The Joys of Coaching

Ok, so let me start off with the fact that I'm not talking about joys I get out of coaching...I'm not the least bit qualified to coach anyone when it comes to triathlons!!!  However, what I am talking about is how ecstatic I am about having signed up with Mike Plumb from TriPower.  I was a bit hesitant at first to spend any money on a coach, because in theory I should be able to use all of the available resources on the internet to find great training schedules.  However, that rapidly became overwhelming.  

I went ahead and decided to try it out for a few months and see how it went.  It's only been about a month, but I can already tell that I love it!  Mike e-mails me my workout schedules on Sunday.  It includes everything I'm supposed to do each day of the week, to include the swim workouts.  I've never actually done a real swim workout.  I just go to the pool, hop in, and do laps until I'm tired.  Now I have guidelines for how to push myself in the water.

Additionally, I have unlimited e-mail contact with him and can ask him as many questions as I want.  He has us log into Beginner Triathlete to log our training on a daily basis.  This helps him tailor our weekly schedules.

So, I'm not sure I can effectively say what kind of difference this will have in my race performance, but I do know that I'm super excited to be training with a purpose.  To have someone with years and years of knowledge help me prepare to move up in race distance and to improve myself!  

Race Prep Helpers

The most nervous part of a race for me is the night before any race.  When I was only doing running races, it was easy to get my gear together.  I never forgot my shoes or my race number.  Then I ventured into the world of triathlons...that added a whole new aspect to the pre-race night jitters!  There's so much stuff to remember!  

For anyone that's venturing out to do their first triathlon, I highly recommend you use a racing checklist.  You can find great ones at any of these sites:

http://triathlon.racechecklist.com/

http://www.onetri.com/newsdesk_info.php?newsdesk_id=1

http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/triathlon-checklist.html

Here are some other tips that can help you ensure a smooth morning on your big race day:

1) Fill up your water bottles the night before with whatever electrolyte replacement drink you want to take on the bike with you.  

2) If the bike portion of the ride is long, use a small piece of electrical tape to attach an energy gel pack to your bike.  If you just tape the top of it to the bike, you can easily tear off the top and eat the gel while on the go!

3) Put your bike, bike shoes, helmet, wetsuit (if you're wearing one), and post-race snacks in the car the night before.  Helmets and shoes are commonly forgotten items!

Sleeping the night before is always tough for me.  I toss and turn and worry about waking up late. 

Does anyone have some tips for how to get a good night's rest before the race???

Brick It!

For anyone that’s ever done a triathlon or any training for a multi-sport event, you are familiar with the concept of the “Brick Workout.”  The idea is to do a bike workout immediately followed by a run. Or a swim, followed by a ride.  This is awful because your legs literally feel like bricks (or sometimes Jell-O).  Although it is completely evil, it is a necessary evil if you want to improve your overall times.  It helps your body get used to the transition from bike to run and can also help you improve your transition time between events. 

Source

For anyone new to this, here’s the basic gist (taken from this site):

1. Work up to it. A brick is for those who have been training and can complete the run and bike distance planned in the brick.

2. Make sure the brick isn't scheduled too close to any planned races. Bricks are very good training workouts and are very hard on the body. There should not be any races planned within two weeks of a brick workout to allow plenty of recovery time.

3. Get all the gear needed ready. Fill water bottles. Get your running shoes set up for when you come off the bike and are switching to running. Place anything else needed for the run, such as energy gels, next to your shoes.

4. Wear clothes comfortable for both sports. One of the points of a brick is to practice transitions for triathlons or duathlons. Any switching of clothing costs time in a race. Making the routine as close to it as it will be on race day is extremely helpful.

5. Drink plenty of fluids. Since this workout usually takes longer than biking or running alone, it is very important to drink enough. Also, bricks are a great time to practice race-day nutrition if you are training for a longer-distance race, such as an ironman.

6. Focus on the transition from bike to run. Since most duathlons and triathlons require it anyway, keep your helmet on until the bike is racked, or put away. Then take off your helmet and bike shoes, if you didn't remove them while still on the bike. Get your running shoes on and get going. This is a great time to test how your feet will react to running without socks! It saves about 40 seconds of transition time.

