How can I go from 2:23 to sub 2:10 at the Olympic distance?

Triathlon Forum
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Hi all,

This is my third year as a triathlete and I am excited to have recently set a new PR of 2:23 at the Olympic distance. Over the next year or so, I’m setting a lofty goal of trying get my Olympic distance time down under 2:10, which should get me on the podium consistently in my age group (40-44).

My splits in my last race were about 25:00 on the 1.5K swim, 1:13:00 on the 40K bike, and 42:00 on the 10K run. My training consists of swimming twice per week (about 5K-6K per week as part of a master swim program), cycling twice per week (about 30-50 miles per week with an average of about 1500 feet of elevation gain), and running three times per week (one speed run, one 5-to-8-mile tempo run, and one 10-to-12-mile long run).

Running is definitely my strongest event. If I focused more of my energy on running, I believe I could get my open 10K time to sub-37 within the year. (In college–20 years ago–, I ran a 1500 meter PR of 4:06 and an 8K PR of 27:35).

Swimming is my second-best event. I’ve been continually improving for the last two years. I recently swam a 1500m PR of 24:13 in the pool. Unfortunately, I think I’ve reached a point of dimishing returns in this event. I would have to put in significant additional effort to drop my time by even two minutes. That is, I think I’m capable of sub-22, but only with extreme effort.

Cycling is a new sport to me and I believe it is the sport I can improve the most in. I’ve recently invested in trainer road and started doing some of my rides on the trainer. In my last race, according to my Strava data (which is not completely reliable, I know), I averaged 170 watts over the 40K. Based on bike calculator estimates, I could drop my 40K time from 1:13 to 1:06 if I increased my power by 50 watts. I have the latest equipment (a Shiv with Flo race wheels), so I don’t think I can buy much more speed. :wink: Unfortunately I don’t enjoy cycling as much as running, so it’s hard to keep motivated.

Currently I’m training about 1.0-1.5 hours per day during the week and about 1.5-3.0 hours per day on the weekend. I usually only focus on one event per day, but I have done an occasional brick. I understand I’m going to have to bump up my training to accomplish my goal. However, I am married with three kids, so it will be difficult for me to spend a whole lot more time training. On the other hand, I do think I can get away with a few more hours of training per week, especially now that I’ve signed up for my first IronMan event (IM LT). (My family is supporting me in this!) :wink:

I know there are a lot of very experienced and awesome triathletes on slowtwitch. I’m curious to know what advice you all have for me. Is my goal realistic? Where should I focus my efforts?

K_Man

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your swim is fine… front of pack age grouper…

You need to work on your cycling and running… preferrably your running right off a hard bike

look at doing high intensity cycling 2-3 times a week at 1.5-2 hours… and 2 of those times come off the bike and do 3x1 mile repeats all out… give yourself a 30 second to 1 minute break…

add in a longer endurance ride on the weekends 2.5 hours… and 2 more slow longer runs (5-8 miles) a week…

that isn’t to much time training and will really help you increase speed

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Ask Jackmott…Oh hang on…sorry…:wink:

.

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Find a short course. :slight_smile:

Or, bike more. And harder. Intervals. Long rides. Group rides. All of it. That’s where the most time can be made and when your bike fitness hits a certain level you’ll start being able to run very fast off of a hard bike. And it will likely help regain some of that old run fitness.

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You have the bike and wheels, but do you really have all the free speed on the bike you can get? Helmet, ideal fit, aero bottles, etc.?Have you mastered transitions?Fat loss??? (I have no idea if that is necessary or helpful in your case)Bike moreSwim moreRun more

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ha!

run 100 miles a week for a year probably is what I would need to do.
then swim 9 times a week for a year.
then put that all together if I’m not broken

Ask Jackmott…Oh hang on…sorry…:wink:

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You have the bike and wheels, but do you really have all the free speed on the bike you can get? Helmet, ideal fit, aero bottles, etc.? I have a Wingspan helmet and a dialed-in FIST fitting. I could probably still make some minor tweaks to get some more power without losing much in the way of aerodynamics. I have not done a wind-tunnel test, of course. Also, I have the internal bladder on the Shiv, so I haven’t been using any bottles.

Have you mastered transitions?No. I can probably gain about 1.0-1.5 of the 13 minutes I’m seeking by improving my transitions.

Fat loss??? (I have no idea if that is necessary or helpful in your case)I’m 6’ 3" and 168 pounds. To reach ideal race weight, I could probably lose 5-8 pounds.

Bike moreSwim moreRun moreYep… I am just trying to figure out where to focus my time. Thank you everyone for the feedback so far!

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ha!

run 100 miles a week for a year probably is what I would need to do.
then swim 9 times a week for a year.
then put that all together if I’m not broken

Ask Jackmott…Oh hang on…sorry…:wink:

I serioulsy think we should have a smackdown next year at the CapTex Tri…My brother lives in Austin and I’m planning a ride across the country after the Double Iron in Tampa next year…I’ll go old school and you can go all N.A.S.A…Loser buys the beer.

