Beginner 1/2 Ironman Plan Group (Page 119)

pbreed--

I think you are totally on track for a HIM. It is relatively safe and easy to build mileage on the bike compared to running, or having to learn to swim. It looks like you are already a confident swimmer and can handle the run. Prior to January, I had never done a training ride over 2 hours. (I had done a few lesiurely bike tours of the kind where you ride about 8 mph and stop to drink wine, but I don't count those.) And you can see my little fit of insanity over the five hour ride above. If your bike fits well, you don't push the pace too hard at first, and esp. if you can find someone to ride with, it isn't that bad. And I am speaking as someone who has never really liked biking and lives in a very bike-unfriendly place. The ability to run after will come with practice, too. Go for it!

Ok people seem to think that a HIM in 20 weeks is doable.

A couple of more questions...

Before I though I could be ready in September for a  HIM I signed up for a local oly on Sep 8th.

Is that too close to a HIM on Sep 30th, or is it ok if I don't over do the oly?

I realize that the training plan as written does not have you going the full distance, in the run or the swim,  I've already gone the full distance in the run and think for confidence I need to do so on the bike as well.

Any guidance on how much slower the 1/2 marthon is after a 56 mile bike?

IE If as stand alone training events I can  do the swim in 40 the Bike in 3:30 and the run in 2:20

What times, paces, slowdowns should I plan for a HIM?

Clearly it does you no good to crush the bike and be dead for the run.

I've been following the Jeff Galloway run/walk plan for working on my run and I really like his

magic mile prediction formula for planning the run pace for different distances etc...

anything similar for a HIM?

Also I'm a really comfortable swimmer, slow but really comfortable in the water, I've done 2hr+ ocean swims at a snails pace in the recent past.

Anyone here signed up for the online coaching here and any feedback on its benefits etc...?

Caveat--I haven't actually done a HIM; I'm training for my first. Done several Olys and sprints, though, and lots of marathons and half marathons. My thoughts:

Three weeks should be enough time to recover from an Oly for most people, but I guess if it's your first Oly, there's no way to know for sure. I definitely wouldn't hammer it--yoou can use it as a supported race simulation and chance to work on pacing, transitions, etc. I say this because I've had Olys where I could have raced well the next weekend, and ones where I was a mess for over a month (not typical, but possible if you injure yourself racing).

Most HIM plans on this site are, in fact, 20 weeks, so you could start now. IMO the beginner plan starts pretty modestly. I have a big run and swim background and for me, it was too easy. I've been modifying it throughout. But I didn't feel a more advanced plan would be suitable since I lacked a strong cycling base. You can follow the plan and modify the running as needed. I started the plan about six weeks after a HM, so my long runs were already at 2 hours plus. I backed them down to 80-90 minutes and then built up again. I do and will run the full distance in training, but not after my long ride! I also ride the full distance in training (or more) about once a week. My long ride is generally 100 km. In my case it's due to total time--the race I've chosen is hilly and Saigon is pretty flat except for some bridge crossings, so I'm trying to ride for a similar time to the race, rather than distance. I just guess at pace--I try to make sure I feel okay running for 40-50 minutes afterwards. For me that works out to biking at about 27 kph (17 mph), not blazing saddles, but my goal is to finish. I would just make sure that you are building total volume gradually; you can easily incorporate some race-distance runs and rides if you feel you need them.

Have no idea about run pace. I run by RPE (perceived exertion). From experience with bricks and Olys, and reading about others' races, I would add that it's important not to start the run too fast. Get into your stride and then, if something's left with 10 km to go, pick it up a bit. If not, just finish! I don't intend to carry a Garmin, or worry about splits. I think I've seen others suggest to add 15-20 minutes to your open HM.

If you are comfortable in open water then that is 90% of the battle. You might want to have someone look at your stroke, though--there could be some easy gains if you are making some technique mistakes like poor head position.

I don't do the online coaching here, or have a coach. I have had some master's swim coaching in recent years but there is no group here currently. I loosely use the BT plan as a starting point, and modify it based on my strengths, weaknesses, and life situation. I have a rather different background to many on BT (very strong run and pretty strong swim background, zero bike experience beyond commuting, basically) and my location and work hours severely restrict the days and times that I can do various workouts--I feel like by the time I explained all the particulars to a coach, I could just as easily make up my own plan. But I've had to good fortune to have worked with some outstanding elite-level coaches with backgrounds in exercise physiology, swim technique etc., so maybe I have a better knowledge base than the average athlete about swim and run training. There are definite plusses and minuses to being self-coached, and to having a coach, whether "live" or online. I feel I need the flexibility of being self-coached; I kind of use BT as the "accountability" part that I would otherwise get from reporting back to a coach about my workouts. I could use a coach at times, however, for technical advice, esp. about the bike and transitions, pushing me to try new things, and just controlling my insanity--I love training, esp. running, and sometimes I push too hard!

