Also, for most of us, it's impossible to keep up that peak shape all the time...so having some down time, at least intensity wise, is a good thing.. Everyone should take SOME time completely off, but not months. But before that OS starts, you don't have to be killing yourself. It does help (I think) to have been off the couch, but you don't want to effectively make it 10 weeks longer by doing OS level workouts for a couple months before you start.
@Jim/AT/WJ - I read with interest the stuff about running before the OS. Like Kim, I'm thinking some of the slower would be a good break. I am essentially taking the October month off and going off to a week of work-related training in Norfolk, Va; the Texas State Fair, and a beach weekend here in Texas somewhere. This works in well with my scheduled down-time. I'll be asking for more details from WJ and AT. Maybe you guys can dig up your old stuff and post in a new thread in this forum?
Thank you for the warm welcome! I have the Finget Lakes Tri on Sunday. I am trying not to get overly excited, but since being on the EN beginner sprint plan, my training times have crushed my previous race times. If anyone has veteran wisdom, please don't hesitate to share. My goal is to beat my time from 2010. I think I am well positioned to do so, but don't want to be overly confident.
@Elizabeth - I also have a sprint race tomorrow and although it is a "B-Race", I still want to do well and get butterflies even though it is like 90+. Aleksander did a great Race Plan posting a few weeks back on his race plan. So, here is mine:
Warm-up - an hour before race time, run easy for 20' and stretch. Drink 24oz of gatorade in hr before race.
400m Swim - it is a TT start that is both river (150m) and pool (250m). My goal is to swim hard and not go anaerobic. I should be able to get out of pool and be able to tackle athletes like WJ that try to pass me and not be stumbling breathless.
Transition: keep shoes off bike. Big hill right out of transition and don't have the time to mess with shoes and biking going like 2mph.
14mi Bike - go like hell the first ,5mi for the king of the hill trophy. Then settle in for a hard ride and not let the legs go numb from lactic acid build-up. Make it feel like it is a 2 X 20'(4')@Z4 ride. Heaven knows we have done enough of these. Carry 24oz water and have it gone by transiton.
Transition - since last 1/2 mile we can only go 25mph going downhill, I'll slip out of bike shoes for a flying dismount.
5k Run - first mile, like Ralph says, "give that one to the triathlon Gods". Then, do a running technique I learned from a Runner's World Magazine in July (Ed Eystone?), surge for 100 right foot steps while exhaling on a right foot. Then back off for 50. Repeat till done. At 1/2 way, take gel and water at next aid station.
Should be done in about 1:15. Home by 1200 with beer. Wait for results to be posted to see what my numbers are since they are all relative anyway.
I have my sprint tri in Canandaigua, NY on Sunday and the weather is all over the board from rain and cold to sunny and chilly. Do I just go for it and go in my shorts and tri top or try to put something on top to cut the wind and temperatures? My wave starts at 8:49 and I will be out of the water by just after 9:00. The ride is 13.7 miles and my hope is to be off the bike in under 48:00. The low temp for Saturday night is 52. I think the lake temp will run between 68-70.
I am in panic mode because I am heading out to the race Saturday morning as I am staying over so I don't have to drive in early Sunday. I don't have a lot of gear - a couple of jackets, a technical shrug and no arm warmers.
Apologies if this is a super chaotic message. I am feeling a bit stressed out!
I'd bring a cycling jacket or something for the bike. We're having similar weather and evenings/ morning cold and will bring a jacket for my race sunday for the bike as it might be chilly riding along at 18+ mph being wet, brrrrrrrr!
@Beth - Dress appropriately for the weather. When uncomfortably cold, I take 4 of those heat packet (chemical type) hand warmers. Before the race starts, I put one in each of my full gloves that I wear on the bike and at the transition, I put one in each of my cycle shoes (top of the feet). Figure out what I need to wear to be warm & dry. No reason to be too uncomfortable. And remember, everyone is dealing with the same environmental conditions - and a lot don't deal with adversity well - I call that an opportunity.
@Beth - in transition, I would put on a long sleeve cycling jersey or at the very least a jacket. It will take some time, but you will make up for it with a warm core body temp on the bike. Gloves - I did that once and once without and found it bearable without. If there is a lot of wind, maybe a good idea to have gloves. If it is raining, I would not wear and just plan to move my hands a lot to keep the blood flowing and keep a good handle on the bike.
Although I have never done what Jim has said - it sounds smart. Since you live in upstate NY, you already know you should wear a wetsuit.
Don't wear a garbage bag. Having said that, I've seen some triathletes do that for the bike...
