Southwestmba's group-Full (Page 7)

I never had issues with shin splints, but I would suggest RICE. If you can do some no weight bearing/pounding exercise it will probably be best. How old are your shoes? Modern shoes don't give you alot of visual clues when they start breaking down. If they have gotten wet and dried out too many time that can cause the padding to get very stiff and less shock absorbent. Maybe changing shoes will help.

Damon: I think Road ID is a very worthwhile investment for Peace of Mind. Long bikes and run on roads in less than idea conditions can leave us far from home if something happens. Having been hit by a car once I consider road ID to be a must have piece of equipment. Always on my running and bike shoes.

I had a great run this afternoon before yet another snow storm, out running on a one lane county road parrallel to an icey stream in the woods and had a huge hawk or eagle swope down and check me out and lead my down the road. Very cool!. But I topped that with a 40 K TT PR. 1:00:36 with a 24.59 mph ave. Rode in a higher gear than normal but nailed the ride ramping steadily throughout going from a 140 bpm HR to 172 and the end. Kept the speed over 25 mph throughout the final 30 min (mostly 25.4-25.7 range). That was an amazing ride, very rewarding.

Have fun and remember to enjoy the ride (and runs)

Andy

Edited by southwestmba 2010-02-15 10:34 PM

A timely thread for Road ID Coupon.

http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid...

Andy

I dont know if you can combine coupons but I have one now as well - $1 off the cost and valid for 20 uses in the next 30 days.

ThanksDamon619067

Well I'm off on holiday later today for a week. A quiet resort in Gran Canaria where hopefully I wont even leave the hotel and its pools for the entire time except to go for a run. We've been there for the last 3 years and it has a great healthy restaurant and a reasonable size large pool although its not heated and takes a little getting used to!

Have a great week all and catch up when I get back home.

I've also been fighting off shin splints and a reoccurence of some tendonitis in my left foot.   I was telling my sister(a marathoner) about these aches and pains and she suggested that I get used to it( I cleaned it up but essentially she used HTFU).  I understand that we will have these physical aches and pains and I can live with them, but I didn't understand the mental damage these pains can cause.  They have stolen some of the fun from training and for at least my run workouts, are a constant source of debate -- do I rest and try to recover,  or do I not want to fall behind in my build and just push on.

Just thinking outloud

I am here, back after forced rest -- needed to focus on some personal things.  Your stories were great Andy, inspiring me to go out despite sub-freezing temps and get acclimated to the cold weather to work out.

I was wondering if the team had any knowledge about mental conditioning.  I will be doing an Oly in July, where I will have to jump into the Hudson River (think Capt. Scully) for a swim.  In the pool, I have been trying to prepare myself for the swim, by coaching myself and visualizing that I am swimming in the Hudson.  However, everytime I do that (where I say imagine you are in the Hudson, swimming in the River, it is 45 ft deep and you gliding down the river) , I literally start panicking in the pool, my stroke goes off, I breathe in water, and start choking.   I have to get my thoughts out of the river, and say to myself, imagine you are floating in a body of water, you are gliding like a log on top of the water) although this relaxes me, it slows me down, and I don't think its appropriate for race conditions.

I am not afraid of planes landing in the water, but rather the depth.  I have an innate fear of heights (that I have been working for last 20+ years), and the idea of jumping about 1 story to get into the hudson, then swim in it is killing me.  I plan on incorporating some diving drills soon, and unfortunately, I don't know where I can jump off a pier to practice, but any words of advice?

--Ony

Hi everybody!  I have some new shin splint remedies.  These ideas all come from an M.D., a sports injury therapist, a few endurance runners and a personal trainer/licensed nutritionist.  (So, it's not just garbage advice off wickipedia).

Essentially, there are a number of different remedies.  Every runner needs to find their own "cocktail" of what works for them.  Some may get results from changing one thing, others of us must do several things to get the best results.

