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As triathlon is viewed largely as an endurance sport, many beginner triathletes like to cover the distance of the run portion of their triathlon at an easy steady pace. While there is definitely a place for the LSD ( Long Slow Distance) in every triathletes schedule, the best thing to do with the other run training slots is to mix up the your effort  levels in a structured way so that the other physiological systems of the triathletes body can be developed as well.

If an athlete currently run 3 times a week – 3km , 5km and 10km, all at the same easy to moderate pace then yes they will indeed develop the endurance to simply cover the distance. However, this ‘safe’ approach to training will not work as the athlete wants to improve their speed.

The ONLY way to improve run performance is to develop the other important physiological systems of strength, leg speed and tolerance.

Strength – Simply put, “Stronger is stronger”.  A stronger athlete will be able to hold their form later into the race. This means they will be able to running efficiently for longer. A stronger athlete will also be able to take longer strides, covering more ground with each step. This translates to a faster run.  Stronger athletes also typically hold up better to the rigours of training. As they develop strength, they are able to push harder without getting injured. An athlete can build strength in a number of ways;

a)      Hill Repeats: After a full warm up of 20 mins easy building to moderate running, run up a steep hill as hard as you can for 40 seconds. Your legs should be burning by the end of that effort and our heart may feel as if it is about to jump out of your chest. Turn around, walk back down and repeat 10 x. Cool down at the end with a very easy 10 min jog.

b)      Static exercises: Squats and Lunges are the basic exercises that build run specific strength. They develop Gluteal and Quadricep strength. After learning how to execute them correctly, advanced versions include single leg variations, weighted variations, Swiss Ball Variations and more explosive plyometric exercises. However, the simple squat and lunge combo is a great way to build strength in the legs.

Leg Speed – Leg speed refers to the ability for a triathlete to turnover a high stride rate while running. Efficient running starts at a stride rate of 90 steps per minute and this is a key factor that will allow one to run off the bike well. Typically, athletes who are not aware of their stride rate, especially taller ones,  may come in anywhere between 78  – 86 steps per minute. To measure your stride rate, simply count the number of times your right elbow drives backwards in a 30 sec window while you are running at your regular pace. Then multiply this number by 2.

As a drill, I get my runners to focus on driving their elbows back and forth at an exaggerated higher rate while running for short bursts. Performing this drill once week will develop their stride rate:

A)     Jog 20 minutes to a nearby track as your warm up.  Run with as fast a stride rate as you can for 60 – 80m along the straight. This is NOT an all-out sprint. You may end up running quite fast, but remember that top end speed is not the goal of this drill. Focus instead on running tall and driving your elbows quickly. Your may find that your stride naturally shortens and becomes more compact – this is fine. You are also retraining your feet to strike the ground under your hips, which is another important trait of efficient running. At the end of the effort, jog back easy to the start and repeat the Fast Strides 15 – 20 times. Finish with an easy 10 minute jog to cool down.

B)     Doing this drill on a treadmill is also very useful because the treadmill at 0% gradient actually drives the leg turnover. You will need to master the skill of jumping off on to the side platforms to take your rest though!

Tolerance – This refers to the ability to hold a moderately hard effort for an extended period of time – a useful skill to have at any distance of race!  Here is simple tolerance set that you can try out on the road/ at the track or even on the treadmill.

A)     At the track, after warming up, do 12 – 15 x 400m with a 30 – 45 sec rest after each lap. Do not go flat out. Instead, aim to run all of these at the best possible pace that you can sustain over all the repetitions. Your goal is to run the 1^st one, middle one and last one at the same speed. Be warned, this session is designed to get tougher and tougher as you progress through the reps. You may need to take an extra 60 seconds at half time to catch your breath. It will take a few weeks to master this set but by the time you nail it, you’ll already be running better!

B)     You can easily replicate this session on the road by running moderately hard for 2 mins with a 30 – 45 sec walk break after each one. Aim to keep the same ‘best average’ pace for all reps.

So there you have it, this should be plenty to get started on. The next time you head out for a run, I challenge you to do any one of these sets and mix it up! Stick with it for 3 -4 weeks and you’ll feel the difference in no time at all.

GOOD LUCK & ENJOY YOUR TRAINING.
Shem Leong
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The New Year can bring out the best in athletes such as new focus and better habits—but it can also lead to a very quick breakdown and loss of motivation. Athletes love to make New Year’s resolutions. We are always thinking about every possible way to get more from our bodies so we can perform better.

