Endurance Athletes

Turtle9952
Turtle9952 Posts: 17 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Where are all my endurance athletes?! Been on this app over 12 years now. I have had success in losing and maintaining. I am an avid triathlete and have been in the sport for over 10 years. Feel free to friend if you would like.

Replies

  • SafariGalNYC
    SafariGalNYC Posts: 1,567 Member
    edited October 27
    @Turtle9952
    Also a decade long MFP user here.. endurance sports enthusiast as well as healthy living lover.

    Do you feel you keep your endurance through diet and mindset as well or primarily focus on workout?
    For me I’ve had to interlace all three.

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,607 Member
    Hello!

    Recreational short-endurance athlete, not long-endurance. (It's too long to be a sprint . . . .) That probably doesn't count, in the world of triathletes.

    I'm a rower, on-water when I can, machine when I must. In my demographic, races - if I were still racing - would be 5-9 minutes or so, up to maybe 20-25, depending on race type. Workouts are usually longer, but not all race pace, of course. Our training plans and their periodization work differently from tri training, certainly. I don't do a training plan anymore in that structured a way, but that doesn't mean throwing away concerns about how I eat.

    I lost weight with MFP starting around 9 years ago, have been maintaining for about 8 so far. I've been a rower for around 22 years (yes, started when I was still obese).

    I think I'm agreeing with SafariGirlNYC when I say that for me, a happy life balance involves overall balance of staying active plus pursuing an overall healthy, nutritious way of eating. MFP definitely helps me keep my weight in a good range, and make sure I get my intended nutrition.

    As a triathlete, you need to devote more time to training (long runs, bricks, etc.), I know, which does create additional nutrition/fueling (and nutrient timing) needs. I would think MFP must also aid in that.

    Best wishes!

  • Turtle9952
    Turtle9952 Posts: 17 Member
    @SafariGalNYC , @AnnPT77

    Thanks for commenting. I honestly didnt expecy to recieve any feedback. Also, sorry for the late response, I did not get any notification.

    I do think diet, workout, and mindet are all crucial pillars to success in endurance sports. I will admit diet is my weakest pillar as I did not start focusing on this until the past couple years. However, I learned it has a massive effect on performance in training and on race day. Truly a game changer!

    With regard to triathlons, we have short races as well. In fact, sprint triathlons are some of my favorite races. Someting exciting about going all out for 60-90 minutes is just a blast!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,607 Member
    edited October 30
    Your short races as a triathlete are longer than my long races as an on-water rower! (There are exceptional on-water or machine rowing events that are longer, but it's rare for a long race of more common types to be as much as half an hour.) ;)

    I've had triathlete friends, and really respect the fitness and time commitment it takes to be successful. My former spin teacher tried to talk me into a sprint tri, but I hate to swim (plus do it poorly), and my knees are not up to running (arthritis, torn meniscus for which I'm deferring surgery as long as I can). I think I could handle the bike leg, if I had a ride lighter than my hybrid bike. :D

    I agree that nutrition is part of any athletic improvement. Wishing you continuing success!

  • DiscusTank5
    DiscusTank5 Posts: 501 Member
    Turtle9952 wrote: »
    @SafariGalNYC , @AnnPT77

    With regard to triathlons, we have short races as well. In fact, sprint triathlons are some of my favorite races. Someting exciting about going all out for 60-90 minutes is just a blast!

    This thread makes me so happy. I've done three triathlons, all sprint distance, and your 60-90 minutes was my 2 hours, I'm sure. My most recent one was summer 2023. Then, I had a health crisis and surgery almost a year ago, so I've been out of racing for 2024. That did not stop me from following the Ironman race in Kona last weekend.

    I'm cautiously getting back into running on the treadmill these days. My first goal is a 5K. I wanted to do my town's Turkey Trot in Nov. but realisticallly need to look for a Hot Cocoa 5K in Jan.
  • DiscusTank5
    DiscusTank5 Posts: 501 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »

    I've had triathlete friends, and really respect the fitness and time commitment it takes to be successful. My former spin teacher tried to talk me into a sprint tri, but I hate to swim (plus do it poorly), and my knees are not up to running (arthritis, torn meniscus for which I'm deferring surgery as long as I can). I think I could handle the bike leg, if I had a ride lighter than my hybrid bike. :D

    You should get into cycling, Ann, for the days you aren't rowing. :)
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,607 Member
    edited October 31
    DiscusTank5 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »

    I've had triathlete friends, and really respect the fitness and time commitment it takes to be successful. My former spin teacher tried to talk me into a sprint tri, but I hate to swim (plus do it poorly), and my knees are not up to running (arthritis, torn meniscus for which I'm deferring surgery as long as I can). I think I could handle the bike leg, if I had a ride lighter than my hybrid bike. :D

    You should get into cycling, Ann, for the days you aren't rowing. :)

    That's been my usual routine, actually, the last couple of years: In summer, rowing on water 4 days a week, cycling 2, weather permitting. Off season, mostly alternating machine rowing and stationary biking 6 days a week. Pre-pandemic, I did the on-water or machine rowing, plus spin classes a couple of days a week, but got a stationary bike for home during the pandemic instead. This Summer, I slacked off on the outdoor biking after doing a bit in Spring, instead trying to catch up on some work around my house/yard, and honestly not making the progress I should've.

    I usually also lift in the Winter some, but the last couple of years have struggled with some musculo-skeletal stuff (shoulder nerve impingement, scapular mobility problem) that got me doing physical therapy and avoiding lifting which seemed to aggravate it. I'm hoping to get into a reasonable machine row/stationary bike routine for my off season (coming soon, sadly, weather-wise). I also talked to a personal trainer at a recent "meet the trainers" event at my Y, thinking about trying him out, too, for help on the strength side.

    I try not to complain about aging, because as a cancer survivor (and cancer widow) I know that the actual alternative is much, much worse . . . but strain and recovery are different than they were at 20-something. I wish I'd been smart enough to start being routine active at 20-ish, instead of waiting until my late 40s. Readers, please be smarter than I was! ;)
  • chaney3000
    chaney3000 Posts: 269 Member
    Hey all. I am an avid runner (marathons). My last race was in Feb. I ran the Panama City Marathon. Haven't been training for any new races yet just maintenance miles. Would love to run some races overseas

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