Open triathlon training blog

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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sat Oct 01, 2011 8:57 pm

Would love to do a marathon one day, I fear the knees are not up to the task after many years of indoor soccer.

Thursday 5.5km run 26min30sec, Fri 15km bike commute 30min.

Today 2km swim 46min. Tomorrow will be early brick, aiming for full OD distance in something close to goal time.

Got my second bike back on the road with a new front wheel (yep I broke the bank on a set of second hand R500s, that's how I roll), looking forward to taking it out for a spin. Hopefully the wind drops off tonight, blowing a gale in Brisbane at the moment.
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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Mon Oct 03, 2011 8:38 pm

Did my Sunday brick: 40km ride 84min, transition 2min, 10km run 57min, total 143min (or 13min over goal)... And that was with a short transition! :(

Not sure I'm going to beat last year's time the way things are going... Meh. I will finish. I will not walk, I will not drown. Everything else is secondary.
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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Thu Oct 06, 2011 3:59 pm

Taken a couple of days off work to hang out with the fam and also spending some quality time with my togs, running shoes and cycle.

Today ran a little urban circuit along KP cliffs from Woolloongabba (nice and scenic), approx 7.5km in 38min (had to stop for traffic a couple of times).

Then vas de zeit fur das schwimmen, 1km in 23 min. Got pulled out of the pool by darlink vifey to take the care of the kinder, so zat was zat.

Bit wet on the roads so will leave bike for tomorrow.

How are the rest of you doing out there? I am seeing a lot more fit people out on the running paths recently, spring is here, and I think a lot of them will be whupping me at Noosa in a couple of weeks time.
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bpmhigh
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby bpmhigh » Thu Oct 06, 2011 9:04 pm

G'day Sedition - looks like you're busy. Keep it up, I'm enjoying your updates

I've been hibernating over winter - no swimming since June, and minimal running although I did run a 10k pb in Canberra's largest fun run last month - maybe less is more!

On the cycling front I started getting serious about 6 weeks ago when I registered for Fitz's Challenge which is regarded as the toughest audax ride (untimed) in Australia. Held in the hills around Canberra you are basically given 13.5 hours to ride 250km. While an average speed of 18kmh sounds easy, it's the 4,700m of elevation along the way that makes it a challenge - some of it at grades of 20+ per cent.

I can assure you that cruising along on the TT bike munching energy bars for 6 hours is a snap compared to training for this bloody thing. I've been putting in between 12 and 16 hours of cycling a week at an average of about 6,000 metres of climbing. It's on in 4 weeks time so once that box is ticked, I will hang up the road bike and dust off the togs, the runners and the TT bike.

The season ahead will be a few short distance tris in Canberra, and 3 long course events in Wagga, Jervis Bay and Batemans Bay before the big one. I'm off to Cairns again for the 3.8/180/42.2 in June 2012 and have convinced a mate to join me. The 30 week program starts soon so it will be all go as I hope to shave 69 minutes off last years time putting me under 11 hours.

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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Fri Oct 07, 2011 9:52 pm

Hey bpm, glad to see you haven't been idle. 4700m is indeed a lot of elevation: I think most mountains above that height would be snow-capped all year round. Also, this surely can't hurt your cycle leg for the upcoming triathlon season. So, best of luck with that event, I hope you have good brake pads!

On a slightly less strenuous note, I did my 40km circuit today, and managed to shave it down to 1 hour 21min. Hoping to carve a few more minutes off to get through bike leg and transitions in less than 1:20.
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Ken Ho
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Sat Oct 08, 2011 3:09 pm

Bpm, you are a bastard. I didn't know about the fitz' challenge, but now I do, I'll have to do it. Can't get there this year due to prior committments, but it's on the calendar for next year.
I also want ot do the challenge cairns next year, but not sure if I have the swim in me yet.
I'm going to have a warrior correction class on Tuesday, so hopefully that will help me along.
I'm planning to do a super-compensator ride of 180 km including a ton of hills in the next couple of weeks.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sun Oct 09, 2011 11:26 pm

(AT) Ken Ho: what is warrior correction class? Sounds like it might hurt.

I did 1.5km in 35min in the 25m pool today. I had to fiddle with my goggles a fair bit. I don't recommend Zoggs Predator Flex goggles for people with deep set eyes, my little racing style goggles are cheaper and a better fit. Maybe I should get a facemask style one for fewer leaks, and to better see the bull sharks during the event?

