First Sprint Tri

findingfitness

Hello everyone.

I have decided to take the advice of some of you guys and start my on training log... I promise to try and keep it updated and I would love if you all feel free to comment, give advice and even put me back on the right road when i get lost.

Some background:
Im a 29 year old Female and I have never done anything like a triathlon before in my life.....
I did the Womens mini marathon in Dublin 2 years ago 10K in 74 mins and I thought I was brilliant.
I wouldnt call myself a sports person at all. I have been going to the gym for the last couple of years on and off and last year I learned how to swim.
I am about 5ft 5 and weight 11 stone so I can well afford to lose a stone anyway. Im watching what I eat and doing my best to eat good healthy unprocessed foods but I have always battled with my weight hopefully this time all the effort I am putting in will help me. I do realise that that if I do lose some weight it will help my speeds but so far it has stuck firmly @ 11stone but I do think my shape has changed slightly

My goals for the year are;
Main Goal to Complete the Salmon Run Tri in Ballina in July
Minor Goal to Womens mini marathon but faster lol!

No my progress to date.....
Run is at present 3 miles in 32:20 Need up this
Bike is 11 miles 01:14:27
Swim 1 mile in 60 mins. still have to stop between lenghts though.

Last night I did 2 miles on the treadmill
Ran easy (5km\h) for 3 mins
Fast (7.5m\h) for 1 min
done the run in 21:31 mins.

Today its Gym.
Bike, X-trainer and then weights.

Thats it for now thanks for listening:D

findingfitness

Yesterday I had planned to go to the gym but when I got home I was exhaused when I got home so I decided to make it my day off instead.

I have a dance class this evening so that the plan today......
Gym on Thursday
Swim Friday
Bike Saturday
Long slow road run Sunday.

DAVE_K

Fair play on getting to this stage. Getting into triathlon is an excellent way to keep your fitness up and keep you training. Goal based training is the only way to go.

You're on the right track as it is - you can already do the various disciplines - you just need to work on your speed a bit and putting them all together. Make sure to get your sessions in. Make sure to keep posting as it is a way to keep motivated (i hate the thought of my log now dropping down the pages) and make sure you enter the Salmon Run as soon as it is open.

Good luck!!

PLM

findingfitness wrote: »

Yesterday I had planned to go to the gym but when I got home I was exhaused when I got home so I decided to make it my day off instead.

I have a dance class this evening so that the plan today......
Gym on Thursday
Swim Friday
Bike Saturday
Long slow road run Sunday.

As a 44 yr old male with 1 year of triathlon behind me, i can only say its fantastic to get yourself fit.
Training can be hard to train train on your own, Tri An mhi is a good meath triathlon club, also training in both Kells and Trim during the week and weekend for all disciplines.
Dont over do it! remember it takes time for your body to get used to pretty intensive workouts!
Best of luck!

findingfitness

Thanks PLM & DAVE_K
I appreciate your advice and encouragement its great..
Dave_K i see your from castlebar thats actually where im from as it happens.

Well i did the dance class as promised - this is really helping with my poor flexibility.
Today is serious gym session and a swim afterwards.

DAVE_K

yep I've been in Castlebar a few years but have had to move to Dublin to work weekdays for a while - my family are still down in Cbar and I go down every weekend.

If you have a look at the race calendar over on www.runireland.com you'll see there's a few races coming up in March up in Mayo.
Why not enter one of those as an intermediate goal so you don't go off the boil waiting for Salmon Run to come around.

findingfitness

DAVE_K wrote: »

If you have a look at the race calendar over on www.runireland.com you'll see there's a few races coming up in March up in Mayo.
Why not enter one of those as an intermediate goal so you don't go off the boil waiting for Salmon Run to come around.

Cheers Dave ive just had a look at the site there and the dates in march dont suit im afraid but i have entered the womens mini marathon in june and ill keep my eyes peeled in case anything comes up between then and now.


Spent 2 hours in the gym last night
Treadmill 1.4 miles 15 mins - took it easy (not sure how accurate the machines in the gym are they dont seem to be too accurate may not be callibrated)
Bike 13 mins 3.7 miles hills and kept my rpm over 90
Then did some weights lunges etc

Heading to the pool after work today

findingfitness

Well to update on my progress over the weekend.

I went for a swim after work on friday i was tired before i started and found it really difficult so i gave up after 15 mins and only 400 metres.
Saturday i went for a long cycle 1:20:00 it was good plenty of hills and wind against us lol but did it and it didnt kill me. not sure of the distance im going to clock it this evening so ill let ye know.
Didnt do my run on sunday felt i needed the break and not today im fighting fit again.

