2012 Athlete Results Update, CA 70.3

A quick update on some of my athletes’ race results so far this 2012 season.

At CA 70.3 (Oceanside) this season, five (5) Gleason Endurance Coaching athletes raced the 70.3. Good results across the board! -

Ryan Spitz bested his 2011 time by a whopping 15 min. to finish in 5:16 flat. Ryan worked very hard to up his game this year in Oceanside, after only two seasons in the sport. Ryan continues to see his times drop, and his diligence and hard work pay off. Ryan’s build up and taper went according to plan and Ryan followed the race plan very well, to maximize his day. Nice job Ryan!
John Aspinall, in his debut 70.3, had a fantastic day! Going 5:06, John set the bar high for future performance, and proved he has can tap his solid run skills off a strong bike leg. John’s bike abilities are improving quickly as are his swim skills. John stuck to our race plan very well, turned in a tactically excellent performance and for sure got the most out of his day. I feel that the build up and taper/peak went very well, and according to plan. Nice work John!

Jeanette Davey, turned in a very impressive performance, given that she was, (and still is), recovering from a very serious bike crash in January that ended with her in the ER with severe head and face injuries. At the time, we thought her season may well have been over and triathlon was the last concern.  Fast forward to May and she is back on track for her big race, IMLP in July and looking strong.  At Oceanside, I told Jeanette to not really race, rather to treat what was to be the early season A race as a very hard training day.  Crossing the finish line defined victory for me, with as many walk breaks as needed.  As expected, Jeanette pushed herself all the way through and finished very strong, given her head injury and big gap in training, crossing in 7:44.  That is 7:44 more worth of racing than anyone, including me, expected from Jeanette back in January and February. Courageous Jeanette!  Way to go!

Alan MacNeilan, turned in a solid podium performance, reaping the benefits of his extremely strong work ethic, diligence and desire to continue to learn and improve!  Alan took 4th in his AG after grouping up this season to 65-69, crossing in a very impressive 6:09:40! Alan’s work ethic and desire to improve his strength and swim skills continues to pay off and serve him well.  Next big race: IMAZ. Look out M 65-69!  Alan means business.

Last and least important, me.  I had a pretty solid day up until the last 10K on the run course where I slowed some.  Not exactly the day I wanted, but most of the race went pretty well.  I crossed at 5:11, having had to stop briefly on the run course to avoid cramping up and perhaps walking it all in.  Regardless, I am happy w/bike and swim, despite also stopping in the water to pull my right calf apart after it locked up, virtually putting the brakes on my swim.  It reversed and did not bother me until Mon, Tue, Wed and Thurs. I pushed hard, stuck to my plan and felt pretty good.  Overall, a very good day!

Congratulations to all my athletes for setting good goals, working hard, pushing hard, following your race plan and turning in a great day! Solid work!

More to follow!

Coach Bill

Running Better

Running is a highly individualized and fairly technical activity. What is good for one runner to focus on might be the wrong thing for another.  So, I just want to make a quick comment about the two aspects of running that matter most when it comes to pace (and that is really all that matters ultimately, right?)

The two components of pace are: cadence and stride length. There is plenty of advice about cadence (or leg turn-over) – and it usually boils down to ‘increase it for better running..’ True, most runners probably would benefit from increasing their cadence. Well, once cadence is where it should be for you – probably in the 84-94 range – that’s all you can do with it.

Stride length is really where the big gains are to be made for most endurance athletes. This involves a lot of training, a large part of which is strength training. You MUST have a lot of running specific leg, hip, lower trunk, and even shoulder strength to maintain a large stride over the course of your race, particularly if you’re coming off the bike.

Some exercises that you can fit into workouts to increase this specific strength are:

• Forward lunges (grip dumbbells in each hand and hang arms at your sides to add resistance to this exercise)
• Box-jumps
• One-leg hopping
• Skipping
• Very short (i.e. 20 second) hill sprints
• Stairs , as in the kind at a high school football stadium or track.
• Running in soft sand (be careful with this one, as it’s very hard on foot and ankle muscles)
• Adding or increasing hills (gradually) to your long run

After you become proficient at any one of these, try combining it carefully with another one for a complex workout.

