"Train Smart Race Fast" 3 months challenge (Page 5)

Week 6

Run: 6x (4x at 30m+ and 2x at 60m+) actually ran 6x (74m, 37m, 19m, 31m, 37m, 53m)

Swim: 3x at 30m actually swam 3x for 30m each

Bike: 1x at 30m+ actually biked 4x (30m, 30m, 60m, 60m)

This was a good week. I've met or exceeded the frequency goals I set and in the case of times, was comfortable with them all. Family came first so my 19m instead of 30m run was the only miss. The week was good and if I had the time, I could have done more.

Planned week 7

Now, I'm getting to the point where I start wondering when we'll incorporate more into the challenge. I'm still sticking to training in easy paces because I don't want injuries. Time is starting to be the bigger issue.

Run: 6x with 4x 30m and 2x 60m

Swim: 2x 30m

Bike: 2x 30m

Actual Week 6 and last for prep phase – 5x swim (2x 40 min, 2x 50 min, 1x 60+ min), 4x swim, 3x run (2x30 min, 1x20min, 1x60+min) 2x bike 60 min most at Z1-Z2. Due to work a missed 2 runs but it’s no biggy as swimming went very well.

So, we finally completed the 6 week prep phase and I must say these 6 weeks of conservative but consistent training had paid off big time. I’ve achieved my #1 goal which was to be able to get into the rhythm of training without rushing things up and risking injuries which would have meant another training layoff. I also was able to build up safely to 4-5x run, 5-6x swim, 2x bike a week. Since 99% of the intensity was low (Z1-Z2) I was able to allow my body to adapt to training and my muscles to catch up with my fitness level (which usually develops faster)

Now the 1st thing to do after completing this period is to schedule an unload week (recovery) with fairly easy sessions to get the body ready for the next phase which will finally include some intensity. We’ll begin to add zone 3 and zone 4 intensities but slowly building up from short intervals to long periods of time. This will happen over then next 12-14 weeks which in my case is the time before my first big race of the season (FL 70.3).

You can adjust your plan based on your racing goals but keep in mind that BASE training is still the name of the game and basically is what will be doing year-round. The amount of intensity will increase as we get close to the race in order to: increase our speed and teach our body to race at specific race pace. If your race is not until June or July for example you should build up even slower.

If you were consistent on your training and follow the conservative build up for the past 6 weeks, you should be experiencing positive results in terms of your fitness level and the only way to confirm, that is by re-testing your functional threshold for all 3 sports. You want to do that ASAP for 2 reasons: 1) verify your training is progressing in the right direction and 2) modify your training zones/paces to continue pushing yourself just enough to increase your fitness and speed. You can either do the same test suggested before or actually race a 5-10K (whatever is closer to 30-40 min) and record data for 30 min as in the time trial test. A race is a good motivator to push a bit harder

Most training plans call for a 3 ON/1 OFF cycle meaning the athlete will train and slowly increase training for 3 weeks in a row and recover by training easy on the 4th week. Currently I am experimenting with a 17 days ON/4 days OFF cycle which is a 21 days cycle or a 2/1 week cycle. The way it works is that I’ll increase training for 17 days and REALLY recover for 4 days with VERY easy sessions or complete days off. Also on the 9th day of the cycle I’ll have an active recovery day with a very easy session.You should adjust your training plan based on your own needs. If a 3/1 week works good for you keep it that way, if a 2/1 does then adjust it that way or you can even experiment with the cycle I’ll be using.

Anyway, here is a sample of what will be my training for the next 4 weeks and idea of how to slowly incorporate intensity to out sessions. Keep in mind my focus will remain to work on my swimming and running focus for at least another 4-6 weeks but I’ll add 1 bike session.

Week 7 – Unload week after 6 week prep phase. 4x swim 45+ min, 3x run (1x 40 min, 1x30 min with 10x30 seconds strides 30 seconds Z1 as recovery, 1x 60+min) and 1x bike as 4x5 min Z3, 2 min Z2 as recovery. The week will have two complete days off. >> Strides are efforts at Z4

Week 8 – 6x swim as (3x distance (60+ min) 1x recovery (30 min) 1x Z4 sets (30-40min), 1x HIM distance time trial (2100 yds at Z3)), 5x run as (1x 70 min, 1x 40 min with 2x5 min Z3 with 2 min Z1 as recovery, 1x 20 min Z1, 1x30 min (as 15x30 sec strides, 30 sec Z1 recovery), 1x 20min transition “brick” run) and 2x bike as (1x 60 min as 6x5 min Z3, 2 min Z2 as recovery and 1x 60 min as 5x2 min Z2 with 2 min Z2 as recovery)

