Base Training, Training Programme

It's getting close to the new year and close to time to start structured training, later next year i will be following a specific 17 week Ironman training plan , but to get me to that I have drafted a plan that gets me to the point.

The plan is in draft at the moment and I will probably refine it a bit further but you will get an idea of what I am looking to do.  I have also categorised the training as key training and other represented by RED and BLACK.

I am the sort of person that needs a plan to help with motivation, I am more likely to do the required training if I know in advance what I need to do in advance.

This training plan only builds up to session of a maximum length of 3:30 but longer will come in the specific Ironman plan as i don't want to overtrain or burn out and it can be seen from the plan that every 4th week is a recovery week.

Some may find the program a little light on the swimming front, but in truth swim is possibly my best sport so there you have it...

For those that are interested here is my 10 week Ironman Base Training Plan

WW

Interval Brick Session

My off season is approaching the end and the New Year will see the start of structured training starting with an extensive Base period.

But at the moment it is still off season and training variety. Last night was an interval brick session that took the form of: -

SPINNING BIKE 10 mins warm up Z1/2

5 x (
- 3 min seated hill climbing (hard effort)
- 2 mins standing hill climbing (upping the effort)
- 1 min fast spin (lighter effort)
- 2 mins recovery Z1/2
)
5 mins recovery
8 x (
- 20secs vomit inducing effort
- 10secs easy spin
)

5 mins recover

TREADMILL FARTLEK SESSION

20 mins, efforts ranging from slow easy pace to my 5k pb pace with 2 x 1 min efforts at my 5k pb pace.

For the 20 sec bike efforts, these were done in similar style to Tabata style training, but at the end of my normal interval session rather than a session on its own.  The whole session left me feeling quite good as I retired to the sauna.

WW

Heat Rate Zones

For both running and cycling a train by heart rate, some people train by pace, by power, by feel but I train by Heart rate.

The thing is that I use one system for cycling and another for running, the reason for this is that I have been lab tested on the bike (see earlier post) but not for my run. So for cycling a use a range of zones based on my VO2 max and for running a set of zones base on my Max and Min Heart rates.

Cycling

VO2max  = 147bpm

Zone 1	Recovery	91 - 121
Zone 2	Extensive Endurance	122 - 130
Zone 3	Intensive Endurance	131 - 137
Zone 4	Sub Threshold	138 - 146
Zone 5a	Super Threshold	147 - 150
Zone 5b	Anerobic Endurance	151-155
Zone 5c	Power	156+

Running

Max HR = 175bpm
Min HR =47bpm

Zone 1	50% - 60%	111 - 124
Zone 2	60% - 70%	124 - 137
Zone 3	70% - 80%	137 - 149
Zone 4	80% - 90%	149 - 162
Zone 5	90% - 100%	162 - 175

WW

Motivation, Motivation where for art thou

Since my marathon a couple of weeks back (see post) I have been suffering a crises on the motivation front and have only managed to get a hand full of training sessions under my belt and none of them what I would call big session.

How can motivation levels swing from being full on to being in the trough of despair in such a short period of time? What triggers such major mood sings? … Where is my mojo? … if you have it pleas return as soon as possible.

I look back and can see some of the causes:

• Being tiered after a marathon is a normal affect
• Bad weather closing the gym can be helped
• Transport disruptions causing me to be on the road for hours
• Time digging snow
• And so on …

But these are nothing but excuses …. Where is my motivation

WW

Newcastle Town Moor Marathon

It's been quite some time since I ran a marathon by itself, probably over 2 years so I spotted this one, the Newcastle Town Moor Marathon, a while back and since it's almost on my doorstep I thought I'd give it a go. 

I haven't really done any marathon training as it's my 'off season' so my longer runs have only been between 10-13miles and only a couple of runs per week, but i am feeling quite fit at the moment so i hoped that would carry me round the 26.2 miles.

Also I didn't bother tapering either as i was going into the race as just a run out and still did my PT session on Thursday and tempo run on Friday ... but i did have a rest day on Saturday with nothing more than a walk on the beach with the dog.

The race was 5 laps of the town moor and ii RAINED ... in fact it rained so much that the paths were quickly turning into streams and the off road sections turned into mud bogs .. i quickly wished i had wore a pair of trail shoes rather than my normal runners

Things got off to a good start and I felt good in myself ... well apart from the DOMS from all the squats on Thursday but I quickly loosed up and into my stride running at about 9mm and maintaining that pace well into the race and to the half marathon.

On the third lap during a half mile off road section i slipped and pulled by right hamstring but i managed to run this off in the next couple of miles but it did slow me down. 

On the last lap, my lack of marathon training showed and I slowed dramatically and had to introduce a 1min walk in each mile.

