Vinnie´s Inspirational Group - Closed for members, open for lurkers!

Since nobody has signed yet, I will write some random advices:

- I totally understand we are full of goals for 2008, and we might try to squeezy in some training over those festives days, but the mental stress is not worth the physical return, actually in between X-mas and New Years, you should give yourself an Open week, do what you feel like, be it take a couple of days off or even go for a 6 hour fun Mountain Bike Ride, I can guarantee you won´t loose much fitness and will start training in 2008 as motivated and fresh as never!!!

-Going in the same thoughts as the above advice, I suggest taking this time to think about the next goals, I don´t mean measurable goals such as "break 25´ for 5k or finish my first half Ironman", but to see yourself feeling good everyday, be it in a routine that will provide you time to train but also balance with your others commitments in life, think outside the box, seek for new training partners, new training venues, etc...

-Once ready get yourself a training plan, BT offers many good ones, and see your life into that plan, you have enough time to think ways and advance any problems.

Other than that, I´m waiting for some athletes who are training for a worthy couse, not that training for it self is not worthy, but you guys got it, right?Lets keep the inspiration running...

Vinnie




Edited by vinnieds 2007-12-26 9:14 AM

Hi Vinnie! My name is Melanie and I am 46 years old and live in a suburb outside Atlanta, Georgia. I never did anything athletic growing up (except a few dance lessons and cheering.) My senior year in high school, I was in a pretty serious car wreck. Twenty years later, I had two major reconstructive knee surgeries. At around 40, I played around a little with tennis.

This past summer, I walked 10 miles to honor my precious friend, Mindy who went home to Jesus in May after a battle with breast/bone cancer. She left behind husband, Ted and daughters, Megan, 7 and Audrey Grace, 5. She was the greatest inspiration to me with her infectious love for Jesus and ability to radiate joy in the midst of tragedy. My user name comes from her because she was the best at LIVIN' OUT LOUD!

On October 13th, I was married for 23 years to my chef husband, Mike. I also have a 20 year old son away at college. I will start back to college myself after 30 years in just a few days. I am also a piano and Bible teacher. I love hanging out with high school youth group and singing in the choir.

Here's the kicker... I am about forty pounds overweight and have never run before. I believe that the key to my success will be proper form. I am very interested in "Tai Chi Walking" and "Tai Chi Running" as well as "Total Immersion" approach to swimming. (I don't follow the spiritual aspects of Tai Chi as a Christian.) Several doctors believe that I have a form of fibromyalgia and so the easier approach will be crucial for me.

I love to swim and am excited about getting started back on that.

I have several goals and really have no idea how long it would take for me to do a triathlon. If I could accomplish this before I am 50 that would be great. For now, I would like to do a 10 K Walk/Run for Hunger in March in Atlanta. I am considering training with Team in Training for an Irongirl Triathlon in late June in Atlanta. (Sprint distance- 1/3 mile swim; 18 mile bike; and 3 mile run.) I just don't know if this is too ambitious of a goal. I like the face that it is for lymphoma and that I have the added bonus of team in training.)

There is an easier one a week earlier at Callaway Gardens about an hour from here. It is 1/4 mile swim, 10 mile bike and 2 mile run... very first-timer friendly including kids I think.

I haven't looked at plans yet. I'm a little nervous, to be honest. I welcome your feedback and if you think we are a match, then let's make a go of it.

One other point- my husband and I have a new catering business, so I have to be wise about finances.

Thanks for your inspiration. I look forward to hearing from you.

Edited by lvinoutloud 2007-12-30 4:17 PM

Hi Melanie, welcome to the group and thanks for the post, it never tires me out to read about stories like yours. I´ve read a quote once that says “Health is a crown on a well man's head,no one can see it but a sick man “ that´s pretty interesting, sometimes we gotta go thru some rough patches to really understand and appreciate some things, good to see you got some pretty positives lessons out of your friends cause.

