I do relatively well with swimming…I am old but hang near the front of most races I do and would say I am above average when I swim with others outside of racing. Furthermore, I can take a long break and tend to bounce back pretty quick with swim results.
I can push just as hard (or harder) running…but it seems to take forever for me to gain running fitness, and even then…I would say I am mediocre at best.
I have searched online to try to better understand the physiology behind this, to no avail. I could accept that I may be better at one vs the other…but I am not even close.
I am reading on running mechanics, and will try to incorporate what i have read to see if improvement happens. The few times I felt like I was slightly better than average running, was after a solid 15 months of very consistent training…and when I stop, I lose it fast!!
I will add that I am up about 10 lbs from my best running performance weight and know that is affecting me, but I cannot imagine that is the entire answer.
Anyone else struggle with this? Is there a physiological explanation? Appreciate any insight or direction to literature on this!
I do relatively well with swimming…I am old but hang near the front of most races I do and would say I am above average when I swim with others outside of racing. Furthermore, I can take a long break and tend to bounce back pretty quick with swim results.
I can push just as hard (or harder) running…but it seems to take forever for me to gain running fitness, and even then…I would say I am mediocre at best.
I have searched online to try to better understand the physiology behind this, to no avail. I could accept that I may be better at one vs the other…but I am not even close.
I am reading on running mechanics, and will try to incorporate what i have read to see if improvement happens. The few times I felt like I was slightly better than average running, was after a solid 15 months of very consistent training…and when I stop, I lose it fast!!
I will add that I am up about 10 lbs from my best running performance weight and know that is affecting me, but I cannot imagine that is the entire answer.
Anyone else struggle with this? Is there a physiological explanation? Appreciate any insight or direction to literature on this!
The older one gets, the slower it comes back and the faster it goes away.
Of all the sports, running is probably the one the if you do not use it, you lose it.
Swimming is technique so one can get away with a lot less training.
Put your height and weight as well as years of consistent swim training and run training
My hunch is you’re a bigger than average (say 6’2"+ 175+lbs) and you were a swimmer for many years more than running.
Also put some running race PRs.
Consistent??..there is the issue. I started “running” in 2011, because I wanted to run 5 miles without stopping…thats what started this Triathlon madness. PR’s…pretty bad, 1:40 half marathon…did a couple of marathons but didn’t break 4 hours. 5k around 21 minutes. I am 6’1 & 174 lbs right now. I got down to 157 for my first Ironman…actually had my best running performance (which isn’t saying much) around 163. Have not run very consistently this year…a few 30-35 mile weeks.
Swimming…I swam as a kid…but not competitively. Some swim lessons, so my Mom would be sure I wouldn’t drown in the backyard pool…that’s about it. My lack of running this year was equalled with a lack of swimming…but as I stated in the original post…the swimming bounces back quickly.
Hmm so no formal swim background. What are your swim times?
Most folks will tell you to improve running you will need to increase your volume substantially but you likely already knew that.
Yeah…consistency and volume will help, I just don’t get why one sport comes back quicker than the other…that is really what I am trying to understand…the physiology behind it. I know there is no magic cure, and that it takes work. I was not athletic growing up fwiw.
Swim times are around 35 minutes for HIM swim, which puts me somewhere between 15th - 30th in my AG (I am 47). Nothing spectacular, but better than average. I can get back to this pace in one month after a layoff.
To be in the top 30 running (sub 1:50 off the bike)…it takes a year of consistent effort for me…and 1:45 - 1:50 is nothing to write home about, however it seems a loooong way off from where I am today!
Anyone else struggle with this? Is there a physiological explanation?
I think almost everyone struggles with this. Look at the results, and it is common to see people with one sport where they excel, or one sport where they are really poor. The exception are the people who seem balanced; except when they are relatively mediocre at all events. (In which case it is easier to balance things out.)
Certainly a huge issue is background. People who pick up a sport later in life generally will not do as well in those sports as sports which they participated in, particularly at a high level, when younger.
There are also physiologic factors: some people have naturally low Cda, some people have better running efficiency, etc. I’d recommend not worrying about it.
For reference, in my last HIM, my splits were: swim 35m, bike 2:13 (actually 2:17, but I was directed off course for 2 miles), run 1:32 (? maybe 1:33). My swim is relatively poor. But I biked and ran, a lot, as a teenager. I started swimming at 30. I’ve always had a very weak upper body. Swimming more makes me faster, but I’ve done enough 8-9 hours weeks to know I will never be much faster than 35m for a HIM. It is just the way it is…
Perhaps it’s your basis for comparison. Triathletes are, on the average, not very speedy in the water. Compared to the field, they are better runners. It’s possible that you have average performances in both. But, since the field is weaker in the swim, you appear better in that discipline.
