1st Time Sprint Triathlete - 8 week training log

TomD101

Hi,
I use boards.ie as a lurker for a lot of useful info in Fitness and A/R/T forums. Basically I am aiming to take part in a Sprint Triathlon on the first week of July and am starting this log as a record of what training I will have done. Hopefully people will read my entries and point out any improvements that can be made and pass on any advice. I have a fairly good base level of fitness from going to the gym and running on the road but have been studying pretty intensively for the last few months for exams that finished last week and as a result I'm not currently at the ideal level for a first time triathlete. I should be able to pick up the fitness levels fairly rapidly if I get good consistent training in over the next few weeks. I have been running the road for the last few weeks to keep ticking over with distances averaging around 8k. The big challenge for me will be the swim (as with most first time triathletes) as I have always been a fairly weak swimmer. Took a few lessons once a week in January and February with one eye on this training schedule and hopefully I can get it all together in time. Going to use Hal Higdon's programme as an outline for what I should be doing and have got a swim training plan put together for me by an instructor who knows his stuff.

Stats are : 23 year old male, 5 Foot 9, 11stones.

Started the training on Saturday night with a "Strength" session for 45mins which went as follows:
> 5 min warm up
> 3 x 8 lunges with 20kg on a bar, alternating between both legs.
> 3 x 8 bench presses with 20kg dumbells.
> 3 x 12 squats with 30kg on the bar (no squat rack available so have to clean this amount which is tough enough to get off the shoulders on my own)
> 3 x 8 frontal raises with 8kg dumbell.
> 3 x 8 deadlifts with 50kg on the bar.
> 3 x 8 lateral pulldowns 55kg on machine (will be looking to do more pull ups over the summer)

Basic aim for the session was to get the le muscles functioning again as the haven't seen any weights for the last month due to study restraints and this was achieved.

Sunday I went with a Bike session followed by strength:
> 30 mins on exercise bike aiming to keep Heart Rate above 150 and sometimes above 160. The resistance on the machine wasnt working properly so I was flying through the RPMs (probably too fast but this wont happen again)
> Ran 2k on the hamster machine afterwards to get the legs used to coming off a bike
> Followed this with a strenght session:
> 3 x 8 lunges with 20kg on a bar, alternating between both legs.
> 3 x 8 bench presses with 20kg dumbells.
> 3x 30 sets of situps between bench presses
> 3 x 12 squats with 30kg on the bar.
> 3 x 10 military presses 14kg dumbells
> 3 x 8 bicep curls 12 kg
> 3 x 10 incline press 16kg dumbells
> 3 x 10 incline rows 12kg dumbells

Two days of leg weights was a bad idea and it took its toll on Sunday evening with a serious case of the DOMS in the hamstrings (still not right!) despite a brief warmdown in a swimming pool for 15mins. This resulted in the plans for Swimming on Monday going out the window (re-arranged to Tuesday) and the first trip of the year to the tortuous golf course.

Swim session planned for after work this evening and will post up tomorrow what I got through.
Thanks for reading!

TomD101

First swimming session for a while after work yesterday in a 20m pool:

> 10 lengths Freestyle (struggling after length 6 had to stop for air for 10 secs)
> 4 lengths arms only freestyle with a float between legs
> 4 lengths legs only holding a float (found this really tough - had to stop halfway each time)
> 2 lengths backstroke kicking legs with arms by side
> 2 lengths slow freestyle
> 10 lengths Freestyle ( tired halfway through)

I'd appreciate any feedback on this if people are reading it. Swimming continuously for an extended period is difficult as I seem to get out of breath too quickly. Also an instructor mentioned before that I struggle to keep my legs in the right position ie the sink alot, any advice on how to keep them up?

Running planned for today, hope the weather clears up. Must buy the bike this week and also try to suss out a cheap wetsuit. Anyone know a place that sells them in Dublin? Would those ones that were advertised at the weekend in Lidl any good ?

catweazle

I got my wetsuit in Irishfit last year in Dun Laoighre, decent guy I would say he does a lot of tris himself by his physique so it was good to get an informed opinion. I remember him pushing me away from a 3mm to a 5mm as I would get more flotation from it

I dont know about the Lidl wetsuits but I would guess if you are going to give it a serious go you would be better off buying a proper tri wetsuit rather than the Lidl one which covers surfers etc. You will only end upgrading to a proper tri suit fairly soon. I think I got mine for 179 last year, some kind of Orca one

TomD101

Thanks catweazle for the response. I'll drop down to Dun Laoighaire and get the wetsuit from him at the weekend. Do you have any advice for me on training for the triathlon ? I genuinely don't know exactly what level of training will be required in order to take part in the race in two months as reading programmes on the net gives little idea of the intensity of training required. I'm keeping my training vaguely in line with this Hal Higdon programme :

http://www.halhigdon.com/trifit/trifast.htm

It incorporates a lot of BRIC workouts which I wont be able to do as many as stated here given that I can run at lunchtime and swim after work but not the two together for practical reasons. Any advice on whether I will be adequately fit if I do each of the disciplines seperately most of the time?

Had a good session yesterday:
>ran from work to the gym which is 3.5k
>did some brief work on the exercise bike with heavy resistance and then some weights
> went back on the bike for 11k in 22minutes at level 8 with random resistence
> ran home which is 1.5k

Swim session planned for after work for an hour. Thanks!

griffin100

Hi Tom,

hope the training goes well for you. You seem to have a decent basis so 8 weeks is enough. I went from couch potato to a sprint in roughly 10 weeks using this plan http://www.trinewbies.com/tno_trainingprograms/10wtp.pdf

You should do a few bricks before race day just to get used to the feeling in your legs when you get off the bike and start running but the run doesn't have to be too long - 10-15 mins is more than enough.

