During the build up to Ironman Santa Rosa I was able to witness the execution of training and preparation of my athletes. my wife's athletes, and a large number of other athletes that I associated with through a variety of manners. What I'd like to do is develop this into is an informative and educational piece on creating the best foundation for a successful big race performance. (which often means an Ironman for triathletes)
As I reflect back on what ended up being my multi-faceted responsibilities at Ironman Santa Rosa I began taking notes on my observations. First and foremost as a coach, BUT also as a race announcer and the person responsible for handling athlete race briefings and answering the questions that come along with it. What follows are essentially two major components to creating a foundation of success at your key races which typically have a large investment component. (physically, financially, emotionally, etc.)
PRE RACE NON TRAINING:
-- "Course Recon" .... I was surprised by the amount of athletes who invested so much, just financially, in their race to not invest time to understand the course, course logistics, location of key areas, AND had no intention of driving / riding the course in the days leading into the event. Even if you do not live within range of being able to train on the course it is not difficult to find RELIABLE course knowledge and "intel". Even before you sign up, it is very valuable to know what you are getting into as far as what a race course presents to you in terrain and weather. As you enter key periods of training, knowing the course helps drive the specific training process.
-- Read the Athlete Guide ... multiple times before arriving ...This is about as straight forward as it gets and maybe THE best thing you can do outside of proper training. Quite simply this helps an athlete know where to be, when they need to be there, the locations of those venues and a clear understanding of the course and logistics.
-- Arrive w/ A General Plan of Action ... by using all the information you accumulated from the items above you can create a general plan of action for pre-race and race day logistics so its easier to enjoy your time at whatever venue you choose to race at.
ATTEND A RACE BRIEFING .-- By doing this you will confirm all the information you read in the athlete guide, get updated on any last minute changes, and clear up any conflicting logistical concerns you may have. You can use this information to adapt your plan of action if needed and feel confident that you are organized.
By simply doing the four things above, a large majority of athletes will alleviate significant stress leading up to and including race day by knowing these finer points.
PRE RACE TRAINING:
"Ironman is very doable, BUT how you choose to do it is up to you" ... in general, these are the areas we help our athletes do it!
* It is very important to prepare properly just to arrive at the point you actually start "Ironman Training". We see a lot of athletes who are under prepared to simply begin their key block of training which is 8-12 weeks long, pending athlete experience. Here is an older piece that provides some insight: http://dklatourette.blogspot.com/2016/04/racing-consider-fast-before-far.html
SWIM:
- Most Ironman athletes are under-prepared for the swim physically and psychologically. We tend to script more swimming than most athletes want to do on their own, but we believe there is large value aerobically and psychologically by approaching it this way (and from the items below)
- Prepare in a way that you are able to swim with or without a wetsuit for 2.4 miles. By doing this you alleviate a significant amount of unnecessary stress leading into races and have added a lot of low impact, aerobic development.
- Prepare in a way that the swim has very little negative impact on the remainder of your race.
BIKE:
* Long Rides ... Be progressive in your approach to your long rides and be careful in the over application of too many long rides. The right balance of the weekly "long" ride mixed with shorter long rides that have more race effort OR race effort+ segments mixed in provide value in a variety of ways.
* Practice Fueling (well, make sure you have a fueling plan first)... not just what you will eat / drink, but the timing of that fuel, the ingestion of that fuel while moving at race intensities (not while standng still at the 7-11) and being able to adapt that fuel for hotter / cooler conditions.
* Technical Skills ... practice your technical skills! Descending, cornering, timing of braking, eating & drinking while riding, proper application of effort on rolling and hilly terrain, and holding your aero position for extended times.
* Make Intelligent Decisions on Tires / Tire pressure by knowing the roads you will be racing on with the wheels & tires you possess.
* The Indoor Trainer Is Great Tool ... We believe strongly in the value of the indoor trainer when sessions are scripted appropriately, BUT too much indoor trainer time negates the evolution of your technical skills mentioned above.