Hope this is useful. Happy training!

Anyone here signed up for the online coaching here and any feedback on its benefits etc...?

I don't use a coach either - I'm now 5 weeks out from my first HIM.  I'm slow and steady but always finish with some energy to spare, I don't want to die on the finish line!  I want to enjoy it!

My cycling seems to be sitting between 25 and 26kph - that should do it I think!  I figure the swim I can get done in 50mins or less.  So that's 3 and a half for the bike and around an hour for the swim.  I think I'm within the cutoffs then!  The run - well I did it at the weekend in 2 and a half hours.  I figure I will need closer to 3 hours, so total time around 7 and a half let's add half an hour coz of the day!

Pray for no mechanical issues!  and no rough seas and i'll be good to go!

I'm off to tropical Queensland for my race so the water will be warm.  But due to the deadly jelly fish there we have to wear a full wettie!  Nervous - much!!!!?  God love Australia and 9/10 of the world's most poisonous creatures live here!

Just off to swim squad where I aim to take it a bit easy after that MASSIVE training weekend!

I have had some carbs - toast and peanut butter and after squad a huge bowl of pasta I think!

MMMM TAKE IT EASY DID I SAY?

I did swim squad last night and a new error occured for Coach Johnny to critique (personally I think he likes to make it all about me!)  He said my hand and elbow are entering the water at the same time...this is new from him so I'm wondering if it's just because I was tired...will ask him to check on Wednesday again...anyway tough session below - hopped out early it's recovery week!  Incidentally when I said is it coz I'm tired Coach Johnny said - Jojo - I DON'T CARE!  he's tough.

warm up with fins

600m broken up - 100m free, 100m back, 100m breast x2
50m front scull
50m mid scull
50m hip scull
50m fists

Main set no fins

4x250m broken up:
200m free
2x25m underwater off 60sec cycle.  Basically take a breath go deep and swim to the end without coming up. 

I am very proud to say of the 6 in my lane I was the only one who could get to the end.  I did it every time!  Thought my head would explode but just reminded myself if I waqs in the pool messing around with my 7 year old daughter I would be doing this for fun and racing her to the end - made it easy.

The other guys stayed and did 2 more sets plus another set of 2x250 of Left Arm, Right Arm so I was glad I hopped out.

That's 2km done and it felt good to throw the arms over after a big weekend of training and emotion.

Had toast before squad and a huge bowl of pasta after, I am officially all carbed up!

Anyone else have crappy/hard workouts the day after long run/bike workouts.

I swam the 2x1200 swim workout in week 11 today after really pushing a 13.1 TT run on Sunday.  I felt just o.k. in the water.  I've certainly swam faster, and hit 26:00 and 26:50.  I then attempted a 3 mile recovery run.  I should have jest sat in the hot tub.  It've suited me better, as my run was pointless. 

My wife has signed up for a class at our Y, and it is Tues. and Thur. and Sat. mornings at 6:00a.m.  I'm really proud of her as she has lost over 110 lbs!  She is 15 lbs. from her goal, and this class is taught by a personal trainer. 

I have always trained in the mornings prior to anyone waking, but now I'm going to get the opportunity to train in the p.m.  This is good as my HIM is in Aug, and I suspect temps in the 90's.  Hoping the pm training will help to acclimate to temps and hydration.  Any one else training in the p.m.?  How much different is it adjusting for hydration?  Right now, I'm used to 40 degrees, so I'm guessing it'll be quite different on pm days.

When and what event are you doing?  I do not own a wetsuit yet, so am thinking I will not even get to OWS till end of May/June.  Ice bath sounds pretty tough/crazy!  That should get you ready.

I did 40.1 mi on the Bike Sunday Morning in 2:23 I started at early  6 am or so.

Today I got a ride to work and Ran home 8.9 miles, kind of slow tired legs, but not as bad as some of the longer runs I've done in the last two months. The 15.5 miles I did three weeks ago kicked my butt for most of a week.  There is a threshold somewhere between 10 and 15 miles where it seems to take exponentially more out of you.  I Tried really hard to eat well right after the run today, seems to be helping.