Sub 1:50 off the bike is nothing to sneeze at. I’d say it is an exaggeration to say you are a horrible runner.
Hmm so no formal swim background. What are your swim times?
Most folks will tell you to improve running you will need to increase your volume substantially but you likely already knew that.
Yeah…consistency and volume will help, I just don’t get why one sport comes back quicker than the other…that is really what I am trying to understand…the physiology behind it. I know there is no magic cure, and that it takes work. I was not athletic growing up fwiw.
Swim times are around 35 minutes for HIM swim, which puts me somewhere between 15th - 30th in my AG (I am 47). Nothing spectacular, but better than average. I can get back to this pace in one month after a layoff.
To be in the top 30 running (sub 1:50 off the bike)…it takes a year of consistent effort for me…and 1:45 - 1:50 is nothing to write home about, however it seems a loooong way off from where I am today!
Consistent??..there is the issue. I started “running” in 2011, because I wanted to run 5 miles without stopping…thats what started this Triathlon madness. PR’s…pretty bad, 1:40 half marathon…did a couple of marathons but didn’t break 4 hours. 5k around 21 minutes. I am 6’1 & 174 lbs right now. I got down to 157 for my first Ironman…actually had my best running performance (which isn’t saying much) around 163. Have not run very consistently this year…a few 30-35 mile weeks.
I have the opposite problem that you do. Decent runner, horrible swimmer.
The secret to running is consistency. Get up to 100-120km with 2 workouts and one long run a week.
We are the same height but I’m 130lbs and I think makes a considerable difference with being able to float/swim faster vs run faster, don’t really worry about the weight, I imagine once you up your run volume your weight will drop.
I will add that I am up about 10 lbs from my best running performance weight and know that is affecting me, but I cannot imagine that is the entire answer.
With what you’ve noted in your PR’s/history/etc… you don’t have enough volume in the legs. If you had the volume, you’d be able to run a 3:50 marathon. But since you’ve not broken 4… you don’t have the muscular endurance or your form breaks down after 30-35k probably… both related to running more.
I would suggest running more and more consistent. That doesn’t mean to go crazy… you’ll get hurt. But I would target a race 1 year in advance and try to make a dedicated 1 year running build if you’re serious about it. It takes time to do it right. Sure you’ll get faster before 1 year, but the habit will be well established after the 1 year mark.
Perhaps it’s your basis for comparison. Triathletes are, on the average, not very speedy in the water. Compared to the field, they are better runners. It’s possible that you have average performances in both. But, since the field is weaker in the swim, you appear better in that discipline.
Agree 100%, IME the best way to evaluate your relative speediness is to compare your splits to best splits of the race, e.g. if the fastest swimmer went 23:30 and you went 35:15, then you were 50% slower. On the run, if the fastest runner went say 1:12 and you went 1:48, then again you’re 50% slower, and if fastest biker went 2:00 and you went 3:00, then again 50%. Since it is rare that the same person has the fastest splits in all three sports, if you were indeed 50% slower in all 3, then prob overall you’d be 40-45% slower.
I think Triathletes are just better runners than they are swimmers, it was daunting for me entering the sport as someone who couldn’t run 5k in 25min.
Go down to your local parkrun or fun run and in general the times seem way slower apart from the freaks at the front.
I will add that I am up about 10 lbs from my best running performance weight and know that is affecting me, but I cannot imagine that is the entire answer.
Perhaps it’s your basis for comparison. Triathletes are, on the average, not very speedy in the water. Compared to the field, they are better runners. It’s possible that you have average performances in both. But, since the field is weaker in the swim, you appear better in that discipline.
Agree 100%, IME the best way to evaluate your relative speediness is to compare your splits to best splits of the race, e.g. if the fastest swimmer went 23:30 and you went 35:15, then you were 50% slower. On the run, if the fastest runner went say 1:12 and you went 1:48, then again you’re 50% slower, and if fastest biker went 2:00 and you went 3:00, then again 50%. Since it is rare that the same person has the fastest splits in all three sports, if you were indeed 50% slower in all 3, then prob overall you’d be 40-45% slower.
Thanks…great idea! I will review some of my past results this way for sure.
What I am really trying to understand though, is how can one sport “come back” so fast (regardless of relative ranking) and the other take an eternity…perhaps it’s normal. After a layoff, the swim comes back fast, the bike comes second…and the run shows up around a year later! Just seems odd, which is why I was digging around trying to understand why that would be.