Longest Run/Ride in HIM Training

I looked at the Beginner HIM BT plan, and I think the longest ride was 3 hr, which I won't make 50mi in 3 hours so I was figuring I should do more.

As for the run, did you do some walking? I was hoping I could keep my longest run around 9 or 10 miles and run most of it. 

Thanks for the advice!

I ran 10 miles for my longest runs and I biked 56 miles, which was the end of  a progression of a lot of long rides.  I definitely put the most effort in bike prep and am glad, I wouldn't skimp there.  I wish I had ran more than 10 miles, but I was doing HR-based training with a coach and many of my long runs were on very hot days. I maxed out on time.

I felt great, actually.  I did struggle in my last few miles, but that was after a killer hill and well I was 6 hours in at that point...

I used a coach, but if I had not I would have used a BT plan.  I can't begin to guess on how to put an adequate HIM plan together.

Also, do a search for "HIM Nutrition" here on the forum.  Good stuff to consider.

Have fun!

I'll usually do about 6-8 rides over 65 miles (65-75) and 5-7 runs over 13 miles (13-16).

Your success is not going to be about any single long ride or long run, but the cummulation of all your training.

Honestly, I'd do rides up to 60 miles a few times. Each time you do, hop off the bike and run about 20-30 min so you know what you will feel like off the bike. If you want to finish strong you need to get a lot of bike fitness and know how to pace yourself so you don't bonk on the run. I would get a minimum of 3 10 mile runs in as well.

Just my two cents.

If you keep your longest run at 9 or 10 miles, I highly recommend a run/walk strategy from the get go for the run segment on race day as Plan B if you don't feel that good off the bike.  Perhaps a 10:00/1:00 ratio until mile 10 then blast through as best you can the last 5K. 

I didn't get my run volume in sufficiently before Orangeman HIM last Sept. due to ITBS issues and I died out at mile 7 due to bad cramps despite using the ratio above. 

When is your race?  =)

I really like this! ^^^

I loosely followed the BT plan for my single 70.3 to date.  

I've never been a cyclist.  I bought my first bike so I could do my first tri (In 2010).  So I had no cycling base whatsoever.  Before starting training for my 70.3, my longest bike ride ever was 35 miles.  I built up to a single 56 mile ride before my 70.3.

Don't confuse this for expert opinion, but I would NOT recommend that course of action.  This year, I'm definitely going over 56 multiple times, hopefully peaking at 70-75 or so.  I have a coach this time around, so I'm sure he'll get me pointed in the right direction.

I was coming off a marathon when I started my 70.3 training, so I was pretty comfortable doing long runs.  I think the longest I did was 16 miles.

That ratio is what I usually do to break up my long runs and keep from getting injured. Sometimes I will go 12/1 or 15/1. So I think that is a good plan.

The race is mid-May. 

I'm doing a HM next month but long runs take so much out of me and I feel really affect my other training so I want to prepared but not go overboard running, if that makes sense. Biking doesn't take as much out of me so I'd rather go harder on the biking.

I'm coached, and I went up to 12 miles ran and 70 miles biked and I had 35/5 bricks all the time (and I could swim 4000m slowly but with just a bit of effort).

At the HIM I ran straight but walked the aid stations (a mile apart), kept from spilling water and Gatorade on me and mentally I was never running more than one mile at a time.

Before my first HIM - I had completed several half marathons, and kept with the volume (frequent 12-15 mile runs). The bike, not as much - maxing out at 56 miles (I'm one of those folks that needs to finish the distance before the race so my mind knows I can finish). While I finished, i would have like to have finished stronger.

This year, I would like to continue with the same running volume (I am going to run a marathon late May, the HIM is at the end of August - so I will back off from the long run distances for the marathon down to 12-15 mile long runs). I want to ride several (at least 5) 75+ milers, followed by an hour run.

I underestimated how much the bike would affect the run. I felt great on the bike - but if I had been better trained on the bike, I would have held onto the run better. I completely agree with BikerGrrl - time spent on the bike is never wasted (unless it's in Z1 - but that's a conversation for another thread).

Ahhh, okay so you have a HM coming up.  Have you been doing any biking while training for that?  If not, now is a good time to get some good base going.  I suggest you separate your long bike and long run workouts by a few days so you don't get so worn out.

Regardless of the bike distance, I never did more than a 40 min run after.  It was solely for the purpose of testing my nutrition and that was long enough.  Longer runs were given more deference and not done on wiped legs.

Yes yes but I want to decrease the long runs back down after the half  to not stress the body so much. And I have been biking to get my base, I just feel like my long rides are affected by my long runs. I still do it though.

I think after the half I will move to Friday long run, Saturday long swim, Sunday long ride to help spread it out. Not sure if that is enough though. Swimming seems to make me feel lots better.

This will depend on how well you recover from the long efforts.  You don't want to do too long of a run or ride so that it significantly impacts your training the next week.  Now, your plan may have a cut back week after a particularly long ride or run, and that is fine.  But, you wouldn't want to have to miss training the next week because you did a long run or ride.  As others have said above, its not one long ride or run that is key, its the cumulative effect.

Now, that being said, I would think that there would be diminishing returns for doing runs longer than 15 miles or rides longer than 70.  That is not based on any expert knowledge rather that is about the longest I've seen in a plan or in discussions.  Again, you need to smartly build up to those.  If you have, then I think you can work on going faster at those distances rather than longer.

Last year I followed a 26 week plan. One week had me running 2 hours straight. I think I covered 14-15 miles and of course luck would have it on a day that it snowed 6 inches and then started to rain. Talk about being wet afterwards.

A session on the trainer had me do 3:55 on the bike. At the time I didn't have my speed sensor on the rear wheel so I don't know the true distance I rode but for sake of what I did for the race 19.49 pace I rode about 76 miles on the trainer give or take a few miles.

Swimming wise I think I swam maybe 2500 yards once with most of my workouts being between 1500-2000. I thought I would die on all those workouts being that long. 

As to how many times you should do those long ride/runs -- I think at least once you should do a shorter ride like an hour followed by a 2 hour run. The ride should be probably 3.5 hours followed by a quick 25-30 minute run so you can get an understanding of how you feel after riding for 3.5 hours. 

I'd also make sure you spend enough time doing brick workouts. Not all workouts need to be bricks but I think that you should do them at least once a week if not twice. My opinion on this but I try to do that myself so I get used to working out for multiple hours in different disciplines.

Best of luck in your first HIM

Great strategy there putting a swim in between!  Swimming does the same for me. =)

For my last HIM - 60 mile bike - 13 mile run

I had lots of 35-40 mile rides and 8-10 mile runs. To me this was much more important than the longest bike or run. As others have said the key is the accumulation of training load not individual long efforts. I found this especially true on the bike. I followed a 20 week plan that emphasized lots of harder/shorter efforts on the bike and it really paid off for me. I came off a tough bike course (Branson) ready to run to my potential.