How long are you tired post IM

Triathlon Forum
8

Any FTP work just exhausts me. I could go on an easy ride no problem but forget putting in a sustained hard effort.

After my “A” ironman race, if I totally emptied the tank, I need 2-3 weeks completely off, followed by a period of around 4-6 of purely zone 2 base training.

I did IMTX as well, and im still in the zone 2 area. I feel amazing now and ready to start introducing some intervals – but if I did any FTP work before now, I’d be shot too.

Many people can recover faster than this, or even go straight into another half iron or something.

Not me though, I’ve learned that I’m just too old for that :slight_smile: (40)

You’re hearing what your body is telling you, so take it easy, you’ll feel it when you’re ready for more.

9

About a year after the 108º day at IMCDA! Did not have the will to do anything active except get my paddleboard out and piddle around the waters. I couldn’t even muster up the will to train for any of the duathlon nationals races that take place a mile from my house last year.

Got back to it this year though, and it has been fun seeing myself improve to my old self again. I’m motivated again, maybe more than before (of course the 20+ lbs I gained was a HUGE factor in that!). Heck, I may even look for another IM to do next year…

10

I probably need to just do low key stuff for a few more weeks. Enjoy the summer and hopefully it will come back. Thanks for all the great feedback. The human body is amazing and mysterious.

11

How quickly did you start doing training of any kind after the race?

The typical rule of thumb, developed by Mark Allen I believe based on blood tests looking at inflammation markers, is six weeks. That resonates fairly well with my experience.

If I’ve had a smooth build and taper, it’s less. If I’ve had a rough build and taper, it’s more. Early season races - like Texas - take longer than late season races because most people typically have less training load under their belt early season.

But the biggest determinant, in my experience, is how quickly you try to ramp back up.

In 2013, for Ironman Melbourne, I got quite sick before the race. I ended up racing sick. Plus, of course, the massive travel involved in getting to/from Australia. I took a week off and then started trying to get ready for 70.3 St. George. It was way too soon. I needed two weeks at least totally off. Maybe even a month. I didn’t take it. And I never actually recovered. For the entire year.

I took five weeks at the end of the year totally off except for some swimming. And I finally recovered. Certainly I had some decent races that year. But nothing like what I was capable of.

Without question, the biggest regret of my career was not stepping away for a month (or two or three) when I should have.

After Melbourne, it was May, and I was already thinking about preparing for Kona. As a result, I DNFed in Kona. If I had simply done no training of any kind in April - taken the five weeks I took at the end of the year at the beginning - I bet I would have had a fine season. Maybe even a great one.

Even “easy” training is hard on the body.

If you are two months out, and still feeling it, take a break. A real break. I don’t mean, “oh, just swim and run a bit.” I mean actually stop training.

Put another way, I’ve never regretted taking time off after I took it. But I’ve always regretted not doing so…

12

it s very normal to feel some deep fatigue after a ironman. And for many, the race itself isnt the taxing part… it s the preparation that really take a tool on the body.

That s why it s very important to change the stimulus on the body after a ironman and have some different phase of training so the body can accomplish some work all year long…but that work is a little different depending on the time of the year.

For most of the athletes i coach, i rarely ever seen more than 2 weeks of ‘‘off season/unstructure’’ training. And even in that phase, i ask them to remain active. As long as you plan the season right…there should not be any burnout or overtraining…

so take it easy a little longer and do something different until your body say go…

13

If you’re in TX the heat lately has been brutal. I did a marathon 4/30 and then a 70.3 on 5/21 with little downtime between. I took a down week and then started a 4 week build in June. It took a good two weeks before I started to get any bike power at all and runs are still brutal. I’m just writing it off to a combination of fatigue and summer.

Fall can’t get here soon enough.

14

If you’re in TX the heat lately has been brutal. I did a marathon 4/30 and then a 70.3 on 5/21 with little downtime between. I took a down week and then started a 4 week build in June. It took a good two weeks before I started to get any bike power at all and runs are still brutal. I’m just writing it off to a combination of fatigue and summer.

Fall can’t get here soon enough.

I’m in the same boat here in Central Florida. I’m curious whether you reduce your run volume in the summer, and particularly with long runs?

