So HOW do you train for an Ironman? (Page 3)

It sounds like you have a great group of people to help you meet your goals. It might be easier for you to listen to advice from people who are in your training groups versus strangers on the internet.





Edited by Catwoman 2010-12-30 8:32 PM

Get Gail Berndhardt's excellent book Training Plans For Multisport Athletes from any big book store, or Amazon. It has a ton of valuable information. She's credible, too .... previously coached the USA Olympic triathlon team. The book has a lot of training plans in it ... including zero-to-hero plans (and Sprint, Olympic, HIM and IM plans for both beginers and competitive athletes. Plus a lot of background information. She follows Joe Friel's training methodology, but lays it all out for you in step by step fashion as opposed to Friel making you think a little about building your own training plan. It's unreal how much info is in this book, is my opinion....

This is about some of the worst advice I could see someone posting..
Deb, do what you want.. no offense but i don't believe you're obviously going to listen to the people putting sage advice out here, you're looking for someone to re-affirm your decision and your own training.. I hope you complete your IM whenever you do it, I just think you're missing the journey taking you to your destination..
get off the computer and get training..

Could have been a false alarm...but my sarcasm detector went off.

Edited by tri808 2010-12-30 9:06 PM

Deb, stop procrastibating.  Pushing your start back, FROM NEW YEARS DAY of all days, to better 'fit' a plan? Crazy.

If you'd worked out 15 minutes for every time you posted you'd already be far along the path. (Literally would be a month into a pretty decent plan.)

Pretty soon people are either going to stop responding to you at all, or will just start randomly making up stuff since you refuse to listen to ANYTHING anyone is saying.

Turn off the computer and get on the bike.

Now, where is that pesky 'Ignore' button...

Deb, I think it's great that you have a goal of completing an IM. Long term goals are important to have. I think there's something missing from your long term goal of an IM, though. That's short term goals that serve as stepping stones to the long term goal. As each short term goal is achieved by it's target date (or not achieved), the long term goal can be adjusted as appropriate. When setting all these goals, make sure each one is SMART - Specific, Measurable, Action oriented, Realistic, and Time-bound. Examples might be to train 6 days a week for the next 2 months, swim a 25 minute 1000 yd time trial by March 1, complete an Olympic tri in April in 3:45, etc.

Excellent advice.  Too bad it will most likely be ignored.  To the OP, you already said you registered for two Oly's.  Get a basic Oly plan, import it into your calendar using the end date as the date of your race and start training.  Then using that handy dandy gold membership you have and ask specific questions you might have to the coaches in the performance forum.  Course, this has all been said over and over again... 

I am going to stop reading this thread cause its all wiiiiiiide and weird.
I blame the popcorn.
Should have posted chips.
Salt and Vinegar preferably. 

Frankly, I don't believe Deb is going to do anything. I wish her and really do hope she proves me wrong well but I have no faith.

Regarding my advice, I think it is the best advice if what she says is true. If she is willing to s/b/r for 3 hours a day at a mostly low intensity then there is no reason that she cannot be doing an IM come September. No reason. All the people out there saying take it easy, learn the ropes, get some experience. That is bull. If you want to do an IM and you want to finish it comfortably then 21 hours a week for 8 months will get you there. Trick is to make it out injury free, which I would suggest is possible by keeping the intensity low.

I mean 3 hours a day. Can you imagine. If you had the time. She posted she had up to 5 hours on some days. You would be a ball full of energy, you would swim like a dolphin, your quads would be massive, you would have muscles in your calves that no one ever dreamed of.

One month of my life I worked out almost 3 hours a day. August 2008, 45 hours on the bike, 22 hours running, 4.5 hours swimming 17 hours martial arts/hiking/yoga/other stuff. At the end of that month I felt like I could lift a frigging building off it's foundation.

So, to sum up, I was not intentially being sarcastic, I was taking her at her word, giving her some advice based on my own personal experience, and drawing a logical conclusion. The fact that my conclusion seems absurd means...ergo...inter alia....intra alia....(been a while since I took logic......that one of the premises is absurd, which if I remember correctly is the reductio absurdum.

Now I did ignore the fact that it took her 3 hours to do a sprint...but I am going to say that she wasn't trained for it...even go as far as saying it does apply to her goal as long as she is willing to follow through.

You know, when I first came to BT I set out my goal of doing an IM in 9 months having only completed a HM and a sprint and got a couple doubtful looks and a definite "not a chance". I know it is possible and I know it can be a great experience.

So Deb, post your workouts, do your best. Time to walk the walk hunny.

The very short answer, if your goal is a 2013 IM:  You don't.  Assuming you are ready then, start specific training about 24 weeks out.  In the meantime, get a lot of base in, enjoy some races, etc.

And oh, I <3 this thread, as all others

Edited by ChrisM 2010-12-30 10:42 PM

There you go.  That's your answer.  Nothing wrong with planning a 2013 IM, but your specific training should be focused on a near-term goal that plays some role in getting you there.  Oly in mid 2011 is a good starting point.

 great answer..   so how do you train.. one day at a time,, start now by being consistent with what you need to do that day.. and by 2013 you will be ready to start

Hey, I really like that SMART acronym  

So I go to plans, but under Gold all I see is the custom plan creator (which has me swimming 100+ laps on Day 2 even though I told it I have a 4 minute 100 m).  Can't find any pre-packaged Gold plans.  I want to find a 16-week Oly plan and skip week 1.

I did mention that I was going to start a plan Monday for logistical purposes but I start training on 1/1. 

In the hopes that you will actually make use of the plan and the forum, here you go:

Plan - http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=636

Forum - http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/forum-view.asp?fid=26#s

Good luck, Mike Ricci and his coaches know these plans and the advice and guidance they can offer you should prove well worth the price of your gold membership.

Shane

Gold members have access to all the plans under silver and bronze as well.  Just look under silver.

You seem focused on the length of the swim workouts, but you're gonna find that that's going to be the case under any plan you choose.  It's why people generally progress from sprint plans on up as they get better and more fit. 

Oly Plan for a Spring 2011 race
HIM plan for a Fall 2011 race
IM plan for Spring 2012 race

You are welcome.

Sadly, I think you're right. 

Well Derek here's what I don't understand, though.  If I use the custom plan maker and I put in that I swim 100m in 4 minutes, why is it telling me that the 100+ lap workout (2500m+) is going to take me 1h1m?  Isn't the point of putting in your info so that it creates a plan tailored for you and if so why is it so off in its calculations?  I just find it interesting

Well, I think I settled on the balanced Oly based on RPE.  It's 12 weeks and the tri is 15 weeks away so I'll do my own thing for 3 weeks and then start it up.  I should be getting in an hour biking and an hour swimming today.

Ok, uuhhhmmm.....

Bike ME 
Muscular Endurance 
50 
WU: 15' 
MS: 5x3' w/ 1' RI: 
#1 End at low RPE 7 
#2 End at middle RPE 7 
#3 End at upper RPE 7 
#4 End at lower RPE 8 
#5 Build to RPE 8 in first 45s and hold 
CD: 15' 


Where can you find a legend on the website that translates what the above says? 

Edited by GatorDeb 2010-12-31 7:19 AM

Suddenly I miss Chi-Runner...

Thanks!

I thought it was determined in her last thread that GatorDeb is a troll?  If so, why are we feeding her? 

She's very hungry from doing a ton of training in her head?
She's not a troll, she's just a little crazy.

Edited by bryancd 2010-12-31 11:14 AM