From what I can see, we have 2 goals,

Short Term: Getting yourself into an active life, something that is going to be natural for you, not a chore, not “training”, but the athlete lifestyle. Of course this is not going to be easy considering your background, but once you get yourself into this lifestyle, you will understand why there are so many inspirational stories that came up with triathlon.

Long Term: Once you are feeling good with physical activities, it will be time for the next steps, TRAINING and RACING. For Training you would get your exercise a bit more structured, instead of 30´ swim, you would get some set and repeats, what would take you to a new level of fitness. RACING, I always like to add the word YOURSELF, after the RACING… So we have, RACING YOURSELF, as this is what triathlon is all about, once ready, we go the the events and prove ourselves anything can be done.

Donpt get too stressed about the upcoming events, lets take one step at a time. My first advice would be to get yourself moving, doesn´t matter how, pick the sport you most enjoy out of tri disciplines, you mention swimming, so if you can afford a 2-3 times a week swim lesson, and even better, try to get it close to your home, so maybe you can walk 20-30´ to and from the pool. Or if the reads are quiet, ride the bike to he pool, etc. After a few weeks of this you will get addicted to the sport and will seek for more!

What do you think, is there any swimming pool near by?

Happy 2008,
Vinnie

Thanks for responding! I have put together some goals if you want to check out my info. Right now, I am attempting to contact several swim places and a bike shop in the area.

Finances will play a role for sure. Don't know if I will be able to get in touch with anyone today on New Year's Eve.

What do you think about me borrowing a bicycle to begin? Gonna call a friend and see - I think she has a nice bike just don't know what kind. Know that I can do classes at the Y too!

I'll be back in touch.

How is your health?

Kindest Regards!
Melanie

Just want to try to reserve my spot. I'm working towards my first triathlon this summer. I have a long way to go since I currently tip the scale at around 290. My wife is considering joining the fun, but she's concerned about all the extra considerations because of her type 1 diabetes that she's had since the age of 16 (currently around double that) ((A husband who likes to sleep indoor never tells his wifes true age )). I will get back with our full stories after the holidays. Thanks. Happy New Year everybody.

Hi Melanie,

My health is going great, thanks, I just got back from a 1 hour open water swim here in Koh PanGan (Thailand), not a bad way to begin the new year, and even though i´m training one third than what I used to, I can feel that the base I got from years of hard training and racing will stick with me for a long time.

Borrowing a bike is a great idea, as I mentioned it would be just PERFECT if you could ride or walk to the swimming pool. For now, it doesn’t matter the type of the bike, as long as you can feel safe and motivated to ride it, if you really enjoy the riding, you can always get a better one later.

As for the finances, triathlon is only expensive if you want, for now you will have the swim classes cost, but after getting your self into a good rhythm and technique, you can always go and swim by yourself, no need to pay for the teacher after a while.


Vinnie

I am interested in joining your group.

I do not have diabetes, but have a father suffering from late stage cancer to whom I dedicate my training and races. I am new to the sport. I began training April 24th, 2007. I used the "Couch Potato-to-the-Race" plan from BT. I did my first Sprint on Sep 16th. When I began to train I told my dad I was dedicating my training and race to him. The week before my race he got a blood clot in his leg and had to be hospitalized and therefore could not be at the race. He was devastated. At the race, a good friend from church took pictures and video and another church friend put together a video presentation. I gave this to my dad on his birthday on Oct 25th. Here is a link to the video on You Tube if you want to check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uXODlxstfI

I weighed around 225 lbs when I started and now weigh around 195. I competed as a Clydesdale and placed second in my category at this event.

When I decided to do that first race, everyone who knew me was completely caught off guard. I was 37 and well overweight. I had never been physically active before. Since I began training you can see from my log that I have remained committed and consistent. I love training and what Triathlon has already done for me in my life. I am having a blast with it.

