Gray Guys/Girls Maturing Triathlete - Always OPEN (Page 8)

Hello Heide and welcome to Gray Guys/Gals!

We have a great bunch of people here from all experience levels that are happy to offer advice and encouragement - don't hesitate to ask!

I think you get the prize for the earliest race with one this weekend.

In case you didn't notice, we started a weight-loss/workout challenge last weekend.  If you'd like to participate, maybe hop on the scale and jot down your weight.  We will be doing our first progress report this weekend.  You can find the details several posts back.

I have to laugh.  My wife and I just moved from California to Indiana in September.  We lived near Temecula.  I still have an IT client in Orange about a block east of the Honda Center on Katella.  When we were in CA I don't recall ever having a fellow Gray Guy/Gal that lived in CA.  Now that we are back east, it seems I run into people all the time that are in So. Cal.  Go figure!  At any rate, you have a whole group of virtual training partners here!

Hey Steve,

Happy to offer some thoughts.

First thing, lose the long sets.  Those aren't doing you any favors.  When you do long sets, you fatigue.  As you fatigue your technique breaks down (this happens even if your name is Michael Phelps or Katie Ledecky).  With each stroke, you are storing technique information into muscle memory.  As you fatigue and your technique breaks down, you are storing improper technique into muscle memory.  When you fatigue your stroke will break down to what is stored in muscle memory.  In a perfect world, you have good technique stored in muscle memory so when your stroke breaks down it breaks down to perfect stroke technique.  This is the reason that swimmers do intervals in training - to maintain proper technique.  

You are 7-weeks out from an Olympic.  It only takes 4-6 weeks to get your speed to the fastest it will be given your current technique/fitness. 

In the pool:

For the next two-weeks I'd suggest sets of 100's or 200's on short rest (mix it up each week - one week a couple workouts with 200's and one with 100's, the next week reverse it).  Something like 20 x 100 w/15" RI (rest interval) or 10 x 200 w/15" RI.  Ideally you would know what your swim threshold pace (STP) is and swim these at STP.  (For example, if your STP is 1:45/100, you would swim a set of 100's at 2:00 send-off.  A set of 200's would be at 3:45 send-off).  Using the send-off rather than a set rest interval forces you to maintain pace.  It also adds to the intensity of the set as you must maintain pace or you get less rest.

You could mix it up with ladders - something like 5-6 x [100-200-100].  It would be best to calculate your send-off time rather than use a set 15" RI.  

After a couple weeks, I'd do two workouts per week with sets of 50's and 100's with longer rest - 30-seconds.  The target pace for these would be STP-5 seconds/100.  So, again using 1:45 as your threshold pace, your target would be 1:40/100.  Your 100 send-off would be 2:10/100.  (Continue to do one workout per week with the shorter rest intervals as you are doing the first couple weeks).

Explaining what's going on there - a simple question - how do you build base on the run?  By using LSD - zone 1/2 runs.  Swimming those 100's and 200's with short rest is similar to the LSD runs.  You have just enough rest to allow recovery so your technique doesn't break down.  The shorter sets with longer rest are the "speed work."  You are swimming hard and fast - and creating lactate (and the associated lactic acid).  The longer rest allows your body to clear the lactate accumulation so you can complete the next hard repetition. 

On the VASA:

For the next two-weeks, do the VASA "30-20-10" workout once a week.  When you start doing the short swim intervals with longer rest, add a second "30-20-10" workout each week so you are doing two/week.  The remaining VASA workouts do as you have been doing however remember you don't want technique breaking down so keep "intervals" shorter rather than longer.

I suggest 6-8 x 7-minute round described below.

The 30-20-10 workout:

Warm-up:

Ideally, warm-up gradually for 10 – 15 minutes at easy intensity by doing a mix of supine cardio pullovers & Freestyle swimming on the Swim Erg. Plus, incorporate some dynamic exercises on or off the Swim Erg, especially for shoulders and core stabilizers.

Main Set:  7-minute Round using “30-20-10” Interval concept

Each round consists of seven, one-minute intervals. Each 1-minute interval is divided into 3 segments – 30 seconds, 20 seconds, and 10 seconds.

• Do the first 30 seconds at an easy pace / power.
  • Do the next 20 seconds with pace / power increased to a moderate speed & intensity.
    • Finish the last 10 seconds of each minute by sprinting at high intensity, slightly faster than race pace.

Repeat this 1-minute sequence 7 times, which completes One Round.  Take 60-seconds rest by doing easy freestyle swimming.

NOTE: Strive to maintain the same Stroke Rate for each 30-20-10 segment.  Focus on increasing your pulling power. Holding a steady stroke rate shifts the intention to using proper stroke technique throughout the workout. It also is a great way to reinforce accelerating the “blade” (palm to elbow crease) from the “catch” through to finish of each stroke.

Cool-down:

Finish the workout with an active recovery exercise (easy swim or dynamic exercises) for several minutes.

