Beginning routine for 34 yo guy

Jonathan B <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hi Group! I've been lurking for a while, and haven't found the information that I'm particularly
interested in... though I have found a lot of otherwise useful info. Specifically, I'm a 34 year
old guy that used to swim on occasion way back in my teens, though never on a team or
competitively. In the past few years I've been a slave to my job (Computer Geek for 911) and
really put on a lot of weight. Currently I'm doing 6 days a week in the gym, 3 using weights and 3
on either a treadmill or Elliptical machine doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). My
overall goal, however, is to get into good enough shape to compete in one of the several summer
triathlons that occur here in Southern Oregon. I'm most comfortable doing the freestyle, though my
form is rather sloppy, but would really like to know what y'all would recommend for a beginning
routine to really get conditioned to do a tri. I'd also like to incorporate other strokes to mix
it up a bit, and so that I don't burn out on the freestyle. The gym that I attend has a 4 lane 25
yard pool dedicated for swimming laps, and there is rarely anyone using when I would be. Thanks in
advance for your considered opinions.

Jonathan Grants Pass, OR\

Hey Jonathan,

we get quite a few of these, (that is, newbies who want advice). So I assume that's why no one has
chimed in. So I'll throw in my two cents. Sounds like you are a "gym rat". I've been one from time
to time. It's fun and convenient. But if you want to do tri's my advice is to throw away the
membership for awhile. Join a masters swim team/club for the swimming. It's the only way to push
yourself. (Unless you're one of those highly motivated individuals.) Likewise, runnning and cycling
with a group out in the elements is totally different than doing the same activites in the gym. The
former are much harder - when the road tilts up a bit, and there's a headwind, but it's your time to
go to the front of the paceline, you'll be digging deeper than you ever would in the gym.

The gym is good for speed work - short, intense workouts. But not good for long miles. I would
eliminate weight lifting entirely. Not enough time or energy considering what you need for the other
activities. And it often doesn't help people.

Good luck, Eric

I wouldn't eliminate the weights. I similarly slipped into swimming after exploiting the weights at
my local YMCA.

The weights provide good conditioning in a short period of time. I just completed a triathlon the
other week. My bike time was pretty competitive even though I spent very little time in the saddle
(two 29.5 mile trips) in the months prior to the event. I attribute weight work on the legs every
other day to that success.

I alternate upper body and lower body weight work every day. After the weights, I practice various
forms of abdominal torture, a little stretching, then head to the pool for 20-25 minutes. On days
when I do the upper body work with weights, I'll focus more on leg work in the pool and vice versa.

I usually take one day off per week. Some days I'll toss in an early morning run, but I'm cutting
back on that due to intense muscle aches at night. (Which may be due to Lipitor!) Some days I'll get
to the beach and do a mile in the ocean.

The real delight about swimming is that I'll be perfecting my stroke for the rest of my life. With
every lap I get to make stroke and position adjustments to reflect advice from books and from the
nerds on this newsgroup. (It's like golf that way.)

BTW, all of this stuff I can do all by myself. Don't need to find any buddies to lift weights, run,
swim, or bike. Makes it pretty hard to find excuses for not training.

"4precious" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Jonathan B <[email hidden]> wrote in message

news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Hi Group! I've been lurking for a while, and haven't found the information that

I'm

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

particularly interested in... though I have found a lot of otherwise

useful

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

info. Specifically, I'm a 34 year old guy that used to swim on occasion way

back

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

in my teens, though never on a team or competitively. In the past few

years

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I've been a slave to my job (Computer Geek for 911) and really put on a

lot

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

of weight. Currently I'm doing 6 days a week in the gym, 3 using weights and 3 on either a
treadmill or Elliptical machine doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). My overall goal,
however, is to get into good enough shape to compete in one of the several summer triathlons
that occur here in Southern Oregon. I'm most comfortable doing the freestyle, though my form is
rather

sloppy,

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

but would really like to know what y'all would recommend for a beginning routine to really get
conditioned to do a tri. I'd also like to

incorporate

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

other strokes to mix it up a bit, and so that I don't burn out on the freestyle. The gym that I
attend has a 4 lane 25 yard pool dedicated for swimming laps, and there is rarely anyone using
when I would be. Thanks in advance for your considered opinions.

