As many people have already indicated there are two crucial items required to fit in enough training.
You must love (or at least tolerate) early mornings. Nobody in my household complains about the workout time I spend between 5:00 and 7:00am while they’re still asleep. In the good weather (it is -8 C and snowing here today) I’m up at dawn for a 4-5 hour ride followed by 1 hour run on Saturday and a 1-2 hour run followed by 2 - 2.5 hour run on Sunday then spread the others around during the week.
Your significant other must be a saint. My wife knows that I’m gonzo on Saturday and Sunday mornings and she is fine with that since it gives her quality time with our children and I’m back before noon.
It’s gotta be tough to be a tri-geek if you have small children and/or your wife isn’t into tris herself. Again, it becomes a matter of balancing training with everything else, which must be difficult. In that respect I’m glad that I got into tri later in life with my daughter college age and my son in high school and that my (2nd) wife is into triathlon.
Kudos to you folks who get up early and train while the rest of the world is sleeping. I could never have done that. Definately not a morning person.
In reading this thread I think its impressive how many interesting people there are on this forum. That’s why I enjoy it so much.
Actually Tom, judging by your website, you’re one of the most interesting folks hanging out here. Next time in your area(haven’t been down that way for awhile) I’ll have to swing by your shop to say hello and introduce myself
I work from 8:30am to 6:30pm as a managing director at an ad agency in NYC - 50+ hours per week (not to mention the constant emailing and phone chatting I do once I’m out of the office).
My commute from Westchester County to downtown NYC takes an hour door to door.
Somehow, I still manage to train 14/16 hours per week.
Mondays are off. Tuesday through Friday I wake-up at 5:30am so I can get in my morning workout. In the evening, I workout from 7:30pm to 9:00pm. I try to get in at least two hours of training.
Weekends I workout 3/4 hours each day. I try to take a one hour nap and one hour massage as well.
Ofcourse the weather is far from inviting in NY at this time of year, least of all in the early morning or late evenings, and getting to the pool requires a 30 minute round-trip drive.
The vast majority of triathletes I know have much more relaxed schedules. They are teachers, store owners, live-at-home moms or have 9-5 jobs with a 15 minute commute. Unfortunately in the last year, about 25% of triathletes I know have also joined the fastest growing job sector - unemployment. They now live the life of a pro athlete!!
There seems to be this idea that being a pro means you can sleep in as late as you want, and still be able to train whenever/as long as you want. This is not the case. Most pro triathletes also have other jobs, and when they finish their morning workout, which likely also started at 5:30, but instea lasted for three hous, they have to go to their kobs that last for 6-8 hous, then to their afternoon workout of another 2-3 hous. The weekends are just a packed, and if you work retail, you have to work on the weekends as well as find time for the really long workouts. Throw in some school schedules, taking at least a half load and often a full load of classes, working 30-40 hous a week, and training over 30-40 hous a week, and stop complaining. Pros work just as hard, if not harder than the average ag’er, and it’s not like what they’re doing is raking in the dough.
Most pros triathletes work less than 35 hour weeks (the top pros I know don’t work at all) and train their ass-off.
There is no other way around this when you work out 4+ hours every day and race on the pro circuit. Unless ofcourse you want to get injured or die from lack of rest.
The day only has 24 hours!
Not sure what you mean by school schedules - most pros tend to be done with school. Guess you are a student/employee/pro triathlete. Remember, school comes first!!!
i’ve got a fairly demanding job. i find tri-training gives me much needed stress-busting and helps keep me sane. i (some-how) do 10ish hours training a week.
i have a fairly un-sophisticated training schedule cus work rules! gotta fit my training around the rest of my life (bit of a shame…)
my training schedule usually has 1 big session during the week-end. normally a 3-4 hour bike ride or long run. this is the back-bone of my training and i never miss a session. then during the week i try to fit in 2 swim sessions and a run.
just bought a bike trainer. this will hopefully help with some mid-week bike training. problem here is i gotta get out of bed early.
I have a fairly hectic job too. However, I have the advantage of living on a small tax-haven between France and the UK which is ideal for training.
The only problem arises when trying to combine training, traveling, studying and profiting in apalling markets. Lukily, I don’t have a wife to throw into the equasion.
As it’s winter here I generally manage three early swims and one evening one; I commute by bike and have one long ride a week with three long-ish turbos; and run three times a week.
This tri business started off as a way for me to keep fit for surfing when the nights closed in during winter and I can’t get in the water before/after work. I’m yet to see how much training will have to be missed when the days get a bit longer.
