Hashers and Mashers - Open (Page 8)

Was planning on doing a bike today after I had a small relapse on my inflammatory condition Thursday morning.

Just had a major thunderstorm come through here....let's see if it clears up and how humid it is afterwards. Unfortunately a thunderstorm doesn't cool the air around here, usually just makes it steamier. Will take it easy today if I go out to see how body reacts.

Edited by johnthecat 2013-06-08 5:28 PM

I plan to ride today too , but im filled with excuses not to I just feel lazy. I have been staring at the dark clouds like you said, for the past two hours would have been done by now. i'll try again tomorrow.

Edited by strykergt 2013-06-08 5:05 PM

Hi I am new to triathlons and beginnertri forums so I decided to look for some help.

NAME: Aaron

STORY: I was in track throughout all of high school and mainly participated in the 800 and mile. After graduating I joined the Army and now I am currently attending Iowa State University. Without track or army my life felt a void, so a friend told me about the ISU triathlon team. I hesitantly joined due to my lack of swimming skills. I have participated in local 5k, 10k, and half-marathon races but have never done a triathlon. I enjoy the workouts but I still do them by myself in the wee hours of the morning before work/class. This has left me feeling pretty isolated and unsure about what I am doing in my training.

FAMILY STATUS: 21, single, and living by myself with my pet fish Bruce.

CURRENT TRAINING: Doing a summer training schedule given to me by the team coach via trainingpeaks but the coach does not do well to work with all of the individuals of the team so I am looking for some guidance. Roughly 10-12 hours a week.

WEIGHTLOSS: It wouldn't hurt me to gain a few pounds but my clean eating keeps me at optimal race weight.

THIS YEAR'S RACES: Dam to Dam 20k, and I am signed up for Rockford Tri, Bluff Creek Tri, and Hy-Vee Tri. (all olympic distance)

GOALS: PR, not look like a fool in my first oly tri, perhaps do a 70.3 or 140.6?

Partially to bump, as I'm no expert, so hopefully others will chime in.  But my $.02:

I think the easy answer is more bricks, but in my opinion bricks don't actually make you stronger off the bike, they just get you kind of used to the feeling.  For me no matter how many bricks I do the strange feeling in my legs doesn't really go away any quicker, I just get used to dealing with it.  So if your problem is that you can't run at all when you get off the bike, because your legs feel too weird and you mentally don't feel like you can run, then maybe bricks are the answer.

But it sounds more to me like you're saying your legs are too tired when you finish the bike.  In that case I think the answer is harder bike and run sets (just don't injure yourself).  Sprint intervals or hill sets in your run training and tt intervals or hills in your bike training.  And then, as you note, don't kill yourself on the bike.  But the way to get stronger on the bike and leave the bike feeling less dead is to add in more strength, and the same goes for the run.

SO you want to run faster in triathlon? get stronger on the bike. So X 2 with Joe on this.

You have to ride a controlled race. It's not easy to do. up your bike fitness, then take "something off" compares to what you have been doing during the race, end up with same bike splits that you have been achieving, but then be able to run cause you did not burn out your legs

Yup, I'm going to have to x3 on the getting stronger on the bike and bricks as well. The stronger you get on the bike, the less of a drain it will put on your run performance. As for bricks I like to do one after every bike workout, even if it is just a quarter mile. It's good to get a feel of how to run on tired legs. In the past few weeks I've been slacking a bit with this and it showed in my race yesterday..

Omg- I found ya'll. It has taken me forever to learn the new site and find you guys. Well I haven't been able to search daily or anything but I was totally thrown when I finally did check in and it was the new site, new groups etc.

I've finally come to accept that for now I will mostly be lurker status, but I hope I'm still welcome. I really do want to keep up with you guys and stay in touch because I'm determined to get back into training and tri's but for now it's just not the most realistic.

I will give a quick version of my story for all the new friends I haven't met yet in the group.

My name is Shelly. I am married to my dh for the last 23 years and we have 3 earth angels (not)- Marissa-21, Brayden- 20, and Claire- 10, and one heavenly angel Aubrey Anne- bornstill 2001. I am a three time cancer survivor and basically took my health for granted for 40 years despite that. I finally realized that I needed to shape up or I just might end up shipping out ( with my history ) and so I started on a path to become more healthy. I started eating better and walking with my dh who was very supportive of my efforts. This in turn lead to a 50 pound weight loss and a desire to do a triathlon. I joined here, started training and did my first tri in May 2011. It was awesome. I've done a few more since and still love it. Unfortunately, I also have some pretty nice heart valve issues from my cancer treatments and things on that front are worsening. I also just have typical life issues with having a ten year old and a 20 year old boy (lots of grey hair there) and training has just had to take a back seat for now. I still run ( jog) a few times weekly, and either ride my bike or spin a few times weekly. I just haven't been able to fit in the swim training and it's my toughest portion so tri's are out in the short term. I am not done with them by a long shot. I have loved being with these guys since the group opened and I want to stay in touch.