Jonathan Grants Pass, OR\

Hey Jonathan,

we get quite a few of these, (that is, newbies who want advice). So I assume that's why no one
has chimed in. So I'll throw in my two cents. Sounds like you are a "gym rat". I've been one from
time to time. It's fun and convenient. But if you want to do tri's my advice is to throw away the
membership for awhile. Join a masters swim team/club for the swimming. It's the only way to push
yourself. (Unless you're one of those highly motivated individuals.) Likewise, runnning and
cycling with a group out in the elements is totally different than doing the same activites in
the gym. The former are much harder - when the road tilts up a bit, and there's a headwind, but
it's your time to go to the front of the paceline, you'll be digging deeper than you ever would
in the gym.

The gym is good for speed work - short, intense workouts. But not good for long miles. I would
eliminate weight lifting entirely. Not enough time or energy considering what you need for the
other activities. And it often doesn't help people.

Good luck, Eric

(4precious) said:

Jonathan B <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hi Group! I've been lurking for a while, and haven't found the information that I'm particularly
interested in... though I have found a lot of otherwise useful info. Specifically, I'm a 34 year
old guy that used to swim on occasion way back in my teens, though never on a team or
competitively. In the past few years I've been a slave to my job (Computer Geek for 911) and
really put on a lot of weight. Currently I'm doing 6 days a week in the gym, 3 using weights and
3 on either a treadmill or Elliptical machine doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). My
overall goal, however, is to get into good enough shape to compete in one of the several summer
triathlons that occur here in Southern Oregon. I'm most comfortable doing the freestyle, though
my form is rather sloppy, but would really like to know what y'all would recommend for a
beginning routine to really get conditioned to do a tri. I'd also like to incorporate other
strokes to mix it up a bit, and so that I don't burn out on the freestyle. The gym that I attend
has a 4 lane 25 yard pool dedicated for swimming laps, and there is rarely anyone using when I
would be. Thanks in advance for your considered opinions.

Jonathan Grants Pass, OR\

Hey Jonathan,

we get quite a few of these, (that is, newbies who want advice). So I assume that's why no one has
chimed in. So I'll throw in my two cents. Sounds like you are a "gym rat". I've been one from time
to time. It's fun and convenient. But if you want to do tri's my advice is to throw away the
membership for awhile. Join a masters swim team/club for the swimming.

Good idea. If he can't find one, then he should at least pick up a few books on swim
technique/training, and practice it himself.

Quoted message said:

It's the only way to push yourself. (Unless you're one of those highly motivated individuals.)
Likewise, runnning and cycling with a group out in the elements is totally different than doing the
same activites in the gym.

For triathlons, it really doesn't hurt to train alone on the bike, since drafting is not allowed in
most of them. I do some of my best rides alone and enjoy not having to deal with people ramping up
the pace too soon in the ride or fading out at the end. For running, the same applies. I find the
best strategy with running and biking is to save the group events for easy days and/or else find
someone with very similar ability to your own.

Quoted message said:

The former are much harder - when the road tilts up a bit, and there's a headwind, but it's your
time to go to the front of the paceline, you'll be digging deeper than you ever would in the gym.

The gym is good for speed work - short, intense workouts. But not good for long miles. I would
eliminate weight lifting entirely. Not enough time or energy considering what you need for the
other activities. And it often doesn't help people.

Agreed. Unless you're retired, on extended leave from work, unable to train otherwise, or a
full-time professional athlete, it probably does not make sense to include weight training as
triathlon training.

Quoted message said:

Good luck, Eric

Another thought. The average mature guy loses 1 lb. of muscle per year. When you consider that most
30-50 year olds are putting on weight, there's an implication that people are substituting fat for
muscle and then tossing in extra fat.

Keep using the weights.

RS "Jonathan B" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi Group! I've been lurking for a while, and haven't found the information that I'm particularly
interested in... though I have found a lot of otherwise

useful

Quoted message said:

info. Specifically, I'm a 34 year old guy that used to swim on occasion way back in my teens,
though never on a team or competitively. In the past few

years

Quoted message said:

I've been a slave to my job (Computer Geek for 911) and really put on a

lot

Quoted message said:

of weight. Currently I'm doing 6 days a week in the gym, 3 using weights and 3 on either a
treadmill or Elliptical machine doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). My overall goal,
however, is to get into good enough shape to compete in one of the several summer triathlons that
occur here in Southern Oregon. I'm most comfortable doing the freestyle, though my form is rather
sloppy, but would really like to know what y'all would recommend for a beginning routine to really
get conditioned to do a tri. I'd also like to

incorporate

Quoted message said:

other strokes to mix it up a bit, and so that I don't burn out on the freestyle. The gym that I
attend has a 4 lane 25 yard pool dedicated for swimming laps, and there is rarely anyone using
when I would be. Thanks in advance for your considered opinions.

Jonathan Grants Pass, OR