Todd's Tri Turtles 6 (Beginner - Sprints, 5K, 10K) - OPEN (Page 9)

Ok, so 2 months till race day and I know I’m not where I should be but it is what it is. This weeks goal is 100 miles on the bike, 15 miles running, and 4000 yards of swimming. I go back on days next week until race day so I will have no excuses and enough daylight to get in what I need. I have also decided to work no extra jobs the next two months to make sure I get it done.

Git er done!!!!

Is it too late to join this group? I have recently been convinced by some friends to attempt a Sprint Tri in Bryan, TX in October, so I'm looking for all the info and tips I can find! I was a swimmer age 4 - high school (10 years ago) and am a pathetic jog/walker...

If it is too late in the year, that's fine. But if I can, let me know what I need to do!
Thanks!
Christina

Christina

Heck no it's never too late! Welcome to the group!

With your swimming experience you should be good to go there; get some biking in if you've not done any; try the jog/walk approach to training for the run portion.

You'll enjoy this!

Edited by 2NewKnees 2018-08-03 6:40 AM

Hi all,

Checking in after an extremely long hiatus due to personal and professional demands. This also corresponded, for the most part, with a training hiatus. Then I picked up training again a couple of few ago in anticipation for last Saturday's sprint triathlon.

I did it!!! I completed the course. Two hours, 11 minutes. Not the showing I would have liked to make, but it definitely made me want to lose weight and "tri" again next year for a better time.

Before I talk about the race, the Tuesday beforehand I discovered that I have osteoarthritis with bone spurring in my right hip. I had it x-rayed because I'd been having weird shooting pain while sitting (not running,) but the appearance of the pain certainly corresponded with an increase in running during training.

I still have to talk to experts about this in greater detail, as at this point I don't have much more than an x-ray result. But I'm curious if anyone else is dealing with osteoarthritis, while overweight, or at a young age, or in general, and what your doctors have told you about it in relation to triathlon and other sports. I don't want to be done with any of it. My current plan is to keep swimming and riding, and hold off on running until I drop 20 lbs or so at least.

Now for the race breakdown:

The weather was perfect for me. Not too cool, not to hot, not sunny and not raining. Sun would have killed me.

The swim was long. Water 66 degrees, wetsuit mandatory. What made it really hard was that I did not want to rest. I could tell I was at the back of the pack and I didn't want to be dead last. The wetsuit also weighed my arms down, especially because mine is really thick. I only had 12 swim sessions in training, and before those I'd never ever done the front crawl, so I can't be upset with the result.

The bike was all about conserving energy for me. The swim had been a lot more tiring than I anticipated. I got behind the only person on the course more overweight than me (who also had more than 20 years on me and was trucking along like a champion) and decided to stay there without pushing myself to pass. I still finished higher in terms of ranking on the bike course than in swimming or running, which makes sense because I have been biking more consistently than anything else.

The run was an all-out effort just to keep from walking the whole way. I slowed to a walk plenty of times, over small hills and things, but I kept pushing myself to get back into the run. In my head, I was chanting "short and bouncy, short and bouncy" because that has helped me run comfortably in training. Still, I was breathing like I was in labor the whole way.

I managed to sprint at the end! And I did not come dead last. That honor went to a much older man who valiantly finished the face at just under 3 hours.

Good luck, all! Happy training.

Congrats on a very successful race!!!! You did it!!!!

On the osteoarthritis thing.....that's what did in my knees; injuries to the left on over the years and over compensation of my right one due to the left's issues. Yes, getting expert advice and evaluation is very important. Good luck!!

Christine -

Sprints are a lot of fun. Its enough of an effort to feel like you've done something but it won't wipe you out for days to follow.

If your swimming is still up to snuff, you'll have a huge leg up over most people who swim by basically not drowning. Spend your time building up your weak areas - find a couch to 5k or a Galloway run/walk plan and follow it, but go easy with your efforts running because you don't want to end up overdoing it and getting injured.

Best of luck & welcome to the group.

Bruce.

Edited by bwingate 2018-08-17 6:38 AM

Hi Blue Mants,

Congratulations on your race and thanks for posting the race report.

Weather wiped out 2 of my swims this week and now we are having to make an unplanned trip south. So no swims until 9/2 or 9/3; then none until mid September; club pool is under routing cleaning/maintenance. Walking will continue as will weights once we get back home.

Hi Turtles

Hope all is well. I'm reasonably pleased with my progress and results following the BT Conservative 20 week plan. I'm entering week 10 now. So far I'm on track with the bike and run but behind in the number of swim sessions scheduled to be completed. While I'm behind on the number of sessions my swimming ability has improved beyond my expectations. I've considering trying to complete additional swim sessions to catch up but the plan has 3 swims a week and I don't think I can handle any more.

My first race is in late November and my goal is to beat my time I set for the same race back in 2014.

Anybody have any events coming up soon?

