Many, many questions...

Hey Chuck,

I'll give you a snapshot of how my coaches and I do it, so you can get a feel for one particular coaching model. Working from low cost up, this is what we have:

Training Plans
I sell 26 and 11 week IM training plans here: http://www.trainingpeaks.com/trainingplans/richstrauss/  I offer a great deal of support, in the form of a 67page doc and a "Swim Clinic E-Book" that I just finished this weekend. The book includes of video of me demonstrating swim drills and other form cues.

Coached Workouts
We also coach swim, bike and run workouts. Swim is $6/session, $50 a month. This is a masters workout but very, very focused on technique and form. We start up again next week and I'll make extensive use of my underwater camera. Coached bike (1per week) and run (1-2/wk) workouts for $50 a month.

Training Plan + Coached Workouts
So a local athlete could purchase a training plan and then attended our coached workouts. A couple locals are doing this for IMCDA.

Premium Coaching
$250-350/mo. Schedules published in 2-4 wk blocks via www.trainingpeaks.com, unlimited phone and email contact. In addition, the coached workouts above are free for these atheltes. We don't offer a quarterly or Basic coaching package, with less frequent contact. We've found it awkward to place restrictions on when an athlete can or can not contact us, how much help we can give them, etc. We'd rather work with everyone at the premium level and give them a huge value by adding in the workouts, etc. Personally, I probably talk on the phone with each of my athletes about once every other day, email constantly. We also exchange a lot of group emails, educating them on a number of topics.

Training Sessions with the coaches
I also train with many of my athletes. My rule is "if at my pace, the session is free." It's just good service and a way to spend quality time wth my crew. And in the last month we've been bringing our athletes together and integrating them into our own long rides. For example, Sunday we did 90-105 to the coast and back. We split into a couple groups, each led by a coach, and got everyone working together very nicely. These are the coaches' own workouts, so it's understood that these are not coached sessions. In other words, I'm not obligated to hold back to keep someone with me. But we've gotten good at creating a quality session for a pretty broad spectrum of athletes.

Some of your other Q's:

How long to train for an IM? Read my Event Based Volume article. Also, do a search on his board or the more general one. I think I may have discussed how I divide an IM training season. My short answer is:

1. Put together a Basic Week, something that you do week after week, that consistently addresses your limiters.
2. Within the progression of the Basic Week, address the long event concepts I outline in EB Volume.
3. Schedule cool/fun training events to give you short term goals.

If you follow this guidance, then you only need to "be training for" an IM for about 12 weeks. By this, I mean you have turned a key in your head that says "I am training for this Ironman on Date X. My training is race specific and my head is focused on the task at hand."

Swim coach and tri coach: this is a big one. I think many tri coaches don't come from a swimming background so they often abdicate the swimming responsilibility (or at least form instruction) to the masters coach. However, that masters coach may or may not be the best resource for integrating swim training into and IM schedule. Ideally, your tri swim coach should be able to offer you or point you towards quality swim technique instruction and then do a common sense check to what the master's coach is telling you to do in workouts.

IM-specific: sorry, I have to put in a plug here. Make sure the coach of your choice has personal experience with training and racing IM AND has been successful. I've learned the most about IM training through my own training, having made a ton of mistakes. Also, what is their experience with coaching athletes to Ironman? I've seen good Sprint-Oly tri coaches fail to make the connection that training for an IM is fundamentally different. Like most things, coaching IM athletes is an art, not taught in books, and really only truly learned through experimentation with their own training and the experience of coaching many, many IM athletes.

Yeah, lots more to talk about here. Good Q's.

You know good and well that you need to podium in a 1/2 IM race before ever attempting an IM.

Didn't we go over this already?

ChuckyFinster - 2005-02-14 3:38 PM

Steve- - 2005-02-14 12:40 PM

You know good and well that you need to podium in a 1/2 IM race before ever attempting an IM.

Didn't we go over this already?

Ask me how I did in 32 days Man I can't wait. I have never felt more ready for a race. Ralph's 1/2 IM in 32 days woooooooohoooooooooo!!!!!!!!! Now, stop trying to hijack my thread and answer the questions! Hey Rich, what assumptions are you making when you say "12 weeks". thx - Chris

LOL.

sry, I just couldn't resist.

I'll be good now.

Before that 12 weeks the athlete's mental state/focus is "I am training to train. I'm not yet training for the race."

The keys I like to see my athletes hitting before we enter this Race Prep phase are:

• 3 swims per week, with one focused on form.
• 3 bikes per week, with a regular long bike of 4-5hrs.
• 4-5 runs per week, with 1 x skill session, regualar long run of 2hrs.
• Body comp within about 3-5 lbs of goal race weight.
• Very consistent with a core and stretching program.
• Professionally fitted on their bike.

Now, how long it will take an athlete to develop to the point where they can accomplish these keys? That's probably what you were asking when you said how do you need to be training for an IM. For me, it's a critical mental shift. During the above, for me and my athletes training for CDA, we are...just doing the above or building them up to that. They are NOT training for CDA yet. I'll flip that switch in about mid April.

Come on...give us more credit than that!!! **readies fire pit and purchases large amounts of lighter fluid**

Just kidding!  Even if we disagree, I do wish everyone the best in their goals/races!!

Body comp thoughts:

• If you watch the progression of finishers at an Ironman you’ll also notice a body comp progression, from whippet thin to “chunky.” It’s fairly obvious that body comp is critical success factor and that leaner is better.

• Here are some thoughts on what I do to address my own limiters: http://www.cruciblefitness.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2939  http://www.cruciblefitness.com/etips/PaleoModified.htm
• Your body will choose where the weight loss will come from: where the fat is taken from, if you lose fat and/or muscle, etc. For example, my body deposits and loses fat in my legs, hips (ass) and face. I gain and lose muscle in my legs but retain muscle in my upper body. Consequently, when I’m at my race weight and race fitness, I have muscular legs, a rather large and cut upper body, despite the fact that I haven’t seriously lifted upper body stuff since about ’99 in the Marine Corps. It just won’t go away and people who see my race photos assume I’m a huge dude. I’m 5’9”, race at about 155lb.

• An excellent body comp for IM racing is about 10% BF for males. Most people can reach that, though of course it can take more or less work depending on where you are starting from. Depending on how quickly you try to lose that weight you may hit sticking points along the way where your body resists further weight loss. Where and when this happens is highly individual.

• Of course, if leaner is better than it helps to get below that 10%. I’ve found that where you end up at between 5-10% is also highly individual. Some people can get to 5% or so with no ill effects. Others find their recovery and immune systems begin to become compromised at some level, usually 8-9%. The bottom line is that if your goal is to go as low as you can, realize that you don't want to get so low that you compromise recovery and increase your risk of becoming injured or sick.