Early Base Training

Are you already, or soon to be,  back at training for the early races next season? Do you have a Winter or early Spring A race? It’s time to start to think about training (especially if your race is IM CA 70.3, Oceanside). Think of the next (or your first) 8 to 9 weeks of training not as training to race, but rather training to train.

“Training to train” means developing basic abilities.  ..And doing so well, and thoroughly.  These are not necessarily race specific abilities. You will build race specific abilities upon the basic ones later. So, that means workouts may seem too easy, too long and too easy, weird (e.g. skills work), and even dreadful (i.e. gym time).  Hang in there.  It will pay off, and you’ll be glad you invested the time.  Resist the temptation to go out and hammer at race intensity for hours on end while you are 4-5 months or more away from your A race.  That is a big strategic mistake.  This requires patience and having a vision for a killer day at your first A race in Winter or early Spring.

The core of these is the aerobic endurance workout. Triathlon is at its core an endurance test, regardless of the distance.  So, the aerobic endurance workout generally means Zone 2, in terms of HR, pace, power or effort, and some limited Zone 3 time.  If you have your HR Zones right, you can use HR. You should periodically check your HR Zones by doing a confirming test. (If you want advice on how to do one, contact me.) These may seem too easy while running and way too easy on the bike if you have much experience.  Hold back on them both. The challenge for a little while is duration, not VO2 max running or riding (with some exceptions in the late base training block).

 
So, Zone 2 needs to be precisely defined.  HR is only one way to do it, and in my opinion not the most accurate. Pace and your own RPE on a run is better (except running on hills, then watch HR).  Stay out of Zone 1 except for warm-up, cool down and a recovery workout.  If you spend too much time in Zone 1, you are teaching yourself to run too slowly.  That said, it is a subtle change from Zone 1 to Zone 2 effort.  Try developing a better feel for the difference now.

Same goes for the bike, just substitute power or RPE for HR, if you have power.  I think HR is often highly inaccurate on the bike. On hills, you still watch power rather than HR.  Again, Zone 1 is only for WU, CD and recovery.  Anyway, the idea is to use more than one measure at a time, for example watching pace and HR while running.

The other abilities are strength (or force production) and speed skills (economy).  Also, you probably have time for cross-training, which I encourage as long as it helps one of the triathlon basic abilities somehow and won’t leave you injured.

Regardless, if you can stay patient and focused in your early training blocks, you will have more successful training blocks later when the fun starts.

Return on Investment for the Serious Triathlete

So, you want to raise your game and you’re willing to spend a little cash to help you do that?  Well, there are a lot of ways to do so, maybe too many choices.  Most triathletes who have done a race, or a whole season, usually first think of a fast bike.  If they just had a lighter, more aerodynamic, sexier machine to ride…  Or, perhaps a nice new (expensive) wetsuit.  You’ll punch through the water like a dolphin.  New, minimalistic, light, sexy running shoes…?  Well, guess what?  None of those things will make you significantly faster.

Instead of getting a fast, new bike, maybe focus instead on the engine – you. (A wetsuit won’t swim itself either.) You can really up your horsepower if you’re consistent, focused and smart.  Yep, SMART.  Not a natural-born triathlete? Not willing to train ’till you puke (actually not smart…), nor even available to train like a pro (i.e. all the time)?  Well, that is all the more reason smart training is very important for a triathlete’s performance.  And one of the best ways to train smart is to enlist the guidance of someone who knows how to help you train smart,  keep you on track making progress, injury free.  That would be a good coach.

So, if you’re thinking about getting a new bike for say $3,000 – or even 3 to 4 times that amount in the hopes of getting a lot faster – consider this:  per dollar invested, getting a fast bike (wetsuit, running shoes, etc.) isn’t the best way to get faster.  What will make you faster is the same thing that makes a fast car fast, the engine.  A good frame and a fast design help, but ultimately it comes down to horsespower.  The best way to develop your engine in athletics is to train smart.   In triathlon, smart training is not as common as you may think.   And smart training is greatly facilitated by training with a smart coach.

Smart training in triathlon ultimately means more return, i.e. faster race times, per dollar invested.  Smart training involves balancing the underlying science with the art of training.  It truly is a balancing act.  So before you invest a significant amount money in a fast bike, perhaps step back and give it a little more thought.  Per dollar invested, you’ll go a lot faster by training smart, which means training with a smart, experienced coach.  Give it some thought.  Be smart  : )

Weight Train?

