Colin Cook's Mentor Group - CLOSED (Page 24)

Understandable Samantha.  However, I'd still try to look at the positive.  Are there some other tri's you could do in your area?  Assuming that your legs are up for it, I think its a great idea to do another tri this season.  How are your legs feeling now?

Just remember to keep moving forward!

Edited by hockeyhands 2010-09-13 9:04 PM

My race report from this past weekend is up..Hope you enjoy..http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=226728

Tim

Aside from my hamstring (which is a problem, although it seems to be getting better), I feel fine.  I would have to travel a few hours to get to a race, and now I'm thinking eh.  lol.  I think I just needed a few days to get over myself. I think I may just look forward to next summer's season of tri's now.  There are plenty of running races I have in mind for fall/spring however, so I may just shift towards those now.  (Again, assuming the hamstring will be recovered soon!)  In the meantime, I'll still be swimming because I would like to keep my swim fitness up (as well as improve for next year), but the biking may be put on hold for awhile- guess I'd say that's my least favorite of the 3.   ...yet unfortunately the one that needs the most work.

Funny thing about "keep moving forward."  There was a guy during the HIM (on his 1st loop, I was on my 2nd so we passed each other) and he yelled out my bib number and some words of encouragement.  I didn't say anything back and later I felt bad lol.  I saw him again later because of the way the course was set up after he started his 2nd loop, and since I felt bad earlier (lol) I yelled out to him "keep at it."  Then he yelled back, "forward progress, keep moving forward," something along those lines.  For some reason, that stuck with me.  Even if you're in a bad place mentally during a race, just keep taking forward steps, and you'll make it to the end!

Colin and friends here is a summary of my first year..

6/13 (2:53:57) West Point Olympic 1.5k,40k,10k                     37/54 AG
6/20 (52:12) Callaway Gardens Sprint 440yards,9 mile,2 mile 8/65 AG               66/1097 overall
7/11 (2:46:23) Chattanooga Waterfront 1.5k,42k,10k             65/149 AG          366/839 overall
7/18 (1:14:40) Carrollton Triathlon 440yard,12.3mile,3.4mile  7/27AG                38/234 overall
8/1   (2:10:11) Lakepoint Resort Tri(very disorganized)            4 AG
9/5   (1:50:43) Callaway Gardens Triathlon 1k,30k,8k              7/40AG                58/440 overall
9/11(2:42:53) 2010 Brett Robinson AL Coastal Triathlon          6/22AG                35/168 overall

I feel like I learned a lot this first year and a lot of info to move forward. Overall I feel successful. I might look at finding one more event to do to close out the year. Right now I'm looking at a HIM for 5-15-2011 in Knoxville,this would be a nice 40th B-day present. My goal is at least one HIM next year, I was going to do it this year but family comes first and we had conflicting dates. Colin what do I do from here as I really have nothing planned coming up? What do I do to keep my conditioning? How many weeks should I take off before doing anything etc? Thanks for all the help this year..Also thanks to all our group members for keeping me motivated and supporting me through this year.

Tim

Edited by shake-n-bake 2010-09-14 1:50 PM

Wow, there is a triathlon in Michigan in October an hour from where I live (pool swim)... tempting...   It'd be the most money I've spent on a sprint though, so not quite sure about it.  We'll see.

Hey Tim,

That is one heck of a first season.  I've been very impressed with your commitment and results all season long.  If you keep this up, you WILL be on the podium next season!  I love the sounds of you doing a HIM next year and why not get it out of the way early in the season?!  If you do some good training over the off season, you're going to be more than ready to conquer that distance.

As for the amount of time off, that really depends on your body, how you're feeling, and your goals are for next season.  I would recommend taking ATLEAST 2 weeks off when you're season is over.  A month would be even better.  This doesn't mean sit on the coach eating ice cream everyday (ok maybe some ).  You can still "exercise" and attempt to maintain your fitness level.   However, rest and taking a break is extremely important.  If you jump right into the off season, it could very likely lead to a burnout sometime during the off season or worse during the next season.

Once you've taken your break, its perfectly fine to setup a training schedule.  If I were you, I would recommend a run focused planned.  BT does have some plans you can use or at least get some ideas from.  In general, you want to work on speed and building power during the off season.  This should include using weights and short, high intensity intervals while training.

