HILDEBEAST'S Mentor Group, CLOSED! (Page 2)

Name/age/location: Andrea 42 (43 in Jan) in New England

Story:  Swim team ages 7-21, other sports (mostly soccer) through High School graduation.  After high school my activity dropped off majorly (even with college swim team) and the weight started to pile on.  My deskjob that started soon after just added to it.  I battled my weight with Weightwatchers when I was around 30 and lost 60lbs.  Next was the quest for a child.  That had a happy ending with my now 7yr old son, but didn't help the weight or activity level.

Around my 40th birthday I decided to get active and purchased a treadmill with the intension of walking.  I walked daily then started playing with the incline and speed.  Eventually I tried jogging.  Internet searches helped me find C25K and the John Bingham "Penguin" books.  I ran/walked until Feb 2011 (I think) when with encouragement from my previous Mentor group I dropped the walk segments.  I am still a really slow runner and biker. 

Family Status: married, 7 yr old son who is very active, so I spend many evenings at swim team, cub scouts, basketball...

Current Training: I've slacked off this fall and early winter and need to restart running.  It will be a gradual build as I have some pain in my heel (PF?). I'm using my bike trainer to do part of the "beginner cycling program" found on this site.  I'm doing the long ride, the workout with intervals at higher cadence and the workout with intervals at higher gear with lower cadence.  Swimming needs the least work and time for me, but I am trying to swim twice a week.  I'm hoping to join an 8 week masters class for March and April.  I hope that they have enough swimmers to make it a go.

2012 Races:  1 indoor tri for training/motivation, 1 Sprint Tri in the evening in Aug (way too hot, humid).

2013 Races: 1 5K in April with my son.  I may skip races and do a few charity bike rides (30 miles) in June, Aug, Sept.  We'll see.

Weightloss: Yes, please!!!! LOL!  I've lost 40lbs in the past 3 years.  I'm going sugar-free for January.  I've been dabbling in Paleo/Primal eating.  I did a 30 day challenge in Aug and had a rough time with lack of energy, but lost some excess weight.  This time (started seriously 1/1) I am eating plenty of fruit and sweet potatoes to keep my energy up.  So far, so good, even though my weight has not dropped significantly, my clothes are loose!

Dana, you just joined, consider yourself a Beast!!  You are most definitely NOT alone anymore!  Please post a bio like the others and welcome to the group!!  I think this should close us out, so I will be posting a list shortly!  Luckily it's a rainy day in Texas and since my classroom is outside in a portable, we get to move inside and show a video on rainy days, so lots of time to web surf!!

Dana, can you open up your log for viewing, or add me as a friend, I can't see it!!

Here is a mentor group list you can copy and paste on your dashboard or use to add everyone to your friend's list.  Let me know if you have any tech problems getting around the site!  The list is hot linked so when you click on a name it SHOULD take you to their training log.  Please let me know if something doesn't work and I'll repost!

 The Beasts 2013  

Love seeing lots of new faces! Just a fair warning: Hilde checks logs like no other mentor - she'll keep you honest for sure!

Story: I'm headed into my third season of triathlon. I accidentally got started two years ago, when a friend talked me into training for a sprint because she was looking for a training partner. I was really a complete non-athlete at this point, I was never athletic growing up, and honestly thought I would never be an athlete. Two years later, my life and my family's lives have completely changed. I train a lot because none of this comes naturally to me, but I've found hard work will get you rather far in this sport. My husband completed his first tri last summer and my 8 year old daughter completed her first tri in October. I had to learn how to swim, bike, and run two years ago and now am doing my best to become a beast.

Training: I usually train 6 days a week and try to focus on running in the winter and biking in the summer/fall. I'm not a great swimmer and have been frustrated by how little improvement I've had over the last 2 years. Since I don't really like swimming, I don't do it nearly often enough. My training over the next 4 months, my training is going to be swim focused

Race plans: I'm doing a half-marathon Sunday, and after that all my training focus will switch to my first Olympic tri in April. I need to figure out my racing beyond that. I don't really like to race. I love to train, so I tend to race just enough to keep me motivated to train hard

Location: I also live in central Texas, about 45 minutes from Hilde. The best part of this, is I get to race with Hilde a number of times a year!Family: I'm 34 and married with two kids, and 8 year old daughter and 3 year old son.

Page - I'm in O'Fallon, MO - about 35 miles west of St Louis.  Been to the Springfield area a couple of times, actually hoping me and DH can make a trip down there this spring.  We could use a weekend for just us.

I'm having a hard time getting back into the swing of things after the holidays.  I had almost 2 weeks off work and got used to getting up when I wanted to, not when I had to.  Most days it was still fairly early, but it's just the idea that I got to decide instead of the alarm clock.  Kids are still at home for another week or so, maybe that's why it still doesn't feel like I'm back in the routine.  I'm hoping getting back into training will help too. 

Speaking of training, I've got a swim on my schedule for tomorrow morning.  If you don't see a swim session in my logs by tomorrow afternoon, please yell at me (in a nice way).  I actually enjoy swimming, it's getting there that's usually a problem for me. 

