At the risk of sounding like those commercials that promise you can loose a bunch of weight while still eating any and everything, I’m going to let you in on how to get faster by doing nothing. Well, not exactly nothing, but you won’t have to raise your heart rate, put out 300 watts, or really even break a sweat. What I’m getting at is that there are several ways to become a faster triathlete while sitting at home.

First, you can easily stretch while watching your favorite nightly programming. Just sprawl out on the floor and work those tight spots out. You can easily incorporate a good routine that fits within the usual 30 minute TV show. While you’re at it, why not take it to the next level and incorporate some self body-work. Use devices such as The Stick, or the T.P. Massage Kit to really break up trigger points or lengthen your IT band. In fact, I am rolling out the arches of my feet while I write this! While you want to remain focused on what you are trying to accomplish, you can still follow the basic plot of today’s programs.

Take the minimal effort to drive yourself to your local massage therapist, chiropractor, physical therapist, acupuncturist, the list is endless, and get some professional body-work. We spend so much time beating up our bodies that we need to replenish and rejuvenate as well. When your body is functioning correctly you will be able to get the most from your body and your training. Third, track your progress and look over your program. Hopefully you are using some form of tracking, either a web based program like TrainingPeaks, or the simple pen and paper method. Either way, by logging your workouts, you are able to look back on what was effective and what didn’t work. Look for trends in your training. When did you have good workouts? Can you pinpoint anything specific about the lead in to that workout or period?

On the subject of tracking your training, try tracking your recovery. For one week take note of the time you spend stretching, doing yoga or your hour massage. We all know that recovery is the key to strong training and faster racing, so why not track it like we do our weekly yardage or hours? TrainingPeaks.com even allows its members to track their nutrition. Once a month note what you eat every day for one week. The system allows you to compare your calories expended with your calories taken in, so you can see if you are in a calorie deficit, or surplus. This is useful if you are trying to determine your optimum training or racing weight.

Finally, and the ultimate in terms of ease of use and price, SLEEP! Take your sleep patterns seriously. If you regularly get less than 7 hours of sleep per night, try getting 8 for one week and see the difference. Once you experience the extra energy, you won’t be so tempted to watch Jay Leno. Adding in naps is great too. I deem a twenty minute snooze as a N.A.P, or Natural Adaptation Process. It is the most basic and effective form of recovery, and it’s free.

So, with very little effort you can take your training to a new level. The key is to just get started and incorporate these modalities into your daily routine. Try any one of the suggestions above and see the results for yourself, or your money back!

This month, I had the privilege of being in Kona to cover the race for several magazines. Being present throughout the day and attending the Pro press conference afterward, I gleaned valuable insights from the athletes that I believe can benefit triathletes in their training and racing endeavors. Here are a few tips to consider:

1. **Take calculated risks:** Chris McCormack, the eventual winner, took a risk by exerting extra effort to join the front group of riders on the second half of the bike leg. Recognizing the need to gain an advantage over super runner and defending Champion Craig Alexander, McCormack's bold move paid off, ultimately positioning him for victory. Age group athletes can similarly assess their strengths and race strategically, understanding that taking calculated risks is often necessary to elevate their performance.

2. **Strive for well-roundedness:** Caroline Steffen, the second-place woman, attributed her improved performance to her revamped training regimen. Previously self-coached, Steffen acknowledged that she approached each discipline separately, resulting in suboptimal performance. However, under her new coach's guidance, she focused on developing a more comprehensive skill set, which enabled her to overtake competitors on the run and secure a second-place finish. Triathletes should aim to be well-rounded in their training to excel across all disciplines.

3. **Stay mentally resilient:** Craig Alexander's comeback from a significant deficit underscores the importance of mental resilience in Ironman racing. Despite trailing by over 15 minutes off the bike, Alexander remained unfazed, confident in his ability to execute a strong marathon. Even when faced with challenges during the run, Alexander maintained his composure, ultimately posting the second-fastest run split of the day. Amateur athletes should remember that the race is never over, and maintaining mental fortitude can lead to unexpected turnarounds.

4. **Prioritize nutrition:** McCormack's decision to prioritize nutrition when challenged by Andreas Raelert emphasizes the critical role of fueling in endurance events. Rather than succumbing to panic, McCormack recognized the importance of addressing his nutritional needs to prevent cramping, a recurring issue for him. By taking the time to replenish his body's fuel stores, McCormack ensured he remained strong for the remainder of the race. Triathletes should prioritize understanding their nutritional requirements and ensuring they are adequately fueled during competition to avoid performance setbacks.

These insights from seasoned professionals offer valuable lessons that all triathletes can incorporate into their training and racing strategies. By adopting these principles, athletes can optimize their performance and strive for success in their pursuits.

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An athlete races at peak performance by making sure the body is fueled correctly. This is not just about the morning of the start but also approaching race day as well.

Eat softer foods leading up to the race. Eating foods that are high in fiber and protein can make your stomach hurt on race day. Since it takes quite a while for food to move through your system, you should start limiting these items starting about two days out. Look for softer, easier-to-eat foods and snacks instead, such as pasta. Eggs are a great source of protein that are easy to digest as well. A bad idea would be to eat a kale salad and steak the night before race day.

Don’t carb load. When you taper for a race, you are not consuming the calories you were when you were training. Just keep eating like you did while you were training, and that is effectively carb-loading. There is no need to go out of your way to eat even more than that. Eat extra food, and your guts get stuffed with too much work to do, making you feel slow and sluggish on race day.

Get down to your best weight as you train. On your path to getting down to your best race weight, you should be eating logically the closer you get to race week. This is when you should be looking for foods high in fiber, making you feel fuller so you don’t overeat every day. There is plenty of protein in most foods, so you don’t have to go crazy looking for protein all the time. Keep your eye open for the opportunity to eat it, but it’s not the most important thing that your life should revolve around. If you find yourself hungry at the end of the day, consider eating more healthy fats. Avocados and olive oil are full of the stuff and will give you the extra calories your body has been telling you need in a nice and healthy package. Bread and processed starches and sugars should be kept at a respectful distance. These jack up your blood sugar quickly, and then let it drop again, messing with your energy levels. Eating these all the time teaches your body to prefer those for fuel instead of longer-burning and more energy-containing fats.

Never eat processed snacks. Doughnuts, bags of chips, slurpees, candy bars; these are all a bad idea. If it doesn’t grow in nature, don’t eat it. It’s not food.

Feel good with real nutrition. Real, whole foods will make you feel great, and there really is no other way to eat healthily for life. The one thing most people need to do is add in more leafy greens and veggies. Have a salad every day, snack on carrots and cucumber slices, and you can’t go wrong. As race day nears, transition over to lower fiber fruits and veggies like watermelon and potatoes and you are good to go!

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September marks the transition to fall for most people, bringing kids starting school, cooler days, and the winding down of the summer triathlon race season. Often, we're left feeling a little shortchanged by the end of summer or the race season, feeling like we still have something left to prove. Sometimes we feel exhausted and thankful that we're done, but most athletes end up asking, "WHAT'S NEXT?"

This often becomes the time when many race-addicted athletes start planning a fall or winter running training and racing off-season. Maybe it's getting a little too cool to swim in open water, and perhaps it's getting dark a little too early for that long after-work bike ride. But now that it's a little cooler, it's perfect running weather! Maybe you really want to try your first half marathon in this "off-season," or perhaps you want to work on your run for next season's triathlons. Either way, starting a training program to focus on running for a bit might be just the thing to do next.

But will "just" running get boring? One of the best ways to improve running speed and performance and to break up a stale running schedule is to include in your training at least three different types of run workouts: endurance or over-distance, tempo, and intervals. And the intervals can vary a whole lot from hill repeat intervals to speed intervals. Although most of your run workouts may focus on building endurance, spicing up your routine with these key workouts as part of your regular training will teach your body variety, get you out of your comfort zone (necessary for improvement), and help you shave some time off that next race. Plus, you might actually ENJOY some of these workouts.

When you're looking at any run training program, don't just look at the time or distance of the run prescribed. READ the fine print and get the maximum benefit of the workouts. One of the most common things I see coaching runners is that they say, "Yes, I followed the program." They did the time and the mileage, but sometimes they don't follow the intervals and the INTENT of the workout. So next time you're looking at a running plan, look for the INTENT of the workouts and make sure you understand that before you go on with it.

So, what is the intent of the workout? Many people might think that running faster simply means training harder or training more. This isn't necessarily the case. There are several components to running performance, and if we work on only ONE of them, we might be leaving a whole lot on the table to be gained. To get a more complete picture, we want to look at cardiovascular fitness (base endurance), aerobic capacity, lactate threshold, anaerobic capacity, speed skills, muscular strength and endurance, and overall running economy. A good run training program will incorporate runs that work on at least a few of these areas to improve your running.

The key is to follow EACH workout's intent. I coach many athletes who will ignore one type of run or another. When I prescribe an EASY run, it is to develop the cardiovascular system, not to work on aerobic endurance or intensive endurance. When I prescribe tempo intervals, it is to work on intensive endurance and try to raise the threshold, not simply to get in base mileage. So next time you're looking at a running program, REALLY look at what it has to offer. And then really follow the intent of each workout. You may find more success if you're following the path.

