Darrell Strube Micro Thread
Hey Darrell,
This is your very own Micro Thread, where you and Coach Patrick can have 1:1 discuss regarding "what do I do this week" type of questions.
Good luck!
0
Hey Darrell,
This is your very own Micro Thread, where you and Coach Patrick can have 1:1 discuss regarding "what do I do this week" type of questions.
Good luck!
Comments
Hey coach. I am a little confused about todays run workout. It show MS of 20 min but total time of 30 min. With a TRP pace there really is no warmup right? Thanks
MS: 20' @ TRP + 3 x 20"
~ Coach P
But you don't need to do 3k straight...save that for March. I'd rather you do 30 x 100 because the first 25 of every 100 is your best.
If you do 30 x 100, you get 30 x 25 (750) of good swimming. If you do 3000 straight, you get 25 of good swimming. That's it. Keep the rest short like 5 seconds, but that's the way to go.
I am okay with you tweaking swim until Feb..then it is what it is. Low cadence can occur when your lead hand isn't catching while the other recovers...so your right hand is out there...waiting for the left arm to come around...waiting...left hand hits water...waiting...and then the right hand / forearm springs into action. What you need to do is break your wrist early, pointing fingers down so the arm follows....by not delaying your right hand, it will allow you to pull through the water faster and up the cadence naturally.
You can practice this on dryland with a dowel / broom stick between your hands...here's a video swimming with it, but don't do that. Do it in your kitchen, bent at the waist....where no one can see you:
[edit: couldn't fine you post...here's the main racing forum]
Good morning coach. I wanted to give you an update on my status and how I feel after 7 weeks of the OS. Actually this would be my 9th week technically as I repeated Week 1 three times as I waited for Dec OS to start. Since I am actually training for IMTX, I have also swam twice a week the whole time. Usually one easy technique swim and one hard 30 x 100 swim per week. I have not done the core workouts. I have probably completed 90-95 percent of the workouts, taking an extra day off here and there due to fatigue and schedule, usually an extra day off every other week. Seems like the Thursday bike 30/30 was on the one I dropped the most. Due to scheduling, all the Tue/Thur/Sat bikes have been bricks which has been challenging. I have hit all my numbers in every session without exception, having no problem hitting my watts and pace (even though it hurts like it should). During my workouts I typically feel strong and fast. Normal fatigue, but nothing too crazy. The problem has been with my recovery, especially over the last two weekends. After my long bricks/run, I have felt sick the rest of the day. Nausea, headache, like a mild flu. No temperature, normal resting HR. Last week I was able to shake it off and felt decent Sunday morning and completed my Sunday run. Today I woke up, still feeling sick and decided it was best to skip the run. I am fueling on my long workouts, using Infinit Go Far on the bike and Clif gels on the run. Using Infinit recovery after almost every workout. Epsom Salt Baths, and Normatec on the weekends. Sleeping 7-8 hours but my sleep quality has never been great. I feel like I am eating enough cals post workout as well.
I am starting to wonder if this is a bit of overtraining? Next week is my last week of OS and test week then I am moving to week 9 of IM training. I was thinking it might be a good idea to take next week mostly easy except for the two tests? My main goal is to show up healthy and complete IMTX. Even if that means dialing thing back a bit. I was hoping you could give me some much need direction going forward. Thanks coach!
Thanks for helping me out online today with your accounts. I was able to see all of your workouts, but since you only have a basic Training Peaks account I can't use any charts or graphs. You are welcome to upgrade that if you want, I believe we have a code inside our Store/Team Discount section.
A few things jumped out at me. The fact that you need to take those extra days off each week to recover from the weekend is a clear sign we're doing too much. Or rather, the training plan isn't giving you enough space to recover.
I definitely want you to be swimming two times a week is that will be a critical part of your race, so let's do what it takes to get that back on track. Ideally these would be Mondays and Fridays to facilitate recovery around weekend. If needed, I will be fine with you swimming exclusively with the pull buoy on Mondays to rest your legs.
In terms of modifying your plan, let's have you NOT run after the Saturday bike. My hope years that we can excel recovery, and have you back up Saturday with a good Sunday ride. You're free to run off of that ride.
Then let's plan on taking Mondays off, swimming only if you feel okay. Make no mistake about it, though Saturday rides are tough.
My hope euros that you will quickly adapt to the stress and within two weeks or so this won't be an issue.
