Triathlon is the sport of swimming, biking, and running, and it can't get much better than this for testing athlete against athlete in a competition of strength, speed, and endurance! The sport was invented by a group of guys sitting around chatting about who was the better athlete. Was it the runner, the cyclist, or the swimmer? They discussed some distances, threw them together into a one day race and triathlon (Ironman) was born. Millions of people around the world now call themselves triathletes as races of all distances attract people of all ages and abilities. But the real attraction is I R O N M A N. So many people are desiring to be an 140.6 Ironman Finisher! How could you not with all the awesome inspiring TV programs showing average people doing the seemingly impossible. People are spending thousands of dollars buying the best bikes & equipment, hiring coaches to schedule workouts, and traveling all around the world to compete in destination races. In my 25 years in the sport I have seen a growing trend of people entering Ironman as their first triathlon event! Wow, now this is a big undertaking, and a very challenging one at that! As a coach I find myself in this situation more times than many and having to design training programs that will help athletes reach their IM goals quickly and stay injury free in the process. The very 1st thing to remember if THIS IS YOU, is that endurance sports such as IM require big time Physical Strength! And in my humble opinion the best way to develop this kind of strength is through the perfect combination of aerobic and anaerobic training. Many first time triathletes find them themselves concerned with the distance and therefore get caught in the trap of long slow distance aerobic training 100 % of their time. This kind of training is commonly called LSD and is a low heart rate / easy effort training that great for base building and active recovery. But for the 140.6 miles of an IM, which does seem a bit daunting, quality over quantity has won out every time! Your main objective is to have a slow continual improvement in Strength which will come by adding variety in your training. You will stay mentally inspired and get to that finish line faster than you ever thought possible!
Adding Anaerobic training to your weekly routine is very simple. After an 8-12 week period of aerobic development (easy base workouts), a new triathlete is ready to start incorporating small amounts of high intensity efforts in their routine. The term anaerobic means "without oxygen" which can seem a little bit scary or confusing to the new triathlete. For the most part anaerobic just means putting forth an effort that causes an uncomfortable increase in breathing rate caused by an elevated heart rate. There are scientific ways to measure these efforts through heartrate monitors and testing but for the average person a good rule of thumb is that if your breathing rate elevates and the effort seems uncomfortable, you are entering the anaerobic zone! This challenging workout is training your body to "deal" with the stress of moving faster and will therefore adapt to it for a future episode. Your body is saying "Hey, what is this new stress? I better build a stronger heart for this increased breathing and stronger muscles for this faster running!" Think of this... What happens to your skin after repeated friction or irritation? Well, after the difficult part & discomfort of a blister a Callous is produced! Your body has adapted to the stress and strengthened itself. Your body in all aspects is a miracle maker! God's design of this human body in incredible if you just pause to imagine what goes on beneath skin level. Capillaries, nerves, cells, veins, arteries, latic acid, organs, etc. etc... There are so many fascinating things, that as a normal athlete training to run faster, we don't think of. Stressing the body through anaerobic work will cause a strengthening of your heart muscle and your sports specific muscles. This new hard/easy approach is going to contnue to build your body into a strong resilient machine :)
As a rule of thumb, change 10% of your weekly training mileage to anaerobic work. So if for example you are running a comfortable 30 miles a week then switch out 3 of those miles for high intensity running.. This may not seem like a lot but once you perform these hard efforts you'll welcome your aerobic workouts 90% of the time. :) Do keep in mind that this is 10 % in all three disciplines so the stress on your heart will be more than the sport's specific muscle groups. This is a good thing as your heart is your most valued possession and can grow and adapt just like your bicep. It will start pumping more oxygen rich blood to those working muscles when you most need it and make your life a lot easier!
* Here are a few examples of some anaerobic workouts for your 1st week getting to know and feel Mr. Anaerobic!
Swim: Broken 1650: Warm up an easy 5-10 minutes before swimming 4 x 200, 6 x 100, and 5 x 50 (Swim each of the 15 intervals at an 85% effort level or Max HR) (Rest 15 seconds after each one)
Bike: Broken 10 mile Time Trial: Warm up 10-15 minutes easy spinning, Ride 4 miles at an 80% effort level or Max HR, 3 minute easy spin recovery, then 3 miles at 80-85% effort or Max HR, 3 min. rec., then 2 miles at 85% effort or Max HR, 3 min. rec., then 1 mile at 90% effort or Max HR!
Run: Broken 3 miler : Warm Up 10-15 minutes, Run 1.0(1600) miles at 80-85% effort or Max HR, 2 min. easy jog recovery, Run 2 x .5(800) miles at 85% (pace should slightly increase), 2 min. rec., Run 4 x .25(400) miles at 85%-90%(pace should slightly increase again)!
As you can imagine, training for triathlon can get VERY scientific and become Information Overload with the increase in technology (Heart rate monitors, wattage meters, garmins, etc.) If your interest or wallet does not lend to gadgets don't fret! Simplicity can sometimes be your best approach when trying to balance training and normal life! Let's face it, how many of you are getting paid to compete in a triathlon? So if you're like the 99% of us who want to set goals, train, compete, and improve overall wellness, enjoy a simple substitution of the 10% anaerobic rule and see the improvements. All while enjoying the process with family and friends!
Have a great Day and puts some Life in your training!
Coach Yon