Regarding training intensity you should aim to run and cycle at a speed that would allow you to hold a conversation. If you have a HRM all the better as this will allow you train in specific HR zones. Try and mimic this level of effort in your swims.

Personally I think that cycling on the road is much better than in the gym so get on the road as much as you can - use saturday / sunday mornings for your bricks / longish bike rides.

If you are stuck for time cut down on the weights. For a SD weights are not that important.

Try and get an OW swim in before the event so that you dont get overwhelmed by the new feeling of OW swimming, especially if its a sea swim - which tri are you doing?

This advice is on the assumption that you are not aiming for a podium finish - if you want to compete as opposed to complete ignore all of the above:)

BTW you can rent wetsuits in CycleSuperstore if you dont want to buy.

A final piece of advice which is based on my experience in my first year - enter another race for later in the summer - it will help keep you focused after your first tri; if you have a bad day in the first race then you have another oppurtunity to give it a go and it also allows you to measure your progress between races. I assume you plan on doing more than one race if you are buying a wetsuit. +1 on Sean in IrishFit - he's a good guy but the shop is not the cheapest:o

DustyBin

Hey TomD
My 2c for what it's worth, no bother doing your training sesssions seperate like that, biggest thing is to make sure to get them done. You would definitely want to practice a couple of cycle & run brick session though. This is tough as after spending 1/2 an hour pedaling like the clappers on your bike and then jumping off straight into a run?? Lets just say that you should try it in a big open space (like a carpark) for the first time!! Legs like they're made of jelly just going all over the place like rubber bands or something - not a pretty sight.

A couple of other things I would suggest to you would be:

• Ditch the exercise bike and get out on a real one if at all possible
• If you're struggling to fit in enough sessions then maybe dump/cut back on the weights or strength training. Lots of people talk about specificity of training.

These are just my own thoughts and I'm no expert at all, have actually only done 1 proper tri (sprint distance)

Best of luck with the training, and that's a fair impressive first swimming session
Keeping a log is a great motivator to go do a session when you don't feel like it. Also, you should start posting your statsinto the Swim/Cycle/Run Challenge - ultra competitive

catweazle

I am the wrong guy to ask I am sure other people will log in who have more knowledge and they will offer better advice than below.

Heres the link to Irishfit wetsuits, from looking at it now it was the Orca Equipe I got last year, i have had no problems with it

http://www.irishfit.ie/menswetsuits.html

Maybe post which one you are thinking about buying on the main forum and if you are lucky you might get Tunny, Hunnymonster or Interested advising you on which one

My basic advice is dont fret too much about it, 8 weeks is plenty of time, particularly if you are only looking to complete it. You are in a lot better position than me when I started early last year, I was 5'9 and near 15 stone. It seems to be a growing sport and there will be a load of first timers the day you do it. I also would not concentrate too much on weights, I have hardly lifted a dumb-bell since I have started, better to get the cardio system up and running. I will do them this winter though in the off season

I am guessing you are doing Athlone is it?? I did this last year, the swim is easy in it, theres a good current downstream so you will do a good time with little effort. The bike and run were flat last year too with loads of supporters for the run. Theres also a shedload of people doing it which I think is helpful for your first

Only other thing is you seem to be using the exercise bike, I found it was no substitute for the real thing. Have you a bike yet, it doesnt need to be a high end flyer, you will see loads of people using mountain bikes on the day, borrow one if you have too.

Dont worry too much about the brick, I didnt do one session of this before my first tri last year, while it was agony the first km or two it works itself out. If you can at the weekends do a nice fast 10k bike and just jump off and run for 1 or 2k after to get used to it

TomD101

Thanks Griffin 100, DustyBin and Catweazle for the replies. It's great to get some responses from you guys for some tips and re-assurance that I am on the right track.

The advice about getting out of the gym and onto a proper bike is spot on, hopefully I can buy one this weekend - haven't been able to fit in the trip to the bike shop yet. Must have a look online to see what shops in the city centre would fit the bill - I've seen the one in Parnell St mentioned on a few threads here and I understand there is a new shop somewhere on Abbey St. Will be looking for a bike that will be used for commuting to work, so nothing too flashy but will get me through the triathlon.

The Triathlone is the one I'm planning on going for alright, I'm from Athlone myself and have used exams as an excuse not to train for it in previous years but have decided to get the finger out this year! Good advice there about entering a second one later in the summer, was half thinking about doing it - the Dublin City Tri at the end of August looks a good target to keep the training ticking over during the summer. Haven't really looked around for any other ones that would suit yet.

Thats good news about not having to do too many bric sessions, will be able to fit in the sessions seperately over the next few weeks and the hopefully start increasing the bike and runs and swim and runs in June. The link there seems great Griffin, will have a read of it tonight.

On the comments about ditching the weights - yer probably right, I find it way easier to do weights for an hour in the gym that struggling through cardio so I'll be sure to keep the sessions at a minimum (1.5 / 2 hours a week max) so that I wont be using weights as an excuse to not get up on the bike.

Overall, I'm looking forward to training solidly over the next few weeks, been a while since I've had some proper sport to concentrate on. Still a bit nervous about building up the stamina in the swim as I have always been a crap swimmer but the lessons earlier in the year helped my technique hugely so I think its just a matter now of putting in the spadework in next few weeks to build up the lung capacity and then get out in the open water in June to get used to it. Just looking to get through the swim and complete the whole thing in any respectable time really! Triathlone has been all downstream for last few years I think coz of strong currents but this isn't guaranteed to be the case as it is planned to be half up and half downstream unless the current gets too strong due to rain in prior few days before event.