Also did a flat evening run 8.5km in 40min, (AT) 4min 45sec per km. Felt good, but HR was quite high thoughout, mostly around 160bpm.

BIke will have to wait for next week... Currently negotiating to buy some second hand TT bars on the members forum.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Mon Oct 10, 2011 3:07 pm

Silly apple spell correct.
I meant stroke correction. I've neve had any proper swim training or coaching.
Did an hour swim yesterday, then 65 km cycle loop over Burringbah Range. I posted a good time, averaging 27kph.
I've been way working for a monh and have only done 30km rides in that time so it's good to get back into a bigger ride.
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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Thu Oct 13, 2011 8:48 pm

Ken, what sort of climbs are there on the Burringbah Range ride?

Did a 40km Bris river loop this afternoon, 1hr 23min. Bit of wind around, which might have added a couple of minutes; still a little disappointed with my time.

Missed out on the swim and run today. Maybe tomorrow morning...

Also saw a very large man in a very small tri singlet running in West End. I usually try not to judge people in their exercise gear (because they're giving it a go, and not sitting at home eating cheesels), but this was honestly a little silly.
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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sun Oct 16, 2011 7:46 pm

Sunday Bricktacular:
Warm clear day in Brisbane, with a very light southerly... Lovely day to be out and about, but a little hot toward the end of the session.
40km bike route, 1 hour 20 min 15 sec (included about a minute lost when I was stuck behind a nun in a minivan doing 20kph on Orleigh Park Rd).
3 min transition, followed by 10km run in 54min. Brick total: 2hr 17min 15sec. Just missing those last couple of minutes to get down towards my goal time. Hoping that traffic control, adrenalin, and plenty of people to chase down will let me finish somewhere close to last year's time (because I swim so slowly, I end up picking off fellow stragglers for the rest of the race).
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SeditionTrial
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sun Oct 16, 2011 7:46 pm

Sunday Bricktacular:
Warm clear day in Brisbane, with a very light southerly... Lovely day to be out and about, but a little hot toward the end of the session.
40km bike route, 1 hour 20 min 15 sec (included about a minute lost when I was stuck behind a nun in a minivan doing 20kph on Orleigh Park Rd).
3 min transition, followed by 10km run in 54min. Brick total: 2hr 17min 15sec. Just missing those last couple of minutes to get down towards my goal time. Hoping that traffic control, adrenalin, and plenty of people to chase down will let me finish somewhere close to last year's time (because I swim so slowly, I end up picking off fellow stragglers for the rest of the race).
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Ken Ho
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Mon Oct 17, 2011 7:12 am

SeditionTrial wrote:Ken, what sort of climbs are there on the Burringbah Range ride?

Did a 40km Bris river loop this afternoon, 1hr 23min. Bit of wind around, which might have added a couple of minutes; still a little disappointed with my time.

Missed out on the swim and run today. Maybe tomorrow morning...

Also saw a very large man in a very small tri singlet running in West End. I usually try not to judge people in their exercise gear (because they're giving it a go, and not sitting at home eating cheesels), but this was honestly a little silly.

The highest elevation is only about 180m, but but there is a bunch of rolling hills on the northern side of thenrange, where you just keep going up and down. There is one hill of about a mile, which I call Top Speed Hill, as it the where I have posted my PB of 72.2 kph, on a few occasions now. Of course, if I'm coming the other way, I call it the Soulcrusher, as it's the last hill after a whole bunch, and it can be quite taxing, depending on where I have come from. There are a whole lot of loops which intersect, so my route can vary quite a lot.
I'm planning on a really big ride next Saturday, and I'm looking for a buddy if you are interested. I want to do 180-200 if I can, taking in Byron and Currumbin Valley etc.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Mon Oct 17, 2011 10:52 pm

(AT) Ken - I think your ride sounds like a great idea, but must remain for me aspirational. Next weekend I will be swimming as a first priority, and will try to get one last OD competition distance brick done too, before Noosa tri in less than a fortnight. I'm afraid if I ask for permission to go visit a nice man in northern NSW to do an all-day 200km bike ride, I might instead be offered a sheaf of divorce papers.