Rod...November will be here before you know it and you’ll beat your previous time!

I had tentatively planned on a 9/30 event but a house painting project is taking precedence; weather hasn’t cooperated for that project so I’m way behind.

Just signed up with a Training Squad for newbies that commences 6 weeks prior to the race. Looking forward to it.

Life is hectic at the moment, particularly as my elderly mother has been hospitalized and I'm visiting daily. In the past I would have used this as an excuse to skip training but I've done the opposite and increased my training volume and intensity. I find it a welcome distraction from the issues.

Hope everybody else is enjoying training.

Hi Turtles,

It has been a bit quiet here so I thought I'd set up a challenge to get everybody posting.

PLEASE SHARE AN AMUSING TRI RELATED ANECDOTE. It can be a training or racing story.

Here's mine.

I was watching my second ever triathlon and I nearly got in a fight. It was at Ironman Melbourne and we were watching the swimmers exit the water and enter T1. One of the triathletes was a big man and to be honest he looked like he'd be more at home in a pie eating competition that an Ironman event. Then again, that's one of the great things about this sport, people of all shapes and sizes are involved. A "wise guy" from the crowd started to heckle the big guy and told him he had no right to be in the race. This made my blood boil as the guy had just swam 3.8 KMs and was in the middle of the field. I strongly suggested that the heckler should move on and had no right to talk to anybody like that, particularly somebody who has just completed an Ironman swim. Of course the heckler took offence and headed towards me but soon retreated when other spectators took my side and suggested that he either competes or keeps quiet. I couldn't believe what had just happened and fortunately it was such an isolated incident as the tri community as so supportive of all participants.

Rod...well, the nerve of some people like that heckler. He’s probably never even “tried a tri”.....;0)!

The last event I completed went ok; however someone must have accidentily knocked my helmet off my bike. I Had the darndest time getting the helmet on in T1, didnt pay attention to how it was placed in the bike. Duh...I put my helmet on BACKWARDS!!! My son was also competing that day and he saw me on the bike leg. Told my wife he’d just seen his dad with a helmet on BACKWARDS! Since the ride was an out and back I stopped for a few seconds and got the hemelt on correctly. Even with that I managed to knock several minutes off my time from the first time I’d done that event a couple of year before. I can still see myself with that thing on wrong! LOL!!!!

That's funny. I bet your son reminds you of this from time to time.

I think it's fantastic that you and your son were in the same event too.

Hey Turtles!!!!!

How about a big SHOUT OUT to Todd!!!!

He completed a 1/2 Iron over the past weekend down in hot and humid Macon Ga. I know just how hot any humid it can get down there having grown up in the southeast.

Anyway Todd finished first in his age group and took medals/hardware in the southeast long course segment of the event. A “Double” winner!!!! Conditions were a big challenge not to mention the competition.

Great work Todd.....a tremendous accomplishment!! Also....a great example for all the “Turtles”.

Best to all!!!

That's a sensational result. Well done.

Hi Turtles,

Very quiet on the forum........what have you all been up to?

4 weeks to my first race in 4 years. I've been training to plan and hitting all my targets until last week when I got the flu. I hope (need) to get back to training this week.

I've started training with a group of "newbies" and really enjoying it.

Todd, How about a race report from you?

Rod...finally getting the house painting project wrapped up; just a few miscellaneous tasks to complete. Getting back into more structured swims along with walks and lifting sessions; sadly no bike time.

Your race will be here before you know it; hopefully the darn flu episode is behind you! Getting with another training group is a good idea.

Yes, very quiet here on this board!

Happy Halloween!!!!!

Happy Halloween to you too. Only about 20% of people do Halloween here although its popularity is increasing.

I thought I was going along nicely until I starting doing a few brick sessions. Got a bit of a reality check but that's a good thing so I'm now training in more race like conditions and practicing T1 & T2 . Only 3 weeks to go.

Sorry for the long break from BT and especially this group. I’ll post a race report in the next few days and will be more frequent as I’m about to really kick it up again for Houston Marathon on 1/20/19. Wouldn’t be a race for me if I didn’t wait till two months out to really train.

Uh oh! The first dreaded snow of the season is to happen overnight...ugh....

Hi Turtles,

I raced on Sunday. Unfortunately the race was changed to Run/Bike/ Run due to poor water quality after some very heavy rainfall in the week prior to the race.

Race day was very windy with cross winds coming off the bay making the ride difficult. I was happy with my performance on the bike even though I was slower than my previous race but the conditions were a major factor in that.

The 2 runs didn't do me any favours as I've been nursing a dodgy knee.

I made up time in T1 & T2 as I changed my bike pedals to "flats" rather than "clip ins" so I kept my runners on for the whole race. This meant I could ran faster in the transition area and didn't have to change my shoes.

Overall an enjoyable and rewarding day but it was a duathlon, not a triathlon. Next race is in 6 weeks and I now have a baseline to work with.