But I eventually finished in a not to shabby (for me) time of 4:26 getting me thinking that i may have to try and train properly for a marathon some time.

So I went home happy ... and wet and  took Monday as a rest day

WW

Endurance Swim Set

Tonight was another structured swim set with the focus being on endurance. When I talk about endurance swimming the total metres quite high but most of the set is done at an aerobic level.

Today's workout totalled 5600m,

• The warm up and cool downs were alternate kick drills and swims
• The 100m intervals were don easy
• The 400m intervals were down at IM intensity
• All other intervals were steady

The set: =

WARM UP

• 10 x 40m

MAIN SET
2 x (

• 2 x 200m
• 1 x 100m
• 2 x 300m
• 1 x 100m
• 3 x 400m
• 1 x 100m

)
WARM DOWN

• 5 x 40m

WW

W/E 12/11/2010

Another, for me, solid week and quite well balanced. At the moment I am still in my off season / prep period which will continue to the new year when i will star 'official' base training and my campaign towards Regensburg 2010.  After all if i was to try and focus on that race this far out i may burn out ... well that's my thinking

The Numbers:

SAT	AM	02:05	BIKE: MTB ride with my brother
SUN	__	__	REST DAY
MON	__	__	REST DAY (due to a 6hr drive before work)
TUE	AM	00:35	STRENGTH: Weights session basen on PT workouts
TUE	PM	01:45	SWIM: 4.2k structure
WED	AM	00:41	BIKE: Zone 1 spinning session
WED	PM	01:12	RUN: 8mile fartleck session
THU	AM	01:00	STRENGTH: PT session (Pt 1)
THU	AM	00:22	SWIM: Easy 800 to warm down, focusing on smooth (Pt 2)
FRI	AM	00:34	RUN: 3.2 miler in high winds
FRI	PM	01:05	RUN: 7mile trail run

SWIM :	02:07
BIKE :	02:46
RUN :	02:51
OTHER :	01:35
TOTAL :	09:19

Lunch Time Spinning

A number of people ask me how I don’t get bored with sessions on the turbo or spinning bike and my answer is probably the fact that I break it down into short chunks and focus on the current time chunk rather than the whole 2-4 hours that I may be aiming for.

This also goes for when time is limited such as during my lunch break I have a limited time so I have to make the most of the time I have.  I am quite lucky in that the gym is quite close to where I work, so I always have access to a spinning bike, not as good as a turbo but still capable of providing a good indoor training session.

Today’s session took the form of: -

• 5 mins spinning to warm up at the break bighting point
• 10mins of upping the resistance by quarter turn each min
• 10mins steady spinning at the end resistance from last set
• 10min of 1min stand 1min seated at the resistance from last set
• 5 mins of accelerations 20sec fast | 40sec easy
• 5 mins warm down

A short stretch, a quick shower and change then back to work feeling highly invigorated and looking forward to my evening run

WW

 

W/E 05/11/2010 (Recovery Week)

This week, for me, was a recovery week which meant no long hard bike session, no big brick sessions and no long runs. A long run was tempting though as I have a marathon later this month and have not really done any long running, but recovery weeks are there for a reason so I was a good boy and did what I was meant to do.

One plus side of it being a recovery week was the fact that I managed to fit proper swim into my week, which I really enjoyed and I have to ask myself, can I keep sacrificing my swimming and focusing on my weaker disciplines, this is something I am going to have to continue to ponder as base training continues, as i do not want my weekly volume to grow too much too soon ... well not till the new year at least

The Numbers ...

SAT	AM	02:01	BIKE: MTB ride with my brother
SUN	__	__	REST DAY
MON	PM	01:03	BIKE: Recovery session with a few intervals
TUE	PM	00:31	BIKE: Fast spin session to loosen up (Pt 1)
TUE	PM	01:35	SWIM: 3.6k structure (see post) aimed at endurance form (Pt 2)
WED	PM	01:25	RUN: 10miles of hard intervals
THU	AM	01:00	STRENGTH: Session with PT focusing on my back problems and core
FRI	PM	00:50	RUN: Trail Run

SWIM :	01:35
BIKE :	03:35
RUN :	02:15
OTHER :	01:00
TOTAL :	08:25

A Swim at Last

Yes after weeks of not getting in a proper swim, I thought it was time I got in the pool again and as this week is a recovery week a swim instead of a hard brick session was a good option. I did a 30min spin to loosen up first, and then hit the pool.