So "what's next?" Maybe this fall, embrace the run season and embrace a new run program that can keep you interested AND help you improve.

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Everything I Know about Triathlon, I learned in Kindergarten

Remember when you used to go to the neighborhood pool on the weekend and spend endless hours swimming and playing games with your friends? How about going outside and playing kick the can from the time school was finished and your homework was accomplished! You played until your mom yelled down the street to come in as it was getting dark and it was time to eat dinner? Riding your bike to your friend's house was fun, and riding it to the mall meant freedom. You never thought of any of these as exercise. It was just fun! Triathlon is just an extension of our childhood playtime.

If your mindset was like when you were a child, just fun and no expectations, your open water swim could be thought of in that manner. I hear of many triathletes struggling with the swim portion mainly because they stress out because they feel somewhat claustrophobic. Just relax and swim! When did you stress out as a child playing in the pool? Think of your open water swim as a game, just like when you were young. When you are in the pool, try breaking up the swim into little pieces. For example, I will make it to the wall like I am Michael Phelps. Or, if I swim like Sarah McClarty, she would be swimming long and strong. All of these little games will help you to relax during a race and not think about everything else around you.

How about the bike? I remember my friends and I riding to our favorite spot on our BMX bikes and just riding easily on the way there. When we got to our little dirt track, then we would ride like hell! Wow, that's oddly similar to my ride last week, which consisted of an easy warm-up with some intervals in the middle. We cannot go hard all the time or we will be training the wrong system all the time. If we go easy all the time, we will learn to be slow all the time. When you were a kid, you knew when you were tired and you rested. As adults, we need to learn to rest as well. Listen to your body like you did as a child. If you are too tired to do the next interval, then rest longer or call it a day. We knew a lot about ourselves as kids, and we should relearn to do the same as adults.

Playing kick the can and hide and go seek were all about having fun and racing your buddy to get to the "can" first. (No, not the porta potty, the tin can. I know what you were thinking!) So now that we are older, we need to remember to mix it up on the run as well. I remember as a kid I could run all day long, but didn't think of it as endurance. As adults, we can incorporate fartlek runs (Meaning speed play in Swedish). I just love to say that word at parties. During a long run, add in some speed. For example, "I will run to the tree down there at a 5k pace." Adding in these types of runs can help with leg turnover and form. You should also think a little about where your foot lands. When you are running with good technique, you should land on your midfoot, or think about leaning from the ankles during these harder efforts, and you will get faster. Be a kid again and have some fun racing your friends to the next road marker. Just mix up the pace!

What about transitions? I regularly see kids get their shoes on and off faster than many adults. Kids get lots of practice, so spend some time practicing your transitions. Kids don't think about all the stuff they need to put on to go outside and play; in their mind all they need is their shoes. So be a minimalist in transition and put only what you need next to your bike. Most kids don't even tie their shoes. Try using speed laces of some sort to keep from having to waste time in T2 tying your shoes.

So think about what you learned in Kindergarten and remember to have fun with your workouts. Make your workouts fun by adding in some games that you can play to spice up your workout so it will be less mundane or even flat out boring. The next time you look at your training schedule, see how you can be creative and make it some of the best workouts you have had. I know when I was a kid, I just loved to go out and play!

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At the time I started competing in IronMan events in 2001, bikes designed for triathlons were still in their formative years of development. Some had been tested in wind tunnels, quite a few had aero tubing and we did have aerobars. But at that point in time, no thought had been given about what we needed to carry with us for anything much more than a Sprint event. As a result, unless you relied 100% on nutrition and hydration from the aide stations, your beautiful aero bike was no longer aero.This bugged me to no end (I have an undergrad degree in aeronautical engineering), and I made and used some eye-catching add on to my Softride beam bike. My tubular spare was stuffed down the beam, after I had carefully reamed out all the internal burs and removed the construction bladder. I taped spare CO2 cartridges to the beam and modified a mount for my Never Reach Bottle to carry spare tools. I quickly learned that many pockets in my clothing were essential, leading me to DeSoto products which I have used ever since. I was also an early Fuel Belt user. By 2009 I had a Cervelo P3, still do. The beam was gone, but now my tubular resided in a modified Arundel Water Bottle (cut open on the top and taped over once the tire was inside) on the down tube. A CO2/Sealant was taped to my top tube. I had several ideas for making storage products going through my head that year when I saw my first Trek Speed Concept sitting outside Lava Java. Finally someone, along with many others were addressing the problem of 'Stashing Stuff'. Great as these new bikes are they still can't carry everything you need and not everyone, me included, have opened their piggy bank to buy one. So here are my thoughts about how to carry all that stuff, on the bike, and run.

General Comments
‍As mentioned above I have used a Never Reach bottle (a permanent aero shaped bottle that is mounted behind the saddle). It carries over 50 oz of fluid when stuffed full. It is a great product but over time I found lighter ways to carry what I needed. 74 oz of fluid (I also had a bottle between the aero bars) is over 5 lbs. That may not sound like much to some but how many of you are looking for that bike that is 1-2 lbs lighter than your current one? In one of his blogs, Joe Friel, noted the following: 1kg (2.2 lbs) loss of weight (bike and/or body) allows you to climb a 1000m hill with a 10% grade about 3.5 sec faster than when heavier at the same power output. Another way of looking at this is that 1kg is about 3w on a climb (so 1lb is roughly 1.5w). So I have gotten fussy about the weight I carry, and that has transferred over to my run stuff as well. I think it is very important to test out the sports drinks and fuel given out at aide stations before the race (in training). If you can use what's offered 100% that is great, even partial use can help the weight carry problem and is a savior if your stuff of choice is somehow lost, you happen to have a bottle ejection and/or loose your Special Needs Bag in an IM.

‍Nutrition
‍What and How MuchI'm OK with what is handed out in most races, but I don't think it is always the best choice. For the past two years I have been using Scratch Labs sports drink and this year have been making my own rice cakes (Feed Zone recipes from Thomas Lim). The picture to the left shows a Denver Rice Cake mix, essentially a Denver Omelet mix with rice, yum. I also carry supplements in pill form.

‍Where
‍Packaging any home made food presents problems. My solution is simple, small zip lock bags. They are a bit bigger than energy bars, but they do go in my DeSoto Tri Suit pockets.Two rice cakes are in the back pocket in my DeSoto tri suit. Gels go in the pockets on the thigh. I also put one or two in my Bento Box but the main content of that is my supplements. I use very small zip lock bags for the supplements. See picture. I get them from Hobby Lobby in the jewelry section. I would guess any hobby store like that would have them; they are less than 2 inches. I like this better than the Salt Stick, it does not hold enough and getting the pills out of the small bags is easy. Rip off the top with your teeth and squeeze the pills out into your mouth.These days I carry just two fluid containers. An X-Labs Torpedo up front between the aero bars and a standard single bottle cage behind the saddle. Both are full at the start of the race, but obviously that is not enough for an IM. I also carry Scratch Powder in a slightly bigger version of the pill bags, in my Bento Box. Once I work thru the premixed Scratch I start picking up water at the aide stations. Prior to arriving at one, I get out a zip lock bag with powder and dump it into the Torpedo Bottle. Leaving the top open (I do not use the top that lets you jam a bottle into a split piece of plastic because I loose too much water), I pour the water into and on top of the powder. Then let it shake a bit before drinking, if the road is smooth you might need to blow into the straw to mix. You can't rip the powder bags open with your teeth; it would go all over the place. To make opening the bag easier cut a notch out of the flap above the zip so you can separate the two halves.

‍Tools and Spares
‍Tubes or Spare TubularIf you carry most of your nutrition and fluids on the bike then there is not much room left for a tube and certainly none for a tubular. My tubular goes in the Arundel bottle. Tubes could probably be folded up real tight and put either under the saddle and or on the mount for the rear water bottle.Keeping weight to a minimum I go with four sizes of small Allen Keys, 2mm (needed for the Tri Rig brakes I use), 3, 4, and 5 for other critical bolts that might need adjustment. I have had my saddle get loose, seat post self adjust down and my aerobars slip (all mistakes that should not have happed, but it does, so I carry tools). These along with my CO2 cartridge go in my custom made water bottle bracket but can also be simply taped to the bracket (some brackets from X-Lab come designed to carry stuff).I also carry a CO2/Sealant canister. It tapes easily with electricians tape to the top tube. I have made a carbon fiber holder, looks good but no better than the tape except it can be reused. Notice also the custom made mounting for the Bento Box, which also brings the bike up to integrated standards. If you are getting the idea that I obsess about keeping the bike clean go back to the into, I do. Special Needs BagThe Special Needs bag for the bike holds enough Scratch for the second part of the bike along with a couple of rice cakes and back up supplements (I find I can carry all I need for supplements in my pockets for the entire ride). Up to now I have had two bottle of pre-mixed drink in the bag. I am going to just go with one in the future to save some time picking things up.