The gentleman that asked about workouts in the evening, I did most of my shorter runs < 1hr, very late in the evening, there is a trail that I run with the dog, and usually do this after 8pm. so I do early, I do late whatever works. It does nto seem to make much difference. All of my  longer runs > 6 miles have been earl early in the morning. Running a trail in the almost dark is a very zen like experience you can't really see the surface, it forces you to relax and  I've had a serious runner say that really helps you develop your automatic support reflexes as you fell, but don't see surface changes. (I don't use a light, just glow sticks tie wrapped to the dog's collar  so he can't take off on me, lately my runs are such that I end up waiting for him....)

Prior to July of last year the farthest I'd ever run in my life (I'm 49) was the 1 mile fitness test in high school. So if you think you can't run you are wrong, just start slow and be consistent. My first runs were run one minute walk two min etc....

I'm still doing the run walk thing, run 4, walk 1, my times are in the 10:30/mi range including the walk, so for a first year runner I'm happy with that.  I did a half marathon distance in 2:22 min with a run walk ration of run 2 walk 1. I've tried just running with no rest, I'm slower than if I run walk.  35min 5K runnign with no rest, 29 min 5K with run/walk cycle.

I Signed up for the Augusta 70.3 on September 30th, my 50th birthday!

Traveling from CA to GA will not be fun as the race starts early, so I'll take a few extar days and adjust.

A question for the group about wetsuits...

I grew up in Southeast Alaska, I swam in the water there with no wet suit. The only time I've ever used a wetsuit was SCUBA diving. Yet I read that a modern swimming wet suit makes you faster,

I don't need one to stay warm, should I get one for performance purposes?

What clothes should I wear?  The sprint tri I did in my swim suit and then changed to bike shorts and did the run in the bike shorts, for a HIM distance will "real" triathalon wear help?

I'm fortunate enough that gear budget is not a big issue, I'm frugal enough that I don't buy things unless they would really help.  Where should one invest in "Gear?" 

I've got a reasonable FELT tri bike professionally fitted, good bike shoes , normal bike helmet, a set of bike shorts a couple pair of speedo's some running shoes and not much else.

Thanks for the advice so far, and its nice to see such a friendly supportive group....

Jobaxas--it sounds like you and I have the same warped concept of "taking it easy". But I'm now officially ready to take it easy after hammering it since Friday: 1:30 run with hard fartlek/134 km bike/1 hour easy run and strength training/ 1:50 long run with 15 minutes tempo at end/ 2:30 bike and 40 minute run. Still not sore, just tired, but my couch is feeling really nice now. Might not get off it for rest of the day. LOL about the coach. My first swim coach, who worked with us through high school, was an Ironman (one of the first, I guess) and there was NO sympathy from him. He often trained with us, and I've never seen anyone push themselves so hard in the pool. Our master's coach and tri club coach in Oregon are also Ironmen (women), so no sympathy from them, either. HTFU is their mantra.

Kevin--The race is the Pacific Crest Long Course Tri in Sunriver, Oregon on June 23. Mainly chose it so family could be there. Looking at a cold wetsuit lake swim, hilly ride up to about 5000 feet, and fairly flat run. People have complained about heat on the latter but until it's well into the triple digits, that doesn't concern me. (It was 104 at the end of today's brick.) I have done a few wetsuit swims with water temps in the mid to high 60's but I've heard it can be closer to 60 for this one, depending. Yikes! I'm not a fast biker but climbing is probably my strength, relatively speaking, and I do well at altitude (probably as I have a big "engine" for my size), but it's going to be a tough race. I figured if it's my first one, I wanted to choose one that I'd feel proud of just finishing, not worrying about time. I've done several high-altitude marathons-- know how to pace purely by RPE and kind of enjoy that, as opposed to chasing a time goal. The alternative was the Aviva 70.3 in Singapore in March (huge, flat, brutally hot), and I didn't feel I'd be ready with the bike; travel logistics also very hard. Not sure I'm on the level with the ice bath. The logistics of getting that much ice are pretty complex in this heat. And it would melt and warm up before "race time" concluded!

pbreed:  I don't suggest you wear a wetsuit if you don't need one. The few minutes you'll gain probably aren't worth the expense, unless you're seriously in it to win it. Plus you could overheat if the water's really too warm for a suit. If you really want the extra gains, maybe look for a secondhand sleeveless one?