 

The am was to focus on endurance form, including a few timed 400s for #winterswim and the set looked like: -

 

WARM UP

• 1 x 400m warm up (8:05)

BUILD

• 10 x 40m build (strange sized pool)

MAIN SET

• 1 x 400m hard (7:34)
• 2 x 200m hard
• 1 x 400m hard (7:35)
• 4 x 100m flat out
• Rest

DRILLS

• 2 x 200m fist drills
• 2 x 200m catch up
• 1 x 200m kick
• 1 x 200m easy

 

I felt quite good after the session apart from one of my shoulders started to ache so I cut things short and ended up with 3.6k instead of 4k but considering I have not had a real swim for some time.

 

WW

W/E 29/10/2010

Another solid week close to the 10hr mark, but yet again very little swimming, 10hrs is my aim for early base training for at least 3 weeks out of 4, with the 4th week been an easier recovery week (if needed)

What I need to get out of this period is consistency as all to often at this time of year have a let my training drift which means early new year is spent getting back into it rather than capitalising on what I already have in place … the year hopefully will be different

The numbers: -

SAT	__	__	REST DAY
SUN	AM	00:30	BIKE: Spinning session (Pt1)
SUN	AM	00:30	STRENGTH: Kettlebells (Pt2)
SUN	AM	00:30	RUN: Trails (Pt3)
MON	PM	02:00	BIKE: Hard effort aiming at raising Vo2max (Brick Pt1)
MON	PM	00:40	RUN: Half mara paced run including 8x45sec sprints (Brick Pt2)
TUE	AM	00:45	STRENGTH: weights session based on PT routine
TUE	PM	02:15	BIKE: Focused on drills and spinning - lower HR, below LT
WED	__	__	REST DAY - I was feeling very run down (see previos post)
THU	PM	01:00	STRENGTH: PT session, focusing on helping me sort out my back and core problems - big limiters for me
THU	PM	00:10	SWIM: Just a short swim after PT, including settion my #winterswim base time
FRI	AM	00:51	RUN: Trail Run
FRI	PM	00:32	STRENGTH: Kettlebells

SWIM :	00:10
BIKE :	04:45
RUN :	02:01
OTHER :	02:47
TOTAL :	09:43

WW

The Colours of Autumn

This morning was one of those days that I am pleased that I partake in past times that take me outdoors, that I'm not the type of bloke that spends all of his time in a pub or in front of the little box in the corner that just eats away time, Yep it was a great morning to be outdoors.

I hit the local woodland trails, and ...

• Yes it was a bit windy ...
• Yes there was a bit of a nip in the air ...
• and Yes there was a bit rain ...

BUT

The colours of the woodland more than made up for any negatives, the trails were covered with fallen leaves of red to gold and the canopy above me reflected those autumnal tones, i know this all sound a bit hippy and tree huggy but this morning was one of those mornings that mad me glad to be out for a run ... rather than still wrapped up in bed.

WW

So Very Tiered ...ZZZZZZzzzzz!

Yesterday  (Wednesday) was supposed to be short swim and long run day, but over the last few nights I have been struggling to sleep, both getting to sleep and waking often during the night.  This all culminated in me getting up and feeling paper thin washed out and tired.

I ended up missing my lunch time swim due to an over running meeting but as the day wore on I felt worst and worst and felt I could have nodded off at my desk.

So then came the decision I hate to make … to ditch a key session, I felt I could have probably trained but not as planned, so I had my evening meal and went to bed ... no TV ... no reading … just bed.

I was in bed by 8:30 but still, even though I was sop tired, struggled to get to sleep … I still woke several times during the night … and is I write this it is the crack of dawn.   But I feel a bit better which is quite important as I have a 6hr drive after work today as I am heading home.

But the question is what can I do about it???

• I am looking to drop the amount of caffeine I have been consuming, which has crept up to silly levels.
• I may try reading instead of TV after training to help me come down fro a training high
• I could try listening to some relaxing music as I bed down for the evening
• But what else??

I do know I need to get this sorted as I can’t go dropping key session like this when I am looking for major improvements.

WW … a non happy … sleepy … triathlete

Winter Brick Sessions

By the time I finished work last night it was already getting dark, and my breath stood heavy on the quickly chilling evening air … and I wanted to get in a brick session, I thought it may be a bit dangerous out on the bike in rush hour traffic in the dark so the plan was to hit the gym and the spin bike for the firs segment then outside for the run. After all the weather/conditions in the UK really fall to where you cant get outside and run and treadmills are the invention of the devil.