‍Nutrition
‍What and How MuchSolid food does not work for me and many others on the run. Gels do work and I carry 4 for the early part of the run. I also start out with some pre-mixed Scratch and enough powder to get me thru at least half of the run. I also have supplements with me for the first half.

‍WhereMixed Sports drink is in two of four 7oz fuel belt bottles, powder is in the other two. The rest of the Scratch I need is again in zip long bags, but sized for the 7 oz bottles. Supplements are in two small pouches on my belt. Gels, again, go in my pockets.I don't carry enough gels for even half the run. When I run out of the first 4, I take a gel every other aide station, I start picking up gels at one aide station and consume it just before arriving at the next, followed by water. When not having a gel, I drink some Scratch.One tablet that I carry worth mentioning is a Glucose tablet. I have 4 on the bike and at the start of the run. Glucose tablets can be absorbed by just letting them dissolve in the mouth. So if the digestive system gives you trouble they can, for a while, keep you going until you can get things to settle down and return to other nutrition. Thus, it is good for an emergency. It is also brain food; the only fuel the brain uses is glucose (if you are not eating raw glucose the digestive system converts other sugars). So when approaching the point when your mind starts to fail you on the run, try sucking on a Glucose tablet as it will wake it back up. More than once this has saved the day for me, allowing me to focus on taking the next step all the way to the finish.

‍Special Needs Bag
‍Much the same as on the bike. I put in there what I need for the last half of the run with some extra spares including serious drugs like Ibuprofen. I never take painkillers before things start hurting. I want to know what is hurting, but will take something when up against it.

‍Last Thoughts
‍Never try anything new on race day ‚Äì it goes without saying. Even though I have followed the same routine many times in races, I still will practice on my long rides and runs what I will do on race day. Making your own solid food will seem for some too much work on top of already a lot of time committed to this sport. If you have ever had any issues with what you do eat, try it. My first IM was a near disaster because by the time I was finishing the bike I was already getting tired of all the sweet stuff I was eating. Now with all the variety of rice cakes recipes from the Feed Zone books, you can truly have real meals as you spend your day pursuing your crazy goal.

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Coach Simon recognizes that winning does not have to mean being the first. It's great for the lucky ones, but winning can simply mean finishing. Simon is a 12 time Ironman World Championship Finisher!

Your "A" race is just around the corner. Your body is absorbing the hard work you've put in, and you might be feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness. Here are some straightforward tips to help you manage the final days leading up to your big day:

1. Trust your fitness: Believe in the training you've completed and have confidence in your abilities.
2. Stick with your race week plan: Avoid the temptation to overdo it with last-minute training sessions. The work is done, and pushing too hard now won't add value.
3. Eat as you normally would: There's no need for special pre-race meals. Stick to your usual nutrient-rich diet, and if you have a favorite pre-race meal, go for it.
4. Organize your race gear: Ensure all your equipment is race-ready and organized for easy access.
5. Prepare your mind: With reduced training volume, focus on sharpening your mental game. Visualize key parts of your race, review your race plan, and stay calm.
6. Prioritize sleep: Aim for your best night's sleep 48 hours before the event to feel well-rested and refreshed.
7. Maintain a positive attitude: Surround yourself with your support group and stay positive. Take deep breaths if you feel tense, and remember they're part of your journey.
8. Walk with confidence: You've put in the work, and you know you're capable. Avoid comparing yourself to others and focus on your own journey.
9. Show gratitude: Smile and thank volunteers from race registration to packet pick-up and throughout the race. They're there to support you.
10. Be your best: You've prepared diligently, so go out there and give it your all!

Coach Brad is a USAT Certified Coach who emphasizes the importance of both physical and mental aspects in reaching an athlete's maximum potential.

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It is likely that most of you read the statistics shared with USA Triathlon that were obtained by the marketing company TribeGroup (read "The Mind of the Triathlete") and posted on their website.  The data was collected several years ago during the last "economic correction" in 2008/2009.  One might argue that the times have changed in 5 years but I am unconvinced that many athletic consumer attitudes have changed significantly during this period.  While I realize that I am likely preaching to the choir on this, make no mistake, there are some glaring points that many multisport participants who utilize coaching programs and share interests in health maintenance and injury prevention can use to their competitive advantage.  In the interest of time and space, I am unable to dig too deep on the subjects but hope to in the near future if there is reader interest.TribeGroup posts interesting information on multisport participant spending. They did not provide much information regarding discretionary income investment on coaching, massage, physical or rehabilitation therapy for injury management or prevention.  While it appears that participants in the survey were willing to spend a significant amount of their money on equipment that they believe will make them faster, (over $3000 on equipment versus only $300 on nutritional supplements in 2008/2009 , see Table 21), the survey did not appear to enquire about amounts spent on actual training and maintenance of the athletes‚ real machine their bodies.

While respondents seem to respect nutritional supplements, the interest is only enough to consider spending the same amount of money in the near future (approx. $300 Tables 43-45).  We all know proper nutrition is paramount to success- just ask formula 1 mechanics about motor oils!  Where are these athletes receiving advice on nutritional supplements?  Are these sources reliable?  The media and internet are loaded with information, much of which ultimately must be regarded as half-truths:  some sellers taking scientific data and making it fit into their marketing (read USNews.com).  Be cautious.  Review the information carefully with trusted resources such as a coach, expert/specialist in the area of interest or additional literary resources before making the final decision of adding a supplement to your training plan.

The survey discovered that nearly 70% of respondents did not have a training plan to prepare for the events that they entered (see Table 15).  Further, nearly 70%photo 3 train without some form of coaching; nearly 30% answered that they did not want or need a coach (see Table 18).  While one cannot simply jump to conclude that much of this population would therefore be more likely to suffer from an injury than those with a plan, this data is very concerning to me.  Without a scheduled maintenance plan, it makes intuitive sense that one's auto engine would be at higher risk for damage and further costly repairs.  What exactly do the warning lights mean on the car's dashboard?  Oh well, I suppose one can simply buy or lease a new car unfortunately, we only come with one body.  Are these athletes really capable of recognizing when their internal warning lights are flashing before a sidelining injury occurs?  Is a triathlete truly willing to take the same risk?

When asked to list other sport activities outside of triathlon, 45% of respondents listed weightlifting.  I am interested in exactly what exercises those participants perform, how they know that the exercise form is correct in order to minimize injury risk and exactly how they determine when to alter the number of repetitions, vary the resistance or alter the form/progress the movement in order to improve function especially if they are amongst the respondents who do not have a coach or advisor to guide them?  Not all strength training plans posted on the centerfold of Men's Health Magazine are appropriate for an individual's level of training/tolerance.  While the published exercises are excellent and created by some of the country's best strength & conditioning coaches, they may not be the best exercises for a given athlete, (read Men's Health article).  I've seen many patients the victims of centerfold-inspired resistance exercises that they were either unprepared to perform or done incorrectly; the results were months of rehabilitation and cancelled sporting events.

I was pleased to note that 32% of respondents listed yoga as an activity performed outside of triathlon (Table 55).  As I am a huge proponent of rest/recovery and yoga as a recipe for injury prevention, let alone maximizing strength power and endurance, yoga is a low impact activity that promotes muscle flexibility, joint mobility, musculoskeletal circulation, improved breathing response and stress reduction that offers tremendous benefits to all age groups for a minimum of time and financial investment.  When I learned that respondents who identified themselves as competitive were least likely to participate in yoga, I was flabbergasted.  Perhaps the competitive athletes reading this might take note that activities that promote the maintenance of skeletal joint mobility, muscular flexibility, locomotion balance and stability may well indeed improve the quality of rest/recovery time investment (read Bicycling article).  Incorporation of some form of organized muscle/joint prehabilitation and rest/recovery activities that enhance balance and stability just might provide the reader with the competitive edge that they've been searching for.

Of those multisport participants surveyed, 43% were over 40 years of age (26% were 45 and over).  These athletes are far more likely to develop an overuse let alone an acute injury than their younger counterparts.  Thus these age groupers will need to consider these facts when designing their annual training plan.  Further, they would benefit from adjusting their discretionary income and apply more of these funds toward health and fitness maintenance, injury prevention and coaching programs designed to educate them in this regard (read CDC article).

Striving for another year of personal bests in triathlon or other sporting activity is a goal that gets many of us motivated to rise and train each day.  Going faster is simply hardwired into in our psyche.  If we choose to invest such time, effort and resources on our sport, might it be wise to reduce the risk of disappointing performance and devote some learning from experienced resources on how to improve?  As my financial advisor once told me, "The worst advice is free advice."  Next time we are flying down the road, let's stop periodically to smell the flowers.  Research supports the less recognized and underutilized concept of going slower in order to achieve speed.  The mainstay of this is rest and recovery.  Taking the time to assimilate the proper nutrition, allowing adequate adaptation to training stressors and investing the time to focus more on balance, stability and the relationship between the musculoskeletal and nervous systems will pay great dividends in the form of higher PRs with minimal injury.

Dana A. Stearns MD FACEP is a competitive rower and multisport enthusiast. He has trained athletes in all age groups from children to octogenarians with a focus on movement preparation, periodization and injury prevention.  He is an emergency physician, anatomist and professor at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard and Tufts Medical Schools in Boston.  

