McFuzz's New Athlete Group (CLOSED) (Page 7)

Welcome Colleen and Kate!   It's really exciting to be a part of these new journeys!  We all have to start somewhere, the important thing is to start, right?  Glad to have you two in the group!

A person can really drive him/herself crazy with nutritional data.  My rule of thumb when looking at snacks is low sugar and high protein. Now if it's pre/post hard training--I might choose just a carb source (banana, applesauce, etc).  Low sugar/high protein are the snacks that work best for me in the afternoons and hold me over until dinner. However,  rather than bars I go for an apple and a handful of almonds.  Or a banana and a couple ounces of turkey jerky.  In a pinch I grab a Larabar--don't know if they are available to you, however.

I do log my food on myfitnesspal.  That has been instrumental for me keeping my diet on track.  I like to look at the overall result of my nutrition choices at the end of the day.  I get a nice little pie graph showing % fat/carb/protein.  I can also look at total numbers as well.  As long as I hit my targets, I'm happy! 

Well today was kind of a bummer. I'm not much of a morning person but everyday I wake up at 6 AM. I got an almost 4 year old alarm that has a biological clock set at 6 AM And due to a shortage of sleep and work related stuff, I decided to take a small nap after I brought the kid to school. I had time enough afterwards to train before I had to go to work. But my partner did a bad move and her neck got stuck so we had to go to the doctor. So here I am, just back from the doctor and in half an hour I have to go to work. Oh well, better luck next time.

PS. the misses is more or less fine.

Let's hope it isn't a "life changing question" but it can still be a source of stress. 

For any race short of an IM (or a few HIM's) there isn't usually a place to change and whild nudity might be appreciated, it is officially discouraged.  Plan to swim-bike-run in the same outfit more or less. 

Try riding and running in your swimsuit.  I did my first two tri's wearing swim trunks.  If your suit doesn't bind or chafe while you ride/run and it provides enough support (maybe add a tech-fiber sports bra), you can complete a sprint tri wearing a swimsuit.  You might pull a pair of bike shorts over your suit and pull on a t-shirt if comfort/modesty dictate.  Before you completely commit to the swimsuit option, try riding while it's wet (it may behave differently when wet...)  If the swimsuit doesn't work, you'll want to get either a one-piece tri-suit or tri-shorts and some kind of tri-top.  Tri-shorts have a thin pad for cycling that doesn't absorb water during the swim and doesn't interfere too much with running.  Tri-tops should fit tight enough that you can swim in them without creating a significant amount of drag and then ride/run in them as well.  They may offer more support than a swimsuit, but maybe not enough.   Whether you can find a 1-piece suit that fits you well or not may dictate whether you get a one-piece or a two-piece outfit, but you'll probably want to go this route for an OLY or HIM. 

How well do you deal with cold water?  This is primarily a matter of personal preference as some people can swim in 73F water without a wetsuit and others won't.  For a sprint, you're probably looking at 10-25 minutes in the water and once you're really swimming, you won't feel cold.  (For reference, swimming pools are often 76-84F depending on the clientel.  Pools catering to competitive swimming will be 76-78F while those catering to water aerobics often 82-84.  Swimming competitively in 83F water is pretty hard, comparable to running on a humid, 88F afternoon.  Even with a wetsuit, the first couple minutes will feel very cold because the wetsuit works by trapping a thin layer of water between you and the wetsuit.  That water is initially cold, but your body heat warms it up quickly. 

Hang in there Nancy.  Are you able to "lose control" with healthy foods instead of junk food?  I can tell you that when I first changed my lifestyle to lose weight (late 2004 and early 2005) we chose not to purchase junk food because if it was in the house, I would eat it.  Cookies?  Gone!  Chips?  Gone!  Ice Cream?  Gone.  The boys grumbled about why they had to "sacrifice" because I wanted to lose weight, but we all got over it.  I have a lot more discipline now, so I occasionally have each of these in the house.  

Ok...was this self-inflicted?  If the rest of the family has gone gluten-free, who's bringing non-gluten-free stuff to the gathering?  You?  If it isn't you, why are the rest not bringing what they'd eat themselves?  This might be something to discuss with the family prior to the next gathering. 

Stock up on healthy snacks and send the rest of the "bad" food with your husband who can burn it off.  (OK...stash 3 or 4 cookies for yourself...)

Thanks Nancy. 

Maybe you and the siblings get together with your mom and explain that while cookies are appreciated, your gluten-free sibs are giving all of her cookies to your family.  Your siblings can be challenged to provide mom with some acceptable gluten-free recipes? 

I like fruitcake too.  Mom usually makes a few for the holidays. 

Is it good that I'm almost as smart as your mother to come up with the same solution she's already doing? 

Let"s psych up together. Allthough there is no snow here, i'm pretty sure it will be windy, rainy and cold. But I really need to get out again because this week has been problematic. First have to finish this night shift, get some sleep and hopefully have slept enough to do a little running.

Nicely done!  Taking that first step out into the cold is usually the worst part!  The mental toughness that is built though, is worth every step.

I am going to try to take the advice I'd give to anyone in my position.  I'm battling a cold but have continued to train, although I have modified the lengths of my workouts.  Did 2 hours/32 miles on the trainer this am (16 mph is definitely on the slow side for me) so I know I have a decrease in energy.  I have promised myself that if tomorrow morning I wake up feeling cruddy I'm taking the day completely off to rest.  Sticking to that will be tough.  I hate having to slow down, but I also know it's a signal from my body saying "Whoooaaaa, Nelly!"

I accept my loss hahaha :D

No, the plan today was to do some family time this afternoon, get home, put the kid to bed and do a little run. Alas things ran quite differently. It was already 6pm when we got home. I had to make dinner (Home-made French Fries ). At 7:10pm I forgot i had to pick up a chalk board we bought second hand. It was a 45min drive to get there (it was so cheap it was worth the ride). So by the time I got back, it was 9pm and well, I really don't want to get out that late for a run... Especially now.

I don't know how you all feel about it but when you have a training plan in your mind at the beginning of the week and everything starts to fall apart, I sometimes have problems to get back up and get motivated. And I have a very rational mind also. And it says, monday is a new week, so forget about your plans, start again on Monday :-/. Something new can never start in the middle of the week! Thats blasphemy in my mind

PS I'm not crazy. I just hear little voices in my head.