Seven tips to fix bad swimming

This is a great article about how to fix bad swimming habits. I identified several of my own bad habits that I'm going to try working on the next time I'm in the pool.

In need of a new diet plan

When I started this whole triathlon thing I weighed just over 265 pounds. I realize that trying to pull that much weight through water, pedal it on a bike or carry it over a 5K run was going to be hard. So I've been trying to lose the weight, or at least transfer fat to muscle.

I dropped to about 255 in about a month, but over the last few weeks I've started to add back on weight so that I'm back up to 260. I realize that I've added in some muscle, but I can still feel the fat.

I realize that over the next few weeks I won't be able to cut much weight, with vacation and Holidays coming up. But I don't want to gain any, either.

One thing I love is meat. Growing up as a farm kid, it's in my blood. This is an interesting video about how to eat meat "responsibly". Save for the eroneous comments about hormones and antibiotics--we all know there aren't antibiotics in meat and there are exponentially more estrogen precursors in a salad than a steak--his ideas are pretty good.

Following in family footsteps?

"World Champion Cadel Evans has been named the 2009 Australian Cyclist of the Year and received his third Sir Hubert Opperman 'Oppy' medal." The award goes to the most outstanding rider from all disciplines each season who is considered to be The Australian Cyclist of the Year.

No, the award isn't named after me. It's named after Hubert Ferdinand Opperman, an Australian who held more than 100 distance cycling records. Oppy rode a bicycle from the age of eight until his wife Mavys, fearing for his health and safety, finally forced him off the road in 1994 on his 90th birthday. When he died of a heart attack, at the age of 91, he was on his exercise bike.

One of the greatest cyclists the world has ever seen, Oppy's lifetime achievements spanned horizons far wider than his sporting fame. He became a Menzies and Holt government minister, and was also Australia's first high Commissioner to Malta. Add to that his role as a long serving councillor for the Association of the Blind, patron of the Sportsmen's Association of Australia, and a Victorian president of the Prior of the Knights of St John of Jerusalem. A letter writer extraordinaire, Oppy was the sender of serious and humorous Oppygrams.

I'm guessing he's not a relative, at least not close. But hopefully some of his cycling genese run with mine.

My training schedule

My first race will be a sprint at the end of April in Whitewater, Wisconsin. It is a long time from now, but I have a lot of work to do. Here's how I plan to get ready.

From now through the end of the year:
     Mondays - Swim or Eliptical
     Wednesdays - Run or Swim
     Fridays - Bike
To get my stamina and endurance up, I'll work to extend my workouts each time, instead of trying to get faster in a set amount of time.

January - February:
     Mondays - Swim or Eliptical
     Tuesdays - Run or Swim
     Wednesdays - Swim or Run
     Thursdays - Bike or Swim
     Fridays - Swim or Bike
During these two months I will complete the distances that I'll have to cover in the race.

March - April:
     TBD. I'll need to start bricking workouts so I can get the transitions down. Closer to the race I'll work on doing all three components at least once each week.

I put this together based on the article I read on one of my newest favorite tri sites.

Five things you need to know about training

This is a great article for beginners to learn about the important aspects of triathlon training. Hardest for me is the consistency - my schedule doesn't normally allow for me to get a workout in on a consistent basis.

Also, I'm going to try going to the breaststroke when I swim - couldn't hurt based on where I'm at now!

Improving shoulder strength

This is a great video about improving an important body part - shoulders. I'm going to try this to see if it helps with swimming. Let me know if it works for you.

An American Runner

I thought this might happen when Meb Keflezighi won the New York City marathon last weekend. With a name like that, I knew that some would question his nationality. He's been in the U.S. since he was 12. Doesn't that make him an American?

After all, don't we have a President that has had considerable international addresses in his past? I think he's considered an American, isn't he?

Madtown no. 13 best place to live for a triathlete

Triathlete magazine picked Madison, Wisconsin as the 13th best place for a triathlete to live. Here's what the magazine's editors had to say:

"No. 13: Madison, Wis.