Really will do my best to be more active, but definitely going to lurk frequently if that is ok.

Shelly

P.S. For any of the originals---I FOUND CUCUMBER GATORADE!!! OMG- Dave if you are around- I love it! We bought three cases and had to go to four grocery stores to get that much. My dh loves it also so we wanted to stock up before we headed home. We were on vacation in Houston.

Thanks! Is it working?

Rough month man. Glad you are back at it though. Hang in there.

Dog always works for a bounty hunter name :-). You might need some ink though.

Awesome swim! To run better off the bike requires more bike fitness. It also helps to throw a mile or two run in after as many rides as you can. Pay attention to your pace and feel. I remember feeling like my legs were gumby like and I couldn't catch my breathe yet I was running fast (for me) due to the high cadence I maintained off the bike.

Welcome Aaron! I graduated from Iowa State way back in 1988 :-). Didn't get into triathlons until I was in my forties so you have a great head start. Don't be shy about asking questions,

Well guys/gals

Yesterday I completed 102 mile bike ride virtually only with "spinning" classes and much experience as prep. (Chain-dropper barely made it through, was making a weird noise around mile 85-102 not sure what it is yet)

Today I became unemployed,
My 12 year old daughter Announced a female "change of life" OMG BTW
My 11 year old daughter produced a 20 page report on possible job opportunities and "down sized" homes waiting for me when I got home
My wife tells me how happy she is for me. Happy?? she is incredibly supportive.

I've had a ton of touching messages/phone calls of support/ I am a bit overwhelmed. today.

Oh and my fridge broke. and needs to be replaced.

Now I have always used training as a way of dealing (medicating?) with stress, and such. Soooo

I already have 7+ hours in this month. I am motivated.. and well more time to do it.

So if you are going to beat my training time, you are really, REALLY going to have to want it badly.

I may even sign up for a 70.3 afterall.

Welcome back Shelly!

Thanks for your advice Joe, Dave, Waffles and Mike. I was beginning to think that bricks were a part of the solution but your answers about improving my bike fitness to run better certainly makes good sense. I've been trying to run more consistently but I'll try doing bricks 3X/week from now on.

On Friday or Saturday I heard rumours about my Olympic this weekend and today I got confirmation that they've cancelled the race. I was all psyched to do it and looking forward to it. So I've got that "let down" feeling.

I'm looking at another Olympic event in Vancouver this September to replace the cancelled Oly. It involves a saltwater swim which should be interesting.

Man if your problem is running and cycling , only if we are both in town with you ill ride with you and run with you to trade for your swimming lessons, i guess your faster on water compare to land its just a matter of time, being a terrestrial you will catch up on running ang cycling!!!!

Great Job!!

So I'm off on anything but walking for the next two weeks per Dr. orders. Need to get my lower back and neck back in order before he wants me to do anything strenuous. This last relapse sure pulled a thing on my back again. Not feeling too bad though considering, but better take it easy as I've had enough of these relapses.

oh you have issues with your back and neck.... When your ready to get your roadbike or tribike make sure you get a pre-fitting by a pro before you buy a bike. Theres a pro fitter in town who is not connected to any shop and his foremost concern is physical safety of the rider... everyone in town recommend
Tad Hughes. .. i got burned twice by our LBS... Tad Hughes will fit you before and after you get your bike. Hope for your speedy recovery ... like you said take it easy.

Hey Ted, welcome back!

Dave, so sorry to hear about the job....there's no way ill be able to catch up with your training numbers now! Keep your chin up

Tom, you have a lot going on. Sorry to hear about your brother, and about the gf situation. This is when you really need the exercise, good stress relief, but also probably the last thing you want to do, I get that

I really have to get back on track, I've been slacking...bikes in for service for insane squeaking that I can't stand, so I can procrastinate on riding until next week good news, kids are going to sleep away camp next week, woo hoo!

Yvonne

All right so a few people have asked about a race report for my first race of the season, haven't ever written one before so I guess I'll just start at the beggining!

This past Sunday I ran the Grand Rapids Triathlon Olympic distance race. The weather was a little muggy being around 77 F and 80% humidity, the water temp was a cool 71. My race started at 8:15, but with the sprint and half-iron distances going before us the transition area closed at 6:45 effectively ruining my bike warm up. Luckily I brought an extra pair of shoes to warm up with so I was able to get an easy 2 in with some strides and stretching afterwards.

After I got my wetsuit on we were moved over to the lake to start our race. The gun went off and I started off strong, getting a solid lead over most of the others, definitely top 5 after 200m. After that I slacked with my sighting and did it every 15-20 strokes, each time I realized I was veering a little to much to the left. Throughout the first 700 meters I was zig-zagging and losing ground, I decided at the turnaround just to find someone and stick with them no matter what. I recognized my buddy who also has trouble sighting so we swam side by side the rest of the way to shore(I struggle with drafting in open water). I came out in just under 25 minutes, a few shy of my goal, but I wasn't too bummed since it was my first OWS of the year.

