Stanbaugh's 11 weeks to IMLC

Rich Stanbaugh

2017 was challenging from a training perspective. By the time Tremblant rolled around, I felt healthy but my fitness wasn’t where I hoped/planned it to be and this was reflected in the results.

One week post-race – I feel fantastic. I want to race again… and rather than doing a quick recovery then racing, I would rather go through a building stage and try to get better in 2017.

Having said that – I don’t like November races. I live in MI and it will be dark and cold, I’m not a fan of the trainer and my friends will be on mountain bikes while I train for IM. To keep it mentally interesting and to give my body some new adaption challenges, I am going to do some things differently.

I would like my 2017 Race Report to say: Sub 11:00 hours with swim ≤ 1:20, bike ≤ 5:35 and run ≤ 3:55 … 

Approach to the swim: I swam 1:20 at IMLC in 2014. My best IM swim is 1:15 at IMWI in 2015. The IMLC swim has been somewhat unpredictable due to tides, winds, etc. 1:20 is a number that gives me some potential upside. I have a Vasa and I intend to use it extensively during the preparation to this race.

Approach to the bike: My bike was a disaster on my first trip to IMLC. Using BBS, riding at my IMMT numbers would put me ≈ 5:40 at IMLC.  HOWEVER – I need to substantially improve my bike strength in order to get the running improvements that I am seeking.  My two best IM runs (4:22-4:23) were both running off a bike with a TSS of ≈275. In order to achieve my running goals, I will target a bike TSS of 260 at IMLC. This means that I need to raise my FTP from 271 to ≈285 (280 would do, but I will aim for 285).

To achieve this 5% FTP bump, I will base my training on WKO4 and the new Coggin iLevels / teachings around how to drive performance improvements. I’ve been following this really closely over the last couple years and am pretty excited about the new ideas.

Approach to the run: My run fitness isn’t bad. My bike hurt my IMMT run, but I felt pretty positive about how I executed that run with what was left. The first big change to help me achieve that 25-minute PR is building the bike strength and riding at 260 TSS. I am planning on less focus on mileage and more focus on 2x quality runs each week (fartleks, some track work, running off the bike) and running 6 days. I will focus on periodization and using 4-days for low HR easy runs.

Approach to other: In addition to the above, I plan to race IMLC under 160# (IMMT was ≈165#, IMWI last year was 148#). I will also look at some improvements in bike position.

Finally – as a way to hold myself accountable and to (hopefully) share some of the approach that I am taking with WKO / iLevels (and if there is any interest), I will try to update this thread weekly and discuss how I am using WKO, share the story and (hopefully) the progress.

scott dinhofer

Impressive that you will do this. I Had thought about LC, and there are a number of factors that steered me away. I think it's great. 
you know what you need to do, the 2nd IM in a year is tough, as I am experiencing. I am betting that your recovery will require more than you think at this stage, give yourself the time. I did a half mary three weeks out, ran it hard and am still paying the price.. 

Body comp is clearly the biggest challenge. 

looking forward to seeing the journey.. 

Peter Greagg

Rich 
I am looking forward to hearing how you approach using WKO4 and the ilevels to push up your fitness on the bike.
I have had some learnings with WKO4 myself, which I am more than happy to share.
The subject probably deserves its own post in 'Power and Pace' don't you think?
Cheers

Brian Hagan

Nice Rich!  All this is very interesting.  I would love to join you for a long ride while the rest of the crew is on their mountain bikes.

I am very interested in the VASA.  @Coach Patrick @Jen edwards and @Ian Kurth have been mentioning it on our Sunday Zwift rides.  I really think it can help your swim and bike.  Also, it is very low admin, so works with your busy schedule.  I would use it all the time if I had one.

I am also interested in this method to get from 271 to 285.  That would be a pretty good bump in a short amount of time.  Also, under 160#, is very achievable.  As you see in BBS, it makes huge gains.

3:55 would be a pretty stout marathon, but I know you can do it.  The heat will be the challenge.  I saw your post to Patrick on the Bikram Yoga, and it sounds like that will be a good tool to acclimate.

Brian

tim cronk

X2 on the bike specifics.... Track all, post all, love your analytical approach.

Rich Stanbaugh

Growing FTP 

I mentioned above that I need to grow my FTP from 170ish to 185. I’ll use this first post to layout my plan for doing that.

But first, the government health warning: I didn’t invent these terms… Andy Coggin did. I don’t want to take credit for any of his thinking… I am just trying to relate how I understand the points that he, others on the WKO4 team as well as other WKO4 users are making. They are focused on the science and I really am focused on how to apply it to triathlon. I may get it wrong.

Having said that - I will start with a little about how WKO deals with FTP so that what follows makes sense.

There are a number of ways to estimate FTP. Within EN, we have a protocol that we follow that ultimately results in testing and taking 95% of the 20-minute effort. 

