i'm simply crazy.

Hi, first time poster here. I'm looking at trying out some sprint triathlons in the Spring of '10 (currently working on half marathon to 25K to 30K to full marathon, all from cotober-january) and I was curious about a few things. First thing: the bike. I ride a vintage steel frame Schwinn World Sport. I love my bike. But it's certainly not the fastest/lightest thing. I mean, I can make it go fast, but still. It's heavy. Does everyone who does triathlons have fancy carbon multi thousand $ bikes? Or do y'all see old (well taken care of) beaters like mine out there too? Would I get laughed at? Ideally, I would love to someday own a fancy, fast, race worthy bike, but for now I'm making due with what I have. Second question: wet suits. Are these things necesary? I live in Houston, TX, so the swimming portion of any tri I do will be in a lake or river around Austin or in the Gulf of Mexico. I don't think being cold will be an issue. Does the wet suit serve an additional purpose?

I'm returning to cycling (and running) after a break due to medical issues.  I'm a little heavier than I was (5'1" and wear a size 8 to 10 pant) and am struggling to find cycling/triathlon shorts that really fit well.  I have pretty short legs and it seems quite a few brands increase their inseam as the size increases.  I'm looking for recommendations for a certain brand or style of shorts that fit other shorter cyclists with, shall we say ample, rear ends and thighs.  Any help is greatly appreciated!

So I completed my first tri, a "Tri It Tri", this Sunday and I did "Ok". My goal was to finish. And finish I did.

375m swim + transition to bike: 16:36

It was a cold swim. I got to about chest height and I started panicking. It was open water and where it was hitting me on the face was uncomfortable. I had to stop and regain my composure and breast stroked/back stroked the entire way. My friend and I did it together and she's competitive swimmer and it threw her off guard too. My transition was sloooww because I had to stop to put on my timing strap (which I almost lost in the water) and I was shaking soooo badly that getting my shorts over my suit was difficult.

10k Bike + transition to run: 37:27

Pisssed about this time. I blew passed a bunch of people, didn't get stopped at any intersection but lost time because I wasn't sure where I was supposed to dismount so I ended up having to run with my bike, got frazzled, ...seriously this is MY sport. Ahglaskdjf

2.5k Run: 19:22

Not really sure how I feel about this one. I didn't care at this point. I finished.

So Overall I'm glad I'm finished, I had a blast. I would like to do a pool one to kick off the year next year but I think I'm done for this season race wise. My body wasn't 100% healed from a cold/fever and I eneded up just aggrevating the situation and had to miss work yesterday. I want to start up'ing my brick workouts and I need get in the stupid pool more. I have my eye on a spint distance I want to do next year and I will likely redo this tri it distance for comparison sake too.

I did it though! Weeoo.

My foot goes numb on long bike rides, only my left one, any idea why?

After each ride I try to run a little bit, not a full out brick, just a little jog/walk around the block to get used to the transition (bricks I'm not yet doing after a long ride) and I'm finding it really hard to run with my foot numb.

FTR, my "long" ride at this point in my progress is 14K. It happened last week at 13K too.

Am I doing something wrong, or is there something wrong with me? Or is this normal?

Thanks...

I was a runner in high school, and have done some cycling on and off since then as well.  It was really only a matter of time before I decided to give triathlons a try.  Swimming, I thought, would be the big issue though.  I was a lifeguard once, so I was certainly able to swim, but aside from the 500 yards (or whatever it is) that you have to do for that, I'd never really done any serious swimming.  Fortunately for me, the swimming has come pretty naturally and has easily surpassed my bike, and is a lot better than my run.

I've been in age group contention in the small races I've done these last couple seasons, but I experienced something completely new with my race on Sunday.  As I've been battling a sore back all season long, I didn't have any goals for this race (1/3 mile swim, 15 mile bike, 3 mile run) in mind except to go hard, go fast, without blowing up before the finish.  

I was in the front line of swimmers in my wave (the first wave) and got off to a pretty good start.  Couple of strides (we were already in the water calf-deep), a couple of dolphin dives, and I was swimming.  I was swimming strongly, but was expecting bodies to start passing me.  There were people a little back and to the right and left of me, but I was amazed that I wasn't passed.  I kept going at what didn't feel like too hard of a pace, but I was still pushing.  Before too long I realized I had created a gap between me and the pack.  With a hundred meters or so to the finish, I realized that I would definitely be coming out of the water first... leading in the race.

When I got out of the water people were cheering... for me.  I couldn't believe it.  The announcer announced the wrong name as I had yelled out the incorrect race number.  But in talking back and forth with him as I removed my wetsuit and got ready to leave on my bike, we got it worked out. 

I knew that though I was actually leading in the race that it wouldn't last long.  My bike and run aren't as strong as they have been in the past, but I was thrilled to be in the lead for almost three miles into the bike portion of the race.  Then as I was passed (and passed, and passed), I encouraged and cheered for the other racers as they went by.

In the end, I wound up having the 4th fastest swim time and came in 19th out of almost 400 individual competitors.  It was really exciting to do as well as I did.  What made the day for me, though, was that swim.  That's something I won't ever forget.  Thanks for letting me share.

Can you give me some tips?

I'm female and have a nice fatty padding that makes me unsinkable, but I know men drag, esp men with long legs. What general swimming tips can I give to a 6'5 man to get the most out of his body type? Is there a specific twist of the hips or a type of kick or thing to look for?

Also: Same man has a big head and eyes more spaced apart than general swimming goggles are made. Any brands or kinds of goggles you'd recommend for a fit?


Bonus question: what are some running drills/training for a person raised in flat country?

