2014 Rookies - CLOSED (Page 8)

For me, motivation comes from having a goal (like a race) and a plan to achieve that goal.  

For the first few years that I did tris I always had goals but no real plan for how to achieve them.  Initially my goals were broad and difficult to measure.  ie. I want to finish race X and go as fast as I can.  My plan to get there was to train a bunch and see what happened.  The last few years my goals have become more specific and measurable.  I have two short term goals right now, both for races in May.  One involves going faster than a certain time in a half marathon and the other is a wattage goal for a time trial on the bike.  My plan to achieve the goals comes from my coach.  So I get specific workouts from him that I know are designed to get to those goals, with the longer term goal of making me faster in triathlons over the summer.

For a specific workout, if I can't decide if I'm being lazy or actually need to skip it due to fatigue, I usually try to start it anyway and see how it goes.  When running, I give myself 15 minutes - if I still feel terrible at that point I bail (doesn't happen very often but once in a while it does).  After doing that for a while, I've learned the difference between the two.  

So, long story short (too late!), I suggest making goals and having a plan to get there.  Set both long and short term goals - long term you want to do race X, short term you want to consistently run 5 times per week between now and April.  Pick something you can measure and is reasonable.

Personally, I don't see it as a great replacement for bike training if you have other alternatives.  I think being on your own bike on a bike trainer is a better choice.  However, if you don't have that option then I think it is a better choice than doing nothing.  The group setting may also serve as a motivator so again if it means you end up doing more riding as a result then it can be a good option.

There are a couple general ways to get power for your cycling -- you can spend a decent chunk of money on a power meter for your bike (this isn't something I'd suggest doing until you are absolutely certain you plan to stick with triathlons/cycling for a while), or you can use Virtual Power.

There are at least a few options for using Virtual Power, but I tend to think TrainerRoad is the most user friendly.  If you have a bike, stationary trainer, speed/cadence sensor, and ANT+ communication, you can set up Virtual Power.  I tend to enjoy training with power, but it is certainly not the only way -- training by HR or RPE can also be very effective.  That said, for riding on a trainer, using some form of power was the only thing that made it tolerable and effective for me....otherwise I tended to ride too easy, without a specific plan, and got bored quickly enough to just give up.

As Arend mentioned, goals can be a great motivator.  But also try to focus on how good you'll feel once the workout is done.  No regrets later in the day, and you might get a little endorphin boost.  And you can eat a cookie. 

While it's always better to be on your own bike, I think a spin bike can be fine so long as you get it adjusted properly.  I would much rather buy a trainer than a spin bike, but if you have access to a spin bike as part of a gym membership then it's a usable option.

70-90% of my training is on a road bike...regardless if I'm doing tris or time trials.  Even though the position and riding style is quite different than when on my tri bike...I still get almost all the benefits.

Trainer road requires data to be collected via ANT+ transmission technology.  Many fitness products use this technology including Timex, Garmin, Quarq, Powertap, etc.  Unfortunately, Polar uses their own type of transmission technology.  And AFAIK, there isn't a way for Trainer Road to accept that transmission into their software.

EDIT:  More info here http://support.trainerroad.com/entries/20655073-What-devices-are-you-compatible-with-

You're going to have a hard time finding a training plan that factors in a marathon and tri training at the same time.  But as I mentioned before, just because there isn't a plan on the internet, it doesn't mean you can't adjust one to make it work for you.  I would start with the framework of a marathon plan you feel comfortable with, and compliment it with riding and swimming. 

I really wish I could help you here, but I've never worn a wetsuit in my life, nor raced in California.  Xterra wetsuits are usually decent quality at an affordable price.  What temperature you use a wetsuit or not is going to vary by person.  Some people feel they need one in any temp below 74 degrees.

I may be able to answer some of those questions for you as I lived and raced in Socal for my first year.

1. I've never done a marathon, but I know enough that I would NOT want to do it on 3x a week running.  Your marathon is in July....when is your tri?  You may have mentioned it previously, but I'll just ask again so I don't have to search through all the old posts!  As Jason said, don't feel obligated to follow any one plan you find on the internet.  Depending on your priorities (which race is more important: the marathon or the tri?), I'd be more likely to train for marathon distance running with as much swimming and biking cross training as you can afford.  If the tri is more important than the marathon, make sure to hit your swim and bike workouts and do as much (easy) running as you can in addition, as long as it's not negatively impacting your swim/bike.