Anyway thanks again for taking the time to reply guys !
Tom

TomD101

In the pool yesterday evening, had planned to do an hour but got through what I aimed for in 40 minutes ish so left it at that. Swim was as follows:

> 10 lengths Freestyle (tiring halfway, probably didnt warm up properly)
> 5 lengths arms only freestyle with a float between legs (found this easy which is a bit worrying ! If I can get my legs kept up at the top of the water I will find swimming way easier but struggle to do that. I might do the whole triathlon with a float between my legs!)
> 4 lengths legs only holding a float (really tough again, going nowhere kicking for the most of it. had to stop a lot)
> 2 lengths breaststroke slow (breaststroke form is crap, must try to learn the kick and timing properly over the weekend)
> 4 lengths lying on back kicking legs (hamstrings were screaming at me!)
> 2 lengths slow freestyle
> 10 lengths Freestyle ( had to stop for ten seconds for a break after 6 lengths)

Happy enough with the 2 swims so far this week but have plenty left to work on. Given I'm swimming in a 20m pool there is a lot of turning involved and given that I cannot turn properly I end up taking 2/3 breaths at the end of the pool with head above water, this might be making the swimming easier (?).

Don't know what the plan is for today as I will be travelling today, might try an easy day with a cool down in pool later.

TomD101

Took Friday as my rest day for the week. Will be looking to have one rest day to allow recovery. On Saturday, I did 30mins on the exercise bike which was 15km with RPMs averaging 100 - must have sweated a litre out of me! did 10 minutes directly afterwards on the treadmill which was 2km just to get the legs used to coming off a bike. I have to purchase a bike this week! I will try to get out of work early one of the evenings to see if I can get into a shop before it closes. Did an upper body strenght session then for 40 mins (my only one planned for the week, will try to get 1 legs session in too).

I also went wetsuit shopping in Athlone on Saturday evening but couldnt find anything suitable. Small sizes were fine for arms and legs but way too tight on chest while some medium brands were too big. Found one quicksilver medium that fitted well but was unsure how the 5/4/3 mm would suit for buoyancy and it is also surfing specific so I will wait to get some proper advice. I will wait until I can get out to Irish Fit to see what can be recommended for me.

Today I swam four sets of 10 lengths in an 18m pool. Was gasping for breath a lot of the time. Then I hopped on the exercise bike for twenty minutes random resistence 100rpms for 11km. Left it at that!

Run at lunch planned for tomorrow and the start of the second week of training!

TomD101

Training plans are going to be dented over the next two weeks as I have to sit some other exams for work. That is going to take up a lot of the spare time but I will try to fit in daily sessions as best I can.

Yesterday the run at lunchtime got cancelled to cram in some study. Went to the pool after work for an hour in a 20m pool:

-> 8 lenghts to warm up, brief stop after every 2 lengths
-> 6 lenghts with float, legs only
-> 6 lenghts with float between legs, arms only
-> sets of 2 lenghts x 5
-> 8 lenghths warm down .

Meetings at lunch today so will run home from work and try to get the mileage up

TomD101

Hello!
Yesterday, work got a bit manic, had to work late and couldn't train
But on the plus side I bought a bike today to make up for it! It is a Giant bike, that has a drop bar and is a low grade racing bike. Cost me 600 shekels :eek: but is worth the investment me thinks - I don't mind spending money on something that'll improves my health / fitness. Now I'll be joining the biking commuter brigade in the mornings.

today I went to the pool after work,
12 lengths warm-up slow pace
12 lengths steady pace
6 lengths legs only with float
6 lengths arms only with float between legs
10 lengths to finish. Got kicked out of the pool at 8 coz there was a lesson starting so the session lasted 40 minutes.

Cycled home afterwords, took an extended route home which lasted half hour and came to 10k. Found the cycling more tiring than I expected, especially in the lower quads. Would this be coz I'm not used to the position of being on a drop bar bike? Also what height should the saddle be? Currently when I'm sitting on it my feet can touch the ground. Should this be the case? Any advice for a new cyclist would be appreciated !

Later!

shotgunmcos

The position depends on more than just how high the saddle is. I'm sure we could all chip in and mention a loads of things or Tunney might come along and donate a lesson, however the best thing to do is to get a fitting done or have someone who knows their stuff have a look at you on the bike. Or get a pic of you on it and post up and we can point out the obvious things

Quads could be sore too for reasons other than position, like 'pushing' the pedal too much and not 'pulling' for example

Also, both you and spareman should get yourselves on the A/R/T swim, cycle, run challenge. I could pair ye off in a mini challenhe in June

Best of luck with the training.

catweazle

I would second the bike fitting, it was like a new bike after getting it done

TomD101

cheers lads, would I be right in thinking that the shop where I bought it should be able to provide a bike fitting?

In terms of training over the next week, should I be trying to put in long cycles eg 1 hour or short sharp ones?

Just looking at the Swim Cycle Run Challenge there - seems pretty intimidating when you see the mileage some of you guys have clocked up! I'll post up thou for the craic!

griffin100

Training plans are going to be dented over the next two weeks as I have to sit some other exams for work. That is going to take up a lot of the spare time but I will try to fit in daily sessions as best I can.

Try and get up a few minutues early 3-4 days a week and do an something before your day would normally start - this is a big help with my training or it would be if I could get my fat lazy ass out of bed more often....

