1 MAKING AN IRONMAN - IRONMAN TRAINING by Hector L Torres, USA Triathlon Elite Coach, USA Cycling Pr Coach, USA Track and Field, USA Swimming and Strength Conditioning Specialist 2 MAKING AN IRONMAN A great Ironman race occurs when the sum of an athlete s physical and emotional preparation is as great or greater than the need to accomplish their goal Physical training alone is not enough to do create this critical point Mental training alone is not enough to create this critical point 3 RACE DAY Training the mind to perceive the Ironman as just another day Training the physiologically to perceive the race as low stress Both of these are achieved by over-stressing in training
4 WHAT IT TAKES. Three Core Competencies Physical Training- Base, speed, strength and taper Nutrition- Calorie source, fluid replacement, electrolyte balance Mindset Empowering focus, positive imagery, dealing with challenge and the unexpected 5 CORE TRAINING ELEMENTS Core Training Elements Base Weekly Endurance workout in each sport Speed Weekly Tempo (then later speed) workout in each sport Strength Training Most underestimated tool for endurance Taper A four week race peak 6 BUILD FOR AN IRONMAN Two Theories on How to Build for an Ironman Determine final need for speed, then use that as baseline to start short, then extend it throughout the season Build an aerobic base, then add in fast training once that groundwork is built
BASE 7 Developing Aerobic Fitness Aerobic capacity biggest factor in determining the final race result Build the size of the engine Requires patience that most athletes do not have HOW LONG IS YOUR BASE? 8 Base is Age Dependent Young athletes will max out their base in 1 to 3 months. Older athletes may take up to 6 months to max their base. WEEKLY LONG WORKOUT 9 Discipline Swim Bike Run Bricks How Much is Enough? 4,000 to 6,000 metres 5.5 to 7.5 hours 110-150 miles or 175 240 kms 2:50 to 3:10 hours 21-23 miles or 34 37 kms 50 mins maximum 8 miles or 13 kms
10 20 15 10 5 0 Sept 8 Sept 15Sept 22Sept 29 Oct 6 Oct 13 Oct 20 Oct 27 Nov 3 Nov 10Nov 17 Nov 24 11 PROGRESSION What is a safe progression? Multiply by 1.17 Example 3000m swim x 1.17 = 3500m swim Example 3-hour ride x 1.17 = 3:30 ride Example 90 minute run x 1.17 = 1:45 hour run General Rule of Thumb: Two weeks up build followed by one down recovery. 12 SPEED Why Speedwork for an Ironman? Need for speed in the race is minimal. Need for speed workouts to develop muscular systems is critical. Even at aerobic pace, if fast twitch is developed it can be used in an Ironman. Max of about 20-30 minutes total hard effort within the workout.
13 STRENGTH TRAINING Strength Training for Ironman? This builds the muscular strength that is not stimulated during base training Is critical for having extra lean muscle to draw on when breakdown occurs in the race Extends the life of aging athletes and improves performance at all ages 14 TAPER End of the Season Taper Four weeks for a proper Ironman taper at the end of a season Most people go three weeks max The worst taper is two weeks Draw a straight line down from peak, cutting 25% off volume and distance 15 RACE WEEK Keep it Low Stress Plan ahead Get all race gear together one month from race Arrive early Takes 7 days for blood changes that help deal with heat. Ideal - arrive at least 7 days before the race.
16 RACE WEEK CONT D Key Workouts Wednesday (3 days out) - light workout in each sport early in the day to deplete with a total workout time of about 2.5 hours. Thursday (2 days out) no working out. Thursday (2 nights out) night - most important night of sleep 17 DAY BEFORE THE RACE Key Workouts Friday (day before race) - easy workout in each sport: Swim about 500m or 7-10 minutes Bike about 30 minutes Run about 12 minutes Do all with 5x10 second pickups to activate system 18 RACE DAY Pacing Build within each sport and within the day Heart rate ideally is about equal to aerobic max at least for swim and bike Pacing: should feel like a training day up to about 10 miles (16 kms) to go in the run, then let it rip!
NUTRITION 19 Nutrition You can absorb 300-400 ca/hour You can absorb 30-40 oz/hour Most absorbable fuel is glucose Most drinks are maltodextrin and fructose Nausea almost always related to backup of these two in stomach Carbo Loading 20 Weight: / 2.2 = (A) Consume at least 5 gram of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight per day for the 4-7 days before the race (A) X 5 = Consume 10 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight per day for the 1-3 days before the race. (A) x 10 = Large carbohydrate meal two nights before the race and go light the night before the race. Application of Metabolic Efficiency 21 Inappropriate CHO load and lack of periodized nutrition and lack of aerobic training Poor utilization of body fat sotres for energy More reliance on supplemental CHO; possible weight/fat gain Inability to properly feed during training / racing Increased incidence of GI distress Lower power/velocity
Hydration 22 Assessing Hydration Status Urine Color Percent body weight change Scale Hydration Status % Body Weight Change Well hydrated + 1 to -1 Minimal dehydrated -1 to -3 Significant Dehydrated -4 to -5 Serious Dehydrated More than 5 Composition of Sweat 23 Na Cl K Ca Mg Others 0 25 50 Sodium Facts 24 Healthy or clean eating can = higher incidence of cramping. Sodium loading is effective in this case Sports drinks cannot match most athletes sweat sodium losses. Supplemental sodium is needed and sometimes necessary.