These days, it seems like triathlon season goes year-round.  But if you've finished (or are about to finish) a traditional spring-to-fall season, here are 5 tips to help you have a great off-season.1. Take a Break

The first step in having an off season is to admit to yourself and accept that it's the off season.  For many folks, this is the hardest part!

Rebuild your family-time bank account.  Watch your kid's soccer game.  (Yup, the whole game.  Leaving at halftime to squeeze your run in doesn't count.)  Stay up past 9:30pm and sleep in past 5:45am.  Eat a little candy on Halloween.  Put ranch dressing on your salad.  Skip workouts.

Triathlon is awesome but it can be all-consuming.  Give yourself a little mental break as well as a physical break.  The reason a great training plan works is that it mixes hard work with rest, balances volume and intensity, and takes life into account.  With mental balance comes longevity.  You'll love this sport forever if it doesn't rob you of other important things in your life.

Communicate with your coach.  You don't have to abandon a training plan altogether but this is the time of year to take an extra day off, go for a beautiful hike instead of your scheduled run, and ride bikes with your children.  Don't wear a watch or compression socks and leave your heart rate monitor and power meter at home.

2.  Examine and Fix Your Limiters

What will make you a stronger triathlete next season?  You may know off the top of your head.  Maybe your swim needs work or your transitions are slow or you always fade in the last few miles of workouts and races.  Check out percentiles in your race results.  Were you top 10% in the swim, top 20% on the bike, and top 40% on the run?  The run is your limiter.  Again, communicate with your coach to make a plan.  The off-season is a perfect time to work in sport-specific blocks.

And here's a key takeaway:  It usually takes a special kind of discipline to improve.  Your focus cannot be on the usual output metrics, time, pace, power.  You often need to change your technique (inputs) to achieve the gains in speed or performance that you're looking for.  This can mean getting slower before you get faster.  If you swim countless yards and don't get faster, your problem probably isn't volume‚ technique.  Same for cycling and running.

Don't just do more of what's not working; fix what's keeping you from improving.

Change is difficult.  There are two primary reasons why people don't change: they don't want to or they can't.  For triathletes, it's often the former.  We don't want to slide down a lane in the pool to focus on technique.  We don't want to get dropped on the group ride.  We don't want to be outrun by our training partner.  Give yourself permission to slow it down and fix what needs to be fixed.  Only once your technique is perfected will the speed come as you add volume again.

3.  Train Indoors

If you have the right equipment, it's pretty amazing what you can accomplish with indoor training.  The winter is a great time to train indoors to escape cold and nasty weather.  There are great benefits to training indoors, particularly in the convenience of your home.  When you work out indoors, there's no need to dig through the laundry pile to find your toe covers and full-finger gloves that you forgot to wash after the last ride.

You can focus on specific elements of your training.  Bike trainers and rollers are excellent for working on cadence and pedal-stroke.  Treadmills can help you learn to pace.  Weights and stretch cords can isolate muscle groups and motions to make you strong and reduce your chance of injury.

Some examples of smart and time-efficient workouts at home or at the gym could be: 30 minutes on the rollers working on eliminating dead spots in your pedaling.  20 minutes on the swim bench working on catch.  Intervals or tests on the treadmill or CompuTrainer.

What I love most about training indoors is how focused and time-efficient it can be.  You may not have all of the equipment you need in your home to do complete triathlon training, but investing in a stationary trainer is money well spent as a first step.

When substituting indoor training, I reduce long rides or runs to about two-thirds of what was scheduled for outdoors and I'll max out at 2 hours on the bike (trainer) or one hour on the run (treadmill).  There are always exceptions but these are general rules of thumb.  When possible, make your indoor workouts about technique or higher intensity training rather than endurance.  Riding four hours on the trainer is boring, painful, and usually includes a substantial amount of garbage time.

4.  Train Outdoors

Getting outside in the cold and wet can be pretty awesome.  Often, you'll have the roads or trails mostly to yourself and you can build great mental and physical toughness while improving your skills.  A word of caution, of course: There may be a reason why no one else is training outside.  Be smart about your decision-making to train outdoors in tough weather.

If you live in an area where it's wet or snowy during the winter, be sure to invest in the right clothing for the conditions.  Cycling-specific winter clothing in particular can be expensive but once you have the appropriate gear, riding in the cold or wet can actually be very comfortable.  There are plenty of examples of races where there's been a downpour or near-freezing temps at the start.  If you're mentally and physically prepared for the conditions, you're going to perform better on race day.  Similar to training in the heat during the summer, you can get big benefits from training in the cold during the winter.

5. Plan Next Season

Before you lock in the same slate of races as last season (and the season before that), do a little brainstorming.  Expand your horizons.  Maybe this is the year you pick a goal that scares you a little bit.  Try a trail marathon, Xterra, or open-water swim.  Step up to a full distance tri or work on your speed at short-course races.  Maybe what really works is racing the same events you did last season after all, but taking some time now to explore what's out there will help keep you focused on the event calendar you ultimately decide on.

And one last tip: Talk to your family, folks you work with, and your friends before clicking the register button on your big races for next season.  Are you setting goals that will be supported by the people who are important to you?  Will your goals give you enough time to balance training and racing along with work and family?  Are you putting yourself in a position to be successful and happy with your season?

Have a fantastic off season and enjoy your winter training this year.  By the time spring rolls around, you'll be ready‚ mentally and physically for a big season!

As many of us try to do, we balance our training and racing with every day life. Following either a big day of training or a race, most of us have to wake up the next day and go to work. Recovering at your desk from these intense activities can be done discreetly and might even make your next conference call a little more interesting.I grew up swimming, so my formative years were spent in a near weightless environment and while all my coaches did have some level of dry land core and cardio workouts, my running routine was an hour max in comparison to the double digit regime I spent weekly in the pool. Switching to a heavy land sport regime and an office job in my post collegiate years presented me with a new set of aches and an inability to deal with them as I used to (ie. nap it off!).

Following are a few strategies I've found that work very well while I'm at work, helping to aide my recovery from long or intense runs especially as my body learns to adapt to the stress of miles on land instead of in the pool. You can do these from the comfort of your office chair or cubicle.

1. Using a lacrosse or tennis ball on my feet, roll it along the arch and heel; and very lightly over the toes and top of the feet. I will do this when working on my email load, doing one foot on one reply and then switching to the next with the next reply. My college triathletes will often do this when studying or in long classes (two hours or more) to help with their concentration.Special Treat. soak a tennis ball in water and freeze (although be sure to have a towel or similar absorbent material under it to avoid puddles under your desk). Ice and massage deliciousness!

2. Typically, a marathon stick is used for calves and quads. However, while sitting at my desk, I will roll the bottom of my feet on it while replying to emails or on conference calls you don't have to track where the rolling is going and it helps keep my attention on the task at hand. I like to press over the ball when I need to lean hard into a hot spot.

3. Legs on the wall-Probably only best used if you have your own office space or a very understanding co-worker. Lay on the floor, legs propped up on the wall-not sure if this is a placebo effect, but I always feel invigorated from the drainage feeling this creates. Warning: be sure to set an alarm as you do risk dozing off. Fifteen to twenty minutes does wonders.

4. Placing a tennis or lacrosse ball on your hamstrings is probably the easiest thing to do and it brings terrific relief. Simply sit with a tennis ball dug into your hamstring or glute. No rolling or no timing, although I would recommend working on your posture, as it deepens the effect. Enjoy the pressure and release!

Perhaps you've heard about one or all of these exercises, but hopefully this reminds you that you can recover from a big workout or race while you are at your desk, and multitask your way to a better (next) workout.

Learn more below about USAT Level I certified coach, Leigh Dodd.

The off-season should be your favorite time of year to get into the pool and work on your stroke.  If you have technical elements that need attention, the early off-season is the perfect time to work on them.  Check your ego at the door and swim slowly.  That's right, drop a lane or two at your masters workout and give yourself permission to swim slowly on your own.  Following are drills that will make you more efficient come springtime if you‚Äôre willing to make the investment now.  If you want to make significant improvement, get in the water as often as you can.  Aim for 4-6 swims each week if you want to make major changes.  Even a 20 minute session will be helpful.

Early vertical forearm.  An effective catch is critical if you want to swim quickly and efficiently.  As soon as you extend after entry, your fingertips should start heading slightly downward you'll have a little break in your wrist to initiate the catch.  Two very effective drills will help you get into the right position.

Hinge: Streamline off the wall.  When you break the surface, open your hands to shoulder width (superman position) and continue kicking.  Fins can be helpful for this drill.  Start with your right arm keep you elbow in place as you drop your hand and forearm straight down.  Your arm will be in an position with your fingertips pointing at the bottom of the pool.  Do not start your pull this is simply a hinge motion at your elbow.  Now do the same hinge with your left arm.  Repeat two more times (total of 6 hinges).  You'll need to hold your breath during these 6 hinges.  Then swim to the other end of the pool with a focus on starting your stroke with the same hinge motion.  Repeat 4-8x 25.