My plans for 2008 are to do a Sprint on March 28th in Galveston, TX with my brother-in-law (who I brought into the sport, this will be his first race). A couple of weeks later we are participating in the fundraising for MS by doing the MS 150 ride from Houston to Austin (180 miles in 2 days). Then on May 28th I plan on doing an Olympic here in my home town of Austin, TX. I am using a 20 week Bike Focus Olympic plan from BT. From there I plan on doing one more Sprint race with my brother (also a new recruit of mine to the sport).

I am married with three young children (whom you see at the end of the video).

My career allows me a lot of flexibility with my schedule so making time to train is not an issue.

I hope I am able to be part of your group and that we can get some GREAT people on board who are interested in INSPIRING and BEING INSPIRED!

Hi, Vinnie. My name is Jennifer, and I am interested in joining your group. I am a total beginner. I am a stay at home mom of 3 children. (Audrey is 5, JT is 4, and Kenneth is 2.) I have hypothyroidism and have struggled with my weight for as long as I can remember. ABout 2 years ago, I decided to work hard at being healthier. I was able to lose 50 pounds in about 6 months, but have been stuck in a rut for awhile and haven't lost more. (Because of working 2 jobs for about 6 months, I had to stop working out.) I am now working out again, and trying to lose more weight. (My starting weight was 248. I am not at about 200. My goal is 140.) I want to be able to lose the extra weight and show that even someone with a thryoid disorder can overcome and be at a healthy weight. I want to be healthy for my children.

My husband is in the US Air Force, and is a fairly decent athlete. He has actually inspired me to try a sprint triathlon. The base we live on sponsors a race each year, and he has competed twice. My goal is to finish this year's race.

Right now, I am riding a stationary bike at the gym and walking, each for 30 minutes. The pool here opens again tomorrow, and I will start swimming later this week. When the snow melts, I plan to ride my bike to and from the gym. I want to work up to running instead of walking, but I have problems with my knees, so I will have to lose some more weight before I can run comfortably.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Jennifer
:-)

I would like to join this group! I am a type 1 diabetic, 28 years old and about to sign up for my first triathlon. I currently run, am looking to purchase a bike and can't swim a lick! My husband and I are in the process of adopting a child and this is something that we want to do before bringing home baby. I am really nervous about this because of my lack of swimming ability and my fear of low blood sugar during the duration. Any advice you have in this regard would be helpful.
I am at a healthy weight, but would like to really tone up more and drop a clothing size (ideally I would like to lost about 10 to 12 lbs.) I am 5'7, 149 right now. I work out about 4 times a week and my husband and I run road races (anywhere from 3k's to mini marathons). We are running a 7k in March and the Derby mini in May. We are shooting for a triathlon in late April. I have very weak upper body strength (I can crank out only 1, military style push up- pretty sad) so I can't imagine that I am going to be able to hop in a pool and even do half a lap. My issue now is that I am an attorney and my job is very demanding time wise. So- as I get busier, my workouts suffer. I am willing to put in early and lunch hour workouts for this though.
I look forward to the mentoring, friendship and support here! Any good tips to kick of the year would certainly be appreciated.

Jennifer

Dear Vinnie,

First of all thank you for your inspiring story.

My name is Joëlle and I live in the south west of France. After initially reading your story I moved on to the next mentor feeling that I really should leave you « open » for people with diabetes or other diseases that may require a more « specialized » mentoring. However, it is the inspirational component that really called out to me and I’m hoping that if you do have some room maybe I could squeeze in;