Might be different for men and women, but I prefer a trisuit, at least for sprints and Olys. It's annoying to have to put on/take off clothes more than is necessary. That being said, I have yet to wear my tri-shorts on rides over two hours. If my butt really can't take it, then I may have to pull on bike shorts over my trisuit, or something. I don't think for most HIM there's anywhere to change (there is for full IM), and you can't expose yourself in transition, so it would be pull over or wear throughout. Most races require you to have torso covered on the bike and run. I'm still debating about one piece vs. two piece for the HIM--will test both in my last month of training and then decide. Definitely prefer the one piece for shorter events but this is mainly as it doesn't "flap" on the swim--presumably not an issue for guys, who can swim bare-chested LOL!

I do have a tight budget for gear but you can usually find good deals online for trisuits. Besides a trisuit, lace locks are great so you don't have to tie shoes--tired arms, adrenaline, and sometimes cold water can equal clumsy fingers. A "bento box" or similar to hold nutrition on the bike is useful--I've lost energy bars and gels in races when I taped them to the frame or put them in a tri top or shorts pocket. If you have $$, then aerobars will save you time. Beyond that, just take a look at the gear others have and think about what you need/want. It's a slippery slope!

Kevin--Just saw the thing about training in PM and racing in the 90's. What race is THAT? Nearly all my training and racing here is done in similar temps. It definitely helps to train at least sometimes in conditions approximating those of the race. You don't want to always do it, however, as the quality of your runs and rides can suffer. (And here, later in the day also means lethal traffic.) Your body will gradually adapt in various ways to training in heat--I think it involves controlling your core temp better, and less minerals lost in sweat. I still do plenty of sweating after almost six years in the tropics, though.

The key is to stay well hydrated, and in the shade when possible. Hat and sunglasses can help you feel cooler. For reference, in those conditions, I go through about 18 ounces of fluids on a one-hour run, 36 on a two hour run, sometimes a little more if it's really humid or I'm running very hard. For biking, I take two 24-ounce bottles, and generally drain them, for a ride in the 2:00-2:30 range. For the 100 km rides (3:25 to 3:45 range), generally those two bottles plus another 18 ounce.  For the five-hour ride, 96 ounces. It's important to figure out what balance of water and electrolyte works for you. I think this is pretty individual but you DON'T want to be doing all water, or overly concentrated drinks. Solid or liquid nutrition require additional water to get them down. Heat tends to cut my appetite and it's a struggle to eat on rides.

You also need to be aware of subtle signs that your core temp is getting dangerously high. They aren't always obvious--for me, tend to be mental at first--poor judgement, spaciness, feeling cranky; feeling like you're working hard but getting nowhere; finally headache, chills, nausea. If you feel any of these I would stop, get into the AC  as soon as possible, and stay there the rest of the day! For an example of one's brain frying like an egg: I had one long brick recently where I kept craving an iced Coke, but, while running (with money), was unable to work out how I could get some. After cooling down, realized how out of it I'd been-there are four fast-food restaurants with said product within a few blocks of my house!

Hope this is useful!

Very useful HR.  I am running Troika in Spokane Wa.  It's on Aug 6th, and temps can get to the 100's for daytime highs here in the Kan at that time of year.  I've heard stories of how hot it is around noonish on the 13 mile run along the river (humidity).  I have 0 experience running in heat, as all my training is done in fall/spring/winter in the a.m (brrrr).  I always train with a camelback for hydration over 10 miles.  I use up to 70 ounces on my 3+ hr. long runs for marathon training.  (I'm kindof a wuss and need water each mile and then some on the longer runs.) 

So I guess as temps start creeping up this summer, I'll play around with nutrition in the heat and use combo of water, water+electrolyte mix, and gels.  This is what I do anyway, probably just need a lot more to continue at performance level.

Thanx for the advise.  It sounds like a "crazy" training environment.  Lots of excitement.  The most exciting thing here is an occaisional deer sighting.