Tennis balls:  Hold a tennis ball in each hand.  Swim with a focus on high elbow at catch.  This is like a fist drill but the tennis balls don't allow for any cheating.  (Not that you'd cheat on a fist drill, now would you?)  If you have to rely on a hard kick to move forward, you are not getting into an effective early vertical forearm position.  When you reach the pull phase of the stroke, pull straight back to your hip‚ no sweep or s-curve.

Weak side breathing.  Practice weak side breathing by looking at the same side of the pool for every breath.  On the way down the pool you'll be breathing to your strong side every stroke cycle and on the way back you'll be breathing to your weak side every stroke cycle.  You still get the muscular balance of breathing to both sides that bilateral breathing provides, but you'll get focused repetition on your limiter‚ weak side breathing.  Pay attention to your hips‚ hip rotation should be the same on your strong side as your weak side.

Head position.  Keep your head down!  Okay, you're not looking straight down but your forward field of vision (looking with your eyes through the top of your goggles) is only about two meters ahead (in a pool that‚Äôs four to six feet deep).  And don't worry about running into the wall because you'll see the big black line come to a when you need to turn.  Getting comfortable in this position takes time and practice, but it‚Äôs definitely faster and is worth the investment.

Coach Dave swims slower every off-season but faster every spring.

Coach Mike

I love to run in the rain. It's refreshing, cleansing and I don't worry about how wet I'm going to get or how fast I'm going to go unless I have a specific speed workout that day. I often seek out new routes on rainy days, just to change things up and to keep it different. Most of the time I'll listen to my cadence in the water and take my chances jumping over bigger puddles vs. running around them. There's nothing like finishing a run with rain soaked legs and muddy shoes. Give me a rainy day anytime!

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Coach AJ

First, decide if the session is really worth it. If you're just logging miles going out in the rain may not be worth getting sick or worse. If it is a key workout, decide if you can do it inside and stay dry.

If you do go out, check your route first. Make sure you'll be able to do the workout as planned. If you need to do speed work, you can't do that on a muddy trail.

Be mentally ready to have a good session despite the weather. How you approach your training makes the difference, especially when conditions aren't ideal.

Finally, just embrace the weather. There is no guarantee of good weather on race day, so think of it as being prepared for the unexpected on race day. 

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Coach Jim

As the weather turns from summer to fall, we might start to be forced to train indoors.

I sit here watching rain fall, for nearly 6 days now, and I'm happy to share some workouts I personally do when it rains.

First a few rules:

I won't run nor would I advise running when you risk your health and safety.

I don't run in lightning, fairly obvious reasons.

I don't run with the risk of slippery conditions such as on trails that can turn to mud and slick rocks.

If I decide to run in the rain, I'll choose either the track or a bike path run trail.

Track sessions

I actually don't mind running in the rain, in fact, kinda like it!  I have done these and have felt amazing running in the rain.

Mile repeats.For example: starting in lane 2 (for the entire 4 laps) and then moving over to lane 3 for the entire next mile. It is a consistent solid run just shy of threshold or 5k pace. It is more than that as you have to now run faster to have the same 4 lap split. I might run 3x2 mile repeats run on the track. I change lanes every mile.

A very similar variation would be to run laps 1-4 in lanes 1-4, and then repeat this process through your 2nd mile.  It teaches a bit of patience, and really dialing some speed control and negative splitting your workouts.  This is an applicable workout for Olympic, Half and even Ironman races with just some modifications in your goal workout pace depending on what your goal race is.

Bike sessions:

A bike workout I really enjoy especially in the winter is a trainer, strength workout. I really feel that with this workout you get a lot of work done in a short amount of time, and yet it goes fast. Plan on about 1:20 or longer.

The priority is not the amount of weight, but executing proper technique. You may go through just the range of motion to make sure you execute properly with 90 degree hip and knee angles, strong back alignment, etc. You may also focus on a slow to moderate load and a faster release. For example, a bench press you may come down and load the muscle slower, but release and execute strong quick force development by pushing the weight back to start position quickly. It develops more power. Keep the weights light to moderate the first few times and get an idea of where your comfortable with your routine.

In my workout room I have my trainer and bike set up in front of an old tv. I also have a Smith Machine, and a weight bench, but these weight machines are not required.

I will start with an easy 20 minute spin warm up 50-60% threshold from Z1-2. Then I will choose 3-4 exercises, (two leg exercises and an upper body exercise and a core).  After my 20 minute spin I will do 1 set of 10 repetitions of my chosen 3-4 exercises and then repeat for 2 MORE sets. I might start with some basic exercises for range of motion. This might be regular squats, bench press or push-ups, and hamstring curls and cable twists.

Once I go through one circuit of exercises 3x, I will hop back on the bike for a building 20 minutes of intensity on the bike. I might go off of my power meter, or just changing gears to ever harder intensity. I might increase my power every 5 minutes and increasing my gearing into a harder gear staying below threshold. I usually focus on strength gearing slower cadence here.  Play around and mix it up. Repeat the 20 minute bike strength cycle.  Each cycle is sightly different than the one before.

On my 2nd cycle through the weights and strength session, I will get off the bike and go through another series of exercises.  A bit more specific now I might do single leg squats or reverse lunges, pull ups, and some dead lifts. Again 1 circuit of each exercises, 10 reps 3x through.

Each set of weights should take 15-20minutes, then 15-20 minute on the bike with a solid effort.  Each circuit of weights I do 3-4 exercises but I change either the amount of weight being used and or make the workout more challenging with individual leg exercises engage the core on the leg exercises and the upper body exercises.

Here is a sample list of exercises that I might do that can be done with or without a weight set with just a little modification such as dumb bells:

Leg exercises: squats, single leg squats, reverse lunges, dead lift, single leg dead lift, single leg extensions without returning back to 90 degree knee flexion, hamstring curls done with a weight bench or a ball. Single leg step ups (without toe push off).

Core: cable rotations, 30 second planks or longer and any other abdominal exercise.

Arms: bench press, Pull ups, Cable tricep pull downs and more,

Plyometrics (advanced exercises): box jumps, jump switch leg lunges, Jump squats with or without weights. Plyometric work can be done with only6 quality reps and in the middle of the sessions before great muscle fatigue begins to set in.

I really like doing this on those longer days but if the weather is bad then maybe a 2hr+ trainer time is not very interesting.  This is great for increasing power and stability on the bike in shorter races, muscle endurance and strength for the longer races.

Remember the stronger you are on the bike, the more amount of time that can be reduced from your races, and the stronger and more resilient you will be to fatigue.

You will also find that you are a stronger runner off the bike with your greater bike strength.

I hope you enjoy these idea on training in the rain   . 

Training question: How many A races are recommended for a season, and how far apart should they be? For example, I want to do an IM, but also qualify for AG nationals, and the IM is after nationals.Answer:  Coach Mike replies, as you pick out your A races for the season, keep in mind that peaking is very tricky and really more art than science. Some people love to keep the volume going during training, but cut back on the intensity, while others cut back the volume and add in intensity. Learning what works for you personally, is really the key to peaking correctly. During the course of a season I recommend no more than 2 peaks a season, if you really want to hit those peaks fully rested and firing on all cylinders. For my athletes, I like to see a mid-season peak, say around the end of July, and then another peak about 3-4 months later. This gives you enough time to get a normal training load going, create the fatigue that you need in training, and then dropping down to taper again. When races are very close together as in 1 week apart, you have to either decide which one is the A race, or try to peak for both, which can get tricky. This is why I suggest having several weeks between races in order to have a true peak. Good luck in your 2014 season and if you have any other questions please drop me a line: mike@d3multisport.com.

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Training question: If I race only doing freestyle, why should I bother practicing the other swim strokes?

Answer: Coach Simon replies, for me swimming thousands of meters in the pool can get a bit boring, mixing up the strokes helps. It can also be used to give your freestyle specific muscles a rest or at least a change of pace while still staying active. Backstroke will clearly tell you if you can kick and swimming this stroke will help, it also helps loosen up the shoulders. One of the worlds top masters swimmers, who has taken up Triathlon in the past couple of years (look-out!) Carlyn Pipes-Neilsen, points out that fly, breast and freestyle have the same initial motion under the water in the catch phase.

Question:
So after reading people's recommendations, I have decided to train for my half Ironman (HIM) on my road bike. I live around nothing but steep hills so it's probably the best for me anyway. However, I have a brand, new tri bike that I would like to race with for the advantages of using a tri bike during a race. My question is, at what point in my training and how close to race day, do I switch my training to my tri bike?

Thanks!  