I do not have diabetes although my sensitivity to sugar levels is pretty frightening (two mars bars and it’s like I’m drunk) and my doctor was pretty clear about me having to watch out or I’d be headed towards diabetes. I’m pretty athletic having done competitive gymnastics and still playing competitive volleyball and having life guarded in college. I wanted to seriously start triathlons a year ago but fractured my foot in early spring, which thwarted my efforts. Still, I signed up and did a mini tri in September, which I finished. After that the season was ending here and as usual, my priorities were put aside to give way to those of everyone else’s around me. I should explain.
My affliction, so to speak is that I have a disastrously overdeveloped sense of responsibility. I have almost an inability to refuse help, which, unconsciously, people (whether they care about me or not) inevitably take advantage of.
My life, for the past 4 years has pretty amazingly been on hold so to speak, in my sick attempt to help my family and I realize now, that (not being God) I cannot control everything and that there are some problems I cannot solve for people. Quite logically since I am always trying to help others, I never ask for help myself. Then, I get sick, get overextended, resent the people I’m trying to help for taking advantage, then forgive and am back to where I started. Today, I am in fact « stuck » for at least another year in this situation. Nothing short of a miracle could change that.
This brings me back to triathlon. I’ve wanted to put aside time to think and set an objective for myself to prove to myself and no one else that I can do something for me. A triathlon was exactly what I was lloking for. So….I signed up for the 2008 London triathlon sprint distance. I believe that if I train properly I can do it. I have no ambition to make good times, but only to finish. I would also like to run for a cause, which I’ve narrowed down to 3 associations (the final choice of which one I race for will depend on logistics and assurance of where the money goes). I know that training will allow me to do it. I am just worried of me not allowing myself to train properly. I am worried that as always, something will get in the way. That is why I signed up for something so big, with a date.
As I mentioned earlier, if there are other members in need of your specialized experience I am happy to step aside. However, honestly, after reading all the other mentor profiles, yours was the most inspirational and determined, and that is precisely where I think I need mentoring.

So, basically I’d like to be part of your group. Please let me know. If not, no worries;

Oh, and of course: Happy New year!

joelle

Hi Vinnie
I hope there is still room in your group. I have been doing triathlons for the past 2 seasons and will be competing in an ironman this Sept. I was drawn to your group because I have had to overcome/push through health issues. I have asthma, colitis and a bladder condition called interstitial cystitis. All three are autoimmune diseases which I developed in my mid-30's. I had long been a runner and at first I thought my running days ( possibly all athletics) were over. After a time of feeling sorry for myself I realized that I had to take control and slowly began to get back in the game. With medication and a carefully controlled diet I am doing great. For years I had wanted to do a triathlon, but was afraid of the swimming. In the summer of 2006 I did my first sprint distance and was hooked! I then signed up for 2 more the same summer. This past summer I did 3 sprint and 2 olympic distance as well as a 10 mile race and a 1/2 marathon. I have done well in my age group and even placed in 2 of the smaller races. I came in 13/80 in my age group in the Accenture Chicago.
The plan was to do a 1/2 ironman this summer, but after training along side a friend who did the ironman this past Sept and then watching her compete....I signed up. YIKES! I still will be doing a 1/2 this summer as part of my training. I go back and forth between being excited and terrified. Because of my dietary issues I find it hard to make sure I get the right nutrition and not have "issues" This is my biggest concern. It is hard to even find a nutritionist who is knows about sports nutrition and IC (bladder), in fact many doctors are not even familiar with it.
So that is my story. Even though I have competed in some tri's I still consider myself a relative newbie and I have yet to meet a fellow tri geek with the types of issues I have.

Susie

Hey there guys, I´ve written a small message for everyone of you just below,

I´m proud to say we´ve closed a group with 6 members. I´m only taking 6 as I want to work more closely with everyone here, and I´m sure people outside the group will be lurking for some good reading and to inspire themselves to become healthier, and better people.

Even though I´m the mentor here, I´m couting on everyone else to support each other, lets make the most out of it, take this next 3 months and learn with eachother lessons that we will be able to apply for a long time.

As for the next topics, I would like to know one aspect of your life that you feel you could be doing better, be it time managment, eating habits, being more relaxed/stressed with things,etc, and how this would help you to achieve your goals. So me and other members can have ideas form an outside view, in which some situations can be pretty helpful.

Welcome all!
Vinnie


Flying Triathlete: Welcome to the group! It sounds like you will get a lot of help from our member´s story, i´m looking forward to help you achieve your goals at your first triathlon this summer, and tell us more about your and your wife´s story!


brianesmith92: Hey there Brian, welcome to the group! I´ve watched your youtube movie and that was something very special, I wonder what were your dad´s thoughts when he saw that, i´m pretty sure he was extremelt proud!

