Fred D Mentor Group Part III (Page 96)

Congrats! That's a great school...best of luck.

One of the main reasons is I just want consistent energy throughout the day.  I don't want the ebbs and flows that caffeine gives you (same with sugar, of which I have very little of).  I have heard from others that they actually function day to day better without coffee once they have given it up, that they seem to have more energy etc etc.  But, not sure if that is from giving up coffee or they make other healthy choices throughout the day that cause that.  Rarely does anyone ever change just one thing...

But I also know coffee negatively affects my body.  I use to drink more, 3 cups a day was more the norm, and if I do that for too long I start to get an upset stomach, I back down to two for a bit, that feeling goes away and I'd go back at it.  So I have to believe that even 1 cup is doing something less then ideal to me.

I did it twice while pregnant...don't know if it was the hormones or lack of coffee but my family would probably say I was cranky for about a week LOL. 

The past few years, I've cut back to decaf or to half caf to the point that I'm only getting about 1 cup of caffeine per day. I just did it gradually over a few weeks because it does give me a bit of a headachey feeling. I didn't notice a big drop in energy levels and made sure to drink more water. I'm actually drinking a bit more coffe than usual just now because my mom is here and she drinks coffee all day long, the weather is cooler and it's available.....my excuse is also that I have a huge "to do" list this time of year and it helps me get it done!

Good luck!  

So what is the process Melissa?  Is this pretty much where you decide what path you are going to go down medicine wise?  These interviews are for where you do your internship?

Ha, only in AZ can we say 80 is cooler.  lol  Although the mornings sure are chilly...

I have gone off and on coffee/caffiene many times. It is true - it depends on how much you consume right now. The best suggestion is to slowly wean yourself off vs. going cold turkey. If you normally drink 2 cups a day, switch to 1 cup a day for a couple of days, then 1 cup half caff/half decaff for a couple of days, etc.

The hardest part for me was the headaches which are quickly remedied by consuming caffeine...so then it becomes a battle of wills...if the headache is really bad, a swallow of coffee will alleviate the immediate symptoms and get you over the hump. Also - I found drinking A.L.O.T. of water helped me.

Totally agree that it's the ritual that was the hardest for me. I love the entire process of grinding the beans, tamping them into the espresso hopper, extracting the crema into a cup of heated milk and then smelling the slightly bitter coffee smell first thing in the morning....<wait a sec, now I need to go get a cup of coffee>...you can replace the ritual if needed. I imagine quitting smoking has a similar struggle.

Best of luck!

I will. I go off caffeine a few weeks before major races so that caffeine on the day really works. Not a problem ... I actually cut entirely off and if I get a bit of a headache I pop some Tylenol and have weak tea (just a little caffeine).

Demoralizing day ... but then counted my blessings and checked this thread. Thanks for such inspiration and faith!

The practice swim got canceled halfway through this morning and athletes were being herded or as necessary fished out of the water. Strong wind and 2m swells with whitecaps and chop. AWESOME! I'm totally fine with that except if they cancel the swim ... I shall be pizzed ... and the wind is cold, cold, cold.

Even the locals are bundled up. I went cycling and running in the "heat" of the day in bright sunlight. I was wearing a tri top, a long-sleeve over that, a cycling jersey over that, and a shell OVER THAT and I still froze even while running. (The pic is of my nicely blue-mottled blue-veined hand).

In a fair bit of pain from the arthritis and muscle tightness from cold and shivers.

So here's the good news. I'm not going to die. I'm going to be prepared. Any day upright and breathing, especially with limbs intact and having the resources to do a financially and physically high-end activity is awesome. I'd much rather do 17 hours of fun in the cold than spend 17 hours having some of the illnesses I've had in the last years.

Also, a small group of triathletes who rented a duplex and brought an extra athlete as house-batch to cook and sherpa adopted me, so I'm being extremely well-fed and spoiled. They're not shabby on the eyes, either.

THANK YOU ALL again for your incredible support. Means the world to me.

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Your hand looks cold, but enough of that . . . . look at those pancakes!!!! Yummy. You are being taken care of.

Buy the gloves (it sounds like you will).

I'll pray for a little warmer weather.

Thank you!!!

The pancakes were made FROM SCRATCH, the snausages were grilled over coal on an outside barbie and they really are the sweetest boys ever. Yes, a group of boys. Imagine that.

Re: coffee, I once went from 4-5 large cups/day down to 1.  It was a bit of a rough week or so but I'm so glad I did it.  I started sleeping soooo much better!  