Great question! So you need to answer a few more questions before diving into the answers. First, is the course you are racing similarly to where you train? Meaning, are you training for a flat half or a hilly half? You say you have plenty of hills. That is good for many aspects of training, LT work at short intervals at a high heart rate or watts if using a power meter! Good force and strength work on the hills for sure. This will increase power. Working different muscles while in the hills is a benefit as well if you get out of the saddle for some climbs and stay seated for leg strength for most of it. The downside is that climb on a tri bike is a bit tougher with the seat angles. So using a road bike for all of these situations is great! But you say that you want to race on your tri bike. So again, is it a hilly course or a flat course? Either way you will want to get on that tri bike and get time on that as well. Just like learning any skill it must be specific. You need to think about getting your bike handling skill down first! Riding a tri bike is much more challenging then on a road bike. Some skills to work on might include, turning in and out of your tri bars. How comfortable are you at turning at high speeds in the aerobars? If the course has a lot of turns, you will want many hours of practice on that particular skill to become comfortable. So 1 or 2 sessions a week working in this area would be key. Another reason to ride your tri bike often is to get all of your core muscles used to being in the aero position for extended periods of time. I am assuming you will be aero for most of your ride since you want to ride the tri bike. If your back is tight or sore after getting off the bike your run will surely suffer, so training time in the aero position is essential! So your long rides should be on your tri bike.  

There is also the theory of specificity that comes into play. As stated in an article written by Stegeman, J. (translated by J. S. Skinner). (1981) Exercise physiology. Chicago, IL: Year Book Medical Publishers. (p. 267) It was stated that the body adapts to adequately cope with the specific forms of exercise stresses which are applied. The adaptive process does not include any capacity that extends beyond the specific training stress. Thus, there is no basis to expect training effects from one form of exercise to transfer to any other form of exercise. Training is absolutely specific (Noakes, 1986). This would mean that training on a tri bike would be of great importance if you want to ride well in your race, on your tri bike.  

Another source showed that running off the tri bike showed huge gains in run speed. Dan Empfield show that a study conducted by Ian Garside, Garside utilized triathletes, but: All participants were naive to training and racing on bicycles with steep seat tube angles (>76-degrees); all participants used a 73-degree frame geometry as standard. As opposed to most of the testing up to this point, Garside's protocol called for the tests to be conducted, as fast as possible under race-like conditions. The test called for triathletes to ride a 40km simulation on both a 73-degree set-up and then on an 81-degree set-up, each followed immediately by a fast-as-possible 10km run on a treadmill. The authors noted the improved bike/run performance in the field, based on anecdotal testimony from athletes purporting to have experienced improved performance. But, they noted that prior to this study, No empirical evidence exists. Frankly, the results were groundbreaking, for three reasons. First, these triathletes absolutely blew away their "duathlon" performances in the steeper configuration. The average time it took subjects to complete the 40km/10km brick was about 1:50 at 73 degrees of seat angle, and it was a full 5+ minutes faster at 81 degrees. This is a huge gain in run performance!

So clearly it is in any triathletes best interest to train on a tri bike if that is what you are going to race on. So get in some base miles and climbing time on the road bike, but get in long rides, some intervals and runs off the tri bike and your race should have good results!

I first wrote this article for Slowtwitch in 2004. At that time very few companies made Compact Cranks with FSA the only one selling well. The response from some of the Guru's of the sport on the Slowtwitch Forum was to say the least scathing. I knew I was right and after getting support from the editor Dan Empfield some voices started to come around grudgingly.In 2008 all the major component makers made Compact Cranks in their line up and there were many more of the less well known manufacturers making these cranks. This made me feel fully vindicated and I have now updated the article to discuss present day.

The Bicycle Transmission and the Compact CranksetThose old enough to remember the muscle cars of the 60's will remember that at most they had 4 speed manual gears and with automatics there was only three. The engines in these cars could put out high torque and horsepower over a wide range of rpm. This made the need for more gears unnecessary. Today's high performance car engines produce their maximum power in a narrow speed (rpm) range. To get the most power to the road the transmission of these cars have closely spaced gears. They also have enough gears (5 and sometimes 6) to keep the engine turning over in the ideal rpm range up to their max speed. Human power output is a bit like a modern high performance engine but with tiny amounts of power. We suffered in the good old days of 10 speeds and less but now with 20 speeds we are getting what we need.So what is the ideal human engine speed? While some research suggests the most efficient cadence (rpm of the pedals) for cycling is in the 75rpm range top cyclists typically maintain a cadence of 90-100rpm. Slower cadence needs more strength for one revolution and recruits more Fast Twitch muscle fibers. Conversely Slow Twitch fibers are mainly used at higher cadences. Since the fuel in our bodies used to fire the Slow Twitch fibers is much more abundant (fat) the endurance racer should ride around the 90rpm range. Here is a link to a detailed cadence discussionOne of the changes Lance Armstrong made to his technique after recovering from cancer was to significantly increase his cadence. Watching him power up hills at 95 rpm is awesome and clearly effective. Tyler Hamilton also made the case for maintaining a high cadence in his breakaway stunning performance in stage 16 of the 2003 Tour de France. He was using a 'Compact' Crankset for this race, and he was racing with a broken collar bone. The rational for use of Compact cranks follows.The conventional solution to maintain high cadence on a climb is to increase the size (number of teeth) of the large cog on the rear wheel. The production 10 speed cassette (the group of gears on the rear wheel) has 11 teeth on the smallest cog and a minimum of 21 on the largest (an 11-21 set). The next size up is an 11-23 which spreads the gears apart; not a desirable change but it does give you a slightly easier low gear. To get a 25-tooth cog gear most manufacturers configure the set 12-25 and the next size up is 12-27 (Sram is an exception to this making a 11-26 and 11-28, ideal for many riding the Rockies).The problem with a 12-27 cassette is the gears are spread apart even more than the 11-23 and you have lost some top speed potential. However, if you need the big cog to get up a hill you have no other choice (unless you went with a triple chainring). That is until the Compact Crankset came on the market.Compact cranks have chainrings that are significantly smaller than conventional cranks and are the polar opposite of the big chainrings seen so often on Tri Bikes. Compact cranks typically have 50/34 (52/36 are also on the market) teeth on the outer and inner ring vs. 53/39 teeth on road bikes and 54/42 or bigger on Tri bikes (Very very few amateur athletes should give any thought to a 54/42 chainring combination). There have been several articles about compact cranks in the Tri and Bicycling press in the past few years.

‍The argument put forward in these articles has been:• Higher rpm's can be maintained on steep climbs because of a lower low gear• Closer spacing of the gears makes it easer to maintain the optimum cadence as wind gusts and or small changes in elevation cause small speed changes.• Some maximum speed potential on down hills is lost but unless you are sustaining speeds of over 33mph on the flats this should not be an issue.• The combination of Compact cranks and appropriate cassettes has less rotating mass (lighter) than a conventional set up (see sample weights of cogs and cranks below).None of the articles this author has seen have quantified the difference between conventional Cranksets and the Compact Crankset. Below is a examination of the differences between a 53-39 Chainring and a Compact (50-34) Chainring. The calculations are based on a 700c wheel with a cadence of 90rpm. Bold print marks a change in cassette size.For those of you wanting to play with different combinations of chainrings and cog sets here is the spreadsheet I created to do the calculations below. The spreadsheet is protected so you do not mess up the formula. It is limited to products from Shamino and FSA.53-39 Chainring, 11-21 Cog 50-34 Chainring, 11-21 CogMPH Biggest Gear 33.2 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 12.8 11.2Comments Changes between each gear are the same (cassettes are the same). The trade off is easier climbing as the expense of a small loss of Top speed. This is the lightest configuration for either set up.53-39 Chainring,11-23Cassette 50-34 Chainring, 11-21 CassetteMPH Biggest Gear 33.2 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 11.7 11.2Comments Low speed now closer. 11-23 cassette is heaver with gear ratios wider apart.53-39 Chainring,12-25Cassette 50-34 Chainring, 11-21 CassetteMPH Biggest Gear 30.42 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 10.74 11.2Comments The 12-25 cassette lowers the top speed on the conventional Crankset and makes climbing easier but at the cost of even wider gear ratios and weight.53-39 Chainring, 12-25 Cassette 50-34 Chainring,11-23CassetteMPH Biggest Gear 30.42 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 10.74 10.18Comments With slightly wider gear ratios the 11-23 cogs further ease climbing with the Compact Crankset while maintaining top speed.53-39 Chainring,12-27Cassette 50-34 Chainring, 11-23 CassetteMPH Biggest Gear 30.42 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 9.95 10.18Comments 12-27 is about the biggest (heaviest) cassette seen on Tri Bikes. Almost the same climbing can be achieved with the 11-23 cogs with a compact Crankset with a higher top speed, closer gearing and reduced weight.53-39 Chainring,12-27Cassette 50-34 Chainring, 11-26 CassetteMPH Biggest Gear 30.42 31.3MPH Easiest Gear 9.95 9.0Comments 12-26 One of the new cog sets from SRAM, ideal I think for many racing the Peak with a Compact Crank.It is easy to see why the Compact Crank would be a big plus for older age groups or anyone who is not an elite athlete. So why would Tyler Hamilton choose Compact Cranks? Gear spacing and weight are probably the answer. Even on flat roads there is usually some variation in elevation and the wind is usually not constant. Closer gear spacing allows small changes in gearing letting the elite rider to keep their cadence in a narrow ideal range.Selecting optimum gearing for a bike needs to consider the abilities of the athlete and the bike course (wind and hills). It is not unreasonable to have different gearing for different races. With conventional Chain Rings on a flat course an 11-21 cassette might be ideal or on a hilly course (Lake Placid IM) a 12-27 would be much better. With compact cranks you could use an 11-23 for both races with similar results. If you are an older age grouper a 12-27 cassette with Compact cranks would eliminate the need for a triple Crankset (a much heaver solution sometimes used to get low gearing).Anyone wondering what to put on their new lightweight aero flyer they are buying this spring should seriously consider Compact cranks. Even if you don't have funds in the budget for a new bike you might want to consider a helpful upgrade. Compact Cranks are available from FSA https://www.fullspeedahead.com/, Shimano https://bike.shimano.com/ , Zipp (v expensive but very light and stiff) https://www.zipp.com/ and others. The downside is you cannot just replace the chainrings on your standard cranks as noted above.Weights of Components discussed above (2004 data, products are now generally lighter).Shimano Cassettes11-21 145g 11-23 155g12-23 160g 12-25 171g12-27 177gFSA Carbon Pro Elite Compact Crankset 515g*FSA Carbon Pro Superlight Crankset 500 SHIMANO Dura-Ace 7701 594g*While the FSA conventional Crankset is slightly lighter than the Compact the rotating mass is less on the Compact because of the smaller ring diameter. The difference between these two Cranksets performance is probably negligible.

