18-05-2009 / 24-05-2009(Week 9)

Week 9 (18-05-2009 / 24-05-2009)

Swim 3:00 - Bike 10:00 - Run 6:00 -- Total: 19:00

---

Monday

Enjoy your day off doing something you don't normally do with the extra time, something totally unrelated to triathlon.

---

Tuesday
If you have a choice, do the workout of the sport in which you need the most help first. If you're a strong swimmer, do the bike workout first, or visa versa. Keep this in mind every day of the week.

Work on your weaknesses when you are most fresh and they will more quickly become your strengths!

SWIM 0:45

WARM UP

300 Swim - 200 Kick - 300 Pull

MAIN SET

30 x 50 w/10 sec rest, as follows:

#1-10: gradually descend from 75% to 85% by #10

#11-18: 25 Kick - 25 sprint

#19-30: race pace -- each one @90+%

COOL DOWN

400 Pull @60-70%

BIKE 1:30

20:00 getting your HR up to 70% -- straight into

5 x 20 sec fast spinning (100+ rpm cadence) w/40 sec recovery spin @90 rpm; then spin easy for several minutes

MAIN SET

Today's set is a simple variation of last week's. Greg LeMond used the 3 x 5:00 set often to increase his power output on the bike; I'm altering it for you to add spice to the routine.

One time through the following set. All the hard repeats are done @ 92+% with an equal amount of recovery time @ 50-60%

5:00 fast/5:00 easy

4:00 fast/4:00 easy

3:00 fast/3:00 easy

2:00 fast/2:00 easy

1:00 fast/1:00 easy

You'll have to put more effort into each repeat to get your HR above 92%, so be aggressive while staying relaxed.

COOL DOWN

After the 1:00 easy, hold your HR at 70-75% for 25:00 before gradually slowing down to 60% with 10:00 left, and finally below 50% by the end.

DAILY TOTAL: 2:15

---

Wednesday

RUN 1:25

15:00 warm up jog, allowing your body to slowly get up to 65-70% by the end.

Your legs may be a little heavy from yesterday, so allow yourself time to loosen up. Try to stay light on your feet.

After warming up, do 11 cycles of the following:

4:00 @ 75%/1:00 relaxed @ 65%

Then cooldown below 65% for the remainder

BIKE 2:15

WARM UP

20:00 spinning @90-95rpm

- get your HR up to 60% in the first 10:00 and closer to 70% by 20:00

DRILLS

These drills may get tedious, but they are essential for improving your pedaling efficiency. A little work goes a long way!

6 x 3:00 Isolated Leg Training w/30 sec recovery after each

MAIN SET

All repeats done at 70-75%:

20:00

16:00

12:00

8:00

4:00

Spin easy for 4:00 @ 65% after each repeat.

Hold 90-95rpm cadence throughout, and switch gears every several minutes to change the emphasis on your legs.

COOL DOWN

Slightly extended cooldown today. Spin easy in your small chain ring @95+rpm,

allowing your HR to return to 50% for the final few minutes.

DAILY TOTAL: 3:40

WEEK-TO-DATE: 5:55

---

Thursday

SWIM 1:00

WARM UP

400 Swim - 300 Pull - 200 IM - 100 Kick

MAIN SET

2 sets of the following:

350 @75%

300 @80%

250 @85+%

Swim the first set, Pull (Paddles ok) the second set

COOL DOWN

6 x 50 easy w/10 sec rest

RUN 1:05

Today's is another ladder set. As the repeats get shorter, increase your effort so you're running at a faster pace.

15:00 easy jog, gradually raising your HR to 70%

- finish with 1-2 laps of accelerated running down the straightaways to get you ready for the main set:

One time through the following set (@ 88-95%):

2000m

1600m

1200m

800m

400m

jog easy for 3:00 after each hard repeat

Avoid starting out too fast on the 2000 -- you want to feel a definite increase in your effort and pace during the first three repeats. The 800 and 400 should be pretty challenging and harder to increase your speed on.

Jog easy @60% or below to the end -- walk backwards to stretch out yout calves and hamstrings the last 2-3:00 to complete your cool down.

DAILY TOTAL: 2:05

WEEK-TO-DATE: 8:00

---

Friday

More IM work today.

SWIM 0:45

WARM UP

400 Swim - 200 Kick - 2 x 100 IM -- continuous

DRILLS

12 x (50 Side Kick - 25 Swim) w/10 sec rest after each

- remember to take three strokes when you switch from one side to the other

COOL DOWN

600 Swim

- keep your HR under 70%, lowering the intensity to 60% by the end

DAILY TOTAL: 0:45

WEEK-TO-DATE: 8:45

---

Weekend Note:

There's a lot of meat on this weekend, so go into it smart and mentally prepared for the tasks at hand.

Conquering long weekends like this one will do wonders for your confidence and your fitness going into your Ironman race.

---

Saturday

BIKE 5:15

Try to keep your stops to a minimum and definitely keep the amount of time you spend at your stops to a bare minimum. Try to simulate your race experience as much as possible. Finish the ride with some energy to spare -- you'll need it tomorrow!

RUN 0:45

Quick transition from your bike to the run, then get your HR above 80% quickly. The bulk of this run -- at least 25:00 -- should be between 80-88%

Finish your run with 10:00 of light jogging, bringing your HR under 60% by the end. Walk 2-3:00 to complete the cool down process.

SWIM 0:30

This can be put in either first thing in the day -- to simulate the order in a triathlon -- or last in the day, to enable a more complete recovery.

800 warmup swim, gradually getting your HR from 60-70%

If you're doing this workout first, then reverse the intensities

(65-70-75-80%) and have a quick transition to your bike:

400 @80% - 300 @75% - 200 @70% - 100 @65%

DAILY TOTAL: 6:30

WEEK-TO-DATE: 15:15

---

Sunday

RUN 1:45

Steady endurance effort, keeping your HR between 70-75% throughout the bulk of the run. Hold your effort and pace to the very end.

BIKE 1:00

RUN 0:45

Bolt out the door at 75% and establish a comfortable stride as soon as you can. At 10:00, pick up the pace to 80-84% for 20 minutes. The cooldown below 65% for the final 15:00. Walk it in the final couple minutes.

Be sure to stretch out very well afterwards and top off your tank with some good food and lots of liquids! Great job this week!!

DAILY TOTAL: 3:45

WEEK-TO-DATE: 19:00