I know one guy who wanted to “turn pro” so he quit his job and took part time morning work. Made no real sense as he was around forty already and not likely to make a lucrative career at triathlon although he was devoting up to five hours a day for training. . The amazing thing is that his wife went along with this. Unfortunately he was injured and have to give up his dream of becoming a pro triatlete.
swim 1x, bike 1x, run 1x a week… in winter replace the bike with weights. Simple, eh ? If I’m lucky, sometimes can get in another run or bike for four workouts a week… Admittedly this doesn’t let me do anything longer than Oly, but it feels like racing to me, so it by golly is. The key is high intensity in every workout - that, and the background from twenty years of ultramarathon racing, lets me survive the minimalist training. Wouldn’t recommend my schedule to anyone who doesn’t have a significant base from years of endurance exercise.
I don’t have mornings, since my wife works 6-10am and I have to get the kids going. Don’t have weekends either, since that’s when the wife gets to work out (fair is fair).
Great thread and great training/life strategies listed.
Back to the original post:
Unless there are serious strength abnomailties or imbalances - forget the weight training( waste of time)
Train fast. There is a place for LSD training, but for the most part it is also a huge time waster
Train in the hills when biking and running all the time.
If you are training for an IM and can swim one hour nonstop or about 3K without it killing you. There is little need to do much swimming - 1 - 2 times a week is all that you will need.
Take one day off a week. Take one week with next to no training each month. Take at least a month of very easy training each year.
Make the hard days very hard and make the easy days very easy!
I did 9 Ironman races in 10 years from 1989 - 1999 all under 9:45. My average weekly training time from March through to October was about 10 hrs. It can be done.
You sound like you may be a genetically gifted human. Were you ever coached? Sub 10hr IM is pretty serious stuff, especially on the limited number of training hours. I’d love to hear more specifics. Did you use a Computrainer at all? What about 1/2 IMs or other races - what kind of times were you posting?
Hershel34 I think the above poster is Steve Fleck and I think while he is too humble to brag on himself he is/was indeed a genetic marvel of sorts. I recall him finishing IMs around the same times as Jeff Cuddeback, Kevin Moats and other 2nd tier pros all thru the late 80’s and mid90’s. (don’t mean to speak for you Mr. Fleck but have I got it right?? p.s. I like your posts too.)
Get all the triathlon thinking, web-surfing etc done at work.
Turbo-trainer pre-work, swim on way home and run with the dog once I’m home. Generally I aim to have all training done within the first 12 and a half hours of the day, which leaves the last 4 hours to focus on the wife, going out etc, and 7 and a half to 8 hours sleep.
Have 1 day-off and train on weekends to fit around the wife.
Schedule might not be definitive but I enjoy it. High frequency, consistency and 3 hardish days.
I did not have a formal coach, but I had a number of people who I would seek out advice from including Canadian National Team Coach Barrie Shepley, who I would regularly consult with and bounce training ideas off of. During my time of running only, through high school and college I was coached by one of the top distance coaches in Canada.
I came into triathlon from a high level running back ground. I soon found out, that triathlon back then early/mid 80’s was a runners game. It still is today. The modest amount of success that I experienced, revolved around staying close on the swim/bike and then making a move on the run.
The fundementals that I learned in running, essentially a pace oriented philosophy of training for and working towards certain race paces, proved to be invaluable as a triathlete.
I currently informally advise a couple of athletes. I would like to do more coaching in the future.
Thanks David for the insight, I have been struggling with the issues of family life and tri life. It is nice to hear that other tri people have families and jobs. Most of the people I train with are single with no kids. It is a very delicate balancing act we as fathers and husbands must do in order to stay intouch with our families and jobs and to workout. I like all of your suggestions, I am going to implement a number of them.
Most of the people I train with are single with no kids. It is a very delicate balancing act we as fathers and husbands must do in order to stay intouch with our families and jobs and to workout.
Quite frankly, I think this ihas given me more focus, and has actually made me faster (relative to age:-)). I now realize how much time I wasted when I didn’t have other responsibilities…I’m now better at everything. Keep the positive attitude…it works wonders!
Quote: “4) If you are training for an IM and can swim one hour nonstop or about 3K without it killing you. There is little need to do much swimming - 1 - 2 times a week is all that you will need.”
I would say that most triathletes couldnt get by on 1 or 2 swims a week. Unless they are exswimmers or masters of adaption and can learn perfect technique in 1 or 2 practices—unless you just want to survive.
I have a friend thats a runner, and his times are pretty good, sub 17 5K and 36 min 10K and he trains a whopping 5 miles a week. Yeah thats it. It always cracks me up when i ask him how many miles he ran last month—cause what he did in a month i did in a week. Dont kid yourself, some people really are gifted. Most are not.
I’ll agree with you there. I was a runner who became a triathlete in 1990. Even after all of the years of doing them if I take same time away from the pool my stroke goes all to shit and I swim like a runner. With running, which I started at a young age like some of the fish out there, I could miss a month due to an injury and still go out and run a 36 minute 10k without killing myself. I need at least 3 swims a week to stay ready to race.