There are a couple of people doing long rides like that around SEQ who you can hook up with via this forum - have a look at Mt Gower's thread in the Qld discussion section (can't remember what it's called unfortunately).
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Tue Oct 18, 2011 8:01 am

Ugh, swimming !! Don't talk to me about swimming. I'm currently experiencing swimming fail. I need some warmer weather to get motivated. Cold southerly yesterday and today. Windsurfing is a much more attractive option than circling a cold black line.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Fri Oct 21, 2011 11:09 pm

Ken, windsurfing looks fun, but I am guessing there is a hell of a lot of wrangling and set-up involved.

I am so disorganised it takes me 20 or 30min just to get my road bike and cycling gear sorted for a ride, let alone organising an enormous kite strapped to me, strapped to a surfboard, on a wind-swept beach.

Last couple of days I have managed one session of each flavour:
Wed night commute run: 5.3km in 25min.
Thurs afternoon bike loop: 30km, untimed but slow, guessing around 1hr 5min (lots of wind; tired and cranky).
Fri night swim: 1.5km in 34min.

So, that's a pretty good back-end of the week for me. Just need to get some quality ZZZs, and make sure I do another swim and an OD brick over the weekend.

Late breaking news: got a parcel from Evans Cycling in the mail today. Picked up some cheap-ish tri shorts (Pearl Izumi) and some cycling bits and bobs.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sun Oct 23, 2011 1:18 pm

Today, I followed the yellow brick road:

T1 (putting my cycling shoes, gloves, sunnies and helmet on, wrangling my bike out the drive-way) 2min, and then,
36km ride, in 74min, approx 29kph avg (extrapolated 40km time 81min), followed by
T2 3min, and finally
10km run, in 52min; 5 min 12 sec per km.

131 min total (extrapolated time 138 min, or 8 min slower than goal time).

I think I will be able to make up a little more time on the bike: I got stuck behind some large slow bunches on Coro Drv, and it wasn't safe to overtake, and I had to stop for traffic a couple of times at round-abouts. Might have cost me 2 or 3min. I also think I've got a couple of minutes I can make up on the run, if I completely bury myself (which I plan to do on the day). Might struggle to better it by a full 8 min tho (especially given that the Noosa Hill is a fair bit higher than Highgate Hill).

Heart rate monitor gave an average of 153bpm over the entire session, with a peak of 175bpm, 2330 calories. :)

Off for a swim soon, will report back later.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Sun Oct 23, 2011 1:45 pm

Yes, windsurfing is a lot of gear wrangling, and a lot of waiting around for conditions that often don't turn out as planned. Windsurfers
I went on Monday, after that last post, and had an OK session, but decided to think about selling all my gear.
Lo and behold, I checked the wanted ads on Seabreeze, and there was a guy looking for a bunch of stuff, exactly what I have. He is coming to look at it this week, so I'll probably sell it all, and buy a tri bike instead.
I posted about my training rides this week in the Training thread, so I won't rehash here too much, other than to say I did a solid 90km on Wednesday, followed by 200km yesterday up hill and over dale. Solid run on Tuesday too.

Recovery week this week from cycling, but I will start to focus on my swim, as that's my really weak link at this stage. Working at Ipswich next 2 months, so swimming and running are big on the agenda for that time.
Good luck at Noosa.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Wayfarer » Sun Oct 23, 2011 8:34 pm

Macarthur Duathlon championships today. I ran hard at the start, and almost threw up. Got slaughtered on the bike by about 7 people, then decided to take the last run head on and catch the guy 300m ahead, on only a 2k circuit (500m climb, 500m flat, 500m descent, 500m ascent). I was real keen on beating this guy; he was old and real ugly looking, and a member on this site too :lol: Almost blew the pistons outta the engine, but managed to barely scrape past him for a 7th place... maybe a whole pack of kettle chips and box of biscuits wasn't a good study diet..
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Sun Oct 23, 2011 10:45 pm

Windsurfing is probably a good activity to have in tandem with cycling. If it's calm, go riding, if it's windy, go windsurfing. :)

Duathlon would definitely be a stronger event for me than triathlon, my swim is **edited** not very good. 1.5km (25m pool) 32min, today.

1 more training session prior to the big event.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby yarravalleyplodder » Thu Oct 27, 2011 10:27 pm

Well since my last update I have a had a mixed month and pretty light on training

some of it was work and study the other was I think I needed a break. My fitness regime had been going 5 to 6 days per week for 7 months and I think I got burnt out.

As a result my melb marathon 10km time didnt crack the hour mark (my target), I missed it by 14 seconds, I was very upset with myself. It was still a pb by 4 minutes but 14 miserable seconds :x .