In terms of accelerating recovery, I've been curious to know what you've done, If anything, to improve the quality of sleep? Some athletes have reported that a small dosage of melatonin can't be helpful, but that's not a long-term solution.
Let me know!
~ Coach P
Yes to swim 3x, and yes to one swim all pull buoy, your choice if it's the Monday swim or that pesky Friday swim. Over time you should be able to do less with it.
Bikes are Wed (keep it) and Saturday (keep), with the bonus ride on Sunday..that one we can dial back if needed. Intensity does drop...a different type of interval...but the fatigue will be there.
Let's do week one and see how you need to adjust. FYI, we have descriptions of EVERY plan in the Training Plan Central page under the Training tab.
~ Coach P
Hi Patrick, thanks for the reply. I will follow your advice from the last post. Test results were great. Gained 20 watts, and PRd my 5k, big time. I knew the bike would be an improvement, but honestly I was surprised with the run results. I expected increases in durability and endurance but not that much with top end speed. There really wasn't much interval work beyond the 2x1mile Z4 built into the long Sunday run. I am guessing some of the bike fitness carries over??? I am not complaining! My question going forward..... new bike zones look doable aiming for the low end of range for the first few weeks. The run zones look extremely aggressive. My TRP went from 9:28 to 8:45! Should I slightly modify the run zones over the first month or so? Also, since I am moving to IM plan, it looks like there is a testing week in a few weeks (Week 11 I think). I am assuming I should skip those test? I hope to work my way into the upper range of the new zones by race day IMTX.
Yes to the run adjustment...I suggest moving in 12" increments. So week 1 you go 9:18...then Week 2 is 9:08...then 8:58. And by Week 4 (if not earlier), you'll be ready to rock.
You have some great momentum my friend...let's keep it rolling!!!
~ Coach P
Don't worry about aero drag right now..that's a Kona question. Right now we need to make sure you can transport and consume what you need!!
In case you don't do the bike test, you would do 2 x 15' @ Zone 4 with 5' rest after each!
No rest for the wicked!
~ Coach P
What did you decide and how did it go?
~ Coach P
No problem, I just used my best judgement.
3 New Questions Please....
1. My initial sweat test showed 24 fluid need for Z2 work (indoor trainer, with fan) so I have been shooting for that amount. I weighed pre and post before my long run/ride last Sat. It was 5 hours and 10 minutes of work, 35 run (Z2/Z3) before the 270 min (Z2/Z3) bike. Sunny, 65, 50 % humidity. I felt decent but a little queasy towards the end. Taking in 24oz an hour I lost a net of 3.6 lbs or 2.2%. That surprised me given the cool conditions for Houston. That is too much fluid loss, correct? What is the ideal range of fluid loss? On Sunday I did an hour Z2/Z3 trainer and took in 24 oz and lost .8 lbs net. Is it possible that my fluid losses significantly increase with Z3 work? I feel like I need to do a long Z2 only ride to validate this. I will race IM at Z2 on bike, correct? What amount should of fluid should I be aiming for, in your opinion.
2. Weather looks very iffy for this weeks long ride. If I need to go with the trainer, what changes do I make? Is it still a one for one time wise?
3. This weeks focus is on increased bike work, Week 13 IM plan. But the Saturday ride is significantly shorter and the target mileage for the week does not add up to the stated goals???
Thanks Coach
Thanks for the update! Here we go...
1. 24 oz of fluid (one bottle basically) is the minimum. I suggest you plan on 1.5 bottles per hour in first hour (the swim will dehydrate you more) and you back off when you burp.
2. There is no "one" range really...our simple target for you is that you pee 2x in an IM (1 x for every 2.5 hours). If you are riding and drinking and not peeing, it's not enough fluid.
3. My guess is your starting hydration state can greatly shift how much you lose in your session...sometimes a guacamole binge has me carrying some extra fluids the next day that are easily lost when the work starts.
4. If you are indoors, yes to 1:1 for time. Please don't hate me. Or hit me.
5. Re the bike time. I will post this to Coach Rich to chime in on, thanks!!!
Please ignore the note about that week being a bike focus week, I'll track that down and remove it. The scheduled cycling time/volume is correct so please do the workouts as scheduled. Thanks!
Rich
For now it will be good to see what that heart rate gives you pace-wise for the run so we can talk about the the expectations for the race.
Good luck this weekend!!
~ Coach P
~ Coach P