Ironman bike split

Triathlon Forum
1

First Time Post, so hello to everyone.

Previous best time in ironman bike split is 5hrs 45 at Austria - this was done on one bike ride every Saturday starting previous October - ranging from 2 1/2 hrs in length up to 5 hrs for max - two or three times. Overweight by good 10/15 kgs.

wondering, and noty taking into account weight (which i plan to lose!!), what is required for someone starting in the next week or so to go around 5hrs - 5hrs 15 min on a fast bike course. What training do you do.

Is it all slow? All race pace? How many times a week even during winter?

Any advice is greatly appreciated

t maguire

2

Bump - because I would be interested in getting feedback on that too. (5:45 IM also, and want to go under 5:20 next year.)

3

intervals during the week, powermeter is very helpful in getting faster
.

4

Ride more then once a week would be a very good start, and i know nothing.

tfun~

5

i’d suggest you start with reading a book or two then talking with a coach, maybe even get a long range plan from one. there are so many variables concerning your prior activity level, general fitness level, desire, time constraints, and many more. any advice here would be very general. it’s easy to say ‘do this and you will improve’ because pretty much any increase in hours on the bike will give you an improvement from what you’ve done (and 5:45 is a darn fine ride in Austria). but to get the most out of your time you really need to invest some time up front getting a plan together and this might not be the best place to start.
good luck

6

I had a good mix of both - at least that worked for me.

IM CDA '05 I rode just under 5:56, then in '06 (same course) I was able to pull off a 5:19, and then a 5:16 in Kona '06. Gear was the same both years (except in Kona I used some 404’s), the differences were:

-hired a tri-coach (whose specialty was cycling)
-more frequent and directed (and with specific goals) rides
-easier long rides (in terms of HR)
-cycling races in the spring with a local cycling club
-began to train with cyclists (they have a wealth of information and tips/tricks that I found useful - handling, decending, cornering, nunchuck skills, etc.)

One interesting thing to note, however is that through all of this, my IM run time has only improved by (at best) 15 minutes…Which means that either my run fitness isn’t that good and/or that I’m going too hard on the bike. I would tend to lean towards the latter.