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Showing posts from June 2, 2024

The Trimarni "Ironman" Method - Progressive Overload

  When it comes to preparing our athletes for a long distance triathlon (140.6 miles), you'll never see us prescribe a 20-mile (or 3-hour run) and it's rare for our athletes to ride more than 100 miles more than once in their peak training. Our athletes never swim 4200 continuous yards until race day. The "Trimarni Ironman Method" is all about progressive overload - Train as much as your body (and mind) can safely handle with strategic increases in volume, frequency and intensity done progressively overtime. As listed in this photo, there are many different ways to add more stress to the body without riding 100 miles or running for 3 hours.  An effective training plan requires a careful balance between the frequency of workouts, the duration of each session and how intensely you perform each workout. Working out too hard, too often or too long can be detrimental to health and can prevent the body from optimally adapting to the training stimulus. In contrast, working o...

Happy Global Running Day

  Happy Global Running Day! I wish I had the same confidence, passion and joy for running as I do for swimming and cycling. I look forward to my swim and bike workouts. It feels so good to push hard. I don't feel the same way about running. I always stress about what my body will feel like when I run. Running does not feel natural to me. I don't feel like "a runner" when I run. Sometimes running is very hard for me. It's often hard to get started and to keep going. Running has given me several injuries. As much as I try to do things right, it's the only sport that can make me sad and frustrated. Although me and running have had a rocky long-term relationship, I've never given up on running. It has helped me during difficult times in my life. I have found comfort in running as it serves as an outlet for grief, anxiety and depression. When I run, I become a great problem solver. I come up with the best ideas when I am running. Running is the only sport that ...

The strong and durable endurance athlete

For any endurance athlete, there is great risk for injury and fatigue while training for an event lasting 90+ minutes. Certainly, every athlete training for an endurance event hopes to get to the starting line feeling fit, strong and healthy but not always does this happen. Sadly, far too many endurance fail to get to the starting line of their upcoming event due to injury or a health issue and if they do arrive, the body is weak, fragile and broken down. Because endurance sports are addicting, it's common for athletes to continue this cycle of never fully rebuilding or strengthening the body and to constantly arrive to races poorly prepared (physically and mentally). Do you consider yourself a durable athlete? Here are some red flags that should be addressed before signing up for races or progressing with your training volume/intensity..... You are constantly rehabing and racing, rehabing and racing. You struggle with consistent training due to life, low motivation, restless sleep...

The birthday ride

My birthday typical falls on a race weekend. For the past few years, I've participated in Ironman 70.3 Blue Ridge a few days after my birthday. This year, with no races planned, I wanted to do a long ride to celebrate another year of life. Of course, I had to swim on my birthday (as it is my favorite sport) so I started off my birthday weekend with a 4600 meter swim with our masters group at Westside Aquatic Center.  I have a great group of cycling friends but sadly, several of them had other plans this weekend (like cycling 200 miles from Spartenburg to Beufort - talk about like-minded friends) but Garrett and Alvi were in town and agreed to ride with me and Karel for a birthday ride.  Garrett is the master of planning epic cycling routes so I told him to come up with a route that included a lot of climbing in the mountains and great views.  The route including Ceasar's Head, Sassafras, Table Rock Overlook and Paris Mountain. We wanted to include Pretty Place but it was ...