• Since it's an inflammation issue, 2 ibuprofen 2-3x daily over a few weeks can help.
• Ice immediately after every run.  Keep the ice moving up and down the shin, no bags just sitting there.
• Lots and lots of stretching the calves pre, during and post workout.  The area needs blood flow.
• Having a partner pull your toes to a point, while you sit on the ground, is a great stretch.
• Properly fit shoes and insoles if needed.  Typically shin splints are a supination problem (you strike the outer part of the heal first and lift from the top of your arch, near the ball of the foot).  Over supination can hurt the shins.  Insoles can help correct this w/o injury.
• Rest from running for 2 weeks, if possible. (HA!)
• Building up the calf muscle can help.  Lots of toe lifts on a curb or stair.
• Do NOT run through this pain.  It will cause serious and permanent injury.  If you have shin splints to the point of running with sloppy feet, you no longer have control of the muscles.  Prolonged running in this state will damage your shins and could cause fractures.

I'm not an expert, nor am I licensed to give out any sort of advice.  This is all of the info that I've received on my own shin splint issue.  I've only outlined here what I was told on multiple occasions.  I've left out the tips that I only heard one time.  The most important note, I believe, is that this is NOT an injury to push through.  It's not a mind over body pain.  It will cause damage if not taken care of properly.  Take care of yourself.  This is the only body we've got!  Make it last.

I hope you all find your own recipe that helps you.
--Lea

Lea, sorry to hear about the shin splints.  Sounds like you've really been doing your research.  I sure hope I don't ever have to deal with that sort of pain.  I know how frustrating it can be to be mentally and muscularly fit enough t train and then to have an injury that prevents you from doing so.  I guess you'll be getting in a hefty supply of cycling and swimming in the meantime.
 
I've been having nagging knee pain everytime I run, so I've been supplementing my running with rowing.  I'm really beginning to enjoy the rowing machine.  I almost wish there was a competition where I could swim, bike, row. 

Okay, so onto a different sort of problem.  As some of you may recall, I broke down and bought a HRM a few weeks back.  It took me a week or so to remember to actually bring it with me to the gym.  I did threshold testing on the bike and determined my max to be 170-174 (zone 5b - 183).
My last couple Computrainer sessions my numbers have been really high.  Whenever I'm on the CT and pushing it really hard (maybe if we are working 5 minutes sets at 100-110%) I get all the way up to 188bpm.  I can still talk, and my breathing isn't labored.  Certainly not nearly as hard as the guy next to me that's holding 160bpm.  Once we drop off and are in active recovery, my heartrate recovers and I'm down 20 beats in 1 minute and down 30 beats in less than 2 minutes.  Should I back off to prevent it from getting so high?  From what I've been reading there isn't much benefit to be training over your max.
I felt like it was a great workout, so I'm a little dismayed about having to back off.  Am I really supposed to be "cruising" through my workouts? 
I can't use it in the water, and the last time I ran my max was 185 and avg 171.  The only other comparison is the rowing machine.  While I was rowing today I was up to 178 briefly, but stayed under 170 for most of the workout and avg at 149.  I guess that sounds better.
Help.
~Marsha


Edited by Mars11 2010-02-18 5:04 PM

Marsha

You need to train how you are going to race, so getting a certain number of efforts up at the LT zone or above but If you are getting there every ride/run, you may want to back down a bit. If your focus is sprints or Olympic distance races you are going to race closer towards your LT so you would want a higher percentage of your workouts in this zone. But I would limit those to a couple times a week.

For me my focus has been HIM and IM races so I tend to work most of my rides in my lower zones (Zones 2 and 3) for most of my longer rides, since I will be in those zones most of the day in those races. If you go too hard early you pay for it later, so it pays to focus in those zones. So except for intervals or max effort Time Trials which I'll do once a week most weeks, I stay out of Zone 4,5, and 5b.

However, with HR training remember that alot of factors can impact your HR during a workout, so make sure you try and figure other methods in order to cross check yourself (IE preceived effort, Power) Higher than expected HR can be due to heat/humidity, stress, overtraining, or getting sick. I play poker while I ride and I see my HR swing significantly based on the hand. So if your are breathing easier than the guy next to you pulling a 15 bpm lower HR, it usually indicates you aren't overdoing it. Keep the big picture in mind and make sure you listen to your body and don't get too locked into the HRM it is only 1 tool.

Have fun.



Edited by southwestmba 2010-02-19 11:05 PM

Thanks Andy,

All of your comments make a lot of sense.  I am training mostly for sprints and a couple olympics so I need to go hard sometimes (but not always).  And you're right, it is only one tool that I've only had for a short period of time.  I'll keep my eye on it and not throw it out the window just yet.

