Ontherun and gearing up-CLOSED (Page 7)

Hi all

Have been quietly working but am now super excited!  Switching over to the brand new Y which has a pool I can get through the bike and the run but the swim will be my challenge.  I will miss my kickboxing classes but they have many others (yoga, wieght lifting, turbo kick) that will compliment training. Also will be starting crossfit which will rock

Hope everyone is having a super week!

Happy February everyone!!

What's everyones training goals for this month?

Personally mine are to stick with my training, work out every day this month, and run at least 3 times a week.

Emma, I like those goals. I for one need to remember if I am going to run without socks, to make sure my feet are used to it before running that way in the rain. I have a nice blister on my right foot, but I should not slow me down too much.

Hang in there Beverly. It must be nice to crave the gym. That is a big deal.

I see things have been a bit quite in here. I will try to keep up with any posts in the next few days, but Mass. is slatted for a pretty big snow storm this weekend, and I might be plowing snow for a few days.

Keep the workouts up. Everyone is looking good.

Looks like you guys are going to get the brunt of this storm.  Starting to look like we may get at least a foot or so here in NJ.  Hopefully it won't be too bad, I really wanted to get my workouts in since we leave for Italy next week, so may have to rely on our spin bike for some workouts this weekend, just to get something done!

Sorry to hear about your grandmother.  Thoughts and prayers for your family.

Hi Joe,

I'd like to be considered for joining your group. I'm planning to enter my first triathlon this spring and have been putting in some time training; could definitely use some guidance from an experienced mentor.

Here's my bio:

Name: Sandy Smith

My Story: Several years ago a hiking buddy turned me on to the idea of triathlon training. At the time I thought that would not really interest me; it sounded like too much of a time commitment. About a year ago my job transitioned into something that keeps me very sedentary and the pounds began to pile on. I’m way to frugal (cheap) to buy new clothes to fit a larger body so, at 240 pounds, I began to bike to work along with running, swimming, and weight training to keep exercise interesting. I began thinking “I can do this triathlon thing” and hooked up with BT for some training guidance about 5 months ago.

Family status: Married 32 years with two adult children.

Current training: Just began following a BT Custom Training Plan to prepare for first sprint race.

2013 race plan: First sprint triathlon the end of March (UC Santa Barbara), an Olympic distance in July (Ventura, CA) and September (Pacific Grove, CA).

Weight loss: Maxed out at 240 this past September, currently in the low 190’s and would like to get to 180 by race day following a controlled carb diet.

No need to be sorry.   Take care and we will be here when you return!  

As for me, I have been MIA too...we leave for vacation on Friday and I have been running like crazy to get things ready.  Still managed to get a few workouts, and hope to get one more in before we leave on Friday morning.    Probably won't be checking in for a week, but the plan is to jump right back into training when I get back!   

Thank you for welcoming me to the group, Joe. I have read articles that tell me I need to be patient and plan for a year to build a base of fitness before working on building speed. I'm having a difficult time holding myself back; I have some degree of difficulty not making every workout a competition to be better than the last workout. I suppose, in some way, that's healthy and necessary for improvement but there's some concern about injury too. I'm sure I don't suffer with this problem alone; any helpful tips regarding how I can convince myself to dial it back a bit?

Sandy

by no means are you alone. I try to follow my plans, but that never seems to happen. Mostly I try to listen to my body. An athlete needs a good base fitness to reduce the possibility of injury. Just starting or starting back up puts a huge strain on the body. What I have found helps me is to work on negative splits.

For instance lets look at running. You are doing a 3 mile run. The first mile is at 11 min. The next might be at 10:30 and the last 10:00 pace. This is a very good practice in general as it helps you finish strong. Also it forces you not to go out to hard and learn to pace. Best of all, I have found that I can really judge my fitness better when I am working on negative splits. When I first attempt them, I am lucky if I can be the same pace throughout the workout. This helps me set the pace. As I get stronger and faster, it becomes easier to take time off the next set of splits.

hope this helps

Interesting, Joe, I had not heard the term "negative split" in relation to tri-training before. I may have unknowingly run a negative split yesterday. I wasn't feeling up to the run and started off at a slow jog, kind of forcing myself to get going; by the end of the run I was back on my usual pace. Now that I know this is a training strategy I'll pay more attention next time and try to measure the splits.

Great suggestion, thanks.

figured I would update everyone. The family is slowly leaving town, and life is returning to "normal". Today I draw a line the sand and start anew. I had my first week with less than 3 workouts this year and i am sad. I did not work all week, but did family stuff and grieved in my own way. It is time for e to put on the big boy pants and get going.

With that said, I need to find a way to get this group chatting and logging workouts. we owe it to each other to send inspires and motivate each other. This is especially true when we can not workout as it helps us stay accountable to ourselves and the group! With that said, who thinks they can do more workouts this week than me?

Six mile run and resistance training for chest and shoulders this afternoon. I don't know if I can do more workouts than you but I'll sure try to give you a run for your money.

I'm sorry for your grief, I know the memories will come to you every day for a long time. Try to imagine doing something constructive with them.

Well, I think under the circumstances getting any workouts in is great! I'm glad you'll be able to get back into a more normal routine soon! At least it's a great stress reliever

Like Sandy, I don't know if I can do more than you, but I'll give it a try!

Hey TriCupCake,

You had posted an inquiry concerning where people were from; I live in sunny southern California in the city Walt Disney put on the map.

Sandy

Hi Joe,

Hope this finds you pleasantly exhausted from your workout today. I have a question regarding the constructive use of the heart rate monitor.

Just began using the monitor last week and was initially concerned because my heart rate average over a relatively flat five mile run was in the high 150's. While I don't think I could carry on a protracted conversation at that rate, I definitely had more in the tank and could have run at the same intensity for a while longer. My recovery seems to be "normal" (running hills today, I was typically in the 135 to 145 range within two to four minutes of beginning the downhill). How much stock should I put in watching my heart rate if my body "feels" okay? In an attempt to keep the average rate in an acceptable range for a guy in his 50's, I'm running quite a bit slower and don't feel like I'm getting the same workout.

Sandy

First, I do not personally believe there is any one way to workout. It takes a lot of experimenting to find what works best for you. I find the HRM a useful tool, but not the  end all to be all way to train. HR can vary for a lot of reasons. Lack of base fitness will cause all sorts of variations in what the HRM might be saying. Also, I have found the quality of the monitor matters. My first monitor, an inexpensive Polar was somewhat of a  success. I was getting very high HR numbers, like 210 for 30 minute workouts. This might have been a monitor issue, or a heart issue. Only in the last few years did I realize I had a heart issue that could cause the odd readings.

Fatigue can also bring higher readings. This can be a good indicator of over training. In the end, logging your workouts with as much data as you can will allow you to get the best results. With that said, I have friends who have gotten great success without using any electronics at all. What matters is trying different things, and trying to learn from what information you get with each workout.