RUN:
* Run / Walk Protocol ... 95+% of Ironman athletes should start with, and stick to, a run / "power walk" protocol that maximizes the ability to hold pace across 26.2 miles ... after the 2.4 + 112
* Too Many Long Runs ... The long run needs to be a foundation piece of your program for an Ironman. That said, the volume of and length of long runs for a lot of athletes is often excessive. Accumulative run volume with the proper dose of the long runs is the key to being most prepared on race day. If your long run takes 48-72 hours to recover from on a weekly basis then you are losing valuable accumulative training load in your overall program.
* Through your training have a distinct pacing plan for your 26.2 mile run / power walk. This could include: heart rate + perceived exertion + pace. IF you use pace, you need to to be 100% sure that your ego is in check and your goals are realistic. Quite often an athletes "pace plan" goes sour about mile 10, often derailed by a combination of poor choices on the bike + 10 miles of ego inflated pace dictated running.
My goal as a coach is to have athletes standing on the start line excited, yet calm, and confident in what they have done in their entire preparation leading in to the race. If we accomplish this goal the focus on race day turns to simple execution of their race plan, and if the plan is executed well the result is almost always a positive experience and race.
Best of Luck in your race preparations!
DL
SWIM:- Most Ironman athletes are under-prepared for the swim physically and psychologically. We tend to script more swimming than most athletes want to do on their own, but we believe there is large value aerobically and psychologically by approaching it this way (and from the items below)
- Prepare in a way that you are able to swim with or without a wetsuit for 2.4 miles. By doing this you alleviate a significant amount of unnecessary stress leading into races and have added a lot of low impact, aerobic development.
- Prepare in a way that the swim has very little negative impact on the remainder of your race.
BIKE:
* Long Rides ... Be progressive in your approach to your long rides and be careful in the over application of too many long rides. The right balance of the weekly "long" ride mixed with shorter long rides that have more race effort OR race effort+ segments mixed in provide value in a variety of ways.
* Practice Fueling (well, make sure you have a fueling plan first)... not just what you will eat / drink, but the timing of that fuel, the ingestion of that fuel while moving at race intensities (not while standng still at the 7-11) and being able to adapt that fuel for hotter / cooler conditions.
* Technical Skills ... practice your technical skills! Descending, cornering, timing of braking, eating & drinking while riding, proper application of effort on rolling and hilly terrain, and holding your aero position for extended times.
* Make Intelligent Decisions on Tires / Tire pressure by knowing the roads you will be racing on with the wheels & tires you possess.
* The Indoor Trainer Is Great Tool ... We believe strongly in the value of the indoor trainer when sessions are scripted appropriately, BUT too much indoor trainer time negates the evolution of your technical skills mentioned above.
RUN:* Run / Walk Protocol ... 95+% of Ironman athletes should start with, and stick to, a run / "power walk" protocol that maximizes the ability to hold pace across 26.2 miles ... after the 2.4 + 112
* Too Many Long Runs ... The long run needs to be a foundation piece of your program for an Ironman. That said, the volume of and length of long runs for a lot of athletes is often excessive. Accumulative run volume with the proper dose of the long runs is the key to being most prepared on race day. If your long run takes 48-72 hours to recover from on a weekly basis then you are losing valuable accumulative training load in your overall program.
* Through your training have a distinct pacing plan for your 26.2 mile run / power walk. This could include: heart rate + perceived exertion + pace. IF you use pace, you need to to be 100% sure that your ego is in check and your goals are realistic. Quite often an athletes "pace plan" goes sour about mile 10, often derailed by a combination of poor choices on the bike + 10 miles of ego inflated pace dictated running.
My goal as a coach is to have athletes standing on the start line excited, yet calm, and confident in what they have done in their entire preparation leading in to the race. If we accomplish this goal the focus on race day turns to simple execution of their race plan, and if the plan is executed well the result is almost always a positive experience and race.
Best of Luck in your race preparations!DL