Plan for this evening is to do that run i missed yesterday long and slow.

Oh and I have lost 1lb i now weigh 10st 13lb - long way to go but its progress so yipee!!!!!:D

findingfitness

Monday weather terrible so stuck to the treadmill in the house did 4 miles really slow. 48 mins so thats 12 min\mile. felt i could have kept going but havent done that distance before so i didnt want to go too far.

Tuesday was meant to go to the gym but had to work late and by the time i got home it was just way too late.

Today i have my dance class but will go for a run on the treadmill before i go. i have been looking at a few websites as i wanted to mix up my runs a bit more so tonight i am going to start slow and gradually build up my speed then gradually slow it down to recover and repeat this. I'll let ye know how that goes they say its good for building up speed and that it will make your normal pace feel more comfortable and build fitness so ill give it a go.

DAVE_K

I used to do

(4 mins slow 1 min fast) * 2
(3 mins slow 2 min fast) * 2
(2 mins slow 3 min fast) * 2
1 min slow 4 mins fast
Total 35 mins

with slow being around 12 and fast around 15

It's pretty good for bringing on the fitness

Myggel

Hey, make sure not to do too much too soon.
It can lead over training and burnout which means you'll be knackered and turned off training altogether.
I did my first season of tri's last year and my advice to you is put in the time you realistically can, simply aim to finish your first one in one piece and most of all enjoy yourself.
BEst of luck with it.

findingfitness

Well im afraid I have to confess that i didnt do anything i set out to do last night. when i got home from work i was wrecked so i gave myself the night off and went to bed early...

I feel all the better for it today i must admit, and so Dave K i think today i will try your suggestion see how that goes.

I have been letting myself off very lightly this week and will have to pull my sox up. I havent been to the pool or the gym this week at all. i know its no harm to have an easy week but i dont want to let myself away with too much either.

Myggel thanks for your advice i know you are right about the overtraining and burnout maybe thats what happened me this week i will deffinatly keep your advice in mind.

findingfitness

Well Dave K

I attempted your idea last night but it didnt go according to plan im afraid
It started out well i did the
4 mins slow 1 min fast) * 2 then i started to do the
(3 mins slow 2 min fast) * 2 but at 1.5 mins fast i had to stop with a brutal stitch after that i just ran slowly and stopped after 2 miles which i finished in 21:12. i was mad with myself really because i just used an excuse not to finish what i started out to do.

After that i did some core work and left it at that...
This evening i think ill take the bike out for a short cycle on a nice hilly road near my house thats if it stops raining of course. If the weather is bad then i will either go to they pool or have a run on the treadmill.... probably the pool i think.

findingfitness

Friday I only did 1 mile 8:58
Saturday I did 2 miles on the treadmill....in 19:55 about 10 min mile
Sunday I swam 750 meters it took me 30mins the pool was well full with loads of kids and had difficulty getting a lane to swim in at all. I really need to organise a swimming lesson or two this week.

Didnt get out on the bike at all this week weather was so bad. time changes in a couple of weeks that god so will have more time then.

DAVE_K

yep it sure is easy to talk yourself out of it when you're running on the same spot. You'll get much more out of yourself outdoors but then there's the weather to contend with

findingfitness

Ok so this week...
i bought a copy of the Triathletes world magazine the weekend I really love reading anything I can get my hands on about them it inspires me in some daft way.

There was a training plan in it and it looks like something I can follow without too much trouble so I decided to give it a go.

It called for Monday off
Tuesday - 680m 28mins a Swim 100 metres warm up and then some drills like just kicking using back stroke and resting for just 15 secs between then going hard as i could for 2 lengths then resting for 40 sec then and so on the plan specified 800 metres but that was for a 25 metre pool i was using a 20 metre pool and so when i changed the lengths it worked out at 680 metres (If I used my head i could have added a length here and there to make up the distance) It took me 28 mins to do the whole lot which was too slow i know.
Then Wed Run 20:35 2 miles
I hoped to get home from work in time to do it on the road but It didnt work out so the treadmill it was.
I did 2 mile in 20:35 that was 5 min easy then 4 * 2 fast and 1 slow then cool down jog 3 mins.
tonight its a bike ride and again im going to try and get home before dark to get it done.

Sorry for the big long post Ive only just realised Ive been rambling on and on there.

findingfitness

Thurs 12th bike ride 26 mins 5.1 miles so 11.9mph

was away for rest of weekend at a wedding so didnt get any training done till today....