I received an email yesterday from a new triathlete asking whether or not the athlete should weight train, in addition to a fairly heavy swim/bike/run schedule. I think this is very common and useful Q. My response, which I believe applies broadly, was this:

This is an area of opinion more so than proven training principles regarding triathlon. (There are few proven training principles.) I don’t believe that anyone reading your email can confidently, and even ethically, give you advice about weight training for your triathlon plan. First, it is highly individualized. What is beneficial for one athlete is detrimental to another. Second, it depends on your specific racing goals, and the demands of your races. It also depends on your time available to train, the amount of time you have until your next big race, your athletic history and background, your strengths and limiters, and your relative experience in each sport. It even depends on your body composition and body type. Even knowing all these things, it is a matter of opinion. Training is a blend of art and science, and there is no one-size fits all approach to most training issues.
…
That said, core strength is a must. Any athlete that has a weak core should spend time strengthening it. If its strong, you’ll get little return for the time spent. Just maintain in that case.

Remember, you cannot consider weight training in isolation regarding your triathlon training. It has to fit into your overall training volume, and will almost never be the most important or beneficial part of your training. Nevertheless, it for sure can help in some cases. I have an athlete that I actually had STOP almost all weight training, and he got faster. I also have another athlete for whom weight training is critical, mostly on the bike. You’ll probably discover, when you ask Q’s about triathlon training, that the answer is often, “it depends.” If its not, be careful. Be very wary of anyone who acts like they are sure they know what you need to do. That just indicates they have no idea.

Workouts With a Purpose

I grew up a basketball player and a runner. My favorite coach of all time was John Wooden, and I attended his Summer Basketball Camps four years in a row as a teenager. He is one of the greatest in college basketball history, winning ten NCAA Basketball Titles in the 60′s and 70′s at UCLA.  John Wooden was truly a great.  Along with a tremendous legacy as one of the greatest teachers and coaches in college athletics, he gave us many legendary quotes. Many of his ideas are captured in his Pyramid of Success.  One of my favorite quotes (found in the Pyramid) from Coach Wooden applies well to triathlon training (and coaching), and to many aspects of life as well:

“Never mistake activity for achievement” 

With his succinct approach and typical wisdom, that statement says so much.

Activity without a purpose is usually wasted time and energy.  This applies on the basketball court, and it applies to endurance training too.

What is the purpose of the workout you are about to do? If you cannot answer that question, reconsider why you are doing it.  The answer should not be hard to come by.  You are either working to advance a specific ability or skill, increasing a specific aspect of fitness, maintaining it, recovering (from something much harder), or racing.   If you are not doing one of these things, you may be better off saving your time and energy.

Happy (smart) training!

Pacing

Pacing is typically a topic you learn about during race season, usually right before an important race.   But pacing is so critical to achieving success in your races, that I want to make a few notes about it now.

The best, and really only, way to get the pacing right in your races is to practice it in training.  That does not mean always going at race pace in training.  That would be a big mistake.  Rather, it means getting the pace right for the particular workout you are doing at present by using the best and most accurate metrics you can.  The metrics depend on the sport, and they’re a different subject altogether.  Normally, we’re talking about power, pace (min/mile, sec/100m.), HR, speed, RPE, etc.  For example, if you are supposed to be doing a set of longer, aerobic (i.e. slower) swim repeats, it can be hard to stay at the right pace.  Hard mentally, not physically.  It usually means bringing your effort down.

Pacing requires focus, patience and discipline.  Those are attributes that you’ll need on race day, especially if you race anything longer than a short sprint triathlon, or 5K.  So, if you are doing your long ride, for example, and you notice yourself creeping up to hammer-town after that group of roadies just rudely passed you by and didn’t even say ‘Hi,’ .. slow down.  Let them go. They are doing a different ride and training for a different sport.  You need to stay at your pace to get the benefits of your workout, not theirs.  You’ll most likely need the same discipline and skill on race day.  So, I think its best to start to practice it now.

The “Off-Season”

If you had an active racing season, you are most likely finished with your last race, or you will be soon.  As you log your last race for the year, and look forward to some well-earned down time, what do you do about training, working out, or just staying active in the “off-season?”