NAME: Scully

STORY:  MD PhD.  I work 80 hr weeks.  I train 10-15 hours a week.  I sleep in between. 

LOCATION:  For other Beasts in the DMV...I avoid the Beltway like it was E. bola, but I'll meet you anywhere on the W&OD.

CURRENT TRAINING PLANS:  Bike: main focus this year is to build confidence and balance so that I can finally get into the aerobars without needing to replace my helmet and tights. Run: this summer season will be speed focused, since my marathon was 5 hrs and that's just too freaking long to be pounding pavement. Meanwhile, I'm surviving the winter on the treadmill.  Swim: focus this year is recovering from a year when I wasn't allowed to get my stitches wet and, thus, lost all my swim fitness.  I used to coach swimming, and even though I wasn't fast, I was technically perfect.  Now, I just cry whenever I look at my bathing suit.

2013 RACES: Can't afford the fees for real races on my salary.  I'll stage my own Olympic distance tri sometime late summer.  If training/recovery goes well and I can save a few $, I'd like to do the Giant Acorn International Tri in September.  (Secretly, I'd really love to do the Escape from Alcatraz tri.)

SEASON GOALS:  Being alive for another year. 

WEIGHTLOSS:  I'm struggling with post-cancer muscle loss and having a hard time with core strength thanks to a newbie surgeon who was still learning his suture technique.  It's not the weight that bothers me, but I'm aiming for a 5% fat loss.  I'm also looking for suggestions for how to manage my nutrition when I eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the lab/office. 

Scully --- let's plan a ride(s) sometime!  I train on the W & OD periodically.  I am also thinking of Giant Acorn in the fall.

It's good to see the group taking off!

I have PDFs of workouts from various magazines that I have done in the past for my core strength.  I did the Sage Rountree lunge sequence and workout on pages 6, 7, and 8 (minus the treadmill part) 4 x week when I broke an ankle a few years back.  I believe that this was a key factor in posting PRs in the 1st year after the ankle break.  You can check these out here.

I am also doing sort of a detox thing --- lemon juice and cranberry juice dilution.  I did this two years ago for several months.  Believe it helped me drop about 7 lbs and set a 10K PR in the fall that year.

Have a great day everyone!

Melanie, thanks for posting the exercise doc- those are exactly the kinds of things I've been working on, so I will definitely use it!

Hello, Noobs! I'm Tammy, back for another season with the BEAST! I just finished my 3rd season of triathlon, and I think I've been with Hilde from the start. Here's my story:

I'm an airline pilot living in Phoenix AZ. My schedules are pretty cushy these days (yay, seniority!), leaving me plenty of training time. When I'm not sweating on the bike, I'm sweating in the kitchen- you see, I have a baking problem; if we cross paths, you'll probably leave with cookies.

I was a gym rat and sporadic runner who got into tri's to deal with running injuries and boredom. Season 1 I worked my way up to an Oly, Season 2 a HIM, and Season 3 ended with my first IM in November (IMAZ). I was slow when I started, never really got any faster, but I can go slow for a really long time!

Since IM, I've been laying pretty low rehabbing injuries and focusing on strength and flexibility, which I let slide completely during IM training. I couldn't run or bike for a few weeks after, and I didn't swim much because, well, I hate swimming :-) but I'm pretty much back in the routine now. I'm re-learning how to run (hopefully the right way this time) and I just added CrossFit training in the hopes that it will help with my running injuries.

Next up is a Half Marathon in March if I can get the knees to cooperate, then a Leadman 125 in April (like a HIM, with longer swim/bike and shorter run). Various other shorter races sprinkled in for variety. The season is split between late spring and early fall, because only a masochist would run mid-day in the summer here. 

As for food, I'm not focused on weight loss, not because I'm skinny but because diets make me neurotic. My goal is to cut down a little on sugar; I have a fiendish sweet tooth!

Looking forward to 'training' with you guys; let's make it a great season!

Here's  repost of our list.... I had one link that didn't work and I forgot to add myself!  Because I  work hard and like to get inspires too!  I *think* everyone's log is set so that everyone can see, but please be sure that's it's either open to everyone or add everyone on the list as a friend!  I see some beastliness going on as I check logs.  Remember, this is the OFF season, this is the time that you set your race goals, make a race schedule, and build your aerobic base.  That means just get out there and swim, bike, and run, inside or outside, JUST DO IT!  Your body will love you for it once you have a training plan you want to follow towards the season's first race.  This is also the time to do fun stuff... wanna snowshoe?  Mountain bike?  Golf?  P90X?  Go for it, every little bit helps.  Also, be sure to work your weakness... I'm a swimmer first and would swim 5 days a week if I could, but sadly my run is sucky so that's what I spend most of my training on. The trick is to be consistent.  Do something most days.  Don't worry if life happens and you miss a workout, it happens... happened to me this morning, ha ha!  So even the BEAST is human! 

Thanks to Melanie for the training tips!  Please, anything you find that sounds interesting or works for you, SHARE!! 