15

After a solid training for Roth 2016 I had a local Half IM 4 weeks later.
So I just did an easy week after Roth,just some cycling and swimming, but very easy and then went into the last 3 weeks of my normal HIM plan but didn’t run for more than 70mins at a time.
I did PB that race with beating my time by 10 mins (first time under 5 hrs) and it didn’t felt terrible hard doin it. (Why wife yelled at me if I’m on a lazy Sunday ride after the first lap). Don’t know if there is a difference in the times people put down though.

After that race I was done completely, swim times got slower,…,you name it.
Without a set goal for this year I never got into Normal again.

16

If you’re in TX the heat lately has been brutal. I did a marathon 4/30 and then a 70.3 on 5/21 with little downtime between. I took a down week and then started a 4 week build in June. It took a good two weeks before I started to get any bike power at all and runs are still brutal. I’m just writing it off to a combination of fatigue and summer.

Fall can’t get here soon enough.

I’m in the same boat here in Central Florida. I’m curious whether you reduce your run volume in the summer, and particularly with long runs?

I probably won’t back off volume as I’m really trying to keep my volume up this year. My question is whether to back off pace or increase HR. Something’s gotta give in the heat.

17

I have a bad habit of not backing off pace and then I blow up in the heat…especially on longer runs (aka 10+). More ‘waddling’ is in order this summer! :slight_smile:

18

i ran one of my fastest 5ks ever as a 40 year old just 7 days after my last IM in 2014. On the flip side, two years before that, i felt horrible didn’t recover for weeks after IMLP and discovered I had Lyme disease… if you have any night sweats or anything weird, get it checked out…

19

Great advice and thanks. I was trying to do occasional workouts to maintain the fitness gained from IM training. However, having been doing some form of endurance training for 25 years now I should know better. I was hoping it was different doing biking and swimming with no running but the body needs to recover, even if it’s not from they physical pounding. Thanks for the feedback and stories. Very helpful.

20

For most of the athletes i coach, i rarely ever seen more than 2 weeks of ‘‘off season/unstructure’’ training. And even in that phase, i ask them to remain active. As long as you plan the season right…there should not be any burnout or overtraining…

I’ve definitely hewed to this. Often to my detriment. The part that I underlined and bolded is a big “IF.” Yes, in years when I did it all right, that was enough. But it was the years where I did not plan right that I definitely needed more.

When it’s easy, it’s easy. That’s what makes it all so confusing. But I can definitely think back to quite a few occasions where I’ve thought, “I shouldn’t need more than one/two weeks.” But I did.

I think the reality is that it’s important to simply recognize that sometimes you do need to step away and take a real break.

While I would never have wished for my accident, I think the massive forced time off - it was close to three months where I wasn’t really doing any meaningful training or even exercise with any regularity - was a huge benefit. It think without that big break, I don’t have those two incredible seasons in 2011 & 2012. But I was only able to take that break because I was forced into it by my wreck.

Of course, had I had a bit more mental discipline, I could have shut it down any time during any one of the years that I should have but didn’t. But it takes real courage to do that.

21

For some perspective, I’m 31 and in really good shape these days. I’ve never raced a full IM but have a handful of 70.3s under my belt now. I’ve found that after each 70.3, it typically takes 2-3 solid weeks before I feel 100% again. Listen to the body, rest, and enjoy life for a bit.

22

Well, for me it was Aug 2009, so that’s what… coming up on 8 years now? Got kids? It’ll get worse before it gets better.

23

Took me several months to really recover. In addition to doing a number on my body during the race, all these little nagging injuries that I was holding at bay in the lead up to the race came out of the woodwork when I started training again. It was a long haul.

24

How quickly did you start doing training of any kind after the race?

The typical rule of thumb, developed by Mark Allen I believe based on blood tests looking at inflammation markers, is six weeks. That resonates fairly well with my experience.

If I’ve had a smooth build and taper, it’s less. If I’ve had a rough build and taper, it’s more. Early season races - like Texas - take longer than late season races because most people typically have less training load under their belt early season.

But the biggest determinant, in my experience, is how quickly you try to ramp back up.