Source

7. Force the run at first. It never feels good the first 100 yards or so. Most of the time it feels like your legs just won't work. The normal rhythm will come, but until then just force leg turnover and warm your legs up. You will most likely surprise yourself when you review your Garmin and find out you were actually running faster than you thought you were. 

While I haven’t found the pool here on base yet, haha, I do have my bike and indoor trainer here and plenty of area to run.  I’ve only forced myself to do this workout twice because it felt so awful both times!  I suppose there’s only one way to make it less horrible though – do it more often! 

What do you do to motivate yourself into completing a workout that you really, really do not feel like doing?

WAC Triathlon Recap

On Sunday, June 24th, I headed down to Wilmington to run the Wilmington Athletic Club Triathlon. It was a short one: 300m swim, 11.5m bike, 5k run. I haven't been in the pool to train since I was pregnant (Weasel turns 2 next month to give you some perspective!) and it's been months since my bike tires have felt actual pavement. I have done a bit of riding on the trainer when Weasel naps, but otherwise, not much. Luckily I've been running for the last year and half or this would have kicked my bootie!

With my setup

Pat, Jill and Liam pre-race. They take turns racing while the other cheers and watches the kiddo. What a great team!

My friend, Jess, was kind enough to volunteer to ride down with me and, being a seasoned triathlete herself, provide me with some tips for the race. She also let me borrow her bib belt which came in handy.

My friends, Liz and Jess (on the right). I didn't get a picture of her on race morning, so I stole this old one from FB.

After I checked in and staged my gear, I headed over to the heated pool to do a warmup lap. Thank goodness I did, because that's when I found out my goggles didn't work! I ended up tying both rubber straps to secure them, but water was still leaking in. I discovered that Weasel had removed the rubber around the actual goggles, so after fixing that, I thought they were good to go. When I registered, they asked me for my 100m swim time. I had no idea, so I guessed a 1:55. That put me in line at number 95 and 26 minutes into the race I hopped into the pool to start my swim. It was 6 lanes down and back. On the first push off, I realized my goggles were definitely NOT fixed. Nevertheless, I continued to swim, passing two ladies and then enjoying some clear lanes. I finished the swim in 5:56 (6th for overall females) and quickly made my way to the transition area.

Me and my fellow SW, Darcie, who was doing her first tri! This is just after my warmup swim when I discovered my goggles SUCKED!

Waiting in line to start the swim. I think I had just witnessed one of several head-on collisions in the pool!

And I'm off...

Exiting the pool and heading towards the transition area

53 seconds later, I was headed out on to the bike course, a 2-loop course with tight, technical turns. The staggered start didn't allow for much interaction along the bike course and I found that I passed two people and was passed by two others. The 11.5 miles took me 38:24, way longer than it probably should have if I had invested more training time.

I ran my bike well passed the "mount" line because the course started with a little hill. I didn't know what gear my bike was in, and I didn't want to get stuck:)

Starting my second loop. I was so bored at this point and really wishing I had someone to ride with.

I had decided not to wear socks for the first time ever and popped on my running shoes right away. I now know why people invest in those quick laces as I felt like it took a lifetime (55 seconds) for me to tie my shoes. And if you're going to buy the quick ties, you might as well add in one of those straps that holds your racing chip, or your ankle may end up looking like this:

This is from my run on Monday, but you get the idea. I was wearing one of those plastic bands they give you and apparently I didn't have it high enough or tight enough.

The plastic band rubbed my ankle raw:(

But soon enough, I was out on the course and running down people one-by-one. I'm pleased to say that I passed about 10 people and was not passed by a single runner. I finished the 5k in 23:46. It was by no means my fastest run time, but I was happy with it. The temps were brutal, but they had two great water stations available that we passed twice since it was an out-and-back course.

Someone was happy to be off the bike!

I don't run like this...I was putting my bib on!

The final turn before the finish line.

My friend Jill's husband was running too and it was so nice to see him a couple times throughout the course. It was also a great pick-me-up to see friends cheering me on! A fellow Stroller Warrior, Heidi, even brought her mini-warrior, Maddie along to cheer!

Heidi and Maddie. (Also not from race day, obviously:). This was taken a week or two after she gave birth. Yes, we are all jealous!

All in all, it was a great race. I ended up placing 3rd in my age group and 7th among all females (63 total females raced). I know I need to do some swimming and biking beforehand next time around, but this was one last thing to do for fun before turning to on MARATHON TRAINING! I promise my next post will finally include the plan I'm going to use. It has been really tough sorting through existing plans without deciding to quit before even beginning!

