Hashers and Mashers Part 2 - OPEN (Page 3)

Hi Nick, For your sprint you better learn to swim real fast eh! If I saw a gator while swimming I'd be heading for shore fast.

If you don't have a background in swimming you'll need to start swimming PDQ - don't wait. I started swimming from scratch on Jan. 2, 2012 and my first Sprint was in August that year. Even with lots of practice and open water swimming (OWS) I still had issues on race day plus the water was really warm so, no wetsuits allowed. I got too excited and couldn't put my head in the water so I wound up swimming breaststroke for the entire 750m. My time was over 21 minutes. Two weeks later I did a second sprint and did the 750m in 16:58 and now I'd be closer to 15minutes.

You need to get comfortable with swimming (swim further than your race distance) and you'll need to get comfortable in the open water. In my area we can't even swim outside until mid May at the very best. How far is it to the nearest pool for you? I'd also highly recommend some coaching to give you a good jumpstart.



Carlo - Ransick covered cold water swimming pretty well. Just thinking about cold water swimming makes me shudder. I used to swim up north and 50's wasn't uncommon but I avoid it as much as possible. Just stepping in to a couple inches of water would make my ankles ache at that temp. A layer between your wetsuit and you wouldn't make much difference if any at all. Can you try swimming in some cold water in your area? Just enough to see how comfortable you are (or aren't). Just be careful of getting hypothermic - stay close to shore and have someone with you to pull you out if you have any trouble. A friend I swim with had to be helped out of the water at IMAZ in 2012 and that water was 61degF. It then took her almost 30 minutes to warm up before she could continue on the bike. You might find the water more tolerable than you think.

Hashers and Mashers Part 2 so far

Ransick - Mike - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
GregDufour - Greg - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
PsyTri - Gary - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
wenceslasz - George - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
strykergt - Carlo - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
Fresno_Joe - Joe - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
Mike_D - Mike - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
nxcoco - Nick - http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0&mem...
TRIal_of_miles - Aaron - http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/training/?setplanned=0...

We'll let a few more join before closing the group. What races does everyone have planned for the year?

Edited by ransick 2014-01-01 8:14 PM

I'm definitely back for part duece. I can't let Carl dominate the monthly stats without a fight!

Edited by TRIal_of_miles 2014-01-01 7:18 PM

Welcome back Aaron! When you get a chance, go ahead and repost your bio.

I completely forgot today was Polar Bear Swim day. Did anyone partake?

Apparently, the water temp in Vancouver (saltwater) was 8C/46F and the air temp was 6C/43F. Not unusual for the water to be warmer than the air. I sure don't recommend it. I haven't seen the local news yet but they had a Polar Bear Swim here today as well.

I logged my first run/workout of the year today. Off to a great start....I hope.

So far my year is:

Registered for - Victoria HIM - June 15th
Calgary HIM - July 27th

Considering - Bare Bones Duathlon - May (it kicked my adz last year - so I want to redeem myself)
Penticton Axel Merckx GranFondo - July 13th, 160km/99.42mi bike ride (definitely just haven't registered yet).
Penticton Challenge HIM - Aug 24th, I'm under a lot of pressure to do the full race - maybe 2015.
Cultus Lake Olympic - September 13th, Just a lot of fun and the end of our season.

I'm also looking for a couple run races in the spring and fall to keep me working on my running.



Edited by wenceslasz 2014-01-01 9:29 PM

Hi Mike,
Happy New Year! I would like to join the group if you are still taking new people in.
NAME: Tukutuku - Jurga

STORY: 43 years, female, chemist . Originally I'm from Lithuania, but for last 15 years our family lives in NE Ohio, so if you see errors in my posts, that's why. No prior sports background to speak of, some swimming in school, then some mountaineering in college. Did my first triathlon in 2012, got hooked and started more focused training in 2013.

FAMILY STATUS: married, 3 kids (22, 14, 6). Incorporating training requires creativity, but so far I managed to squeeze 5-6 training hours/week during off season and 7-8h in the summer.