Mon 16th Road run 4.2 mile 43:57 mins so about a 10.5 min mile which was my longest road run to date and alse my fastest slow run if that makes sence. and my god was i buzzing for the day after it...

findingfitness

Hi all..... I havent been as good as i should be of late so I really need to pull my socks up i havent been swimming at all this week and im too weak to be leaving it

Paddys day 17th I went out on the bike It was much slower than I would have liked and I felt I could have gone much faster but the girl with me had hurt her foot and it played up a bit and that slowed us down
all in all we done 50 mins only about 7.8 miles

Today 19th I went for a run it was a beautiful evening and I got home before dark I did 1.5 miles in 14.09 mins The run was slow in spots even walked once or twice then fast for a bit then slow again. i suppose it was fartlek. I was actually really happy with my speed I didnt think that i would average at 9.4 min mile which was fastest on the road by a long shot. it was hard though I will admit but great.

Cycle tomorrow cause going away for the night tomorrow. I think I will do Tuesdays route see if it will be much faster.

MCOS

Good stuff findingfitness, remember consistency is key. Your body will forgive you for the days you push it a little further because on rest days it gets stronger!

findingfitness

Thanks MCOS
everyones encouragement is more appreciated than you know...
My speed in everything is much too slow really but i just need to get more training in and hopefully improvements will keep coming.

As promised i did tuesdays cycle again on Friday and i did it 9 mins faster which i was very pleased with... its a fairly hilly course with one or two killers so it was hard keep a constant speed up. I felt good after it though. I didnt do anything else for the weekend i was away and had family commitments. but this evening im heading to the pool its been way too long

so just to recap Friday 41 mins 7.8 miles

findingfitness

As promised I did the swim last night.
I did some kick only some with a pull boy
Some breast stroke (well only 2 lengths that nearly killed me lol) I just cant get the hang of breast stroke and watching others in the pool they make it look effortless I cant figure it out.

All in all i did 1100 metres in 40 mins. im not really sure how good or bad that is though but its def good for me cause i never covered that distance before in all my life.

Going to get a quick run this evening going to dinner with a friend so it will only be a short one.

jlang

I'm the opposite. I can breaststroke at a good rate (did 2200m in an hour before, but would be faster over a shorter distance) but still run out of energy after a couple of lengths of front crawl. My technique is improving with each weekly lesson but I don't know if I'll be up to the distance come May.

findingfitness

jlang Wow 2200 in an hour that greats i swear i was flapping about like an idiot trying to do 2 lengths of breaststroke last night i must have looked a fright lol. I know what you mean about running out of steam in the front crawl my technique is not great either i need to orgainse a lesson or 3 for myself asap. hopefully then my speed will start to improve.

jlang

A once off. That day I went to the pool early and had a lane to myself. I didn't feel too tired so I just kept going. I'm doing too much running these days to be able to manage a long swim session. If I go at all other than for my lesson, I try to stick to front crawl and stop once I feel tired or if I'm swimming badly.

Anyway, sorry for clogging your log with my swimming! I'll be delighted when I can crawl for 1100m.

findingfitness

Well clog away jlang lol

Brutal weather yesterday should really have gone to the gym not really sure why I didnt if I'm honest... I really seem to have dropped the ball recently and I have to pull myself together or I never get to where I want to be.

I went on the treadmill last night but got bored and let myself off early I'm so mad at myself for doing that and I cant let that happen again.
I ran 1.5miles in 14:18 TM which isnt even good when you consider I did that distance on the road the other day in 14:09. its so much easier to stay motivated on the road cause well you need to get home on the TM you just have to turn it off and your there.

findingfitness

Well today my aim was to run 5 miles but I ran with a friend who couldnt keep up so it was a little bit of stopping and starting but we did manage to to run 3 miles in 30 mins so it wasnt too bad. I did nothing else all weekend though i really could do with someone giving out to me and telling me to get my ass in gear lol.

today i rang my gym looking for swimming lessons so im waiting for a call back about that. and tonight im going for either a run or a cycle and then ill head to the pool.

findingfitness

Thank goodness for longer evenings yipee!!! yesterday i got out on the bike after work and did 52:48 mins i only covered about 10 miles though so that is brutally slow but in my defence it was alot of hills on the route so it was hard to keep a speed up.

Swim this evening i want to see if i have improved my 750 time at all.

findingfitness

Well no going back not i have entered the Salmon Run Ballina and im delighted with myself......

findingfitness

Well im feeling all inspired again now so i plan on making the most of that.

Last night i did a swim of 750 metres again and did it in 24:48 this is still savage slow but its an improvement of 10 mins for me so happy days.

