David Gillen's Group - FULL (Page 9)

Great post, Pene.  I think you're really understanding (which is amazing for a beginner) that so much of triathlon is mental.  "Your mind controls the body, and the mind is limitless" is one of my favorite quotes that drives home the notion that you mind is always the thing that will tell you to slow or quit before you body has too.  Your body can almost always keep the pace or go longer, it's our minds that can't take it.   

We all have moments in training or racing where we think that "this sucks" or "why am I doing this" or "I'm dying here".  In those moments, we should try not to dwell on any discomfort or negative things but instead focus on the positive just like Pene mentioned: "I just remember that I can swim in a lake and not drown, bike over some killer hills, and run for a long time."   Personally, I tell myself things like.  "The wind slows everyone down.  It's not out to get just you!" OR "You're doing a good job of staying aero" OR "You're heart rate's in a good range, David".  What ever it is, try to stay positive during bad times.

Pene, I'm really happy to hear that triathlon has already given your more confidence and self-esteem.  It has done the same for me, although it seems I have yet to see a really big care-over of that into other areas of my life like you have.  I think you'll find that as you get a little more experienced that you'll gain even more confidence.  One of my favorite things about IM training is the perspective you gain.  For example, in 2005, I was training for my first Half IM (HIM) and I had many days where I wondered how on earth I was going to be able to run 13.1 miles after biking for 3 hours!  It seems too far to me.  Then in summer of 2006, after many long IM training workouts, I did my 2nd HIM as a practice or "B" race!  It wasn't a big deal anymore and it didn't even seem all that long to me anymore.  Same thing with my 50 miler training when I ran a 29 miler by myself as a training run.  

It changed my perspective on what is achievable, on what I can accomplish!  And for me, this is the essence of triathlon!

Anyway, thanks again for writing this great post and keep'em coming.  

Be careful thinking like that... You never know what other speed demons are sand bagging too.  You're goal should always be to do your best the entire race.  If you gave it your all, and still came in 11th place, you can't be disappointed right! 

However, I know what you mean about wanting to place well.  I'm the same way! 

Kevin, forget moving to TX!  We should all move to Europe to train Alps with Tim!  Those pictures are awesome.  Thanks for sharing, but I'm quite jealous.

Tim, I'm a little confused by your question.  Does your vacation start on June 7th and you want to train before then in order to be able to run a few hours while your there?  Could you please be a little more specific?

Regardles, you definitely should take a camera and take some nice shots!  I'd love to see them!

Kevin, congratulations on the hugely successful weight loss.  That's awesome, and hopefully triathlon will help you keep it off now! I also admire that fact that you put your family first and find time to train around their schedule. 

For all of you that have added aero-bars to your road bikes, please pay attention to your fit.  If you can afford it, look into getting a professional fit.  If you don't want to get true professional fit, try to take it to a trusted bike store and have one of their triathlon guys look at you in the aero position.  Also, take a look at all the pictures and info at Bikesport Michigan's site here.  Their fit pictures here and here are excellent.  Also, the link that Pene provide earlier is a very good one as well.

One of the main concerns is your hip angle that is formed between your torso and your upper thigh when in the aero position.  This is often too accute when in the aero position on a road bike b/c your seat if often too far back.  Try moving the seat forward to open this position up.  When I did this on my road bike, I even had to buy a new "zero-offset" seat post that would move me even further forward.  

Bike fit is very important for comfort, performance, and for injury prevention.  

One of just many reason's why I do triathlon is too meet inspirational people such as in the group.  Thank you all for sharing.   This wonderful story that occurred during my first IM is another reason triathlon is so great.  Be sure to read what's in the picture.

Dave, I set my watch by the side of the pool at hit the lap button every 100 yards.  I could do it every time I come back to the watch, which would be 50 yards, but I since swimming pace is so often measured in time/100 yards, I do it that way.   You still have to remember to hit the lap button and sometimes I forget, but it's a lot better than counting every lap.

Also, my watch displays the lap count at well.  Thus, I don't even have to remember how many 100s I've done.  If I see I'm on lap 4, then I know I've done 400 yards!

If you have a waterproof watch, you could just wear your watch, but mine is a Polar and I've had problems when I push the buttons underwater, and thus I leave it at the side of the pool. 

OK, thanks for clarifying Tim. I wouldn't worry to much about trying to squeeze in some hill training before the 7th. It would likely not provide much benefit since the 7th is only a couple of weeks away. I'd just take nice short strides on the hills, and if they're too steep, walk'em. If you're going to try to about there for 3 hrs, it's probably a good idea to walk some, if not all, of the hills anyway. This is what ultra-runners do all the time. You're HR will rise on the hills as will your perceived exertion, but try to not let it get out of control.

Above all, have a good time. Don't worry about pace or distance or anything. Enjoy the fact that you're fit and can experience such a wonderful thing as a run in the mountains.

And take pictures and let us know how it goes.

David