Week 9 – 6x swim as (3x distance (60+ min) 1x recovery (30 min) 1x Z4 sets (30-40min), 1x Oly distance time trial (1600 yds at Z3-Z4)), 5x run as (1x 75 min, 1x 40 min with 2x7 min Z3 with 2 min Z1 as recovery, 1x 20 min Z1, 1x30 min (as 20x30 sec strides, 30 sec Z1 recovery), 1x 20min transition “brick” run) and 3x bike as (1x 60 min as 7x5 min Z3, 2 min Z2 as recovery, 1x 60 min as 5x3 min Z2 with 3 min Z2 as recovery and 1x 45 min Z2)

Week 10 - 2 UNLOAD and 2 OFF days. 4x swim as (1x distance (60+ min) 1x recovery (30 min) 1x Z4 sets (30-40min), 1x HIM time trial (2100 yds at Z3)), 3x run as (1x 60 min, 1x 30min Z2 easy run and 1x 20min transition “brick” run) and 2x bike as (1x 60 min as 8x5 min Z3, 2 min Z2 as recovery and 1x 60 min as 5x4 min Z2 with 4 min Z2 as recovery)

If you have any questions or comments share it with us so we can all learn together!

Keep on going and Train Smart!

Jorge,

I'll need a day or two to digest what you've posted, but I can see the intensity building! I have a question about testing our fitness increase since we started. I have an upcoming 5K and then the next week a duathlon of (2mi, 15mi, 2mi). The 5K shouldn't be over 25min so does this rule it out as a time trial? For the duathlon, I'm not sure how to translate the effort since it is a mixture.

I would like to say thanks for the help so far. As I've blogged, I can feel my fitness better than I've ever felt it in the past. This weekend I finally kept up with and could have outrun my father in law (a big motivator since there were many days in the past were he would outlast and outpace me).

I've posted my week 7 plans, but I will admit that I'm a bit stumped as far as how to go to the next level in my training. Also your unloaded weeks still look pretty loaded!

That's a great improvement, Micawber!

And good luck with your tri, riorio!

I just finished another week, Tuesdays are my rest days...and I can't wait for it! I'm going into a recovery week next week. Not quite finishing my training days feeling like I can go out the next day and "tackle" another day of training with a lot of gusto. So it is concerning me a bit in this base phase.

I'm sure that I'm not used to running so many consecutive run days (I trained for 2 marathons and and Iron on running basically 3x/week), so I'm feeling a little tired! I'm going to have to keep it like this for the month of Feb, due to my work schedule, but I think it'll work out ok.

Ok guys, here is more info for you guys to know what the different sessions definitions mean and what are the goals of each session. This should help those self-coach athletes to schedule and plan their weekly session and develop a focus for a specific block. Keep in mind that the biggest LIMITER for most of us is volume and time available for training hence the better we plan our weeks the greater ROI (return on investment) we will get based on our individual needs. Some people might be able to absorb greater volume, intensity and/or frequency so adjust accordingly!

Training Plan Definitions:
Z1 =  Easy = Tpace + 10 sec
Z2 = steady = Tpace + 5 sec
Z3 = Moderate/Tempo = Tpace
Z4 = Hard/FT = T pace – 2/3 sec
Z5 = Very Hard = T pace – 5/10 sec

Swim

All swim sessions should have 4 components:
Warm Up (WU) – This is like 10-15% of total yardage at easy pace 
Transition Set (TR) – which includes drills and some faster sets to get the body ready (10-15% of total yardage). The drills should always be mix with swimming to practice the movements (i.e. 4x50 as 25yds drill/25 yds swim). The faster sets should have a portion at the intensity that will dictate the Main sets (i.e. if MS focus is Tpace then a 4x100 as 75steady/25 Tpace)
Main set (MS) – most sets done at session intensity goal. (50-60% of total yardage) The higher the intensity the shorter the set and vice versa and the rest period in between will be higher as intensity increases (i.e. if Tpace session 4x400 at Tpace with 20” rest or if Hard session then 10x100 at Z4 with 15-20” rest) As we move along hard sets rest periods might/will get shorter.
Cool Down (CD) - This is like 5-10% of total yardage all done at easy pace

