Are You Living It?

working it August 22, 2008

Filed under: Passions, Training — Jennifer Triplett @ 9:57 am

Bring on the Keirin cut jeans - I could barely walk up the stairs to my house last night.

The first 30 minutes in tempo was agonizing. My head started playing tricks on me, “back off! You can just pull over and do this in two sets instead of one. Who’s going to know? You’re already half way there - only one more half to go. Every revolution is getting you closer to your goal - both immediate and long term. 99 bottles of beer on the wall…. oh crap! I lost count of which lap I’m on. If I can just make it to 60 laps - I’ll be solid. What? I’m only at 37? Sheebus.”

Read the full post: working it.

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Pedal power! August 21, 2008

Filed under: Cycling, Passions, Training — Jennifer Triplett @ 11:33 am

Lord help me.

On tap for today - 30 minutes in tempo. Immediately followed by 2 sets of Breaker intervals in my mass start bars, any gear of my choosing.

Then 1 effort in my pursuit bars. First 10 laps at 25 mph, then every two laps increase the pace by 3 mph for two laps and go until failure.

If you hear on the evening news, “Woman in Redmond passes out from exercise exhaustion…” you’ll know who it is.

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Setting Up the Framework

Filed under: Passions, Training — April Bowling @ 7:01 am

I was reading Amanda’s friend Dawn’s blog yesterday - she is also doing IMMOO. And she had this great post about the roller coaster that is training…a subject near and dear to my own heart.

I think said roller coaster might be the best training for the actual race. The emotional highs and lows teach you that none of it is constant and that you need to be prepared to steady yourself to get through. When you are moving for such a long period of time, things are going to be ok sometimes, and not so ok other times.

Read the full post: Setting Up the Framework.

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Houston, we have a problem… August 20, 2008

Filed under: Passions, Training, injury — April Bowling @ 6:36 am

I’ve been trying to stay really positive and almost ignore this leg problem I’ve had since the quabbin ride, figuring that with some rest and rehab it would resolve itself. But despite trips to PT and massage and babying it for 3 days now, it still ain’t happy.

I feel like that old song…”the hip bone’s connected to the thigh bone..the thigh bone’s connected to the knee bone…” etc. Except mine is, “the gastroch’s connected to the hamstring…the hamstring’s connected to the glutes…the glutes are connected to the IT, the IT’s connected to the knee…”

I did my run that I was supposed to do yesterday today but shortened it. A very easy run…and my leg was ok during it, but it was that uneasy ok where you know that it isn’t going to last. And now, post stretching, my leg and hip is back on fire. And biking just sucks from the get go. At least swimming is good…

But I’m still not panicking and here’s why. This is just pain. As long as I don’t try to sprint or bike up any steep hills, I’m not going to tear anything. So the leg will work. So that makes this different from my post tib tendenosis and dislocation that I had…that can end my race because if the tendon goes there’s no walking let alone running. But so far, it’s hanging in there, and this leg/hip issue is just a literal and extreme pain in the ass.

It won’t be pretty but I can grind my way to the finish in less than 17 hours, even if I’m reduced to a veritable crawl. So at least I came out of training and my race isn’t in jeopardy, just my time. I still see the PT again this week and hopefully if I take it easy this WILL get better. My only fear is that I will start losing fitness by tapering too much too fast…

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The Calm Before the Storm August 19, 2008

Filed under: Cycling, Racing, Training — Jennifer Triplett @ 12:13 pm

This past weekend I was off the bike for two days for the first time in months. It’s my last breather before buckling down and dialing in my speed and agility before nationals. Not only did it allow me to rest my body, but it also allowed me to rest my mind and regroup.

Read the full post: The Calm Before the Storm.

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New Swim Start Training Program August 16, 2008

Filed under: Fun, Swimming, Training — April Bowling @ 11:00 am

Thanks to John and Amanda - a much needed laugh!!!

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Back To School, Back To Practice! August 12, 2008

Filed under: Training, exercise — Chet Collins, DC, ART @ 1:13 pm

It’s that time of year again. Summer is over and it’s time to begin re-training your mind and body after a fun and relaxing vacation. Remember to pay attention as you get back into practice. This is the time that it is easy to get hurt. Focus on getting limber as you begin training for the fall and winter seasons. By focusing on stretching you will allow your joints to move easier and your muscles to contract with more force during exercise. This will allow you to make higher gains in strength, endurance and speed throughout the season.

Tune in to how your body is responding to those first few days, and weeks, of practice. Do you feel overly tired, consistently sore, or have a specific area that returns to bother you? These are signs that your body is having a bit of difficulty keeping up with the workouts. Remember, your body has to respond to the training stress you give it. This causes a bit of tissue breakdown and your body responds by replacing the weaker parts of the tissue. Even though your body will progressively shorten the time it takes to repair itself, it has a maximum repair speed. When you start asking it to respond to more stress than it can handle, you begin to train with muscles that are not fully repaired and can not work as well. This will soon limit the amount of force your muscles can exert. If they cannot contract fully, due to soreness or fatigue, they will not be able to respond to increases in training, and your progress will stop.

This is why it is so important to remember, REST is part of your workout! The training activity stresses your body, then it repairs itself and gets stronger during REST! Pay attention to YOUR body and how YOU feel during and after your workouts. Measuring yourself against other athletes is what competition is all about, but training is all about your ability to steadily improve and reach your personal peak. Focus on how you respond to your training schedule and make subtle changes as needed with your Coach. Be careful, be thoughtful, and train with a purpose.

P.S. This is a reminder for all of us, not just the High School Athlete!

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The Big Swim August 8, 2008

Filed under: Passions, Racing, Swimming, Training — April Bowling @ 1:00 pm

OK, I know he’s gonna kill me, but I HAVE to publicly wish Joel the best of luck with his 8-mile Lake Champlain swim tomorrow morning…talk about an amazing feat! I know he’ll do great. I’ll post his results as soon as I get them. The swim benefits the fight for clean water in the Lake and is sponsored by the Greater Burlington YMCA (as always - the Y doing great things :).

Read the full post: The Big Swim.

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Where Oh Where Have My Training Buddies Gone? August 6, 2008

Filed under: Passions, Training, Triathlon — April Bowling @ 5:39 pm

Beth isn’t in the pool, Joel is away for work, Donna’s on vacation, Rob’s working too much, Cindy’s injured…thank God for Ali who got me through my run on Sunday. I’m glad she didn’t jet off somewhere!

But it is feeling very quiet these days…I like to train alone mostly, but my pre and post workout misery loves company. The pool was almost empty tonight, but at least Maya is back after her bout with strep throat.

Read the full post: Where Oh Where Have My Training Buddies Gone?.

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