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Who knows. Insanity racing in that heat. Huge event with lots of traffic to dodge over 5k.Thanks for all the well wishes!!!I was looking at my past numbers and I am now thinking I should have done a lot better last night. I guess it was the heat? I dont know. I guess the heart hitting 182 was not a good sign for success either. I will be starting my marathon training soon and I am looking forward to having a structured plan again. I am not good left on my own.
Congrats on the overall title. That may be a first in this thread.
I second the congrats. But "no" on the second part.
:2Y:So you entered a Clydesdale only event?I second the congrats. But "no" on the second part.
Haha. Not that, either.:2Y:So you entered a Clydesdale only event?I second the congrats. But "no" on the second part.
:/2Y:
4 since December? That's it? That's pretty amazing if you ask me. While I technically haven't missed a scheduled run since October (because I don't have a schedule haha), I have definitely missed 4 SR in a week. This is why my marathon times have all been about 4 1/2 hours...
You are officially the beast of this thread right now. To think I'm satisfied with my 1/2 hour bike today at 250w...
Congrats on losing the virginity Duff Man.
Glad to hear that you're turning the corner and see some light ahead.Pedal bike is as adventurous as i get. If Thursday nite happens while you're on the moto, Coldeus is rumaging thru your bike gear. I rode briefly 20 years ago. Wouldn't do it anywhere on a regular basis except where the weather is nice enough that the bikes are always out and the other drivers are used to looking for them.
Don't do it. A bunch of enablers they are.So I don't forget, we old guys are probably going to pack a few beers while we wait for awards and swag on Sunday. Pack a camp chair and join us. Is Turkish racing too? AND, do we want to bet a beer head up on Sunday?
It can be done if you stick with it. A good friend of mine went from never swimming laps to completing a HIM in 6 months. Do yourself a favor and hire a coach or find a friend with swimming experience to train with and watch your stroke. IMO, it's much better to do this early and train with better form. Bad form early can lead to bad habits which are harder to break.I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
You keep pulling the old guy card. Well I'm pulling the fat guy card. Every race I've done I could have competed in the clydesdale division.Yes Turkish will be there also my good friend and his wife are doing their first tri. I'll be sure to stop by and hear you jabber me about my time.
Now c'mon. Gruecd has won a race ...back when I was young.:2Y:So you entered a Clydesdale only event?I second the congrats. But "no" on the second part.
:/2Y:
BnB - great training!!!
:style:I've added 10 pounds of fat since PRing in my 10K in late April. I could probably count the number of times I ran or went to the gym on one hand. It's gotten so bad that I'm being harassed at the neighborhood corner store by high school kids that used to see me at the neighborhood gym or out on a run a lot. So, I got back at it tonight. Wish me luck.Thur-5 milesFriday-18.7 milesSaturday-20.8 milesSunday-11.5 miles55 totalAverage heat index of 110 Friday-Sunday.
Swimming uses different muscles you're used to. Stick with it and it'll get easier. I second getting a coach or someone who knows how to swim. I'd be happen to lend my services if you're in the SE Michigan area.I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
I can intelligently comment on vanishingly few things in this thread. This is probably it. First - this can be done.I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
Um, 157ish. In all seriosity, I just wanted to share a beer on Sunday, nothing else. The beer thing was based on someYou keep pulling the old guy card. Well I'm pulling the fat guy card. Every race I've done I could have competed in the clydesdale division.Yes Turkish will be there also my good friend and his wife are doing their first tri. I'll be sure to stop by and hear you jabber me about my time.
ETA: What are you 160-170lbs? How about we strap 50-60lbs on you and see how you do.
stuff tossed my way by you. I'd much rather help folks enjoy this sport and nothing else, no harm meant.
You DO know I'm joking around right?Um, 157ish. In all seriosity, I just wanted to share a beer on Sunday, nothing else. The beer thing was based on someYou keep pulling the old guy card. Well I'm pulling the fat guy card. Every race I've done I could have competed in the clydesdale division.Yes Turkish will be there also my good friend and his wife are doing their first tri. I'll be sure to stop by and hear you jabber me about my time.
ETA: What are you 160-170lbs? How about we strap 50-60lbs on you and see how you do.
I forget my humor doesn't come off so well on a message board.