In 2013, for Ironman Melbourne, I got quite sick before the race. I ended up racing sick. Plus, of course, the massive travel involved in getting to/from Australia. I took a week off and then started trying to get ready for 70.3 St. George. It was way too soon. I needed two weeks at least totally off. Maybe even a month. I didn’t take it. And I never actually recovered. For the entire year.

I took five weeks at the end of the year totally off except for some swimming. And I finally recovered. Certainly I had some decent races that year. But nothing like what I was capable of.

Without question, the biggest regret of my career was not stepping away for a month (or two or three) when I should have.

After Melbourne, it was May, and I was already thinking about preparing for Kona. As a result, I DNFed in Kona. If I had simply done no training of any kind in April - taken the five weeks I took at the end of the year at the beginning - I bet I would have had a fine season. Maybe even a great one.

Even “easy” training is hard on the body.

If you are two months out, and still feeling it, take a break. A real break. I don’t mean, “oh, just swim and run a bit.” I mean actually stop training.

Put another way, I’ve never regretted taking time off after I took it. But I’ve always regretted not doing so…

How close would you be able to race a full distance race successfully after a first one? Am I doing some damage by doing so many? What are your thoughts on someone like Matt Russell being able to squeeze in so many long distance races?

25

not normal. better get that checked out. not to scare you but i was experiencing similar fatigue about 1-1/2 ago and 3 months later was diagnosed with cancer.

26

I did IMTX the last two years. This year I’m struggling to get energy back for workouts and to hold power. I’m also tired and lethargic most of the time. It’s now been almost two months and I’m still struggling. Is that normal? How long should I expect this? I likely overtrained heading into the race by not taking enough rest. This could be my body still angry at me. Just looking for some feedback on this.

I ran the 1500 in track in college and after I graduated it took my body a couple months to recover but that was a big come down after years of training. Could be similar.

Like Jordan, my experience is that it can vary based on the build and time of year. Usually the more fit I am going in the better I handle it. Regardless, there is recovered and then pseudo-recovered. I don’t try to fool myself when I get back to training after Ironman, I am simply not 100% recovered and might not be for the rest of the year until I have another break and huge build.

It always amazes me when I talk to first timers and they talk to me about DOMS and not what I really mean by recovery in terms of deep-down overall fatigue. The reality is that Ironman is super hard on the body. Take more time than you think, better to take more than less. Let the desire come back and that is usually a good sign that you are recovering. Also, wouldn’t hurt to talk to your doc and see about various biomarkers. I wrote up a bit in January from my Q1 blood test and the process I can go thru. I have my Q2 blood test all signed up I just need to go in and get it done. Never hurts to get a little extra insight even if for peace of mind.

27

I did IMTX the last two years. This year I’m struggling to get energy back for workouts and to hold power. I’m also tired and lethargic most of the time. It’s now been almost two months and I’m still struggling. Is that normal? How long should I expect this? I likely overtrained heading into the race by not taking enough rest. This could be my body still angry at me. Just looking for some feedback on this.

I ran the 1500 in track in college and after I graduated it took my body a couple months to recover but that was a big come down after years of training. Could be similar.

Like Jordan, my experience is that it can vary based on the build and time of year. Usually the more fit I am going in the better I handle it. Regardless, there is recovered and then pseudo-recovered. I don’t try to fool myself when I get back to training after Ironman, I am simply not 100% recovered and might not be for the rest of the year until I have another break and huge build.

It always amazes me when I talk to first timers and they talk to me about DOMS and not what I really mean by recovery in terms of deep-down overall fatigue. The reality is that Ironman is super hard on the body. Take more time than you think, better to take more than less. Let the desire come back and that is usually a good sign that you are recovering. Also, wouldn’t hurt to talk to your doc and see about various biomarkers. I wrote up a bit in January from my Q1 blood test and the process I can go thru. I have my Q2 blood test all signed up I just need to go in and get it done. Never hurts to get a little extra insight even if for peace of mind.

I am struggling with how to handle recovery right now. I am not a week post IMLP. I did 3 short & light recovery spins last week. I felt I paced it pretty well (Z2 the whole way) and didnt have any bad cramping/GI issues/etc. I am itching to get back to training but I know I should at least wait another week. I am not sure (short of a blood test) how else I should gauge returning to training. Lots of conflicting advice on the internet.