CURRENT TRAINING: off-season, just light running and biking, it is about time to get serious. Currently I have big problem - a sore left shoulder, it is a pain to put arm in the sleeve or lift anything heavier than couple pounds, so no swimming and strength training for now. I'll be seeing orthopedist in couple weeks, hope he will figure out what is wrong and get efficient treatment.

2013 RACES:
Akron U indoor triathlon -Sprint,
Clay's Park Triathlon - Sprint
Cincinnati Triathlon -Oly
Portage Lakes Triathlon - Oly
Towpath Half Marathon


2014 GOALS AND RACES: My major goals are to complete marathon and do couple Olympic distance triathlons. Also I want to buy my first road bike and start riding the roads. Last summer I rode a heavy recreational bike and did 100% of training on the trails and sidewalks Sharing road with cars is a terrifying prospect, but it has to be done if I want to go above 15mph.
So far I signed only for Towpath Trilogy races:
April 6th - Half Marathon
June 15th- 10miler
October 12th- Marathon

Will sign for triathlons later, when my shoulder issue clears up. in worst case, will do duathlons.

WEIGHTLOSS: Not really an issue, but could loose 5lbs

WHAT WILL MAKE ME A GOOD MENTEE: Love asking questions . And also when one of you will try to chicken out before the race, expect me to step in and get you back in the line, because I'm very Stick to the Plan person.

Welcome!!!

@George,Mike

Thanks for the advice lets see how far cold i can go with thermal cap,gloves and booties.

@Aaron

Glad you came back , you got a long future of Tris waiting for you. Have you got a tri bike yet a picture would be nice.

Planning on doing 10-12 5k-10km races during the year as I love running.

June.16 Sprint Tri in Leamington Ontario

July.6 Sprint Tri in Essex, Ontario

Aug.9th Sprint Tri in Tecumseh.

Hoping to be down to 250 by my first Tri in Leamington. Currently at 293.5 and have lost 28 pounds since November.

Starting strength training on Monday. Going to be doing 2 a day workouts three times a week. Monday-Tuesday and Friday. Would like to do MWF, but Wednesday's are always nuts.

Decided to get off my duff on 1/1 and went for a run. I'm still mending the hammy, so my runs are all run/walk combos for now while I build back up. felt good to get moving. I'm also hitting the reset button on my training log. I've let it go to pieces the past few months, so I'm going to be far more diligent about it now that I'm actually planning on doing something. HIM training starts 1/13/14.

Looks like up to 18" of snow and -20 windchill tomorrow and Saturday. May put a bit of a dent in any outside running activity. Good time to bike on the trainer, thought.

Anyone here use the Sufferfest videos while on the trainer?

swimming in 56 degree water is nutty if you ask me . Brave of you to do it.

I need to find some more races in 2014....

Welcome! I'm very familiar with that part of the country. The area around Sand Run Park should be great for hill repeats! Enjoy (once the roads are cleared, of course!).

Welcome Jurga!

I've never used suffer fest videos but have heard they are good.

2013 Stats are here!

This may or may not satisfy some. I decided to include those Hashers and Mashers that have returned from last season and were logging last season. If there are others that return, I'll revise and resubmit!

Aside from mentioning that there were some very close rivalries in several categories (except Running - thanks, Mike!), I'll let the year-end stats speak for themselves. Great work. Let's shoot for an even more productive (and injury-free) 2014. Happy New Years!





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For me, my disclaimer is that I did not start training and logging until June! 2014 will definitely be more productive for me. Looking forward to it.

One request to our esteemed running champ, Mike, for the benefit of the group:

Could you reflect on your year of running 1,000+ miles -- things you learned, how your running (both form and times) has improved, injuries/injury prevention? Maybe some advice? I think we could all benefit from your reflections.

Thanks.

Edited by PsyTri 2014-01-02 9:41 AM

1,000 miles?!?! geez, I don't think I biked that far....

Hey thanks, and I was able to obtain a new felt DA4 a couple of months ago. I haven't broken her in with any races yet and she still doesn't have a name.