In terms of training over the next week, should I be trying to put in long cycles eg 1 hour or short sharp ones?

If your able to cycle for an hour then the 20km in a sprint should be no problem to you. I would suggest at this stage you stay away from 'sharp' training sessions, always try and run / walk and cycle at a pace that would alLow you to comfortably hold a conversation.

Just looking at the Swim Cycle Run Challenge there - seems pretty intimidating when you see the mileage some of you guys have clocked up! I'll post up thou for the craic!

Remember, dont worry about others, keep concentrating on you

Keep it up. I'm enjoying this log.

TomD101

Thanks for the reply there Griffin100 - pity I'm not a morning person, never got into the idea of getting up early to train but would have no problem hitting the road for a run at 10 or 11 at night.

Since my last post I have had a mixed time of it. On Thursday I had to go to a meeting which lasted all day and then had to attend a function, didnt get home til 11 so no chance to train. On Friday, I was travelling and then had to cram until the small hours for two exams on Saturday so no training either.

After the exams on Saturday I was rearing to go and I probably pushed myself too hard in the session. I swam in an 18m pool doing 14 lenghts x2 then 12 lenghths x 2, with the odd breast stroke thrown in between. Then I pasted the exercise bike upstairs in the gym for 35mins which was 15km with heavy resistence and ran 3,5km home after that. It was my first taste of a proper BRIC workout and when I started running my calves were twitching as if they were going to cramp up! They legs were fine after the initial part though.

Felt good after the session and thought i re-hydrated fully. Ate well on Sunday morning and then went to the pool and gym. Started in the pool but felt totally out of sorts. I felt really tired after a few lengths. Basically I would do 2 lengths of an 18m pool and would have to stop for breath for a few secs. Noticed my deltoids being really tired aswell. Did 12 lengths , then the usual 6 lengths of arms only, legs only and did a few more lengths but decided to cut my losses and get out of the pool as I wasn't training too well. Decided to do some easy strength work but felt sick at that stage so just quit and went home. Don't know what caused it, maybe the session on Saturday would have left me dehydrated but shouldn't have caused that much of a problem.

Also an instructor in the pool mentioned to my friend that my arm technique seemed quite poor and hinted that I was being a bit ambitious aiming for a 750m swim and should start with a 200m swim in a Try-a-Tri. I'm thinking that he saw me at my worst but am considering getting a private lesson off him soon. Basically the confidence is a bit dented and not sure how the training is going. It would be great if I had someone to train with to benchmark myself off them but I don't know if I'll be able for the swim part going on current ability.

Anyway, all extra study is finished with for now so I can concentrate on training again with no distractions. Will try to get some extra time in on bike this week and hopefully improve swim. Week 2 was a disappointing week, will have to make up for it in week 3...

oh yeah this is the bike that I bought last week but my drop handle bar seems a bit different :
http://cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=35&idproduct=31155

griffin100

After the exams on Saturday I was rearing to go and I probably pushed myself too hard in the session. I swam in an 18m pool doing 14 lenghts x2 then 12 lenghths x 2, with the odd breast stroke thrown in between. Then I pasted the exercise bike upstairs in the gym for 35mins which was 15km with heavy resistence and ran 3,5km home after that. It was my first taste of a proper BRIC workout and when I started running my calves were twitching as if they were going to cramp up! They legs were fine after the initial part though

That does sound a lot for someone in the early stages of training, you need to be careful about injuries. That was almost a SD tri in itself.

Felt good after the session and thought i re-hydrated fully. Ate well on Sunday morning and then went to the pool and gym. Started in the pool but felt totally out of sorts. I felt really tired after a few lengths. Basically I would do 2 lengths of an 18m pool and would have to stop for breath for a few secs. Noticed my deltoids being really tired aswell. Did 12 lengths , then the usual 6 lengths of arms only, legs only and did a few more lengths but decided to cut my losses and get out of the pool as I wasn't training too well. Decided to do some easy strength work but felt sick at that stage so just quit and went home. Don't know what caused it, maybe the session on Saturday would have left me dehydrated but shouldn't have caused that much of a problem.

You were feeling the effects of yesterdays training.

Also an instructor in the pool mentioned to my friend that my arm technique seemed quite poor and hinted that I was being a bit ambitious aiming for a 750m swim and should start with a 200m swim in a Try-a-Tri. I'm thinking that he saw me at my worst but am considering getting a private lesson off him soon. Basically the confidence is a bit dented and not sure how the training is going. It would be great if I had someone to train with to benchmark myself off them but I don't know if I'll be able for the swim part going on current ability.

You did just under 1,000m in your previous session in the pool so you're well on for being able for the 750m. I had never swum a session of that length before my first SD tri. Obviously improving technique will also help, but dont allow other people's comments to get you disheartened.

TomD101

thanks for the comments griffin. May just have been tiredness and dehydration on Sunday. Will need to get someone to look at my stroke though to make sure its not absolutely rubbish.

Yesterday went as follows:

> cycle into work (dont think I can count this as workout)
> Run at lunchtime 5.6km for 40 minutes (plenty of stops for strecthing)- been neglecting the running lately and it showed. Will try and get out on the road more
> swim after work 20m pool :
2 lenghts warm up
14 lengths moderate pace with 3 lengths of breaststroke thrown in at end
break for rest, 12 lengths some b/stroke
break, 12 lenghths getting tired
> cycled home 6km from pool in 20 mins

littleredspot

Hi, I'm doing my first sprint tri at the end of July, so I'm very interested in following your log. I'm obviously therefore no expert, but according to any of the training schedules I've seen, you're doing a lot of training. You almost did the distance in all 3 disiplines again today. If you're able for it then why not I suppose but I wonder is there a risk of you getting bored of so much training, and/or are you at a higher risk of being injured? Another thought is would you be better doing longer sessions in individual disiplines?
As I said, I'm only learning, so I'd love to hear your (and others) thoughts on this.
Good luck.

