Wanna make a pact? I'll go swim Thursday if you will. Deal?

Anne

P.S. I did ride the mountain bike this morning, mostly on the road, and practiced standing the uphills and downhills, bailing out on the "wrong" side, starting with the "wrong" foot, etc. For my graduation exercise I rode across a primitive road in my neighborhood that crosses a wash (dry stream bed) with lots of rocks and sand. Thirty minutes. Now I have to motor to work.

I didn't go swimming today even though it was my scheduled day. Mostly because I was exhausted from yesterday's running/physical therapy. I plan to ride my trainer tonight.

I'm also having trouble with my food and swimming makes me hungry. I hate the idea of struggling with food and being hungry to top it off.

I'm in, Anne! We'll both hit the pool Thursday.

I applaud all you triathloners, and I'm interested in your progress as a bystander!

I'm full of advice, thanks in advance for reading. But I couldn't pass up swimming questions.

This is for Paperclippy. The 100 meter swim. Let's say you did the 50 in 3 minutes, (using your 2 or 4 minute numbers) and multiply it by 2 and say 6 minutes. Then if you want you could add another minute for the conversion from the yards you swam to meters (there is a 10% difference, 100 meters is about 110 yards) So you could even say 7. Then add another minute just for fun, if you want. No way you'd do 12 minutes for 100 meters. In fact I think 7-8 may be too much, given you will be training for a while and you'll get better fast. But, it gives you some room. I would think you would not want to be with people who swim a LOT slower than you as it will drive you insane going around them, and mess up your rhythm. Of course you don't want to be with people going too fast either, but I personally think you'd be better off with those who are a little better vs too slow.

I think this makes sense as I've been working with a friend who wants to do a triathlon and is an AWFUL swimmer. I mean sinking to the bottom when I first saw him swim. But he's really determined and works really hard and he's progressed very well - now can do 50's and 100's when before, well, it was 25 yards, wait 3 minutes, try again. Anyway, he can do a 50 in about 1 minute now, and for the 100, it's about 3 minutes. He switches between breastroke and freestyle to save energy if he needs it, but these were freestyle times. This is after about 2 months of working on it. I think by the time he wants to do the triathlon in the summer he can hold a 4 minute pace on the 100 easily while swimming continuously.

If you can find someone to look at your stroke and help you with your breathing or any other issue it will really help - it will save you energy to swim more efficiently. I guess this is an obvious point but people often think they just need to get in the laps and get stronger. Why work harder than you need to? You have the other 2 events to think about and you need your energy for them.

Somebody else asked about caps. On the cap question, I don't wear one now, as I have hair about 1 inch long, but I did for some time. Works better if your hair is a little damp but you can put it on dry. Stretch it over your forehead and pull back over your head. Stuff in the rest of the hair as needed. Works better if your hair is also in a pony tail, etc, rather than being loose. Less pulling. With practice you'll know how far up on your head you need to start to get it to go over all your hair comfortably.

Good luck with the whole thing, everybody, it speaks to your determination.

Geranium, thanks for the info/advice! I have a friend who did a tri a few months ago who also recommended getting someone to look at my stroke. I think I can maybe pay for a single session with a swim coach at my pool, so I'll look into that.

Anne, are we still on for swimming today? I'm planning to go right after work.

Yesterday's run was C25K week 5 day 2 -- two 8-minute runs with a 5-minute walk in between. It felt surprisingly easy, but my legs/knees were kind of sore last night. Probably because I did leg strength on Tuesday. I know I need to do leg strengthening to make sure I keep the muscles I don't use as much strong so my knees don't get screwed up, but I feel like doing strength in between two days of running is too much for my legs to handle. Any suggestions?

It's supposed to rain tomorrow. Not sure what I'll do about my planned run.

Yeah, still swimming today. I was going to go this morning, but got the 4 am wake-up call from the boy, and then got the kids out and it was 45 deg, and I decided that going after work would be a good plan. So after work it is. Bag is packed and in car (I have 7 bags today, I kid you not).

No suggestions on strength training and running. I always had the same issue and never figured it out. There are some tri books that suggest different types of strength training depending on what tri training you are doing. One of these days I'm going to try one of those schemes and see if it helps.