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Edited by TRIal_of_miles 2014-01-02 11:44 AM

Wow, she's beautiful

Thanks for putting those together!  I'm middle of the road in all four categories...I got pretty lazy after my September race.

Wow thats pretty man!!!! Perfect for the new year. dont forget to get a bike fit !!!!!

I'd be glad to share my thoughts on running. I didn't plan on making 2013 a running year until late in 2012 when I got a promotion which caused me to travel over 10x what I use to travel. Prior to the promotion, my intention for 2013 was to do a full IM. Instead, I spent over 100 nights in hotel rooms. Once I knew I was going to be gone so much, I gave up trying to get swimming and biking in, and decided to simplify things and just run.

Before listing what I learned, let me say that I'm not a running expert so take this list as my observations and opinions and not facts.

What I've learned (in no particular order)

1. Listen to your body. What works for one person might be overload or not hard enough for someone else. Two years ago while training for a half marathon, I started doing 800's at a track. I didn't listen to the niggles in my knees and ended up having to take a couple weeks off with jumpers knee. After that I made most of my runs slow with an occasional tempo run thrown in. I'm probably on the side of too little intensity right now, but I'm loving running.

2. Once you can run for over an hour at an easy pace, running is more much fun. You can actually go somewhere, or spontaneously change routes.

3. Build mileage and frequency slowly. Don't make big jumps in distance or intensity.

4. Run without music or a hr strap sometimes. Just relax and enjoy running.

5. LT tests hurt but they are good for establishing hr zones. HR zones are good to make sure your easy runs are easy enough and your hard runs are hard enough. If you are old and injury prone, do most of your runs in zone 2 with occasional tempo runs or intervals building up to zone 4. If you are young or can recover more quickly, you can do more intensity.

6. To really see improvement, you need to run more than 3 times per week. Of course if you are running 2x a week now, going to 3 will yield improvement. It's tough to really improve running and still fit 2-3 rides in per week along with a couple swims.

7. Ice and compression help with recovery. When I was heavy into HIM training and my legs were very fatigued I would wear compression tights in the evening and they helped. I always wear them after long races.

8. Deep tissue massages help work knots out of your muscles but they do hurt. I also keep "The Stick" at home and one in my office to work out knots in my calves or tight glutes.

9. Trail running is much easier on your body than road running. It's also a lot more fun.

10. When trail running, pay attention to rocks and roots. I've fallen more times than I would like to admit and my last fall broke or bruised some ribs and kept me from running for a couple weeks.

11. If you run in remote areas and don't feel safe, carry mace. I just bought a runners version and keep it in my car.

12. Alternate distances between short, medium and long runs. The plan I like the best is the Barry P approach which says you should run 6x per week with 3 short runs, 2 medium runs and 1 long run and they should be proportion 1:2:3 so if. Your long run was 9 miles, the medium runs would be 6 and the short runs 3 and a week would look something like 3-6-3-6-off-9-3 . Now I never have (or make) time to run 6x per week and when tri training I think 6x per week is too much, I'm just sharing one approach I like. You can adapt it to 3x per week with one short, one medium and one long.

13. Take time off after races. The rule of thumb I like is to take one day off for every hour raced. I didn't follow that after my ultra last weekend and I'm on the verge of injured knees but I couldn't resist running New Years Eve and New Years Day since I was off. I'm going to take today and tomorrow off and hope that takes care of it.

14. Some people swear by running less and running faster. If that works for you, keep doing it.

15. I try not to use weather as an excuse not to run outside. Invest in good clothing, layer properly and you can run in just about anything. Wool socks are awesome for winter running.

As for improvements, once I built up to 100+ miles per month for three months in a row, my average pace for an easy effort came down about a minute per mile. I say about since I wasn't using a heart rate monitor last year so it's a bit subjective. I think I could lower my race pace up to another minute per mile if I add more intervals or tempo runs in but for me it's not worth the risk of injury, at least not right now.

Sweet ride!