Triathlete Training Podcast: Triathlon, Ironman & Duathlon

Subscribe via iTunes Ironman Boulder Champion Justin Daerr It took Justin Daerr 29 attempts to win his first Ironman.  His victory came in his hometown of Boulder on August 3, 2014.  Justin's progression has been slow and steady, backed by intelligent training and planning. We talk about his progression and decisions that led him to become an Ironman champion. Justin shares lessons and tips that athletes of all levels will benefit from. Highlights of our talk: Ironman Boulder Result - 1st, 53:21 swim, 4:24 bike, 2:56 run, 8:20:26 final time Justin prefers to swim in a sleeveless wetsuit over a sleeved wetsuit, and he says swims faster, even though sleeved wetsuits are proven faster. He trains 22-25 hours/week during his bigger volume. First Ironman was 12:55 at California in 2001. He's a partner in EnduranceCorner.com He was coached early in his career by Joe Friel. His current coach is Cliff English. During an intense, race prep, 5 hour ride he takes 2000 calories, similar to a race.  His source

Subscribe via iTunes Half Ironman Prep/Second Year Triathlon Training Questions Tony Ruales is a second year triathlete preparing for his first half ironman.  He asks some pertinent but unique training questions which haven't been covered on previous podcasts. Topics include: How much should and when will this race hurt Goal power on the bike How to pace the half marathon Affects of blood pressure medication on heart rate Intensity vs volume His race is the New Jersey Half Shoreman in September 2014. Subscribe via iTunes

Subscribe via iTunes PhD Micah Zuhl Micah is a professor at Central Michigan University and he shares his research and experience. GI Distress & Glutamine Supplementation He has published research on GI distress during intense training.  His studies have found that doses of glutamine can help prevent leaky gut and reduce the likelihood of GI distress. The oral doses used in his study were .9g per kg of fat free mass (lean body mass) per day, spread out over three doses, for a period of 7 days.  His studies on the topic were published in the Journal of Applied Physiology (Jan 15, 2014) and also Cell Stress & Chaperones (July 26, 2014). Note that their may be side effects of glutamine use. Pregnant and breast feeding women may want to avoid supplementation. WebMd list potential side effects here.  As with any supplement, take responsibility for your decisions and do proper research and consultation with your doctor in advance. High Intensity Training We also discussed the benefits of high intensity interv

Subscribe via iTunes Chuck Wolf Chuck joins the show to talk about strength and flexibility for triathletes.  Chuck is the Director of Human Motion Associates in Orlando, Florida.  He's worked with top athletes in several sports. Chuck was a speaker at one of my triathlon camps in Florida, and he's had excellent success overcoming injury issues experienced by two of my triathlete friends. His website is HumanMotionAssociates.com  Subscribe via iTunes    

Subscribe via iTunes "It’s a resource for athletes to become empowered to think about the way that they approach their sport and give some insight into my methodology and to steer athletes to look through the correct lens of how to approach performance and how to improve over the long term." Coach Matt Dixon Matt is a San Francisco based coach to several pros and age group athletes.  He discusses his new book, The Well-Built Triathlete.  This comprehensive book is packed full of great information for triathletes, and it's one I would recommend to any triathlete.  In the podcast interview he gives more insight into his methodology and experience. Matt's website: PurplePatchFitness.com Twitter @purplepatch   Subscribe via iTunes

Subscribe via iTunes Postrace Half Ironman Interview With Rodrigo Rodrigo is back for a follow up interview after the Syracuse 70.3 Half Ironman.  Rodrigo was the guest in episode 33, an interview we did in early April, as he was preparing for this June 22, 2014 race. He finished in a time of 6:07:02. His swim time was 40 minutes, bike time  3:09, and run time 2:07.  His normal training week consisted of 3 swims, 2 bikes, and 3 runs.  In addition to training and working, he and his wife had a baby boy 3 weeks before the race. Subscribe via iTunes