Final thoughts:

During both the pool and VASA workouts, focus on proper technique.  On the VASA you can clearly see if you are establishing the EVF.  The EVF is the key to power in freestyle swimming.

In the pool, make sure you are thoroughly warmed-up before you start the main set.  When you go to the longer rest sets, I'd do two of those workouts per week and one of the short rest workouts per week (so two intensive endurance workouts and one extensive endurance workout per week).

My pleasure Steve.

One comment - I just realized in my earlier comments I said, "Lose the long sets." I mis-spoke. I should have said, "Lose the long INTERVALS . You probably surmised that's what I meant when I gave you some sample sets. Sorry if there was any confusion. I knew what I meant!

Edited by k9car363 2018-02-02 9:42 PM

Hey Steve - and anyone else who is swimming.

In an earlier post I made the coment, "Make sure you are thoroughly warmed up." Yet I didn't say what a thorough warm-up was.If you're swimming less than ~ 1,000 yards/meters in a single workout, continue doing the warm-up you've been doing. If you're workouts are more than 1,000 yards/meters I suggest you consider this warm-up -

http://bscmultisport.com/blog/2016/01/03/a-better-swim-warm-up

Warming-up properly gets your body ready for the harder efforts during a workout so it's important you're warming-up properly.Don't forget to cool-down at the end of a workout. It's just as important to ease your body back to a resting state and allow your body to clear metabolic by-products from the workout. If your workout was more than an hour a good recovery drink will help. Chocolate milk has the perfect blend of carbs and protein to help your body recover.

Hey All!

Just a reminder our first Weight-Loss/Workout Challenge Progress Report is tomorrow.

Simply hop on the scale - preferably with BOTH feet.   Figure out your weight gain/loss over the past week.  You don't have to put your actual weight - just the amount lost (or gained).

Also post your total workout time for the week.  You can include what you did to get those minutes or not - up to you.

On Monday I'll plug all the numbers into my magic spreadsheet and each week post a running "leader-board."

(weightloss-workout.jpg)

I'll start!

I didn't lose any weight, but on a good note, I didn't gain any either.

I had 19:27 total workout time.

That's a touch over 55,000 meters done across 12-hours in the pool; plus 4-hours on the bike, and 3-hours running.

That works out to:

5 points for no weight gain, 19.45 points for workout time.

With that, I am going to recuse myself from the challenge as my swim time will nearly double in the next couple of months.  That seems like an unfair advantage.  I will continue to report my time and weight however so that I can have some accountability.

Scott - Very timely swimming info.  I've been trying to get back to where I was before last June and I have been picking up the pace but tomorrow I'm going to incorporate some 100's.  I think I will have to redo my STP to see where I stand now.  Based on my old STP and what you said to Steve I should be starting at 2:30/ 100m tomorrow.  My goal is to lower my STP.  In August I swam my 3K swim at 2:16/ 100m avg by my Garmin (OWS, wetsuit, draughting)

Weight Loss - I actually lost a bit of weight:

Down 1.2 lbs

Swimming - 1.35 hrs

Biking - 4.17 hrs

Running - 1.56 hrs

Total     7.08 hrs

I'm hoping to increase my times for next week.

Week 1: weight loss = .8 lbs

              workout minutes = 405

              week's points = 12.6 

              Cumulative points = 12.6

Hello Dwayne and welcome!

You've been peeking in now and again so you likely know we just started a weight-loss/workout challenge.  You are welcome to join in if you like.  Simply record your weight.  Next weekend we'll be posting our progress.

You've done a couple of Ironman's so you understand this isn't a sprint, rather it's a marathon - one step at a time.  Let us know if there is anything we can do to help you on your newest journey.

Checking in .  Had a busy weekend but I'm off work this week so hoping to get in some good training.  For the past week:

no weight lost but nothing gained either (I'll take that)

5:34 training time - 5:04 on the bike and :30 yoga (if that counts)

I was hoping to get back to the pool today but we had some bad weather come through - icy roads, so I chose to be safe and stay home.  Swim has been re-scheduled for Wednesday.  

Janet

Hi Dwayne and welcome to the group.  Don't hesitate getting into any of the group discussions. 

Glad you watched the video.  I'm feeling kind of lost this year without the long race this year but I am slowly getting going again.

Scott - I had a good swim today but I found I was taking too long between intervals and even more frustrating was my inability to keep track of how many intervals I had actually completed.  I start out keeping count okay but after two I am lost.  I get bored and my mind wanders and I have no idea what my count is.  Maybe I'll have to swim an extra 400m each swim just to get the count I was supposed to do.  

Hey George,

If you are doing the intervals in a pool with lane lines, there's a little trick you can do.  The discs on the lane lines are independent of each other, meaning you can grab hold of them at the very end, and gently pull them back towards the middle of the pool a foot or so.  Then, as you complete each interval, slide one disc down to the end of the line.  You will periodically need to do some "house-keeping" - pulling the discs down again - as the discs will move, but you will be able to keep enough clearance that you can keep an accurate count.

Hey everyone!

Here's an updated list of the Gray Guys/Gals -

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