General Discussion Triathlon Talk » What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do? Rss Feed  
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What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?
OptionResults
Your weakest of the 3 disciplines (your perception)5 Votes - [27.78%]
Your strongest of the 3 disciplines (your perception)1 Votes - [5.56%]
Your weakest discipline relative to placing in the "field"6 Votes - [33.33%]
Your strongest discipline relative to placing in the "field"0 Votes - [0%]
Your favorite discipline3 Votes - [16.67%]
Your least favorite discipline1 Votes - [5.56%]
Wherever you think you can get the most time2 Votes - [11.11%]
Whatever you feel like doing that day/block/year...0 Votes - [0%]

2013-12-22 12:19 PM

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Veteran
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Austin, Texas
Subject: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

As I get back into structured training for the upcoming season, and I'm guessing a lot of others are, too, I've been wondering what you all are planning to work on this year.  

This really should be two different polls - what you PLAN to work on and what you ACTUALLY work on.  Please answer the poll with what you PLAN to work on (as that might help the rest of us understand people's approach to training) and comment with what you ACTUALLY do, if it's different (which might help us all feel better about how we screw the pooch in training every now and again).  

Happy training to all, and to all a great season!

Matt



Edited by mcmanusclan5 2013-12-22 12:20 PM


2013-12-22 12:25 PM
in reply to: 0

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Elite
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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

I choose option 3 but I could have chosen 1,3,6 or 7.  They all apply...

edit to put the right numbers in...



Edited by axteraa 2013-12-22 12:26 PM
2013-12-22 12:27 PM
in reply to: Guest

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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Lame replying to my own post, but there you go (didn't want to clutter up the "ask").  

Last season, and likely this one, I'm planning to work on my run, which is weakest in terms of where I place relative to the field.  I'm trying to be balanced across all three disciplines.

What got me thinking, though, is what if I'm a disproportionately better swimmer or bike (or both) from a physiological standpoint than I am a runner?  Maybe my body just isn't as well built for running as S/B (?).  Would it then make more sense to work on those, even though they show up currently as "strengths" relative to where I place in the field?

I'm usually placing S>B>R relative to other AG finishers, but my training effort LAST season was more R>B>S.  I have no background in swimming and only started riding less than 2 years ago in any serious way, yet I've been running for decades (admittedly at different commitment/intensity levels, but still a longer history there).

So, perhaps I should be trying to optimize on what my BODY might be better at, despite both liking and appearing to have more delta to take advantage of in running.

In the end, I like to run, so I'll keep at it - but maybe a bit more focus on the bike and swim to see what I can do there.  ARGH, I DUNNO!!!!!    

Matt

2013-12-22 12:28 PM
in reply to: axteraa

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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Originally posted by axteraa

I choose option 3 but I could have chosen 1,3,6 or 7.  They all apply...

edit to put the right numbers in...

Hmmmm…  Maybe I should HTFU and focus on everything.  

2013-12-22 12:38 PM
in reply to: mcmanusclan5

Master
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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Originally posted by mcmanusclan5

Originally posted by axteraa

I choose option 3 but I could have chosen 1,3,6 or 7.  They all apply...

edit to put the right numbers in...

Hmmmm…  Maybe I should HTFU and focus on everything.  

Maybe you should.

I'll end up working on things that I'm good at because I like doing them more. That's how I became better at doing them in the first place. I'll still keep working at things I'm not as good at or don't enjoy as much so that I'll keep progressing. But I'm not going to be spending all my time on it. I do this for fun and want to enjoy the training as well as the racing, since that is what we are doing so much of the time.

2013-12-22 1:13 PM
in reply to: Guest

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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Work on weaknesses while continuing to maintain endurance. Once the weather permits, you can build endurance for your season. I actually wrote about this in our latest newsletter:

http://d3multisport.com/season-planning/old-approach-new-season/



2013-12-22 2:10 PM
in reply to: Guest

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Master
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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

I guess this survey is for the off season or winter time. For me I would like to work on my weakest event which is the endurance run. I am in a way, its just all short, ez and zero stress on the metatarsal. Ok beside that I am starting a winter cycling trainer plan. The bike I guess is my second weakest event. I still swim but just three days a week. I would love to really go big with my swimming. It would glorious to swim some top spots at Syracuse and Princeton but that would sacrifice to much. I rather be better all around and a faster endurance runner.
2013-12-22 8:00 PM
in reply to: 0

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Expert
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Greenville, SC
Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

i should be swimming a lot more than i am... but i really like cycling and there is a spring series starting in the first week of February... so i'm focusing on that instead because Rule #4



Edited by Clempson 2013-12-22 8:00 PM
2013-12-22 8:50 PM
in reply to: Clempson

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Expert
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Spokane, WA
Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?
"Your strongest of the 3 disciplines (your perception)"

I am going to do this because I just want to run and not think about the other things for a bit.
2013-12-22 9:08 PM
in reply to: mcmanusclan5

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Regular
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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Interesting question, Matt. 

