Coach P's IM Texas 2015 Race Plan
Note: I am still on the fence re Fuelbelt with my salt strategy or just salt pills since Gatorade Endurance has so much more sodium than perform. TBD, but I apologize for the duplication in some sections!!! Thanks in advance for your feedback...
Pre-Race:
Monday -
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Install Race tires
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Race Tubes
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New brake pads
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New Bar tape?
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Pack your chainwhip, tool
Wednesday
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Swim on landing?
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Assemble bike.
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Team Dinner?
Thursday
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Test ride - 60’
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Food shop
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PRETZELS, coffee creamer yogurt fig newton banana. Sunscreen spray and Lotion. Gatorade, Tylenol
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Ziploc® Brand Freezer Bags Quart/ Medium
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Charge Garmin / Computers / DI2
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Cut Nails
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Clean Bike
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Check Limit Screws / Bolts / etc.
Friday
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Big Breakfast by 8am - Get Your Carb On
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Sip Electrolytes all Day
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Smart Lunch + Snacks -- SALT!
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Final Review of Bike / Bags
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Bike Special Needs
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Bonus Salt Pill Canister + Tylenol
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Bonus Gatorlytes
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Bonus gels x3
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Run Special Needs
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2 x FB bottle with salt.
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Drop off after Lunch:
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Walk route from water to bags to bike to exit. Think about places to run fast, run slower, shortcuts. // TAKE PICTURES!
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Look for 2x landmarks and markers for bike rack position. Note row/column of t bags. // TAKE PICTURES!
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Get outta there fast
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Back to Hotel to Chill, Stretch, Watch Movie, Etc.
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Light Dinner by 6pm -- pasta + chicken.
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Make Powerbar Perform bottles for race morning.
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In Bed by 9pm -- Final review of Race Plan.
Friday (ziplocs for these bags or no? In or out?)
Morning Bag:
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Swim Cap with Goggles / Spit / TriSlide in them.
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Back up Swim goggles.
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Bike Emergency Kit
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Towel in case bike is wet.
Friday Night
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Tattoos
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Sunscreen
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Race Numbers (?)
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Bandaids
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Chip on ankle
RACE DAY Wake Up @ 3:30am
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Eat Breakfast:
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4.5 cups applesauce, 1 scoop protein powder, banana, bottle sportsdrink
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Coffee
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Get Dressed:
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Desoto TriSuit
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Chamois Cream
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HRM (Snug)
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TriTop
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Sunscreen
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Say goodbye and head to transition.
Transition Flight Check
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Nutrition bottles on the bike
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Two bottles of Perform (1 = Speedfil / Open Speedfil valve; #2 = down tube.)
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4 1/2 powerbars in bento box
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Unwrap the first bar
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Electrical tape if required.
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Lube chain quickly.
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Tire pressure check.
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Chain / Gearing Check
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Shoes clipped into pedals
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Left pedal at 9 oclock
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Sunglasses on top of A2 velcro / rubber bands
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Garmin mounted.
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5:45am ½ Powerbar
Final Suit Up in Car to Start
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Last chance chamois cream
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Body glide on bits,etc.
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Take out swim ziplock with: cap, goggles, spit anti-fog.
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Clothes into dry clothes bag.
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Phone into dry clothes bag in ziplock.
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Leave DC bag in Car with M
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Spit & Water on Goggles
PreSwim
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Goggles on top of cap!
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Water and Gel at 20 minutes.
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Dynamic stretch / warm up in waiting line?
Race Pillars
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No Racing Until Mile 18.
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Steady Effort Wins the Day.
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No Highs, No Lows.
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Best Races After Slowest Starts -- You Are a Diesel Engine.
The Swim -- Just Keep Swimming!
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Start strong and smooth - don't be shy - stay in control.
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Focus on: (1) turnover and high elbows, (2) kick by lifting heels, (3) full exhale breathing.
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Stick with a group -- no wandering off on your own -- especially return trip.
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Never stop moving!
T1
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Into Tent, Hop first line for bag XXX and into back end of Change Tent.
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Helmet On / Buckled.
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Grab Go Bag.
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Hand skinsuit & T1 bag to nearest volunteer.
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Jog / Use Go Bag:
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Waist Pack (gels) on and buckled.
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Salt/Pill canister for left hip pocket
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Arm Coolers over wrists
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Find Bike - INSERT LOCATION,
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Power On Garmin
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Jog bike to Mount Line
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Execute clean, single-sided mount.
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Feet into shoes as you roll.
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Sunglasses on.
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Roll up arm coolers.