That said, I can't imagine cutting it out completely.  The one cup right when I wake up does wonders for me and I don't find I get any ups and downs through the day.  It's just the one wake up "up" and then I'm good for the day.  The odd time that I have another one can give me those big swings and if it's after about 3 or 4 pm I will probably have a hard time getting to sleep.  Gives me plenty of incentive to only have the one.

Best Wishes for a great race Yanti!!!!

That food looks great- now that's about the only thing I miss about Ironman ! ;-)

Congrats Melissa - did the swim skin make it to you?

Godo luck Yanti - stay WARM!

Sh*t.  I had to come come and check the forum and see that breakfast.  I'm STARVING.  Ran 10 this AM and only had a protein shake w/ banana...when is lunch?

Good luck Yanti!  I will look forward to one of your epic race reports.

Is it really though?  I mean, 1 cm is only 2 watts...

I look back at Mark's post (recognizing it was a generalization), where he stated 3.5w/kg would get him about 23mph at the Oly distance.  I look back at a Sprint (33km bike) distance this summer, where I put out 230 watts, which would be just shy of 3.4w/kg for the race.  I averaged just over 34km/h (about 21.4mph for your imperialists).  To me, that says I need to do something about my position.  When I read the ST thread on power vs time, I'm left wondering how some of these guys are going that fast on those numbers, and I feel it comes down to position.

Some people questioned whether my old PT was over estimating my power, given that the numbers seemed a little high, relative to my speed, and I started to wonder the same thing.  But now I have a new hub and head unit, and I'm still putting out similar type numbers.  I've got a disc cover, wear an aero helmet, switched to latex tubes, have a decent race tire, etc.  So I've focused on the low hanging fruit, and all that seems left is my position.

Guess I'm just getting a bit frustrated that I feel I should/could be faster, and it's not happening.

look at this thread :

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?post=3735119

scroll down to the comment from Damon, Cervelo's senior engineer. To quote him

In general though, you're calcs agree with my experience. Based on 14 runs in the wind tunnel where drop was the only position change, I get (drawing through the data points with a BIG crayon!) about 20 g/cm.

Lots of scatter in the data and lots of caveats in the protocol, so I'd say your 1.5 W/cm are roughly "in agreement" for now.

Neil, do you have pics of position?

Your pretty small (compared to me) so depending on conditions you could be off.  If it was relatively flat or rolling w/ not a lot of wind you are probably right and could use some change.  

I've never done a real fit.  Just kind of put myself on the bike and made some tweaks here and there, but I'm a lot bigger than you and can go faster than you with my race setup at 230 watts down at 2.7/2.8 w/kg on the flats.  If I ride at 3.4 w/kg I'm closer to 25mph but than it's just wind and my weight has nothing to do with it (except the surface area of my shoulders).  Didn't race much this past summer but I experiment on some routine courses with my different gear so know the speeds/wattage pretty well.

Between the few of us, we can get some eyeballs on it for you.  Get the layout of specs too.  Latex tubes?  Wheels? Tires? Helmet?  in that race?  We can probably help you unlock a little speed somehow.

edit: Ya, I just checked IMLP and I rode 5:25 at 20.67mph on 196aw/217np..at 185lbs so it 2.4/2.5 w/kg on what some consider a 'hillier' course...for 112miles.

Neil, as you know, there are a lot of other factors that play into speed.  Wind, air density, terrain, road conditions, tire/tube selection, etc.

As far as the calculation of cm drop to wattage, I suppose it sounds about right.  Just think of how high you are when you're on your bull horns vs on your aero bars.  That might be a 20 cm difference, and if it's 2 watts per cm, then 40 watts.  Sounds about right.  You'll actually save a little more watts because your arms are tucked in narrow, but the savings from the actual "drop" seems reasonable.  If you were assuming 10 watts per cm, then that would be expecting a 200 watt savings.  No way that's happening.

I hope I'm not taking this too far afield, and if I am, just tell me. That's okay. I'm really not understanding all of the language, but the more I hear it, I think I'm picking up some things.

Does any of this translate to heart rate? I ask because I don't have a power meter, but I do have a heart rate monitor. I know Jorge has a winter plan for HR and one for Power. I'm just wondering how I would use the HR monitor on the trainer to judge how hard I am pushing. Do I just need to look at Jorge's plan again for my answer, or is there more to it than that? (My zones haven't ever been tested, so there's not much help there.)

Or am I such a newb (which I am), that for me just riding as hard as I can for as long as I can and then resting is enough. For now? Worry about all of this other stuff later?

Just wondering.