Me and Pat with our race "trophies." Pat placed second in his AG with a time of 1:06:36

Race Recap: HITS Series Triathlon - Palm Desert

On Saturday, 3 December, I ran the first HITS Series Triathlon in Palm Desert.  Normally I don't travel to far to race, but I wanted to squeeze in one more tri before I deploy, and this one was close enough (La Quinta is only 2.5 hours away from Carlsbad).  In order to ensure I didn't forget anything, I made sure to print out a checklist of what I'd need and I packed with it by my side!  This was the first race I did without my good buddy Leonie there to make sure I didn't forget anything.

      Friday afternoon Sean and I packed up the car and hit the road.  After a beautiful drive through the mountains, we made it to packet pick-up 30 minutes before the pre-race brief.  After a quick drive by of all the booths at the expo (hunting for free stuff of course!), I grabbed my packet.  They actually had a biking jersey instead of the normal T-Shirt, which was awesome!  Sean and I grabbed some dinner and headed straight for the hotel because we had to be up at 0400 to get to the race for the transition opening.

     Saturday morning went very smoothly.  The transition set up was great - pre-marked spots were placed for every athlete.  The only downside was that my spot was about as far away from the swim in/bike out that you could get!  Each spot also had a little stool, which made it easier to get in and out of each pair of shoes.

      The swim was pretty cold, water was probably somewhere between 55 and 57 degrees, so I went in with a full wetsuit.  Aside from the mass start of 250+ athletes off of the beach, this was the standard tri start of total chaos in the water!  The cold water was a bit of a shock, but after about 100m, I was warmed up and going strong.  Once I hit the beach, my feet were pretty numb and I was able to run to my bike without feeling anything!

       The bike course had a lot of turns, but the police were out in force ensuring traffic didn't interfere with the riders and directing the athletes.  We had an awesome tailwind on the way out, so I was able to average about 20mph...unfortunately, this meant that when we turned around, we had to deal with the headwind...which slowed me down to 15mph.  After struggling back to the transition area, I was ready to hit the run.

      The run is traditionally my nemesis.  Post bike, my legs feel like jello and it takes me about a mile just to start running normally.  Not this time!  I made sure to spin out before getting to transition and I felt great!  This was by far the strongest run I've ever had in a triathlon.

    Overall this was a great race!  The weekend was really neat because it included a sprint, olympic, half, and full IM distance, but it also added a beginners race, called the Open.  This event had a 100m swim, 3 mile bike, and 1 mile run!  Since triathlons can be intimidating to a newbie, this was a great way to get people started without overwhelming them!  Great job to the team at HITS for a fantastic event!

Final results:

Swim: 14:35

T1: 3:47

Bike: 42:12

T2: 1:42

Run: 23:58

Overall: 1:26:17

3/28 Females 30-39

Interview with Leonie Campbell

If you've been following the blog at all, you've heard me mention my best buddy, Leonie Campbell.  She and I work and train together (ok, she trains and I try to tag along when I'm not afraid she'll run me into the ground!).  I thought it would be interesting and informative to do an interview with her, as she is as close to a professional athlete as I can get right now!!  

Getting ready to start the swim at the Hard Corps Sprint Tri

Q1: How long have you been running? 

A1: I come from a family of runners.  I grew up with a dad that ran 8 miles a day and a mom who ran 3 every morning.  My brother and I would bike with Mom when we were little on the weekends, and then started running with her when we were in middle school.

Q2: When did you begin doing triathlons? 

A2: I did my first triathlon in 2008 in North Carolina.  My first few were relays since I could only swim (busted ankle) and worked my way to a full race by the end of the season with the Wilmington Sprint Triathlon.

Q3: What do you consider to be the toughest part of a tri? 

A3: Going to sleep the night before and waking up the morning of a race! The first part of the run is typically the most awkward.  Your body has to adjust from being on a bike for miles to running in a matter of seconds.  Things can feel rather discombobulated.

Q4: How many miles do you average in a week?  

A4: Swimming, biking, or running?  Swimming - about 10000 yds.  Biking - 100-150 miles.  Running - 20-25 miles

Q5: What makes tris so much fun?  