2. What do you mean by a longer tri?  Are you looking for HIM distance or Oly distance?  Or sprint distance with a longer open water swim?  I know Oceanside 70.3 is sold out now, but that's the longest tri with an open water swim, I believe.  Escape from Alcatraz has a long OWS, but it's basically lottery only and is also sold out.  If you're looking for a well-run Oly distance race with an ocean swim, consider the Breath of Life race in Ventura (though the swim is in a protected bay).  For a real ocean swim, you could check out the Encinitas Sprint Tri -- you'll have to be comfortable with surf (they put on a clinic a couple weeks before that is very useful if you're not comfortable with surf but are comfortable swimming) and it's a sprint distance, but is a well-run race as well.  Malibu, Redondo Beach, and Santa Barbara are also good options, but I haven't actually raced any of them (Santa Barbara is between and Oly and HIM distance, which I really wanted to race, but moved away before I got the opportunity).

3. Wetsuits -- for Socal, it's pretty close to a requirement!  For some of the races in shallow, protected bays/marinas, the water stays warm enough on the surface that you could certainly do without a wetsuit, but I don't know that it would be comfortable (temps would be in the low 70's at the highest).  Many places in Socal will be in the low- to mid-50's year-round, and for that, a wetsuit would be strongly recommended.  The lowest I'd (personally) swim without a wetsuit is mid-70's, but I'm also a weenie when it comes to being cold.  It's really dependent on the person.

I don't know what size you are, but I have an Xterra that I'd be happy to part with (bought a new wetsuit and just haven't bothered to put the Xterra up for sale yet).  Xterras are great entry level wetsuits and they have massive discounts all the time (think the BT discount is something like 57% off).  That wetsuit served me well for a while, but I eventually wanted to upgrade as I became a better swimmer. 

5'10", 165 puts you square in the middle of the Mens medium size for Xterra.

http://www.xterrawetsuits.com/uploads/size-chart-2012.pdf

If you (or anyone else) is interested, I'm pretty sure I can get a 60% off coupon code for Xterra.

Donna,

Most of the local races don't fill up far in advance (many are still open the week leading up the the race, though relatively few have on-site registration).  Also, in my response above, I was giving the races that I knew had open water swims in the ocean -- if you are interested in a non-ocean (but still open water) swim, that opens up your opportunities greatly!

Take a look at LA Tri Club's race schedule.  Other than the WTC (Ironman) events, most will not fill up too far in advance.  I've heard great things about the Desert Tri in Palm Springs (lake swim) in early March.  It turns out to be a very competitive race, as it's often used as a tune-up to Oceanside 70.3, but the people I know who have done it said that it's well run and they enjoyed it.

You could also consider the HITS Napa Valley race (also a lake swim) in April -- HITS events are typically not huge, so it would probably feel a little "safer" than a huge race....some people like the feel of a small race and some people love the atmosphere of huge races.  It's very personal.

But a March / April race is a very realistic goal for you, and doing one in a lake may help ease your fears a bit with regards to the swim.  I would, however, suggest a wetsuit as none of those lakes will be very warm.  Take Arend up on his offer for the Xterra code -- Xterra is great in that they'll let you swim in the suit and try it out, then send it back if you need a different size

A 2 beat kick means you kick twice per full arm cycle (one cycle = both arms).  A 6 beat kick is 6 kicks per full arm cycle.  If you were to watch swimmers in the Olympics you would see 6 beat kicks in pretty much all the short events but for the longer ones (like the 1500) you might see more two beat kicks.  

Here is a great blog article about it written by BT's TJ Fry. http://badig.com/2009/06/the-two-beat-kick/

There are two videos in there that have a good idea of what they look like.  Although the video shows a 4 beat kick, it still shows the difference.

No such thing as too many questions!  Questions drive discussion and for anything you ask, there is probably someone else wondering the same thing.

USAT = USA Triathlon.  They are the governing body for the sport in the US looking after rules, sanctioning etc.  I believe they also provide insurance to races.  For any race that is sanctioned by USAT, you either need to be an annual member or purchase a one day license (the $12 you referred to).  Being Canadian I'm not entirely familiar with the benefits of membership but it appears to be $45/year so doing 3 races it would be cheaper to just pay the 1 day fee but there are lots of other benefits so it might be worth your while if you use those.  

http://www.usatriathlon.org/membership-services/benefits.aspx