Please try to get to everyone else's logs every once in awhile and inspire them... this is why I always have such a good group!  Remember you have to GIVE inspires to GET them! 

The Beasts 2013  

Scully, you asked about nutrition when you are working 80 hrs a week... (first off that is just crazy!!  What exactly do you DO?)  I find I eat better when I'm not at home with free access to the fridge and pantry.  I eat a bowl of oatmeal withing 10 minutes of waking up with coffee of course.... I pack my second breakfast for after my morning workout when I get to school, and then of course I pack a healthy, small lunch.  Now if I had dinner too, well, that's a hard one, I'd either make stuff on the weekend or when I wasn't working that I could take, or resort to a frozen meal, which isn't the best with all the processing, but easy.  I'm sure others can chime in here....

Well I made it to the pool this morning.  I very much wanted to stay in bed but figured since I put it out there yesterday that I was going, I needed to do it.  I'm glad I did.  It was short and slow but that's the way I need to take it for now so I'm OK with it.  Need to do my PT exercises and stretches tonight - I've been slacking off on those and I can feel the tightness in my shoulder. 

Scully - I lived in MD for about 4 years (Greenbelt area) so I know what you mean about the beltway.  I worked in the Alexandria area for a while and just getting there and home was always a nightmare. 

Hope everyone has a great day!
Janet

Re: Brown-bagging ideas for Scully

I pack most of my food for work, even when I'm gone 2-3 days, so I have some experience here. Here are some of my regulars:

Hummus with raw veggies

Green salad topped with chopped veggies (or leftover roasted veg like cauliflower or sweet potato), edamame, quinoa, etc.

Grain-based salads: Start with cooked barley, quinoa, rice or whatever you like. Add in chopped veggies, dried fruit, beans, chopped chicken, arugula, whatever strikes your fancy. Add dressing, mix to combine. Will keep for a few days.

Chicken or tuna salad- light on the mayo (sub greek yogurt), add some nuts, crunchy veg and dried fruit.

Healthy bean dips- throw a can of beans in the food processor, add some liquid and seasonings. White bean with roasted peppers is good. So is black bean with salsa.

What else are you guys eating at work? I can always use some new inspiration!

I mostly just take leftovers for my lunches, but when there aren't any (like now since DS is home from college and everything usually gets eaten) it's usually a can of soup with crackers or maybe a sandwich.  I got a rice steamer for Christmas so I'm hoping to use that to make some better lunches.

Swim question for everyone.  I understand the concept of keeping a high elbow on the pull, but I can't seem to do it, especially on the strokes when I breathe.  I feel like I'm reaching down for the bottom of the pool instead of pulling straight back.  I'm assuming this has to do with my balance being off since it's not as bad when I use a pull buoy.  So how do I fix it?  I know a couple of you are good swimmers.  Any ideas for me?

And how do you get the chlorine smell to go away??  I took a shower after my swim (even used soap) plus I've washed my hands several times since and they still smell like I just out of the pool!  Weird thing is it's just my hands, everything else seems to be OK.

Janet

Janet -- I wish I had read your post on getting to the pool today before I bagged mine!  It would have given me inspiration to go.  Instead I went for a walk with a friend (nice substitute for a workout actually).

I also have the feeling of reaching to the bottom of the pool when I breathe.  I'm actually very aware of it but can't seem to find the fix either.

So I've decided that I need a pool goal...and it will be to swim 15,000 yards each month.  For me that equals about 10 pool workouts.  This might work better than just knowing I'm supposed to go to the pool on a certain day.

I have discovered that refrigerator overnight oatmeal makes a great breakfast and/or lunch.  We make up about 6 at a time and then the family just has one whenever they want.

I also pack an apple, banana, carrots, and something else.  This keeps me going throughout the day.

I do a lot of quick grab/eat at my desk.  While my husband argues that what I eat doesn't constitute a meal, these are some of the things I find easy to take to work:

Homemade larabars - dates, nuts, whatever

Various nuts and fruit 

Sweet potatoes

Second the hummus and salads.

My go to take to work food when I know the week will be crazy is plan old beans and rice (definitely a holdover from the slightly less broke grad school days).  Make a huge batch and eat all week.

Janet - ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) will remove chlorine.  You can buy it in powdered form in the vitamin isle in the grocery store for mixing into drinks, but add it instead to a liquid soap for an exfoliating effect. Or look for a soap that contains it, as lots of women's soaps and cosmetics have started to include vitamin C recently as a new anti-aging fad.

When you say that you're having trouble with a high elbow when you breathe, you mean the hand that's opposite the side on which you're breathing, right?  The arm in the water?  That suggests that you're a) over-rotating when breathing (pull bouys prevent you from rotating because they partially immobilize your legs, so they'd fix this.) or b) not kicking as hard while you're breathing, or c) beginning the pull too soon.  Try a variety of things to figure this out - focus on kicking and see if that helps or focus on making sure your head is starting to go back into the water after you've taken a breath before you start to pull.