Team Bear Naked - Chicago

So it is close to the official start of winter, but you would think we were in the middle of that season based on the snow and the thermometer!  How about some cross training ideas for days when the treadmill is too boring and the conditions outside are really bad.  Swimming and biking are obvious, how does everyone feel about the elliptical machine?  The stairmaster is one of my favorites, but I can only take that for so long.  What are some of your favorite indoor workouts?

We have some huge races for a few of our team members...

Good Luck Amanda at the NYC marathon!

Good Luck Brian at the Florida Ironman!

Good Luck George in the Chicago Lakefront 50/50!

Good Luck Julie at the Indianapolis Marathon!

Have great races, your fellow bear naked team members will be cheering you on from home.

~Christine Anderson

Hi Team,

It has been requested that we each need to contribute more to the blogs. Please share some of your training tips, success stories, or eating regimen for training or before races. Getting some tips from other athletes participating in similar races can help all of us improve.

From me...

Training tip for triathlons: Get your longer, more strenuous workout done in the morning before work. This wakes you up to start the day, contributes to burning more calories throughout the day, and you have the sense of accomplishment that you have already completed that hard workout done.

Success Story: When competing in a longer race than you have ever done aka marathon, ironman. Take it out a little slower (on each leg for ironman) then see how much you have left in the tank at the half way point. In my experience, when hitting that halfway point i'm so excited to have more energy left. I start to pick off people that i want to pass through the 2nd half of the race/leg this totally boosts my confidence as i start passing people.

Eating regimen: i always have a banana and a bagel with peanut butter before a race. For ironman/ironman 70.3 i like to eat rasberry fig newtons during the bike leg for extra energy.

Also, it has come to my attention that Team Bear Naked hasn't had much media exposure. So for races to come, make sure you're getting interviewed/pictured and send in the media to Lindsay so you can get paid!

Thanks a lot

~Christine

Hi everyone, i am the team bear naked Chicago's leader. First of all welcome everyone, it looks like we have a great group of athletes competing in the area.

Right now we're trying to compile a group of team bear naked volunteers/cheering section for the Chicago marathon. We can get some great pictures and cheer for those running.

I don't see a lot of other overlapping races, so please let me and the rest of the team know if you add to your race schedule moving forward. If you do see other team bear naked people at a race, snap a picture of yourselves together and send it in. The more we have the better.

It would be great to coordinate a few group training rides/runs/swims in the area. As i noticed this morning, after labor day weekend it is pretty dark in the morning and gets dark very early after work so having training buddies is more important now than ever. Please feel free to respond back with suggestions.

My first suggestion...Is anyone is interested in doing a brick training session next Saturday, September 13th at 8:00 AM? We could meet by the lake for a swim and then do a bike ride and/or run.

Also, this Saturday (9/6) i am racing in the Lake Geneva Triathlon. Nobody has it on their list, but let me know if you are going to be there. Registration is still open for this tri, so if you're free sign up and race!

Happy Racing!

~Christine Anderson