Results of Fundamentals of Swimming Class

Perry B. is training for Gulf Coast Half Ironman Triathlon. He writes:

I swam 1,750 meters yesterday without stopping, my first non-stop mile. I felt great swimming and swam consistent laps. When I started your Fundamentals of Swimming class I could swim 50 meters before I wanted to expire. A week after your class ended I am now able to swim a little over a mile straight. I really do appreciate it.

Photo: Perry at Big Spin

Beth Todd Wins Fitnesswave Body Composition Challenge

Beth Todd won the Body Composition Challenge put on by Fitnesswave TN.

She lost 19 lbs in 12 weeks though a strategy of swimming, stationary cycling (BIG SPIN) and changing her eating habits.



Beth Todd will be speaking at the Triathlon and Fitness Expo on Jan 10. Her talk will be entitled View from the back of the pack; What it takes to keep going.

Fitnesswave TN is a full service testing program that offers VO2, Resting Metabolism, and Body Composition testing. Fitnesswave TN link here.

Beth Todd in her own words:

I have been struggling with obesity for almost 20 years.. I turned 50 this year and now more than ever I have a sense of urgency to get fit. When I went to Fitness Wave I was embarassed to get dunked and feared facing the "numbers". David Harris said something to me that helped me get past this " You have to know where you are to get where you want to go." He was right. I am glad that I did not let fear hold me back from taking this challenge.

One of the things I learned this past 12 weeks is that anyone that wants to make a physique change whether it is 5 pounds or 50 needs these test. David helped me to set a realistic 12 week goal which was important so I would not get discouraged.

I am so excited that I won this challenge! I plan to use my prize of free testing for a year to help guide me towards my ultimate goal of being healthy and fit. I can tell a difference all ready in how my body performs with just 19 lbs lost. I can't wait to reach my goal in 2009!

Posted by Stephen Taylor, Nashville Triathlon Coach

Frank Fay PR's in the 5K

Frank Fay has completed 10 weeks of STtrainer group training focusing on running, swimming, and strength training. He is currently utilizing a training plan for his goal to do a PR in the Country Music Half Marathon.

In Frank's words: Hey Stephen. Here are the final results. 39 overall out of 300. 5th in age group. Final time of 22:23. This is a 5K PR for me. This bests my previous best time by 1:01. I have really just started my speed work and should be able to get closer to 21 min.

Note: PR ='s Personal Record.

STtrainer Athletes Are Leaders

Mindy Craven is one of the most high-achieving stars that I have the joy to coach. In her first full year of endurance sports, she did ten triathlons including the Great Floridian triathon--Ironman distance.

To finish the year off in true Mindy fashion, she paced one of our friends Andrew Hutchinson through the Memphis Marathon. Unlike Mindy, "Hutch" is not the most consistent when it comes to training. She ran the race with him, made sure he paced himself wisely (again not his strong suit), and even made him walk the aid stations so he would hydrate and take nutrition.

STtrainer athletes are leaders.

Mindy (2nd from left) and Hutch (3rd from left) after Memphis Marathon.


Mindy kicking it in at Music City Triathon.


Mindy after finishing her ironman. We were all so proud of her.


Looking cute...one of the benefits of endurance sports.

Jason Haggard at Crankmas Alley Cat

Okay most people will have no idea what that title refers to....

Jason "Trash Talk" Haggard occasionally writes a column in my Friday Fitness Fax newsletter. He placed 6th out of 40 riders in the Crankmas Alley Cat race Saturday, which is an urban bike race in the bike messenger style of riding. You need to know the town in addition to being comfortable riding among traffic. This particular race consisted of checkpoints where racers purchased food to donate to the needy.

The group that puts these Alley Cat races on seems to allow all kinds of bikes, so you don't have to worry about breaking your neck on a fixed gear. Then again, isn't style worth a little bit danger?

Stay abreast of future Alley Cat races fixedgearnashville blog.
Cyclists may also be interested in Nashville Urban Bike League discussion group.

Memphis Madness!

Several STtrainer triathletes raced the Memphis Half Marathon as part of their off-season training.


Amber Lai (pictured above) writes:

I wanted to update you on the St. Jude Half from the weekend. Kevin Harrington, Carrie Gay, and I all completed the race. It was both Carrie and Kevin’s first half. They both did really well. Carrie’s goal was under 2:30 and her official finish was 2:16:20. Kevin’s goal was under two hours and he finished in 1:58:52.

I had a great race as well. I started out really relaxed. I haven’t been training very hard so I didn’t have high expectations for this race. I just wanted to have fun and finish in under two hours. Pretty much as soon as the gun went off though (or 8 minutes after it since I was in the 4^thcorral) I felt great. The first mile was the slowest partly due to all the traffic (8:40 mile) but then I pretty much held between an 8:10-8:20 every mile after that. I saw Stephanie Honeycutt at about the halfway point and that was pretty exciting to see a friendly face cheering. I ended up finishing the race in 1:48:44 which is over three minutes faster than my PR (1:51:59) so needless to say I was very excited.