Short Version:

Swim is weakest and I'll focus on that through March.

I can probably improve most (drop the most time) on the bike, but that won't be my "focus" until it warms up in April.

Long Version:

I've been running for over 20 years, cycling for three years and swimming for less than two, but when I look at my S/B/R rankings in each, I'm pretty consistent across the board--better than average, but not great at any. 

I'll be working on my swimming this year, as it seems to be my weakest in both perception and placement.   I still end up doing "ok" on the swim, but only because so many people struggle here.  One of the reasons AGN was so weird was because there were so many of us swimming at the same speed, and I have never really experienced that before.  I had my first washing machine style beat-up and dunking in that race, and I'd like to avoid that, or at least be better prepared the next time it happens.

So, I've been doing quite a bit of swimming and I will continue with it 4x/week through the end of March and then cut back to 3x/week as the weather warms up and  I can run and ride more outside.  Shooting for an average of 3000yds/session.  I'm hoping to do a better job of carrying my winter swimming fitness through the tri season by maintaining those 3x/week instead of the 2 (or 1 or none) I did last year.  I think I'll be fresher off the swim (mentally and physically) will also help me tremendously in the B/R. 

I can probably improve my time the most by focusing on my bike.  I have done pretty well on the bike in general, but haven't done a ton of structured training or big miles there, so I wouldn't be surprised to see big gains with some structure and consistency.  I've been good with TR, but anything over 2 hours on the trainer and I'm ready to claw my own eyes out. So swimming now, biking when it warms up.

 

 

 

 

2013-12-22 10:08 PM
in reply to: switch

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Master
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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?
Sigh. Serious crisis of motivation here. I have not ridden my bike or any facsimile thereof (trainer, stationary, spin class) for five weeks. Variety of reasons--run focus in fall, nerve/tendon issue with my toes that my bike shoes aggravate, taper/recovery from half-marathon, major issues with my hamstrings from being pushed over in a race two weeks ago plus a transpacific flight. Now I haven't had access to anywhere to ride indoors or safe weather for outdoors. Today we did have good riding weather for once but I went running as I hadn't planned to ride and hadn't done needed work on my bike (was supposed to rain).

So if I do manage to get going on tri training again and figure out my races for spring and summer, it needs to be a bike focus, pronto, probably 4X a week, even if I have to wear my running shoes on it for a while. That might actually work as I don't think my body is going to cooperate with more run focus for a while. It's horrible to admit but given a choice, unless I'm injured to the point where I feel like running is doing damage, I will always choose running. I just enjoy it more. When I head out in the morning for a ride and pass runners, unless perhaps I'm in Oregon, or on a bike tour, riding through stunning scenery, I always feel sad I'm not running.

I'm very consistent with swimming (pretty much 3X a week year-round except for some trips) and am a strong swimmer; probably don't need that much but feel it helps me recover from running and get in more low-impact aerobic work, plus I enjoy it, so I don't feel any need to change that.


2013-12-23 8:02 AM
in reply to: Hot Runner

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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?
Swimming is my weakness. I plan to go to weekly adult endurance classes from January onward.

My real weakness is still carrying some extra weight. And so I will try to be dicisplined despite the bad weather to get some run volume in an jump on my spin bike as soften as I can to address this.

For riding I am focued on upgrading my bike :-)

And in the run I am focued on increasing my cadence and shortening my stride, keeping my arms quiet and trianing tons of Z1/2 to keep injuries at bay.

I will probably still not swim as much as I should
2013-12-23 9:33 AM
in reply to: badmo77a

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Subject: RE: What do you PLAN to work on? Strengths/weaknesses/favorites? What do you ACTUALLY do?

Originally posted by badmo77a Swimming is my weakness. I plan to go to weekly adult endurance classes from January onward. My real weakness is still carrying some extra weight. And so I will try to be dicisplined despite the bad weather to get some run volume in an jump on my spin bike as soften as I can to address this. For riding I am focued on upgrading my bike :-) And in the run I am focued on increasing my cadence and shortening my stride, keeping my arms quiet and trianing tons of Z1/2 to keep injuries at bay. I will probably still not swim as much as I should

I'm suffering from a gear weakness, both perceived and relative to "the field," as well - but who isn't!!?!?!  

Mmmmmm….. new gear…..  

Matt

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