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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [trimac2] [ In reply to ]
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trimac2 wrote:
What was your longest training ride on the indoor trainer? How did you break up the workout?

I did three six hour trainer rides in this block. They were steady at ~230W. Not the most exciting sessions, that's for sure!! The key is to never look at the time until past the 4 hour mark. I mostly just listened to music and sometimes watched videos.

I'd be lying to say I enjoyed these longer rides. I like that I can be a strong 70.3 cyclist rarely riding longer than 3 hours. These long rides and bricks took all my mental energy for the day and left me deeply fatigued in a way I didn't like at all.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [JasoninHalifax] [ In reply to ]
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JasoninHalifax wrote:
Congratulations on a great race.

Just one question. Can you dunk?

Lol, not even close! Let's just say that I ended up in triathlon and not team sports for a reason. I wasn't quite the last kid picked at recess, but pretty close. I was one of two boys in my primary school class that didn't play hockey, lacrosse and other team sports.

Thanks Jason!

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Cody, congrats on your win! and thank you for doing this...
my question is what is your strategy when it comes to getting ready to go from the bike to the run? how do you save your legs and gets your hips primed for the run? once you're on the run, are you easing into the run and picking up the pace as you stretch back out or are you mashing the gas pedal as soon as your done with T2?
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals]

Hells yea.
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [AquaBikePatti65] [ In reply to ]
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AquaBikePatti65 wrote:
During the live stream on Facebook, Greg Welch made reference to your overpronation and how with the proper shoes you could improve your run form. Have you ever been told that you overpronate before? Is it something you would try to alter if you found that to be true?

Haha, every one who sees me run tells me all about my overpronation.

I've not been convinced that this is worth trying to alter through orthotics or delibarate technique changes. First, I have essentially zero injury history. I can literally count on one hand the number of runs I've missed due to injury (just a bout of Morton's neuroma due to tight shoes in 2010 and a mild calf strain this year). My durability seems to be one of my greatest assets as an athlete and the overpronation obviously isn't causing any injuries. Second, I'm running pretty well as is! I've posted a top run split several times over the past couple years. That's not to say there isn't room for improvement, but I'm more inclined to think that if it ain't broke...

My view is that most runners naturally gravitate towards form that is biomechanically efficient for their unique physiology given the careful and gradual application of mileage and intensity. Barring injury or certain glaringly obvious technical flaws, I don't think there's much reason to mess with run form. I think most gait analysis leading to form change prescriptions is a pseudoscience. I don't do any drills or specific run technique work unless you count some hill sprints and barefoot strides.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Could you recommend something to watch, hopefully on Netflix? Also, which decade, in your opinion, do you feel put out the best music?






Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [EnderWiggan] [ In reply to ]
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EnderWiggan wrote:
No question here. Just wanted to say my first triathlon had you and Lionel going head to head in Welland, and you won on that occasion as well. Much love and can’t wait to see you in Kona next year! Yep I said it, the lure of Kona will pull you early ;)

I've actually never raced Lionel in Welland. That was my half distance debut back in 2013. I did take the win and set a course record, but didn't have to face Lionel! In any case, thank you! We'll see about your prediction. Dave Scott just tweeted at me to go next year and start the Kona apprenticeship as soon as possible.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Congratulations! You said you sometimes do 30 minutes of high cadence work at the end of a long bike. What cadence? 85-90?
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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I'm not sure if I'm more impressed with your win or three rides of 6hrs on the trainer! Congrats....big fan!
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Rest] [ In reply to ]
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Rest wrote:
Cody congrats on your win,

1)what was your cycling volume on your block leading up to the race? Has it negatively affected your swim training if it was high volume?
2) and are you still seeing improvements from a year to year basis from like threshold intervals/VO2max intervals during training, if so in what terms? ability to maintain the same power longer, or higher power or both?
3) were you doing more VO2 efforts, threshold efforts, or race pace efforts on the bike leading up to this race?

Thanks!

1) I averaged about 12 hours per week of cycling in the meat of the block (weeks 2-7) with a less at the start and during the taper. That's about as high as I ever get with cycling volume which is still low compared to some other pros. I spend very little time in Zone 1 and all my rides averaged at least 200W, so I make those hours count!