Population: 228,775

Median Home Price: $218,000

Why it’s on our list: Wisconsin’s capital city may have truly horrible winters, but the “cheeseheads” make up for it by packing more into summer than just about anyone else. “Mad-town” is a big city and a college town at the same time, which creates a fine balance of work and play. The city is built on an isthmus between two expansive lakes, which means there’s always a place to swim. Madison also has some of the most challenging yet quiet roads in the Midwest just a few miles west of town.

Live here if: You’re looking for Berkeley,Calif., mixed with Chicago.

Don’t live here if: You hate being pestered to sign some progressive group’s petition while you shop for groceries.

See the rest of the list here.

Tough but good week

For the first time in a long time I worked out each day this week. My foot is feeling better and I finally got over my cold/bronchitis. I worked out 45 minutes on an eliptical on Monday, swam on Tuesday and Thursday, biked on Wednesday and ran this morning. Each day was hard, but after taking most of the last two weeks off I could tell that I missed the work.

I gained a few pounds, too. While I'm down to 258, I was down to 255 until the layoff.

This week I'm travelling Monday and Tuesday, which always makes it hard to work out and eat healthy. But most hotels now have a good fitness area, so I'll see what I can do to at least move forward on stamina.

Onward and upward -

An inspirational story

I ran across this story tonight about a gentleman in Texas that just completed his first triathlon. Last summer he weighed 470 pounds - this summer he competed in a triathlon at 220. Awesome.

One thing that he said that I think is very powerful - his goal with his first triathlon was to complete,  not compete. And he enjoyed the journey, even through a significant setback. My goal with my first triathlon is to do the same thing - enjoy the journey. It will be so hard to get there, I don't want it to fly by so fast that I don't enjoy the journey. After I get the first one done, then I can worry about competing.

Onward and upward!

Wisconsin Pride!

Awesome picture of my buddy Lance Fox from Everest this spring. Go Bucky! Go Pack!

Taking a break

This week I've only worked out one day, biking my normal seven mile ride. My cold turned into bronchitis, and I decided that it would be best to get some rest. My son was sick all week, and my daughter actually stayed home a day from school. Now my wife says she's not feeling well.

Must be the change of seasons.

I'm actually looking forward to getting out and working out again on Monday. Until then, rest, rest and rest.

Avoiding the common cold

I've had a cold all week and was only able to work out on Monday and Tuesday. I'm feeling better and looking forward to starting to work out again on Monday.

Here's a great article about how to avoid a cold.

Another great cold remedy is what my parents called a Hot One - here's the recipe:

Cup of hot water
Shot of whiskey
Teaspoon of sugar

Enjoy!

Like climbing mountains

One of my good friends is Dr. Lance Fox. Lance is a veterinarian that works for Alpharma Animal Health, and last spring he summitted Mt. Everest. He did this despite having only started climbing three years ago. He did it to honor his Dad, spreading his ashes at the top of the World. He set a goal, identified his dream, then worked hard to make it happen. It's not like he had a simple dream - he decided to climb Mt. freakin' Everest. Course it's not like he's done a triathlong - but he's an inspiration to me.

He's a little crazy - like taking a cheesehead to the top of the mountain. And he dewormed yaks on the way up.

Here's one of his quotes:

"Dream Big, Pursue Your Passion, Smile Often and Laugh A Lot. Life Is Short So Live It To The Fullest!" - Lance Fox, 2009

Here's a video about a program Lance is working on to take this positive message out to kids.

Triathlon nutrition

Sorry I haven't blogged for a week - I've been at a trade show.

Came across this good video from Livestrong about nutrition for triathletes.

Bright lights on the bike trail

I ride my bike on a paved bike trail. This morning it was dark and I could see headlights in the distance. At first I thought somone had parked their car in a clearing and shined their lights up the path so they could see while they walked. But the lights kept getting closer and closer. They got so close that I was looking for somewhere to ditch so I wouldn't get run over.

Then, at the last second, they came together and it was then that I realized that it was actually two bike riders with lights on the front of their bikes. Freaked me out, though.

Not a good week

It's been tough to get motivated this week. I work out in the morning, and every morning has been dark and foggy. It's tough to be motivated when it's crummy outside, especially when it's 6 a.m. and I'm still tired. But I know if I quit now I will be mad at myself and I won't pick it back up.

