The view from outside transition.
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posted Jul 9, 2010 4:17 AM by Theytri L
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updated Jul 30, 2010 6:21 AM
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Hi all. my blog is moving over to www.theytri.blogspot.com. I'm more likely to update there than here on google site web pages as it's less complex to edit. And I'm still trying to figure out how to make this darn thing work! |
posted Apr 29, 2010 4:50 AM by Theytri L
Triathlon season is ramping up. Some of you may have already heard the delightful buzz of an alarmclock at 4 a.m. race morning this year, but for others the A race day is still months away. If your athlete is participating in a full-distance event or has uped their distance this year I'd hope you'd have already had The Talk.
The Talk is vital. If you haven't had it, stop what you are doing and have it now.
The Talk means sitting down, calmly, at the beginning of season and saying: What do you need from me this season. OK. Here is what I need from you.
Triathlon training is hard on everyone and if you don't communicate your needs early and often you have only yourself to blame when you're PO'ed. This is not a chat you can have when you're ticked off/tired and expect productive results. If you're tired/crabby, acknowledge that and give fair warning. If one of your needs is not being met, calmly, address that.
Examples: Athlete: I need for you to be understanding that I will need to be gone a lot on weekends to train and when I am home I may be tired and crabby. Partner: OK. I need you to understand that sometimes you'll have to miss/cut short a training session because its great-aunt-sally's 80'th birthday and we have to go or I need you to help me with yard work or I just need a little together time.
Athletes ask a lot of their partners/families/friends when they are in season. It's not unfair to expect to have to give back a little in return. It doesn't make you nasty for asking that the needs of others be acknowledged, too.
Nevermind who actually crosses the finish line, Triathlon is a team sport. |
posted Apr 17, 2010 6:33 AM by Theytri L
OK. I know. I've been slacking. I'd tell you all the stuff that's been keeping me busy but a, I'm sure you are just as busy and b, don't really care. So...Tri season is just kicking off here in the NE, elsewhere in the States it's underway already with Cali 70.3 behind us and Ironman St. George just around the corner. Finally 'warm' enough to get outside to train (though crappy gray and cold today) So Mr. TheyTri heading out this morning with some good friends to go and pre-ride the Rev3 Quassy course. That's his first race of the season and one he really enjoyed last season (despite an issue with his pedals on the bike). As for me, I've been TRYING to get out and run. I did OK when we were on vacation and ran yesterday. Having some calf/knee issues. I think I need new shoes. But, I've been trying. Yesterday went fairly well. It's clear I simply cannot run with TheyTri Doggie until I'm faster/she's less hyper. I can't believe I've gotten myself into this 13.1. But, January is a long way off and I have time to get my rear in gear. Makes me nervous, though. Setting a goal is important but I hope I've not overreached. Ah well, worst case scenario is I spend 6 days at Disney! In other news, TheyTri HQ is participating in Holistic Guru's #i8this challenge. We're taking some time this spring to do a little (self) cleaning and focus on our nutrition. Mr. TheyTri is trying to get more leafy greans into his diet (albeit in sneaky ways, he hates them) and to hydrate better. I'm focusing on being better about eating breakfast, drinking more water, trying one new fruit or veggie a day (or, simply eating a veg that's not in my usual routine) and no alcohol for the next 9 days (well, 8, this started yesterday). Hoping some of the habits stick! This is a great idea Holistic Guru has come up with. Hope you join in!
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posted Feb 28, 2010 1:03 PM by Kate LaVoie
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updated Feb 28, 2010 1:06 PM
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The path to success begins with a single step. What have I gotten myself into? |
posted Feb 27, 2010 10:20 AM by Theytri L
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updated Feb 27, 2010 10:25 AM
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Uh. Oh. I started a bit of a Twitter storm about Disney Half Marathon Jan. 8, 2011. So, I'm now registered. YIKES!! I'll have a coordination page ( HERE) for all the good Tweeps that are game for joining us. Remember I'm MRS. THEYTRI not MR. THEYTRI. My goal=Crossing the Line before Death takes me. I could not care less what my time is. To quote Cat: Complete not Compete. |
posted Feb 26, 2010 12:51 PM by Theytri L
The Home for Wayward Triathletes (HFWT for those in the know) got clobbered by this latest storm. Mr. TheyTri has been stuck in indoors with lousy weather and lousy cold. February sucks. Last year Mr. TheyTri was off in sunny Spain as part of the Strong Like Bull training camp and I think he misses it (though, he's been mum about it.). We're all in the dumps. The only one excited about the snow is TheyTri doggie, who lives to play hide-and-seek with her tennisball in the big snowdrifts. Being snowbound is making me a bit looney. I would like to be able to get outside for a jog, amazingly enough. I've even been considering, over the past few days, of setting myself a challenge. I'm reluctant to post it here in case I flake out (always a possibility) but let's just say it involves the Happiest Place on Earth in January of 2011. I'd really need to buckle down and stop being so lazy. We'll see. Could just be the stir-craziness talking. But, I was very inspired by watching my new friend, Cat, run the Austin half marathon two weeks ago. I'm not gonna lie...I hate running. But, the sense of accomplishment is really sweet. |
posted Feb 19, 2010 1:52 PM by Theytri L
Apologies for the gap. Really going to try and keep on top of this! Mr. and Mrs. TheyTri traveled to Austin for the fab Austin Marathon and half marathon. Mr. TheyTri decided that an early-season race would be a good idea this year and we decided that a, we've always wanted to go to Austin and b, we have a bunch of fun Tweeps we'd like to meet who live in Texas who were game to do the race, too. So, off we went. Mr. TheyTri did the full marathon, our Tweeps did the half and Mrs. TheyTri got in on the action by doing the Break-a-leg 5k.
