[Closed] It's all about me

Bugger that for a game of soldiers, but good luck! 🙂

And there's more....

http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2012/02/29/12-into-70-3-will-go-part-two/

Dave, i wrote a few goals down the other day.
a few things to aim for i suppose, one of them was to do a triathlon again.
the last time i did a triathlon was at weardale in 1992.
seems a hell of a long time ago.

hope you enjoy it.

The wife had picked up a bottle of the Rioja in the Co-op and it is very nice indeed.

ton, a friend of mine lost 37kg and did a triathlon. you can do it mate.

avdave2 - sadly the Rioja is back to £9.99

Cool.... reckon 5:30 is achievable

What are your planned split times ?

40min swim
3 hour bike
1:40 run ???

how many hours a week training?

And another nice budget wine recommendation, £4.99 co-op (again)

http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2012/03/07/12-into-70-3-will-go-part-three/

Ro5ey - less than 6.5 hours per week at the minute, but very little is low intensity.

I believe that we’re too prone to converting fructose to body fat unless exercising

I love fruit way too much.

eat it after exercise then?

Interesting read! 🙂

I do. Plus always have a banana pre morning swim. Not a chance I can go the 2 hours between getting up and getting to work without eating.

Oh, and then another bowl of fruit pre evening workout for energy too.

I should add that as a chronic exercise addict you have no need for the full-on iDiet

I know.
I've promised myself to stop knocking it and admit that it does work, that I follow a lot of the principles and feel better when I stick to slow carbs rather than mini-eggs.
I'd never stop eating fruit though. Never.

Enough about you, this thread is about me.

Other than avoiding high GI carbs, there are a few other little tweaks I’ve been keeping in my back pocket to encourage fat loss. At the end of this week I’ll know if I have to put them to work.

clenbuterol? spanish beef? amphetamines?

Enough about you, this thread is about me.

LOL. How's the swimming coming along? What pace are you up to?

I should add that as a chronic exercise addict you have no need for the [s]full-on[/s] iDiet

Enough about you, this thread is about me.

I'm up from my first swim of 10 x 50m, to 13 x 100m

1'45" per 100m

9 weeks to go

work still to do

That ain't bad at all!! What rest are you taking between work sets?

I have stuff to say about me but I'll ask you questions instead.

At the minute I'm doing each 100m on 3 mins. When I get to 2k I'll start again on 200m on 5 mins. Maybe. I have a spreadsheet somewhere.

Say something about you now.

just feel, instinct and wine

I'm lovin' that

No. I'm going to keep talking about you.

Do they let you wear wet-suits in the pool you use? Really big confidence boost as it's so much easier. Is different though, so IMO worth doing before the event.

Are you staying in Cheshire before that sportive?

Not allowed wetsuits in the pool. Will test in a canoe slalom section in town - treadmill style. Or maybe Lake Geneva in April.

I live near the start of the Cheshire thing, spare room if you need it?

1.45 for 100m but allowing 3mins per set.

1.15 rest !!

I know you're the coach... but that's too long, far too long to rest.

You should be going off 2mins

1.15 rest !!

I know you're the coach... but that's too long, far too long too a rest.

You should be going off 2mins

15s rest? That surely is far too short - bearing in mind that there are additional reasons for doing intervals when swimming, as it helps you maintain your technique. I used to go off 2 mins for 100s when swim training, but then I could bang them out sub 1:30. Not a huge amount wrong with going off 3 mins for him, though he could shorten to 2:30.

Ro5ey, 3 weeks ago I would have struggled to swim 5 lengths in a row. So, yes I am the coach, I know where I'm at and where I'm heading. I'm happy with my stroke, better to rest longer and keep a good stroke than get tired and flail around like a windmill.

At the moment my swim training is all about the stroke and swimming at the speed I want to in the event - not about fitness.

I'll shorten the rest when I need to. Until then.....

I'm going to see if I can sneak off to the pool this afternoon, I'll see if I can do the same as Dave 🙂

Fair enough...

