Coaching
ART – Seeing = economy of motion/ human
SCIENCE – Balancing = training stress load
PSYCHOLOGY - 80% of sport
Yearly training phases:
Although I break the training year up into phases, unlike traditional periodisation I see these phases more of a technical, building the ‘engine’ and race specific phase (i.e. going longer for ironman). In both phases there is still hard and easy training.
Foundation:
Phase one is key, it’s about looking back and looking forwards at the same time… What are your strength & weaknesses and how / what do you have to do to be the best you can be for your future goal.
Whether to improve technically or Just learn about building ‘your process’, this is the time of year to address it and not 6 weeks out before your A1 race. This is around 6 months out – typically in the Northern Hemisphere November/December/ January. Great time to book onto a camp or look for some coaching for guidance.
Preparation:
The key to the preparation phase of training is building your fitness to a specific goal. Moreover, if you’ve worked at hard at something technically (swim, bike or run) preparation phase is to build the robustness of this ‘improved skill’ under greater pressure... Mostly it’s about "just getting it done"
Race:
Depending on the distance you are looking to race over, the course terrain (hilly bike etc) and your individual strengths & weaknesses.
Sprint Distance Triathlon Plan
Olympic Distance Triathlon Plan
70.3 Distance Triathlon Plan
Ironman Distance Triathlon Plan
Broken, ill or injured athletes do not make the start line… only smart athletes get to see their potential.
Training Strategy
Within endurance & ultra- endurance we cannot afford to waste a single stroke – revolution – step.
You may, during profiling, identify that you need to increase your bike power if you are to race better next season. You start working on your bike power in November, yes 6+ months pre season (northern hemisphere). However, instead of smashing yourself with long rides leaving you burnt out by February. Firstly you address any technical weaknesses during the foundation phase (no pressure, just mastering the art of cycling). During the winter phase you will be going through sessions that will address both force & power components of cycling. You then enter the preparation phase an all round stronger more economical cyclist.
Once you feel your technical weaknesses have been mastered, we move onto building all components of fitness and have fun doing so. The key to winter training is to develop this fitness whilst not leaving you tired, fatigued or burnt out before preparation phase. Therefore, you need to build in periods of “freshening up” both physically and mentally.
What about individualisation?
We are all individuals and each have different strength & weaknesses. However, remember the foundation phase is about mastering the personal technical aspects of your performance and then as you go into preparation phase you will prepare specifically for your course/ distance.
For me, consistency is key throughout winter, working on all aspects of your training, while maintaining freshness. Once you hit the preparation phase, i.e. you are getting ready to prepare for your big race or group of races, you then need to think on an individual basis;
• Distance you are doing (Ironman/ sprint)
• Type of course (Hilly, flat, technical)
• Weather conditions (cold, hot, humid, altitude)
• Individual weakness (bike power, FBP, no mans land head space)
• Travel
Even at the very sharpest end of triathlon, the ITU WTS circuit, during the season it can be very difficult to prepare for an individual race. Especially when athletes are chasing Olympic qualification points, as they are racing so often that there just isn’t the time for specialization or prepping for an individual course. So each athlete needs to be strong in all areas and to be handle anything thrown at them. That said, a course/ stage like the Rio Olympics, would be given the highest priority for all athletes concerned and what do they have to factor in?
• Travel to Rio
• The threat of mugging/ robbery
• Split Olympic village and race venue
• Weather (it could be 20 & raining or 35 & sunny with 95% humidity)
• Very difficult riding conditions for training around the race venue
• The sea swim: could be choppy swell, flat or manic waves & beach start.
• The bike: a 25% incline 8 x and technical sections down the hill
• The run: If it’s hot and the sun is out, there is no hiding place.
What do you have to contend with in your next race?
Training Programmes
You don’t need to be complex about your weekly/ yearly training, working on a simple strategy of three weeks on and one week recovery to “freshen up” works with the biorhythms of most people, jobs and families. Freshening up does not mean kicking back for the week and putting your feet up! You will still nail your key sessions, but drop or reduce supplementary sessions and have an extra day off/ lie-in.
