1/2 ironman training plan?

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  • sarabushby
    sarabushby Posts: 784 Member
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    @dee_thurman the good thing about that race is it sounds like a nice clear lake. But it does look like you'll need a wetsuit and to get used to swimming in it. It needs to be a proper swimming one, fit you properly and suit your swimming style, e.g some have thicker neoprene in the legs or other areas to give more buoyancy for ppl whose form may not yet be as good and whose legs tend to drop. Do not try and swim in a borrowed wetsuit that doesn't fit or a surf wetsuit, sadly we lost a guy locally last year in a lake based sprint tri and his ill fitting / inappropriate wetsuit was deemed a contributing factor.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    It looks to me like about the average time for people who finished in the middle of the pack is anywhere from 3:10 - 3:30 on the bike. Which means 16-18 mph will get you pretty close to that range. My last 25 mph training ride was in that range and I have ridden for a couple of weeks and I don't have shoes or clips yet. I would think that with time I will become better on the bike and in the water. My training times for the bike and the run look to be where I would finish in the middle of the pack. My swimming times show that I am not very efficient in the water. Unless I improve I will be more towards the middle to low end (but still others have posted times that I am currently training) From looking at the times, I am training at a pace where I need to add distance and put everything together to get out of it what I would like (I THINK). I am currently running my miles as soon as I get out of the pool (twice a week) which I know is much different than getting off the bike. It doesn't have hardly any effect on my run. For instance today I swam 1250 and ran 5.5 miles back to back. I feel like if I keep training I will be able to finish and enjoy the race but I still understand that I have a lot to learn and a long way to go. Your guys info and help have helped a lot.

    Sarabushy - Thanks for the info on the wetsuit. I will take your advice. I also need to get a wetsuit pretty soon so I can see how I can swim in the open water. I am sure that it is much different than the pool.

    By the way my training has me swimming mon, tue, thur; I bike mon, wed, sun. I run tue, thur, sat. I have also added doing around a 50 minute circuit training lifting session on wed, fri, sun. FYI.
  • bluetrumpet01
    bluetrumpet01 Posts: 131 Member
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    i definitely admire your commitment.

    see if you can get a bike trainer and do some structured workouts on the bike through trainerroad, sufferfest, or a slew of other online options. you'll see huge gains doing that instead of mindlessly biking. also, pay for at least 2 or 3 sessions with a swim coach. swimming is all about technique. you won't get faster just swimming more until you've nailed the technique.
  • glevinso
    glevinso Posts: 1,895 Member
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    bluetrumpet01 wrote: »
    i definitely admire your commitment.

    see if you can get a bike trainer and do some structured workouts on the bike through trainerroad, sufferfest, or a slew of other online options. you'll see huge gains doing that instead of mindlessly biking. also, pay for at least 2 or 3 sessions with a swim coach. swimming is all about technique. you won't get faster just swimming more until you've nailed the technique.

    TrainerRoad and the Sufferfest are the absolute best way to make yourself a total beast on the bike. Not a huge cash outlay either for a decent trainer, a speed/cadence sensor to add to your bike, and a subscription to TR and/or the Sufferfest app.
  • sarabushby
    sarabushby Posts: 784 Member
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    @dee_thurman Here's an interesting article I just saw on our club page, all about the differences between pool swimming and O/W http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2015/10/29/swim-like-a-triathlete-not-a-swimmer

    If you can, check out the route profile for the bike leg, look at the elevation gain. Anyone may happily train at 16mph on a flattish circuit at home, think they're sorted for race day and turn up only to find it's hillier than they've dreamt of. If you can try and locate some practice circuits which have a similar climb to distance covered ratio and practise that or hillier then there's no nasty surprises on race day.

    Keep us posted on your training progress, it's interesting to follow someone else's journey.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    a trainer is a great idea, but i think it's not really for the beginner triathlete. honestly, i don't think a 70.3 is for a beginner either, but hey, this guy is committed to his goals. i recommend getting out there and putting miles on the bike, and in the pool. you have an incredible base for the run, so i recommend making sure to get in a 1-2 mile run after your long bike ride every week.

    btw, it's an inevitable question, but swim-bike bricks are not very necessary.
  • glevinso
    glevinso Posts: 1,895 Member
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    Capt_Apollo wrote: »
    btw, it's an inevitable question, but swim-bike bricks are never not very necessary.

    Fixed :)

    Actually you can extend that to "bricks are never necessary". Quick transition run off a long bike is valuable, but there is no value in doing an actual "brick" workout.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    glevinso wrote: »
    Capt_Apollo wrote: »
    btw, it's an inevitable question, but swim-bike bricks are never not very necessary.

    Fixed :)

    Actually you can extend that to "bricks are never necessary". Quick transition run off a long bike is valuable, but there is no value in doing an actual "brick" workout.

    for short course races, i think bike-run bricks can be a great addition to a training plan to add variety and really get some good training for your legs. for long course, yes, a 1-2 mile run after your long bike ride is better.

    the closest i've gotten to a swim-bike brick is riding to the pool (or beach) for a swim and back.
  • glevinso
    glevinso Posts: 1,895 Member
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    Well I guess it depends on your definition of "brick". To me that means a "real" run workout of significant distance off the bike. Like 6 miles.

