Surpassing limits and why it's important to push yourself.

 Scientific evidence of physiological changes due to sports and athletic training

Here is an article that outlines all the positive things that can happen when you are doing regular exercise and when you are training for endurance sports.  

Here's what the US government has found from scientific evidence of how much exercise is required: 

Adults should do at least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) to 300 minutes (5 hours) a week of moderate intensity, or 75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) to 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.

Combining vigorous and moderate-intensity workouts means your body is induced to make adjustments and become stronger, more flexible or faster, depending on the exercises you are doing.  Using muscle confusion is one way to encourage the body to adapt, which means changing up workout routines often.  (See an earlier blog about muscle confusion.) 

How do we know how much exertion?  

Heart Rate is one measure that is a lagging indicator of your effort.  The HR measurement can take a few seconds to read the actual heart rate, and the heart can take a few seconds to respond to demands for oxygen so this indicator may show that your HR is rising even after you have stopped sprinting for example.  However, it is a great measure to use for racing and for knowing your upper limit by using the Maximum Heart Rate.  If you don't know your Max HR, you can calculate it for an estimate or check your HR after and all out effort.  Many athletes have Max HRs well above the predicted age based formulas.  

For example, I'm 66 this year.  My Tanaka calculated Max HR would be 208 - .75 X AGE or for me would be 208-.75X66 = 158.5.  Another calculated Fox Max HR formula is 220 - age or 220-66 = 154.  

So a range of Mx HR for me would be between 154-159.  My actual Max HR is 188.  Even after cancer and everything that I endured last year, my max HR is very high for my age.  

If I just exercised using the calculated Max HR, my zones would be too low, and I'd never improve my conditioning.  

Another way to check exertion levels if you don't have a HR monitor is Perceived Exertion.  

You can check your perceived exertion in real-time and know if you are achieving your maximum limits.  

As you might guess, there are several ways to measure this, and this article shows you the variety of scales that are in use.  

Conclusion

Pushing past your limits must be planned and done regularly with periods of rest and recovery.  Activities like FTP testing, racing, and sprints are ways to help you achieve your goals to improve your athleticism and push your limitations further out.  These activities often result in small improvements that add up over time, so patient and perseverance is necessary.  Skipping one workout in a week isn't harmful to achieving your goals, but skipping weeks or many days can stall your progress and actually begin to decay.  Three days of inactivity and your body starts to lose muscle tone.  

FTP test! (Functional Threshhold of Power)

 FTP testing; what is it and why do it? 

Anytime you are trying to improve something, you'll want a measurement to see how you are doing.  The FTP test in Cycling serves to give you and estimate of how well you can endure race conditions using a stress test of sorts.  

Here is Joe Friel's definition from Training Peaks: 

The FTP (Functional Threshold Power) is defined as the highest power a rider can maintain in a quasi-steady state without fatiguing. Or more simply, it’s an estimation of the workload a cyclist can sustain for an hour without a drastic increase in metabolite wastes (build-up of lactic acid).

HOW do I do an FTP Test? 

You can do an FTP test on your own.  Your coach will likely want you to do one about every 6 weeks to see how you are progressing with the training.  A race will give you an idea of how well you have progressed too, but if you needed an adjustment to your training, it's too late by that time.  So we use FTP testing to check progress and readiness for racing.  Here's how to do it: 

The procedure is actually very easy: a starting warm-up followed by a 20-minute best effort, where you have to ride as hard as you can. Finally, you'll have to multiply the average power registered during these 20 minutes by 0,95: the result is your Functional Threshhold.  

How do I know if I'm doing well?  

We often measure FTP in average Watts, but we can also check using a ratio of watts to your body weight.  Avg Watts can range from 100-600 watts depending on your age and fitness.  However the ratio that indicates race readiness should be between 1.5-2.5 Watts/kg of weight.  To find your KG weight divide your pound weight by 2.2.   A target of 2w/kg is a good one for completing an ironman course.  Higher FTP indicates you can hold a faster pace for longer periods of time, essentially. 

An amateur cyclist will have an FTP of between 1.5 and 2.5 watts/kg, whilst more experienced cyclists could be around 3.0 – 4.5 per/kg. Bicycling.com says that new riders with some fitness level will be approximately 2.0. For comparison's sake, it then points out that the world's top cyclists have an FTP of around 7.0

How accurate is an FTP test? 

As an estimate of how you are improving relative to past measures, it's pretty good.  As a predictor of how well you will do, it's not as good. 

Many coaches and athletes define functional threshold power (FTP) as 95 percent of the average power from a 20-minute, steady-state, all-out time trial. While this may provide an accurate FTP for about 50 to 60 percent of the population, it doesn't hold true for a large number of athletes.