The trainsformation you did with your body is truly inspirational, and form what you said you just bring more and more friends and relatives to the sport, I can have an idea how you can just inspire so many people, keep up he good work, I will be glad to help you achieve your goals.


jennkjohns: Hi Jennifer, thanks for sharing your motivation and story with us, and welcome to the group. From what I know about hypothyroidism and from what you Said about your goals, lifestyle, etc, in my opinion you shouldn´t be “trying” to lose weight or be more active, but instead, I think that you should find yourself in a routine where you will achieve both of those things, without really “trying”, it has to be part of your life, if you do it a little bit everyday, it won´t be as hard and you will get solid results. Welcome to the group and I´m looking forward to see you achieve your goals!


firsttrijj: Hi Jennifer, you are more than welcome to the group! About your concerns on going low in sugar during a race, you might know that due to adrenalin and other hormones, our blood sugar levels tend to go high, is this what happens on your road running races? Don´t worry about not being strong enough on your upper body, I have never been able to crank more than 10 push ups and was still a decent swimmer, I swam high 18´ for 1.500mts and sub50´ for the ironman, swimming is all about specific strength, once you get started, I will give you some specific sets with pullbuoys, paddles and bands, so you can develop your swimming muscles.

From your schedule, you would be better set with your main session in the morning and something shorter or low priority at lunch, so if you get stucked in a meeting or something, the main sessions would already be done and you could miss the lunch one from time to time with no problems.


joellee: Hi Joelle, welcome to the group! You are more than welcome here, I think that not only me, but this group will be mentoring each other all the time, as I´m trying to put together a bunch of “special” people with mental skills gained thru hard periods in their lives. You have a pretty unique situation and in the upcoming months you can get a lot of support here for sure. Triathlon is really a “selfish” sport we can say, those who are serious about TRI´s will need to put it up on their priorities list, one of my goals here is to make triathlon a part of their lifes in the health way, where it becomes they lifestyle and not their obsession.

As you realized, we just can´t control some things in out lives, but we can always do the best with the cards we are dealt with, and sometimes being in a group like this, the other members can help you play the game in the best way possible, as being in the outside, things tend to look different form those who are inside the situation, that´s why its pretty interesting to have you here, from South of france, me from south America living in Asia, we have different views on many things, so the final outcome should be interesting.

As for your sugar levels, you might have felt that being healthy makes you feels good, so pretty soon you will be seeking ways to make you feel better more often, thus leading a healthier, more relaxed lifestyle.


suzimmer: Hi Susie, welcome to the group! It sounds like you have learned a lot about yourself with the rough patches you had to overcome, this for sure will help you during your Ironman training and on raceday. I will be more than glad to help you out with those as I´ve a pretty good experience in Irons.

I would like to hear more about the cautions you need to take on nutrition and lifestyle in general. What kind of food you cannot eat, what could go wrong in a race or training, how to avoid it, etc.


_________

Hello everyone. I am so excited to be a part of this group. I have decided on a training plan. I am using Michael Pate's Total Sprint Program, and will be part of a local triathlon this summer. (My husband will also be in the triathlon as well, for the third time.)

As far as an area in my life that I need to work on, I will focus on my eating habits. I have finally come to the point that I realize junk food makes me feel awful. (Duh!) I don't want it anymore, but it is still a temptation. I am keeping more fresh fruits and veggies in the kitchen, and I've found that my children want the healthier foods more often as well.

I start training tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.

Have a fantastic Thursday everyone!

TTFN!
Jennifer

Hi Jennifer, good luck with training, just remember to take it easy for the first few days until you get into the training routine and a bid tired, as its pretty easy just to kill yourself in training when you are coming into it feeling fresh.

