Prof40's group CLOSED (Page 8)

Nice, I like this challenge. It's going to make me refocus on running, which is something I haven't been improving my speed on. So we're doing 1 shorter run (which includes the sprint work), and 2 longer runs? Am I right?

Well whatever length runs you usually do, lets have the shortest one be the intervals.  Most plans do a short, medium, long setup, so as long as the short run is intervals, the others ones you do as normal. If you're only doing 2 runs this week, do the sprints in the shorter one, and do the longer one as normal.

Sounds like a good idea - I need to also refocus on building some speed in my running.  I'm awfully slow!

Had a slight set-back this weekend....such a beautiful weather weekend for some good riding, and I got none in.  Tweaked my back somehow on Friday so bad that my pelvis was up an inch or so on the left side compared to the right.  OUCH.  Got it somewhat corrected, but I still have tingling in my left leg.  Hope to be back to normal in the next day or two.

As long as the back is ok - I'm in for some speed intervals in my short run.  Also hoping to run a 5K that I signed up for on Saturday.  Nothing fantastically fast - just get used to the distance.

Wet suit is coming soon....looking forward to trying that out!

Nadine

David,
Going on a trip, I'll miss my bike

The good thing is that I'll be doing my first OWS in the warm waters of Aruba and then the not so warm mediterranean.
I'm so looking forward to it. I'll focus on sighting and breathing on both sides.  Any other tips?????
Today I just jumped in the pool and went for 1500 non stop.  It gets addicting. The swim team was in the lanes close to me, I felt like a manatee swiming next to dolphins!!!!

Today was a great day, I signed up with a group of local triathlets.  I'll be doing bricks on Thursdays and longer rides on the weekend.

The running........ still taking it easy, don't want my left knee to hate me!!!!

I like the "beat the ex's bf standard" a lot.

Edited by prof40 2009-05-06 5:27 AM

Great description. There's a woman at my pool that puts them on, and when she does, she just dusts me. There's no way I can keep up.

I might have to give these things a try!

Have you found that the drills have helped your swim?

Well, it's Wednesday, and I haven't done any of my runs. But I still have 4 days, including this afternoon. I'll get out there and let you know how I do.

I feel so sorry for you, having to swim off Aruba and then in the Med. Poor, poor you.

Here's my tip: just enjoy being in the water.

And I hear what you're saying about the swim team. Combined, our team has about as much body fat as I do myself!

Great suggestion on the intervals mike. I was doing them on the treadmill earlier this year, but stopped when I got outside. I did an 8 min warmup, then six sets of 30 sprint/90 jog then jogged the last 4 minutes. I'm feeling it a little this morning, but I'm going to keep intervals on the schedule all summer.

Um, holy crap?  Thats super intense.  The only reason I wouldn't want to do that, is because unless youre a world class sprinter, its tough to keep maximum intensity, along with form, for a full minute.  You start flagging at the end, and then it loses its purpose.  Try to do shorter sprints, but more of them if you feel like 12 shorter sprints isnt a hard enough workout. 

I am a world-class sprinter. No, but seriously, a minute was doable. You do have to fight to hold form at the end, though.

Hi all! I'm glad to see that everyone is doing well in this week's challenge so far. I've completed my short run with sprints (ahem, not 1-minute sprints; you're crazy!! More like 15-20s all out sprints) and a medium-distance run. I'm feeling good, but do feel an increasing need to get a Garmin or something that can tell me my pace.

Does anyone have any thoughts on Garmins? Which one do you have?

Jerry 

I have the Garmin 305 - it works really well. The pace is kind of a moving average, so if you temporarily lose a signal it will get thrown off. Most of the time it works pretty well though. The distance is normally right-on (way way way better than the old Garmin 201). The only thing that messes up the distance in my experience is running trails (heavily treed areas) and running when it's very windy... high winds seem to confuse it for some reason.

The heart rate monitor is great - I modified one screen so that it just shows my HR and do a lot of runs just going by that (trying to stay in a certain range). If you're going for a tempo run, I find the HR really useful to tell me when I'm slacking... if it drops too much I know I need to pick it up.

Haven't tried the new one - the 405 - it is out of my price range. Looks cool though.


Jerry 

Nice work on the tri Jerry.  Thanks for sharing your experience with your fellow newbies. 

I am going to try and get back on my feet for an easy run tomorrow.  It will be my first run in almost two weeks since my plantar fasciitis kicked in.  It will resemble one of mike's speed workouts on paper but will actually consist of two or three min jogs with one minute of walking in between.  Hopefully I can do about fifteen minutes total.  I don't want to push it. 

My cycling and swimming have started to really come along in the past few weeks.  I had a 25 mile ride this morning on flat ground that averaged 18.9mph.  Usually I've been in the 16 or 17 range.  I also swam my first continuous 1000m without a breather this week.  A few months ago, I wondered if I would ever be able to accomplish that. 

Edited by Zupe 2009-05-06 8:27 PM

If you're feeling all those injuries, I'd take a week off and go see your doctor.

I know you have some goals on the horizon, but your body doesn't seem up for it yet. At least cut back some of the distances.

Are you following a training plan? Are you working light and easy weeks into your schedule?

Awesome result! Congratulations!

Did setting out your time goals help at all?

And now you know how the addiction feels. You want to do another one, don't you?

