Training Plans for Multisport Athetes (Page 2)

Hi there - all plans include base training, but once again, it how's you define it. What is your definition of base training?

Secondly, plans are built on time, b/c your body knows time, not distance. That's how the human body works - pretty simply put. I have been coaching this way, very effectively I might add, over the last twenty years. You 'could' train by distance, but I don't think your improvement would be as quick as if you used a HRM and trained by TIME.

I second that.  I read the first 15 pages and thumbed through the rest and added it to the pile of tri books I plan to read more thoroughly in the future, once I have time.

That's what I did.  I bought the books and used some of those plan, then ended up liking the BT plans a lot too.  Plus they can be loaded into your logs easily.

BT got me through my first IM (I used the BT Int. IM plan)

What kind of feedback? Seriously, I'd like to know what kind of feedback an online coach could give me without knowing me personally. IMO, it really boils down to the debate, "do I need a coach?" It just doesn't make sense for me.

To the OP, I agree with seeing if you can check it out from the library so you can study it and see if it's what you're looking for. 

You will get faster as your training progresses. The flip side is that if you forced yourself to go out and run a distance that is too far for you at that point, you'll just get hurt. Don't worry about speed yet, just put in a solid effort for the time listed. You will get faster even without worrying about speed at first.

Great article! The part about what HR zones do what was very informative. I am trying to build up my "base" right now. I just got my Garmin 305 yesterday so now I can track my zones and everything.

Why the Gold Plan?

In addition to a marathon plan, for $85 I got personalized answers to these questions among many (25-30) more...

• I just came off my HIM, where should I start in the marathon program?
• There seems to be a lot of intensity, can I ease into it, and how?
• What strength/flex training should I focus on to help with nagging foot injuries?
• What pace should I be running my threshold runs?
• Should I be walking, standing or jogging the rest intervals between runs?
• Given the results of recent workouts and LT test, is my race pace strategy sound?
• Post race, given my training, splits, race day nutrition, what possibly limited my performance?

When I say personalized, it truely is.  The Gold Plan has users fill out a pretty detailed questionaire on health, fitness, race and training history, goals, limiters; all of which is considered when the coaches (Mike and Amy) respond to the above questions.

I managed to PR my marathon by 22 minutes with a 3:25.  The plan (x minutes at y pace on day z) played a minor role.  The bigger value came from the personalized responses to my plan questions.

Edited to add:  Of course I could ask these questions in the Triathlon Talk forum, and often I did.  But you get LOTS of varying responses from all kinds of experienced and inexperienced athletes, and possibly a coach.  However, I put more faith in a USAT level 3 coach than the yahoo's on this site (umm, myself included).

Look at it this way .......

For $30 you can buy a book and get a generic plan designed for the masses with no consideration of YOUR time and availability.

For $100+ you can get an online coach that may develop a one time plan for a specific event for you based on some of your background with limited access.

For $150+ a month you can hire a coach who will (hopefully) give you one on one planning and feedback to your training and work within your limits and training abilities.

Or ........ for $85-ish for 6 months you can get a simple plan laid out from the BT program, then have the access to ask the coaches who developed those plans in what ways they can be tweaked/modified to suit your needs and get one on one feedback during your training.

Now, as an aspiring tri/cycling/running coach it seems important to me to "get in the trenches" with the athlete who hires me as their coach and work with them as much as feasible.  But it is impossible to devote 2 or 3 hours a day to each and every athlete who comes forward.  Which is why one on one coaching can get relatively expensive for the average athlete.  And while it is not really benefiting me personally to recommend it, the Gold level of BT is a phenomenal resource and option for someone who wants the opportunity for more individualized focus without paying out the bucks.

If you are comfortable going it alone, there is nothing wrong with that at all!  It is what I personally do.  But if you DO want to get to another level, or need some direction, and are stuck in a training rut, the BT option is a great resource!!

Thanks, Brian, this is the kind of specific feedback I was wondering about. And thanks for your response, too, Rick.  

That's the primary benefit of Gold vs. Silver.

Fair enough. No worries, you didn't hurt my feelings if I came off like you did. My apologies. I take my work seriously and I try to do my best every day. If I didn't think the Gold Plan was the best plan for most of the athletes here, what kind of coach would I be? ;-)

Hopefully the poster above answered your questions on feedback.

Peace,

Rick

All great points. And I think you do benefit personally from recommending the Gold Plan as well - when athletes step up their training to one-on-one coaching they will look to interview you for that since you are pretty available on this site. Also, your honest and integrity is important when people are looking for a coach! That goes a long way with people.

Now as far as your running/cycling/triathlon coaching - we need to talk. As a business coach, I have to tell you that you need to specify what you need to do - and not try to be all things to all people. I am kidding - but only half kidding. Focus on what you do well, and you'll do it well. ;-)

ROCK ON! Thanks!

ok - here is a week of Oly workouts from the 8 week OLY plan:
Monday:
1.5 ride on a flat to rolling course.  Cadence at 90, smooth pedaling, no grinding! After 30' warm up - spin up to 100 RPMS for 30" every 3 minutes for the next 30'. Ride another 30 at 90 RPMS. The focus is on smooth pedaling - 90 cadence - Z2 HR.