Bike // Pacing -- Steady + Aero Wins the Day
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Settle In, confirm everything is good and working.
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First 7 miles are strong and focused. 260 to 280 on climbs, maybe 300 on Palani, then settle in.
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Target 245w all day (.72 IF). Terrain at 255w, Climbs up to 265w as needed.
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Adjust position as needed - Super Aero vs Choked up vs Climbing
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HR in 120s, building to mid 130s by end.
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Smooth cadence, don’t be greedy on flats with gearing.
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Tail wind + easy early miles means lots of drafts for outbound. Ride your watts and stay on the gas.
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Super aero all day; Visuals: "I get small and punch through the wind" ... "Momentum is Speed"
Bike // First 30 Minutes:
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Start Garmin 810 recording.
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Note early HR and work to get it down.
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Start fueling with 1/2 Powerbar @ 10' mark.
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Fluid targets = 3 bottles per hour of Perform for first hour.
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1 salt stick pill an hour.
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Pee by Mile 30.
Bike // Outbound
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Ride super aero / turtle style when able.
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Ride choked up when on rollers, loose fingers!
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Ride tall / good gear / front of saddle when climbing -- loose fingers!
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Water on arm coolers for hills, etc.
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Fluid target after Hour 1 = 2 bottles per hour.
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Tylenol at hour 2.
Bike // Miles 65 to 80:
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Starts at turn after Richards.
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Solid effort here in the 250-255W range (you will recover on downhill).
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Store in Dobbin is landmark to refocus and recover.
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Consider stop to stretch as needed (Special Needs).
Bike // Inbound:
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Ride your watts and let the speed/pace drop as needed.
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The Waiting Game
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Get wet at aid stations and for hills
Bike // End:
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Make sure you stay cool by dumping water the last 40 miles of the ride.
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Stay on 245 here, nothing super special. Flatline that HR.
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Super mental focus here.
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Tylenol at hour 4.
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Stretch as needed.
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Turn off at end of Woodlands Parkway = unstrap shoes, drop watts, easy light spinning, get mind into T2 game
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Sunglasses on bike.
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T2
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Flying dismount / hand off bike.
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Take off Helmet on the move.
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Find bag, head to tent.
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Bag down & Open.
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Shoes (on top), single sock in each.
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Start walking out with GO Bag.
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Race belt with number / gels on.
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Put clif blox in side pockets.
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Start eating banana.
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Watch on wrist, turn it on.
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Shoulder straps over sleeves and around waist (after Fuelbelt on).
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Fill Fuelbelt bottle 1 and get super wet / cold at aid station inside transition.
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Ice in ziplock for torso.
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Water on your head.
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Finish eating banana on the move.
Run // Lap One -- Diesel Engine Strong (Miles 0-8.5)
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Toggle Garmin to right screen for HR.
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Keep HR as low as possible for first 5 miles -- aim for Bike AHR
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Stay cool by dumping water the first lap of the run.
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HR target is 140-145 all day, hard cap of 150.
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Run smart: take tangents, follow shortest paths anywhere
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Great form -- shoulders before hips; high hands; chin up.
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Speed is Not Slowing Down - Easy miles in control, final miles with mind.
Run // Lap Two -- Steady Eddie (Miles 8.5 to 17)
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HR target is 140 to 145.
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Maintain pace and form focus on all hills.
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Smart through aid stations.
Run // Lap Three -- Build then Empty the Tank
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Mile 18 move from "reserved, internal focus" to "gutsy, external focus." Pass people and steal their energy. Try to get pace to STRONG.
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Keep turnover, keep form, don't walk anywhere.
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Power thru rollers and corners.
Run Nutrition:
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Feel good? Eat! Target is 3 gels in first half, then Clif Blox, then last Caf Gel at Mile 18.
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4oz Perform each aid station.
Aid Station Process -- Execute and Back to Running 10 steps or less!
Eating / Sponge Stop (Think: Eat + Drink):
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Eat gel / block prior to entering station.
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Call volunteer for specific fluid, walk TEN STEPS, spike and drink.
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Start running.
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Grab extra water / sponges on exit.
Drinking / Ice Stop (Think: Drink + Ice):
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Run past sponges.
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Call volunteer for specific fluid, walk TEN STEPS, spike and drink.
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Start running.
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Ice in Ziplock as you run.
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Grab any sponges / extra water on Exit.
Closing Miles (18 to 22):
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Really tighten this up. Fuel and anticipate final mile push. Get calories and steel self mentally.
Final Miles (22+):
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Run through aid stations.
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Switch to coke only.