I am looking forward to starting tri-training again soon. I am planning on signing up for your class again in January.

Western Australia Smackdown

Phil Theodore takes over an hour off his Ironman PR with an 11:39 at Ironman Western Australia. In one year he has started the sport of triathlon and completed two Ironmans.


Phil is very systematic in his training. He has to be because he is a businessman, husband, and father of two. He stays consistent in his training even though he frequently travels for work.

Dewberry Does It

Ashly Dewberry broke the 3 hour barrier with a 2:58 at the Memphis Marathon today. Ashly trained very hard this fall for Memphis...Not only did he qualify for Boston, he broke the prestigious 3-hour marathon mark.


Pictured Ashly Dewberry (on left) with his wife Catherine who ran the half marathon.

Ashly did several things very wisely in training for this race. #1) He ended his tri season with a period of rest. After doing Ironman Louisville he made sure to recover before staring the marathon training. #2) Prioritization. He did not try to train like a triathlete, he focused on running. He structured his training to go after this specific goal and did not try to be a jack-of-all trades.

Grand Canyon Adventure Run

Two days after Ironman Arizona Susan and I went for a little run in the Grand Canyon. We ran from the South Rim to the Colorado River at the bottom and back. The total distance was about 15 miles.


We left at 5am in the morning. Our flight left Phoenix at 8pm that night meaning we needed to leave the Grand Canyon by 2pm.


The early morning start gave us a chance to see the sunrise from down in the canyon. The colors changed as the landscape flooded with sunlight.


We saw a couple dozen deer in and around the canyon....here is a video of one little Bambi we encountered.

When we got to the river at the very bottom we were hanging out on a nice little beach. I had a surprise for Susan....I proposed to her. Fortunately for me she said yes!




The trip back up gave us a chance to further enjoy the flora and fauna that this beautiful park has to offer.


Susan had commented on the way down that the people hiking up looked tired...and she learned why.

If you ever get a chance to visit it I highly recommend the rim-to-river-to-rim. It is much easier than the rim-to-rim-to-rim that I did last fall. The video for that is here.

The best part of this trip was the chance to spend some quality time with Susan. It is easy to get caught up in the Type A/Competitive mentality of triathlon racing. I highly recommend if this is you to remember that adventures don't have to have a clock running and final ranking place.

This is why I race.....

I invited my personal training client Scott B. to watch online while I raced Ironman Arizona. Though he used to bicycle, he had fallen into a sedentary lifestyle until a few months ago when we started working to gether.



Scott has already started to experience the benefits of exercise: better fitting clothes, more energy, fat loss, muscle and strength gain, and improved posture. But I consider my most successful work when I introduce a client to the love of a fitness lifestyle.



To my surprise Scott was a quick study of Fun Run jogging, in addition to the gauntlet of personal training exercises pictured here.



Scott texted me the day after my race, when I was feeling quite down about my results:

"Congratulations! Checked on you through the day and watched you finish! I've just registered for the Country Music Half Marathon on April 25th."

This made it all worth it for me.

Liz H. Looks, Leaps.

Liz H. texted me after I finished the Ironman in Arizona...."How was the race? Is it super popular? Does it fill up fast?"

I have known Liz for 1 1/2 years and during that time I have seen her greatly increase her endurance capabilities along with her confidence. She ready for her first ironman this year but she had nasty foot injury.

The next day she texted me..."I was able 2 get in! Hope it's a good 1!...u will help me get ready?"


Liz clowning around with the group at Rock Star Triathlon.


The Aquavelas after finishing the Great Floridian.

Ironman AZ Race Report Pt. 1

Early morning load-in to the transition area.

My race could not have been executed more flawlessly, but at the end of the day I lost it on the run.

The swim started at daybreak. I situated at the very front right corner of the field. I choose the exact lines I needed to have a fast swim, generally had good luck finding feet to draft on, and came out of the water in a PR swim time. The only question is, Did I have too high a HR on the swim? I swam fast but it did not feel overly hard, but it may have been.

Transition was fast and I was out on the bike. I took my time initially and waited for my HR to come down. With three laps of out-and-back course, the first 17 miles was all headwind into a long, gradually steeper false-flat.

2000 calories taped to my bike, plus home-made aero drink system.

Realizing that the climb and headwinds had my HR too high, I really held back on the way back on the first lap. I had exactly what I wanted a 1:43 first lap. The second lap I spread my effort out a little smarter, and nailed the exact same split, then followed up with a third lap within one minute of the same. I couldn’t have been happier that the total bike was under 5:10, and exactly even splits! I had even taken in close to 2000 calories and 7 bottles of water. So good, I was locked and loaded for the run.

(continued below)

IMAZ pt. 2

I started the run at 6:11 elapsed time and just KNEW that I had my coveted 9:30 goal within grasp. I ran the first mile with all the restraint I could muster. It did not even feel like I was jogging it was sooooo easy. The next few miles felt just as good and all I told myself was “slow it down, take your time, get ready for that second half marathon.”