WKO4 has a new model for estimating FTP. I’ve found the model to be very accurate PROVIDED THAT you have provided the model with a sufficient number of maximal efforts for various durations ranging from 1 second to 10-minutes or so. Without having a sufficient number of efforts, the models estimate of FTP, or mFTP isn’t accurate. Similarly, if one has data spikes in the data sets that get uploaded, the model breaks… so it is necessary to take care of the data that goes into WKO.

I have made used boldface to call out that we are estimating FTP. Regardless of which method we are using, it is important to understand that the 20-minute test, WKO or any other method is really just an estimate. It is not accurate to more than a few percent (according to Dr. Coggin). I tend to think in terms of 5s… 265, 270, 275, etc. I record the number measured, but round off to 5 for planning, racing, etc.

WKO has the ability to work with two FTPs: mFTP (model FTP) is determined by the software, whereas sFTP (set FTP) is determined by the user. I set sFTP to 95% of my best 20-minute effort. 

Being more specific about my goal: I would like to increase sFTP to 285w.

VO2max vs FTP

We all have a theoretical VO2max that is determined by how much mitochondria we have in our cells. We can influence that a little bit – but not a ton. However, most of us are not operating at our theoretical VO2max.

At different points in our training, FTP is a smaller or larger percentage of our VO2max. WKO4 gives us the ability to estimate that and to track it over time. This is useful, because whenever out FTP grows to a larger % of VO2, it is a good time to focus more on Anaerobic Power to increase the VO2 and create ‘more room’ for FTP growth.

My last 90-days is shown in the chart below. My mFTP is 82.4% of VO2.

My last 90-days is shown in the chart below. My mFTP is 82.4% of VO2.

If I compare this to my build into IMWI last year (bleow), you can see pretty good evidence that each time I worked to increase my VO2, that I got subsequent gains in FTP.

Taking weight into account (Relative VO2max):

- Pre IMW VO2max: 55.9 mL/min/Kg

- Current VO2max: 52.3 mL/min/Kg

I believe that in order for me to get the FTP gains that I am seeking, I will be best served by focusing on workouts intended to drive the VO2max higher.

The chart below shows the Power Duration Curve (red line - Coggin’s model) and the Mean Maximal Power curve (yellow line - my actual data in the last 90 days). Over the next couple weeks, I will design interval workouts intended to drive the yellow line above the red line everywhere below 10 minutes. I will do other rides as well, but the focus of my bike training will be  “intensive” (to use the WKO term) during the first phase. I will follow that by an “extensive” phase that focuses on taking the new VO2 strength and driving the FTP higher and creating stamina at longer durations.

I'll post more about how I choose the intervals (power, duration and recovery time) later. Need to get on the bike now!

tim cronk

Rich this is exactly the type of stuff I am interested in.  Look forward to following along.  Thanks for taking the time to share.

Peter Greagg

x2 what Tim said.
Rich, I wonder whether the title of this post should mention something about using WKO4 to drive your FTP gains? Or a separate cross post perhaps?
In my build to the Worlds 70.3 at Chattanooga, I used Time To Exhaustion (TTE) to systematically build my endurance. When Rich (and the rest of us) get(s) to that stage, I will share the things that I learnt.

Rich Stanbaugh

@Peter Greagg  - This post is where I am logging my build to IMLC. Bike is part of that, but the thread will cover more than WKO. I don't have the time to manage several threads, so it is all going here. Sorry if this is troublesome.

I have tagged it with a WKO4 Tag

Peter Greagg

No trouble at all. I was just thinking about lurkers that didn't look at your actual post. With the WKO4 tag, that should be sufficient.
Perhaps I will write a consolidating WKO4 post that draws the threads together and point to the original posts?

Jeremy Behler

Standing by anxiously.   I've loved geeking out with you on this stuff....it's rich (pun intended) with insights and opportunity.

Trish Marshall

I can barely use my iPhone, but love reading your stuff Rich!  I'm along for the learning ride.  

Al Truscott

Rich - as usual, it's good to have you pointing out directions in which to learn more. With that in mind - what is the WKO chart you posted which shows the VO2/FTP relationship over time - which pack, or which chart should I load up to get that?

At the risk of throwing you off your plan, I'll note that mountain biking IMO is a superb form of VO2 training, if you have some serious (steep, not necessarily long) hills to play around in. Between 2004 and 2008, I was training for both Xterra World Championships and KQs at the same time, and found MTB-ing both a break from and a good adjunct to my road training. I think it would help with stress relief if you took a ride with your buddies once every week or two without specific training intervals, just a hard 90-120 minute ride in the woods.

Dave Tallo

@Rich Stanbaugh- will follow with great interest ... thanks for this.  

(I also want to raise, in another thread so it gets the love it deserves, the issue of heat in LC, and coming from a northern climate (as you and I talked about in another thread, I'm thinking of racing as well, and this is a big factor in my mind.))  