So since it was going to be the spin bike I decided to push a heavy load and work my HR aiming to sit just below my Vo2 max (85-90% of) with recoveries dropping to 75% (just above the point where my lactic levels start to rise). The work out looked like :-

10min warm up
10 x (
- 2min heavy standing
- 1min heavy seated
- 1min spinning seated (rec)
- 1min heavy seated
)
8 x (
- 40secs heavy standing
- 80secs heavy seated
- 40secs heavy standing
- 80secs heavy seated
- 1min spinning seated (rec)
)
5 x (
- 1min heavy standing
- 1min heavy seated
- 1min spinning seated (rec)
)
5mins spinning

So 2 hours in total on the bike, by now I was drenched in sweat so I had a quick towel down pulled on my jacket and out the door I was.  The sky was clear and star filled (even amongst the light pollution) and I quickly started to feel the sweat in my hair start to freeze so I decided that I should go for a decent pace to keep mw warm, aiming for 80-85% MHR.

The first part of the run was flat allowing me to maintain my HR then as I approached the end of my loop it was time for hill reps … or hill sprints to be exact:

8 x 45sec hill sprints | walk back recoveries

The aim on these sprints is to really push myself and maintain a long stride length throughout, I time for first sprint and at my end point, so I always run the same distance for each sprint but by the last sprint it may be taking me longer than 45secs … but you get the point.

My session was finished off with a jog back to the gym, strides and stretching ….

Total run time 40mins

Not a bad midweek session … well for me

WW

W/E 22/10/2010

Another sold base week for me this week with 9:30 training time, and even a little swimming, on the negative side I am suffering a thigh / hip flexor strain that has affected my strength / power training and give me slight problems during my long hard run.  I still had a good run though completing the 14.5mile route in 2:07, when you compare it to the 2:21 I was covering the same route in the summer as build up to IMDE, I was well pleased.

Also this week I managed to get my gym set up at home so I can get in an extra session when I cant get out, its just basic but includes: -

• Cross trainer
• Rowing Machine
• Spinning Bike
• Bench
• Dumbbells
• Kettlebells
• Etc …

On the negative side I didn’t complete week 3 of my 100 push up challenge, so I am going to have to repeat the week rather then move on …. must try harder!!

So the figures: -



SAT	__	__	Rest Day
SUN	AM	00:50	RUN: Easy drills session
SUN	PM	00:11	100 Pushups Week 2 Session 3
MON	AM	00:10	100 Pushups Week 3 Session 1
MON	PM	01:30	BIKE: LT Zone interval session (Brick Pt1)
MON	PM	00:35	RUN: Including 6x45sec Hill Sprints (Brick Pt2)
TUE	AM	00:48	Strength: Session from PT
TUE	PM	01:33	BIKE: Steady session stand / sit mix
WED	AM	00:32	SWIM: Including a 1k TT (18:59)
WED	PM	02:07	RUN: Long tempo run (14.5 mile)
THU	AM	01:03	StrengthSession with PT, Hard kettlebell session
THU	PM	00:11	100 Pushups Week 3 Session 2
FRI	__	__	Rest Day

SWIM	00:32
BIKE	03:03
RUN	03:32
OTHER	02:23
TOTAL	09:30

WW

Power V Strength

I t was pointed out by a friend that on an earlier post I was getting myself mixed up with STRENGTH and POWER and referring to my lack of strength in cycling, where what I was really discussing was my lack of power in cycling.  So this has lead me to do a bit research on the subject, I am not saying that my finding are complete (or totally correct) but they are what I have discovered so far: -

Firstly a couple of definitions: -

STRENGTH : is the maximum force that an individual can apply to a resistance, quite often expressed as an individuals maximum lift for a single rep, I.E. an individual may be able to bench press 110kg for 1 rep then this world be the representation of his strength.  In reality though if 111kg was attempted the individual would not be able to lift the weight but the force would be slightly high, as maximum strength has zero velocity, but most people use the maximum lift for 1 rep method.

POWER: this adds speed/velocity into the equation as power is the rate at which work is performed and can be represented as the equation:  power = force x velocity or power = (force x distance)/time.

For some triathletes (runners or other athletes) , pure strength training well only have limited benefit and in the early stages of training as there is evidence that increments in absolute strength does translate to increments in power BUT as strength training progresses this effect becomes less and less.

Training to improve power on the other hand can improve a triathletes performance, if we examine the formula above it suggest this can be done in 1 or more of 3 ways : -

• Increasing Force
• Increasing Distance
• Decreasing Time

FORCE: here I mean increasing force while keeping velocity and time constant this would in a cycling specific session involve intervals in a high gear, recruiting and building strength endurance capabilities while not sacrifice speed or the time of the overall ride.

