....good time to put the focus back on the people that are important to you.

@Jason...nutrition is very personal, but there are some guidelines that help. First, we'll look at what hits your system fastest...in order of absorption rate:

1. Liquid
2. Gels/Blocks
3. Solids (bars, food)

Prerace: I take in about 400 calories of Poptarts. I like poptarts because they are portable. I can eat them on the way to the ride/race. I can never get a bagel down when I'm nervous prerace. I would avoid high fiber (fruits etc) unless its part of your normal diet. I also take in 250 calories of Sports Drink (Infinit). This tops off my tank. This is done 2hs + prerace. Waking down to the water you could throw down a gel.

Race: First 20 mins of the bike. Nothing...maybe a little water. We're bringing the heart down and settling into a very easy rhythm. High HR = hard to take in calories. Your HR will be sky high coing out of the water and through transition. Within 20 mins we've settled into the race. Begin your fueling plan (JUST AS IMPORTANT AS YOUR PACING). A general guidline is take your lean body mass and multiple by 2....that is the number of calories your body can absorb during IM type effort on the bike. As an exampe. I think you mentioned you weigh 200'ish lbs. Lets say you have 10% bodyfat. 200 X .1 = 20. 200 - 20 = 180. 180 X 2 = 360 calories an hour. This is a safe bet. That is your target. Practice Practice Pratice on your long rides. I use a little bit of protein (2grams or so) per hour. Protein will help get the hunger pains away. Something to consider.

I would caution using gels all day long. After your 10'ish gel you're really gonna hate those suckers. Your stomach may start to feel upset as well. If you're comfortable doing bars and blocks. I would use those on the bike rather than run. You're really limited by the calories you can absorb during the run. Solids pull blood to your stomach to aid in digestion = trouble on the run.

Run: HR will be a little higher. Tough to absorb calories. If you do solids slow to walk during the aid stations to wash it down with water. Be careful with the Coke. I wait until mile of 20 of the run before I hit the coke. High Corn Fructose can cause GI issues.

I carry Infinit in a hard held bottle that is concentrated to a slurry. I squirt a little into a water cup and drink. I took in 400 calories total during the run. I probably could have taken in more.

I had on my bike: tums, pepto, and Tylenol. (no advil can cause kidney issues). I also had these with me on the run. After 11 hrs of sugar....your stomach may want to fight back.

Post Race: Burger, Fries, and the finest Lager you can find....

The key is to practice you routine and practice the last 8 weeks of training....

thanks for the tips. Any basic advice on pacing... I will be doing a 1/2 IM in 3 weeks and will really have a chance to use this day as a a full practice run.