I´m pretty sure 90% of people knows that they could have been eating in a better way. What you just realized is what that movie "the secret" passes on, you want more and you will atract more of the things that makes you feel good, and eating fresh veggies, fruits, salads and lean meat will do it for you, try "paleo diet" on google, you will like the feel it brings to you, its pretty much what I try to achieve in terms of diet, as I said before I have a special feeling for my body and avoiding starch and sugar (of course!), makes you feel less bloated and with more energy, of course on the weekends I will have something junky, but as long its in moderated amount, I think its fine, there is nothing better than an icecream after a long ride on a sunday morning!

When and where is the triathlon you have signed up for?

Happy training,
Vinnie

PS: if you havent watched the movie I said above, that´s a pretty good one and goes completely along with what we are trying to achieve here, that goes for everyone in the group.



Edited by vinnieds 2008-01-03 2:12 AM

Thanks for the advice. I do tend to either maintain normal sugars or get low during a race. Several hours afterwards I almost always bottom out (below 60) and need some sugar (juice or a Mt. Dew).
As for one thing I need to change- it is really 2 thing. I need to relax and not get so stressed about things I can't control and also to make time to work out no matter what. I find it easy to make excuses not to work out. I also let stress take over!
We are planning on our first triathlon being the Splash, Flash and Dash in Carmel, IN in April. We also plan to run the Kentucky Derby mini marathon that next weekend. Do you think that is over-doing it?

Vinnie and others-
Thanks for having me as part of the group.

I think if there is one thing I would choose to focus on it would be being more consistent in making healthy food choices.

My eating has naturally improved as I have been leading a healthier lifestyle in general. One of the tremendous benefits of triathlon training is that due to the amount of hours put in training, I can naturally eat a fair amount of food and still lose weight. I need to conciously choose to eat fruits and vegetables more often, and not be so lax at picking up the pizza or fried "whatever" and chowing down to no end on it! All things in moderation.

That's where I am! Looking forward to getting to know everyone in the group better!

Brian
Austin, TX

Vinnie,
The triathlon I plan to participate in is the Fairchild Air Force Base Sprint Triathlon (500 yd swim, 15 mile bike, and 5K run). Fairchild AFB is located near Spokane, Washington. It is a race for military members and their families as well as retirees and government workers that work on the base. I am thinking about running Bloomsday in Spokane in May (a 7 mile fun run) as well.

Thanks for the encouragement!

Jennifer

Hi, Glad to be part of the group. The more info I can get about the ironman the better. I have read Joe Friel's Going Long and am currently searching for a training program. How is the BT program?
As far as your question regarding what I can eat... Let's see, where to begin. I have a many restriction with fruits and veggies ( a big hurdle) The IC prevents me from eating anything with a high citric acid content or is just very acidic. That means nothing with oranges, grapefruit, tomatoes, cranberries. Eating or drinking these will cause a flare in symptoms which usually takes the form of constantly feeling as though you have to pee and getting bladder pain. I also have to watch which sports drinks I use, as high levels of potassium can also aggravate. (no bananas) Fruits and veggies give the colitis trouble in a different way. Irritable bowels + too many fruit and veg = many hurried trips to the potty. I have had to duck into the porta-potty on a few races. I need to watch my hydration level carefully because dehydration can cause intestinal bleeding. (very scary) I also need to restrict my dairy intake.
Wow, When I write it down it seems like a lot. Through trial and error I have found "safe" foods that I can eat without problem and foods that I can eat on a limited basis. I also tolerate some fruits better more often when they are pureed. I make fruit smoothies with almond milk and add some vanilla protein powder. Peanut butter and grape jam is a staple as is chicken and pasta. The lack of fruit and veg bothers me a lot as all the reading Ive done on nutrition stresses that food group. I take medication for both conditions and it has helped immensely although it does bother me that I have to take 10 pills a day. My hope is that in the future I will not have to depend on the meds.
Oh, just a little bio: I'm 46, married 21 years, have 2 teenage boys (15 and 17) and 1 wild and crazy Jack Russell Terrier. I am a Special Education Teacher, so I have my summers off, which really helps with training.

