Kona Training Week Three (28/6/2010 – 4/7/2010)

A training week of two halves. The first in sunny England with great weather, but relatively easy training as I tried to freshen up for the second half in overcast Lanzarote with plenty of hard work. A travel day in the middle cut into my training time, but I still managed to push out the hours. Aided in particular by the need to rack up serious run volume on the path to 100 miles.

Once I was settled in Club La Santa I soon picked things up. Easy bikes are no longer so easy with the hills and headwinds on hand to ensure plenty of work. Any given ride here notches a few percent higher on the intensity scale than it might back home. Despite that extra load I’ve been comfortably logging run mileage and feeling pretty strong.

Pleasingly the weight is melting off too and without much loss in energy. The way things are looking I’m well on target for goal weight at ITU Long Distance Worlds. I’ve reached the point where it’s no longer impacting my running. Overall it feels like I did a few weeks out from Kona last year I’ve just got a couple more months of work this time.

The numbers

  Time (hours) Distance (km) Distance (miles)
Swim 6.75 19.6 12.2
Bike 16 422 262
Run 9.3 113 70.2
Gym 0.5    
Totals 32.5 554.6 344.4

The good

Despite starting the week with relatively low volume days of running I managed to step my game up once I was in La Santa. Multiple double run days with one totalling just over 30km saw me hit the weekly goal without problem. Pace hasn’t always been that hot, but the main thing at this point is I’m logging up the miles. I finished the week with a challenging, hilly long run that was testing to say the least. It wasn’t fast, but it was far from easy.

I’m pleased to find I could support some slightly stronger riding. Whilst I’m happy to back down the bike intensity for a while it’s nice to be working a bit harder and coping. There’s room for a few more solid efforts in my training back home. Of particular note this week has been the threshold ride I mentioned in my last post. Not only for the realisation that my aerodynamics could be costing me, but for introducing a good structured session to my week.

The bad

It’s been good increasing the swim volume, but I’m finding my pace in the pool frustrating. To be honest I know people say that La Santa pool is slow, but it’s infuriating! I feel quite strong in the water, but just don’t seem to be hitting any notable times. Lots of focus on a good catch and body position, but where are the improvements?! Hopefully they’ll come in time at the least I think endurance is improving.

Whilst the biking has been a little bit more intense I don’t feel my rides are consistent enough. Hard sections up hills are paired up with far too much cruising on the flats. Partly fatigue, but also I’m not being focussed enough and allowing my mind to wander. If it weren’t for the environment here I don’t think I’d be working as hard as I have on the bike. That said I have to trust that the key sessions will deliver the results and the rest is just bonus.

Thoughts

The coming week has a bit more training with Roger as things pick up. I’ll be joining him for a few of his quite challenging sessions along with my own additional training. Things could get interesting as there’s some long bikes with large chunks of hard work towards the end. Manageable on their own, but throw in even more running and it’s going to test me.

That said I’ve been fortunate to have this opportunity to come here and train and it’d be far worse to waste it. Worse case I end up crawling home from a training session. I’ve not broken yet, but throw in some pace work to the volume and the cracks may show. I’ve seen the paces planned for Roger’s runs and I’ll only be joining him for a few of them. My legs are all about volume right now, speed work will follow.

Still I enjoy a challenge and I’m looking forward to arranging a massage with The Tri Touch once I’m back in the UK. I have a feeling my legs may be desperate for it by then. The coming week is looking to be the biggest yet and will hopefully help push me to the next level.

Ironman Training Library

From nutrition to pacing - a collection of CoachCox blog posts focused specifically on Ironman training and racing.

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