First, it is perhaps a good idea to take some time to stop and reflect on your season. I have my athletes write up answers to some basic questions to evaluate and reflect on the season just passed.  Did you accomplish your main training and racing goal?  Why or why not?  Did you accomplish other secondary goals? What was the most beneficial type of training in your opinion?  The least? Are you racing at the right distance, or even the right sport? What do you want to focus on for next season?  Do you have ideas, or even specific plans for racing next year?  Now is a good time to reflect on all these Q’s and more. Take plenty of time to evaluate the direction in which you’re heading.

So, what about the off-season?  There are some basics for the off-season that all athletes, especially those that train hard and consistently over the year, benefit from:

• Do not try to maintain your peak fitness from the end of the season, or anything close to that.  You must let it go.  In order to build peak performances again next season, you have to let this one go, and travel through the “valley” of fitness, or there will not be another true peak.

• Do not remain inactive.  You should stay active with other sports  activities such as hiking, skiing, basketball, or whatever you like (and won’t get injured doing).  You can, and maybe ought to, cross-train with activities that will directly benefit your multi-sport performance next season: yoga, Pilates, strength training such as weights, plyometrics, and outdoor functional strength training are all very good choices.  These are highly individualized with regard to how to improve your sport specific performance for next season.  I work one-on-one with my athletes for this in the off-season.  One of the goals however is to get away from swim-bike-run for a while.

• How long is “a while” and how long should an off-season be?  That again, is highly individual.  It depends on a few key points:  How long was your season? How high are your goals for next season? When is your first race for next season?  What is your limiter and how much of a limiter is it?   Regardless, you should take at least 4-6 weeks away from any structured training plan like the one you followed.

• If you must do some swim-bike-run activity, what should it be?  Probably run.  Running is the ability that fades the farthest, the fastest for most athletes, particularly those over 40ish.  This, in part, is due to the  strength and resilience required of the tendons and ligaments used in injury-free running, and the length of time it takes to build that type of specific fitness. It is easier to rebuild bike and swim fitness in a relatively shorter period of time.  Again, even with off-season running, no structure (i.e. training plan): They can be short and easy runs, or do some racing: 5K, 10K, half marathon.  I would avoid a full marathon unless you are a very accomplished runner and have a lot of time to recover before starting back at your multi-sport training for next year.

Regardless of what you do in your “off-season,” get rested, physically and mentally recharged and refreshed, and be proud of your athletic accomplishments for the year!

Coaching in 2011

What a great year for my athletes! All of my athletes achieved nearly all of  their training and racing goals this season.  And they tell me they had fun doing it!

Shaun Florance broke into the sport at the end of this Summer with an age group win in his first race ever! Shaun is a junior at USD, age 20.  I began coaching Shaun in the late Spring and continued over the Summer while he was home in Nebraska at his parent’s.  Shaun returned to San Diego for the Fall Semester in time to win the 20-24 Age Group at the San Diego Classic Olympic distance race.  Two weeks later, he took 3rd at the Mission Bay Sprint Triathlon.  This guy is serious about the sport, has plenty of talent, and a lot of time to develop as an athlete!  Look out Collegiate division.

Jeanette Davey continued to work very hard, stay determined and consistent.  She was rewarded for those efforts with two great races to end the season.  First, Jeanette had a very good day at Syracuse 70.3 on an extremely hard and hilly course with a PR.  Then after deciding at the last minute to compete in the LA Olympic distance race, she WON her age group!  All her hard work with open water swimming and surf entry practice paid off terrifically!  Way to go Jeanette!

Ryan Spitz continues to improve at an amazing rate in only his 2nd season!  His chosen distance of 70.3 provided many challenges and rewards this season, with an eye to the full IM.  Ryan had his best race of the year at the Lake Stevens 70.3 on a tough and hilly course.  Next year, Ryan attacks the full IM.  With his level of ability and motivation, look out if you’re in the M 25 – 29 AG.  He means business.  So does his coach.  Keep it up Ryan, good things await.

Maggie Paola continues to podium at all local races, giving her competitors fits, while her times in short-course racing continue to drop.  Maggie worked very hard this season, both on her open water swimming and her bike time-trialing ability. She reaped the rewards, with several PR’s this season.  She also came very close to qualifying for World Championships 2012 this year at Nationals in Burlington, VT. where she only missed by 6 places, getting 31st in a VERY competitive national field. Outstanding Maggie!  Great work.

look for more here as seasons wind down…