Lastly, remember to watch what you eat during the off season.  Remember that if you're not training as much as you were during the season, your body doesn't need as much food.  Its very easy to gain a few or more pounds during your break.  However, if you watch what you eat, it will really help you moving into the next season.

Well unless you think it is going to sell out, think about it for a little bit.  I think it may be a good idea for you because you don't want to leave a bitter taste in your mouth from your last race this season.  However, maybe that will be good motivation for you during the off season.

Hi Everyone,

So it was just brought to my attention that our mentor group is coming to a close.  We have now been a group for over 5 months!  Time flies when you're having fun I guess!  I'd like to start by thanking everyone for being part of the group.  I hope you all learned a lot from our discussions and our group helped keep you motivated during this season.  Although I may have been the "mentor" I learned so much from all of you and would like to thank you for that.  You all motivated me and it was a joy to see reach your goals.

I wish you all the best in triathlon and life in general.  I truly believe that the triathlon lifestyle is a very healthy lifestyle and can really change peoples' lives.  I know it has changed mine.

Please be sure to stay in touch and let me know if you have any questions anytime.  You can message me on here anytime or my email address is [email protected].

Thanks again everyone.  I will miss this group very much!

Hi Everyone,

Please feel free to post any final remarks or questions to the rest of the group.  The page won't be completely shut down for a little bit so do have a some time to cap things off.

Thanks again everyone!

Hi Colin and Everyone (Tim, Samantha, and Mark),
I can't believe it's been 5 months!  That's amazing, and I haven't even had my first tri yet . . . what's wrong with this picture.  Well, mine is in 3 weeks, so it will be here really soon. 

I wanted to say thanks to you, Colin, for being our mentor and teaching me a ton of stuff.  Thanks also to Tim, Samantha, Mark and everyone else who shared with the group so we could all learn more stuff and for keeping us motivated.

Great job, Tim, on your first year doing tri's; what an amazing accomplishment!

Samantha, kuddos to you, too for all of your events and staying focused on getting your HIM done. I hope you're beginning to grasp what you accomplished by doing that - an HIM in your first year is something to be proud of (in my book, anyway).

Mark, congrats to you as well for staying with your training and getting last weekend's race done, rain and all.  Don't beat yourself up on your times, because they looked great to me (even on a sunny day).

Colin, what an amazing year you had with podium finishes scattered throughout (actually, maybe it was nearly every time - I can't remember.).  I think I learned the most by reading your race reports (and everyone else's) and "seeing" what you did during transitions, race strategies, etc.

Finally, I'll definitely take you up on the offer to stay in touch (and not with just questions).  Thanks, again, for your teaching and one more congratulations on getting your USAT-1 certification!

Take care everybody,
Russ

Thanks for the kind words Russ.  Don't worry that you haven't done your first tri yet, you're just being smart and getting yourself fully prepared and you're going to be an official triathlete in no time!  Please be sure to stay and touch and let me know how the race goes.

Take care Russ!

It is really so crazy that it has been FIVE months, wow!  I was thinking back in August I can't believe the summer is almost gone... well now it is!!

Colin, thanks as always for all the time you gave us!  It is really much appreciated.  I'm sure all of us have something we can take away from this group.  Since I don't know any triathletes in real life, it was nice to have a place to come to to express my joys and disappointment where it would actually mean something.

Russ, good luck on your first triathlon!  Remember, the important part is to have fun! Of course this is true of all races, but I think even more so for your first one.

Thanks a lot Samantha.  I really appreciate you staying so involved with the group and I'm glad you found the group beneficial.  Stick with it and I'm sure you'll make some triathlon friends in your area.  If not, we'll always be here for you. 

Stay in touch!

All,

Finally finished the race report.  Should be posted here <http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=227241>

Comments welcome...

Take Care,
Mark

All,

What a great group and a great time.  I want to say thanks to everyone in the group.  I learned a bunch from everyone and I think this triathlon thing is something I'll continue.  When I first started training, I couldn't really swim and wasn't even sure I could finish a race.  Now, I know I can and I'm thinking of of more than just finishing, but what can I do to be faster.  Also thinking of a HIM next year.  Just don't think I have the time to train for an IM.

Not only did I get good technical help on here, but the motivation I received from seeing others succeed pushed me to work more.

Colin: Thanks for taking the time to work with us and providing encouragement throughout our journey.  It's been invaluable to me.

I don't know if they lock these groups down or not, but I'll stay on here and y'all are welcome to find me here on BT anytime.

Take Care,
Mark