TomD101

littleredspot wrote: »

Hi, I'm doing my first sprint tri at the end of July, so I'm very interested in following your log. I'm obviously therefore no expert, but according to any of the training schedules I've seen, you're doing a lot of training. You almost did the distance in all 3 disiplines again today. If you're able for it then why not I suppose but I wonder is there a risk of you getting bored of so much training, and/or are you at a higher risk of being injured? Another thought is would you be better doing longer sessions in individual disiplines?
As I said, I'm only learning, so I'd love to hear your (and others) thoughts on this.
Good luck.

Thanks or the post littleredspot. Hopefully I'll stay injury free for next few weeks, think I had good enough level conditioning t start with from gym work. In terms of training, it's just preference really as opposed t a deliberate plan. I'll try t get long cycles in next week but apart from that it's just worked out handier some days t combine training. How is your training going? What tri are u doin?

Tuesday I had a late meeting and was travelling. Cancelled training on Wednesday t play golf- played well so was worth it! Yday I cycled in out work and played tag rugby match for forty mins. Intensity was pretty high, lots of sprints. Got more knocks playing tag than I'd get playing full contact! Have a sore back/ribs and have bruising above knee today. Some teams r ridiculous how aggressive they play tag. Also playing on astro turf isn't gr8 for falls!
Tonight I had a nice medium-low intensity run for forty mins t get the lactic acid out of hammys. How could a game of tag leave me feeling battered- I'm supposed t b gettin fit ?!

TomD101

Hello. Had a decent weekend - the weather was super in the midlands. Would be a great country if we could get guaranteed weather like that.

Saturday: had a swimming 1 to 1 lesson arranged for two o'clock. Decided to get a run in around 12. Turned into a 10k slog for an hour in the sun. Legs were pretty stiff after it. The lesson was great - basically my technique was crap and I have a few things to work on namely:
> stop dropping my elbow when I'm extending my arm for front crawl.
> have my elbow above my hand (instead of a straight arm) for the pull
> keep my toes pointed and increase kick rate for an arm cycle.
It is a lot to work on but I will be in the pool tonight. Hopefully the last few weeks in the pool will stand to me once my technique improves so I will be able to do the distance easier and makes me less tired. Was pretty exhausted after the swim lesson, did 15mins on the hydrotherapy jets mainly focussing on hamstrings.

Sunday: had the second swimming lesson with the same coach. The same pointers applied and he also had me working on my breaststroke kick which is appalling. Having a 1 to 1 session was great and was much better than any other lesson I have attended as attention to detail was much higher. 15 mins hydrotherapy after swimming. Took a break after the pool for a few hours. Then went for a run. It was seriously hot! Dehydrated straight away as soon as I started. Lasted around 8.5 k in 50 mins with loads on stops to stretch. Was thinking how the hell hunnymonster was managing to run in heat like this if I was struggling for a short distance. I'm also going to have to try and implement a strict regime for how much water I drink in a day as I am waking up dehydrated in the mornings these days.

Cycled into work today - swim planned for after work and a cycle also.

TomD101

Hello all.

Yesterday I went to the pool after work to see could I work on the pointers that I got after the weekend and improve my technique. Just like getting a few pointers with a gof swing, when I tried to make the changes the whole thing fell apart! Was really concentrating on every little thing and this threw my breathing all over ther place. I didn't try to do any long lengths up and down because I was getting out of breath just doing two lengths. I'll try and keep going with the changes as best I can and hopefully it'll come together pretty quickly. Spent around 45 mins in the pool.

Then went for my first long cycle after swimming. It was tough! Cycled from leeson street out to cornelscourt along the n11 then turned around and went home through sandyford - 18km in total in around fifty minutes. I never knew that the n11 was so hilly. Was dying on some of the uphill sections. How hard should I be finding basic inclines? Even after switching down gears I was struggling? Also find standing up cycling a lot tougher up the hills than I would on a mountain bike. On the plus side the bike flies when going downhill - can get some serious speed up! Might try to raise the saddle a little higher again and see if it makes the uphills any easier.

Was pretty dehydrated and hungry when I got home. Straight from work swimming and cycling is tough with no proper food since lunch - any tips anyone for pre swim food?

Anyway, more of the same today - pool after work and then cycling (wont be doing 18k today! ).

catweazle

God man Tom you are sticking at it, I am worried we might have lost sparemans log. Wouldnt worry about the cycling I am useless myself at it, by far my worst of the three.

I have a nutrigrain bar before I head off training a lot of the time, the raisin one is lovely

DustyBin

A plain bagel toasted with a bit of butter on it - handy to have and fills the gap until supper

About the bike, google slow twitch & fast twitch muscle fibres and also cadence
If you're standing up pumping the bike I think you end up burning up all your fast twitch fibres (used for sprinting). Slow twitch are for endurance. As I understand it, if you keep your cadence high (90 - 100) your engaging your slow twitch and can go all day, try and push too big a gear uphill and you burn out all the fast twitch leaving you fairly wrecked. But seriously, google it for a better explanation

Saddle height - I think your leg should be almost fully extended but not stretching when the pedal is at it's lowest

TomD101

cheers lads. Used to eat nutrigrains a lot and got sick of them. Eating a few alpen bars and nature valley bars at the moment to fill the hole but not really a fan. Bagel sounds like a good call DustyBin. Given that I am posting up the training log I might post up my diet in the fitness forum so I can be decimated. Generally the diet is good but like everyone, too much bread and carbs at the wrong time and a sweet tooth!

