IRONMAN for the COMMON Man, Beginner’s Guidelines

This article is geared toward the average triathlete with at least 2 to 3 years of experience under their number belt, who has had the idea of an Ironman (IM) banging around in the back of their head.

I think it is important to have several years in the sport for the following purposes;
You need to be…
1. at a reasonable fitness level
2. very comfortable with doing many Triathlons of varying distances with open-water swims
3. have a basic knowledge of your body. By that I mean, how far you can push yourself with endurance, your particular warning signs of impending injury, and your specific nutritional requirements for race-day.

I don’t plan on prescribing a specific IM training schedule (I think those tend to be too intense for people with real lives, jobs, family...), just some general guidelines that work really well for me. I also update this article from year-to-year, since I will learn new things with each IM race.

The IM is a very special event. You will certainly always remember your first IM race, more than likely, all of them, and it’s really not that hard to get there. You have already proven yourself as goal-oriented, and what I call a “doer”. The feeling of personal (and in many cases spiritual) accomplishment is overwhelming. Now, if you want to try and bring home some age-group hardware from your first IM, or try to qualify for the Big Island, then stop reading now, kiss your family goodbye and START TRAINING. If you are a “mid-pack” triathlete with a few years of experience, maybe a family, and/or demanding job, then read on and enjoy the experience.

Let me give you a little background on myself, just so you will know that I am just an average Joe, and didn’t grow up in sports. All through school I was never an athlete, I was in the band instead. There’s not too much aerobic activity in beating the drums, although chasing those girls, …well that’s another story. After college I raced Motocross for a few years (just enough to significantly tear up a knee). I started running in the late 70’s during the first “running boom”. I ran a few 10-k’s and a Marathon. I was having some difficulties with my knee from a torn ACL which had never been repaired, and on the advice of an Orthopedic Surgeon, I stopped running altogether after two short years.

When I turned 40, I went to the doctor for a “tune-up”, he shook his head and told me I needed to get more exercise. At that time, my wife and I were living on a small horse farm. I said, “more exercise, you’re nuts! I put up hay, build fences, build barns, cut firewood, etc.” To which he replied, “no, you need sustained aerobic exercise”. Sounded to me like I needed to start back running, after all, I really did enjoy it, but what about the knee problem? I decided to take matters into my own hands, and started a strengthening program of lifting weights and running stairs to build muscle around my knee. About 5 months later, I started back (slowly!) running.

A few years later a friend suggested I try this “triathlon thing”, after all I was back to running, I owned a bike (somewhere in the garage), and… oh that’s right, guess I’ll have to learn how to swim! After several months of working at all three sports, I learned to swim well enough to get by, and riding the bike kept my knee strong, and it all just came together. After my first race, I knew I was hooked. Now I do 8 to 12 triathlons a year ranging from Sprint to IM distance. I’m not fast, definitely a “mid-packer”, I like to refer to my skill level as the “Master of Mediocrity” in all three disciplines, BUT I LOVE IT!, and the reports from the doctor are a 180 deg turnaround.

The first thing you MUST do in your preparation starts one year ahead of race-day. You must mentally commit yourself to the race. You may as well make that mental commitment now, because you’re going to have to make a significant financial commitment at this same time as well. The IM distance has become so popular, you need to sign up for an event immediately after the running of the previous years race. IM Florida 2007 filled up in <1 hour after registration opened! The mental aspect is very important, you need to attack this with an “I can do it” attitude, not an “I’m not sure if I can go that distance” attitude. During your long workouts, think about race-day, how you will feel, practice eating on the bike, if you’re a morning runner, run late in the day to simulate the IM run, etc

Now that you are mentally and financially committed to this puppy, it’s time to think about a training plan. I try to maintain a solid base throughout the year, then “ramp up” about fifteen weeks from race date. In my case, my base is my regular, year-round training regimen, it’s what I normally do to stay fit.

