Decisions, Decisions...

I am planning on starting my training for the Memphis in May Olympic Triathlon next week. I have a goal time of a sub 2:40 that I want to get and I know I am capable of hitting. Last year I finished in 2:47, so I really thin I can hit a sub 2:40. Unfortunately  the coaching thing is not going to work out for me after-all  so I have been looking at training plans for the Olympic distance. I have narrowed it down to 3 plans that I got off of www.beginertriathlete.com (a great site for a wealth of info on doing triathlons). So now it is only a matter of deciding which plan I want to follow cause they are significantly different in 2 of the 3 triathlon segments.

In all three plans, the running mileage stays approximately the same, within 10 miles of each of the plans. Swimming is where there is a noticeable difference, one is 37k, one is 72k and the third is 97k. Biking is also a huge difference when comparing these plans. 1,282 miles, 1,340 miles and 1,734 miles respectively.

I based each of these plans off the following criteria: 19 week plan, swim 1:50/100 (which I might be faster than that) Bike: 19-20 mph and run of 8:50-9 minute miles. The workouts were setup for a total of 8-10 workouts a week. So here is the breakdown:

MIM 2013 Plan:
S:1:50/100        2 swims a week       1 rest day
B: 19mph          3 bikes a week
R: 9/mile            3 runs a week
Total yardage swim: 37, 150 yards
Total mileage biked: 1,282.70 miles
Total mileage ran: 340 miles


MIM Middle Plan:
S:1:50/100         2 swims a week       1 rest day
B: 19 mph          3 bikes a week
R: 9/mile            3 runs a week
Total yardage swim: 72,150 yards
Total mileage biked: 1,340.90 miles
Total mileage ran: 350.70 miles


MIM Sub 2:40 Plan:
S:1:50/100         3 swims a week       0 rest day
B: 19 mph          4 bikes a week
R: 9/mile            4 runs a week
Total yardage swim: 95,950 yards
Total mileage biked: 1,734.70 miles
Total mileage ran: 350.70 miles


Now, here are my concerns: These plans are only for January through May. If I looked at my total mileage for 2012 in total, I would surpass my bike mileage. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but I want to make sure I am not biting off more than I can chew since I have a family and a job that are pretty important to me. I also worry about not having any days offs with the SUB 2:40 plan. So how do I decide?




I think I have to look at each plan and see how it works out through the week. What will I be doing on Mondays, Tuesdays, etc... How does that fit into my schedule and how will that impact my family? Can I get it done in the mornings before the kids go to school? I know I will not make every workout listed, but which one of these plans is going to help me hit my goals. Plus, I will be training for IM after this race, which will be even more taxing and tougher!

So after writing it out and really thinking it over, I am going with the middle plan. To me, it makes the most sense and falls in line with my schedule and my capabilities. I also think this plan will help me reach that sub 2:40 goal for an Olympic distance race. In 2012, leading up to MIM I did the following miles/yards: Swim 66,830, biked 659 and ran 176. This plan will double my bike and running, which is where I need the most help. So here it what my plan will look like starting Jan 7, 2012.

Monday: run short and bike short
Tuesday: swim med (maybe a Master's class)
Wednesday: run med and bike med
Thursday: swim long (maybe Master's class)
Friday: Rest and Recover
Saturday: long run (may be leading a running group at church that morning)
Sunday: long bike

Putting this down on "paper" definitely helped me see which plan is best for me and helped me think through some aspects of each plan. I would highly suggest that you look through a plan and compare plans before you just pick one, not all plans a re the same!

Thanks for reading and Happy Training!

Time To Bring What I Brought...

One of the things I hate about New Years is resolutions, which is precisely why I have not not made any. Resolutions to me are things that sound like good goals to say for the benefit of other people, but you really have no intentions of doing those things. So why bother even writing them down?

My only goal is to "Bring It" in my workouts.  (previous post) I vowed to "Bring it" in every workout, so that it would be "bringable" on race day. And I have to say, I have been having some pretty strong workouts lately. I know it is early and I have only been in "Bringing it" mode for a week or two, but that dang post I wrote keeps popping up in my mind whenever I do not want to train. Those days when it is cold outside, or my schedule gets moved around, I still want to "bring it", because I said I would. It is sometimes a struggle to manage work, life, family, family, work and life and still try to be a well train, oiled machine. But they say, you make time for what is important to you. So, that means either early morning workouts, or late night workouts. I am still a husband and father first, and an age Grouper second.

So I think I have found a good schedule for me. It is an Olympic based training plan that has a balanced workout schedule, meaning I swim, bike and run three times a week. The 9th is a Monday.

Monday is a short swim, medium bike for me. The bike is usually a trainer ride right now due to it being dark early and all, but it works out for me.
Tuesday  is a  long swim. Mostly intervals, but always has a drill set in there (still loving the closed fist drill)
Wednesday Medium run, and this is a focus of mine, I have been adding repeats to this workout because I really want to get faster on the run portion.
Thursday is a medium swim and a short bike
Friday is my longest run.
Saturday is a long bike and short run
Sunday is rest day.

Some interesting things about this schedule:

1. I find it weird to call a 7 mile run, my long run after my marathon training.
2. I purposely decided to go run heavy on the back end of the week because I wanted to get used to running on tired legs.
3. I did not intend to swim three times a week, however; the extra fitness should have me coming out of the water in better shape and not grasping for air.
4. Once the weather gets nicer, the Saturday bike/run brick will benefit me alot.
5. My resolve attitude has been totally different this year than any year in the past.

I really want under 2:45 this year at MIM. My previous best was 2:57, which was two years ago. Is 12 minutes faster to much to shoot for? I have never been very good at setting time goals in races before, but I honestly think I can go sub 2:45, which would be great for me. So, yeah, that's my goal, my resolution, my time to bring what I have brought! OK that makes no sense, but I am looking for good things to happen at MIM this year.