Running and feeling good.


Aid station on the run course.

Somewhere during the second lap of the 3-lap marathon, I noticed my splits creeping around 8 minutes. I did not worry because I knew I had a surplus of time still, and just kept eating and drinking. Somewhere during the second lap I realized I was struggling to hold the 8 minute miles and by the third lap I was reduced to 90% walking.

Walking and wondering what the--- just happened.


The finish line always feels good....


...just not as good when you don't reach your goal.

I can look back at this-or-that in my training, second-guess my race strategy, or just give up. Maybe I will. One thing I know for certain is that the 9:30 Ironman will be the biggest challenge I ever take on. It was within my grasp as it has been close in the past, and I again got my a** handed to me. I suppose it is important to remember that not every story has a happy ending.

Ironman AZ pre-race

Just wanted to post some pictures of my Ironman AZ adventure.


Arriving at the Phoenix airport, waiting for my bike box.


VIDEO: Pre-race ride on the Bee-Line highway.


My Ironman ride: Note fabricated aero drink system.


This is my bike with 1900 calories of solid food on it.


I got lucky! The first spot on the transition rack!


The whole trip is worth it because my girlfriend Susan came along. She got to do the morning swim with me each day. She is a great CREW member. You know what CREW means, right? Cranky Runner Endless Waiting. Susan is wonderful, she helps me stay focused, and provides me lots of emotional support.

Great Floridian

Nine of my clients traveled to Claremont for the Great Floridian. The amazing thing is that for 7 of the 9 they were attempting their first race at this distance, either half Ironman or full. Special recognition to Mindy who has been doing triathlons for only one season on completing her first ironman.


Mindy and Susan at bike check-in.


VIDEO: Irondistance swim start


Sugarloaf Mountain: "Who said Florida is flat?"


Jason "Trash Talk" Haggard kicking it in at the end.


St. Pete's Mad Dogs!


Mindy looking suprisingly serene at mile 15 of the marathon leg.


The whole rock star posse at the finish line.


Jessika and Maria bringing home the age group awards.

Great Floridian Full Ironman

Female 25-29

Mindy Craven: 4th 13:10:03.95

AquaVelo Full

Liz Howard: 8:43:27
Florida Challenge 1/2 Ironman

Stephen Taylor: 3rd Overall Male 4:45:32.70

Female 25-29

Jessika Poirier: 4th 6:48:15.05

Maria Mendiburo: 5th 7:13:10.35

Male 30-34

Kevin Boucher: 4th 5:32:34.45

Male 35-39

Jason Haggard: 20th 6:19:13.20

Male 55-59

James Garges: 11th 7:33:43.70

Athena

Mary Garges: 3rd 7:29:09.85

AquaVelo Half

Susan Howell: 5th 4:33:15

Marathon PR at Marine Corps

Marine Corps Marathon
Washington DC
Oct 26, 2008

Tilghman Carroll 4:04:41

3 in 15 days (Marathons, that is...)

Client Bob Ross writes:

69 marathons in 45 states:

8/23 Mesa Falls, Idaho 4:23
9/28 Omaha, Nebraska 4:20
10/4 New Hampshire 5:07
10/11 Hartford, CT 4:26

I look forward to the next five. Tulsa, Oklahoma on November 11, 2008. North Dakota, Alaska, Colorado and Oregon are set for 2009. If all goes well I will finish about this time next year in Portland, Oregon.

Thanks for your help. The cross training and especially the swimming got me to the point where this was a possibility.

The weeks between the marathons I hit the pool and it was a great help. This time last year I was doing nothing but running, and I believe that is what let to my foot injury. At New Hampshire I felt my groin muscles getting really tight and that was part of backing off a little. Again the pool and stretching got me ready for the next week.

The classes were really what got me to the point where I even felt comfortable attempting this. Again, thank you so much.

Bob Ross

Photo: The finish of the Hartford Marathon

Tennessee State High School Cross Country Meet

Maddie Polk took Navy Seals training group this summer, which consisted of long trail runs, urban adventure runs, swims, and strength training. She used it as a base to propel her on the the varsity team for Harpeth Hall Cross Country team. In only her second year of cross country she has a PR of 21:35. The STtrainer patrol went and watched her race last Saturday.

Hot conditions precluded fast times, but Maddie was running her best.


A picture of the finishing straight, Maddie (on right) caught the next two girls in the finishing kick (in white and blue).


Pictured here with proud father Bill Polk, aka, El Gato. Maddie is going to Washington University in St. Louis in the fall and plan to run on the cross country team there.

"BQ" stands for Boston Qualifier

Louisville KY Marathon
Deanna Zieman 3:38:57

A huge congrats to Deanna Zieman who hit this admirable finishing time. This was just 2 weeks after winning the Nashville Greenways Marathon.

She was paced by her friend Candice Chappell, who finished the half marathon then ran the last few miles with Deanna.


Louisville Half Marathon
Candice Chappell 1:35:39