Subscribe via iTunes Half Ironman Training Questions Rodrigo Chaves is the guest for this episode and we discuss several questions based around half ironman training.  Rodrigo lives in New Jersey and 2014 is his second season of racing triathlons. He’s competed in running races for the last 4 years and he’s been swimming for 8 years. He is training for the Syracuse Half Ironman 70.3 on June 22.   Be sure to check out episode 34 for his post-race interview. Here are his questions that we discussed in the interview: General 1. What's the common volume of training for a person on their second season training for their first half? I feel like my training compared to others might have too much volume. Here's the breakdown: Mon: Morning swim, Night Bike (20 - 25 miles) Tue: Morning swim, NIght Run (35 - 45 min) Wed: Night Bike (30 - 35 miles) Thu: Morning swim, Night Run (40 - 60 min) Fri: Off Sat: Long bike ride (30 - 50 miles), Run (3 miles easy) Sun: Long run (8 - 10 miles) 3 swims, 3 bikes for 5-6 hours,

Subscribe via iTunes Ben Sharp of Stages Cycling I interview Ben Sharp of Stages Cycling about the Stages Power Meter.  Ben was a coach for USA Cycling from 2007 to 2013 before joining Stages.  The Stages Power Meter runs $700-$900 plus a head unit, such as a Garmin or even an iPhone. I was an SRM user and I did this interview because I was genuinely curious about this lower cost power meter.  I came away persuaded that it is an excellent option. Ben points out some of the advantages: Lower cost Easy  assembly and setup. It can easily be switched between bikes. Simple maintenance and firmware updates Ben stated that accuracy is within 2%.  Power is measured only from the left crank. StagesCycling.com   Are Saunas The Next Big Performance Enhancing "Drug" The Five Fingers Settlement Didn't Settle the Barefoot Running Debate Subscribe via iTunes  

Subscribe via iTunes Dan Dungan At Ironman Texas Dan Dungan started racing triathlons in 1999 with the Memphis and May. His first Ironman was in 2000.   Going into 2014 he had started 20 Ironmans, finishing 17, but had never qualified for Ironman Hawaii.  He was persistent in his training, he learned each year, and at Ironman Texas in 2014 he took another shot at qualifying. Dan and I discussed his progression over the years, the lessons learned, and his strategy for Ironman #21.  He’s consulted with Gordo Byrn for several years and continued to modify his approach. At age 57 he was racing in the 55-59 age group and the expectation, which wouldn't be confirmed until the morning after the race, was that there would be just two Ironman Hawaii spots in his age group. In his previous 3 Ironmans he had a third place and two fifth places in his age group, and the gap between his time and the time required to qualify was narrowing. As a weak swimmer he decided to do a major swim block in early 2014.  For 6 week

1. Vibram Five Finger Shoes 2. Intensity factor for different distances If you use a power meter and know your functional threshold power (FTP), you can use the following intensity factor guide for your racing.  An intensity factor of .70 means your should be racing at 70% of your FTP.   These numbers are taken from Joe Friel's Power Meter Handbook page 73. Ironman age group .60-.70 Ironman elite .70-.79 Half ironman age group .70-.79 Half ironman elite .80-.89 Olympic and sprint triathlon .90-1.04 3. How to train on a tight schedule. 4. Heat Acclimation From Journal of Applied Physiology in October of 2010.  Twelve trained cyclist were studied vs a control group of 8 cyclist.  They underwent VO2 max and lactate threshold tests before and after the 10 day study. The test group completed 10 cycling workouts at 40 Celsius/104 Farenheit totaling 1.5 hours. The test group trained at 13 Celsius/55 Farenheit because this is thought to be optimum for aerobic performance. After the 10 day trial trial the test