My swim training was negatively impacted by the higher bike volume. I did 5-6 swim per week in this block while I was swimming 6-7 times per week earlier this season. My swimming really suffers when I'm under high training load. I can easily lose 5 seconds per hundred. I'll be the slowest swimmer in the training group on some occasions. Swimming is the first thing to suffer as load ramps up for me. My coach and I think of it as "the canary in the coal mine". It's a good indicator or fatigue and when I'm pushing too far. It's taken me years to have confidence that my swim form will return as I taper, sometimes not feeling good again until race morning!

2) My peak threshold and VO2 numbers each season have plateaued or maybe even gone slightly backwards over the past few years. However, my longer duration power has improved a little and my running and swimming have come a long way. I can hold 250-320W for longer than ever before now. I don't race more strongly on the bike than I did towards the start of my pro career 4-5 years ago, when I was already setting some 70.3 bike course records. Instead, I've used my higher fitness to race more tactically in some cases, come off the bike fresher and run faster.

3) Over the winter, I focused on very high end work (sprints, VO2) with aerobic mileage in a typical polarized approach. Most of my fitness is built in the VO2 and endurance zones every year. I spend very little time doing race-specific intensity (tempo-threshold for 70.3 and high end endurance/tempo for Ironman). I typically just do a handful of sessions with tempo and threshold work leading into 70.3 races. I revisit blocks of sprints and VO2 work throughout the season. This Ironman block was a little different. I did relatively little intensity. Almost all my riding was 220-230W with one session featuring some 70.3-like work (300-360W) and another featuring Ironman-like work (270-290W).

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Congrats! Way to rock that course!
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [arby] [ In reply to ]
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arby wrote:
Great performance! I watched on Ironman Now for the entire swim, most of the bike and the last portion of the run. I have been around the sport for decades and tend to migrate toward the unusual bikes (Softride, Zipp etc.) so tell us about your Ventum. What size is it and what do you like and dislike about it.


I ride a 54 cm Ventum One. Here's a forum post I wrote about what I like about the Ventum and areas for improvement:

https://forum.slowtwitch.com/...16_P6602875#p6606469

I've been overwhelmingly pleased with the bike over the past three seasons I've been riding it. The power-speed relationship I see alone is enough to make me love the bike. Add the seamless integration of 1.4 L of fluid and it's been a dream machine.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [KENNBR] [ In reply to ]
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KENNBR wrote:
Cody, congrats on your win! and thank you for doing this...
my question is what is your strategy when it comes to getting ready to go from the bike to the run? how do you save your legs and gets your hips primed for the run? once you're on the run, are you easing into the run and picking up the pace as you stretch back out or are you mashing the gas pedal as soon as your done with T2?

I didn't do anything special towards the end of the ride. In fact, I rode the last brief section into transition fairly hard as I realized the bike course record may be just within reach!

I felt pretty rough coming off the bike and that was the mental low point of the entire race for me. Thankfully, I was able to relax and refocus after a couple km and started to feel good.

I think that I set up a good T2 in training. I don't usually do brick workouts, but I included several long 3.5-5 hour bricks in this block. A couple of those runs featured 10+ km of work well above Ironman pace right after some work at 280W on the bike. The video below (from my watch sponsor, Suunto) shows one of these workouts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24f2MqWxg5Q

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Tri-Banter] [ In reply to ]
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Tri-Banter wrote:
Could you recommend something to watch, hopefully on Netflix? Also, which decade, in your opinion, do you feel put out the best music?

Sorry, I don't really watch many shows or movies! I did binge watch Breaking Bad during a training camp a few years and enjoyed that!

I think the best music across all genres is being put out right now. We see a survivorship bias with any music from past decades that is still being played. My musical tastes range pretty far and wide. I studied classical piano and used to play keyboard in a ska-jazz sextet, so I can be pretentious with my listening. Or I can just as easily slum it with the last pop remix shit. For training, I most often find myself listening to genre-bending music that draws on a lot of influences. Lately, a lot of my favourite tracks seems to fall under the electro-funk/nu-disco label.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [mdtrihard] [ In reply to ]
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mdtrihard wrote:
Congratulations! You said you sometimes do 30 minutes of high cadence work at the end of a long bike. What cadence? 85-90?

Higher! 100-115 rpm. It should feel uncomfortable! In fact, heart rate can approach what it would be for threshold work.

