Olympic to Half Iron

Hi. Would like to do a half iron distance late in summer 2016. What should my winter maintenance look like and which BT plan should I follow thereafter?
Thanks!

For winter I would focus on any specific areas of weakness while maintaining fitness in the other disciplines. For example, if your swim is weak, get in some technique work (preferably some coaching) and build endurance to the point where you are comfortable with workouts in the 3K range. In my case, it was the bike--I gradually build my long rides (I'd never ridden much over 90 minutes until then!) and worked on power as well with shorter weekday workouts. If it's the run, then maybe up run frequency and gradually build up long runs. If you're pretty well-balanced, then maybe look at winter maintenance plans on this site or take turns focusing on swim, bike, and run.

For my first HIM I used the beginner HIM program on BT. It worked pretty well for me, though I ended up making some modifications. I'm a strong swimmer, and some of the swim workouts seemed a bit lame--I often substituted more challenging ones from a master's swim site or our master's club back in the US. I also found that if I followed the bike workouts, it would have me never doing the race distance before the race (because I was quite a bit slower, apparently, than the 19-20 mph athlete that seems to be the target). So I just build my long rides to 90-100 km (55-60 miles), regardless of how long that took, plus a few longer rides with a friend who was training for a century. I don't think the latter were really necessary from a fitness perspective, but given my lack of biking background, they did help my confidence. I also felt like the long run increased too quickly. Kind of funny since I have a big run background and, except for heat, a 2-hour run usually isn't a big deal. But I just built in up in gradual increments of 10-15 minutes every few weeks.

I'm sure there are other good programs out there. Just be ready to modify them as needed to meet your needs.

Above is great advice. Winter maintenance should focus on your limiters. Choose a plan and adapt it to your specific needs. I'd also encourage voracious reading on training. Joe Friel's Triathlete's Training Bible is a great resource for understanding the basics of periodization and training in general.

Edited by tedjohn 2015-11-30 8:05 PM

Thank you both for your wisdom! Greatly appreciated!

Another question....what do you think should be a B race? THere's an Olympic distance about 5 weeks out from the HIM...thanks!

Five weeks out sounds about right.

IMHO, the biggest adjustments going from OLY to HIM are 1) Training longer Bricks (Bike/run training sessions): 2) Nutrition. The swim from OLY to HIM is only a few hundred meters more, but the bike and run portions are double that of an OLY.

I agree with the above training plans, but I would also play with your nutrition during your long rides/runs. See what your body can handle. Can you digest 2-3 GUs on the bike and not cause GI issues on the run? Is sports drink enough to provide the carbs you need for the longer distances? If you are racing in hotter climates, make sure you adjust your salt intake. SaltTabs are great. The additional sodium really helps with cramping issues on the run.

The off season is about maintaining your base, and experimenting with your nutrition. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Thank you!

Thank you!

Just echoing Jeff B here. I'm no athlete. I had very little athletic history (3 years of working up to a half).
It's totally easy to follow a plan....the ones here or other ones that people find work. There's lots of them. Fairly cut and dry.
I used a really simple one someone posted a link on.

But, they don't specifically address nutrition.

You have to 'train' it just like your fitness. It doesn't mean you have to get all elaborate. Some people don't use much of the gels and such. Some do. I didn't plan on it. But, they're not bad to train with "and for" since they're easily carried and when you're out running 10+ miles after maybe some swimming or something. You don't have people lined up every mile or so with bananas, pretzels, and water....so it's easy to make that your default. But, you may want to try carrying some pretzels/bananas/etc. to see how they work for you. AND COLA. (see below)

Whatever you find that works in terms of a combination of:
-daily meals
-meals the "day before" and "day of" (either the race or a big huge brick day)
-how much water/sports drink you need in varying conditions
-what kind of food/calories/sugar you need over the course of several hours of fitness

And a note on the gels. If you already know what brand they're offering on the race, practice with those. And get the generic/common flavors that they'll most likely have on the race. Some folks report....'stomach' issues with those. You don't want to find out on race day if that's the case.

In regards to Cola (often provided on long races):

A few years ago, I weighed a lot. I love Cola. Gave it up, more or less, when I started losing weight. Only have it at Christmas and then following any race, I will treat myself. When I did my half, I planned on having some at maybe the third or second to last aid station with 3 or 2 miles to go. You know, as something to look forward to. A treat. Knowing I could almost crawl the last bit if needed.

I had some with 2 miles to go. Just a small bit. Bad choice. I was pretty burpy and had quite a bit of fluid in me already. I don't think it slowed me much or anything, but there was a fairly uncomfortable mile there.

Point is....not that cola would do that to you, or anybody else. BUT....I DIDN'T "PRACTICE" it. And because I didn't practice it, I made part of my race less pleasurable. And it was lucky it was just that.

True--the whole race nutrition/hydration thing is very, very individual. I have had people, including highly qualified coaches, recommend things that have not worked for me at all. In particular, liquid calories through sports drinks are a disaster for me! But I have seen many others do well with them. There are also a couple of foods (wheat products, eggs) that are no problem for me normally, but will cause serious issues if I eat them before a race. Sadly, the only way one finds that out is by trial and error. Better to try and err in training than in a race.

There's a certain amount of "acclimatization" involved (accustoming your system to take in more calories on the bike, for example, since most people can't take in that many on the run; some people find out what gels or drinks will be offered on the course and train with those), and plenty of guidelines out there, but a lot depends on variables like your size, speed, the temperatures you'll be racing in, your GI tolerance for different things, (in my case at least) how easily you gag, etc. The only way to figure it out is to experiment in training (which means doing enough long rides/runs/bricks to experiment and get results) until you hit upon a combination that lets you feel good and perform well. In my mind, that is almost as important a reason to do the longer workouts as building endurance! Then do what works in the race, but be prepared to adjust if things don't go as planned. (For example, it's not a bad idea, at least in my case, to bring something with a different flavor or texture on the bike, in case the gu you normally like suddenly becomes repulsive. It happens--more common in full IM but sometimes in shorter events.)

Also....the 'nutrition training' isn't really all the complex.
It may just sound like it when you start reading/thinking about it.

It's not.
Yah, I did a good chunk of reading. Maybe an hour or two total over the course of a couple months.
A few articles here and there or posts here and there. Maybe a quick conversation or two with someone who's experienced in marathon/tri.

Again, I'm a completer, so I was looking for:
-sensible health/hydration (in other words, know enough not to get caught with my pants down...so to speak). Basically to have done enough long workouts to know about how much water I consume/need to consume under some slightly varied conditions. (Hotter/a bit cooler/humid/less humid). Last thing I wanted to do was dehydrate and get sick.
-sensible nutrition to insure I'd have enough protein and sugar to comfortably complete the race in a healthy (same as hydration) manner.

I was never looking to "optimize" my intake for peak performance. I just didn't want to get sick or run out of gas because I didn't scarf down a banana and a handful of pretzels or a gel packet or here or there.

The old "listen to your body" worked well for me. Of course, it really should be "listen to your body" and "look at your body....or at least what comes out of it".

Never thought I'd string these words together.....but "pee is a great learning tool". Color and frequency.