We're endurance athletes. We train our bodies to work at sustainable levels of output over long periods of time. Even a sprint race lasts an hour or so. (As compared to a sprint race in running or swimming, we're not really sprinting, we're out on the course a LOT longer than athletes in other sports.) Preparing for races that are two to five to 15 or more hours long means some long workouts. And some of that training can be monotonous, even boring. And that's okay. It's even better than okay, it can be very good!Coaches will do our best to mix up the training and try to keep our athletes' plans interesting by including variation within workouts as well as from day-to-day and week-to-week. Sure, you may always have a swim scheduled on a Monday because that's a good day for you to get to the pool (although that Monday workout is usually different each week). But let's face it: some endurance training is boring.Most athletes generally don't look forward to indoor training: running to nowhere on the treadmill or riding in place or following the black line in the pool like a fish in a tank. But indoor training can reap very big benefits. Sessions can be fine-tuned and focused. There's no coasting on the trainer and there are no stop lights to interrupt your intervals.

Many of the variables that exist outdoors are eliminated. There's no wind or rain to deal with. Longer intervals are not a problem and, with the right equipment and software, you can pre-program your workout (or your coach can). If you live in the flatlands but your coach programs a hill run workout, the treadmill will be happy to oblige.While there are some very elite triathletes who have noted in recent years that they rarely ride or run outdoors except when they're racing, I think a healthy mix is generally the best answer. So whether you're forced indoors (by the weather or your schedule or any other factor) or you're ramping up for long course racing and see the the outdoor two hour run or five hour ride on your schedule, how should you handle the potential boredom factor?Let me first state the obvious. Many athletes will watch TV or movies, listen to music or podcasts, or invite a friend over to the pain cave.  

All of these are fine solutions to help the time pass when indoors. I've certainly watched my share of Breaking Bad, House of Cards, The Americans, and other binge-worthy pleasures while on the treadmill in my basement! But make no mistake, these are distractions. You're taking the focus off of the work you're doing and putting it onto something else (the screen or your earbuds).For outdoor training, especially on the bike, I recommend strongly AGAINST wearing earbuds or listening to anything at all. You need all of your senses to stay safe and the ability to hear an approaching car is critical to staying alive out there! For long runs, wearing one earbud may be safe depending on where you're running.

Listening to music while running can be uplifting and motivating, it may help you run longer or faster. But you may also find that your turnover changes depending on the beat of the song. And the mental assist that you may come to rely on during your long run or hard efforts won't be there for you on race day.What to do instead? Give up your distractions. You don't have to go without for every workout but I recommend at a minimum that you skip them for your long ride and run as well as your highest intensity workouts.Pick something to focus on during your workout. That may be a particular element of your form/technique or your breathing pattern or your cadence. You can even focus on the pain, practice managing it.

Whatever it is, dedicate all of your brain power to that focus. This is the best advice if you want to get faster, it's not enough simply to do more. You have to do it better.Try something different for indoor training. Use a VASA trainer or try riding on rollers. You won't need to be distracted if applying your brain to simply balancing the bike becomes a critical factor in your workout!Let your mind wander. Not all of your great ideas have to be thought up in the shower. Endurance athletes have hours available for thinking. Think of it as meditation on the move. Pick a particular subject, maybe work or family-related, and work it out as you work out.Run scenarios in your mind. During an interval, visualize yourself gaining on an imaginary athlete in front of you.

Picture yourself catching and passing that athlete, then the next one. By the time you get to race day, you'll have "caught" and "passed" a lot of people! It becomes second nature, it's what you do.Embrace the boredom. In some ways, this may be the most important take-away here, particularly for full-distance athletes. One of the challenges of race day is managing the boredom while still staying focused on your plan. If you train for it, you're in a better position to execute it when the clock is on you.

Coach Dave looks at coaching from a holistic perspective.  He understands first-hand that triathletes typically have substantial demands in their lives outside of training and racing. He makes it a priority to understand what's going on in an athlete's life beyond triathlon in order to build a plan that is smart, fits their lifestyle, and builds toward appropriate goals!

I recently raced at the Curt Gowdy Xterra race in Wyoming. The day was hot, the course was tough and pushing hard the entire way wasn't easy. Just my kind of race! After a solid swim, which I cruised, I hopped on my mountain bike and had some fun. I made quite a few obstacles that I didn't make in the pre-ride and crashed on a couple that I had made on the pre-ride. So, it was a mix of good and bad. I did have lots people pass me and I passed some others back. The course was challenging and made me realize why I love Xterra racing: I have a long way to go to get to the top of my Age Group!

After the 14 mile bike, we finished with a 5 mile run, through some of the same trails that we rode on. By the time I got to the run, my legs were pretty tired, my breathing was labored, but I was motivated to hunt down as many people as I could. I started out easy and passed 3 people before the first mile. This ensured me that I wouldn't be last to the finish line. No, really, don't laugh. You haven't seen me mountain bike! Next came a few rollers that were mostly rolling up. My legs didn't like this and neither did my lungs. I could see 1 or 2 people in the distance and I just ran steady to try and get closer until I could pass them. One by one I picked off a few more athletes. This was starting to get fun and around every turn I was looking to pass more people. Most of the runners could hear me coming and would move off the trail, which was very kind. Some runners didn't move out of my way (as is the courtesy thing to do) and I was forced to move into the thorny bushes to pass, but I didn't mind. I just kept on trucking.

I came to the hardest part of the run and came up on a group of 4 people, who were all walking, They were separated by 20 seconds each, slowly making their way up the hill. I was determined to not walk or slow down. Well, I was going so slow I'm not sure I was capable of slowing down, but I ran by with my lungs searing, my legs full of lactic acid, and my mind was begging me to stop. I thought it would have been nice to walk right then. It would have felt a lot easier in the moment to take the easy road. Instead I resisted the temptation and pushed on. I knew I had to get away from the pack of walkers or I too, would get sucked into walking. It was definitely one of these moments that "everyone is doing it and it's ok if you do it too".

This was definitely my "moment" in the race. I had pushed pretty hard for almost 2.5 hours at this point. I was tired. I wanted to give in. I wanted to walk. I wanted it to be easy. To combat the negative feelings, I didn't think about how long I'd been out there or how tired I was. I kept thinking that I probably had 15 minutes of hard running left, with at least 1 mile of it being down hill. Breaking it down into manageable pieces is what gets me through most tough situations. Really, for me, this isn't any different than tackling a pile of dishes, pots and pans after a big family dinner. I start with the hard stuff first (for me it's the big pans) and then work my way down to the dishes and glasses. In this race, I did end up running away from the peer pressure of walking and made my way past a few more people in the last stretch of the race. I certainly wasn't running fast, but I gave it everything I had in those last 2 miles.

As for me, once again I found that moment when I had to push very hard, with very little in the tank, and overcame the negative voices in my head. When you've been racing for many years, sometimes you question whether you have that "mental tenacity" any longer. You will question your intestinal fortitude. Sometimes you hear that voice telling you to stop, that it's ok to walk, to take it easy, let the pain subside. Or you can simply choose to ignore the voices and push on. The feeling after the race is so much better when you've pushed through and reached a whole new level of mental toughness. This builds your confidence for the next time. My recommendation to you is to get out there and jump into a race that will test your limits. A race that will push you to a new level of pain, physically and mentally. Maybe it's running a 5k or your first sprint triathlon. But really, it doesn't matter what it is, because it's all relative. Just get out there and try something challenging. You owe it to yourself to find your limits. Isn't that what life is about?

Most years on my birthday, I find myself doing something memorable, or perhaps a bit outrageous, depending on your perspective. Many of my memorable birthdays are tied to some outrageous workouts that I decided to tackle. One notable example was when my buddy Sundy turned 30. We woke up early and headed to the Boulder Reservoir at 5:30 am. There, we swam 30 sets of 100 meters, followed by a 30-mile bike ride and a 3-mile run, repeated three times. Despite the scorching heat, with temperatures reaching 104°F in Boulder that day, we pushed through and completed the challenging workout.

