Increasing My Time

I’m starting to increase my run durations.  I’ve been doing a 1 minute warmup walk, followed by a 30 minute run and 3:00 cooldown walk.  As of yesterday, I ran 32 minutes.  I’m thinking of just adding a couple minutes to each cardio workout every week.

I hate cycling indoors, so I’ve been ignoring it.  I’ll be adding that back into my workouts. It’s just sooooo stinking boring.   For some reason, running indoors doesn’t bother me so much.  I’d rather run outside, but I’m o.k. with the treadmill.

I’m trying to get at least 3 workouts a week in while the weather is crappy.   That way I can swim twice with a run or bike after and run and/or bike on the third.

Once the weather turns, I’ll be back to 5 days.

Recruiting More Triathletes

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, it’s pretty clear that since doing my first tri last summer… I’m hooked.  I’m planning to do 4-6 tris and a duathlon next summer, as well as a few 5 and 10Ks as well.

I’ll take credit for coming up with the idea of doing the tri with one of my friends and he talked his brother into doing it with us.  They’re hooked now too.  His family came and watched the race.  Since then, his sister, brother-in law, father and wife have all decided to give next year’s Chaska tri a try.

I’m sure they won’t all stick with it, but this is why Triathlon is one of the fastest growing growing sports out there.  Plus it really requires very little investment to get started and those who have the drive to do one are usually driven to more.

You also don’t have to worry about being the rookie.  About 40% or 50% of the people there are new to the sport.  There are also a lot of people there that aren’t really competing to win – they just love to race.  Plus… those who are looking to win are very supportive and definitely don’t look down on newbies.  In fact it’s the opposite.

If you’re thinking about doing a tri but aren’t quite sure… drop me a line.  I’ll talk you into it.

Duathlon?… Maybe? + REI deal

I was on the Gear West website (www.gearwestbike.com) and saw that registration is open for the Gear West Duathlon.  Looks like it goes a little something like this – 5k run/28k bike/4k run.  I’ve heard that the run is a little hairier than you’d expect, as it’s cross country, rather than a typical road course.

Duathlons may be my thing.  I’m not a strong swimmer and I felt like the effort I exerted in my first Triathlon swim really killed my bike and run.    I will admit that I like the challenge presented by the swim though.  I working on just being comfortable with it and finishing with plenty of energy and will power for the bike – rather than being nearly broken by it.

On a side note… I saw some pretty good deals on Pearl Izumi tri tops on REI’s outlet site.  I’ve read that Pearl Izumi isn’t really the best brand, but for $16, it might be worth a try.  They will probably sell out pretty fast.

Back to the Training – Again.

So I’ve been training only sporatically over the last 2 months – averaging about once per week.  It sucks, as I end up with sore muscles after every session.  This week I’m going to 3 workouts a week – at least until the weather gets a little nicer.  That could be a while here in MN, but 3 should be sufficient to keep me into decent shape.

I’ll try and do more entries to keep me honest.

Training is Really Starting to Drag

I didn’t get to the gym enough times in September to meet the minimum requirement for the insurance coverage.  I’m disappointed in myself for that.  All I need to do is go 8 times a month and they’ll pay down part of the fee.  I’ve been going at least 2 times a week since February + running and biking on the street on top of that.  In September I only went to the gym 6 times and didn’t hit the street once.

I’ve just felt really worn out.  The times I’ve gone and run on the treadmill (like last night), I wasn’t sure I could keep running the whole 30 minutes.  My legs just felt spent after about 10 minutes and my feet seem to be losing a little feeling over the course of the run.  Maybe the foot thing are the Yankz! laces needing to be adjusted.

Granted, I have had a cold for the last week or so, but I’m just feeling unmotivated.  I’m thinking about entering an event just to see if that snaps me out of this training funk.

Training Has Hit a Lull

For the three weeks after the Chaska Tri in July I continued on my frenzied training schedule of 6 workouts a week over 5 days.   I was assuming I’d be doing another tri in just over a month.  Then my parents came into town for a week and I only trained 1 day.  Then the next week we got a puppy and I didn’t train at all. 

Long story short… I scrapped the second tri for the year and have been only running, biking and weight training only once or twice a week since.   I haven’t swam once in the month of September and that’s really where I need the help.

I guess I need the event to motivate me to train.  That being said… I’m looking into some runs to do this fall (5ks or 10ks) to keep me working out more consistantly.  I really do get a lot of satisfaction out of working out and being in shape.  I guess I also like to just be able to say I work out and stay in shape too.

I’ll post more on my run training and suspect I’ll continue to bike and swim some as well.

No Hudson Triathlon for Me

I’ve decided not to do the Triathlon in Hudson, WI next weekend.  I’ve gone almost two weeks without training due to having my parents in town from Florida and the acquisition of a puppy.  I’m still not all that confident in the swim, so I’ll just wait till next season to resume racing.  Swimming a couple times a week over the winter should really help me improve.

I am, however, still going to get in a couple of 5 and/or 10ks in.  I’ll be signing up for this year’s Turkey Trot in Chaska for sure, as my wife and kids have expressed interest.

I need to get back into the habit of working out.  I’m actually a little disappointed in myself for letting the workouts slide so badly.  I don’t think I’ll be going back to the 5 day a week format I was doing before and a couple weeks after the Chaska tri, but I think 3 days a week is doable until next tri season nears.

Triathlon Equipment Review – Sugoi Tri Shirt

Originally I was planning on doing my first triathlon swim shirtless and then pulling on a cycling jersey for the remainder of the race.  After speaking with a few more experienced triathletes and hearing one story of trying to pull a tight jersey on over a wet body, I changed my mind and searched out a tri shirt. 

