ATC 338: Dealing With Online Trolls, MAF and/or Intensity for Ironman, Minimalist Snow Boots, and Counting Down to IM St. George!

March 25, 2022

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Intro

Lucho updates us on his Ironman St. George training, now just about 8 weeks from race day. You’ll hear: How’s his motivation especially since training hard through a cold, snowy winter season? What is his training focus at 8 weeks out? What does he think about the 7500ft elevation gain on the bike? And more.

Tawnee shares some shoe insight she learned over this past winter, for any minimalist footwear lovers out there be sure to check out the Xero Alpine Snow Boots and Vivobarefoot Tracker II Fg for some warm and robust yet minimalist boots to wear in winter and beyond (no affiliation, just a fan).

Questions

Anonymous asks:

Dealing with online trolls

Hi, How do you or would you guys deal with hateful comments and trolls on social media (or maybe your podcast)? I am a female runner in my 30s and I enjoy posting about my journey training for marathons and other events. Usually it’s all good, and I don’t have loads of followers but most who do follow are supportive and kind. However, every now and then I get a troll who is just mean for no reason—I had one guy say I look nothing like an athlete, and I’m chubby and slow for how much I “train” and I should find another hobby. Someone else commented on my nutrition choices saying “what a joke.” Someone else told me all I care about is how I look in photos but I fail to hide “the ugly.” There have been more of these one-off type comments, but these are a few examples—I immediately block the trolls. I know I should let things like this roll off me, this is just how bullies are, but I can’t. It sticks with me, and makes me want to quit social sometimes and question my self worth. It’s like, I could have 100 nice comments and 1 mean one, and that one is the one that bothers me endlessly. Even the idea of a mean or judgey comment before posting something gets me anxious sometimes. How can I better deal with this stuff and still get joy from social media—so I connect with the community and good people— and not let it be constantly triggering for me?

What the coaches say:

• It’s often not about you the subject of the mean comments, but rather, it’s the person leaving the mean comments who is in turmoil. These “trolls” are suffering and in a weird way we can find a place to hold sympathy for that.
• If you must, it’s ok to take a break from social to work on yourself to the point where mean comments can roll off you and not affect your emotional state.
• Some of us are extra sensitive to hateful comments, that’s ok.
• Often, these things sting really bad at first but their impact fades with time.
• Using a negative comment to fuel you to post more, and use social media even more for the purpose you intended.
• Don’t engage: Blocking the troll and not responding to the comment(s) are key to getting past this! Even if you want to say something and defend yourself, it won’t change the person’s mind and their intention to hurt.
• You’re not alone, a lot of us deal with hateful trolls. The thing is, they don’t know you, the context, or anything about it… the people who do know you and support you, those are the ones to focus on; those are the people who matter!
• Put yourself first! Find a place of self-love, where you share your story authentically and without shame.
• Get to a place where you let the troll motivate you to just be you regardless of the jerks out there.
• Don’t forget, social media will always be a “highlight reel” of sorts.
• Don’t let the trolls harden you.
• As athletes we want to be accepted, let’s face it, and let’s evaluate our relationship with how important performance, time and our body image is. Athletes come in all shapes and sizes, and different speeds.

Matt asks:

Ironman: MAF and/or intervals

Hey! This question is mostly in regard to the hike but feel free to tie in thoughts on the run too. I am doing my first Ironman later this year. I’ve done plenty of short course races, sprints and Olympic, but not anything longer. In training for short course I’ve done my share of intervals and intensity. The difference with Ironman is obviously the distance and being prepared for that. Do you guys think a MAF approach is enough? Or are there intervals and intensity that should be brought in at some point on the bike, if so, what are examples of Ironman specific intervals/intensity in training? My main thing is that I don’t want to train too hard this year and I know MAF is what I need, but worry that it’s “not enough” if you know what I mean.. I’m sure this is an “it depends” answer and curious to what that entails! Thanks!

What the coaches say:

• MAF can always be enough for Ironman training, but it often depends on your goals, and volume needs to be there consistently.
  • 6-7 hours a week may not be enough.
  • Over 10hr/week is good, and 14 hours a week is an even better place to be.
• It’s not the end of the world to eliminate intensity, Vo2, etc, for Ironman training.
• The older you are the more intensity you tend to need.
  • In 40s, brief period of VO2 max work at 10-12 weeks out. Just 9-18 minutes in one session, once a week for ~7 weeks.
  • Threshold training can be beneficial. Low to mid Z4 can be enough.
• If you know intuitively MAF is what you need follow that.
• Test your MAF regularly, is your heart rate and pace lining up to a place where you’re efficient? Is it realistic heart rate and pace for an Ironman?
• Polarized training: is it getting a bit trendy right now?
  • Context for this mode of training is critical. Athletes doing boatloads of volume are more likely to benefit from it (e.g. runners going 100+ miles per week etc).
  • Periodizing this type of training at the right time of season makes a lot of sense; don’t do it year-round.
  • A good time to do it is the last 12 weeks before your Ironman (a reasonable time to eliminate the middle zone).
• Using MAF as the foundation is a smart approach and sprinkle in various types of intensity throughout your training cycle.
  • E.g. sweet spot, muscular endurance and work in Z3/Z4. Get those muscles prepared!
    • Check out ATC 336 for in depth look at sweet spot.
• Ironman is about fuel usage / metabolic function, and MAF really addresses that.

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