25 Hyponatremia Sings Rapid weight gain (post exercise) bloated stomach swollen hands and feet Nausea and vomiting throbbing headache dizziness confusion and disorientation 26 Causes of Hyponatremia Increased Total Body water excessive drinking and Inappropriate IV therapy Inadequate sodium intake Low sodium diet and inadequate sodium intake during exercise Reduced Urine Output Exercise and Heat exposure Large Sodium Loss High sweat rate, High sweat (sodium), Poor heat acclimatization A combination of salty sweat loss and hyotonic fluid replacement may lead to hyponatremia 27 Muscle cramping Muscle cramps are involuntary muscle spasms resulting form one or more of the following Dehydration Sodium loss Fatigue (training program) Forceful, repetitive contractions of muscles used in sports might trigger cramps (finish line sprint)
Hydration 28 Neuromuscular Plasma Level FACTS 29 The first and last 15 minutes on the bike are designated fasting zones. During these two time periods it is recommended that you do not consume any fluid or nutrition. The first 15-minute fasting zone enables to you to relax and settle into your cycling pace. The last 15-minute fasting zone is to ensure that all fluid or nutrition clears your stomach before you start the RUN segment. It is better to consume smaller amounts of fluid and nutrition more frequently rather than large amounts less frequently. This will improve absorption and reduce the likelihood of stomach distress. This means that if you are consuming a gel or bar you need to break it into multiple servings so that you don t overload your GI tract. Calories on the Bike 30 One: Determine your goal cycling speed Speed: Two: Multiply cycling speed coefficient (see table 1) by your total body weight; Speed: x Weight: = Three: Multiply Step #2 by 60 minutes to determine hourly calorie expenditure Step #2 x 60 = Four: Add 22 calories to Step #3 for every 100 feet climbed during cycling event. Map: 300 ft. / 100 = 3 3 x 22= 66 Step # 3 + Incline Calories = Table 1. Calculating Calorie Expenditure during Cycle Workouts Average Coefficient (cal./ Speed (mph) lb./min.)* 15 0.0561 16 0.0615 17 0.0675 18 0.0740 19 0.0811 20 0.0891 21 0.0975 23 0.1173 25 0.1411
Calories on the Bike Cont d 31 Five: Multiply Step #4 by 0.3 to determine minimum hourly calorie replacement demands; finally step Step #4 x.10 = Six: Multiply Step #4 by 0.5 to determine maximum hourly calorie replacement demands. (Brown, 2007) Step #4 x.30 = Ranges: - Calories on the Run 32 One: Determine running calorie expenditure per mile by 0.63 x body weight (pounds);.63 x = Two: Determine goal race pace or how many miles/hour will you cover, example: An 8-minute miler will cover 7.5 miles/hour; Pace: Three: Calculate hourly expenditure based on goal race pace, example: An 8-minute miler would multiply 7.5 by the figure from step one; finally step Step 1 x Step 2 = Four: Determine hourly calorie replacement needs: *.20 x C (Research shows runners can physically absorb about 30% of what they expend.) (Gibala, 2008) Step 3 X.20 = MPH Pace 5 12:00 5.5 10:43 6 10:00 6.5 9:14 7 8:34 7.5 8:00 8 7:30 8.5 7:04 9 6:40 9.5 6:19 10 6:00 RACE DAY NUTRITION ISSUES 33 Nutrition- Troubleshooting in the Race If backup is happening, take in glucose If no glucose available, try Coke Take in sodium along with drink Most people need 350 mg/hour or more of sodium in heat, especially after three hours of racing
34 MIND SET Mindset Positive self talk lasts about three hours, then you are stuck with reality Most powerful mind space is quiet Practice this in every single workout 35 MIND SET - CONT D Mindset Positive self talk lasts about three hours, then you are stuck with reality Most powerful mind space is quiet Practice this in every single workout 36 RACE DAY Mindset Three Greatest Images Have three goals Know why this has meaning to you to try Regrouping is not giving up Put your finish line 100m past where everyone else will stop
37 This is an opportunity given to you to show how great you are... Now show me how great you are. Hector Torres