Susie

firsttrijj: Hi Jennifer, what levels are you starting the race with? And how long are the races you do? Maybe if you could have a carbo gel 15´ before the start it should help keep it at a fairly decent level. Oh, after the race your body is so much more open to glucose that you don´t need as much insulin, that´s why you go so low.

For the working out excuses, that´s why I recommended early morning sessions, once you get then done, they are done! You have all day long to work on everything else be it job, family, etc, try to do training FIRST thing in the morning, wake up, get dressed, drink a coffe or something and go.

And I don´t think you will be overdoing with 2 races 1 week apart, just keep it active recovery in between races and you should be fine, how far is the mini-marathon?


brianesmith92: Hey Brian, I totally agree with you, moderation is the key, if we completely stop ourselves from eating our “favourite junk desert” we might go up the walls and just loose it somewhen, so I´m totally in for allowing ourselves to have a treat from time to time just to keep it sane! From your results we can see you are doing a good job, of course there is always room for improvements

But as I´ve stated before, and with all your weight loss you might have realized already, is that the fitter we get and the healthier we feel, we won´t feel that much need for the junk food anymore, kind of a inertia thing.


jennkjohns: Hi Jennifer, sounds like a pretty good event. And i´m totally in for you to do the 7 miler, its all experience after all and you learn with every single race you do.


suzimmer: Hi Susie, Joel Friel and Gordo Byrn “Going Long” is a pretty good read, atually when I did my first Ironman in 2004, I got many good tips from Gordo himself, his best idea is that we need to get “fit” and not “fast”, there is a big difference from those two. I haven’t had a look at BT IM program yet, but considering your job, you should work on smaller things from now until around May, such as strength on the bike and swim, running technique and efficiency, and then you shift to specific ironman training as you will have more time to train with school holidays and the weather will be better for the longer stuff outdoors.

As for your diet, it really remembers a friend that has Chron Syndrome, is it the same as your condition? Do you have to stay away from fibers too? The good news is that during training and racing you should be fine with most gels, bars and a sandwich, but the lack of fruits and veggies is something that I would work on, the smoothies is something that sounds really good to help getting some of the nutrients in but in a smoothier way and not as aggressive for you.

Hey all and thanks for having me.

First thumbs up for those of you struggling with your health conditions. Being in France there may be some new/different ideas out here, so I'll look into stuff and see what I can come up with for you guys! (see there's the compulsary helping...what can I say).

OK, as I mentionned earlier, I've signed up for the London triathlon,which is aug 9th 08 (sprint distance) (yikes!!! momentary freak out!!) I'm ok... So basically that would be the ultimate objective. From what I understand, there will be many, many, many people there, which kind of scares me, so I'd like to get at least one (hopefully 2 )sprint tris done (maybe one in june and one in july); so i figure, it'd also be good to get a couple shorter distance tris done in april or may...
ah yes, and some time in March I'll have to invest in a road bike (the current bike I have is an old , very old mountain bike!)

Which means: training starts today!! I've chosen the BT 20 week Sprint x2 Balanced program.

A couple quick questions for the experts: any running tips for beginners? I can run 15 to 20 minutes, though since I haven't done it regularly for a long time, I'm going to start by adding some wlking too. Since I never "ran", are there something like "the golden rules for proper form or something like that"?

Also, I know there is a local triathlon club here; I'm hesitant, because I want to avoid too many commitments and manage finances, but would it maybe be a good investment? How did you start?

Also, what I need to work on personally: 1. Placing my health (physical and mental) above all else: first lifeguarding rule: you cannot save anyone if you are drowing yourself! (let's face it I'm not a surgeon, no one will die if I don't come in to work! ) 2. Work every day on having a life of my own.
Ok the lifetime channel is off now, promise!

Cheerio
xo
joelle

Hi Joelle,

For your bike, it would be a good idea to get a good one for safety reasons too, not only performance, after all, there are some pretty nasty descents in France and you better have good brakes! If you enjoy Mountain Bike riding, you could get a MTB instead of a road bike and put some road tyres for the race, but if you ride most on roads, then the road bike is a definate.

