As you know from THIS post, I’m back on the bike and staring down two 70.3s which are fast approaching. The first one is July 7th, a small event hosted by Ironman, and I anticipate it to be a total bike train wreck. The little biking that I have done so far (70 miles last month) has not gone well. Everything hurt. My knees hurt. My hips hurt. My neck hurt. My shoulders hurt. I kept thinking, what did I get myself into?!?! that my return to triathlon was going to be a difficult one. I did the only thing I could think of doing, I took more Joint ProMotion.
Okay, let’s be honest, I actually started taking Joint ProMotion. You would think that as a runner and AdvoCare Distributor I would be using a glucosamine supplement but you would be wrong. I am now.
Then I started thinking. More thinking. I’ve never been a strong biker but there is a difference between sucking not being good at something and having pain. I never had pain before, this is new. I am riding the same bike I had Pre-Michael but I felt like it had shrunk in it’s 1309 days of hibernation. Muscle atrophy? Probably not. I “may” have mentioned these problems to hubby and he may, or may not, have threatened me regarding bringing home a new TRI bike. Sigh….
So I called Trek Schererville and scheduled an appointment to be refitted on my “old” bike. Aby was kind enough to take a few photos of the process.
Getting Closer…. Hello Team Tough Chik! I’m actually in this photo…..kinda. And you can “kinda” see Paul behind me, adjusting the bike. Apparently the seat was almost 2” too low.
When your seat is too low, you don’t get proper pedal extensions, have less power, and develop aches and pains in your hips and knees. It also basically folds the bike up on you and the aerobars will feel too short, shifting will be difficult and you “may” develop pain in the neck and shoulders. Really? I never would have guessed.
I’m a happy camper now and looking forward to my ride this afternoon. Cross your fingers for me!
And as a general rule of thumb, if it feels wrong, it is wrong. Trust yourself. Don’t get hurt because you are stubborn or because you think you are a weak biker/runner/person. It also helps if you buy your bike from a store you can trust, a store who’s employees know your name and number when it pops up on the caller ID, a store that will refit your bike and help you with your mental problems, a store that will service your bike free for life. Trek.
Side note: My computer finally arrived! I’ve been waiting for the Node 1.1 to arrive so that I could have an affordable computer which works on the road and on my trainer, while still being wireless. This is HUGE. Now I have zero excuses as to not riding. NO EXCUSES!
So what’s your excuse for not putting in your miles? Please share, I need some new ones!
Happy TRI-ing ** Amanda – TooTallFritz ** amanda@tootallfritz.com **
TooTallFritz 
I need to do this big time! But I’m too damn cheap to pay the money the bike store charges. Maybe professor YouTube can teach me this one, too.
I don’t have to pay because I bought from Trek but it really is necessary. Not sure about youtube since they have all of these hanging things from piecies of strings, etc. I have been fit, 3 times now and I still have no idea what they are doing.
OK TTF…hope the adjustments on the bike help and eliminate the strain and pain it may be causing. Keep close tabs on that…just in case it isn’t due to bike seat heat and other adjustments.
I don’t have any excuses, depending on your perspective, but I made a deal with the “run-gods” that if I survived winter marathon training and made it through and finished Boston (which I did), I would take the time of to rehab and re-adjust and try to get the sciatica and heel pain conditions under control. I no longer refer to these as injuries since sciatica is a chronic condition…a by-product of 4-decades ago ruptured discs and simply age.
I can’t cure it….only find the right combination of physical therapy, strengthening and other treatment or routine that subdues it and allows me to run…and hopefully train and run more marathons.
So…the last step I ran was just crossing the finish line in Boston…in the 85-degree heat…ca 8.5-min after kneeling on the pavement on Commonwealth Ave at the 1-mile-to-go mark painted in the street and kissing it. A deal is a deal….I made it through a very toasty marathon in 3:50 and I wasn’t limping, nor was my heel in any great pain, nor was my hamstring or L-hip acting up to anything noticeable.
And so…the deal was 5 or so weeks off….and that is what I am doing. Actually…quite nice not running nor having to follow a training schedule. Take it for what it is….or use it as an excuse…if it helps your body and soul feel better or cope with the stresses of run or family life! Your the best…so I trust your judgment!