This evening im taking the bike out with a friend to we are going to do the 20k im dying to see how i do.

findingfitness

Yippee i did it. My maiden voyage at the 20km bikr distance and i did it in 52 mins but god was i wrecked after it...

I have a long way to go but i really feel now that im makin progress
Track this evening

I did the track 12 laps so it was around run 3 miles 30mins my legs were wrecked though i presume it was from the bike the night before i had to stop and stretch at one stage.

tomorrow its pool for me and then off saturday.

findingfitness

Ok Well I consider last week a good weeks training even though I let myself off easy the weekend.

Total for week
Ran 8.1 miles avg 10.5 min\mile (not great speed)
Bike 22.3 miles avg 12.8 mph
Swim 750 meters 25 mins (should have done alot more of this)

This week i intend to improve on all of the above im going away next week so i wont be able to swim or bike while im gone but i do plan to get some running in

Yesterday I ran about 5 miles in 54 mins. I could have done it much faster but I had a friend running with me and she had trouble keeping up so we had to do a bit of stopping and walking.

findingfitness

Hi All....

I havent gone away i promise just went off da track there for a couple of weeks. I was in america on hols and didnt get a chance to do any training. went ice skating and hurt my knee (smart i know but i couldnt resist it is great fun) nothin serious i could still walk away but it was sore so i thought id be better letting it come right before i stressed it again. went swimming a few days after i got home and i could feel it even in the pool. was away again last week with work but home now and back full steam ahead TG.

Last night i did a bike ride time 1:21 - 15.4 miles not amazing but it was a rough country road and hilly as hell so i couldnt get much speed up. felt great after it i must say besides the bit where the dog tried to take me off the bike lol.

This evening its the track as long as the weather holds if not i have my swim gear with me also so it will be one or the other.

findingfitness

Well It was raining yesterday evening so i went for a swim instead
Did Some drills and then some lengths... altogether 50 lengths of 20m pool so 1000m time was 38mins. was happy with it i must admit.

Track this evening.

findingfitness

Last night went to the track.... done 4 slow laps (mile 1) Stopped and stretched cause my calves were really tight. then picked up a little, on the long side i picked up alot then slowed right back down i did this for 8 laps...

It still took me 30 mins to do 12 laps this is terribly slow isnt it?

Run 30 mins 3 miles

Swim this evening hopefully ill find a pool nearby that isnt doing kids lessons, thats the worst about friday evenings

findingfitness

Well long weekend over and full week of training done TG although not exactly what I had planned.

Friday was feeling tired but went for a swim anyway.

I did 750 meters i think in about 24 mins but will have to check some drills were included in that.

Sat went for a cycle did 18.8 miles took 1:10 mins not fast I know but was pleased with the distance.

Sunday found it really hard to get out the door, in the end my partner convinced me to go out for a short run so I did and I was thrilled with myself in the end I did 2 miles in 17 mins thats 8:30 min mile a pb for me I was well tired after it but felt great. sometimes all I need is push.

Took monday off, and going for a swim today.

MrCreosote

Hey findingfitness
Nice work on keeping the consistency up. Good to see the times improving too I'd say!
I'd say your bike times aren't too bad at all by the way. What kind of bike do you ride?

findingfitness

Thanks a mill Mr Creosote

I really is great to get feedback from you guys. My bike is just hybrid type bike, I bought it last year and had never even thought of a triathlon, it was a few months later when a friend suggested a triathlon, i wish now i had bought a bike with a triathlon in mind because if i get bitten by the bug after this tri then ill have to consider buying a better bike.

Im really enjoying the training though and ya I am seeing improvements all the time in my times TG. just wish i could shed a few pounds along with it..

MrCreosote

I wouldn't be worried about those bike times at all. Especially on a hydrid. only 13 miles in a sprint tri too!
Throw in a few runs after a bike closer to the event too. The jelly legs sensation is "interesting" :pac:

findingfitness

I bet you all thought I was gone forever??

No Im still here and have had a very lazy few days but im my defence it was my Birthday and my god did I celebrate it lol...

Thats all over now though and its back to work for me.
Last time I did anything right was last Thursday 8th I did a 30min Swim only about 30 lengths though but it was drill work mostly so i didnt mind that. Then on Tuesday I had what I would consider my best run ever.
I Ran 5.5 miles in 51:23 mins and my last mile was about 20 secs faster than my first so basically without making a consious effort to speed up at all I brought my slow run from 10 min miles to 9.3 min miles and felt fantastic after it. so Yipee for me!!!!!