training schedule questions

I can't say for certain, but I'm guessing that the triathletes on my team are enjoying a little downtime between the summer tri's, and the start of the winter SCY season. I signed up for two sprint tri's in September. As far as training, my only advice is to start biking and running sooner than 1 month before the race. :D

A question for the triathletes? On the USMS board. You should by now know that triathletes especially new ones are not necessarily well liked in swimming circles. They aren't really well liked in cycling circles either. But to the question. The subject of designing training plans follow the same periodization principles folks follow for swimming but it's a little more to juggle. For olympic distance tri I think you'll find a mid packer trains around 9 to 12 hours per week. There are large deviations either way. A fairly typical week would be one hour to 1:15 every weekday except for one. With long sessions on the weekend. The long session will depend on the length of the triathlon and builds to a peak and then tapers back down before race day. This is a general shotgun estimate. There's a really a lot to consider when making out your annual training plan. The best book to get for planning is the "Triathlete's training bible". It goes through all three sports and all the three main limiters of each (speed, strength and power) and takes you through your yearly plan. You can find lots more info pertinent to triathletes at www.trinewbies.com. I'll also answer questions sent to me directly. I hope the running keeps coming along for you.

wow...didn't realize that folks don't like triathletes. I'm a little suprised that swimmers would have that position... why is that? a year or so ago, I bought that book, and it is sooo detailed that I get lost in it. I'll go back and refer to it. Thanks for the referral of the website. I'll check it out. Have a great night! :D

jerrycat lots of us are triathletes as well, and they are more than welcome at most masters teams. To suggest otherwise is to ignore the USMS mission statement: "To promote fitness and health in adults by offering and supporting Masters swimming programs." On my team, triathletes are one of the biggest sources of new members, and soon enough they come up to speed with the program. Just last week one of our members was really excited that she is learning butterfly. With all due respect to Kevin, if the impression is there that triathletes are not well liked in a particular club, maybe the program needs to look at how they welcome new members and help them understand the ground rules and the benefits of a rounded program. With a little patience, most triathletes will understand that there is more to swimming than just distance freestyle. For resources, trinewbies is great, as is the training bible, total immersion, multisports.com and a host of other books and sites. As with USMS, the governing body in the USA has a lot of great resources for this: click on links at http://www.usatriathlon.org and you can also find your local governing body and clubs in your area under the "Clubs/regions" tab. And you should also note that for the most part NOBODY other than a pure cyclist is welcome in most cycling circles. It's not just triathletes. They are not as fortunate as USMS to have such an active and open organization to welcome them in at all levels, from beginner to veteran.

I have been doing tris for 20 years. there was a time when I was intense, doing all 3 sports 5 or 6 days a week, lots of running and biking mileage. My swimming background allowed me to fall into the pool and do 1500 and still come out of the water in races in good position. For several years I didn't compete in swimming because I was so busy doing tris. Then injuries that limited running happened, the Masters Nationals was going to be held at Mission Bay in Boca and I found myself wanting to be a swimmer again. I still cross train, run 3 days a week, 3-5 miles, swim 3-4 days, 1500-4500, and bike one long 25-30 mile ride a week. some times I get on the bike for an extra 30 minutes once or twice a week. I can easily finish the sprint distance with this schedule, but not the Olympic distance. I tried one last summer and hit the wall 3 miles into the run. use the books and websites for reference but listen to your own body for workouts.

so, nobody here is a triathlete? Or, is the steriod topic getting all the press? Have a great day you guys! Go swim! Jerrycat :D

Wow, I had no idea that separate disciplines were so closed!! I know that my first experience with triathlons this year will has gotten hooked on the sport. And some of my first information and guidance came fro this forum. It is difficult for me to understand how a sport of any kind could not be receptive of any other. So strange in my mind! I'm too new at triathlons to give much advice about training, and am just now attending to some of my weaknesses and training needs for next year's participation, Another site that I have found helpful is beginnertriathlete.com. Thank you to those who have helped me in the past. I am thankful that this site is not totally "exclusive". Nancy