Anyway back into the routine again now of 3 runs per week, 2 swims and 1 ride. Long weekend in melb this week so I will get out on the bike a few days in a row as I lead up to the easlink ride.

Then its back to the real training for the tri on Dec 4.

Its funny how much you lose when you have a little break, so I have focused on rhythm more than anything before I look at strength and pace

Good luck SeditionTrial on your event
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby bpmhigh » Fri Oct 28, 2011 1:23 pm

SeditionTrial wrote:1 more training session prior to the big event.
Good luck Sedition - go smash em!

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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Sat Oct 29, 2011 9:02 pm

Just swimming this week with a few runs. Away working, don't have my roadie and traffic here is crap anyway. Keen to hear a race report from Sedition. Slid into The Yellow Jersey bike shop in Ipswich a few days ago. Golly, what a nice shop. Tons of lovely tri bikes and other top end bike stuff, and lovely knowledgable blokes too.
Can't wait to get home and ride my proper bike.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby SeditionTrial » Tue Nov 01, 2011 11:06 pm

Here's my Noosa race report. It's a bit late! I didn't have any time off work this year around the race. In the meantime I have been doing some big hours for the man, and therefore haven't posted since the weekend. Nevertheless I had a great time up the coast on Sunday. Weather was clear, fine and by the time I finished seemed baking hot. I got a super early wave start, which was awesome: really enjoyed getting amongst it bright and early, and finishing with plenty of people both in front and behind me.

Modesty overcame my better judgement and I decided to swim in tri-shorts only. I just can't handle the idea of myself in a sausage singlet. I then rode and ran in a long-sleeve running shirt. I thought it would protect my arms from the sun, which it did, but it also felt like a thermal blanket by the end of the race. Lots of supporters lining the route, cheering everyone on. Roads were well sealed and smooth. Noosa Hill wasn't as steep as I remembered from last year (maybe I wasn't riding it hard enough?) I did 71kph on the way down. Tried not to think about popping my front tyre and colliding with the hay-bales on the slight curve at the bottom. High-fived a couple of little kids on the run-- they were very cute, standing out with their parents. The guy I was running with even stopped to have a hug with his wife and kids, heart-warming stuff. Used 50/50 powerade and water in my bike drink bottles, but it still tasted too sweet, so I will dilute it further next time I do an event. Also took an energy gel 3km into the run, and felt a bit gross afterwards.

The raw data (with last year's times in brackets):
Swim -- 37 min flat (36:47)
T1, cycle, T2 -- 84:35 (81:10)
Run -- 51:13 (48:36)
Overall -- 2 hours 53min, rounded up (2 hours 47 min).

Lost a bit of time on the bike and run compared to 2010, which I guess makes sense, given that I am a few kg heavier, and have not been training as much. A bit disappointed I couldn't do more in the water, but that's life, and I will keep at it. Still managed to beat my mate by about a minute -- or rather his ghost (he couldn't make the event, so he gave his bracelet, chip and race number to a training buddy).

Finished 260 of 317 competitors in my age group (swim 302nd, bike 277th, run 161st).

Now I just have to work out my next event, and plan my training accordingly. I think it might be time to cut back the beer and chocolate, as unholy as that sounds.

Will also unfortunately have to give the bike and swimming a break for a few weeks. I seem to have tendonitis in my wrist, which I have been ignoring because I didn't want to stop training prior to this event. Won't stop me running... Want to break 45 min for 10km.
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Ken Ho » Wed Nov 02, 2011 7:59 pm

Nice report.
Any idea what your next event will be ?
I found a coach and I'm having my first swim session with him tomorrow as an evaluation. My swimming is still very slow, but my gammy right leg seems to be coming good, so I should be able to do more work on my running to try and get it on par with my bike. I did about 5 km with only minor discomfort at the end, and no pain the next day, which is a first.
I'm doing a bike/run evaluation on Saturday with the coach too, which I am looking forward to, as really, I am totally clueless about everything. Should be running tonight, but want to hang out with my wife. So busy lately. She would ride with me while I run, but her legs are shattered from her own stuff.
Gong to try out some tri bikes soon too. Heh, heh !!!
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Re: Open triathlon training blog

Postby Matthews » Thu Nov 03, 2011 12:18 pm

Very good report and also good effort. Interesting to read what other people are doing for training and also how they go in the race. Keep the updates coming.

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