Tuesday:
Swim: WU: 600. MS: 4x200 on 20" rest. Second set: 800 swim, descend at 400. Rest 30", then 8x100@ 90% on 10" rest. CD: 200.

Weights: Sets  3-6
Reps 3-6+
Speed  Slow-Mod
Recovery 2-4
 -     Leg Press*
 -     Seated Rows*
 -     Core #1, 2, and 3 
 -     Bent-arm pull down*
 -     Squats (2 leg)
 -     Leg Extension or Step Ups
 -     Hamstring curl
* - are the only exercises you do to Max, the rest are AA4

Wednesday:
Bike: 10' wu, 10' cd. 7x2' at Z4, rest is 2'. Then 5x1' at Z5 rest is 1'.
Run: Run 40' - Warm up for at least 10' before the first stride.  Run 8x30 left foot strikes - time should be between 19-21". In between each stride you will skip 40 times back to the start -   take short rest and repeat. Cool-down with at least 5' easy jog (Zone 1).

Thursday:
Swim: 300 Free
12x25 on 10" rest.
400 easy, then 4x100 on 10". Next Set:
4x100 RI (rest interval): 20"
2x200 RI: 30"
8x50 RI: 20"
400 easy. 200 Easy cd.

Weights: Sets  3-6
Reps 3-6+
Speed  Slow-Mod
Recovery 2-4
 -     Leg Press*
 -     Seated Rows*
 -     Core #1, 2, and 3 
 -     Bent-arm pull down*
 -     Squats (2 leg)
 -     Leg Extension or Step Ups
 -     Hamstring curl
* - are the only exercises you do to Max, the rest are AA4

Friday:
OFF

Saturday:
Bike: Race simulation - start out easy for 30'. Then you are going to ride 20' at OLY distance effort - 10' at Sprint effort - spin easy for 10' - then repeat: 20' OLY distance effort - 10' at Sprint Distance effort. The rest of the ride should see your HR about 10 beats below LT. Go right into the brick.

Run: Off the bike, start out easy - get your bearings and pick up the pace gradually. After 10' you should be at race pace - remember to hydrate and run even paced. Try to run race pace for at least 25-35 minutes.

Sunday:
Run on a flat course or treadmill. Keep HR in Zone 1-2, no higher than the top of Z2. Think about  running like a  Kenyan - smooth and efficient! Stretch when done and add in Core 1, 2 or 3.

Swim: After 300 warm up, swim 6-8 x 50 on 20" rest.
Main set is: 100/200/300/400/500/500 all with 10-20” rest.
Last 500 should be ~3-5” faster per 100, than goal IM Pace. For example, if the goal is 1:00 swim at IM - that would be 1:25/per 100/yd pace. So, the goal in the last 500 of this 2k set would be under 6:50 or 1:20-1:23 pace. Get a nice easy 300 cool down.

That's a week about 1/2 way through the program.

Yes, it breaks the training season into several different phases including base.  Also covers weight training, nutrition, treadmill and trainer workouts, etc. 

I also purchased the waterproof "Workouts in a binder for Triathletes".  This book was great for me.  It kept the pool sessions from getting boring and made it easier to know how much I did for log purposes after the swims.

I agree.  I will most likely use a BT plan when I train for my first IM in 2010.  I just can't afford a coach and with my travel schedule, I am not sure a coach would be real beneficial since I can't always do what I should be doing at any given day.

A little late to the party, but I wanted to share my experience with the gold level support.  When I first started in the sport, I found this site and followed one of Ron's plans (couch to 5k) to learn how to run. 

After that, I found that the intro plans were not quite what I was looking for and decided to start planning my own training.  I purchased the TTB and set about planning my season and dutifully filled out all kinds of spreadsheets which took me through my first two races although looking back, I made many mistakes and it was quite stressful to figure out exactly what I should be doing and when.

That summer (I believe) Mike had his first plans uploaded to the site and the gold support forum was created.  I decided to save myself some stress and effort and give these programs a try.  I followed the plans through my last two races of the season and was very happy with the results.

Going into my next season, I decided to follow the plans again, but this time to make more use of the support forums.  I talked to Mike (and the other coaches) found the plan that was right for me and set about training for season two.  I made extensive use of the fourm for guidance as to switching workouts, progress, race planning, goals, B and C races, etc.  That season I raced three sprints (set a PR at all), finished my first HIM and finished with two OD's (both PR's).  I have no doubt that the support of Mike and the other coaches as well as very well written plans played a large part in my success.

It's been a few years but Mike will still ask me how things are going with my training and racing; to me this is a large part of what Mike brings to the table.  I have not paid a cent to Mike for coaching and yet he's still interested in what I am doing and takes the time to check in from time to time.  Overall, it's hard to imagine a better value than what gold members get at this site and I recommend it whenever someone is looking into training plans or think they may be ready for coaching.

Shane

IMO, this is one of the cases where a coach would be most beneficial.  If you and the coach are on the same page, it should be possible to look at your schedule and plan (and modify) accordingly.

Shane