sprint to oly in 8 weeks?

You describe that you cracked halfway through the 10k at the Disco oly- this describes my performance in 4 attempts at the Oly distance as well (2 tri's and 2 du's).

Based on these outcomes, one of the coaches in my club advised me on the following training modification:

- work up to a 2-hour run to ensure that you can run the 10k with tired legs

- work up to a 3-3.5 hour bike to ensure that you have the fitness to last through the Oly and to make sure you will have something left for the run after 1.5 hours on the bike.

He suggested that I work these long workouts into my plan every other week (i.e. long bike one week and long run the next).

Those workouts are now my metric for being able to finish an Oly, so (not being a coach or having even slept at a Holiday Inn recently), if you can work up to that level of workout in the next 4-6 weeks then I would say you can finish an Oly that is 8 weeks out.

First of all, as your BT mentor, I think you could finish an OLY today if you really wanted to Johnny! Secondly, if you count this week, you have TEN weeks to Longhorn, not 8 (It's Oct 6th!) Third, the Disco duathlon was tougher than a regular OLY. Running 2 miles before the bike is shorter, but tougher than a 30 minute swim! I cracked on the last run too as it was sooo humid.

Therefore, I think you should go for the Longhorn OLY. 10 weeks is enough time to get you ready to finish strong, especially since you're not really starting from a "sprint" fitness. You're beyond that. I would however like to see you bike more. Try to work you way up in mileage so that you'll have a few 40+ mile rides under your belt before the race. This "over-distance" training will hopefully make the 24 miles of the race seem relatively short and/or easy so that you can feel ready for the 10K.

Hey Johnny - I think it's cool you found another Oly and Dave is of course the man, but I was just wondering about your back.  You mentioned it was hurting in your logs and so is it anything serious or just acting up on you?  Also, I didn't really see any big runs in your logs.  I checked back all the way to the 4th of July and the longest you've logged was on the 19th at almost 5 miles.  Obviously everyone is different but I would suggest the following for your run only (Dave covered the rest):

1 - Run 2x/week between 4-6 miles each session

2 - Run 1 Brick/week starting where you can manage now and work it up to peak at 4-5 miles about 2 weeks before the Oly

We all know what opinions are like and so, bottom line is I wish you the best of luck in however you decide to take this on and I'm sure you'll get there this time!

ouch, whipped in public.

That's gonna leave a mark.

If I had a GF that was a Tri-athlete (or an athlete in any matter), I would train with her.

As she said, "Get off your a$$" and train with her!!  I'm listening.
 

KSH - 2007-07-31 2:59 PM

ScottoNM - 2007-07-31 2:55 PM

KSH - 2007-07-31 1:52 PM Ok, I know you don't want to get advice from your girlfriend...

ouch, whipped in public.

That's gonna leave a mark.

 

No... no... Nothing like that. It's just ya know, getting advice from somone close to you never seems to hit home like advice from strangers. Like when you were a kid, if your parents told you something you rarely listened, but you might listen to other adults in your life. Plus, having some guys on here respond will probably mean more than advice from his turtle-slow girlfriend who can barely maintain a 11 minute mile running!

1. Practicing OWS will really help you get more comfortable and mentally ready for race day.  I know it's tough around here with all the high water levels, but I was able to do an OWS from Rockledge last Friday AM w/o too much difficulty.   Shoot for one OWS a week, and even if you only get in 5-6 of them before race day, you'll be much more confident.
   
2. Again, many of us cracked at Disco so don't worry about that.  We all should have paced better on the bike and the first 10-20 minutes of the run.   Like Timo, I'd suggest you try to get in one brick/week working your way up to 20-25 mile ride followed by a 3-4 mile run.   These bricks will teach your legs how to run when fatigued and help you understand how to pace on the bike and early run so you can finish strong.
   
3. 3 words - Race Simulation Session - I just did one of these last Saturday for my HIM in 3 weeks and it was great for my boosting my confidence, validating my nutritional plan, and practice pacing at race pace.   Use the same equipment and nutritional products that you'll use on race day.  Start with a 20-30 continuous minute swim at your normal pace, then hop on your bike for 15-18 mile ride at close to race pace, followed by a 2-3 mile run.   This will be a really tough workout and you should rest well before and recover fully afterwards, but it will be worth it for the experience you'll gain.
   
   

Johnny,

 David made three great suggestions.  I would definately do as he suggested.  As your wonderful girlfriend Karen mentioned you probably need to get more training in but you did fine at disco and like David said running at the beginning is probably alot harder physically than swimming. 

For my oly my prior 2 training months are listed below.  I actually was over training the 1st month I thought so I toned it down some the 2nd month.  If finished the Ironhead tri in 2:40:40. 

I say go for it.  You should have not problems finishing.

Month 1:
Swim - 17255 yds
Bike - 260 miles
Run - 58 miles

Month 2:
Swim - 14750 yds
Bike - 205 miles
Run - 51 miles

I'm just curious and trying to understand this fear of deep water.  I know other have the same problem.  With the lakes around here, you wouldn't be able to see the bottom even if there were only 8 feet of water.  So, why do you feel better knowing that the water is 60 feet instead of 500?  I'm not criticizing, just wondering.

/QUOTE] I have a 70 mile ride on tap for Sat. and you can easily cut that down to 56 miles or 30 ish miles (depending on what group you ride with and if you go back and do the short route). Then on Sunday I have a 30 mile ride and 3 mile run scheduled. You can certainly do that!

I see and can completely understand that now b/c I think I'd have the same fear if being hung from the air.

Concur again.  I've heard it described as swimming in tea, and it's not nearly as fun as swimming in clear water.  I did a couple ocean swims in La Jolla Cove in San Diego this year and the water was pretty calm so you could see at least 15-20 feet.  It was amazing and really put me at easy even though it was my first ocean swim!

Just an FYI, Degray Lake in Arkansas is amazingly clear.  I did a HIM there last year and it was great!