I’m a big fan of buying online, but was running out of time before the big day and wanted to be able to train a little in the shirt, so I sucked it up and bought through a local store.  I had intended on going to Gear West, as they have a huge selection and it looked like decent pricing online.  The night I headed out there I got stuck in traffic and wasn’t going to make it before close.  So as to not have wasted all that gas and time, I stopped at Start Line (the same place I got my running shoes) and pick up some yankz laces. 

As it turns out, they also had a small line of tri clothing, including a couple of tri shirts with reasonable pricing.  It’s good that I didn’t buy online, as I was sure I was a medium (I’m 5’8″ and a healthy 170).  When I tried on the medium, it was TIGHT (and not in a good way).  The sales woman commented on how you shouldn’t be able to see chest hair through the shirt.  When I tried to take it off I heard a small ripping sound, so I actually pulled it down past my feet, rather than over my shoulders.

So… Large it was.  I decided on the Sugoi Fuel (the price was right – at about $40 – and it seemed pretty comfy).  I wore it for training in all 3 disciplines and it seemed just fine.  I didn’t notice any drag in the pool and it wasn’t so tight I couldn’t breath on the bike or run.

After my first race I can tell you that it worked like a charm.  I went from one event to the next without even thinking about the shirt.  Plus, I looked pretty cool in it – I suppose I should have some pictures to back up my claims.  My feeling is that good clothing should feel like nothing.  I didn’t even notice the shirt at all… that’s good stuff.  It dried quickly and didn’t chaffe or irritate in any way.  PERFECT.

Choosing My Second Triathlon

I want to do another tri before the season is over, but I’m feeling the need to get more training in (especially on the swim).  I also wanted a week off from the 5-6 workout per week routine I was doing coming up to the Chaska Tri.  Last week I only trained 2 days – 4 mile run, followed by weight training and a 10 mile bike through the same crazy hill country the Chaska tri went through.

I’ve tenatively made up my mind… I’m thinking I’ll be entering the St. Croix Valley Sprint Triathlon in Hudson, WI – slated for August 30th.  It’s another 1/3 mile swim, only 10 mile bike and 4 mile flat course run.  This will give me enough time to improve my swim so that I should be able to rock the comparitively easy bike and run portions.

I don’t think my boys – Ben and Michael – wouldn’t be accompanying me on this one, so I’ll be going it alone.  Michael lives out of state and Ben has a bum ankle that he was nursing all through training before the Chaska tri.  I’ll still have my family posse there though.

On a not-so-sidenote… Andy – a fellow tri’er (FAR more experienced than myself) – finished the Chisago Lakes Half Iron Triathlon in 6th place overall and 1st in his age group.  Congrats.

Triathlon Equipment Review – Aevero Tri Shorts

I’d been looking for tri shorts (basically bike shorts with a thinner, perforated pad to allow the water to drain off more easily and make for easier running) for a while.  I was finding $45 to $60 to be a pretty common price range.  Fortunately I stumbled across a pair while digging through ebay from a company called Aevero for considerably less.  The buy-it-now was just $19.50 + a few $ shipping.

Of course I asked my friends if they’d ever heard of the brand and they hadn’t.  I had heard of sugoi and louis Gareau, but never Aevero.  I looked  up their site and they were obviously not a big company, but the site didn’t look like a fly-by-night.  Turns out they also sell cycling shirts and shorts.  Too bad they didn’t have a tri shirt for cheap.

I decided to pick up a pair.  I got them in just a couple days.  The shipping packaging was a simple bubble mailer, but definitely sufficient – plus it keeps the cost down.  The packaging of the shorts was a simple plastic bag with a paper insert.  It also included care instructions and a pair of free cycling gloves.  The gloves weren’t anything special, but the shorts looked pretty good.

I took them for a spin on the bike and the pad is about 1/2 the padding of a typical bike short, but good enough to get the job done (especially on a Sprint distance tri).  I emailed the company about wearing them in chlorine and got a response before days end that it was o.k.  They also recommended hand-washing and not wringing out the pad.  Drip dry would do and that’s what I did.

My practice swim went really well.  I was used to wearing the old saggy, baggy swim trunks and felt 1,000,000 times faster with the tri shorts.  Afterwards, I just rinsed and hung them to dry.

I’ve now run one sprint tri with these shorts and they worked like a charm.  I really don’t know how they could have been better.  I didn’t even notice them at all, which I’d say is pretty sweet.  I experienced no discomfort and abrasion or anything through the whole race.  I went right from the lake to the bike and through the run without missing a beat.

My final thoughts…
Durability has yet to be tested, but I’ve now trained for 4 weeks in them and ran 1 race and the reflective Aevero silkscreen logo on the bum hasn’t even begun to peel off and I really thought it would.  I think this is a great product so far.

GREAT DEAL and Great product so far.

***UPDATE AS OF 10/9/08***
So far these are holding up quite well.  My training has slowed considerably, but I’ve been using them in the pool and they’re still in good shape.  I haven’t been using them on the bike since the big first tri in July, as regular bike shorts are just more comfy.  They have faded a little bit and aren’t quite the crisp, dark black they were when new.  I’ve been pretty careful with them, in terms of washing and drying, so the pad is still fully intact.

Over a year after purchase…

They’re still going strong.  I wear them in the chlorine-filled pool at least twice a week and they’re still holding up.    Even the silk-screened logos are all still there.  I’m still very careful with them, in terms of washing and drying, but I’m very pleased.  Great value.  I’m actually looking at getting another pair, even though the price is now $29.