mr. empfield i’m trying to get into tris and youre site has been very helpful, i just had a few questions and i was hoping you could shed some light. first of all i want to do tris but i also work out. is it possible to gain muscle mass while training for a sprint or olympic distance triathlon? i was also running on the treadmill at the gym i go to and i was wondering do you get the same benefit from running on a treadmill and on the street. i was running a 6:40 mile and i supposedly did 3.5 miles but i didnt feel the same as when i do my runs outdoors. if you could shed some light on this it would be great. i live in Los Angeles and i’m thinking about buying my bike at helens cycles in santa monica. the person thats been helping me is jeff bothelo. would you suggest anyone else in the LA area or should i stick with them. hes telling me i should start off on a road bike, a cannondale R700 or a Trek 1500, what do you thing? once again thank you and id really appreciate your advice.
I am not Dan, but I can help you with the treadmill question. Set your incline to 1.0 or 2.0, this will give you a more realistic road simulation. If you do not use an incline, the motion from the belts is making it a little easier on you.
You can (will) certainly build muscle mass when training for a sprint or oly tri. Eat lots of healthy food (don’t forget protein) and lift weights in addition to your training.
Running on the street is very different than a treadmill as the terrain changes constantly. I would suggest getting outside and off the treadmill as much as you can. Try to avoid concrete if possible though…
I would also suggest you start off with a road bike if cycling is new to you… Don’t worry about getting a super expensive bike (unless you have the cash to burn). You will have a lot of work to do on the engine first before a $3500 tri specific bike will make a meaningful difference over a $1200 bike. I would concern myself with the bike fit more than anything else.
I have just finished my first race, so i am no expert, but can offer you some of the things that i have learned in the past 12 wks.
Run outside as much as you can. It is different and less boring. Also you will become less dependent on the treadmill to tell you how fast to run.
Swim as much and as often as you can. you will never regret it (sink or swim has real meaning in this sport).
I bought a road bike and some clip on aerobars. I have been very happy after I got it adjusted (read ‘fit’) properly. I could not afford to have a pro do this for me so I sought the advice of those here an read as much as I could about it. I saved enough on the bike to afford shoes, helmet, pump, flat kit, aerobars, a computer, shorts and jerseys. But if you have the cash don’t hesitate to spend it! Toys are cool! try to find a shop that has a clue about Tri and Tri fit, if it is hours away it is still worth the drive. I can’t wait to get a real tri bike when I grow up!
I have found the Beginers Luck portion of this site to be a very good training resource.
I could not have trained without the support of those here (sniff sniff)
I am also just into the tri thing, Im on week 14 for my upcoming olympic tri. I was almost sold on a road bike, when another tri guy I met put it to me like this, A road bike will cost more to upgrade to a tri bike than it will to downgrade a tri to a regular/cruiser road bike, the most important thing is the proper fit. I purchased a specialized transition elite for just over 1,500 and so far its perfect for me. As far as the treadmill goes they are completely different I quickly realized Treadmills lie! If you do have to spend alot of time on the treadmill buy a good heartrate monitor and train by that not by the distance or time. As far as muscle mass, I also weight trained for several years, i started into triathlons because of boredoom in the gym. I have lost a good deal of mass, but not strength. I have also cut back on the protein and creatine though.