DISTANCE: in running terms this world be doing increasingly longer session keeping intensity (force) and the duration of run constant, it is suggested that flexibility and efficiency improvements can contribute to improving distance, as is shown by the countess studies on stride length and running style

TIME:  Decreasing the time it takes to cover a distance at a set force is another way of improving power, improving skill levels have shown to have helped decrease time, if you look at swimming a large proportion of gains are maid through becoming a better swimmer, through drills etc

NON-SPORTS-SPECIFIC

When I talk about non sports specific training to increase power I am referring to time in the gym, this is a highly contentious subject amongst most triathletes  where some swear by it, others yes but only in the off season and other no way kept to sports specific. A recent poll I ran on the beginnertrieatlete website produce the following opinions: -

 

Yes,I weight train all year round	48%
Yes, but only in the off season	21%
Nope, only sports specific	9%
Would like to but have not	17%
Yes and no	5%

But for those that do believe in gym work to compliment the sports consider training to increase power rather than strength, don’t worry about that one rep maximum an instead look to increase the weights you use in more explosive exercises such as cleans, jump squats, kettle bell work etc.  This will help build and recruit the appropriate muscle fibres for power in you sport and help you burn calories, thus helping out in another formula which is the power to weight ratio.

POWER TO WEIGHT RATIO

If increasing you power is your aim then you need to consider you power to weight ratio (power(in watts)/ weight (in KG))  if an increase in power is matched (or superseded) by an increase in body weight then the gains may not be translated into improved performance, alternately a drop in weight while maintaining current power could again see an improvement in athletic performance, this is due to the power to weight ratio.

Ideally those undertaking specific power training should also consider their ability to reduce the amount of body fat they carry thus improving both sides of the power to weight ratio equation and helping further capitalise on any power gains…

There we having it … my ramblings for the day … I am not saying any of this is gospel … but it is my current understanding

Feel free to correct me, add your comments, or argue your own point …

WW

One Hundred Push Ups

You may have noticed in my training updates that I quite often refer to the 100 push up challenge, and a number of people have asked me what its about so here is a brief explanation: -

The 100 push up challenge is all about getting to a point where you can do 100 non-stop good form push ups from whatever your staring point (try googling 100 pushups). It is a six week program and comprises of a number of workouts each week based on test results. With test carried out at the start and at set periods during the program.

Although it is meant to be a 6 week program, you also have the option to repeat a week if you feel you have not reached the required level to move on.

I am now just starting week 3 and the reason I am doing this is northing more than it’s a good challenge to do in the off season … I am currently crap at pushups …

Go on … have a go!

W/E 15/10/2010

A solid weeks training, for me this week with 11 hours of training, this week saw me pick up a thigh injury that meant some changing of plans then come down with a cold .. so no swimming at all this week, I am not overly worried about my lack of swimming at the moment but need to keep an eye on things.

SAT	__	__	Rest Day
SUN	AM	01:40	RUN: Easy multi terrain run
MON	AM	00:10	100 push up challenge 2:1
MON	PM	01:30	BIKE: Structured session (Brick Pt1)
MON	PM	00:22	RUN: including 6x45sec hill sprints (Brick Pt2)
TUE	AM	00:55	STRENGTH: Session from PT
TUE	PM	02:21	BIKE: Lower end LT session
WED	PM	01:35	RUN: Hard Intervals
THU	AM	01:00	STRENGTH: PT Session
FRI	AM	01:07	BIKE: MTB (Brick Pt1)
FRI	AM	00:10	RUN: (Brick Pt2)
FRI	PM	00:10	100 push up challenge 2:2

SWIM	00:00
BIKE	04:58
RUN	03:47
STRENGTH	02:15
TOTAL	11:00

GEAR REVIEW: Petzl MYO XP

The winter, as the nights draw in, normally pushes evening onto the roads and more well lit routes that are normally suffer from being boring, choked with fumes from traffic or clogged with pedestrians, Well this year I wanted it to be different .. I wanted to embrace winter wild running, to be able to continue to enjoy runs along the river banks and through woods and parks, so to this end I decided to look at head touches as a means of lighting my way.

After quite a bit research, I new what I wanted, something light that took regular batteries, had a good burn time and most importantly was bright. There were a couple in the running a model from Lennser and another from Petzl … and, by default, since I could not find anyone with the Lenser in stock I ended up by the Petzl.

The model I purchased was the Petzl MYO XP and off I went for an evening run on the heath.

I originally had reservations about the battery pack on the rear of the strap, but once I had but the Petzl on I found it adjusted easily and was comfortable to wear; I used it on maximum power for about the last hour of a hard interval run, during which the light stayed in place and did not irritate.

The light was bright enough for me to see comfortable, meaning I was able to push myself during the session without fear of tripping over an unseen obstruction and its adjustability meant it shone exactly where needed.