So even if your FTP is low at any given time, you may still be able to do well on a race despite this measure since many things affect your power output measures.  Your mood and nutrition, sleep or lack of sleep, stress, can all affect your FTP measure on test day so if you don't do well, don't despair.  You may just kill it next time when conditions are perfect.  :) 

What is YOUR FTP Coach Terri? 

When I was training for an ironman, my highest FTP was 161 translating to 1.98W/kg.  During off season before cancer, my FTP was often around 130.  Now, it's between 100 and 130 depending on how I feel.  That would translate to 1.8 W/kg now since I have lost weight.  So not a lot of loss per kg of weight but clearly my power levels are down.  

How to Find Any Coach ...and in particular; me! Coach Terri

 How to Find a Coach

On this page I show you where to find me and my coaching bio pages in various locations.  I'm also connected to two training apps; Tridot and Training Peaks.  Both have affordable monthly pricing from $15 - $250/month, depending on the level of coaching you require.  

All the pages listed below, with my coaching bios, can be used to find any coach, not just me.  

So if you are seeking coaching help, and I suggest that anyone hoping to race should at least have a few coaching sessions to be safe and ready.  

My hourly rate is $50 for an evaluation of posture or swim position, nutrition or sweat rate consultation, racing strategy analysis, or other coaching you may need.  Training plans are $200 using either Training Peaks or excel.  If you want coaching through the apps, instructions are below to sign up on either Tridot or Training peaks.  

What is Tridot? 

I've become a coach for the Tridot System.  Below is my link if you'd like to sign up for Tridot.  You can begin free and decide if you like it before you subscribe.  Subscriptions begin at $15/month.  If you're interested in having my advice as a coach, you can choose the higher-level subscriptions.  

New athletes can register by starting a Test Drive using this unique link.

Chicago Triathlon wave start

https://app.tridot.com/onboard/sign-up/TerriFriel

You can check out this system here https://tridot.com/

In a nutshell, Tridot is an application that uses AI to take your personal data and develop a training program for your racing plans.  It will connect with Garmin and other fitness trackers to send you workouts on a daily basis, customize your training based on your output and keep you involved with your training by giving you scores on each workout.  The Tri Dot name comes from the three ratings in dots on your profile, indicating your fitness level in Swim, Bike, and Run.  On a scale of 0-100 you know where you stand in the community of triathletes.  For example, a swim number of 70 means you are in the 70th percentile of athletes and, therefore faster than 70% of the athletes they have analyzed in your age group.  The same speed in an older athlete could be more like 80 because of the declines due to age.  

This is a great way to set your expectations.  

Along with Tridot, you can access RaceX, which allows you to input your races and delivers a prediction and some guidance on how to race your best race based on your input and data from the Tridot program.  

If you want a customized training program, tridot is the most dynamic system available.  

Tridot also sponsors Pool School.  Check it out here. 

Training Peaks

I also use Training Peaks, which is less dynamic with your data but allows for data from other sports to be used.  Training peaks works with Garmin and other fitness trackers.  You and your coach can communicate on this app.  Races can be identified,

Leon's Triathlon 

and you can set goals for your races on this app. 

If you'd like to use an existing Training peaks account with me as your coach, this is the link to use

https://home.trainingpeaks.com/attachtocoach?sharedKey=F63YTDY7QRSQQ

or find me at https://www.trainingpeaks.com/coach/friel

You can find out more about Training Peaks here  https://www.trainingpeaks.com/

Training Peaks was first developed by Joe Friel (no relation we can find, maybe back in ancient times as Friels are small in number) who is a athletics researcher and developer of training metrics for determining Intensity, fatigue, stress, and ability with a variety of measures.  Tridot uses these metrics but in a slightly different way.  Training peaks has a very large library of videos and support for both athletes and coaches.  

Ironman Louisville 2019

Where you can learn more about me

You can find me on the Louisville Landshark Coaches page

The USAT Coaches page 

The Training Peaks Coach Page

Dryland Exercises for Swimmers

 Why do Dryland Exercises?  

1. The exercises  "wake up" the muscles you should use in your swim.  
2. Cross Training is a great way to increase your body strength and tone.  By pushing yourself to complete these dryland sets along with a swim in between, you were calling on many more muscles and creating an unusual situation that your body had to adapt to.  This is called "muscle confusion"  The body adapts pretty well to repeated activities and becomes more efficient, so less improvement is achieved.  By doing unusual activities, you notify your body that it needs to re-adapt to these new demands.  This stimulates more muscle growth.  
3. Teach you which muscles to use through muscle memory. I can talk all night about which muscles to use, but it may not become a habit until you "feel" it yourself. These dryland exercises help you feel the correct muscles and use them better.  

What's the difference between just bodyweight strength training and Dryland exercises? 