I see this triathlon as the one thing I can do personally that is unique. When I was in college I tried out for the football team but quit after a few weeks to concentrate on classes. I was doing well compared to the scholarship players. I always have wondered if I could have made it if I stuck with it.

I know I will be able to do this tri if I just stick to it. But I wish the sun would shine.

Advice from a gold medalist

So I asked my friend Garrett Weber Gale about some swim techniques that can help me get started swimming. Here is what he suggests:

"The way to build stamina in the pool is by swimming. Slowly build yourself up. Don't try to do too much at the beginning because you will be exhausted and it is easier to burn out. Make sure you do more than just swimming. Use a kickboard and kick. Use a pullbouy and pull. Try putting fins on. Maybe go a 25 as fast as you can and then a few 25's really easy to recover. Throw some oddballs at your body and it will soon adapt to what you give it."

That's him on the left in the picture next to Michael Phelps after the 4 x 100 meter relay team won gold in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Garrett is a great guy - he's overcome high blood pressure early in life to become a world class athelete. And he's a great role model for kids - after he won his medals he came to my daughter's school and did an entire presentation. He answered all their questions and was a great influence on them.

Be sure to check out his Web site - http://www.gwgswims.com/ and his blog http://garrettwebergale.blogspot.com/
He is also a great chef - partly because of his high blood pressure - and has great ideas for healthy meals. I'm sure we'll see him on Food Network someday!

Thanks, Garrett for your advice. We'll see how it works, starting tomorrow!

Extending my bike ride

Did an extra few miles on my bike ride this morning. Felt good riding, but my knees have been killing me all day.

My daughter, who is a veteran of two triathlons, said the best time to do a triathlon is in the rain. It rained during the one she did this year, and she liked it much better than the hot weather the year before.

I'll take her advice!

Getting my sea legs

Swimming wasn't so bad today. I swam four laps, which amounted to eight lengths. I haven't been able to complete a lap without stopping to catch my breath, but I felt that I did better today.

I've really tried to eat healthy and watch what I eat. I try to avoid carbs if possible. It was hard today - a lady at work brought in a big pile of ho-ho's, twinkies and so forth. I opted to eat a bunch of cherry tomatoes. My wife was proud of me.

On to biking tomorrow.

Big boy triathletes

Great article on big guys getting started in triathlons.

Plus this site

And this one

A fish out of water

Did I mention that swimming is by far my worst event? Found this site for beginning swimmers that is good, although hard to read.

The triathlon I want to do starts with a 500-yard swim. That's 10 laps. Right now I can do one length, then I need to stop and rest. I can do about 6 lengths (three laps) before I'm ready to die. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Maybe I should take tips from my friend and Olympic gold medalist Garrett Weber-Gale?

Today's workout

Workout this morning: 6 mile bike ride.

Bike riding is by far the favorite part of my workout. I'm not worried about the bike riding part of the triathlon, I see that as my best event. Running would be next, followed in a distant, distant third by swimming.

When I played football I always hated running. That's why I was a lineman - run five yards, stop and rest, then start over. My kind of running. Always hated running in basketball too. Maybe that's why I was never very good.

I have a hybrid bike, and I think I'll stay with that for the time being. No sense spending extra money on a road bike, right?

Here's a good site with some tips on bike training

Resource for beginner traithletes

Here's a cool site with information for beginner triathletes.

Looking for others if anyone has any good links.

Starting at the beginning

So I'm big, old and not an athlete. But I'm going to do a triathlon next spring. Why do you ask? Well there are a number of reasons.

First, I was inspired by my daughter, who will be 9 next month. She's already done two triathlons. Her first was last year. She didn't know how to ride a bike until June, then did her first triathlon in August. She was seventh out of eight, but she did beat a boy. This year she did much better and finished 15 out of 35 in her age group. So she has inspired me.

Next, I just want to feel good and be fit. I'm past middle age now, so I want to stay fit and healthy so I can live longer. Plus I don't want to always be the big, fat, out of shape guy.

Finally, I want to do a triathlon because it's there. My friend who climbed Mt. Everest this spring always uses that.

So join me on my journey. And if you have any suggestions, I'm open to anything.