Type of session focus:
Distance/Endurance – this are your long swims. Most MS are on the longish side (i.e. 4x300, 3x400, 2x500, etc) and intensity should remain easy to Tpace. The goal is to swim the distance, be comfortable and develop endurance with proper form.Faster swimmers might add some Z4 sets but do so towards the end of the MS
Moderate/Tpace – this are middle distance swims (75-80% of distance swim) with MS done at or close to Tpace. Sets could be short (i.e. 6x50, 8x100) or longer (i.e. 4x250) this are great session to develop your goal pace. i.e if you A race is an Oly and you want to complete the 1.5K on “x” time, break down the distance as 3x500, 4x400 or 5x300 and swim the set at the goal pace with a short rest in between.
Strength – This are session in which your MS focus will be to swim sets in order to improve your strength by using drag suits, paddles, etc. These sessions are best suited for those swimming 6+ x a week. If you have limited time or just improving your swim technique avoid this sessions for now.(like 40-60% of distance swim)
Speed/Z4 – this are shorter sessions (like 60-70% of distance swim) with Z4 short sets. (10x50, 5x100, etc) intended to develop your speed and avoid breaking your form at high intensity. This sets will feel challenging but try your best to push yourself and hit your pace every rep. Rest accordingly and do it again. These sessions might also include some sets at Z5 but we will add this intensity later on.
Time Trial (TT) – this are goal pace sessions swimming our A race distance (850-900 yds sprints, 1500-1700 yds Oly, 2000-2200 yds HIM, 4000-4500 yds IM). After a short WU and TR, swim your goal distance at goal pace and time it. You can do this every 1 or 2 weeks to test your improvement and develop a comfortable feel for the race.
Recovery (RC) – This is your easy session to recover and loosen up the muscles. AVOID pushing at all on this session. The total yardage should be around 50% of distance swim and the intensity should be Z1 (maybe some Z2)

ok I've been meaning to post this to complement my previuos post for the next training cycle but work is been crazy, anyway, here we go:

Run:
All run sessions should include a WU and CD in particular when doing high intensity sessions! Also you should include running drills before some of your runs.

Type of session focus:
Distance/Long run – this is your weekly long run and should be done at your Z1-Z2 intensity. (The longer I go the easier I run) In reality a long run should be at least 60+ min but since some are beginners or returning from injury build up slowly first to certain time (as we did on the prep phase) and go from there. The total time/distance should be less than 35% of your weekly volume. Even though you should work on your forma and cadence at every run, long runs are particular good times to do so.
M pace/Tempo/Z3 – this are middle distance runs (20-30% of your weekly volume) done at a pace done at zone 3 (in theory the pace you should be able to sustain for a marathon with proper training) To build up slowly you can begin with longish sets with shorter interval recovery periods (i.e. 2x10 min at M pace with 3 min Z1 run as recovery in between)
FT/LT/Z4 – this are shorter more intense sessions (like 10% of weekly volume) intended to increase our efficiency running at FT. These are more demanding and taxing sessions hence you should build up slowly and don’t over do it. To build up slowly you can begin with short sets with similar/longer intervals recovery periods (i.e. 5x2 min at FT with 2 min Z1 run as recovery in between)
Hill repeats – As the plan progresses will add some variety to our sessions and add hills repeats another type of high intensity session in order to develop more running strength. We’ll perform this session instead of the other intensity sessions (to avoid over reaching) and will have specific goals. We won’t add this until the next block.
TR – Transition runs AKA “brick runs” come usually after a bike session. This runs are intended to develop your endurance while tired focus on your form. You should run most of your TR at Z1-Z2. You’ll add some intensity as the plan moves on so you can get use to run at your GP on after biking but build up slowly and don’t over do it!
Recovery (RC) – These are your VERY easy jog/runs to loosen up the legs and recover. For most beginners running 3-4x a week a recovery run won’t be necessary and scheduling a swim or bike recovery session will help more because running still imposes stress on the body.

Bike:
All run sessions should include a WU and CD in particular when doing high intensity sessions! Also you should include pedal drills to improve your efficiency.