The T1 in this particular race is a little bit long, probably 350-400 meters from the water to the bike-out. There were some wetsuit strippers 20m in but I decided to do it myself by my bike because I didn't feel like carrying my wetsuit so far. After I got to my bike I tried taking my wetsuit off standing up but it wasn't cooperating so I had to sit down and yank it off, after that I dried off my feet and put on socks and my cycling shoes(had a bad experience sockless once, wasn't in the mood to attempt it again). After I got my shoes on I grabbed my bike and hobbled over to the bike-out.

The bike leg was definitely the best leg of the race for me. With all my running injuries and bad pool hours at my school I had been biking A LOT over the winter and was excited to see how I improved. Unfortunately I noticed as soon as I hopped on my bike I lost my GUs I taped on the bike so I was stuck with just water for the next hour. The first 2 miles were finding my legs after the swim, kept a decent cadence of 100. After that I dropped down to 90-95 and upped the gear, pushing around 22mph until the turnaround at 12. After the turnaround I realized I had the wind at my back! So I pushed 24-25mph for the next 6-7 miles until it started to get hilly. My legs started to give out on me so I increased my cadence again and held it around 20mph for the rest of the bike. My bike split was a 1:10:30(others have said it was 1-1.5 miles too long), but it destroyed my previous best of 1:12 from the last year regardless.

In T2 I missed my bike rack and ended up running 20-30ft past it and had to carry my bike back. I easily got my shoes off and my running shoes on though so that went well.

The run I didn't really know how I would fare. Two and a half months ago my tibial stress fracture came back so I took two months off of running, and got back into it two weeks before the race(I waited until 2 days before the race to register to see if I had any pain at all, I didn't). Knowing my run endurance wouldn't be all there I decided to take it easy for the first half and pick it up the second half. The heat/humidity at this point was getting pretty bad and I was sweating buckets so I took as much nutrition as I could the first 2 miles to try to make up for the lack of GU on the bike. It took about 3 miles to get into my groove, which went with my plan perfectly... What I didn't plan on was a huge 200m long hill at mile 4! Ten steps in my quads and hammys cramped up so I speedwalked up the hill, afraid if I kept running up it I would cramp up even worse. At the top I knew the rest was flat so I started running again, increasing my cadence and trying to loosen up. Thankfully they had bannanas at the next aid station half a mile up which probably saved my run because after I ate it my legs loosened up a bit. I kept up my pace to the finish throwing down a 42 minutes 10k(which people have said was .25-.5 miles long). With the heat and how I felt on the run i was not expecting to go that fast, but I am very pleased with it.

My time was a 2:21:XX which was over 10 minutes off my goal pace, but I am satisfied with how I performed on all of the individual events.

Oh and for the next 4-5 hours I felt horribly nauseous, I'm guessing dehydration or electrolyte imbalance because that's what usually happens to me. So anyone who has any tips for race nutrition would be fantastic!

Strykergt - I'm just lucky to be comfortable in the water. Before 2012 I hadn't done any swimming in over 40 yrs (other than playing at the beach or snorkeling). I would think Erik (Waffles) would have more info on swimming. I'm also lucky to live near Okanagan Lake (4km/2.4mi away) a great swimming lake (no weeds, sand bottom, clear visibility and only one Ogopogo monster)

Johnthecat - Hard luck on the relapse. Annoying/frustrating for you I'm sure. Were you prescribed any kind of therapy to help with your healing?

Erik - Thanks for your report it was an interesting read. I find race reports inspirational plus you can learn a lot from them. Your time was pretty phenomenal to me. My best guess for my time in an Oly would be about 3:30:xx.
I'm not very knowledgeable on nutrition but on my long rides I put carbopro and nuun (electrolyte) in my water plus I eat honey stinger waffles and/or chopped up pieces of Clif Bars (12g protein size) and bananas when available. For running I'm not sure yet but I know "coke" is popular.

I also read in someone's race report for an IM that they put a "salt n vinegar" bag of chips in his special needs bags and found it a really nice treat. Salt n Vinegar may be more of a Canadian thing but on chips or "chips"(French fries) is great.

Very annoying. This has been going on since January. All started with an ear infection. Doctor says it's post viral and body goes in full inflammatory response trying to fight virus but apparently body keeps going over the top. Overall it seems to be getting better but with every relapse the inflammation spreads into my back causing all kinds of back aches, tingling, radiating and other weird neurological symptoms. I'm taking an NSAID daily and the Neurologist had put me on a 10 day steroid program twice so far which seems to clear up the inflammation but doesn't seem to last in the long run. I just hope that this virus eventually fully clears out and everything goes back to normal. In the meantime I'm trying to handle the symptoms as much as possible with the medication, rest and chriopractor for back adjustments and muscle relaxation.

Hang in there. Back pain really sucks.

Wow John. that's a lot of issues from an ear infection. It sounds as though you're doing all you can to get rid of it but it still sounds unreasonably persistent.

I hope you get better fast.