I will definitely be using the Petzl MYO XP to allow me to continue running off road this winter and as a supplemental light while out on my bike … you can never be too safe out there

RATING 9/10

Features

• Shines up to 97metres (boost mode)
• 86 lumens (maximum level)
• 150 lumens (boost mode)
• 3 lighting levels (maximum, optimum, economic)
• Wide angle lens allows to quickly switch from flood beam proximity lighting to focused long distance lighting in a single movement
• Boost mode increases power if needed while optimizing energy consumption and weight (175g with batteries)
• 180 hour light duration at economic level (80h on maximum)
• Battery charge indicator light warns when batteries are 70% and then 90% discharged
• Head Band includes top strap.
• 3 year warranty

Specification

• Dark grey, black headband with grey graphics
• Water resistant for all weather use
• Polycarbonate wide angle lens
• Operates on 3 AA/LR6 batteries (included)

Intervals on the Heath

I had planned to do cycling hill reps tonight but I have a slight niggle still in my upper thigh so thought I better not put it under the stress of hill work.

So instead I thought I'd run, intervals to be specific on the local heath its flat and off road (on grass) so easier on the injury. I totalled just over 10.5 mile in the 1:35, which looked like : -

• Warm up
• 10 x 2mins @ 87%+mhr | 2min active recovery
• 10min steady
• 10 x 1min @ 90%+mhr | 90secs active recovery
• Warm Down

AHR = 76% MHR
MHR = 95% MHR

It was a good session and I got to try out my new head torch, which I will be providing a review of later.

Cycling Physiological Assessment (Part 2)

Interpreting the results …

Having all that data is one thing but understanding what it means and how to make use of it is another, the output from the assessment was a personalised 13 page report, which took a few days to prepare, that combined my results with my sporting aims (endurance as opposed to sprint) but briefly here are some points that came form the report …

Firstly my training zones: -

ZONE	HR	GUIDELINES
1	to 112bpm	Used for recovery purposes. Early winter training, or as a training zone if you build up extensive miles (6 hours/day)
2	114bpm -147bpm	Foundation of endurance training. Develops lactate removal capabilities and extensive overload on the mechanisms of aerobic respiration. The level where training induces performance improvements.
3	148bpm -162bpm	This is intensive training. This will bring your form forward to a peak. It is probably easier to do this type of training in an interval format, as it is simply difficult to maintain this intensity for long periods without the ‘racing’ motivation. The level three training sessions will be quite short.
4	162bpm +	Intensive intervals to top your form off. Monitoring of heart rate is usually not needed. Can be developed to enhance sprinting and time trialling.

Next my weight, as can be seen I an quite a bit heavier than the elite or age grouper (although taller) so I could do with dropping some weight, this will not improve my cycling but will help improve my power to weight ratio (currently 3.06W/kg) my aim is to drop about 6kg which by itself will help me realise a .25W/kg improvement and help with my climbing (which has always a problem)

Improving maximum power and oxygen consumption (and helping push up my VO2max) will be a case of training mid to longer training sessions in Zone 2 with mid (upper mid) zone having the most benefit and save most of the Zone 3+ work until after base training. To ensure control over this factor the use of turbo / spinning bike will be adopted in the off season

My strength is not very good (283w max power) so that is another area I need to work on during the off season and this needs to be both cycling specific and generic.  The cycling specific work will be taking the form of hill reps and be complicated with some off season gym work focusing on strength endurance this will help me push up my wattage and therefore improve my cycling weight to strength ratio.

So that is what my plan is based on at the moment and I will be going back to get retested in the new year to see what effect my training is having and this will co-inside with me commencing a specific Ironman training program.

Cycling Physiological Assessment (Part 1)

I have always said that the bike is my weakest discipline and no mater what I have tried I have always struggled to make improvements, well lately I have decided to have a scientific look at my weakness and have it quantified and develop a training plan based on this.

To this end I took part in a Cycling Physiological Assessment at Canterbury Christ Church Universities sports science department. This involved cycling on a bike that measured my power output, while my heart rate, oxygen consumption were recoded along with taking regular blood samples to measure my blood lactic saturations.

The aim of the assessment was primarily to: -

1. Highlight specific strengths and weaknesses of your fitness profile in relation to your sport,
2. Provide a scientific basis for any training guidance we may offer, and
3. Enable regular monitoring of any changes in the components assessed

The tests last between 60 and 90mins and take the form of riding up a couple of hills that just keep getting steeper and steeper

So the following table is the output from the tests and show how poor I actually am on the bike: -