A popular resolution is to stop drinking alcohol. I always find this interesting as athletes believe it to be a magic bullet: if they stop consuming alcohol, surely they will be leaner, fresher and faster—no question!

I remember hearing that before the 2004 Olympics Ivan Rana from Spain, one of the favorites in the triathlon, had decided to completely forego alcohol for one year leading into the Games so that he could focus everything in his life to his one goal of winning Olympic gold.

Instead, Rana had one of his worst seasons ever.

While we can’t say that his decision to stop drinking was the only reason for his slump, it for sure played its part. Many people have said that beer (in moderation) is one of the best recovery drinks.

Taking away what was once a source of calories and some nutrients can wreak havoc on the body.

We must also take into consideration that there is a social aspect to having a drink. Maybe we find the easiest way to forego a beer or a glass of wine by avoiding the events where we usually have a few.

This lack of contact with friends and colleagues can also have an important consequence, and it is not necessarily a positive one. We put such a big focus on training and our goals that it is good to socialize away from the sport to relax a little.

I would always advise that, instead, we look at reducing consumption. Everything in life should be balanced—we should always aim to be good 80 per cent of the time. I like to plan one of two “naughty” days every week. That’s when you can go out for a drink and eat your favorite foods without worrying about getting fat or what effect it will have on your training the next day.

Other typical resolutions include:

* Sleep more

* Improve nutrition

These, too, are big lifestyle changes and they are generally implemented overnight. The human body loves routine. If we change something, it will react and in almost all cases it will react negatively.

When people stop smoking they do not feel great, healthy and happy the next day—they feel horrible for a long time. For sure the benefits are there in the long run but in the immediate time after stopping things are not going to be rosy.

The same goes for pretty much everything: the body will not like the change and will rebel, and we tend to feel depressed and unmotivated in these times.

I will always tell my athletes that resolutions are great but they need to be implemented brick by brick.

January is a stressful time for most people as we tend to ignore many normal daily tasks through December as the festive season takes hold and other events take priority.

Reality always hits hard in January with piles of paper work, house work, office work and other things that have to be done. This is a time when we need our normal structure to help us stay on top of everything, making sure we are doing what is familiar to our body.

Let’s look at what happens when you decide to change your nutrition. You go to work with different food in your body, which in turn reacts different from the way it usually does. Your energy levels might be lower for a while. You may feel hungry or bloated all day. As a result you cannot concentrate on your work. You do not get as much done and the stress builds up. You need more time for work and slip out of your normal routine very easily.

I will always aim to implement resolutions brick by brick through January and February. For performance, consistency of training is the key and this is the focus of an ironguides program.

Coming into the first weeks of January it is important to not change training routine, making sure to get a couple of consistent weeks training in now that all the distractions of the holidays are behind us.

Once back into your full routine, we can start implementing changes.

We should also have a good look at the resolutions to see if they are really going to make a difference.

The most important thing for athletes is not only to come up with these resolutions but to talk about them with their coach and family. Sit down and think how the changes will impact your life.

For example, while going to bed earlier may leave you more rested for training the next morning and fresher for work, consider the impact it might have on a partner. You may be taking away the only time they have with you.

Living with a triathlete is not always easy as we tend to be pressed for time constantly. Remember to think about others in your life and how your changes will affect them.

For training to be effective we need to be balanced, we need to be healthy and we must have the support of our friends and family. I want athletes to keep this in mind. Most athletes consider the weekend BIG training time. I always ask them to make the sacrifice of waking up very early one morning a week to train so that one day at the weekend can be dedicated to family/ partner time.

You can still do a short training session on this day of the weekend but giving most of that day to family will make them so much happier and you will also find their support for your triathlon lifestyle will grow.

To make 2011 your best season, implement your resolutions over the next few weeks brick by brick

AFTER you’ve considered carefully how any changes impact not only your training but also those

around you. Remember balance!

Alun ‘Woody’ Woodward, Certified ironguides Coach – Austria.
–

Train with ironguides!

Personalized Online Coaching:  Starting at USD190/month

Monthly Training plans (for all levels, or focused on one discipline): Only USD39/months

Event based training plans:

Sprint Distance (USD45 for 8-week plan)

Olympic Distance (USD65 for 12 week plan)

Half Ironman (R$95 for 16-week plan)

Ironman (USD145 for 20-week plan)

X-Terra (USD65 for 12-week plan)

Running Plans (10k, 21k and 42k – starting at USD40)

 
Alun ‘Woody’ Woodward, Certified ironguides Coach – UK/Hungary
http://www.ironguides.net

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