My base plan is…
Monday – mid-day run 5-6 miles
Tuesday – 1 mile a.m. swim – mid-day, 10 mi bike on stationary recumbent, followed by fast-paced 1 mi treadmill run, then weight lifting
Wednesday – mid-day run 5-6 miles
Thursday – 3⁄4 mile a.m. swim - mid-day weight lifting - p.m., 20-25 mi bike with a 4-6 mi. run (brick*)
Friday – mid-day run 5-6 miles
Saturday – Off day (or long bike during IM training)
Sunday – 12 mi. morning run

This plan is definitely NOT carved in granite. I flex it significantly to work around things such as family, work, weather, etc., it simply serves as a rule of thumb. I generally average in the neighborhood of 6 to 9 hours of exercise/week during this period (depending on number of off days). Enjoy this time, do lots of Sprint and Olympic distance races, take as many off days as needed to not feel “overtrained”

OK, it’s now fifteen weeks from the big day, time to “ramp it up”. One of the best rules of thumb I have heard for those of us just trying to finish an IM is to take the IM distances, triple them, and make sure you get that amount of total mileage/month. So you want to get in 7.2 mi. of swimming, 336 mi. of biking, and 73.6 mi. of running each month. In my case, I easily go over that amount on swimming and running, but I have a hard time getting on the bike that much. Another important rule is to NEVER get off your bike without a run, even If you just run 1 mi. This teaches your legs what to do after they finish their biking chores (they learn this very quickly, but can forget, just as quickly).

During your three high-mileage months, try to get the following specific workouts as a minimum:
• One to two century rides, One fairly early on, and one around week 12, don’t forget to take a short run afterwards (yes I know, everyone else will be showering and eating, but just remember, they are “only cyclists”, how’s that for one below the belt). For the ’05 race, I never got a century ride beforehand. Instead, I got a 75 mi hilly bike on most every Saturday (about 3 per month). This seemed to be sufficient as I PR’d the bike in ’05, under worse conditions than the previous year. I think this will now become my norm, with maybe one century if I can work it into my schedule.
• One 20 mi. run around week 8. (However, for ‘04, I never had a run longer than 15.)
• Several fast-paced Bricks of 20 to 30 mi bike/5 to 6 mi run, I do these mid-week so as to not interfere with my weekend long runs or rides.
• Add several 8 mile lunchtime runs into the mix as well.
• The last three weeks are taper-time

However, I do use weeks 11 and 12 to get in some good quality long swims of at least 2 mi. I only average 8 to 12 hrs of training per week during these last three months. This should get you through an IM race, you won’t be up toward the front, heck you probably won’t even be mid-pack, but you should be able to finish in a respectable time, feeling good.

I have followed this plan for the last five years, and finished my first IM in 13:44, my second in 13:11, and my third in 12:58, my fourth in 12:08 (perfect weather conditions), my fifth in 12:03 and felt great at the finish line!

Year six was nearly perfect training-wise for me. I will document that schedule at the end of this article. I finished the 2007 race in 11:52, in spite of a super slow swim, and strong head winds on the bike.

During your long workouts, practice your eating and drinking as though it were race-day. Again, this is a situation where everyone is different, and now is the time to figure out what works for you. Here is what keeps me going nutritionally…
The week before the race, just eat normal, well-balanced meals. Two to three days before, start carb loading heavily, but keep the protein coming in as well. IM Florida is my race of choice, so it makes a great time to get some really good, protein-packed seafood. Race morning, get up early enough to do some serious eating. I eat French toast (heavy on the eggs), 2 to 3 bananas, a supplement bar or two, a supplement drink, and lots of sports drink. During the race; take a gel and some fluid after the swim. Take a supplement drink at every transition. On the bike, ride about 8 to 10 mi. to get settled in, and then start eating like a mad man. I try to eat as much as I comfortably can while on the bike.

My secret recipe biscuits, a mix of carb and protein supplement bars, bananas, and sports drink work for me. For ’05, I used only Zone bars, and bite-sized beef jerky which worked extremely well. The last 32 mi of the bike, I taper off the solid foods and start gels and LOTS of drink. If it’s not hot, take it a tad easy on the drink. If you have to stop and pee too often, you’re taking on too many fluids and will need additional sodium. During the run, I have a hard time eating solid food, so I concentrate on gels and sports drink, and work down a few pretzels at the aid stations as well as the chicken broth provided in the last half of the Marathon. In '04 I also drank small amounts of Coke with the chicken broth and liked it.

I also take the Hammer Gel Endurolites the whole day long, about two every hour. For ’06 I used only my homemade biscuits, zone bars, and Gatorade on the bike. I took 2 Endurolites every hour and started taking Ibuprofen with them about half way through the bike. For the run, I just took gels, Gatorade, and kept up with the Endurolites and Ibuprofen My stomach felt PERFECT all day long.

Give yourself three weeks to taper before race day. This doesn’t mean stop training and start guzzling beer and downing Twinkies. Taper the long rides to 50, then 40, then 25 miles. I kept up with my weekly 12 mi. runs, but lessened my weekday runs and/or skipped some of them. I don’t believe there is a need to taper the swimming. I use this time of reduced biking and running to get in some long swims.

The final week before race-day goes like this; Monday – 1 mi swim, Tuesday – off, Wednesday – 3-5 mi run with short speed bursts, Thursday – off, Friday 1/2 mi swim at race site (IMPORTANT!!!! - swim on the race course and take time to check out landmarks for sighting on race-day) and a very light bike.

A few brief words about equipment preparation. Make sure your wetsuit is comfortable for over an hour. Do a complete tune-up on your bike (or have it done by a professional) about 150 miles before race-day, this will leave time to work out any final bugs. At this same time, put on a new set of tires. You have spent countless hours of your time training, a small fortune on entry fee, motels and gas bills, food, gear etc., this is no time to be cheap and skimp on tires! Also, plan on packing a small tool kit, at least two spare tubes, and three compressed air bottles.

OK, you’re ready, and off to the race venue. If you are like me for my first IM, you will be totally confused about the “Special Needs” bags, here’s my plan of attack on that. You are given 5 bags to be accessed at different points during the day…
DRY CLOTHES BAG – put your pre-race warm-ups in here after you get out of them and put on your wetsuit. You can also put your tire pump in here after airing up your tires in the morning. This bag will be available to you at the finish, so you can get out of your nasty, salt-stained, smelly clothes and change into something warm and dry before heading off to the all-important MESAGE TENT.
SWIM TO BIKE BAG (T-1) – Helmet, bike shorts, bike shoes, sunglasses, PAM cooking spray, towel, gel, jersey, number belts, supplement drink, etc., everything you need for the ride. I will have food already stocked on my bike (along with bottles), and in my bike jersey.
BIKE SPECIAL NEEDS BAG – This is accessed half way through the bike. I use this to re-stock my jersey and bike with nutritional supplies, supplement drink, plus Vaseline, band-aids, etc.
BIKE TO RUN BAG (T-2) – Running shoes, PAM, singlet, running shorts, nutrition bar, supplement drink, hat, number belt, etc.
RUN SPECIAL NEEDS BAG – Accessed half way through the run. Spare running shoes (just in case), long-sleeved cool-max shirt, Ibuprofen, band-aids, Vaseline.

Another trick you can try with your special needs bags is stashing your favorite drink. I prefer my sports drink with extra salt, so I will freeze 1⁄2 bottle a day or two earlier, on race morning I add the salt and top off the bottle. I will then wrap the bottle up in a small towel, drop it in my special needs bag on race morning, and by the time I get to it, it will still be nice and cold. For the '04 race, I just put a completely frozen supplement drink in the bag, and counted on the aid stations for all my Gatoraide. Support on course is getting so good, for ’06 I only used this station to re-stock food.

A few notes on race-day. The IM swim is always a mass start, normally 2000 or more athletes! Be prepared to be hit, gouged, kicked, poked, swum over, etc., it’s something like WWF under water. Put your goggles on first, then your swim cap, this way if your goggles get kicked off, they will stay with you rather than becoming part of the ocean floor.

Don’t push the swim too hard, I consider this my warm-up for the day ahead, once the crowd thins out, just swim smooth and straight, sight often and enjoy. If you start waaay to the outside, it will be less crowded. You may think that would be covering a lot more distance, especially when standing there looking out to the buoys. We did a mathematical calculation and you will only be swimming THREE yards further.

Once you are on the bike, you need to have a pre-planned attack for nourishment and hydration, STICK TO IT! You will need a good bit of fuel to ride 112 mi, and oh yeah, there’s a Marathon after that. DON’T DRAFT !!! It’s just plain CHEATING, and makes the bike way too easy. I do the vast amount of my bike training alone or with triathletes, not roadies for just that reason. Even when I do organized century rides, I try not to get sucked into that fast pack, get out of it, so you can get down on the aerobars and simulate what race-day will really feel like, riding that far on your own power is WAY different than riding that far in a vacuum!