Thanks for the headsn up about the fast twitch and slow twitch fibres. I came across these before when I used to play rugby. Was never the quickest sprinter and we had a coach who told us about building up the fast twitch tendons. I reckon running on the road over the last year may have killed off whatever few were left! Think I noticed the difference last week playing tag, bit slower than normal. Will have a google anyway - didnt know that cycling could damage fast twitch - I thought it was just impact on joints and the like that did.

Anyway thanks for the posts - nearly halfway through the training so far, time flying. Had a look for sparemans log alright, think he packed it in!

TomD101

Yesterday went for a swim with my friend in a 20m pool. It was good to have someone swimming with you to puch you along through the lengths.

> 4 lengths warm up , rest
> 6 lengths moderate , rest
> 8 lengths , rest
> 10 lengths, rest
> 14 lengths, rest
> 20 lenghths to finish.

Resting times between lengths were significant, over 2 minutes in some cases. My shoulder joint was hurting me yesterday aswell, think I did something to it when I was sleeping the night before. Will rest from swimming for next two days. Tried to implement the new technique tips as best I could - didnt see a huge difference but we'll see if there is any improvement over next few weeks. Also, I found it hard to stop myself from dropping my elbow as I got tired toward the end of the session. For the last three sets I was doing breaststroke every second length aswell for some of the lengths.

Went for food afterwards and then an easy 7k cycle home.
Run for 40 mins at lunch planned and then a long cycle tonight.

TomD101

yesterday I went for a run at lunchtime - 5.3km in half an hour.

Cycled after work for an hour, which came to 18km. Hopped off the bike in Marlay Park for a 1.5km run after 10k. Felt stronger on the bike.

Taking it easy today, tag match for 40 minutes tonight, hopefully I won't do as much damage as last week!

TomD101

bit of a mishap at work yesterday - spilt boiling water over my right hand. Blisters have developed over my fingers. Not sure how long they will take to heal - could be looking at a few days. Does anyone know how this will impact training? Wouldn't be able to swim at the moment. How long do I have to wait to ensure that the chlorine won't cause any aggrevation? Thanks

catweazle

Get that compeed stuff on them, they have worked well for me recently. Waterproof as well so I swam away with them to be honest but on hands it might be sorer

TomD101

catweazle wrote: »

Get that compeed stuff on them, they have worked well for me recently. Waterproof as well so I swam away with them to be honest but on hands it might be sorer

Cheers catweazle. Compeed are plasters are they? Had to cycle home yesterday and was in bits with the pain by time I got home so will have to wait for the heat to go out of burns before I try do anything, hoepfully that'll be tomorrow.

TomD101

After burning my hand last week it put me out of action for a while. I had to take Friday and Saturday off. Went for a 2 hour cycle on Sunday and couldnt train on Monday. Yesterday I went to see if I'd be able to do a bit of swimming with the hand, did 45 mins in pool the 45 mins on the bike. Ended up getting a flat tyre. :mad: Supposed to be taking part in Duathlon in Phoenix Park tonight so I will have to get the tyre repaired today.

Also, swimming last night has caused any new skin that was forming over the blisters on my fingers to be removed. Its going to take a while for the skin to grow back and blisters that havent burst to go away so I could see this affecting my swimming training. Will do no swimming from now until Friday and I'll see how it is then.

littleredspot

Yuck! Very unfortunate. I've been thinking of entering another tri a month after the one I'm training for, just in case something like this happens. Its hard but sometimes you just have to ease off and let your body repair. Good luck tonight, looks like it'll be a cracking evening for it.

TomD101

littleredspot wrote: »

Yuck! Very unfortunate. I've been thinking of entering another tri a month after the one I'm training for, just in case something like this happens. Its hard but sometimes you just have to ease off and let your body repair. Good luck tonight, looks like it'll be a cracking evening for it.

Cheers for the post lrs, yeah I'll enter another one at the end of the summer I say. Thinking of putting a glove on or something next time I go swimming, can't afford to lose too many more days. How is your training going?

TomD101

Took part in the duathlon out in the Phoenix park last night and it was v enjoyable with the weather being perfect. I hadn't mentally prepared myself for how tough it was going to be - doesnt look half as bad on paper than it actually is! Finished with a time of 51:29. Don't know if this is good or bad but going on the results it looks below average!

Started the run at a steady enough pace, wasn't pushing myself too hard and finished the first run in 11:29. The bike was definitely my weakest part - I wasn't sure how fast I should be going as I didnt want to burn myself out and on the first lap I was getting used to the course, had no idea what turn came next and was going wide around bends and freewheeling down hills etc! Got passed by a good few people. Picked up the pace a lot more for the next two laps and was flying around on the last lap. Given that I'm new to cycling I could probably do with a few pointers, do people go flat out for the whole time they are on the bike in triathlon's or do the conserve energy at any stage. Also my lower back was starting to get sore on the last lap, dont know why this was the case as it never happened to me before. Bike leg came to 25:02 which looks a pretty poor time. The transition to last run was my first proper bric and it was tough! My calf muscles were twitching like crazy for the start of the last lap like they were going to cramp at any second, went away after a few mins. Got talking to a sound girl who was running at same pace which made last lap easier as didnt have to concentrate. Felt strong for the last part of the run and picked off a few runners to finish 12:43.

