Urgent Help #2: IMNC 78.6 for a Novice
I'm in the same boat as Mike but I am not a swim-runner, or a swim-biker or a bike-runner. I'm a swimmer and a novice at this IM thing. I did my first IM last year at IMLou and this was to be #2. Like Mike, I'm committed to the race and the area and am trying to wrap my head around the sudden change. My thoughts are to swim a little harder than usual and go for the Roka FOTW. It's not KQ and not a podium but maybe a nice consolation prize. Then ride the first 10 miles JRA to get my HR down and from there think IF of .70-.73. I'm very tempted to push a little harder on the bike but am also a little scared of the run with dead legs. I would approach the run the same way as I would a full 140.6 because it's a marathon and for this fish, it's a long way. I certainly would appreciate any advice/help.
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When the floor drops out like this, as I told Mike, I think it is best to remind yourself of what your goal was. Yup, it is shorter, but that marathon is still a b*tch. This will still be a long day. If your goal was to crush the swim, do so. But if you were not going to do that originally, not sure why you would do it now. I would rework the goal watts on the bike, go hotter so that your marathon paces stay the same. The IM distance is all about that run as you know, and so if you are still working on your confidence in that department, I would focus on what you can control to do so rather than ditch the plan to go for a swim record.
Jay - Given your swim speed, and the chance to see just how fast you can cover 3800 m, sure, why not go for it? The worst that happens is you then do the bike and the run at normal IM speeds. But if you find yourself feeling "OK" on the bike, then consider this: for the first 20-30 minutes, go as planned for an IM length bike. Then, seeing as how its a flat course, drop down one cog (the next smaller one) and see how that feels. If you think you can handle that for the next two hours, stay there, or go even one lower in the last 30-45 if you can without exceeding your anticipated HR for the last hour of the run.
As I told Mike, make sure you re-think your nutrition and hydration plan. If you are going 3 fewer hours, and you are going a bit faster/harder, you may not be able to handle as many calories on the run as you had thought. And you may want to front load the bike calories into the first two hours a bit more.
Consider my thoughts posted on Mike's thread....