This will be a fairly short race report. Overall - 8th out of somewhere between 250 and 300, and won my AG 50-54.
Warm-up - executed perfectly.
400m Swim - the river is spring fed and 72 degrees. So without a wetsuit, I had some disorientation issues at about 50m and had to go to breaststroke to get my act together and although started in TT as #10, I got passed by two. After a short run to the pool, which was 86 degrees, I was able to catch up and come out of the water without being passed again.
Transition: caught the two that passed me and beat them out of transition.
14mi Bike - went like hell and won the king of the hill trophy. Then, I settled in for a hard ride and took the overall lead at mile 5. Since I only get to be the lead rider rarely these days, I felt like to was 20 years younger and it was way cool with the lead motorcycle trailing me. Had to slow down to 20mph in park because that is the speed limit and the cars today on the road decided not to speed. Bummer. Nailed the 24oz water. Bike speed - around 22.5mph
Transition - rolling (not flying) dismount.
5k Run - first mile, like Ralph says, "gave it to the triathlon Gods". But, I was still in the lead! At the 1.2mi the first of what became a total of 7 runners passed me. At 1/2 way, took gel and water at next aid station. Splits - 8:05, 8:00, 8:10.
So, it was a good day. This will keep me hooked for another year!
Looks like some good advice. I wouldn't wear a trash bag to race in, but if you think you might be standing around for a while and cold during that time, I actually think a trash bag (or two) can be a very handy way to keep warm after having to strip down and leave your stuff in transition.
Friday evening, I had a decent enough hour bike ride. 4 x 5' at 250 W...just filled out the hour or so besides that.
This morning, I had to run very early. That was great temperature wise (becaue it's still ridiculously hot in the afternoons here), but kinda sucked as far as short rest. I ran 14 miles at easy pace (right around 8:00). Trying to keep a decent longish run and there weren't no fast happening if I was going to go fairly long today.
It's raining now, and it looks like it is going to be a wet one. I have plastic bags, and will probably wear a jacket for the ride as the wind chill is 59. I am keeping optimistic - I so wanted to finish this one strong, but, it is all about being safe and finishing!
@Joe - Strong race! that is a good case study in execution. very close to the plan.
@Beth, good Luck, Considering these things BEFORE the race always helps keep the box as big as possible. Control what you can by being prepared and let your training get you the rest of the way. You will do great.
My Olympic next weekend is a ocean swim and it may be too warm for wetsuits so I have the opposite problem here in SC.
@Kim - well done!! I enjoyed reading the race report.
Today - with WJ and AT as my inspiration, I decided to not swim for recovery after yesterday's sprint. Instead, I did the prescribed workout since it was only a "B-Race" and a sprint and I shouldn't use it as an excuse to not do what I like least - run.
So, it was 3 X 1mi with a trget pace of 7:47. First mile was 8:10 and I thought, "do I really need to do this?". Second mile was 7:47 and I thought, "okay, it is Sunday and we all know you reap what you sow", and then the third was a respectable 7:28 and I thought, "ok, I am a runner. At least today".
So, now it is time to check my results on-line and fire up next week's thread!
Kim, what a great result! Congrats on the big bike improvement!
On Sunday, I did an easy 90 minute bike. Last triathlon is Sept 15, and the legs were complaining. I will do a couple of runs with some intensity and one bike with intensity this coming week to keep sharp, but I'm not going to try to "train up" the bike any more for this season I don't think.
Comments
Also, for most of us, it's impossible to keep up that peak shape all the time...so having some down time, at least intensity wise, is a good thing.. Everyone should take SOME time completely off, but not months. But before that OS starts, you don't have to be killing yourself. It does help (I think) to have been off the couch, but you don't want to effectively make it 10 weeks longer by doing OS level workouts for a couple months before you start.
@Elizabeth - I also have a sprint race tomorrow and although it is a "B-Race", I still want to do well and get butterflies even though it is like 90+. Aleksander did a great Race Plan posting a few weeks back on his race plan. So, here is mine:
Warm-up - an hour before race time, run easy for 20' and stretch. Drink 24oz of gatorade in hr before race.
400m Swim - it is a TT start that is both river (150m) and pool (250m). My goal is to swim hard and not go anaerobic. I should be able to get out of pool and be able to tackle athletes like WJ that try to pass me and not be stumbling breathless.
Transition: keep shoes off bike. Big hill right out of transition and don't have the time to mess with shoes and biking going like 2mph.
14mi Bike - go like hell the first ,5mi for the king of the hill trophy. Then settle in for a hard ride and not let the legs go numb from lactic acid build-up. Make it feel like it is a 2 X 20'(4')@Z4 ride. Heaven knows we have done enough of these. Carry 24oz water and have it gone by transiton.