The cycle home for 50 mins was pretty tough too!

TomD101

Thursday : Tag Rugby for 40 mins
Friday : 5k run, easy, still getting the legs back working after Wednesday
Saturday: Golf dented the training time but got a quick run in for 8km in the evening
Sunday: 1 hour in the pool followed by half an hour directly after on the exercise bike which was torturous, thought I was gonna hurl halfway thru. Went on a road trip and played golf and then drinking for the rest of Sunday. Which resulted in a very hungover Monday which can be designated as the rest day for this week!

Covered my fingers with plastic before the swim and it worked great. Bit nervous about getting the blisters infected from open water swimming but they should be fully healed by the weekend. Also bought a wetsuit on Saturday!

TomD101

Tuesday : Tag Rugby for over an Hour, lots of sprints.
Wednesday: Swim for 45 mins in 20m pool. 10 lengths to start. Sets of 2 lengths faster. 6 lengths legs only kicking. 8 lengths arms only. 6 lengths on back legs only. 22 lengths to finish with some breaststroke thrown in every third length. Cycled for half an hour afterwards, round 10km.

Anyone any advice how I should focus the training on the last 3 weeks? Pick up the intensity for the next two weeks and ease off final week? Im abroad this weekend unfortunately so training will be curtailed. Hoping to start open water swims soon though.

TomD101

Thursday: 45 mins swim, 40 mins tag rugby
Friday, Saturday, Sunday : in Holland for the weekend with work
Monday: 45 mins swim

catweazle

Nice what part of Holland, hope it wasnt a weekend bender in the Dam.

Hows the river flow in Athlone, its looking like it will be an up and back route for you this year.

TomD101

catweazle wrote: »

Nice what part of Holland, hope it wasnt a weekend bender in the Dam.

Hows the river flow in Athlone, its looking like it will be an up and back route for you this year.

I was over in Eindhoven for an indoor soccer tournament organised by the company I work for where the different European offices meet up. Wouldn't count any of the games as a workout and there were a good few beers drank! Been in Holland a few times and it is a nice country but I find some of the urban areas very boring!

Haven't been down in Athlone for a few weeks, planning a trip down this weekend and will be in the water. I imagine given the weather over last two months it'll definitely be an up and down swim unless there is some crazy amount of rain over next few weeks. Having real doubts whether I'll be able for the swim if it is an up and down swim. The swimming has improved a lot in the last few weeks but I still reckon it won't be strong enough to go 375m upstream. I'll keep the training up and if not able for it by the last week I'll have to drop down to the 200m swim. Also have done no open water training yet so I'll see how that goes at the weekend.

Last night i did an hour in the 20m pool:
5 sets of 6 lengths, some breastroke when tired
4 x 2 lengths working on stroke
30 lengths of 2 lengths freestyle / 1 length breaststroke
Then cycled for approx 10km in 35minutes. More of the same planned for today.

griffin100

Haven't been down in Athlone for a few weeks, planning a trip down this weekend and will be in the water. I imagine given the weather over last two months it'll definitely be an up and down swim unless there is some crazy amount of rain over next few weeks. Having real doubts whether I'll be able for the swim if it is an up and down swim. The swimming has improved a lot in the last few weeks but I still reckon it won't be strong enough to go 375m upstream. I'll keep the training up and if not able for it by the last week I'll have to drop down to the 200m swim. Also have done no open water training yet so I'll see how that goes at the weekend.

Dont worry about the upstream part if the swim. If its anyway fast flowing they'll change it to a downstream swim only quick enough. Last year the flow wasn't that bad yet they still changed it. Just make sure you get some OW practice in and know that you'll probably still have a wtf am I doing here moment early on in the swim on race day when you see how murky the water is - just set yourself up to ignore it:)

catweazle

Yes I shouldnt have mentioned it , there was a 600m upstream swim in Athy this year but the flow was so weak you could barely notice any difference.

Athlone is a great race for newbies, there will be a load of ye in the same boat, doing your first tri. You have done more than I have for my first last year so you will be fine

Dont drop down to 200 you will be sorry afterwards

littleredspot

Some good advice I heard was to put your head under the water briefly before the race starts, that way your body won't get such a shock when the race starts.

TomD101

Thanks for the replies lads. I really want to do the full distance but am a bit worried about getting into a situation where I am swimming as hard as I can and ending up wrecked. Probably a bit of first time anxiety given that I am only an average swimmer in the pool and get plenty of time to stop at the end / recover if I need to in a pool. I've planned to do an open water swim in Lough Ree on Saturday morning on my own so we'll see how that goes, hopefully it will give me some confidence that I will be able for the triathlon swim.

catweazle

I would agree with littlered, jump in and mess around for a few minutes before you start to swim, give your body time to adapt to the water or you will run out of breath very easily. The water is grand this year anyways after a minute or so it will feel lovely.

Dont bother about being exhausted after the swim, you only need the legs for the bike and you can recover on the bike while still moving along

You have done enough training to justify going for the sprint.

TomD101

Yesterday : went to Poolbeg for a swim with my friend.

cycled 8.5km there then swam / crawled along for appprox 400m, found the water shallow and murky and swallowed a lot of it! Hopefully swimming in the lake / river will be easier with the wetsuit on at the weekend. Water temperature was fine though.

Cycled 9km back and then went for a 2.5km run. Overall none of the intensity was too high but it was a nice relaxed exercise session.

TomD101

Thursday : Tag rugby for 40 mins, wasnt the hardest match but was nice and warm so the HR was up. Went for a 20km cycle and a 2,5km run afterwards which took around an hour. Savage evening in Dublin!