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can we do the Austin Tri instead?
better run event, less crowded.
same location and distances.

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can we do the Austin Tri instead?
better run event, less crowded.
same location and distances.

When is that race? I have to fit it in with some other stuff…

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Looking at your numbers, I would focus first on the bike. 1:13 is way too long. Second, yes, lose some weight. I am 6’5" and have gotten to my ideal race weight of 160. Made a big difference in my running.

Then, how many months of the year do you train. If it is not 12 months a year, there would be my third input.

Once you get your bike down 5-8 minutes, then look at your numbers. Better on the bike will also help your run.

,

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ride more intervals on the trainer or hills/hard efforts mixed in with recovery on road rides. 1 to 1.5 hour rides. Run some bricks at race pace for 2 or 3 miles off these rides on occasion.
Your running program sounds good in theory. Make sure you;re mixing it up and not simply doing the same stuff each week.
If you want to get to 2:10, I would think you’ll need to find 2 or 3 minutes on the run and the rest on the bike. Also, finding a flat and fast course (on a cool day) would help immensely.

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Unfortunately I don’t enjoy cycling as much as running, so it’s hard to keep motivated.

Here is the main situation.

Since you like running, I suspect you will run some more to get that time down.

On the biking, you may want to find a way to like it. Whether is is a local club ride, mountain biking, commuting, hauling the kids in the Burley to a park, a different route with more scenery. Whatever it is, there is the main thing for you.

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Sorry to highjack your thread but…which race are you focussed on,going sub 2:10 next year at your chosen Olympic race or doing well in IMLT next year?..There is a world of difference,epspecially for a time challenged athlete,so figure it out first.

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You gotta cut that bike to 1:06 or below, seriously. It’s way slower relatively than your run or swim. Shouldn’t even be that hard for a bigger guy like yourself to achieve that time given your run speed. Get on a structured training program with intervals, and start hammering those intervals. I actually suspect that bike intensity will serve you better than bike volume (you still do need both though) if you’re focusing on Oly distance racing. You should be able to knock 10 minutes off your bike within a year, easily given your prowess in the other two sports. Heck, I have no cycling background to speak of and I was 1:07 on the bike in my very first rookie Oly with <6 months of casual unstructured bike training, and I have no talent to speak of. (I did ride hard when I did ride though.)

Might be helpful for you to try and tag along with a fast local roadie ride. It’ll get your FTP and top speed up more quickly than the long aerobic sessions that a lot of HIM/IM triathletes do.

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Work the bike hard. And try not to give up much, if any, on your swim and run. Easier said than done, could take a year or more of backing off the running a bit while you bring the hard bike workouts (intervals, etc) online.

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I see some massively low hanging fruit on the bike. Heck you can knock 10 minutes off that bike, and you only need very small gains elsewhere. Which will likely all come with the addition of the bike fitness!

I’m a runner as well and also run 3 times a week with almost no speedwork. I only run about 20mpw. I’m still easily the best on the run. And I’m not bad on the bike or swim and I train those much harder.

13 minutes is a ton, but you can also up your training by a ton so it’s quite possible. Especially with that bike split.

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Work the bike hard. And try not to give up much, if any, on your swim and run. Easier said than done, could take a year or more of backing off the running a bit while you bring the hard bike workouts (intervals, etc) online.

This is why I love my bike trainer. No excuses, no resting. I just get on a 5:15 in the morning 3 days a week and do intervals for an hour. The other 3 to 4 days a week I spin for an hour. Have been doing this for like 9 months now and had my best bike split on a race I have done for years 3 weeks ago. Will see again in 2 weeks if it was a fluke.

…

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Sorry to highjack your thread but…which race are you focussed on,going sub 2:10 next year at your chosen Olympic race or doing well in IMLT next year?..There is a world of difference,epspecially for a time challenged athlete,so figure it out first.

I’m going to focus on improving my Olympic distance time over the next year. For IM LT, I’m just going to try to finish. Maybe in a couple of years, if my training is going well, I’ll focus on the IM distance and try to qualify for Kona.

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Work the bike hard. And try not to give up much, if any, on your swim and run. Easier said than done, could take a year or more of backing off the running a bit while you bring the hard bike workouts (intervals, etc) online.

This is why I love my bike trainer. No excuses, no resting. I just get on a 5:15 in the morning 3 days a week and do intervals for an hour. The other 3 to 4 days a week I spin for an hour. Have been doing this for like 9 months now and had my best bike split on a race I have done for years 3 weeks ago. Will see again in 2 weeks if it was a fluke.

…

That plan sounds manageable. I could definitely handle doing intervals on the trainer for an hour three days per week. What I’m hearing so far confirms what I suspected: the bike is where I can get the most significant improvement with the least amount of effort. I’ll have to learn to like it somehow!