Subscribe via iTunes Aerodynamics With David Ripley of Zipp In addition to working for Zipp, David is also a bike fitter and consultant for 51 Speed Shop. Topics discussed include: The Four restrictive properties working against you on the bike are: 1. Aerodynamics 2. Gravity 3. Drivetrain Friction 4. Road Friction 75-80% of aerodynamic drag comes from the body.  The wheels are the second greatest source of drag.  Components are next, and the frame is last.   Weight doesn't become a significant factor until the grade hits 6% for an extended period of time.  A good clincher and latex tube compared to a poor tire and a butyl tube can result in a 10-11 watt difference per tire.   He recommends air pressure of 100psi for a 150 pound rider on a tri bike on a smooth road.  On a rough road a slightly lower tire pressure is recommended.  Biggest bang for your buck in aerodynamics  Vibram Five Finger Shoes A 10 week study published in the July 2013 issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise compared tw

Subscribe via iTunes Shawn Deal Half Ironman Training Questions My guest is second year triathlete Shawn Deal from Springfield Missouri. Shawn did a few triathlons and duathlons last year and this year he’s gearing up for the Kansas 70.3 Half Ironman on June 8. Shawn is finishing his Masters in Divinity on May 3. He has a triathlon on May 4 and the Olympic distance Memphis in May Triathlon on May 18.  In June he will do the Half Ironman Kansas 70.3 triathlon. Shawn is a member of the Ozark Multisport Club (http://www.go-omc.com).  In his first triathlon last year Shawn was pulled under water early in the swim and didn’t finish the race.  After the race he questioned whether to continue with the sport, but several members of his club offered support and he stuck with it.  They even offered a surprise gift to help him with his racing this year. I answer several of Shawn’s questions regarding adding run intensity, volume, race day nutrition, doing an Ironman, and more. Subscribe via iTunes

Subscribe via iTunes “The best time to lose weight is in the off-season when that restriction is not going to compromise energy levels as much. However, it is feasible to lose weight in the midst of training.” Author, Athlete, & Dietitian Kim Mueller Kim is the guest for episode 27.  She is a Registered Dietitian, a board certified specialist in Sports Dietetics, owner of Fuel Factor Nutrition Coaching, co-creator of and staff nutritionist at Infinit Nutrition, author of “The Athletes Guide to Sports Supplements” (Human Kinetics, 2013), and a former All-American Triathlete.  She is currently focusing on running with a goal of  qualifying for the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials in LA. Kim is a big proponent of making diet the primary component to health.  We covered a wide range of topics, including weight loss, supplements, hydration, sodium intake, caloric intake, and much more. On weight loss, Kim advises her clients to use up to 500 calories of their workout expenditure to incur a deficit for healthy fat l

Training Questions First year triathlete Ryan Lewis joins the show to ask his training questions.  Ryan is a 30 year old triathlete with 3 months of training under his belt and he is less than a month away from his first triathlon. Topics covered include: Crossfit and triathlon at the same time Paleo diet and carb intake needed for training Open water swimming prep and drills Adding run intensity Should he get a wetsuit? Zero drop shoes Aerobars And more... It's easy to get overwhelmed with the information and equipment choices available to triathletes. Ryan wisely makes the choice to keep things simple during his first year in the sport. Basic Drills & Skills For Open Water Swimming 1. Turn around before the wall - during a segment of your workout turn around without the help of the wall, either with or without a flip turn. 2. Learn bilateral breathing - learn to breathe to the left and to the right so you can make adjustments in the open water.  If you're staring into the sunrise every time you breathe

“When you think about this concept of heat acclimatization, it’s mostly about your body holding on to more water, which is mostly about sweating. Probably 90% of that is done by simply sweating a lot when you train, and what we are talking about is what can you do to get that up even a little bit higher but we are probably talking like 10 or 15% improved acclimatization.” George Dallam Episode 25 George Dallam returns to the show to talk heat acclimation, which is a means of adapting to heat in an artificial manner. If you live in a cool climate and you are preparing for a warm race methods for adapting include: 1. Wear additional clothes to induce sweating 2. Turn up the heat and use a humidifier while training indoors 3. Soaking in a hot tub at 100-105 degrees. George's protocol for hot tub use involves daily hot tub sessions in the two weeks prior to your goal race.  Start out at 15 minutes per day and gradually work up to as much as 60 minutes in the tub.  Your training volume should be dropping at t