First I wanted to say that I really wanted to throw a massive temper tantrum when I saw that all the comments talked about quitting smoking on my previous post. But...I have learned that when I get mad at a suggestion that means it is usually right. ;)

I am going to call and make an appt with the doc today to get some help on that. I will also have my husband have his battle buddy take pictures of him giving the 'look' and email them to me. ;)

I am making some changes with my sitting all day. Contrary it typical thought, I don't watch much TV. Being that I am in Germany and have only military TV to watch, there just isn't anything that floats my boat. I do spend most of my day in front of this machine though. I am a writer and most of my 'work' day is spent drafting scenes for the next novel.

I have been paying a local teen to walk my big dog, and seeing that this was an excellent way to start walking, I told him today he was out of a job. (This made him very happy since he didn't want to do it but his mom wouldn't let him quit LOL) I am going to start walking with him once a day. I can't walk him with my little one, but I can walk him once she has gone to bed and my older daughter is watching her. I can move around the block and a good clip.

Thank you so much for your blunt comments and support. I need people that are going to give it to mne straight (no matter how much I hate) instead of giving me false kudos just for saying I am going to do something.

I look foward to seeing all the posts and learning about triahtlons from you folks.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a pretty bad ear infection. When I went to see the doctor, he told me that I had a tiny hole in my eardrum and that I shouldn't swim for a couple of months until it heals. I asked him about wearing ear plugs and he said that would be fine as long as absolutely no water got into my ear. He said that if bacteria went through the hole in my eardrum into my head that I could potentially get a brain infection. Hmm... He was probably just trying to scare me into being overly cautious, but still.

I had some silicone ear plugs that I had bought a couple of years ago that I tried out today. They were totally useless. I was lucky if they held for 25m before starting to leak water. Have any of you ever had any success with swimming ear plugs? Because, you know, I'd rather not get a brain infection.

Hi, I am kate, an over weight couch potato. I have just begun my journey to competing in an Ironman. I am using the training plans laid out on beginners triathlete.com, combining the couch to 5k and the beginners bike plans.

I know the basics of the ironman, but is it the same thing as a triathlon, or tougher? What is the difference between a triathlon and a half? Should I start by doing marathons? (I want to compete in my first 1/2 marathon next summer, or at least be ready to do so)

As you can see, I really don't know anything about this stuff. I am also a pack a day smoker. I have tried to quit this year but with my husband being gone (deployed soldier) I do not have his 'what are you doing' glares when I want to smoke. So, I am going to quit once he gets home and can support me in doing so.

I am around 80 pounds over weight, though I eat healthy I do little or no physical ativity to burn calories.

Anyone, anything you can tell me or places you can send me or books I can read, would be greatly appreciated. I am open to all suggestions (other than giving up!) and would love your input. Thanks!

First,



Apologies for the length of the posts without the use of cuts - unfortunately I am posting on my BB and finding out how to do them on here isn't as easy - feel free to comment with the code and I will add it in future ;-)



Truthfully, the goal this weekend for the Squamish Olympic distance triathlon wasn't anything specific but was rather meant as a super-brick in preparation for the IM 70.3 August 2nd. I mean, if there was really a goal, would I have done a 100 km bike ride yesterday? Probably not! That all said, who doesn't want to beat the last time they posted, which for me was 3:01:42.



Well, the boring pre-race is that I did do the 100 km ride yesterday, which took a little out of my legs and unfortunately also had my back seizing up a little last night. Also, I stupidly had a couple beer with dinner (they were light - unfortunately not BL w Lime) - I am swearing off any beer between now and August 2nd's event. The topper was a horrid sleep where I was constantly waking up in a big sweat (heat stroke?).....Oh well, we got up this morning at 6:00 to head up to Squamish for what was a 9:30 start and somebody had a little IBS (details spared).



Now to the race, swim started and we were off - flying through the water like Dolphins, well I was more of the family dog that Dad always seems to throw into the pool once per year to horrify the poor thing (did your dad's do that) swimming with the dolphins - quite comical really. I managed to finish the swim in 37-1/2 minutes for (wait for this) 225/265 - I SUCK! I really have to take all the blame for this, yes my wetsuit is a little snug, yes my goggle didn't seal on the left side and I had water in that eye the entire 1-1/2 km, but bottom line is I Do Not swim enough and when I get in the water my thought process the entire swim (and only in the swim) is "I Can't Do This" the entire time, which can be hard to overcome quite honestly. I will admit here that I have always had a fear of the water - my Mom may be the only one who knows that, which is hard to overcome. Oh well, I can bike and run and catch those swimmers!



The bike was pretty damn good and overall quite nice - it was a weird 4 lap loop that had a roughly 2 km uphill and then what felt like 8 km of downhill with some short flats in between - weird... You (well, I) would do 45 km avg down the hills/flats and then 17.5 km up the hill. I finished in 1:19:.., which is where I made up a lot of time - I finished the bike 159/265.



The Run was good - I had fueled well on the ride and my legs felt good until that first 1-1/2 - 2 kms uphill in the heat, which had me breaking down and cramping up (new for me) with the hamstrings and lungs...I finished the run in a poor 55 minutes but given the conditions that was good for 131/265.



Overall, I managed a time of 2:52:30, which is 9 minutes faster than a couple weeks ago. Did I fell great - I knew I should, but when my wife found me I was leaning over and told her I felt like crying (I blame the dehydration, not the elation) to which she replied "but you beat your time" silly goose thought I was disappointed as opposed to dying - okay - stretch, but definitely dehydrated, but bloated at the same time so I couldn't take anything in my system as I felt I would vomit.



Overall I am stoked and feel like I am getting there - I really have to work on my swimming in the coming months/years (maybe use my legs) and my ability to handle heat, which is horrid given the amount that I sweat when working out.



Again apologies for the length of the psot, but if you made it here thanks for reading my report and I promise I will learn the cuts!