NAME	XXXXXXXX	Hogarth	XXXXXXXX
CATEGORY	Local Age Grouper	Triathlete	Elite Triathlete
AGE	38 years	44 years	25 years
HEIGHT	1.79 m	1.86 m	1.78 m
MASS	75.9 kg	92.4 kg	70.2 kg
BODY FAT %	-	-	10.40%
FAT MASS	-	-	7.3 kg
LEAN MASS	-	-	62.9 kg
HAEMATOCRIT	-	-	-
HAEMOGLOBIN	-	-	-
MAXIMUM HEART RATE	170 beats.min-1	174 beats.min-1	188 beats.min-1
MAXIMUM MINUTE POWER	338 W	283 W	385 W
POWER:WEIGHT RATIO	4.45 W.kg-1	3.06 W.kg-1	5.47 W.kg-1
POWER:WEIGHT (0.32)	84.6 W.kg -(0.32)	66.5 W.kg -(0.32)	98.8 W.kg -(0.32)
POWER:WEIGHT (0.67)	18.6 W.kg- (0.67)	13.6 W.kg- (0.67)	22.3 W.kg- (0.67)
MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION (Absolute)	3.95 L.min-1	3.89 L.min-1	5.21 L.min-1
MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION (Relative)	52.0 mL.kg-1.min-1	42.1 mL.kg-1.min-1	74.3 mL.kg-1.min-1
GROSS EFFICIENCY (POWER)	21.2 % (250 watts)	19.5 % (200 watts)	20.9 % (310 watts)
LACTATE THRESHOLD (LT) POWER (Absolute)	175 W	125 W	230 W
LACTATE THRESHOLD (LT) POWER (kg)	2.31 W.kg-1	1.35 W.kg-1	3.28 W.kg-1
LACTATE THRESHOLD (LT) VAO2 (Absolute)	2.50 L.min-1	1.98 L.min-1	3.36 L.min-1
LACTATE THRESHOLD (LT) VAO2 (kg)	32.9 mL.kg-1.min-1	21.4 mL.kg-1.min-1	47.9 mL.kg-1.min-1
THRESHOLD HEART RATE (LT)	120 beats.min-1	112 beats.min-1	-
LACTATE THRESHOLD (OBLA) POWER (Absolute)	236 W	202 W	323 W
LACTATE THRESHOLD (OBLA) POWER (kg)	3.11 W.kg-1	2.19 W.kg-1	4.60 W.kg-1
LACTATE THRESHOLD (OBLA) VAO2 (Absolute)	3.19 L.min-1	2.99 L.min-1	4.37 L.min-1
LACTATE THRESHOLD (OBLA) VAO2 (kg)	42.0 mL.kg-1.min-1	32.3 mL.kg-1.min-1	62.3 mL.kg-1.min-1
THRESHOLD HEART RATE (OBLA)	140 beats.min-1	147 beats.min-1	-
ISOCAPNIC BUFFERING PHASE (W)	65 W	65 W	93 W
ISOCAPNIC BUFFERING PHASE (VAO2 kg)	8.9 mL.kg-1.min-1	8.1 mL.kg-1.min-1	14.3 mL.kg-1.min-1
HYPOCAPNIC HYPERVENTILATION (W)	60 W	54 W	62 W
HPOCAPNIC HYPERVENTILATION (VAO2 kg)	7.1 mL.kg-1.min-1	7.2 mL.kg-1.min-1	12.0 mL.kg-1.min-1
RELATIVE BUFFERING (W)	23.30%	28.40%	28.80%
PREDICTED 40km PERFORMANCE TIME (HH:MM:SS)	01:02:27	01:05:03	54:49:00

W/E 08/10/2001

A good solid week of 10hrs  but very little swimming

SAT	AM	00:25	RUN: Easy 2miles
SUN	PM	00:10	100 push up challenge 1:1
MON	PM	01:45	BIKE: 35miles at 90% OBLA
MON	PM	00:38	RUN: 4.5miles tempo (in 5c45sec hill sprints)
TUE	AM	00:35	SWIM: 1600m as 4x400m
TUE	PM	00:10	100 push up challenge 1:2
TUE	PM	01:45	BIKE: 33miles intervals
WED	PM	01:30	BIKE: 22miles hill reps
THU	PM	01:12	Strength: PT Session
FRI	AM	01:01	RUN: 6.8mile Trails
FRI	AM	00:11	100 push up challenge 1:3
FRI	PM	00:37	RUN:3.1Mile Trails and paths

Back Again ... Again ... Again

Hi all

I am going to have another go at Blogging my progress towards an Ironman, this year Ironman Regensburg. The reason last years blogging came to an end was fact i have gone self employed and my life has been chaos.

Last year turned out o be a complete shambles as far as my training progressed, working away from home and not being able to get my head focused resulted in the worst IM time so far IM Germany 2010 = 14:51

Training was all over the place with a lot of weeks only being 3 sessions and only 2 long rides all together

This year I will again try and get my backside into gear and go for another Ironman with a target of under 13hrs ... Ironman Regensburg here I come ...