Type of session focus:
Distance/Long ride – this is your weekly long ride and should be done at your Z1-Z2 intensity. (The longer I go the easier I ride) A long ride will vary between 1 hr to 5+ hrs depending on you A race goal.  
Tempo/Zone 3 – this are middle distance/intense rides (60-120 min) done at a pace done at high Z2/low zone 3 (in theory the pace you should be able to sustain for a HIM with proper training) To build up slowly you can begin with longish sets with shorter interval recovery periods (i.e. 3x10 min at Z3 with 3 min Z1 spin as recovery in between). As the plan moves on you could add some of these intervals in the middle of a long ride.
FT/LT/Z4 – this are shorter more intense sessions intended to increase your power & efficiency riding at FT. In theory this is the pace you should be able to sustain for 1 hr with proper training. These are more demanding and taxing sessions hence you should build up slowly and don’t over do it. To build up slowly you can begin with short sets with similar/longer intervals recovery periods (i.e. 5x4 min at FT with 4 min Z1 spin as recovery in between)
Hill repeats – As the plan progresses will add some variety to our sessions and add hills repeats another type of high intensity session in order to develop power & strength. We’ll perform this session instead of the other intensity sessions (to avoid over reaching) and will have specific goals. We won’t add this until the next block.
Recovery (RC) – These are your VERY easy spins to loosen up the legs and recover. For most beginners riding 2-3x a week a recovery ride won’t be necessary. Scheduling a bike recovery session after a long/hard run/ride will help to loosen up the legs and get them ready for next sessions. This session SHOULD BE DONE ALL AT Z1!

I hope this will help you to enhance your training plans! :)

I've come across this challenge a bit late!! But it looks like something I will be taking a lot of information from for my own training. I have not yet read through every post here, but the six week base looks good for me, and Jorge, I like your idea of making this a "year 'round" training rather than a "challenge".

My challenge is -- I am working at, and searching for a cure for plantar fasciitis that I have been battling for about 2 years. Walking and jogging have taken a way back seat for me. I have been doing a lot of swimming, spinning and outdoor cycling and am hopeful to add that jogging part sometime! I also have recently gotten back to core/strength training and yoga, so my schedule of exercise is pretty full.

So, Jorge, I don't know if you have any tips for me about starting an actual training schedule. Ai have my eye on a sprint tri at the end of June IF my feet allow!

I will echo everyone else's thanks for this plan and training help Jorge.

Nancy

Week 7 Summary

This week was very light as I had a sick kid again and a race planned for the 17th that I wanted to be rested before.

Swim (2x) with times (30m, 30m) which will be a typical week. I may be able to go to 40-45m and sometimes 3x but my work schedule and family make 2x easy, but more is difficult. 

Run (3x and 1x 5k race) with times (35m, 30m, 20m and 23m15s). The race went very well for me and I clocked by PB time at 23:15, which is down from 27:30 last race and before I started training. Woohoo!

Bike (3x) with times (45m, 15m, 15m). I've started adding a bit of bike time before my evening runs to loosen my legs. I'm doing about 15m now at easy pace before running.

All in all a good week. The training was done easier and the race run faster!

Week 8 Plan

At the end of this week is a duathlon, which is a bit step up for me. Before I had only run 5k races. So this week will be an easy week as well in preparation for the race.

Swim (2x 30m) typical swim week I hope (Mardi Gras may interfere but we will see).

Bike (3x 15m and 1x 30m) pre-run warmups and one longer day

Run (4x 30m) easy pace

Then my duathlon!

Micawber --- Thanks for the info about how you treated your pf. I  am sure I have been trying to do too much walk/jogging (even the little I have been doing!) and have not done any massaging of the area. I have been icing and tryng to stretch, but when the results of those efforts were il, I even have stopped doing that! I am researching the ART possibility but will probably have to pay for that on my own as I am sure my HMO doesn't cover it. But if it helps, no amount (within reason) will be too much to pay.

 I will also try your advice of NSAIDS (I'm sooooooo anti-drug taking), massage and easy active rest.

Thanks

Nancy

Well, hello again challenge mates...I hope everyone's doing well. 

I've left my log blank for the first 2 weeks of Feb.  There's just no time or real point to going back in and filling the gaps.  I didn't log my workouts, but I was doing the occasional 30-40 min run and 50-60 min spin.  Like our friend in Alberta, it's too cold for me to commute lately, so I have to do other riding.  Strength training and coordination/balance moves in the gym have been my lifting focus.  I'm going to get back in the pool this week. 

And (honestly) I'm going to actually plan out my workouts again (or rather, for a change!).  I usually just take them as they come, but I do feel that more structure will help me actually feel the building of endurance, speed, and power in my movements.  Wishful thinking?  We'll see! 

Mon --  20 min in Z2/3 indoor xc-ski and hour ride (spin) 

Tues --  lifting for coordination and endurance; short PM swim at pool 

Weds -- All Zone 1-4 hour ride (spin) and abs/core work; PM swim at pool (what kind of workout?)