Susan McNamee attempted her first triathlon at age 61 in 2013 and also attempted her first Ironman that same year. This is her story. Within one year of signing up for Ironman Wisconsin Susan had to learn how to swim across the pool, and then she had to learn open water swimming. She panicked during the swim in her first couple triathlons, but finished both.  She completed a half Ironman in August in preparation for Wisconsin on September 8. Knowing she was signed up for two Ironmans in 2014 she started the day being okay if she didn't finish by the midnight cutoff.   She finished the swim in 2:19:45, just 15 seconds before the 2:20 cutoff.  To be an official finisher she had to finish by midnight.  She takes us through her race day and her attempt to finish before midnight.    

Subscribe via iTunes Blood Monitoring Garret Rock joins the show.  Garret is an exercise physiology specialist and Doctor of Chiropractic and sports nutrition specialist.  He does blood testing for both age group and professional triathletes.  He has done over 800 blood tests on professional triathletes. His services are available through fiftyonespeedshop.com and he works at South Pointe Clinics in Colorado.  He charges roughly $120-$170 per analysis. During the interview he gives an example of work he has done with Liz Blatchford. Liz finished third at Ironman Hawaii in 2013.  Over the course of several weeks Liz made the following changes in her blood measurements:   Test #1 2 Weeks Later 10 Days Later 3 Weeks Later Hemoglobin 12.4 12.7 13 14.4 Hematocrit 37.7 38.2 40.2 46.6 Liz was feeling fine when she had her first blood test, but Garret noticed a folate deficiency. With his help, which included some creative smoothie recipes that included beets and other

Subscribe via iTunes I interview Anchorage based triathlete Tim Conrad and answer his training questions.  Tim is relatively new to triathlons and is preparing for the 2014 season.  His training began while he was based in Afghanistan serving in the United States Army. Topics include: Is a low heart rate based training program useful? How many bricks are appropriate? How to prepare when the next race is 6 months away. A standard training week, and basic planning tips. When is a good time to do a first Ironman. Subscribe via iTunes

Subscribe via iTunes Questions From a First Year Triathlete I interview first year triathlete Randy Messman and answer his training questions.  Randy was one of the show's listeners who responded to a request on the Triathlete Training Facebook page.  He is training for the TexasMan X-50 Tri in May with a distance of 1 mile swim/40 mile bike/9 mile run.  Messman became interested in triathlon after watching a Dick Hoyt video on Facebook. His questions include: How do I reduce decoupling of heart rate and pace? Randy runs at a very easy heart rate on the treadmill and finds his heart rate increases significantly yet the effort still feels easy and his pace doesn't change. How much speed should I expect to gain in my first year? How do I determine LT using a field test? Should I train in zones 4 and 5 if I'm racing for a longer event? What is the minimum number of training sessions I need each week for each event? Subscribe to podcast via iTunes

  Subscribe via iTunes Mat Steinmetz In 2012 Inside Triathlon named him as one of triathlon's most influential people.   Boulder based coach Mat Steinmetz has worked with several top athletes as a coach, consultant, and/or bike fitter.  Those athletes include Ironman Hawaii winner Craig Alexander and Liz Blatchford. This year he performed the bike fits for the top 3 women at Ironman Hawaii. Mat got his masters degree in exercise physiology from Ball State, and in 2009 he began working for bike fit company Retul in Boulder.  He no longer works for Retul but he continues to perform bike fits and coach athletes. In this interview we talk about his work with Craig Alexander, Liz Blatchford, Ironman strategy, crank length, cadence, and more. Links Mat's coaching website: www.fiftyonespeedshop.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/matsteinmetz Mat's February 19-24 2014 Camp in Palm Springs, California   Subscribe to podcast via iTunes