Newbie Camp a Definite Success!
This past weekend, aspiring triathletes from seven states came to the Triathlon Mecca to learn from the best by receiving a concrete foundation as they begin their triathlon career. Beginning Thursday, June 12, another group of triathletes will descend upon Boulder to experience the Wes Hobson Performance Triathlon camp. There are still three slots available and as one camper said this past weekend. "Wes, the $495 participant fee is worth just the seminars themselves, then you add film analysis, training and meals. You should be charging way more!"
Camp #2 This Coming Weekend!
To receive an up-to-date schedule of events for this coming week's camp, please check our web site http://weshobsonperformance.com. This includes the just crowned Escape From Alcatraz winner and 5-time World Champion, Simon Lessing. Use your frequent flyer miles and come join us!
Here are just a few responses from this weekend's camp.
Wes, this camp over achieved my expectations. The "pros" you assembled for the camp were so approachable, friendly and exceptionally knowledgeable. I am equipped for success after this camp!!!! I will definitely come back again. My advice to those thinking of doing this is: IT IS A MUST!!
Holly from Ohio.
The camp was much more than swimming, biking and running. It showed me that there was a science to improving not only my body, but my mind that I can apply to other important parts of my life.
Fred from New Mexico
Wes, thanks again for a great camp! The combination of training and instruction was right on. The group of coaches and speakers was truly world-class. You really put together an outstanding camp experience. Thanks again.
Geoff from Wisconsin
Five stars!! Wes and his crew give each camper individual specific instruction and immediate steps to improve and endure. Highly recommended.
Jerry and Katy from Hawaii.
Words can't begin to describe the benefit I received from attending this camp. I have already made progress I could not have made on my own in several years! I would recommend it to anyone.
Jane from New Mexico
Great time, great workout and great instruction in all "4" disciplines. Thanks to all campers (as we will keep in touch), coaches and world champions…very inspiring.
Mike from Colorado.
Intensity, Too Much, Too Little, How Much?
Most triathletes are self-driven. Being self-driven and goal-oriented, triathletes naturally want to succeed and they will push the limits of their body to do that. Triathletes train with swimmers at the master's swim classes, they bike with cyclists on group rides, and they run track sessions with the local running club. Triathletes all too often want to train like a cyclist, swimmer and runner. We have the mentality that to become a good triathlete, we need to do two group rides a week with the roadies AND to run two track sessions every week as runners do AND to go to the three hardest master's swim workouts.
Triathletes need to be very careful of doing too many high intensity workouts. The challenge of triathlon is juggling three sports into one. Doing a couple of workouts a week of high aerobic or anaerobic intensity in each discipline is puts a tremendous strain on the body.
Tyler Hamilton, a training partner and housemate of mine for two years who is a world-class cyclist, once said, "Triathletes train too hard." He was referring to the intensity of many triathletes' training regimens. Triathletes need to understand that although we might be as good as athletes in single-sport disciplines, if we are to excel in triathlon, we can't train exactly the way they do.
Using Intensity in Your Training
The "heart" of gauging intensity is using your lactate threshold (LT). LT is defined as the point where lactate, produced from the breakdown of carbohydrate, interferes with muscle contraction. Imagine pouring water into a cup which has a hole in the bottom allowing the water to run out as fast as it goes in. This is what happens to lactate in the blood at low levels of exercise. By pouring the water (lactate) faster into the cup, there comes a point when the water goes in faster than it comes out and begins to fill in the cup.
This is similar to the lactate starting to accumulate in your blood stream as your exercise increases intensity. The point at which the lactate starts to accumulate is the LT. Exercising below your LT, aerobically, may be continued for an extended period of time-for hours, depending on your fitness. When exercising above your LT, anaerobically, the duration of exercise at this intensity is greatly reduced. We're now talking minutes instead of hours. Even with high tech equipment, your LT heart rate can never be pinpointed for a given workout on a given day. This is because your LTHR is always moving within 5 to 10 beats of what you might think is your LTHR at the time. This could be due to over training, diet, overly stressful lifestyle, lack of rest, current fitness, inadequate base training, fatigue, weariness, changing environmental conditions and even time of day. Doing a self-test such as a thirty-minute time trial running or biking can often be as accurate as blood lactate measurement done in the lab.
Training Zones
Once you have determined your LTHR, you can incorporate your workout intensities into heart rate zones and assign PE values. This assists in having every workout have a purpose. A general rule of thumb for training zones is:
| Zone |
|
Approximate% of LTHR
|
PE (6-20 scale)
|
|
1
|
Active Recovery |
less than 82 |
6-8
|
|
2
|
Extensive Endurance |
82 - 89 |
9-11
|
|
3
|
Intensive Endurance |
89 - 93 |
11-12
|
|
4
|
Sub-threshold Training |
93 - 100 |
13-14
|
|
5a
|
Threshold Training |
100 -102 |
15-16
|
|
5b
|
VO2max Intervals |
102 - 105 |
17-18
|
|
5c
|
Power Intervals |
greater than 105 |
19-20
|
BUT!
Although heart rate is an indicator of intensity, it is best used with other indicators such as PE and pace or power to formulate your intensity level. Pace is based on time. For instance, running half mile repeats at 3:30 pace shows how hard you are working based on previous track workouts you have done. Pace is especially useful for swimming and running workouts where factors are fairly constant. Cycling effort is best predicted through a power meter as it eliminates the effects of outside stimuli such as wind and geography when measuring output.
Since it is difficult to pinpoint one's LTHR, a few beats per minute difference won't likely be that perceptible. If you feel your calculated LTHR is off, then schedule a test in substitution of a hard workout. Make sure you are fairly fresh before doing an LT test. Over the course of the season, not everyone will see an increase in their LTHR as they become more fit. What you really want to see happen is that you are going faster at your LTHR.
How You Use Intensity
The intensity of your workouts depends on your race goals. The longer the race, the lower the intensity and the more endurance training is needed. The shorter the race, the higher intensity is needed, and recovery becomes that much more challenging. Racing success at shorter efforts like sprint- and international-distance triathlons is all about pushing the ceiling of your LT output and then developing the ability to work very close to this limit for extended periods of time.
Trying to figure out the fine line of too much intensity versus too little intensity has confounded many an athlete. Use all of the indicators to best train at the correct intensity levels dependent on your planned races and the timing of your season. Training with a purpose will help you reach your peak performance.
*** A more extensive article on this topic, written by Joe Friel and Wes, will be in the August issue of Inside Triathlon. ***
Quick Tip:
Too help improve your transitions, leave your cycling shoes on your bike pedals when you get done with your cycling workout. That way, whenever you start a ride, you are putting your feet in your cycling shoes while on your bike. When you finish the ride, you take your feet out of your shoes before you dismount, just as you would want in a triathlon race. You also always know where your cycling shoes are.