Thurs --  40 min run in Z2/3 and 40 min lifting circuit with PT client; PM off

Fri --  30 min run in All Zones 1-4 

Sat -- rest and train PT clients, not myself unless swim at pool is an option

Sun -- 2 hour All Zone 1-4 special studio spin event at a dance club (!?) 

Have a great week, -Sunny 

Jorge-- You said in one of your posts that you are not a great believer in strength training. Would you please talk more about this? Your thoughts as well as some training ideas that you might have.

Thanks

Sorry guys, I am checking in late, but I had a bit of a rough weekend, unfortunately I can't share the details

Anyway planned week 7: Unload week. 4x swim, 3x run and 1x bike, ACTUAL, 5x swim, 1x run and 1x bike. I didn’t do all my runs but since it was an unload week and I traveled it is ok.

This week started I bit rough as the illness which kept me away so many months from training is been making a bit of a number on me but it is my fault as I misbehave by not following my diet, taking meds, etc over the weekend, hence I missed a training day on Monday and had to adjust my goals for this week.

Which BTW, it is a good time to remind you all that sometimes life/sickness gets on the way of training and the number one thing to do is to get better by been proactive about in hopes to lose just a few days from training. It is far better to do that than to tough it up and in the long run miss SEVERAL days/weeks of training. Finally, it is sort of pointless of trying to make up sessions by cramming different workouts just to get the planned sessions in; it is better to have “key” sessions every week that we know we should get in no matter what. On this phase based on the training plan posted on page no. 3, those key sessions would most likely be the long & tempo run, the tempo ride and the straight HIM/Oly swim. (tempo session are those done at Z3)

Let’s keep on moving people and lets keep an eye on each other because as the weeks pass by things will be getting a bit tougher as the motivation sometimes wears thin for many reasons such as: still so many weeks before the A race, the winter weather, work, seasonal sickness, etc. But if we keep at it posting every week we will feel sort of committed to not let our ‘virtual’ training group down!

Train Smart, Race Fast!

Most people have the argument that ST (weight lifting) either will enhance performance or prevent injuries. For the former argument, well if we only have 8 hrs a week available for training, investing that time on tri specific training will provide almost 99% more gains because the force required to squats and bench press has nothing to do with the force required for S/B/R.

For the latter argument, most athlete face training injuries because they: a) increase their workload too fast, b) increase their intensity to fast, or c) both. As a personal example: last year I battle ankle and knee injuries and the 1^st thing a PT recommend was to do strength training, as most likely my knee/ankle wear to weak to sustain the impact of running. A month later with PT and weight lifting therapy I resume running and faced same results.

My coach told me he was certain I was just doing too much, too fast too soon but I wasn't lsitening. Unfortunately I had to get injure to understand because that forced me to slow down. Anyway around the same time I visited a MD specialized on ART and he suggested running specific strength exercises (running drills) and some stretching. Within a few weeks I was back to normal and began running patiently building my volume, frequency and intensity slow. Knock on wood I haven’t had any more knee or ankle injuries ever since.

Finally, I do understand that there are specific cases that ST is required as some people might have special needs due to an accident, mechanic issues, etc, but in ‘general’ I like to recommend my guys to focus on tri specific ST in the form of drills, hill repeats, stretching, etc.

Hello gang… just checking in to report this past week for training. It wasn’t a good in the sense I battled a cold but at least I managed to get in some sessions and now I am ready to go for the next coming weeks. Also I have my 1^st race of the season, well sort of. I did a winter duathlon as 2K run – 12k x-country ski – 2K run, but it was more of a suffer fest session as prior to Saturday I never x-country skiing before. It was fun and a killer workout but dude, my arms/shoulders/back/legs still hurt a lot!

Week 8 planned – 6x swim, 5x run as and 2x bike as, Actual: 3x swim, 4x run, 1x bike, 1hr x-country skiing.

It wasn’t that bad considering I skipped 3 days off training but I’ll just treat this as an easy week and I’ll just reorganized my coming training days. I also had planned two quality sessions this past week (intensity Z4) for biking and running as part of the gradual build up but since I missed those I’ll just adjust coming weeks to avoid doing too much intensity too soon.

I have 12 weeks until my 1^st 70.3 race of the season so I NEED to get moving with my biking and get my running speed to where I wanted to be.

My week went well, I trained lightly during the week with one intensity day on the bike.

I also had my first multi-sport race this weekend, a duathlon (2mi run/15mi bike/2mi run. Here is my race-report.

This next week, I will start with the intensity outlined by Jorge. Have a good week everyone!