Nik’s Chicks is a FREE ladies only running/triathlon group. It is only a time and place to meet & a program to follow.  I cannot join you on every run/workout.  If you are new to exercising, it is advisable to have a doctor’s OK prior to beginning. Any information or products represented on this site are for educational purposes only and are not a substitute for any advice given to you by a medical, nutritional or fitness professional. Please sign my waiver (in “About”) and fill out my contact info sheet when you arrive for your first run.  Please park on West Oak Trails Blvd or Nightingale to avoid the locking beeps and car doors closing around my neighbors’ houses – especially on Saturday mornings! We run Monday and Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings.  Check out Weekly Workout section for specific times.

Quote of the Week:   

“We all run our own race, whether we come in first or last.  We all run across the same line as the guy who comes first.  Young or old, black or white, rich or poor – people from all walks of life come together and run side by side.”

Barbara Kingsley on running the Comrades Marathon

Hello ladies, here is the latest news from the “nest”!  Well it is good to be back home.  Our trip was a doozy! We covered 7 countries (South Africa, quick stops in United Arab Emirates, cruise from Italy hitting France and Spain, England and Iceland) in 21 days, 9 flights and no lost luggage!!  I have posted trip photos to my Facebook page.  The highlight of the trip for me was Peter’s race.  We arranged for a driver to drive the wives and kids to the finish line – so glad we were there to see the guys cross the finish line.  The weather was unseasonably warm at 27 degrees – the day after was 18 and overcast!  We knew they would take longer than the 9 hr goal they had set. They all finished between 9:27 hrs and 10:38 hrs.  What an accomplishment!!  I am so proud of Peter, Rich, Liam and Andrew for setting a goal, putting in the training time and pulling it off.  They have taught us a big life lesson that we all can learn from….

Congrats fellas!  What’s next?!

Tri Chicks:  Congrats to Christina, Joanne and Janet on completing their Try a Tri.  Hopefully your race was a good one and you are looking ahead to doing it again!  Send me pics if you have some.  Did you do your race Susan J?

Setting New Goals:  What is your fitness goal?  What will keep you moving through the summer months when many of us indulge in cold summer drinks and BBQs? Consider a September race date to keep you on track.  On September 22 the Oakville 10km and half marathon will take place.  Training for the half begins from a 10km base on June 30th and training for the 10km from a 5km base begins on July 28th.  Programs we will using are here 10 Km program from 5km base  

Are you still interested in doing a Triathlon?  There is the Women’s only Tri in Milton on September 1st – try a tri and sprint distances for triathlon and duathlon (run/bike/run).  More info can be found here: Women’s Only Triathlon  Are you are interested in doing a Girl’s Only Nik’s Chicks Road Trip?  We can look at Wasaga Beach triathlon which has try a tri and olympic distance races on September 7 and sprint triathlon and duathlon races on September 8th.  We will need to plan this soon as the races will fill up.  Chat amongst yourselves to see if this might be an option.  It’s a fun race, not too hilly and nice swim.  We did this two summers ago.  Programs can be found here:  Try-a-tri and Sprint Triathlon September 2012  If you have your 5km running base, you will be good to go.  Swimming lesson plans can be found here: Swimming Lesson Plans 1-12 (1100m – 1600m)

Open Water Swimming: There is a group that meets at Kelso on Thursday evenings 6-8pm and Saturday mornings 8:30-10:30am.  They have essentially rented out the boating area and hired lifeguards to patrol the swimmers. It is 90.00 for unlimited swimming and 60.00 for a 10 pack.  You will also need Triathlon Ontario membership to swim – it’s your insurance. To register or for more info, go here Kelso Open Water Swimming.  For more info you can email KelsoOpenWaterSwimming@gmail.com.  Wetsuits are needed unless you are really tough – wear swimsuit or bra/undies/tri shorts/tanktop underneath!  Beginners can swim across lake to wall (250m) Kelso – trip to wall and back, rest and return to shore.  Repeat as necessary to get your distance.  A trip around the lake will measure approximately 1.5km.  Kelso Open Water Swim  Hope to see all budding triathletes there!   PS You can purchase a membership to Conservation Halton at Conservation Halton  so you don’t have to pay for the park each trip.  I have purchased one and am willing to bring along Chicks with me to carpool!  You will also need to print and sign this waiver: Waiver

Checklist: Triathlon Ontario membership card/number, pay for Kelso Open Water Swimming and print receipt, sign and bring waiver, Conservation Halton receipt, wetsuit, 2 caps, goggles, swim watch if you have one, 2 towels, flip flops, dry clothes.

Do you have a back yard pool?  If so, than this may be of some interest to you. I  have owned my swim tether for 5 years now and it still works great.  You attach the velcro straps around a ladder and buckle the belt around your waist.  I use a pull buoy  to keep my legs from sinking. It’s a great upper body workout and saves you from flipping and turning constantly in a smaller pool.  (In triathlon you want to limit kicking so you still have “legs” for the bike and run.)  You can order one online here: Swim Tether.  The fitness model sells for 34.95 USD.

Tips from Runner’s World 2013 Daily Calendar: 1)   Your jaw should be relaxed, your mouth slightly open.  The oxygen will come through your nose and mouth to your lungs, to your blood and to your muscles without you needing to give it a lot of thought. 2) Endure the warm weather – you’ll feel better after two weeks of training in the heat.  You’ll experience less discomfort and adapt.  In one study, athletes tarted to feel better after just three exposures to warm weather.  3) When you run within your limits, every workout can be a pleasure.  But start out even a few seconds per mile too fast, and misery awaits: excess fatigue, loss of motivation or even injury.  That is why it’s so important to know what pace is right for you. 4)  Try wearing a pedometer on your next run.  Distance sounds more impressive in steps.  Some tricked-out sports watches also record steps.  5) at the perfect pace, you should feel comfortable and relaxed – like you can finish a sentence without having to catch your breath.  If you are huffing and puffing, ease off.  Don’t worry about going too slowly. 

This week’s workouts – (Meet at corner of Blackbird and Redwing Court)

Wednesday – June 19

Half Ironman – Bike outdoors 1 hr 30 min easy spin, followed by 15 min brick (3 x 2min at 10km pace)

Thursday –   June 20, 8:00pm

Learn to Run 5km – warm up walk for 5 minutes,jog 25 continuous minutes (turn halfway) cool down walk for 5 minutes

Learn to Run 10km – 5km with hill x 3

Holding on 10km -5km with hill x 3

Half Ironman – Open water swim (followed by optional light run)

Friday – June 21

Half Ironman – Bike 2 hours 30 minutes (2 x 5 min at 40km pace)

Saturday – June 22 8:00am

Learn to Run 5km –   warm up walk for 5 minutes, jog 25 continuous minutes (turn halfway) cool down walk for 5 minutes

Learn to Run 10km – 9km 

Holding on 10km – 10km

Half Ironman – Rest day or light 10 min swim, bike 30-45 min, run 15 min

Sunday – June 23

Race day for Half Ironman triathletes

Monday – June 24 

Half Ironman – Rest

Running 8pm:

Learn to Run 5km –  warm up walk for 5 minutes,jog 25 continuous minutes (turn halfway) cool down walk for 5 minutes

Learn to Run 10km – 6km

Holding on 10km – 6km, left on Westoak, rt on Upper Middle, rt on Postmaster, left on Arborview, rt on Westoak, rtn

Have a wonderful week! Niki