    It isn't uncommon for me to run off a long bike and go for 25 minutes, covering 3.5-4 miles in that time but I still call that a transition run.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    I don't know if everyone that is commenting knows that I am only doing a 1/2 ironman not a full ironman.

    1.2 mile swim
    56 mile bike
    13.1 run

    FYI - The only time I have to workout is in the morning most of the time on Tuesday and Thursday and to max my time I just run after the swim. I do it because of time more than trying to simulate anything race like. I will 100% practice transition runs. It is also a great point to check the evaluation of the course especially as I train moving forward.

    All of you have been a great resource.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    yup,. fully aware of the distances you're doing. i did my first half iron man in September, after having done a few sprints and olympics, and a handful of half marathons. fyi, running a half marathon and running a half marathon after swimming 1.2 miles and cycling 56 miles are two very different things.

    do you think that this is something you are going to want pursue, or are you just going to cross it off your bucket list?
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    I loved running my marathon. It wasn't all pretty towards the end but I loved the training and the race. I have never done anything like it before in my life. The most I had ever ran at one time before that might have been 6 miles ( I am not even sure if I had ran that.) I have never biked for exercise before (not even a stationary bike besides the times I had to when I had a minor injury during college while everyone else went through conditioning 15 years ago.) I haven't swam 20 lengths in a pool since middle school gym class. Now that I am on a bike and in a pool I enjoy both. The bike and the pool give my running body a little bit of a break from training long distances on the road training for my marathon. I enjoy training so far. I plan on doing a sprint triathlon in the next 7 or 8 weeks or so. If it is something that I enjoy doing I will hopefully cross it off my bucket list and continue to run a marathon and continue to do triathlons. It is an interesting question. Why do you ask?
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    just curious on your mindset. i've met a few people that have done a triathlon just to cross it off the bucket list and never do one again. and there are those that get really into the sport and it become a lifestyle.

    i guess i wish you would reconsider doing the half iron man right away. it takes a lot to build to it. and if you are dead set on that race, i'd just skip the sprint. no need. they are two very different types of triathons.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    I understand that they are very different but I would like to experience what it is like to transition from swimming to biking to running. I would like to experience some of the details of a race. Something as simple as laying out equipment and finding it after swimming. It is all new to me and the I don't want some of the minor details that many don't think about I would like to experience first and then be able to do it in the 1/2 ironman. Who knows I might get into some of the heavier training and my body might not respond and I won't be able to finish and run the 1/2 ironman. I can at least say that I did a sprint and go from there.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    I was wondering if there were any nutrition books that I could read that go along with training for a triathlon. It is very different eating and burning the calories that you do on a daily basis while training. To run a marathon you have some long runs but the rest of the time you aren't burning the amount of calories that you are burning while you train for a triathlon. I still want to eat well/healthy but I also want to get the calories that I need.
  • glevinso
    glevinso Posts: 1,895 Member
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    Capt_Apollo wrote: »
    i guess i wish you would reconsider doing the half iron man right away. it takes a lot to build to it. and if you are dead set on that race, i'd just skip the sprint. no need. they are two very different types of triathons.

    I am going to disagree here. Most of the time when someone reccos not jumping straight to a half iron, it is because the person asking the question is coming off the couch. With a full marathon under the OP's belt I would say the half iron is certainly doable. Personally I feel that a full marathon, despite being shorter, is a much harder event physically than a half iron.

    The sprint race is good for practice and to experience transitions in a race situation.
  • glevinso
    glevinso Posts: 1,895 Member
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    dee_thurman wrote: »
    I was wondering if there were any nutrition books that I could read that go along with training for a triathlon. It is very different eating and burning the calories that you do on a daily basis while training. To run a marathon you have some long runs but the rest of the time you aren't burning the amount of calories that you are burning while you train for a triathlon. I still want to eat well/healthy but I also want to get the calories that I need.

    Not sure where you are weight wise and what you are trying to do there, but the book Racing Weight by Matt Fitzgerald has a lot of good information on this subject. I tend to disagree with his exact diet plans, but his information is good.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    I am trying to maintain my current weight.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    FYI - I am currently at day 192 for eating healthy and exercising. That gives you some sort of a feel of how long I have been active. I have ran a mini and a marathon in that time.
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    http://www.mapmyfitness.com/us/northview-mi/miti-single-loop-1-2-iron-route-156785017

    Above is the link to the bike course I will be riding. Is this typical?

    total ascent of 1475 ft and has a max elevation of 922.74.

    start elevation is 616 ft - max is 922 ft - gain 1475 ft

    It looks like the first 8 miles you go from 616 ft to about 870 ft.

    Is this going to be a hilly/challenging course? Or is this more of a flat course?

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