Anne

paperclippy - I'm actually in a place where I'm doing leg strength workouts on the same days as my runs. You should be fine with doing strength in between your running days. My lower body strength training though comes from the physical therapist that is helping me with my running program.

Today was absolutely bananas, but I did go to the pool for a quickie swim and got in about 30 minutes (2x500yds + rest). I wouldn't have gone without the deal, so thanks. Did you make it, Jessica? My time was sort of cruddy, just under 12 minutes for the 500, but hey, I swam, and it did feel good.

My Active tri newsletter has this link about strength training for triathlon. I haven't had a chance to read it, and probably won't for a few days, but it is by a reputable tri coach.

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Arti...ight_Room_.htm

Anne

I did go, Anne! I'm glad we made a deal. I also did about 30 minutes but for me it was 5x50yds. Now I just need to get my butt over there Saturday too. Yesterday's swim actually felt easier than last week's, which was encouraging. I find that breaststroke is about infinity times easier for me than freestyle, so I'm wondering if I should give up on freestyle and just stick to breaststroke. I managed to find a little more comfort with freestyle once I realized that I don't need to kick as fast as I can the entire time. I'm starting to think that I will actually be able to do this 400m swim in a reasonable amount of time.

Also got in core strength, UBWO, and 2 miles on the stationary bike last night. Woohoo!

Excellent! Keep working on your freestyle, but mix it up with some breaststroke while you are training. Getting that coach to look at your stroke will help too.

I barely kick when I'm swimming distance. Working on a more productive kick is one of those things I should do, but then again for tri swimming, there is something to be said for saving your legs for the bike and run.

Rest day for me today!

Anne

I got in a run on Sunday. I'm planning to run Tues & Thurs this week, and the Saturday is my last tri of the season. The kids have been high(er) maintenance this week, so it's been a little rough.

Anne

Anne, good luck on your sprint triathlon!

I had a great workout day Saturday! I had to postpone Friday's run to Saturday since it was raining Friday, but I got myself out there Saturday morning. Well, okay, sort of -- I drove to the gym since I had a swim planned and ran on the track. This was my first 20-minute run in the couch to 5k program, and it felt great. I'm clocking about 12 minutes/mile, which I'm pretty proud of. If I can do a 5k at that pace I'll meet my PR from before my knee injury.

I also did my planned swim after I finished running (and stretching)! I am really amazed at how much improvement I'm seeing with swimming each time I go. Saturday I did two warmup laps of backstroke, then one lap freestyle, one lap breaststroke, one lap freestyle, and a cooldown lap of backstroke. I paused for 15 seconds between lengths and 30 seconds between laps, but other than that I felt really good, and probably could have kept swimming longer.

I am so excited about this triathlon. I really feel proud of myself for the work I've done so far, and I've only been at it for 3 weeks. I went to my local running store yesterday and spent waaay too much $$ on winter gear. Hopefully this investment will keep me warm in the snow and ice so I can run outside all winter. I got this shirt made out of this crazy new fabric -- it actually heats up when it gets wet, so instead of getting cold and clammy when you sweat, you warm up instead!

Jessica, it is great to hear you so excited about your race!

I did my run yesterday. My knee is yelling at me today though, which makes me a little nervous. Hopefully it is just tweaked instead of damaged. I think it is still lose from the pregnancy and gets itself into whacky positions--sometimes it feels better after a run (or bike or swim) than before, which I attribute to being bumped back into place. Of course, I'm perfectly willing to accept that may be wishful thinking, but I do better if I think positively about it.

Anne

Anne, have you tried wrapping your knee or wearing a flexible brace while you run? It might help hold it in place until it heals completely.

I have a question for the seasoned triathletes . . . what do you wear? As of right now, I have a Speedo swimsuit which is fine for swimming, and then I have good running gear (including sports bra) for running/biking. I'm a little concerned about the time it will take me to change from my swimsuit into my run/bike clothes, because there is no way I can do the run/bike without a sports bra. OTOH I don't want to spend a lot of money on special clothes, and my goal is just to finish, not speed, but still. If I wore the sports bra under my swimsuit would that work? Or would I end up freezing as soon as I got outside? (the swim is in a pool, and the race is in April so it may be a little chilly out)