TomD101

Friday : went for an easy run for 45 mins

Saturday: first session of open water swimming in the lake. It was way harder than I expected. Took a while to get used to the darkness of the water and all that stuff that I was warned about before. Also struggled with my breathing and was gasping for air a lot. In the end I wasn't able to do 3 strokes per breath and had to do 2 strokes a breath. Also did a lot of breaststroke. Started to improve towards the end as my confidence improved. Went for an 8km run then on Saturday evening.

Sunday: more swimming in the lake. Basically there were 3 of us (all first time triathletes) swimming from one buoy to another which were approx 150m/175m apart. Stopped each time for a min or two. Did 8 sets of up and down between the buoys, which took around an 45mins. I was more comfortable than Saturday, probably helped that the lake was a lot calmer. Still went with 2 strokes a breath though. Should I be looking to do 3 strokes a breath on the day? I found it difficulty to breathe out fully under the water which was hindering me doing 3 strokes per breath. Also, will there be anyone else throwing in breaststroke or will I be the only one?! The other two lads were a lot stronger swimmers than me. The worry now is finishing way behind everyone in my wave which may be a bit embarrassing. Would be great if I could swim in the lake every day for next two weeks but unfortunately I'm in Dublin so will be in the pool. Might try to get out in the sea on Tuesday evening though.
On a positive note, the wetsuit is great for buoyancy !

catweazle

There will be loads of breast-strokers on the day

I wouldnt worry about the two stroke breathing, I have gone the same way, from 3 stroke breathing to two when I am out in open water. Although I am more breathing every time i need it these days whether thats every 4,3,2 or 1 strokes, its a great benefit being able to breathe from both sides.

Well done for going out the 2nd, I had two friends who arent bad swimmers back out of doing tris after their first open water experience, it takes a bit of getting used too. Its a shame too as they had put in a lot of work in the pool and biking but unless they man up soon they wont be doing any tris this year

TomD101

catweazle wrote: »

There will be loads of breast-strokers on the day

I wouldnt worry about the two stroke breathing, I have gone the same way, from 3 stroke breathing to two when I am out in open water. Although I am more breathing every time i need it these days whether thats every 4,3,2 or 1 strokes, its a great benefit being able to breathe from both sides.

Well done for going out the 2nd, I had two friends who arent bad swimmers back out of doing tris after their first open water experience, it takes a bit of getting used too. Its a shame too as they had put in a lot of work in the pool and biking but unless they man up soon they wont be doing any tris this year

ah yeah thats what its all about catweazle. The easy thing to do would be for me to say that I am a poor swimmer and accept the fact and not do a triathlon at all but if you take that attitude you wont get very far in anything. Even though I'll be one of the weaker swimmers it will still be an achievement if I get through the swim given I couldn't do 1 length of the pool in January. If I get some practice in the open water I'll improve at it.

When did you make the decision to go from sprint triathlons to more serious training? Training everyday is a big commitment but I've been enjoying it so far. Trying to decide what I'll do in two weeks time coz I want to keep training and aim for something else, maybe another sprint a few weeks later. How long did it take you to get to the stage where you can train everyday to a very high endurance level? For most people a 10k race is something they build up to do but you do it for the craic!


Yesterday I went to the 20m pool for 45 mins, worked on breathing every 2 strokes and alternating to 3 strokes per breath. 20 lengths of 2 freestyle, 1 breaststroke. Then some single lengths. Then 30 lengths 2 freestyle, 1 breaststroke to finish.

Then went for a cycle and got lost - ended up doing around 27km which had me fooked by the time I got home! Stopped after 10k to watch a 1600m swimming race in Dun Laoghaire, impressive stuff from those involved!

catweazle

TomD101 wrote: »

When did you make the decision to go from sprint triathlons to more serious training?

I certainly wasnt doing that 10k for the craic yesterday, had to sit down for a few minutes after I was so wrecked

I dont know to be honest I really enjoyed the sprint distances the first year but I was never very quick. Gradually as I continued training I was able to increase the distance in swimming and running and i started running half marathons late last year. Connemara Marathon was probably the main pointer, I loved the long runs and all the training. I didnt do as well as I had hoped but I enjoyed the day anyways. Now I could do with some more discipline when it comes to getting out on the bike but i am getting better.

In a way increasing the distance isnt as hard as you would think, the shorter distances are very hard as you are flat out the whole way. As an example last night I ran the first 5k in around 23.00 which was comfortable for me, it only started getting really hard for the last 2k. Whereas I was trying in vain to break 20.00 for 5k and 20.56 was the best I could do and I was exhausted from the first k on. Sprint distance is tougher than Olympic in many ways

With the training I have some advantages at the moment, no kids and a very patient wife

As regards yourself, you should definetly sign up for another Triathlon, one a month is a good number, the Loughrea triathlon is on in early september and its a lovely one to do (I am biased), see how Athlone goes but if you like it maybe sign up for that one. In August the Brian Boru (This ones hard but great fun) maybe or look for one closer to home. They are all listed here http://www.irishtriathlon.com/index.php/race-calendar/

Come the end of tri season if you are enjoying the training, tip away at the swimming over the winter and maybe focus on some half marathons for early the following year. Connemara in April is a fantastic race whether it is half or full you are doing. Maybe join a local tri club they are great for motivation, our club has all standards in it

Fair play to you sticking with it, I was listening to one of the mates giving me the poor mouth again about swimming in open water again and him doing 1000m in the pool earlier that day. Hes well able to swim, he just needs to get out there and get used to it