CodyBeals.com | Instagram | TikTok
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Nice job there Cody, had you not been there and "ON", we would have had no context on Lionel's race. He would have won and all the pundits would be thinking he just backed off and went hard enough to win the race. Your performance put everyones race into perspective, and of course you now know it is a new good distance for you to compete at.

You seem to have executed your plan very well, my only question is that you seem to be all over the bike, moving around a lot when you ride. I understand how in running an unorthodox style may suit a particular person and not be a hinderance, but in cycling where you are bolted in it seems like all the best riders are quite motionless up top when they are riding hard. Is this something you plan to work on? What length cranks are you riding? Perhaps a relationship to these two things in your fit??

And Dave Scott is right, you need to get to Kona ASAP. For virtually every pro that has ever raced there is a learning curve in that race, so you may as well get to the early learning portion of doing well at that race. I know it is hard sometimes, but just leave expectations at home and go experience the big show. As you know, it took some of the greats 5 or 6 tries before figuring it out, so the sooner you make the mistakes and can correct them, the sooner you can start to expect good results..
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Cody Beals wrote:
My view is that most runners naturally gravitate towards form that is biomechanically efficient for their unique physiology given the careful and gradual application of mileage and intensity. Barring injury or certain glaringly obvious technical flaws, I don't think there's much reason to mess with run form. I think most gait analysis leading to form change prescriptions is a pseudoscience. I don't do any drills or specific run technique work unless you count some hill sprints and barefoot strides.

congratulations on a great race !

and, wanted to quote that, an excellent summary of all that can usefully be said about 'run form'..
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [monty] [ In reply to ]
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monty wrote:
Nice job there Cody, had you not been there and "ON", we would have had no context on Lionel's race. He would have won and all the pundits would be thinking he just backed off and went hard enough to win the race. Your performance put everyones race into perspective, and of course you now know it is a new good distance for you to compete at.

Thanks Monty!

monty wrote:
You seem to have executed your plan very well, my only question is that you seem to be all over the bike, moving around a lot when you ride. I understand how in running an unorthodox style may suit a particular person and not be a hinderance, but in cycling where you are bolted in it seems like all the best riders are quite motionless up top when they are riding hard. Is this something you plan to work on? What length cranks are you riding? Perhaps a relationship to these two things in your fit??

Guilty. I'm all over the place on the road. I think this is due to doing the large majority of my cycling indoors. The trainer is a great tool, but it doesn't teach you to hold a line and it doesn't develop stabilizing and core muscles like riding outdoors. The safety argument alone is enough to make me commit to the trainer, but I know I have room for improvement. I'm not really sure how to go about addressing this. I feel that my fit is already pretty dialed and certainly highly aero optimized. My fit is mostly guided by aero testing with the STAC Virtual Wind Tunnel and a couple physical wind tunnel sessions. It's less based on comfort. My pads are quite narrow which does come at the expense of some stability and can result in rocking from side to side.

I'm riding 170 mm cranks. Moving from 172.5 provided a significant increase in comfort by opening up my hip angle. It may be worth experimenting with even shorter cranks.

I would however argue that all the best cyclists are motionless. Many of the pro cyclists I've seen are squirming around during time trials.

monty wrote:
And Dave Scott is right, you need to get to Kona ASAP. For virtually every pro that has ever raced there is a learning curve in that race, so you may as well get to the early learning portion of doing well at that race. I know it is hard sometimes, but just leave expectations at home and go experience the big show. As you know, it took some of the greats 5 or 6 tries before figuring it out, so the sooner you make the mistakes and can correct them, the sooner you can start to expect good results..

Noted. I haven't discussed Kona much with my team yet and I was shooting from the hip with those comments. I have some pretty strong perfectionist tendencies which can make me too conservative when it comes to tackling new challenges. I also have to question whether a prolonged focus on Kona is worth it. Unlike some pros, I'm not driven by the dream of a Kona podium. I don't hold the race in sacred regard. I've struggled to get excited and motivated about racing for a top ten at championship races. Quite frankly, it's been more fun, rewarding and far more lucrative to chase wins at smaller races. I know that admission won't earn me any new fans, but hey, I promised transparency!

