owl_girl's Mentor Group for Mommies - CLOSED (Page 8)

Last couple QOTDs (I think)

I've a WS Cannondale Synapse, blue w/ yellow and yellow handle wrap...it's pretty, her name is Harmony, she needs new wheels tho'.

For 2011 I'm aiming for Pelican Fest Sprint mid May, then Loveland Lake to Lake Oly June-ish, though I haven't signed up for either yet.  My husband is hoping to do Loveland also...we shall see, we shall see.

Let's change up our question of the day a little.  It's time for you to ask some questions!

Question of the Day

What questions do you have regarding swimming?  Let's talk about swim training, open water swimming, and anything else regarding swimming.

Oh yeah!  I forgot to tell you the names of my bikes!  My tri bike is Raven because she is black and fast and sleek.  My road bike is Goldilocks because she is gold and juuuussssttt right!

You COULD do an oly during your first year of tris if you just want to complete the distance without worrying about your finish time.  I WOULD NOT do the oly as your first open water swim race.  1500 meters is a BIG jump from a sprint length swim.  In my opinion, stick with the sprint distances this year but train for the oly distance if you have the time available for increased training.  You will enjoy the sprints much more.

aquinn - 2011-01-05 10:12 AM Ah, swimming. Hoping to add that back in next week.  If I've been away from it for, oh, I don't know, a year, is it best that I should just get in and swim, or set some workouts? I usually just set a distance goal.

Question: What is considered a classic Oly distance? The race I think I will do in June (did it in '08) is called a sprint, but the distance is .9 swim, 18 bike, 6.2 run.

An official oly distance is 1500m swim, 40K bike, and 10K run.

As for swimming, there are a number of things you could do depending on your skill starting point.  I like the program 0-1650 in 6 weeks.  It worked for me in the past.

I like swimming. I love love love open water, it is SO FUN!

I never feel too floaty- always too sinky!  Tomorrow night we have planned to go to the pool for the first time...in a long time.  Sigh. 

Got a trainer ride and 10 minutes of yoga in so that was good. 

Good morning!  What are your plans today?  I will be pushing the stroller on a 4.5 mile run.

Question of the Day

How do you deal with childcare so you can train?

I use gym childcare for running, swimming and teaching Spinning classes.  When the weather is nice, I pushe the running stroller.  My husband takes care of watching him while I am on the trainer or on long runs and bike rides.  I am very thankful that I have such a supportive husband who loves to run and cycle as well.  He understands my need to exercise every day.

Can't miss a day around here!

Like anything, you just need to practice swimming in your wetsuit so you are comfortable with positioning.  Do you have a triathlon/swimming specific wetsuit or are you using one intended for diving and surfing?

Unlimited KidsClub at GloboGym is pretty convenient usually and getting to know the young women who work there makes it more comfortable. 

We've yet to check out the local rec center, kinda missing the rec center we just moved away from.  Otherwise The Man takes over when I'm away a long time, which hasn't happened at all since Baby E arrived.  :/ 

I've also taken advantage of friend's offer to watch bigger kiddo for long bricks, seems so long ago now.

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups leeks, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
1 teaspoon salt
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, peeled, diced medium
1 large parsnip, peeled, diced medium
8 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 pounds yukon gold potatoes, diced medium
1 cup dry quinoa
1 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch kale (about a pound), rough stems removed, torn into bite sized pieces

Herb blend:
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
1 teaspoon dried majoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
Fresh black pepper, to taste

Preheat a 4 quart soup pot over medium high heat. Saute leeks and garlic in oil with salt for about 3 minutes, or however long it takes you to prep your carrot and parsnip. Add carrot and parsnip, along with the herb blend, turn heat up to high and saute for a few seconds.

Add vegetable broth, potatoes and quinoa. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes, until potatoes and quinoa are tender. Add kale and beans, and stir frequently until kale is wilted. Cover and simmer on low for 5 more minutes. Taste for salt

When you serve you may want to add a little lemon juice or a splash of balsamic vinegar or hot sauce - whatever your thing is. Or you may not.

This serves 8 and can be adjusted up or down if you prefer. I’d recommend making a big batch as it’s great the next day and froze well in an air-tight container for me.

Question of the Day

How do you deal with childcare so you can train?

This is one of my biggest obstacles.  We live in a city where we have no family and my husband travels all week so most of the time it is me an 4 kids 4 and under.  I use the childcare at the Y and I hire a siiter.  It gets expensive to hire a sitter bit when I start IM training next month there is really no option.  I do have a trainer for my bike at home which I loathe to use but it's there as a last resort.

THIS.

precisely why I didn't get up at 5 this morning (it was only to get a jump on the day), the baby was too snuggly, our three breathing noises were too sweet, that's quality.

Ah yes!!!  Beautiful!!!

Wow!!!  That's a MAJOR improvement!!!  You should be super proud of that 5K time!!!