I will be doing more. If things go well I would like to do a half marathon in the fall and work toward a full one next year. I need to get serious about the training first...and probably change my diet and give up some of my booze
I am travelling an abnormal amount so far this year which doesn't help. On Sat I am headed to Europe for a week for work, which typically means no running and lots of 
I do now. Just wanted to be sure I didn't #### you off (only find my tires slashed in transition).You DO know I'm joking around right?Um, 157ish. In all seriosity, I just wanted to share a beer on Sunday, nothing else. The beer thing was based on someYou keep pulling the old guy card. Well I'm pulling the fat guy card. Every race I've done I could have competed in the clydesdale division.Yes Turkish will be there also my good friend and his wife are doing their first tri. I'll be sure to stop by and hear you jabber me about my time.
ETA: What are you 160-170lbs? How about we strap 50-60lbs on you and see how you do.
I highly recommend Laughlin's TI method. I went from an adult non-swimmer to MOP 1/2 and full IM swimmer in less than a year. BUT (and a huge but) I basically started from scratch using TI and did a bunch (and I really mean a whole flippin lot) of boring drills to build the skills necessary to have at least moderate technique. When I felt ok, I joined a Masters swim group. Good luck, can't say any more than what Sand said, that it is nearly all about technique. Think zen: work with the water, don't fight the water.
Yeah, I keep hearing technique is a big part of it. The golf analogy is a good one. I have a tendency to pick my head up which lowers my legs and makes the swim harder. Dilemma I have is I keep my head down in the water too much I lose track of where I'm going and breathing becomes a real pain. So my natural defense mechanism is to lift my head. I know that is what is causing many of my problems. I do realize though I need to be patient and build my endurance up. I just need to find the easiest way for me formwise to swim. There was a lady next to me yesterday that was very overweight but she had real good form. She swam great back and forth while I struggled. Swimming has never been my strong suit so I knew this would be a challenge. That's half the fun with it the races/events we do though...trying to push ourselves to places, times that we didn't think we'd be able to achieve.'Sand said:I can intelligently comment on vanishingly few things in this thread. This is probably it. First - this can be done.'skillz said:I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
Second - swimming = golf. Swimming is a huge amount technique.
Third - slow the #### down. You are fighting the water and are likely trying to go way, way too fast. Strong does not equal fast in swimming. Smooth=fast. Lots of 13 year old girls can smoke me - they have good technique and have developed very effective hydrodynamic techniques. More than likely your lower half is sinking in the water and dragging you down, making you feel like you have to thrash hard to keep going. Before you do anything else grab a pull buoy and use it to get a feel for what a reasonably horizontal position feels like. Then replicate that without the buoy.
Fourth - get a lesson or two. If you can't do that go out and get Total Immersion. That is a great beginner swimming program that can really help get you to a reasonable stroke technique.
Lastly - this absolutely can be done. It isn't a brute force thing, though.
Thanks for the offer - actually grew up in SE Michigan but now live in the Grand Rapids area.'Dexter said:Swimming uses different muscles you're used to. Stick with it and it'll get easier. I second getting a coach or someone who knows how to swim. I'd be happen to lend my services if you're in the SE Michigan area.'skillz said:I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
Ha, you should see the kinds of distances that guys like tri-man and Sand are putting up. The other guys are right, swimming is all technique. Next time you are at the pool ask a lifeguard if they have any tips. Chances are they also teach lessons or are on the swim team. I've been swimming for years and still have to work on technique. In fact, there were some junior high kids swimming in the lane next to me the other day and they were doing two laps for every one I could do. It's a completely different skill set that takes time to develop. Not trying to discourage, keep it up! Swimming is really enjoyable but it doesn't come naturally.Wow.'FBG26 said:
GLGB'bentley said::style:I've added 10 pounds of fat since PRing in my 10K in late April. I could probably count the number of times I ran or went to the gym on one hand. It's gotten so bad that I'm being harassed at the neighborhood corner store by high school kids that used to see me at the neighborhood gym or out on a run a lot. So, I got back at it tonight. Wish me luck.'St. Louis Bob said:Thur-5 miles
Friday-18.7 miles
Saturday-20.8 miles
Sunday-11.5 miles
55 total
Average heat index of 110 Friday-Sunday.
walkingSwimming? Running? Biking? Driving?'St. Louis Bob said:Thur-5 miles
Friday-18.7 miles
Saturday-20.8 miles
Sunday-11.5 miles
55 total
Average heat index of 110 Friday-Sunday.