Life, Flu and the lack of training

Just a quick update as I haven’t done much training over the last 3 weeks ... spending a couple of the weeks running round the country trying to win a new contract so I can pay my bills ... followed by a week of man flu .. so All i’ve done is a total of 4 runs of about 7 mile average   ... hopefully i’ll get back into things next week

W/E : 31/01/2009 (Week 4)

The end of another week and the end of my first month back in training, and its been both a good week and a good month as I look back, with last week going to plan, it was aimed to be a bit of a recovery week and that’s how it panned out with just short of 9hrs training.

The month ended up with just short of 41hrs training, which for me is a good month and I’ve lost 13lbs since the new year.

Last weeks stats look like this: -

MON	__	__	REST DAY
TUE	AM	01:12:00	BIKE: 21Mile - Spinning (RPM39)
TUE	PM	00:20:00	RUN: 2Mile - Easy run to the pool
TUE	PM	01:12:00	SWIM: 2800m - 7 x 400 : RI 60secs
TUE	PM	00:15:00	RUN: 2Mile - Tempo run back from pool
WED	AM	01:08:00	RUN: 8Mile - Farlek sesson with Dog
WED	PM	01:07:00	SWIM: 2500m - Sructured set
THU	AM	01:20:00	BIKE: 27Mile - Brick session
THU	AM	00:40:00	RUN: 4Mile - Brick session
FRI	AM	01:00:00	BIKE: 15.5Mile - Spinning (RPM36)
FRI	PM	00:40:00	RUN: 4Mile - hilly run
SAT	__	__	REST DAY
SUN	__	__	REST DAY

SWIM:	02:19
BIKE:	03:32
RUN:	03:03
TOTAL	08:54

Swims, Bricks and Aerobic Threshold

Last nights structured swim was a good work out with a focus on improving speed endurance as I would like to get my Ironman swim down to under 1:10. The set looked like: - 250m warm Up 500m Drills ( 2 x (50m Catch up, 100m 1-arm, 100m finger drag)) 1000m hard (4 x 250m : RI 15sec) 500m Flat out (10 x 50m :RI 10 secs) 250m warm down focusing on swimming long and smooth And the above set left my shoulders and upper back feeling suitably drained.

Today I decided to do a brick session, that is a bike ride immediately followed by a run, and the focus of this brick session was on my base aerobic fitness and my run to bike transition, I am quite a good runner off the bike but there is always room for improvement. The session was made up of a 27mile ride followed by a 4mile run and what became immediately evident was the difference in my Aerobic Threshold on my bike to my Aerobic Threshold on the run, with the bike being way .. way under that of my run (about 20+bpm). This could be what is at the route of why I am crap on a bike ... so over the next few weeks In need to improve this .

Les Mills RPM

I have discussed spinnervals on here before, they are DVDs to do your turbo training to, well a few weeks back some gave me a few workout DVDs, a couple were Les Mills RPM ‘s.

Les Mills RPM is a spinning work out to be done on a spinning bike; well I have my own spinning bike so i’ve been giving these a try out. Today I did RMP 39 which is a 1hr spinning class to a range of music (much better music than spinnervals) and this DVD fairly gets the hear racing, leaving puddles of sweat on the floor.

For me the DVD is not quiet long enough so I normally repeat a number of the working tracks but that isn’t a problem a quick flick of the remote and I continue uninterrupted, all-in-all a great alternative when looking for options for indoor cycling.

W/E : 24/01/2009 (Week 3)

This week saw a big week for me, probably to big considering its only week 3 and after having so long out of training, but i may as well capitalize on having the time due to being in between contracts - almost 14hrs, this is what it looked like: -

MON	AM	03:05:00	BIKE: Spinnervals 13 - Tough Love
TUE	AM	00:20:00	RUN: Run to pool
TUE	AM	00:45:00	SWIM: 5 x 400m
TUE	AM	00:20:00	RUN: Ran back from pool
TUE	PM	00:42:00	RUN: Hilly run with Mrs
WED	AM	00:48:00	BIKE: Spinervals 8: Recovery and Technique
WED	PM	01:20:00	SWIM: Structured session
THU	AM	01:15:00	RUN: Run with dog
THU	PM	00:55:00	BIKE: Spinning (RPM 26)
FRI	AM	02:17:00	BIKE: MTB'ing
FRI	PM	00:43:00	RUN: Hilly run with Mrs and Lynne
SAT	__	__	REST DAY
SUN	AM	01:22:00	RUN: Long easy paced run with Mrs

SWIM:	02:05
BIKE:	07:05
RUN:	04:42
TOTAL	13:52

So looking back at how my progression looks, i think this graph best illustrates quite a steep ramp up, On reflection I may have a slightly easier week this week coming, as i don't want to end up ill through over training, which is always a worry when you get carried away: