As an athlete and coach I have, over the years, developed a number of training programs to develop the athletic abilities of myself and the athletes I have worked with. As many coaches will tell you, and quite rightly so, a training program has to be developed to meet the individual needs of the athlete and take into consideration many factors: gender, age, strengths, weaknesses, objectives, training facilities etc. As all athletes have different needs a single program suitable for all athletes is not possible.
What I have attempted to do is to provide an insight into a season's training program for an athlete competing in an Ironman Triathlon. This program will require modification to meet your or your athlete's needs and should be reviewed in conjunction with the information on the planning page.
If the athlete is under 18 years of age then I do recommend that you read the page on coaching young athletes.
Any application of this training program is at the athlete's own discretion and risk.
Before You Start
Prior to starting any training program it is recommend that the athlete has a medical examination to ensure it is safe for him/her to do so.
Ironman - facts and figures
The Ironman comprises of a 3.8 kilometre swim, a 180 kilometre cycle ride and finally a 42 kilometre run. The event can take an athlete anywhere between 8 and 17 hours to complete.
During the race an athlete can expect to expend 8,500 to 11,500 kilocalories and loose up to 2 litres of fluid per hour.
To maintain blood glucose levels carbohydrate needs to be consumed, preferably in liquid form (sports drinks) so as to speed up the rate of absorption from the stomach into the bloodstream.
Dehydration is the most likely reason why an ironman athlete will require medical attention during a race. Loss of fluid and electrolyte result in elevated core temperatures and reduced performance. The loss of fluid also upsets the electrolyte balance and in particular a lower sodium level (hyponatraemia) which is characterised by muscular weakness, dizziness, headache, fall in blood pressure, rapid heart beat and shock. Severe sodium loss can result in mental confusion, stupor and coma. Fluid and sodium consumption during a race are therefore very important.
Another factor to consider is that choline levels drop dramatically when you exercise continuously for approximately two hours or more. if your choline levels fall too far, acetylcholine production can come to a relative standstill, and your nerve cells will simply refuse to stimulate your muscles
Overview of the Training program
The seasons training plan is based on six phases where each phase comprises of a repeated four week program. The work load in the first three weeks of the four week program increase each week (easy, medium, hard) and the fourth week comprises of active recovery and tests to monitor training progress. The aim of the four week cycles is to:
Build you up to a level of fitness (3 weeks)
Test, recovery and adjustment of the training program (1 week)
Build you up to higher level of fitness (3 weeks)
Test, recovery and adjustment of the training program (1 week)
Build you up to an even higher level of fitness (3 weeks)
and so on
Remember a training program is athlete specific and the results of the tests in the fourth week can be used to adjust the training in the next four week cycle to address any limitations.
The content and quantity of training in each week and phase will depend on many factors. The Planning page provides an insight into the process of data gathering and preparing training programs
Example Training Plan & programs
The objective of each phase, with links to examples of a season's training plan and four week training programs for phases 1, 2 and 3, are as follows:
Training Plan - General overview of the season by phases
Phase 1 - General development of strength, mobility, endurance and basic technique
Phase 2 - Development of specific fitness and advanced technical skills
Phase 3 - Competition experience - achievement of qualification times for main competition
Phase 4 - Adjustment of technical model, preparation for the main competition
Phase 5 - Competition experience and achievement of outdoor objectives
Phase 6 - Active recovery - planning preparation for next season
The content of the four week programs in phases four and five depends very much on the athletes progress and competition races. Your aim in these phases is to address any limitations the athlete may have in order to bring him/her to a peak of performance for the major competition in phase five.
Training Activities
The following are links to the appropriate page for the activities identified on the training programs.
Circuit Training
Conditioning Leg
Conditioning Lower leg
Conditioning Upper Body
Evaluation Tests
Plyometrics
Stretching Exercises
Warm up and warm down
Weight Training
Training Pace
The intensity for each session is given in terms of a percentage of the event distance target time. e.g. run for 40 minutes at race pace +15%. If the athlete's target time for the 10km is 36 minutes then at race pace + 15% their time for 10k would be 41 mins 24 secs (36*1.15). This equates to running at 4 min 8 sec pace per kilometre and in 40 minutes you would cover approx 9.7 kilometres.</span></span>
Triathlon harjoittelu
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