Home Chat General Chat

heavy legs... heavy heart

I've got my second ever triathlon this sunday and I can't seem to get rid of the feeling of having very heavy legs. Its as if I have no power/ strength left in them.



I done a brick session on sunday, a 45m on the turbo and then a 6k run. I went to the pool last night as I thought I had ample recovery time and my legs were like lead. Nothing in them, couldn't swim properly. In fact it was so bad I spent the whole session with the pull bhouy trapped in between my legs.



So, how do I get rid of this feeling so that I can hopefully rid myself of the negative thoughts that my time on Sunday is going to be worse than my first tri. I was hoping to have made some progress on the areas where I felt I was lacking but now I've got a negative thoughts now.



I was hoping to get on the bike tomorrow and go for a gentle cycle but perhaps I may have to give it a miss?



Comments

  • jacjac Posts: 452
    Foam roller, rest and then spin the legs at a fast cadence the day before the race. They'll be fresh come race day. It sounds as though they're a bit tired..maybe been hammering the hills too much since your last tri?
  • Cheryl6162Cheryl6162 Posts: 356
    Give it a miss and rest up. Your body is telling you to back off a bit and give your muscles time to recover from their new enhanced workload. Recovery = repair



    Try to think positive- whether you think you can or whether you think you can't - you'll be right!



    Good luck!
  • BARNYBARNY Posts: 157
    If as tired feeling as you are saying you should not have gone swiming last night.. what were you trying to prove?... do nothing else other than a bit of a sprint around the day before your race to loosen up.



    Still learn the lesson and move on.. last minute craming will only slow you down on the day.
  • Jack HughesJack Hughes Posts: 1,262
    Rest. Rest. Rest.



    Eat.



    Rest.



    The other thing: You're great. Look how far you've come. Your in it for the long haul - you'll do really well in the next race - but, even if you don't break the world record this time - it's just another step on the road - onwards and upwards.



    Seriously, just doing what you are doing is fantastic. Relax, have fun!
  • md6md6 Posts: 969
    Think of it this way, come race day you will know that you can do much better than your last session, andyou will have got past the heavy legs feeling so will feel fresh and ready to go. I know in my experience there could be an element of nerves in there too, I get that every time i have upped the distance running (from 5k to10K, to 10miles, to half mara) the week before my body just tried to convince me i shouldn't try, so i rested a little more and come race day was fine and flying for the extra rest.
  • shadowone1shadowone1 Posts: 1,408
    I know now I shouldn't have gone swimming but I think it goes back to some previous threads about feeling guilty about not training.



    Thanks for all the comments, I shall be resting resting resting so that I'm fully boosted back to health.



    Thanks
  • MowfMowf Posts: 272
    Trust in your training. A good rest will help you recover - you aint going to undo months of training in two days.



    One thing I like to do is go for a really low effort jog the day before the event. This helps to convince me that my legs work and that they have plenty of juice in them for racing. I have no idea if this is good advice or not, but it works for me.
  • garyrobertsgaryroberts Posts: 869
    A bit more moral support here....



    ....i think i totally understand where you are, i feel the same way right now. My legs hurt a little as i type this cross legged on the living room floor - but i still feel like going out on the bike, or a very quick run. Its a funny thing, but its my inexperience i guess, i feel like i should be doing as much as possible. The advice about rest, rest, and more rest sounds good, but we'll still feel like we're slacking off. You'll know if it's right come race day, when you feel better for it. Then next time this happens you'll know what it means and won't feel bad for it.



    BTW.....when i feel tired i still go to the pool, and just enjoy nice slow relaxed form work, it helps with the guilt!



    Jack has hit the nail on the head for me - you're here for the long haul, not just this race but your whole tri-life.



    Take care buddy.



  • moonshinemoonshine Posts: 335
    have to say relate to the guilt feeling that not doing enough and was very grumpy over w/end as crewing horses took over BUT definitely worth having the time off as Monday biked the furthest I've ever done part of which included a sub hour 20k and today knocked 3 mins of last weeks 5k time and that wasn't the run session intention that was to run on perceived exertion to see if it made me feel better than peering at speed on my garmin - definitely better[:D]
  • jonEjonE Posts: 1,113
    Rest,Relax,wind down,take the dog out for stroll in the park,ignore triathlon thoughts for a couple of days (who threw that stone at me).You want to arrive at the race itching to get going,if you're tired then perhaps your tapering needs to be reduced more.The best results often come after periods of rest.Too much is way worse than too little,it is often trial and error to find what works for you,so by listening to your body you can create a workout timetable that far supercedes any that you can find in a book.Best of luck,it takes less muscles to smile than to frown,so I just tell people that I'm working out.
  • iangriffiangriff Posts: 48
    Ever thought of doing yoga?

    I've been doing a 90 min session once a week for a couple of months now. Body and mind feel fantastic after. For me it's part of my training.

    Not going to help you right now i know, but worth considering.



Sign In or Register to comment.