We usually do dryland exercises in between swim sets.  For the above reasons, you are trying to notify the body which muscles to use and become a stronger swimmer.  While you can do all these as strength training, it really has a faster impact on your muscle memory and activates the correct muscles if you swim in between sets.  

Here are some other dryland exercises you can do: 

The best dryland training for swimmers includes exercises that strengthen and stretch the muscles used in swimming, particularly the core, arms, and legs. Always warm up your muscles before beginning a workout and stretch thoroughly to prevent injury. Try some of the following dryland exercises in your next workout.

• Burpees
• Jump Lunges
• Planks
• Donkey Kicks
• Leg Lifts
• Pushups
• Pullups
• Squats
• Jump Rope
• Medicine Ball
• Flutter Kicks

Always be aware that pool decks are slippery and make sure you have a safe way to do these on the deck.  Choose exercises that work with the space and conditions on your deck.  

Try adding a few of these to your next workout! 

Improving your Cycling

 Most of us think that cycling is really easy.  We've been riding our bikes since we were kids.  However, some issues crop up if you've never really thought about how to ride your bike better.  

Seven cycling mistakes 

1. One leg is stronger and we have a stroke imbalance.  

Single leg Drills  

Here's how to do single leg drills in a video 

Exercises to help stroke balance

Using both legs makes sense right?  If you're only using one leg, you're tiring that leg out and when you get off to run, you have already over used one leg.  Evening out your pedal stroke can help a great deal to improve your run, but also your power on the bike...and the result is faster speed with less energy. 

2. Not getting proper fit for your bike and your body

A bike is an adjustable machine.  The adjustments are there for a reason.  When you have a bike that is fit to your body, you'll find that you ride more comfortably and with less fatigue.  You can approximately fit the bike yourself, but a professional bike fit ($100-300) can make a significant difference in your ability to climb and run off the bike. 

Where can I get a professional fit in Louisville? 

Schellers 

Barry S Coaching

Cycle Smiths

3. Mashing down with your quads, not using your glutes effectively

Hear how NOT to pedal here 

Here's an explanation of how to better use your muscles  SPIN not MASH

Mashing is using your quads and hamstrings more than your glutes.  While you can get away with this for pretty good distances, if you ever want to do an endurance race over 25 miles, you'll be glad you've learned to pedal more efficiently.  

4. Need for improved bike skills 

Here's how to improve your bike skills 

Bike Handling Drills 

Lack of bike skills is an important issue.  You are often called upon to turn fast, pick up a water bottle, navigate between riders or pedestrians, or brake on a downhill.  These skills, when done wrong, create hazardous situations for you and those around you. Practicing bike handling skills is essential for your safety.  At least 2-3 riders crash at a particular spot in the Chicago triathlon Oly yearly due to poor judgment and handling skills. Often the most hazardous places are turning at the bottom of a hill. Often riders don't anticipate the speed they will gain on a turn and lose traction and control.  

5. Lack of training for race conditions

Indoor bike training sets 

Outdoor bike training sets

The logic of many novice racers is "If I ride 100 miles in training, I should be able to do it in a race, right?"  

Well kinda.  A lot more is demanded of you in a race.  You must know how to manage your nutrition while riding long distances and not lose speed.  Non-race training often includes rest stops.  Also, see above for bike handling. These skills are important.  

Training rides that include some sets that push your body in intervals, much like HIIT, will help you in a race when the hills, winds, pressure and dehydration all affect you at once.  Your body is a very pliable machine that responds to pressure by building more muscle, acuity, blood volume and oxygen efficiency.  That's why most IM training programs are 16 weeks or longer.  It takes time for the body to build these things and repeated pressure improves your body's response to prepare for the race.  Put some bike sets in your training and live to appreciate your efforts! 

Swimming Physics

 Many athletes decide to become triathletes without being able to swim or without good basic skills in swimming.  This often results in athletes arriving at a race having just achieved the ability to swim the distance, limited experience with open water, and a great deal of fear of the swim leg of the race.  

In fact, here's an article about that fear. 

A big part of the problem is undertraining, but another part is the limited availability of good triathlon swim coaches. Many swim coaches are great at coaching for speed in the pool, but open water swimming is much different.  Very few swim coaches can coach athletes for open water trials.  

A good start is to understand some of the physics of swimming.  In the series of drawings below, you can see some of the leading physics effects on swimmers.  

You can see essential good form and body position in the water in A.  The head is level with the water's surface, the legs are not bent, and the elbow is high for a good catch.  Most of the body is in, entering, or leaving the 2-inch slippery layer of the water.  The catch is well below the slippery layer where the water is heavy and unmoving, so the hand and arm push against a heavy layer of water for the motive force.  There is much less drag here.  