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Not sure why I thought Lionel was there. Regardless, you’ve been a huge inspiration to my wife and I, and we’ve followed your career for awhile now. So great to see you having success at the long distance. We were pulling for you right after the swim, such a gutsy performance. Well done and hope to be watching you on the big screen next year in Kona :)

Cody Beals wrote:
EnderWiggan wrote:
No question here. Just wanted to say my first triathlon had you and Lionel going head to head in Welland, and you won on that occasion as well. Much love and can’t wait to see you in Kona next year! Yep I said it, the lure of Kona will pull you early ;)

I've actually never raced Lionel in Welland. That was my half distance debut back in 2013. I did take the win and set a course record, but didn't have to face Lionel! In any case, thank you! We'll see about your prediction. Dave Scott just tweeted at me to go next year and start the Kona apprenticeship as soon as possible.
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Quite frankly, it's been more fun, rewarding and far more lucrative to chase wins at smaller races. I know that admission won't earn me any new fans, but hey, I promised transparency! //

Hey, you won't get any argument from me about skipping Kona, or just making it one more race in a long. successful season. In fact, I believe very few pros should be doing that race, it really does nothing for you unless you are a top 5 contender, and sacrificing some good money opportunities to focus on this one event is just bad business. I learned it the hard way, as well as Jordan and most pros who just couldn't, or didn't do well there. Very early on it was just one more trip for me, I would usually race the week before and the week after, so that is how serious I took it..


But you are in a unique position, you actually might be good at it. Being great at other ironman, especially your first one, well it would be silly not to give it a try. As well as being a black hole for most pros, it is also a career maker for a select few. Besides the money and endorsements one gets for a podium there, the prospect of you winning just garners a lot of fame and fortune. But of course you have to break in that select field so that you can be part of the conversation each year leading up to the race..


But if not, go and have a great career outside of Kona, a lot of the really greats did and financially set themselves up quite well..

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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Cody Beals wrote:
Guilty. I'm all over the place on the road. I think this is due to doing the large majority of my cycling indoors. The trainer is a great tool, but it doesn't teach you to hold a line and it doesn't develop stabilizing and core muscles like riding outdoors. The safety argument alone is enough to make me commit to the trainer, but I know I have room for improvement. I'm not really sure how to go about addressing this.

Rollers?
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [monty] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks Monty, I know you get it.

The opportunity cost of Kona is just so high! If it were just another 70.3, I'd think nothing of giving it a go since I can race ten of those a year. But burning one of my precious few Ironman matches for the year can't be taken so lightly... Especially if you have the view that athletes only have a finite number of truly all-out Ironman performances in their body and mind.

From a financial perspective, I made more money from winning IMMT than I would for anything below 5th at Kona. Anything beyond 10th would make the trip a money loser. The system is deficient in that regard. If WTC, sponsors and fans want to see all the best pros in Kona, then it needs to be more worth our while. I'd love to see a smaller pro field in Kona (30ish) with all expenses covered and/or prize money paying down to the last finisher. Having just bought a house, I don't quite have the financial security to take a gamble as big as Kona quite yet.

I'll give it a go eventually. I'm warming to the idea of viewing it more as a learning experience than a high pressure, expectation-laden outing. I just have a few more stepping stones along the way.

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Runorama] [ In reply to ]
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Runorama wrote:
Cody Beals wrote:

Guilty. I'm all over the place on the road. I think this is due to doing the large majority of my cycling indoors. The trainer is a great tool, but it doesn't teach you to hold a line and it doesn't develop stabilizing and core muscles like riding outdoors. The safety argument alone is enough to make me commit to the trainer, but I know I have room for improvement. I'm not really sure how to go about addressing this.


Rollers?

That's a good idea. Coach David has been on me about getting rollers all year. I could see introducing them for easy rides. I'm just lazy and like to switch off on the trainer... :P

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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [Cody Beals] [ In reply to ]
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First, congrats! I hope you feel quite accomplished and hungry for more!

What were three of your high points and three of your low points throughout the race? How did you overcome the lows?
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Re: Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT! [EnderWiggan] [ In reply to ]
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Not sure why I thought Lionel was there.
---

I can't remember back to 2013. I'm pretty sure Lionel and Cody were there in 2014. Cody didn't 'race' him because Cody had a mechanical and didn't finish the race. That probably means that I'm 1-0 on racing Cody!

Here's the ramp up thread where soon-to-be-retired John Salt changed the name and hyped up the race.

https://forum.slowtwitch.com/...ers%20beals#p5148230










Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/
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