Didn't realise that your swimming had literally come from nothing.

Bugger.. just found out the pool near my house is just a leisure pool.

Surely they have lane swimming somewhere near you Mol?

The training plan I'm on has varying speeds to swim at for different sets / drills. I'll be damned if I can swim at the slower speeds though, I just keep going at my faster pace and keep knackering myself out.

iDave - the offer of a room has made it a hell of a lot more appealing... I need to sort out some domestic stuff and will get back to you.

I'm trying to swim at one speed only and working up the distance. Swimming really slowly feels wrong.

The room has a big bed etc. 20 min drive from the event. Mrs iDave is doing the 45 miler.

Swimming really slowly feels wrong

Swimming more slowly.. I just like to take fewer strokes and really concentrate on gliding as well as possible.

There is lane swimming in Cardiff's big pool, it's just 25 mins away rather than 5.

Gliding (IMO) is not a good thing in FS stroke. A long stroke is good, but not gliding per se as when you glide you lose momentum.

Yep ... overglider myself.... its a trait of a little knowledge being a bad thing (also see above... :))

But save energy. Isn't that the point of the slow swim sessions in your training programme?

Anyway you can't glide for long as you sink, it's just how I swim more slowly and relaxed.

But you don't save energy if you're constantly accelerating as you pull, then slowing as you glide?

its a trait of a little knowledge being a bad thing

The mystery of swimming fast and efficiently is an absolute bitch for this!!

I still want to know how triathletes (even Armstrong) swims 1 min /100m for 1.9km. I can't swim that speed for a single length of a 20m pool 🙁

You can't glide for long enough to slow appreciably. And your stroke rate is slightly slower meaning fewer strokes per length, so saving energy.

My point is that the action of [i]trying[/i] to glide that split second more results in a more relaxed stroke rate but with more efficient strokes, leading to slightly slower speed but using less energy due to fewer strokes. Which is what you were after, wasn't it?

Seems to me (although I am a long way from an expert) that there is a linear relationship between the number of strokes/min and the energy you expend, but efficiency falls off sharply as stroke rate increases. So 20% more strokes per minute means much much harder work and not much more speed.

I could be wrong though, please correct me if you are an expert 🙂

Well we know I'm not an expert, but I have a rather smart watch that measures efficiency.

It defines efficiency as a function of time taken to complete a distance and number of strokes taken. For me, at the stage I'm at with my swimming... efficiency improves with the number of strokes I take.

Sounds like you are not gliding well then 🙂 I would guess efficiency must increase with stroke rate then decrease. Otherwise you'd be best off whirling like mad..

Not at all. I have a relatively slow stroke rate of about 55spm.

I do 17 strokes per 25m without a push-off and my general pace is about 25s/length. So that'd be about what, 40 strokes/min..? Thereabouts.

Are you counting both arms, or only on a full cycle?

40 spm is very slow!!

http://www.swimsmooth.com/strokerate.html

Er I figured one stroke was with one arm.

Ahem !....

And back to the OP ?....
😉

Enjoying following this so far - Lucky the spring seems upon us in France now as the other week I was taking pictures of icy spray in Geneve.

Think this has given me the nudge to get into swimming again as I haven't been since doing 2 miles as a young un - bit worried my kaput collar bone might hinder things but I'd love to do a tri in the near future.

bonne vitesse

I'm doing about 15 strokes per 25m, blokes beside me are taking more strokes but not going any faster. When I speed the stroke rate I slow down, if that makes sense. I have long arms and I push all the way back rather than just pulling.

The good news then Mol is that by upping your SR only slightly will see you drop well towards 1min/100m. Your catch and pull etc must be spot on.

[img] [/img]

Thinking about it.. probably faster than 40, but I reckon I'm appreciably less than 60spm usually - based on imagining a ticking clock. Maybe 45-50.

60-65 would be my sprinting rate I reckon.