In B, the swimmer is looking forward and lifting the head slightly, but the legs, in response, drop a great deal because the center of gravity is at the chest area.  The legs end up in the heavy layer of the water and create a significant level of drag.  The arm is in a good position but has to work twice as hard to pull the body forward because of the drag on the legs. 

In C, the swimmer is kicking with bent knees, and even though the head is in the correct position and the catch is good, the legs are creating a great deal of drag.  The large leg muscles that weigh a lot are pulling the body down in the water, and when this swimmer tries to breathe, they will experience downward movement and end up with a lot of water in their mouth.  

In D, the swimmer raises their head to breathe, and the legs drop in response.  This happens with the swimmer in C; they then have to adapt to get a breath, so they lift their head.  The body is sinking with every breath, and the swimmer is struggling to progress because of the drag and sinking.  

Overcoming these issues requires that the swimmer understand that dropped legs and raised head are critically damaging to forward progress.  When a swimmer tries to go faster with these problems, they work very hard and often end up with disappointing results as they create a lot of turbulence, further slowing them down.  

In the water, speed is often not the result of working harder.  This article addresses that. 

Having said all that, moving from the pool to open water often means that we go slower.  30 sec to more slower than our pool 100 yd pace.  Why?  

1. There are no lines in open water so we often swim in zig zags
2. There are people in our way
3. We experience fear from all the chaos and inability to control our situation
4. We are racing in cold water and the heart rate is elevated, the blood vessels constricted and we feel breathless
5. We are swimming in a wetsuit that is tight and can feel like we can't get enough air
6. Our goggles fog up and we can't see where we are going
7. We have trouble sighting on buoys and sometimes miss the turns
8. Current, waves, jellyfish and other things in open water we don't encounter in the pool
9. The water is full of bacteria and can make us nauseous 

It is particularly important to understand how to keep good body position in the water in open water because many other things will slow us down.  If we are well trained in how to keep good body position, we don't have to think about that along with "how do I get around this bozo?"  

It can feel like we aren't making progress when all we do is focus on head and leg issues at first.  But once those are conquered and you experience the feeling of flying in the water effortlessly, you'll be glad you focused on the basics first and arrive at the swim finish feeling accomplished.  

Weight lifting and Stretching for Triathletes

 Weight Training 

You may have questions about weight training.  Here is an article by the triathlon guru Joe Friel (possible distant relation)  that helps you plan for and adjust the weight training to your body.  And here are a few videos that show you have to do these exercises he suggests correctly.  

Do one of the following: 

Squat form https://youtu.be/byxWus7BwfQ

Lunge form https://youtu.be/hsO1dZjcPj8

Deadlift form https://youtu.be/ChLmR-1UBMI

Leg press form https://youtu.be/4PYXEYqgCqk

Do all of these: 

Leg Curl form https://youtu.be/vl5nUdE9mWM

Catch and Pull  (with bands) https://youtu.be/3RQreNg2BIY

(this is why you're doing this one) https://youtu.be/OpRCTQk5xNo

Plank form https://youtu.be/BQu26ABuVS0

Do the test in the article to determine your Max Rep and follow the suggested # of reps for each phase..  He suggests the # of reps and # of sets.  So for the AA  phase, you should do 15 -20 lifts, rest for 1-1.5 minutes, then do 15-20 lifts, rest for 1-1.5 mins, and a third set of 15-20 lifts.  That's 3 sets of 15-20 reps with RI = 1-1.5mins.  

Do this same set of exercises for  2-3 weeks.  Then move to the next Phase for 2-3 weeks etc. Talk with your coach if you need guidance. 

Stretching and foam rolling

You will find that doing the weights and all the cardio may leave you with DOMS (delayed onset muscle stiffness). One way to combat that is to do active recovery, including lower-impact exercises like walking or yoga.  Another way is to stretch using yoga or just some runner stretches.  Finally you can do foam rolling, which requires that you have some semi-tough round object to roll over or on top of your muscles.  A foam roller works, but some people use rolling pins or softballs or other larger balls.  Whatever you use, be careful not to overextend and take it slow.  Your muscles respond by tightening anytime to stretch..waiting in a position, as we do in yoga, allows the body to begin to accept the stretch and let go. By waiting a few minutes, you'll be able to stretch a bit further.  Always pay attention to your body's signals in stretching.  You can over-stretch and tear a muscle that can end a season.  

Here's an article about why you should stretch every day...but properly!  There are some good stretches described in this article if you don't want to watch the videos. 

Running Stretches  https://youtu.be/ueqzOaPO9NA

Foam rolling for runner follow along https://youtu.be/_y4gu-bwlhA

Cycling Stretches https://youtu.be/FT5FwTA5sn0

Foam rolling for cyclists https://youtu.be/MJfnBaOBOR8

Swim Stretches https://youtu.be/AxgC1vd1Y90

Foam Rolling for swimmers https://youtu.be/duH3yMVktUY