When you reach the marathon, in my opinion, you are almost there. This is a time to relax, concentrate on your stride and body position, enjoy being off the bike, and DON’T try for a marathon PR no matter how good you may feel. The best part of the run is the interaction you will have with the other athletes. Enjoy this time, as they will inspire you, and you will inspire them. Use the aid stations, get something to eat and plenty of drink. Bring it home feeling strong, and enjoy your accomplishment!

Post race week; you will most likely see people out the next day (still with their body numbers) biking or running (like 140+ mi. the previous day wasn’t enough), just remember THEY ARE GENETIC FREAKS! Mark Allen, retired pro triathlete, offers some excellent advice for the next week of your life. You may swim as soon as the next day if you feel so inclined, it will actually help loosen you up. Wait 3-4 days before biking. Wait one week before running, and do all of these in moderation.

Best of luck to you in your training, and I hope you enjoy the IM experience as much as I have. Please remember to thank as many volunteers and race officials as possible, they don’t get a dime, and without them, we wouldn’t be having all this fun!

(IRONMAN notes after year 5)

I just completed my 5th Ironman race in Florida. In five consecutive years, I have managed to better my time each year in spite of the “age-thing”.

This year I had a very good swim in spite of much choppier waters than the previous year. My goal here needs to be to get some swim coaching on stroke techniques to become more efficient (i.e. faster) in the water. Sight often, stay STRAIGHT and trust your instincts, not those of the fool in front of you who is swimming diagonally across the course. It is really amazing just how many Ironman Triathletes cannot swim straight in open water!
My transitions have been much faster each year, but need to work on making the change tent faster and MORE EFFICIENT. Work with specifically organizing the equipment and packing into the change bag so it comes out in order, and ready to put on.

I had no century rides prior to the race this year. Instead I choose to have many 75 mi rides at high intensity (hills), mixed with real hard rides of 20 to 30 miles on Wednesday nights with my friend Davy (followed by fast-paced 6 mi runs). I felt this to be sufficient as I PR’d the bike course on a hot, windy day. I also hydrated at a more reasonable level only having to dismount one time to relieve myself.

The area I need the most work on is the marathon, it needs to be much easier and less of a mental struggle for me. I think for the ‘06 season I need to run several actual marathons. I would suggest one in March, one in April, and one in late September. I managed to maintain about a 10:30 pace, but it took a lot of mental strength. I would really like to get the marathon down to a sub-10:00 pace.

The middle of summer should be used for sprint or Olympic distance races and working on speed and technique.
Continue weights and core strength training. I think this helped me substantially this year. The stronger your core is, the more power you generate and I seem to be able to maintain composure (posture) much better late in the run.

Live by Endurolites and the endurance-specific vitamins.

(Notes After ‘06)

This years race was awesome for me, I finished in 11:52 feeling great! My training this year was “spot-on”. I had kept up with weight training and core strength exercises all year long, and feel that really pays off in the marathon. The swim felt very good, I thought I was swimming a good pace, yet it turned out to be 8 min slower than the previous year? The bike headed out with the first 50 miles into a 14 to 20-mph head wind. We then had a great tail wind for about 20 miles … then the wind shifted (often the case in FL, with the sea breeze) and we battled more head winds. My bike split was 9 minutes slower than ’05, I figured my elusive goal of sub 12 hours was gone. But when I started the run, I felt quite good and ran a 4:11 marathon and never had that “really whipped” feeling.

(Getting Ready for IMFL ‘07)

I seem to always be experimenting with training for these long events. My speed right now is faster than it has ever been, so as August approaches I will start in on the long miles. I’m going to try this as a training recipe this year and see how it goes.

I plan to do a century ride each of the three months of my training period. This is something that has been lacking from my previous training. On weekends without a century, I will get a 50 to 75 mile ride on Saturday mornings. I will keep my Sunday morning 12 mile runs with a slow, gradual increase, but probably no more than 18 miles. Tuesday and Thursday I will get an 8 mile run. Wednesday will be a 30 ride/4-6 run brick. Monday and Friday will probably become rest days or weight lifting for upper body only. I’ll update you on this after Nov 3rd.