So, what's everybody's April totals look like?  It was weeks 15-12 for me.  My run numbers were up a little because I moved the run-focus week into week 12 - looks like I need to really hit the bike in May:

Bike:   9h 53m 34s - 163.82 Mi  (all except one ride was on the trainer)

Run:   12h 34m 15s - 78 Mi

Swim: 7h 07m 38s - 20950 Yd

As far as the wetsuit, it is helpful because it makes you more boyount.  If you're ok without one, I wouldn't say you need one, but looking at your race it says water temps are typically low 70's.  At those temps most everyone will probably use wetsuits.  I'd check with shops that sell wetsuits or a local tri group and see if there are any demo days that you can try one out to see if you like it.  Xterra usually does those around here once a year, and you can also rent them some places.

For clothes, I'd recommend a trusuit.  I wear the De Soto Forza ITU trisuit which I got on clearance a few years ago.  It has their float pad which is a smaller version of their 400 mile pad.  If money is no object, their Liftfoil trisuit has the same pad and the fabric is supposed to be fast in the water, which would be helpful if you don't wear a wetsuit.

Here's my April:

I'm really pleased with the month.  Only concern is my knee is a little sore from starting to ramp up the biking.  My paces are way ahead of schedule and I almost wish the race was tomorrow but I've got about six weeks to go.  I debated about turning this week into a recovery week because of my soreness but decided instead to just back off a bit and focus on my long ride, long run, and I've got another 5k on Saturday.

Sounds like everyone is doing great on their training.  It's been an inspiration to hear how everyone's been doing recently.

I am not super-thrilled with this output, I've had some set-backs this month. However, I am happy that I did my longest run ever (9 miles), my longest bike ever (42 miles) and that I was smart enough to rest my shoulder from swimming. Looking back, I sort of wish I did more bike/run to make up for the skipped pool workouts.  I'm feeling pretty confident going into May with a race date of June 16. My equipment is being upgraded as needed and I'm trying my best to roll with the punches.

Today for example, I wanted to run 10 miles and swim. This is not going to happen since my daughter is home sick again, I still feel rough and by the time my husband gets home from work to help with kid duty I'm going to have to leave for the evening until 10PM. So, a 2 hour training ride is the plan. If I can go more, I will. I'll just tell myself that my course is supposed to be flat anyway...and it will loosen me up for a run tomorrow (of which I'll have to skip Yoga to get in - bummer.).  So that's where I'm at - constantly readjusting to real life.

That is a great month Pops!  Geez, you're a fish - you swam 2000yds farther than I did, in a half-hour less time.

april - just hours - as bike don't have speedo that does that on the trainer.  I suppose if I average 25kph I could work that out couldn't I!  I run average 8.5kph.  And the swim distance I know...

bike 14hours

swim 11.5 hours

run 11.5 hours

Good solid month and that's a lot of swimming.

I keep pretty close tabs on my numbers.  I've a finance guy and am pretty OCD about them.  On the trainer, I use RPE and the average miles my trainer says and convert that to my best estimate of road miles.  I also cannot end a month where I am close to a goal.  I had 295 miles and wanted 300 for the month so I did an extra, unscheduled 30 minutes on my trainer last night.  I could never, ever finish a month with 99 miles of running.

Bike 24h15m (not all in one ride!) 644.6km. A record for me. It may well be an all-time record, unless I decide to go for a full IM someday.

Run 16h54m (Don't track distance; clearly more than the 6 km shown in my log--I did know that distance since it was on a treadmill!). Probably around 200 km/120-ish miles.

Swim: 8h48m, 29,000m

Clearly I am not OCD enough or I would have run another six minutes and swum another 1000m!

kevinbe - 2012-05-01 8:04 PM

S:  19550.00 Yd - 8h 41m 04s  B:  148.96 Mi - 7h 57m 56s  R:  164.91 Mi - 22h 42m 17s  Sp:  2h 00m

April

Oh my God on the run, Kevin! You are working really hard for this!

FUn to have some reference points.  Confirms what I already know:  many of you are doing much more than the BT beginner plan calls for !   You guys are scarin' me !

I"m not very sophisticated with my Garmin outputs  but a quick tally looks like this:

Swim:  +/- 9 hours for 18,000 yards (much of this is drills w/ pauses, kickboard stuff, with shoes on, etc)

Bike:   12:50  for 227.5 miles

Run:  11:20   for 73 miles (less run due to back injury)

SOme of you guys are off-the-chain fast with those blistering paces !  Great work Kevin / pops / hotracer!

Wow, lots of great months.  Everyone is doing awesome!!  Seems like races are just around the corner.  Keep hammering.  Time will start to accelerate as you get closer to race day and now is the time to hit it and rest in the fact that you did all you could.