#1. Triathlete's Training Bible - Joe Friel

#2. Going Long - Gordo Byrn & Joe Friel

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<If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough>
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Thanks, I did buy the training bible and just completed the Annual Training Section.

I thought the workouts that he listed in the back of the book were not in depth enough. especially, when i compared his workouts to gail's. what do you think?

Is that gordo the same gordo with the web site?...his site is great...

I'm looking for some really good training plans...

Really good training plans come from really good coaches and really good coaches don't give away really good training plans for nothing.

Best bet: Pay for a coach

2nd bet: Tony Benson's Run With The Best 2nd Edition is a running book, but I have found it is the best endurance sports book around if you want to design your own program. (Think it is available from track and field news or through him www.benson.com.au). Simply apply the principles to the other sports as they are endurance principles. Benson actually coaches way more triathletes then runners using the principles outlined in the book.

Lydiard successfully applied his principles to a range of endurance sports.

The various triathlon specific books around are great for specifc tips.

I give The Triathlete's Training my highest recommendation.

Also, getting a coach if you can is a great idea...It can take a lot of time and energy to layout your plan and workouts, and you may or may not get it right. Look at:

http://www.martygaal.com/

In the southern california area who would be a really good coach that would develop a training plan?

Thanks for the advice I'll check out those options.

A friend of mine used Gale's book and liked it....sounded like it was fairly specific.

I like Serious Training for Serious Athletes (I think thats the exact name) - its a general training book for endurance athletes and gives very specific guidelines re: percentage of LSD, intervals, hills...you should be doing in each phase of your training. It doesn't give you exact work-outs (do 20 min w/u - 6x1 mile on 8 min....). I think its an excellent book with broad guidelines that are easy to follow. High on my list for reading.

I also think making your own training plan is part of the fun!

keep in mind that you need to measure you're progress in years, not in weeks. the best gains come from year round consistent training. I did my first tri 2 years ago. in training it would be max effort to maintain 17-18 mph. Now I can easily maintain 20mph in zone 2.

I don't mean to discourage getting a coach, but you want to have some realistic expectations too. Gordo says in Going Long that it takes 10 years of at least one hour every day for an athlete to reach their physiological potential. I'm assuming that means if you start early enough. at some point time has to work against you.

I'm not familliar with Gail's workouts so unfortunately I can't comment on the difference. I also tend to train in accordance with principles rather than following a workout plan, so again I wouldn't really have noticed any "lacking" in detail wrt to specific training plans. What others have said re: coaches not offering their best material for free does ring true, so if detailed plans are what you like then perhaps a personal coach is what would best suit your needs.

It is the same Gordo however. :D

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<If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough>
Get Fitter!
Proud member of the Smartasscrew, MONSTER CLUB
Get your FIX today?

I was about to recommend the same thing, that is, Tony Benson's Run With the Best and perhaps Arthur Lydiard's Running With Lydiard for basic training principles, plus a set of tri-specific books like Friel's Triathlete's Training Bible and Gordo Byrn/Friel's Going Long.

I would love to see how Benson applies his and Lydiard's approach to multisport. I think this will be my challenge to myself in planning for my next Ironman and race season.

In general, for a relatively new triathlete with a low to moderate base, I don't think one can do much better than to read and practice Gordo's Aerobic Threshold Summary and Four Pillars series, as most athletes will be best served by steadily increasing volume at maximum sustained effort ("steady" in Gordo terms) and staying away from deep intensity. Only the top athletes with deep aerobic bases can really gain much from high lactate threshold efforts, and even then they're always walking a fine line.

For some reason I can't get the HTML links to work. See

http://www.byrn.org/gtips.htm

for the articles referred to above, under "Endurance Essentials"

Yes, you guys, I really like the idea of learning the principles behind training, I agree that making up the training is part of the fun, at least for me.

I'm gonna buy those books, and try to figure out the theory behind training. I'm a bit intimidated by the 1/2 ironman so that's why I was looking for some advice on programs.

I have to say that the forum on here is very inspiring. I'm not sure I would have attempted a triathlon if it weren't for this site and the trinewbies site. It makes tri's far less intimidating and the advice is more every day, something a newbie can relate to. I don't know anyone who does tri's nor rides a road bike or swims. My point is that you all had a very big influence on my deciding to undertake the adventue as well as enjoying it.

Thanks

Have you tried the web site that implements the concepts in Training Bible? Try www.trainingbible.com. I've used it for 3 1/2 IM races. I've read everything I can to understand the concepts, but it is nice to get the planning and detail work taken care of for me when I don't have time. Also, it is a pretty good training log all on its own.

I use TrainingBible.com, too. I like the fact that it sets up the plan framework for me, and then allows me to modify it to fit my training preferences. I did that with Gale's Half Ironman for Beginners. I'm doing my first Half in October. I felt like I was a little beyond the true "beginner" plan she offers, but maybe not quite ready for the intermediate plan. TrainingBible.com automatically incorporated Gale's beginner plan into my training plan, and I've been able to adapt it as I see fit using Friel's book.

Next year, I'm training for IM Moo using a combination of Training Bible (the book), Going Long and the website. I can't wait!!!

IMO, you can set up a great plan using these three tools. Plus, if you have a coach, TrainingBible.com offers a coaching feature as well. I think it's CoachingBible.com.

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Steve Perkins

FYI...

I was thinking of buying Gale Bernhardt's "Training Plans for Multisport Athletes". I noticed that several reviewers on Amazon complained of missing data/typos in some of the plans. Ms. Bernhardt herself posted that the changes would be made in the second printing, and she would mail them to whomever asked. I called Velo Prress, the second printing is due out in about a month.