Signed up for your first Ironman or Half Ironman this year? Congratulations! It can be quite the journey and such a great experience. However, all the information you read and hear can be overwhelming. The following is my collection of the best advice for those venturing into the longer distances for the first time.
- Follow YOUR Plan – While social media has a lot of advantages, one of the biggest disadvantages is that you seem to know what everyone else’s training is like – how far they are riding or how many miles they are running, etc. This makes you start to wonder why you aren’t putting in the same time into your training. The fact is – 95 percent of these athletes are doing it WRONG! When you decided to sign up for your event, you likely hired a coach or searched for a training plan that you wanted to follow. Stick to your plan and do not let what anyone else is doing change the way you are training for your event.
- Know the Course – Make sure you spend some time not just checking out the elevation of the bike and run course, but also know what the “normal” temperatures are for the day of your event, and be aware of quick turns, loops and knowing where “special needs” will be (if you are doing an Ironman). You want to train for your specific course and make sure you have the right gear and equipment to help you put forth the best race possible. This means a different cassette for flat courses and hilly courses and maybe extra layers of clothing if the weather has a tendency to cool down quickly as the sun goes down.
- Listen to Your Body – No matter what your coach prescribes for you or what is written in on your training plan, if you are feeling something not right – whether it be illness or injury, you need to adjust accordingly. It is not wise to “train through the pain.” This is not saying to always go easy; some hard workouts are going to “hurt,” but identify the difference between a good hurt and a bad hurt. Keep the big picture in mind and if you have a small nagging pain in your knee, better to figure it out now and get healthy again than it is to run through it hoping it will go away.
- Avoid Over Training – This is a big one. Almost every single first-time Ironman athlete has a tendency to over train. Sure, there are some who show up grossly undertrained, but that is the minority of the athletes. Endurance events can be daunting and many of us are “Type A” personalities and we believe we need to put in more and more training time to be prepared. The fact is, it is better to show up just a little undertrained than even just a little over trained. Ideally, you will be trained perfectly, but to err on the side of caution, lean towards doing just a little less. Particularly in those taper weeks, an extra ride, run or swim is never going to help you, but definitely can hurt you.
- Schedule Rehearsal Days – Many athletes skip this step. However, if you want to have your best possible race, it is critical to add in a few of these in your training. This means eating what you plan on eating the day before the race and the morning of. Wear exactly what you plan to wear in your race. Fuel yourself exactly as you plan to fuel yourself during your race. Wait, you don’t plan on stopping for a turkey sandwich half way through your 112 mile bike ride? Then don’t do it on your training ride. It is important to know how you and your body react when you put yourself into the race day scenario. If you skip one little step, it could mean the difference between having the race you planned for and having to walk half of the run portion.
- Pace Yourself – Pacing is likely one of the top 3 mistakes that Ironman athletes make (not even first-timers, majority of experienced athletes also do this). Endurance sports are just that – endurance. It takes a huge amount of discipline and control to hold back on the bike and early parts of the run when you know you can go faster. Often you will hear people brag about a killer bike split, however, if you can’t back it up with a strong run, then you have done yourself a disservice. It is possible to have a good bike followed by a strong run – if you have paced yourself correctly. The hardest part is to control yourself when you see people passing you left and right on the bike. Let them go. Do your race. The best race you will ever have is when you stick to your plan and listen to your body.
Want more tips? Check out my blog here.
Have a great racing season!
Train Right, Tri Right,
Coach MJ