The key to the bike is practice. You have to put the miles in, and the workouts are very much like your runs. And yes, the pedals will make a huge difference. With your legs always engaged, you'll pull the pedals up as well as push them down. Literally, you'll be able to pedal with just one leg.

Go to your bike store, ask some questions, and see what they have in your price range. It's worth the swap, as long as you keep it affordable. You don't need top-grade $400 pedals if your bike is only worth $500.

Or go to www.trisports.com to read their online catalog.

Wow!!! Great job!

Great job, Jerry!

Thanks for all the tips - especially about the OWS.  I just got my first wetsuit delivered yesterday.  Feeling a bit intimitated with all the instructions on just how to put the thing on!  Wearing a watch is a great idea to check your pace.  I think I'll start doing that even in the pool.

David--I'm feeling like it's more old-man, not-enough-base-work pain than injury the last two days, although I haven't done any heavy training since Sunday. I'm trying to be careful. It seems I may be over the hump a little, and I'm feeling quite a bit better. I think I can keep going right now, but I will try not to make stupid decisions. I am going to try to do my mock olympic this Saturday, as last Saturday I did my OW swim and the weather was so bad that I bagged the bike/run. If it goes well I'll press on; if not I'll take some time off. How does that sound? I swam this morning fairly hard--I did Krystyna's challenge swim again--and I feel good. I think if I keep this triathlon thing up after this season, which I plan on, the off-season winter base training will help my body a lot. I think I've shocked the system a bit this year.

Jerry, awesome job!! Very good numbers. Way to go!

Get those runs in Team! I still have one more.

Jerry, that's awesome!!!
It was very exiting reading your report!!! From a true mortal beginner triathlete!!! How cool!!!

Congratulations!!!  How cold was the water?? Were you wearing a wetsuit? Did you have winds or currents affecting your swim?

Now you can officialy say you are a TRIATHLETE,

I'm still just a candidate, hopefully that will change on June 7th.
I'll remember all your tips and use your experience.
Thanks

David,
Got my first OMS yesterday.  Conditions were good for training (choppy, windy and currents). Things I think I need to work on:

-Hyperventilating happens easily, it's all on your mind (can't imagine on race day with al the exitement!)
-Definitively need to practice breathing on both sides.  I normally breath on my left and waves and wind were easily filling my mouth with water every single stroke!! Switch to the righ and problem solved!!! Felt weird, never done it before.
-Sighting is difficult, I took a couple peeks at my target and then relaxed, few yards later I was WAY off course. Need to practice that more often.
-Pacing is a bit more dificult, there's no laps or distance markers to go by.
-Training OWS by yourself is freaky!!!! I had a terrible imagination, as soon I saw fish I started think of the whole food chain and how I became part of it!!!!! Hyperventilated again.................

GREAT EXPERIENCE!!!! Once you relax, much better bouyancy in sea water, not having to turn around every 25 yards is really cool! The salt water gives you a great sense of contact with nature! I wish I lived on a beach house in the caribean!!!

I'm currently reading Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life by Brendan Brazier, a professional ironman triathlete b/c I want to ensure that my vegan diet, already well-balanced for the average person, will continue to benefit me greatly when I reach HIM and IM training. Here's a particularly interesting excerpt from his book that is relevant to those of us here that are newbie triathletes, and why it is important not to push too hard too fast.

First, he describes how there are different types of stress. Uncomplimentary stressors (which provide no benefit to your life) and complimentary stressors (such as exercise)...

"Exercise is also complementary in its ability to raise the body's tolerance to physical activity. If a person exercises regularly and is in fair shape, everyday physical activities will not produce a stress response. This is significant. Here's why. If someone who exercises regularly walks up a few flights of stairs, for example, the strain from doing so will be far below what the body is accustomed to enduring in a workout. The strain on the body from ascending the stairs will not even be noticeable, meaning no stress response. Cortisol, the body's stress-fighting hormone, will not rise, and the immune system will not in turn decline. A fit person who engages in even minor physical activity will be less likely to succumb to ailments than will a person who does not exercise consistently.
Similarly, people who jog on a regular basis experience no stress response from walking and very little from running slowly. Conversely, the body of a person who does not exercise regularly will perceive minor physical activity as a strain, and this will trigger a stress response. This is something to be mindful of when beginning an exercise program. Until the body has adapted to the higher level of stress, the immune system will be vulnerable. (Avoiding contact with people who have a virus until your body has adjusted to the higher level of exercise is a good idea.)"

So there's a very concrete reason not to jump too quickly into a triathlete training program. I know we all want to be amazing ASAP, but there are physical limitations which we must respect. Besides, we don't want to burn out quickly and never reach IM level!!

The water was in the mid-60's (they said) - it felt colder than I thought it would. Yes, I did wear a wetsuit (which I had only tried on in my house... where it kept me extremely warm,  as my wife and kids giggled at me). I can't say that I noticed any winds, but I did get a few big gulps of Nanticoke. Probably due to my "form".

Also... in case you guys are interested, I came across these articles on active.com about OWS. I thought they were interesting - I wish I had read them earlier:

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Pacing_Makes_Perfect__6_Ways_to_Train_for_a_Triathlon_Swim_Start.htm

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Off_to_the_Races__3_Tips_for_a_Fast_Swim_Start.htm  


Jerry