A5: I'm addicted.  Addicts need to feed their addiction.  I enjoy the combination of the sports, the people you meet racing in different places, and being outdoors.

Q6: What one piece of advice would you give to a runner looking to get a PR in their next 5k?

A6: Find a track.  Do intervals....6x400 at your goal 5k race pace will work wonders.

Q7: What nutritional supplements do you use specific for endurance training? 

I use Hammer Nutrition's Daily Essentials Kit.  However, I do not think that anything substitutes a well rounded diet based on whole foods.

Leonie and me trying to take our own picture :-)

Q8: How does someone go from running to the world of triathlon?  

A8: I'm originally a swimmer (water polo player) which probably makes the transition a bit easier since swimming is the most technical of the three disciplines.  So, I asked my husband, Knight, for his answer to this questions since he is a runner who has become a triathlete.  His simple answer - "Buy a bike. Suck up the swim." In a few more words, he added that if you find that you like your first race, finding a swim class or swim coach can really help make the swim more manageable.  As a runner, he may get a little behind on the swim, but spends the bike and run hunting people down.  I end up running in fear of being caught.  Being the hunter rather than the hunted is usually preferred.

Q9: What is your favorite gadget to train with?  

A9: Does my husband count?  For me, having a training partner far out paces any gadget out there.  That being said, I do train with a Garmin 310 and use Training Peaks to track my workout schedule and load.  I like the Garmin over the Timex because of the ability to easily move it from your bike to your wrist for the run.

Leonie with her favorite training "gadget", her husband Knight!

Q10: What is your most embarrassing moment (race or non-race related) 

A10: Race related - miss counting laps of the bike course for the TritonMan Sprint.  I got a number of phone calls and Facebook post the next few days asking how I do my job if I can't count to 3.

Q11: Tri gear is expensive. What do you splurge on? What do you save on?

A11: Hmmm....The only two places you can "buy time" is the swim and the bike.  Getting a triathlon specific wetsuit for swimmer or non-swimmer will make you faster.  The difference for non-swimmers (ie someone who isn't a competitive swimmer) can be upwards of 10 minutes in an olympic distance race (1500m swim).  Wetsuits run from $100 - $700. My go to wetsuit this season is a sleeveless that cost me less than $150.  Patience, coupons, last season's models.

After a couple races or maybe an entire season, you may decide it's time to upgrade from a mountain bike or road bike to a triathlon specific bike.  It's a big investment and doing the research or finding a friend that can help you is a must.  Buying a good bike is worth the investment if you are making that leap.  Do not buy a bike based on the brand.  Ultimately, the most important factor in the bike is that it fits you.  There are dozens of manufacturers that manufacture a variety of different frames.  Find the bike that you are comfortable on and fits you in your price point.  If you have a choice between flashy wheels or better components, go with the components.  Wheels are easy to upgrade later.

Q12: What's your favorite post-race meal?  

A12: Chipolte Burrito Bowl

My favorite picture of Leonie!!!!

Here are some of her amazing race performance highlights:

2011  

USAT All American Honors Female 25-29

All Marine National Triathlon Team

1^st Alternate Armed Forces Military World Championships

La Quinta Desert International                     7^th Overall

Super Seal                                                       9^th Overall

Armed Forces Championship                      7^th Overall

Wildflower Olympic                                       11^th Overall

Orange Country Triathlon                             7^th Overall

Escape from Alcatraz                                    15^th Overall

Breath Of Life Ventura Triathlon                  2^nd Overall

Camp Pendleton Sprint                                 3^rd Overall

Santa Barbara Long Course                         5^th Overall

Oceanside Pier Swim                                    1^st 25-29 Age Group

Tri Rock Olympic                                            1^st Overall

Orangeman 70.3                                            4^th Overall

SharkFest San Diego                                     1^st 25-29 Age Group

2010

Las Vegas Triathlon                                       7^th Overall

Marina Del Playa Triathlon                           3^rd Overall

Blue Water Triathlon                                      3^rd Overall

Oceanside Pier Swim                                    3^rd 25-29 Age Group

2009

Solana Beach Triathlon                                12^th Overall

Pendleton Sprint Triathlon                            6^th Overall

Surf Town Triathlon                                        3^rd Overall

Orange County Triathlon                               9^th Overall

San Diego Classic                                          7^th Overall