Had a slow weekend here.  I think I needed it.  Plan on ramping up again first thing in the morning with Master's swim.  Have a great week everyone.
~Marsha

Wow what a month. 2 blizzards, kids getting sick, wife getting sick, then it decided to rain all day today and then the temp dips below freezing to turn the roads into ice. Just a sloppy month. Fortunately, I have been able to adapt am on pace for my highest milage bike month ever, and considering its February that's pretty cool. So I look on the bright side I managed to not get sick, am getting the opportunnity to focus on my weakest legs this month, and have had the opportunity to do some serious weight training (Snow Shovelling 66 inches of snow this month (and yes I measured it)).

Sometimes you just have to kick back and go with the flow, don't get so locked into a training plan that you can't adapt your training to whatever life or mother nature throws at you.

Use the same philosophy when dealing with injuries. A running injury can be a golden opportunity to shore up you swim stroke or focus on the bike.

Keep you head up and your eyes on the prize.

Andy

Andy I can relate, not in sickness and snow, but in other ways.
I really think that this week has been especially challenging.  I'm learning to embrace the unwelcomed changes and injuries.

I was finally getting in a groove with CT twice/week, but they've cancelled that session.  My favorite Yoga teacher is no longer teaching on Friday's.  I can't run, no matter how much I want to.  I haven't made it to a Crossfit class in over 2 weeks.  I have two people in my Master's class that CANNOT swim, so I have to stay on deck instead of in the water training.  I'm sure there's more, but I'll spare you.

Repeat over and over to self:
All these things are out of my control. 
Change is good. 
Make the best out of what you have.

I was probably too obsessed with my training anyway.  I was completely "locked into" my workout regimen.  Now I have to figure out how to make more out of less and truly be satisfied with that.  My family isn't going to know what hit them with the amount of time I will be at home now.  HA

Plus, I've volunteered to coach some of the new triathletes on our team.  I'm helping every Friday night and we are going through a six week progression of Total Immersion.  I've never studied the method in such detail.  It has actually helped me to refine my own stroke.  I dropped about 5 seconds in my 100 time (swam 8x100's at an avg 110 pace) this morning.  It felt really good.  I never considered refining my own best sport.  So that's my silver lining.

Sure hope everyone else is having a great week.


Edited by Mars11 2010-02-24 5:39 PM

Back from a week in the sun (well most of a week anyway) and once again I'm challenging myself...

Just signed up for a 100 mile sportive ride on July 4th. Only issue is I've never gone beyond 30 miles in my training so far and am going to have to try and squeeze in all the training along with the preparation for my 3 sprint tri's. I am also slightly worried about the physical aspect of 6 hours in the saddle and being able to stand it for that long!

I plan to just ride as much as possible the next 2 months and build up endurance and saddle time. The route passes my front door so I know the roads well and can train on the route of the ride, which should help psychologically but I'm still nervous about the challenge.

Any tips appreciated...

Feb. has just plain sucked for me, training wise.  One nagging little set back after another.  I was hoping that by March i could start to get out of 'base mileage' mode and start getting a bit more serious.  However, my body, my workload and my personal life have disappointed me.  I hate Feb.-please-PLEASE bring on March!  Time to HTFU!

Pity Party over-Hope everyone is doing well!

Energy seems low round here these days - lets get it going UP again

I'm going to blow MY trumpet today and hope it gives people a little inspiration as we start to emerge from the worst of winter. Its been 6 months since I got off the couch again, and today I ran 13 miles. Yep, I RAN 13 MILES in 2hrs and 6 mins. I have to say it twice as when I started out on this I know that deep down I lacked the self belief that I would really actually do it. Now I have and in 2 weeks I run my first half marathon and my goal is to get to that magic 2 hours.

Last week laying by the hotel pool really brought things into focus for me. There were probably 500 people at our hotel and 90% were overweight - perhaps 15-20% morbidly obese who had trouble even getting about! The average age was fairly high, but there were also plenty of families there who were considerably younger than my 39 years as well, and they were pretty much ALL overweight. I was pretty ripped and people noticed    6 months ago I would have been wearing a T shirt most of the time to hide the 35lbs of fat I've now lost. Last week I walked around proudly in my trunks as one of only 3 people in the entire hotel that I would consider as 'fit' looking. I was HUGELY proud and also very shocked. I decided at that point that I need to do more to try and inspire and help people get healthy again. I dont know how yet but its something I need to do.