Another memorable birthday workout was when I turned 30. Despite being busy with my MBA studies and a full-time job, I decided to run 30 miles. I ran 11 laps around Wash Park, each lap being approximately 2.75 miles. It was a challenging endeavor, but I managed to complete it with determination and perseverance.

On my 33rd birthday, as I prepared for Ironman California, I embarked on another epic birthday workout. Starting with a 3,300-yard swim at Masters Swim, followed by a 3:33-hour bike ride to Ward and back, and concluding with a 1:33-hour run off the bike, it was a demanding day of training. Despite the fatigue, I pushed through and went on to have a successful workout and achieve a personal record at Ironman California.

Subsequent birthdays also involved challenging workouts, such as swimming 3,500 yards, biking for 3 hours and 50 minutes, and running for 1 hour and 35 minutes off the bike. However, as the years went by, these epic birthday workouts became less frequent.

This year, however, I decided to revive the tradition of epic birthday workouts. Taking advantage of the CU Team's spring break cycling event, I rode for about 18 hours over 8 days, building up my fitness gradually. On the week of my birthday, despite feeling tired, I was determined to have a good hard workout.

I started the day with a bike ride to Ward, climbing 25 miles from my house to an elevation of 9,200 feet. Despite challenging conditions, including crosswinds and headwinds, I persevered and extended the ride to Lyons before heading home. The entire loop turned out to be a test of endurance and mental fortitude.

After completing the bike ride, I embarked on a 4-mile run, which felt surprisingly good despite the fatigue. Following a quick shower and recovery drink, I decided to push myself further and headed to the pool for a swim. Initially planning to swim 1,500 yards, I challenged myself to swim 22 sets of 200 meters, totaling 4,400 yards. Despite the exhaustion, I completed the swim with determination and satisfaction.

Reflecting on the day's accomplishments, I realized the power of the mind to overcome physical challenges. Despite not being as fit as I once was, I proved to myself that with determination and perseverance, I could achieve great things. This birthday workout served as a reminder that mental strength is just as important as physical fitness in achieving our goals.

In conclusion, never underestimate your ability to push yourself beyond your limits. With resolve and perseverance, you can accomplish extraordinary feats. As Cicero once said, "Constant practice, devoted to one subject, often outdoes both intelligence and skill." Practice excellence, and it will become a habit. There's nothing more empowering than realizing the strength within yourself to achieve your goals.

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Spring! Sunshine! No more layers! Tan lines! Yes! Yes! Yes!Now that spring is well under way, it means that I now share the road with my fellow athletes, and many of those athletes had neither the inclination or ability to ride or run outside this winter and I’ve found myself needing to reintroduce some ground rules (6 to be exact!). You’ve often heard coaches and fellow athletes talk about training partners, and they are important for many reasons. But, in this article, I am diving in to a different perspective about training partners, I’ll be addressing the notion of sharing your training space.

Admittedly, my schedule is awesome. I was able to capitalize on the best weather over the winter and continue most of my training outdoors. However, on a recent spring ride, I was struck by the volume of athletes I encountered and genuinely concerned for their safety – and mine! As we all move from bleak basements and into the light of the bright outdoor world (albeit some days are windy – currently gusting up to 35 mph here), there are a few things I’ve needed to remind myself of and hope you’ll appreciate this common sense reminder about training around people again.1) Signal, signal, signal: this becomes especially true around mixed company (walkers, runners, cyclists) and doubly so while riding within the vicinity of cars. There’s nothing wrong with being predictable. A quick and courteous “On your left” is great for passing, plus personally, it allows me to hold my line a little better instead of just getting passed and being startled.

2) Look before you move: bike or run, getting cut off or cutting someone else off can spell disaster. A ten second double check won’t cost you anything, but spending extra time sorting out an accident will.

3) Hydration and nutrition are not dirty words: your ride might be scheduled for two hours, but pack for three. It’s only April and while I haven’t bailed anyone out yet, the outdoor season is long and summer is going to be hot this year. Give these two points serious consideration before you leave for a workout, and make sure your training partners do the same.

4) Flat kits: similar to #3, be someone’s hero and be prepared. And, if you are carrying a kit, learn how to use it!

5) Headphones: I get it, I really do. It’s nice to have your own personal soundtrack going to the movie montage that is your training day. It’s fun, and it’s something else to concentrate on when “Shut up Legs” doesn’t work anymore. If you’re on the bike though, you should really only have the right bud in your ear. The number of times I’ve passed someone yelling “Left!” and feeling like the south end of a donkey for doing so realizing they have both headphones in place isn’t cool. Double ear buds is definitely a don’t-do-this-while-training. And while we’re on the subject, check your volume. Having it so loud that the prairie dogs can hear doesn’t make sense especially if there are other riders or cars coming up behind you needing to pass safely. There’s hardly a race in the world that allows you to have headphones on during the run, let alone the bike, so I don’t really see the point to cycling with music. If you do choose to train with music, make sure you put in more effort to be aware because the distraction factor goes up.

6) High speeds on multi use paths: this pertains specifically to the bike, but I honestly see no reason to be going more than 12 mph on sidewalks or multi-use paths. They’re not that wide or straight, and there are many blind (or nearly blind) turns. In the decade I’ve been riding, I’ve had more close calls and near misses on the multi-use paths around Boulder than on the roads with cars.

Welcome back to the world of training outdoors. Be safe. It’s going to be a great season!

Leigh Dodd is a USAT Level 1 Certified Coach and an assistant coach for the University of Colorado Triathlon Team. Her coaching philosophy encourages us that passion and drive will take us along way in triathlon! Putting those qualities to work within the context of a structured training plan and you are off to a great start!

Let's face it, at some point during your race you're going to hurt. I don't mean that random knee pain that pops up now and then, or the side cramp that comes and goes, I mean that suffering that comes when you're mentally tired and physically fatigued. But, you have a goal so you will yourself to push through it anyway. THAT kind of hurt, and your ability to push through that hurt in order to achieve your goal is going to come down to how well you can suffer. So , how can you train to suffer better?Well, just like training in general, in order to suffer better you're going to have to practice suffering. I know, that's probably the last thing you wanted to hear, but it will work, and you'll thank me for it later. (You're welcome.)

The logical question, then is: how do you practice suffering? You start by suffering for just a little bit at a time during your workouts , even just three or four bouts of 30 seconds of real suffering within a 30 to 60 minute workout. Then you extend that to six or eight rounds of a minute or two of suffering, and you suffer a little more during those minutes than you did during the shorter intervals. So you're increasing not only how long you can suffer, but also the level of suffering you can put up with. You'll go on with that kind of training for a bit, and then about halfway through your season you're going to switch it up. You'll start really lengthening those bouts of suffering, but you won't make the suffer-fest quite as intense. It won't hurt as much, but it will definitely hurt longer.

At this point you've probably put two and two together and realized that what I'm describing sounds , at least initially , a lot like high intensity interval training (HIT). And that transitioning from HIT to endurance training sounds a lot like Reverse Periodization (see Coach AJ's article from last month). So am I really teaching you how to train to suffer better, or am I teaching you incorporate HIT early into your training season to achieve better results?

I'm doing both. HIT training has some incredible benefits for your fitness:

• It improves your utilization of carbohydrates as fuel.
• It increases muscle fiber recruitment and muscular capacity, and decreases the amount of lactate that is produced at a given effort level. This translates to an increased Lactate Threshold level, but also an improved aerobic capacity.
• Taking all the exercise science speak out of it: you will be able to go faster longer and with less effort.

But we started by talking about suffering, so let's get back to that. HIT training, while having all these fabulous physiological benefits, also helps you recalibrate how you perceive suffering. By repeatedly throwing yourself down your suffer well, you will realize that your well is deeper than you originally thought it was. What seemed crazy painful in week one is magically easier to tolerate by week eight. And if you know you can put up with serious suffering for two minutes, it's not as daunting to put up with a lower level of suffering for ten.

By now I've hopefully convinced you that HIT is where it's at, but why start HIT early? Why can't you defer throwing yourself down the suffer well until the last minute? Glad you asked. First off, you want to get those fitness benefits from HIT right out of the gate so that you can continue to build on them throughout your training season. From a suffering standpoint, though, what you ultimately care about is how well you suffer at race pace , and that's not what HIT is going to teach you. You need to start with HIT to recalibrate your high end for suffering early in the season, but then use the second half of your season to stretch that out and learn how to suffer better at race pace.

You want time to practice long stretches of just-faster-than-race-pace suffering so that you know , you teach yourself , how long you can tolerate it. Because then, when you're two miles from the finish and the fatigue has set in and part of you thinks you are done, you can remember your goal and remember how deep your suffer well runs and know that you actually CAN put up with that suffering for two more measly miles because you did it for four in training.

That, my friends, is how you learn to suffer better!

If you still make it to the starting line of a race? THAT is a really big win!