Fixed. I'm pretty much run-only mode this summer after the double marathon push. But next winter ...skillz - I'm a GR boy, born and raised (now in Chicago). I'll be back that way for 4th of July week (we have a small cottage on Silver Lake near Rockford ...I absolutely love catching some early morning lake swims when no motorized boats are allowed on the lake).
Quitter.bonked todaytemps in the low 90s, high humidity, 20+ mph winds at least. first hot day of the season.. i only made 2 miles before my legs stopped. my brain said no more. :(
I'm waiting to go for my 8-12 miles until 8-9 PM, when it's "only" supposed to be in the low 80s. 
I was thinking of doing the same when it is supposed to be in the 90s. Right now I am contemplating going now while it is over 100. I dont know what to do.Quitter.bonked todaytemps in the low 90s, high humidity, 20+ mph winds at least. first hot day of the season.. i only made 2 miles before my legs stopped. my brain said no more. :(
Check with the FB page before you get one. A couple of other guys are checking also. I would hate to go from 0 vans to 3 or 4.
You are right where I was three years ago, never having swam a single length for fitness. I signed up for an early September triathlon in early July and thought I'd pick up the swim faster. I was miserable. Then one day there was a guy in my lane, quite a bit overweight, with a swim tat on his shoulder that was flying. I finally asked the guy if he'd give me some feedback. He said he'd watched me swim and asked "which is faster in the water, a sailboat, of a barge" I, of course, answered sailboat. He said "well, right now you are a barge". He showed me the basics of the hip and shoulder turn to cut the water. Like Sand mentioned, he also told me to "slow down to go faster" he recommended I swim as slow as I could, while practicing technique. I followed his advice, watched lots of tri swim videos on YouTube and am still asking questions about form from those I regard as good swimmers. My first tri was a success in September of '08, I did my first Olympic one year later and did a 1/2 Ironman last July (proving that once you get the form down, the skies the limit). Of all the workouts I do, I think I enjoy swimming the most. I typically swim 2 days a week over the winter and much more now that the outdoor pool is open.Yeah, I keep hearing technique is a big part of it. The golf analogy is a good one. I have a tendency to pick my head up which lowers my legs and makes the swim harder. Dilemma I have is I keep my head down in the water too much I lose track of where I'm going and breathing becomes a real pain. So my natural defense mechanism is to lift my head. I know that is what is causing many of my problems. I do realize though I need to be patient and build my endurance up. I just need to find the easiest way for me formwise to swim. There was a lady next to me yesterday that was very overweight but she had real good form. She swam great back and forth while I struggled. Swimming has never been my strong suit so I knew this would be a challenge. That's half the fun with it the races/events we do though...trying to push ourselves to places, times that we didn't think we'd be able to achieve.'Sand said:I can intelligently comment on vanishingly few things in this thread. This is probably it. First - this can be done.'skillz said:I started swimming on Saturday for my mini-tri in August. Swim is 500 meters. I haven't swimmed laps in a pool in my life. Did some very light work on Sat. - 5 laps (125 yards) and was gassed - need to get to 22 laps to get up to the race distance. Sore shoulders and legs today but went back out for another swim. Did 8 laps and now feel completely sore and exhaused from head to toe. Can't wait until I get the muscles past the soreness part so I can keep making progress. Getting ready for the swim is really going to be a lot harder than I thought. I had a hard time just getting done with my 8 laps today and that was stopping every 25 yards. Swimming 500 meters without stopping seems like an eternity away.
Second - swimming = golf. Swimming is a huge amount technique.
Third - slow the #### down. You are fighting the water and are likely trying to go way, way too fast. Strong does not equal fast in swimming. Smooth=fast. Lots of 13 year old girls can smoke me - they have good technique and have developed very effective hydrodynamic techniques. More than likely your lower half is sinking in the water and dragging you down, making you feel like you have to thrash hard to keep going. Before you do anything else grab a pull buoy and use it to get a feel for what a reasonably horizontal position feels like. Then replicate that without the buoy.
Fourth - get a lesson or two. If you can't do that go out and get Total Immersion. That is a great beginner swimming program that can really help get you to a reasonable stroke technique.
Lastly - this absolutely can be done. It isn't a brute force thing, though.