I've lost about 5" off my waist and now have trouble with trousers to fit my 31" frame, I can see the start of my 6 pack, my chest looks quite defined and my shoulders now look like they should and you can see my bicep/tricep definition in my arms. I have so much more energy, my work has improved, my love life is better (yes - my wife noticed the changes too ) and my self esteem is vastly improved - can you tell  I actually feel good about myself and what I have achieved. So much so that last week when a cycling friend called me a 'girl' for suggesting a 50 mile rather than a 100 mile sportive ride in July, I challenged him to the 100 miles and promptly signed up. I'm sure I'll do it as well, despite that being a goal I had for 2011.

So, not sure exactly what the purpose of this post was, and please excuse the self congratulation in it, but keep focused on everything you are gaining from the journeys each of you are taking here. Its easy to focus on the aches, pains, weather, slow training week etc that blight us all along the way, but keep focused on the benefits and goals and enjoy the ride!

Have a great week everyone and please share your success stories as I know I'd like to hear about them and I'm sure many more here would as well. My favourite quotation sums it up nicely for me today "Your past is not your potential".

Edited by Bigpikle 2010-02-27 6:52 AM

Jeff & Marsha:

Your posts each gave me a chuckle (and a swift kick in the pants).  Thanks!  I too, have had to make some changes to my training routine.  I like to have a plan then execute it.  No last minute changes, thank you.  Alas, "life happens" and we are forced to flow with it.

As I was leaving a class at the Y last week, a thought occurred to me for the first time.  There are a lot of folks at the gym or on the road who are simply "exercising".  They may or may not even have fitness goals.  It is really the few who are in "training".  We are the people who have a goal in mind.  Whether our goal is achieving a certain time for an event or simply finishing a race, we are not satisfied until we've accomplished our goal.  Really, no one cares if we erased our goal from a list.  What drives us is something within each of us.  It's a personal and unique push.  It's a drive that cannot be ignored.  It's how we were wired and there is no escaping it.  Even to try and tune out the voice seems somehow, unnatural.

I'm suggesting that our bad day, week or month, may not really be so.  Our "bad" is subjective.  Afterall, isn't your slowest week still more than most people?  I would suggest that it probably is.  If you are in "training" mode, rather than "exercise" mode, I would suggest that you are a high achiever.  One bad day or month cannot thwart you, because you know that in the large picture of your life, it is but a glitch in your overall training lifestyle.

March is almost here...now ROCK it!

Lea

Damon, congratulations on the recent and lasting changes, I'm sure once you're in the heat of the moment with lots of rabbits to chase, you'll blow by that 2:00 mark. I find that with the more people in front of me, the faster I run.  The last week has been an off "recovery" week.  Tomorrow I start my 20 wk program for the Racine Ironman 70.3, so I relaxed, ate what I wanted and now feel confident that for the next 20 wks I am ready to commit to training.  I just have to remember that if I miss a day of training, it's gone and it is never coming back.  That usually gets me out of bed in the morning.   So as we are getting closer to spring, and the days are getting longer(finally), I feel energized.

Thanks

I look forward to following your progress as I have a growing urge to do the IM thing in the next couple of years, and doing my HM and century rides are definite milestones. I'd be interested to see how you get on with the 20 wk plan. I assume its the BT plan?

I'm using the BT plan as a base, but I have made some adjustments to the workouts.  I find I work best if I have a schedule that doesn't vary.  I think this is where  real life gets in the way, in that I don't have the freedom to vary my training days.  With my wife in school it helps if she knows what nights she needs walk the dog and when I'll be around, so I have certain swim days, certain bike days and of course, certain run days. 

Lea, Great to hear you are getting back to it
Damon, LOVE LOVE LOVE to hear how well you are doing.  We're headed to Hawaii and I hope I can say the same.  I would like to rub off on my exercise-phobic extended family "Marsha, don't you think you're doing too much?"
Jeff, I certainly needed a reality check on my training vs family ratio.  Today I am in a much better place.