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Minutes away from all fluid you could ever want.
Run Troubleshoot:
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Take the HR out conservative the first 10 miles of the run! That's the deadly pocket.
- If you get tingling fingers on the run, replace a gel with a banana and pop a salt stick.
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T1 Bag:
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T2 Bag: <li dir="ltr" style="color: #000000; list-style-type: disc; background-color: tran |
Comments
Remember where you were stationed on the run last year, think about what you were saying to us each time we went by!
Looks good , will be watching.....
Your HR has been so crazy low on strava. good luck!
content in Gatorade Endurance vs Perform and it worked (for me and for 70.3). I did however drank ALL the liquid Gatorade endurance as planned.
Oh, and if the banana is boiled mush by the time you retrieve it from your T2 bag, toss it and get a fresh one at the AS right outside of TA.
1. In general I would not wear a fuelbelt when racing. Yes, Craig Alexander used to do that. But very few of the fastest guys wear a fuelbelt and there is a reason for that. When I run, I train with a fuelbelt when running in areas that have no water fountains. It always feels okay but if I take it off I notice how much better it feels.
2. If you think it will speed you up through aid stations or allow you to skip aid stations then perhaps it is worth it, esp in the initial miles...I assume you can ditch it at any point...a pre-planned ditch may be a good option
I saw your other post about aid stations. I will reply to it.
GOOD LUCK!!!
Coach P...my only comment is that even with all your experience, it is a HUGE statement to your attention to detail that you still write a race plan. A great example for all of us follow.
Coach - FWIW - I turn Garmin on bike as I leave T1 in in the morning (pre-race). Battery life is well beyond race time and I don't want to fiddle with it searching for satellites / synching as I'm trying to get started on the bike... I just press the start button and go. In the worst case, I have 920 on wrist as a backup source to monitor power data.
Great plan and good luck!
Bravo.
If I were a big $$ coach, I'd have you spending 5 minutes every day, from now to race day, doing visualization exercises of 18-26.2. There is absolutely nothing you can do to make the physical inputs any different at this stage, and it will come down to the mental. But <g class="gr_ gr_14 gr-alert gr_gramm Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="14" data-gr-id="14">saying</g> "I will be mental xxx" in those miles is leaving something on the table. Dedicated, <g class="gr_ gr_13 gr-alert gr_spell ContextualSpelling" id="13" data-gr-id="13">focussed</g> uninterrupted visualizing will find that remaining "extra" and lead to improvement over baseline in these miles. Guaranteed. That's how strong I feel about this approach. You probably know how to do these exercises, but if there's any specifics you're after, just ask. </p>
@Rich, auto power down disabled on Garmin!
@Dave, I'd love any mental tips you could suggest. I tend to visualize the logistics more than anything else...mental toughness can always use "honing" around these here parts!!
(The reason I would do this as a big $$ coach is that I genuinely believe that this stuff works: visualization is probably one of the most proven mental techniques and skills in the mental training game. But more importantly, I just moved the my athlete's confidence by about 10 points for those last miles by having him or her showing up on race day with unbreakable certainty that they will absolutely kill it in that section. S/he went from a vague "I'm going to do well in this element" to "this is exactly how I'm going to do well, and I've played it forward, backwards, over and over again and I've seen myself kill it. There's no doubt, cuz i've lived it. " As we know, that confidence is VERY powerful, and exponentially so late in the race ... particularly when mental faculties are flagging and it might normally come with greater difficulty, and when you need it the most. But as big $$ coach, I've given you the tools to squeeze that extra confidence, and to achieve a peak performance.
This stuff works. fwiw, I will be kicking up my run 'visualization' at 11 weeks out from race day ... I actually do visualization exercises to improve long run outcomes.
+ Failed to stick with a group in the swim, and my swim time showed it. Must get better at OWS.
+ Bike was windier than in the past but I was better at dictating my pace and respecting the hills. Really steady HR over the day, power remains to be seen.
+ I did follow the visualization stuff re "hard work" (not just how to exectute) for the end of the run, and as a result the final 3 to 4 miles as you'll see from my HR file are spot on...now I need to extend that reach closer to what happens after the first hour of the run and the fun is all gone.
Thanks for everything!
for the first few hundred meters at texas, i think the best line is to the far right aiming to the bump in the shore. and then, after that, get closer to the buoys and aim for the red corner buoy. so, to start texas, the shortest distance should involve open water as no one seems to want to do this.
personally i like to stay in clearish water. my best times have involved going a bit wide often or shooting the tangents. for me, the calm of getting into a rhythm beats fighting the crown for possible drafts.