I´m pretty sure there are many many tri clubs there, its france afterall, the country of triathlon clubs! I´m not sure of the financial costs to be a member, but i´m pretty sure you dont have to with you just want to go for some rides with them from time to time, as you realized, tri clubs are another commitments to our already busy schedules.

As per the "warm up races", they will be good as a learning experience, so you can try your equipment, clothes, pacing strategy, etc at the first, learn a few things, do another one to apply the lessons, and you will get a great experience for the London Tri.

For the run training and technique, try to run with minimal bouncing, it will feel wierd in the first weeks as you will feel more like a fast walker than runner, but very soon you will be flying. YOu can always count the number of steps you are taking, count how many times your right feet touches the ground on one minute and report back to us, as you are starting you should aim at least 85, and once you get fitter, increase to 90 steps, this will make you a more efficient runner and avoid injuries.

Do some mix of run/walk. For your first session, do a 10´ walk as warm up, and then run for as long as you can, easy and confortable pace, so you can have a standard set and we can follow your progress and give you better directions according to your fitness.

And don´t forget to enjoy every step in the process, its all about fun afterall!

Vinnie

and for those who still havent watched, this goes totally along with the group´s goals!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBkrIZu2fUU



Vinnie

Hi All,
Colitis and Chrohn's disease are very similar. Yes. I have to watch fiber, as my digestive system already works overtime and doesn't need any help to get going.
Most of the Ironman plans I've seen are either 20 to 24 weeks long, which would put the start around the beginning of March. I am sort of following an off season schedule to keep up fitness levels and a regular routine. I know I have to be careful not to do too much too soon and risk burn out. I will be doing a sprint distance the end of June. I did take a swim class specifically for triathletes to improve my swim efficiency. It was great and I would recommend that to anyone who wants to improve their swimming. I wish I had taken it earlier as I had several bad habits to unlearn. To every in the group who is afraid of or not a great swimmer - I hear you. When I first started I could only swim one length of a 25 meter pool and was TERRIFIED of open water swimming. I set small goals and when I got out of Lake Michigan (58 degrees!!) this past summer after the 1500 meter swim at the Chicago tri I was ectastic! I didn't drown! I I did have a few minutes of freaking out at the beginning. I worry about the mass start at the IM. I fear getting hit in the face and having people swim over me.
Joelle, I totally agree with you that you need to make time for yourself. To the contrary of people who think that is selfish.. I believe carving out time for you makes you a better person. I was a stay at home mom for 12 years before going back to work and always tried to make a little time for myself everyday. I think it helped me be a better mom. Plus, I was able to incorporate my interests into activities that I could do with my kids. When the boys were 1 and 3, I bought I bike trailer that held two kids which we rode everywhere. When the boys were older we would go on family bike trips. This past summer we went on a 50 mile trip in Wisconsin.

Well gotta go.
Susie

Hi Susie,

There is a very good professional Ironman triathlete called Jonhatan Caron who has Chron, he was 2nd at Ironman Canada 2007 I think, just aother example on how challenges like this just make people stronger.

Good to see that you are working on overcoming the swimming thing, it can really be scary at an Ironman start, just make sure you find a place where you are confortable and let the anxious age group man take off, i´m pretty sure you will overtake them along the way anyway.

For the Ironman plan, I would suggest you to keep working on some small things until spring, when you can start the really long and specific training. We are way too early to crank it up the miles yet, you have to be fresh and motivated when it really matters, the 4 months before the race.

So right now keep working on some of your limiters, basically "training to train later", working on some tools that will allow you better training later on. Ride the indoor trainer with low cadence, run on a treadmill with high leg turnover (if no tradmill acess, road is fine too!, and swim lots with paddles, pullbuoy, etc. By April you will be strong as hell and ready to log the miles and jump on the plans you picked.

Vinnie