So this week I've backed off a bit, I'm incorporating Pilates back into my routine and my hip-flexor/knee problem already is feeling relieved.  I think I was way out of balance left to right.  Time will tell.  Hoping to get in with a highly recommended Sports Therapy/Chiropractor to check everything out.

Here's to a better month of March!!

Marsha - enjoy the holiday.

I think it is something about the goal(s) that makes a difference - rather like Andy's post said the other week.

I went out for a slightly longer ride today in the glorious, but cold, sun. I did 33 miles which was about 8 miles more than I usually ride, and the first step on me pushing the time/distance on my long ride. The issue was I got SORE from my new saddle. At 17 miles it was really hurting and every pedal stroke made it worse, and that was only half way! Without a goal I would have taken a short cut home I'm sure, but I wouldnt let myself be defeated this time as I knew 100 miles meant toughening up and as I read on another forum the other day '100 miles is meant to hurt' so I pushed on. After about 25 miles the pain subsided a little and I was so glad I continued. I couldnt ride again for a few days I'm sure, but I sit here having taken a decent step forward towards my goal and know I'm stronger for it.

My only slight challenge is that the goals that are driving me the most right now dont involve triathlon. Right now its about endurance challenges, although I still have 3 events in the diary for the year. At the back of my mind is putting them all together next year or beyond and maybe doing a longer tri, but the swimming is my issue there. Oh well, keep focused on the current goals.

I'm away the next few days so not much coming from me.

Hey everyone. Sorry I've been out of touch, I had to fill in for someone on short notice so he could go to his sister-in-law's funeral, not real fun stuff.

We had yet another snow storm last weekend, I am so ready for spring to arrive. But I survived February, only 60 miles of running thanks to the weather but a serious PR of 668 miles on the bike/computrainer a PR by about 65 miles. Plus I'm planning a vacation to Puerta Vallarta, Mexico which is warming me up.

Damon - Great job signing up for the 100 mile ride. The key for riding long is time in the saddle (for many reasons) but I never found that meant I had to do a ton on long rides (they never seem to fit in my schedule), but consistent rides of 60-90 min and an occasional ride up to 2 hours or more if you have the opportunity will get you ready. The rest is just a matter of tweeking in you bike fit and saddle position to make sure you are comfortable for the long ride. Finding a good pair of bike shorts helps alot too. I think 100 miles is more of a mental challange than anything else, enjoy the ride have fun and it goes by alot faster. If the ride has rest stops/food stops, take advantage to those to keep up with your nutrition and give your butt a break.

Thought of the day: Balance and proper lubrication can solve 99% of the problems in life.

Andy

Like that one Andy!

I grabbed some half price Assos winter tights last weekend at my LBS and they are making a BIG difference to comfort. Pricey even with the discount but still worth it. The shorts will come in spring for sure. I also booked a static Retul bike fit locally for 10 days time as well, as I'm sure I can tweak my bike position slightly for more comfort and possibly power. The issue is the Adamo though as I have it as far back as it will fit and I'm sure I'm still too far forward over the BB. We'll see what happens.

Right now work is very slow for the next 2 months which gives me some superb opportunities for training (slow = NO work), so I'm at home a lot and can S/B/R during the day almost with no limits. Last year I squandered too much of the slow time but this year I'm fired up. Its a good thing as Q3/4 look hectic so training will undoubtedly take a big hit. I do hope to bank a lot of riding miles though in particular and was the main reason I signed up for the century.

Have a great finish to the week everyone and enjoy whatever you're doing.

Thanks team for sharing your stories, they are truly inspirational.  It seems like something was going around in the cosmos where quite a few of us had some rebalancing acts to do.  As for me, I have had to take some time off of training to do some effort/time management restructuring regarding my job search, and stopped by today to let you guys know that I will be starting back up again soon.  Reading your accomplishments, your adaptations to change/hurdles put a smile on my face and reminded me of why I am growing to love "tri'ing"

The weather here in the northeast is finally breaking (blizzard conditions the last two weeks) and I am looking forward, to picking up the intensity, taking things outdoors in the upcoming weeks.  In fact I just came back from picking up my race paraphernalia for my 4M "B" race to be held Sunday with NY road runners.  I am so looking forward to it.

Let's keep it up, pick it up. Thanks. Ony

Edited by BiafraGirl 2010-03-04 5:17 PM