Transition - since last 1/2 mile we can only go 25mph going downhill, I'll slip out of bike shoes for a flying dismount.
5k Run - first mile, like Ralph says, "give that one to the triathlon Gods". Then, do a running technique I learned from a Runner's World Magazine in July (Ed Eystone?), surge for 100 right foot steps while exhaling on a right foot. Then back off for 50. Repeat till done. At 1/2 way, take gel and water at next aid station.
Should be done in about 1:15. Home by 1200 with beer. Wait for results to be posted to see what my numbers are since they are all relative anyway.
There you have it!
I have my sprint tri in Canandaigua, NY on Sunday and the weather is all over the board from rain and cold to sunny and chilly. Do I just go for it and go in my shorts and tri top or try to put something on top to cut the wind and temperatures? My wave starts at 8:49 and I will be out of the water by just after 9:00. The ride is 13.7 miles and my hope is to be off the bike in under 48:00. The low temp for Saturday night is 52. I think the lake temp will run between 68-70.
I am in panic mode because I am heading out to the race Saturday morning as I am staying over so I don't have to drive in early Sunday. I don't have a lot of gear - a couple of jackets, a technical shrug and no arm warmers.
Apologies if this is a super chaotic message. I am feeling a bit stressed out!
Beth
Although I have never done what Jim has said - it sounds smart. Since you live in upstate NY, you already know you should wear a wetsuit.
Don't wear a garbage bag. Having said that, I've seen some triathletes do that for the bike...
Warm-up - executed perfectly.
400m Swim - the river is spring fed and 72 degrees. So without a wetsuit, I had some disorientation issues at about 50m and had to go to breaststroke to get my act together and although started in TT as #10, I got passed by two. After a short run to the pool, which was 86 degrees, I was able to catch up and come out of the water without being passed again.
Transition: caught the two that passed me and beat them out of transition.
14mi Bike - went like hell and won the king of the hill trophy. Then, I settled in for a hard ride and took the overall lead at mile 5. Since I only get to be the lead rider rarely these days, I felt like to was 20 years younger and it was way cool with the lead motorcycle trailing me. Had to slow down to 20mph in park because that is the speed limit and the cars today on the road decided not to speed. Bummer. Nailed the 24oz water. Bike speed - around 22.5mph
Transition - rolling (not flying) dismount.
5k Run - first mile, like Ralph says, "gave it to the triathlon Gods". But, I was still in the lead! At the 1.2mi the first of what became a total of 7 runners passed me. At 1/2 way, took gel and water at next aid station. Splits - 8:05, 8:00, 8:10.
So, it was a good day. This will keep me hooked for another year!
Friday evening, I had a decent enough hour bike ride. 4 x 5' at 250 W...just filled out the hour or so besides that.
This morning, I had to run very early. That was great temperature wise (becaue it's still ridiculously hot in the afternoons here), but kinda sucked as far as short rest. I ran 14 miles at easy pace (right around 8:00). Trying to keep a decent longish run and there weren't no fast happening if I was going to go fairly long today.
Cheers from rainy, cold Canandaigua, NY,
Beth
@Beth, good Luck, Considering these things BEFORE the race always helps keep the box as big as possible. Control what you can by being prepared and let your training get you the rest of the way. You will do great.
My Olympic next weekend is a ocean swim and it may be too warm for wetsuits so I have the opposite problem here in SC.
Beth- Hope yours went well, and not too wet!
My full race report is here: http://members.endurancenation.us/Forums/tabid/57/aft/13162/Default.aspx
But long story short, 7 min. PR vs. 2011. 18th fastest bike out of 442 (all women)
Today - with WJ and AT as my inspiration, I decided to not swim for recovery after yesterday's sprint. Instead, I did the prescribed workout since it was only a "B-Race" and a sprint and I shouldn't use it as an excuse to not do what I like least - run.
So, it was 3 X 1mi with a trget pace of 7:47. First mile was 8:10 and I thought, "do I really need to do this?". Second mile was 7:47 and I thought, "okay, it is Sunday and we all know you reap what you sow", and then the third was a respectable 7:28 and I thought, "ok, I am a runner. At least today".
So, now it is time to check my results on-line and fire up next week's thread!
On Sunday, I did an easy 90 minute bike. Last triathlon is Sept 15, and the legs were complaining. I will do a couple of runs with some intensity and one bike with intensity this coming week to keep sharp, but I'm not going to try to "train up" the bike any more for this season I don't think.