The good news then Mol is that by upping your SR only slightly will see you drop well towards 1min/100m

Possibly but I get really tired when I up the rate 🙂 Not sure 1min/100m is likely any time soon but then I never thought I could run a mile in 6m30 comfortably, so we'll see.

Nothing really makes sense with swimming iDave, except that having shovel like hands and clown feet would seem to have a distinct advantage.

As would extra toes and webbed digits.

[i]As would extra toes and webbed digits. [/i]

You're in luck then !.
😉

[img] [/img]

Solo - are you ok?

I have big hands, size 12 feet - just need to use them properly.

[i]Solo - are you ok[/i]

😆

How would you know what [i]Ok[/i] is ?.

Damn you! My tiny size 8's are almost pointless for kicking.

Solo - I'm a little worried you're having a meltdown.

[i]I have big hands, size 12 feet - just need to use them properly[/i]

But, Damn it man.
Do you have a razor ?.

I only kick enough to keep a decent roll. Going with Terry Loughlin's methods. Also want to keep some leggy energy for the 56 mile bike and half marathon. Been told they can hurt a bit.

It's a fair point. My hands aren't huge either. Was watching some of the British Trials the other day.... Mark Foster is a fricking giant!!

[i]Solo - I'm a little worried you're having a meltdown.[/i]

Oh, no.

[img] [/img]

better to rest longer and keep a good stroke than get tired and flail around like a windmill.

I could be the coach 😉

The thing with swim training, getting decent technique is a [b]lot[/b] more important than just working on fitness. In general, reducing the number of strokes per length is a good way of improving efficiency. Though you can overdo it (it sounds possible that iDave is - I do more strokes per length, yet go faster), which means you're gliding too much (bad, as when you're gliding you're slowing down, your body is dropping creating more drag, when you should be keeping constant power on) or that you're over-reaching (bad, as it results in you doing a snake wiggle). What could be worth trying is doing a slightly faster stroke rate by dropping the exaggerated lengthening of the stroke and relaxing a bit more - rather than consciously upping the rate, which is when you start flailing and getting inefficient. You're after efficiency rather than the ultimate longest stroke.

TSY - got a 910XT, or is there some other watch which does that?

Yes aracer... I think swimovate may do one as well though.

Well from what aracer says my stroke seems pretty good, and it feels it to me as well. I do focus a lot on feeling the drag of the water on my skin so I can minimise it.

Like iDave though I hardly kick - just enough to keep my legs up and a little wriggling seems to help shrug the water off and maybe reduce drag, I dunno. Crap for pure swimming though, if I were aiming to do pure swimming events I'd really work on getting more power from my kick.

Yes aracer.

I'm not the only one then - not tried mine for swimming yet (and didn't buy it for that) as I've been ill pretty much since I got it.

I thought this was going to be about pensions again. 😆

Good stuff idave, best start planning your vanity 'tri-tattoo' now. 😀

It's that time of the week again

http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2012/03/15/12-into-70-3-will-go-2/

There will be no tattoo.....

Good blog iDave!!

Booked on to the 74m btw.

Nice one - have you got a silly low gear on your bike for Mow Cop? Sadly I haven't.

Nope. Full on race gearing. You doing it on you new bike??

You have sportive rider compact cranks don't you?

39/53... is that compact??

No, you are officially awesome.

Mow cop is a 1 in 4

We'll be fine..... (possibly)

They don't make hills like that around here!

Latest nonsense

http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2012/03/23/12-into-70-3-will-go-part-four/

Tour of flanders? Nice, have wanted to do that for a while. Once again, interesting reading! 🙂

This one is maybe a bit dull...

http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2012/03/29/12-in-70-3-will-go-part-six/

Good choice of vino.

Yeah, I keep defaulting back to Spanish reds.

Actually that one was provided by TSY

[i]Yeah, I keep defaulting back to Spanish reds.[/i]

I seem to prefer New World reds, myself.
🙂