I have put the programs together with sound progression and overload principal behind them. You could say a little too sound, as I have calculated, on the most part, a 10% increment to each week or training session. It’s of fundamental importance that if you wish to take up this ‘virtual’ coaching, you understand yourself and are willing to go through profiling. The profiling will ensure you are tuned into the daily sessions/ training at the right intensity, this will allow the overload principals to be effective and not destructive.
Training Zones
The first thing to remember with training zones is that they are not an exact line to cross – they have an upper and a lower limit and merge into each other.
Measuring Your Current Ability:
Below is an example of a 'middle to front-of-pack' age group athlete who has come to me, we have gone through their personal profiling and now have their "numbers".
The Future
Example athlete results from testing are:
• 400m Swim test – 6mins (90 sec 100’s)
• 6 minute Run test – 1600m (90 sec 400’s)
• Bike power – FTP – 300w
Below you will see how their numbers start to come to life and this athlete can now own their training.
Level 1 (L1): Easy
• RPE (rate of perceived exertion) 1 to 3.
• Heart rate: 55 – 72% of max
• Blood Lactate (mml/L) <1.5
• Run: 1.50 – 1.56 per 400m
• Swim: 1.50 – 1.56 per 100m
• Bike: 150 – 200w
Great for warming up and extended endurance work. It’s a pace/ speed where one has to concentrate on not lifting the pace and also on holding good form. Mentally great for watching out for the ‘wandering brain’ when on a 3 or 4hr run or a 5 - 6hr bike. It’s when the brain wanders that we may be hit by negative thoughts in ultra-endurance events. If we have questions in the latter stages, possibly recognising the critical and learning compassionate self talk and getting back to breathing.
Level 2 (L2): Tempo
RPE: 3 to 5 – Feels moderately easy
Heart rate: 72 – 82 % of max
Blood Lactate (mml/L) 1.5 - 2.5
Run: 1.43 – 1.49 per 400m
Swim: 1.43 – 1.49 per 100m
Bike 200 – 250w for 5+hrs
This feels a little more rhythmical than L1 and you can get into a nice “tempo” and can be maintained for long periods. For most this is around your ironman run/ bike pace. Mentally, great for holding form when tired over extended endurance. You will get some muscle aches in the latter stages, so teaching the mind to be quiet & focusing on the beauty around you and finding new energy.
Level 3 (L3): Threshold
RPE: 5 to 7
Heart rate: 82 - 87 % of max
Blood Lactate (mml/L) 2.5 - 4.0
Run: 1.36 – 1.42 per 400m
Swim: 1.36 – 1.42 per 100m
Bike: 250 – 300w for 1hr
Feels like race pace over Olympic and sprint distance (possible 70.3 for well trained, stronger athletes), it can be maintained for moderate duration of 5 to 10k or 750/ 1500m swimming. This is the grey zone, it’s neither easy nor hard, but a great pace for learning the rhythm of racing. When accumulating lots of reps say track session of 20 x 800m, mentally great for teaching yourself to stay in the moment and loving the process… not overreaching for the end.
Level 4 (L4): = vVO2max
RPE: 7 to 9
Heart Rate: 87 - 92 % of max
Blood Lactate: (mml/L) 4.0 - 6.0
Run: 1.29 – 1.23 per 400m
Swim: 1.29 – 1.23 per 100m swim
Bike: 300 – 350w for 6 – 12mins
This should feel ok for the first couple of minutes or reps, but as lactate starts to accumulate so does the pain. Key workout for increasing your aerobic capacity. In swimming terms this is your First Buoy Pace (FBP). Develop resilience by learning how to be with emotionally difficult or physically painful experiences, one of the best type of sessions for dealing with mental chatter & learning to quiet the mind.
Level 5 (L5): Max
RPE: 9 to 10
Blood Lactate: (mml/L) 6.0 - 10.0
Heart Rate: 92 - 100 % of max
Swim: 1.22 – 1.16 for just over 100m+
Run: 1.22 – 1.16 for just over 400m+
Bike: Sustained wattage of around 450w+ 20secs to 40 secs
This is not max as in your best 25m in the pool or 100m on the track or flat our 15 sec burst on the bike, you should be able to do this for over 400m on the track or over 100m in the pool, especially as your speed/ endurance increases. Fantastic pace for building power, strength and speed. Mentally, working on developing greater focus and concentration.