Triathlon Training Help

mstaser

I am training for a triathlon in Sept and having an issue. Its my calves. Most of my training consists of a hard bike ride with a transition into a run. Every time I do this, the first half mile to a mile of the run my calves cramp up or are just in pain. Eventually the pain goes away and I can get into rhythm. Is this issue with my calves just conditioning and will going away eventually or is there something I can do to help with this.

BrianSharpe

I am training for a triathlon in Sept and having an issue. Its my calves. Most of my training consists of a hard bike ride with a transition into a run. Every time I do this, the first half mile to a mile of the run my calves cramp up or are just in pain. Eventually the pain goes away and I can get into rhythm. Is this issue with my calves just conditioning and will going away eventually or is there something I can do to help with this.

Aren't bricks fun? LOL

How are your calves when you're just running?

jacksonpt

Love me some good brick workouts!

Make sure you are properly hydrated first. After that, it's probably a conditioning thing (assuming your calves don't bother you when only running).

On a related note, have you gotten new sneakers recently? If so, new sneakers could have a different heel/toe drop and be causing you some problems.

mstaser

While normal runs I have no problems with calves. I usually stretch pretty good before runs and these kind of workouts.
My shoes are fitted and still in great shape. Probably only 25% used based on mileage.

sazzydee1

It's probably going to take time for your legs to get used to the change-over from cycling to running. When you get off your bike at transition pause and stretch your calves before you start the run.

amandammmq

Ugh, it was so long ago that I hardly remember! However, I do remember my legs just not wanting to work for the first few hundred yards of the run, but they'd always loosen up after a bit. I also remember feeling very disoriented after coming out of the water and having to run to transition!

As an aside, practicing your transitions is a GREAT way to shave a few minutes off your overall time.

Cgirlish

no advice, but have fun and good luck

bacamacho

I started training for and doing triathlons last year in October. Each race that feeling lessened and was easier to manage. short bricks are good to get your legs trained for that transition discomfort. In the gym I'd do an hour on the spinner if I couldn't get out on the bike, then I'd hop on the treadmill right away and do 1.5-3 miles depending on how I felt from the spinner. After months of doing that I can say that even though the tightness hasn't gone a way, it's still tight up to 1/2 a mile, it doesn't hurt anymore.


Good luck! Have fun!

jillystjohn

Foam roll your posterior chain, and make sure you're not toeing your pedals.

SelkieDiver

toward the end of your ride, try to pedal standing up for a minute or 2. It helps shift the blood flow from your quads, glutes and hamstrings down into your lower leg to set you up for running. I've also put the bike in a lighter gear so I could spin my legs fast - that seems to help.

trijoe

I'm not sure this is the cause of your calf cramps, but:

I'm a firm believer in matching my bike cadence to my run cadence. I have so few problems with transition when that happens. If I were you I would consider figuring out my two cadences and working toward matching them.

mstaser

Thanks for all the advise everyone. A lot of great things to think about. I have a few things to try out.