Traveling for races can be a chore. In fact, that's what prompted the creation of this site in the first place...making the chore less chore-y.
Traveling for a marathon is infinitely less hassle than traveling for a Tri. No bike boxes, helmets, wetsuits etc...just shoes. Airlines don't rake you over the coals for checking a bag containing sneakers. But, traveling to a race is also exciting, especially if it's to a place you've never been before. Embrace the experience. Give yourself at least a day (not counting the day you have to go for packet pickup or pre-race training ride or whatever) on either side of the actual event to enjoy and explore the city. Traveling for an early season race gives you the luxury of not taking it so seriously: It's not the A race. It's not a make-or-break event so go find a great restaurant or fun bar or cool museum or beautiful park or beach. Triathlon takes up so much of life, why not stop to smell the roses that racing affords you?
Spending half a day with the non-athlete exploring a new place makes it an adventure for them, too. Makes it a trip that isn't only about the race. Makes it a memory you can share.
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posted Feb 7, 2010 12:17 PM by Theytri L
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updated Feb 7, 2010 12:52 PM
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Seriously, it's not like I don't have enough to do. So, why this? Well, when Mr. TheyTri decided to get involved in triathlon it was a bit of a whim. I didn't think all that much about it until I started noticing that he was gone more and more on weekends. I soon realized that it was either get involved, cheerfully, or miss out on what was slowly becoming a huge part of my husband's life. As his interest and enjoyment grew, mine did, too.
But, I'm not the one racing or training. I'm the one who does all the "other" stuff. Chief among the "other" stuff (and, again, this site and blog is not a place to come an unload yet another load of bike shorts I had to wash this weekend) is the logistics. I plan the travel. I research where's a good place to eat, sleep, shop. How do we get around in an unfamiliar town and how long does it take to get from Point A to Point B? Where is the LBS (local bike shop) in case hubs forgot something or has a mechanical issue? I make sure I have the times Mr. TheyTri needs to be at packet pickup or have his bike in transition and where those things are.
I don't write all this to give myself a big pat on the back (though...come on...I totally deserve one!) but to make the point that I have developed some skill in this area and figured others have as well. Why not combine all that accumulated knowledge into one place so that Tri-veterans and Tri-newbies can help each other out?
It's my hope that people will become involved in this site as a community. We welcome all submisions and all people interested in being collaborators!
I'm going to Austin, Texas Friday where we'll be having a tweetup with some friends at the Austin Marathon. Where's the best coffee? How do we get to Mellow Johnnies? Best place to get a drink on 6th? This is the kind of local knowledge we hope to have here on TheyTri. Help me out in Comments or send me a request to be a collaborator and make a listing for the Austin Marathon on the Texas page!
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posted Feb 6, 2010 10:59 AM by Theytri L
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updated Feb 6, 2010 10:59 AM
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If your athlete is training hard for a long-distance event or to make a great improvement on their time at a shorter-distance race, you know all about the long hours they log in. But what happens when long training is coupled with long work hours? Or when non-triathlon stresses pop up unexpectedly? How do you help your athlete avoid burn out without burning yourself out?
Being a grown-up can get in the way sometimes of the things we’d like to do. Given the chance, Mr. TheyTri would happily spend all day training, but, alas, he has to bring home some of the bacon. But, lately, the hours he’s been having to log at the office are crushing. Couple that with the fact that he’s into his second peak time of the season and he’s just plain pooped.
We don’t have a great solution other than to stop and really consider how much time you need when planning to do a tri for training, work and both pre-race rest and post-race recovery. It may mean taking an extra vacation day where possible. It may mean that the non-athlete part of the equation has take on a bit more of the load in the days leading up to a race or just following one. You as a spouse/partner/parent/friend cannot fix their work schedule if the big project has gone pear-shaped. You have to help where you can outside the office.
No one wants to be a nag. But, if nagging helps your athlete to maybe skip a workout to get some rest or to tell their boss they need a personal day or to consider a sleep aid pill to quiet their mind enough to allow for a full-nights rest, then so be it. We’ll nag! We here at TheyTri don’t really advocate the use of sleep aids in general but sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures! Be a nag. Argue the point. Appeal to their goals for both triathlon and work and that exhaustion will be a detriment to both.
And never underestimate the power of the nap. |
posted Feb 6, 2010 10:57 AM by Theytri L
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updated Feb 6, 2010 10:58 AM
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So, how do you exercise together when one half of the partnership is a triathlete and the other half is, well, not? It’s tough to do. Mr. TheyTri gets bored out on long runs by himself but Mrs. TheyTri considers a “long run” to be a mile. You can swim at the pool together but despite sharing a lane it’s not as though it’s easy to chit chat while swimming laps. The bike works out pretty well, so long as your athlete is in base training mode and the route is fairly flat but once serious, hilly, pre-race training kicks in the non-athlete partner gets dropped like a bag of dirt.
But, yesterday, the TheyTris came up with a great solution. Mr. TheyTri had a 1 hour run to get in and Mrs. TheyTri joined him on her bike. This posed a few challenges on downhills when the bike wanted to just roll away quickly, but it gave us the opportunity to talk and enjoy being out on a beautiful Saturday together.
Finding time to spend together when your athlete is in pre-race mode can be tough so finding ways to participate without a, overreaching on your own abilities or b, driving your athlete nuts by slowing them down. But, this biking/running combo seems to be a good solution! |
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