Rich Stanbaugh

@Al Truscott  - I'll try to include Chart Pack names. For the most part, I either build or customize my own charts. I will work to collect the charts that I am using into a single chart pack that I can post somewhere for the team to access if they wish. I fully agree no the MTB - after getting through the initial weeks os this, I hope to use MTB to rack up some extra seat time, to feel those explosive heart rates and to have some fun (don't all MTB rides end with beer?)

Rich Stanbaugh

IMLC Update – 9/6/2017

Since last update, I’ve spent my time trying to wrap up the recovery from IMMT, get back into a workout routine and to figure out what the heck that routine is going to be over the next weeks. Some updates:

Swim: All of my swim workouts during the first ½ to ¾ of this ramp will be on the Vasa. I find the Vasa harder than actual swims, so I’ve spent the last two weeks developing Vasa strength. My plan is to workout M-F on the Vasa. In the immediate future, those are all base workouts (aka – get the time in any way that I can).I started on 20’ sessions and am doing 25’ sessions this week. Loosely speaking, I intend to work those to 60’ sessions and then to start introducing intensity and intervals.

Run: My intended Run Blocks for the build are: Base/Recovery, Speed, Specificity. I’m targeting 5-6 days each week without any runs exceeding 90’-120’ in any block. The Speed Block isn’t really “speed,” per se, but is really adding a couple quality workouts in the weekly block with tempo-pace. Specificity will faster than race pace (so that race pace feels slightly easier). I plan to add a focus on Running off the bike in the Speed and Specificity blocks. 

I’ve been fighting a dodgy hamstring all year and it has already reared its ugly head. PT will feature prominently in the build to IMLC.

Bike: Since last update, I have been focused on workouts that will improve VO2. The Chart below, from the “VO2max Pack – Bike” in WKO shows that I have raised VO2max from 51.2 mL/min/Kg to 52.4 mL/min/Kg since the last update.

The chart below (A custom chart that I built to track my improvements during the IMLC Build) shows that I have ‘lifted’ the left half of my PDC by ≈50w. FRC (the amount of work that I can do above my mFTP) has improved by 3.6kJ. I’ll continue one FRC workout each week for the upcoming weeks, but will begin to focus efforts towards durations between 10’ and an hour to lift the mFTP.

Peter Greagg

Thanks for the update.
i was wondering how you selected the specific interval set to boost your FRC?
I am assuming you will chose from the "Optimised Interval" tab, but which one(s), and why?

I will be pursuing a similar strategy to try and get back my FTP to around 220 watts that I had a few years ago before I had 5 months off due to injury. My mFTP is around 190 watts now and I was thinking I should choose intervals of the length that are of the duration where the biggest difference appears between my PD curve and the modelled curve, that is summarised in the SW graph. Or not?

Rich Stanbaugh

@Peter Greagg - a couple thoughts.

First - my mFTP never matches 95% of 20 minutes until I have done  substantial amount of work to get maximal efforts at different time intervals. I set my sFTP to the FTP I believe to be correct based on a 20-minute test or a maximal ftp interval from a ride. As my training gives WKO enough good maximal samples, mFTP and sFTP converge.

The approach that I am taking now is to first focus on 5 minutes and under, next will be 10 minutes to an hour. This is for convenience as much as anything... the road that I ride on for 5-minute sessions is different (and more convenient) than the one I use for longer efforts.

Within those time blocks, I target an area where mmp is below PDC and then use the "Optimized Interval" chart to determine reps and recovery times. You can get the power levels and times looking directly at the PDC. The intervals are targeted to be 90-100% of the PDC for the (time, power) in question.

I think that any time one wants to raise their mFTP, starting with FRC sessions that will increase VO2max will give more "headroom" for the ftp by reducing the ftp% of VO2. Should make it easier to raise the ftp (according to Coggan)

Rich Stanbaugh

IMLC Update 9/24/2017

A lot of work done since the last update. I have finally made the transition from “recovering” from IMMT to “Building for IMLC.” The plan has said that for longer than I’ve felt it! The last 4 weeks have been pretty consistent with Monday/Friday as recovery/easy days and blocks of work Tue/Wed/Thu and Sat/Sun.

Swim/Vasa

The Vasa work is getting easier, which isn’t actually saying much because it was pretty tough for me the first few weeks. I’m still focused on steady and expanding efforts and am up to 40-minute sessions. I have a pretty dramatic strength difference between right and left arms… hopefully my southpaw will toughen up!

Run

My runs are starting to feel like runs again. The last week and a half has started feeling somewhat normal. Hamstring is behaving again, but I am still committed to PT throughout this training block. My “speed” work is really like threshold pace rather than speed, but it feels good to be doing run workouts. I’ve also started running of the bike again. Weekly runs are up to 5x. Still planning on getting them to 6x per week.

Bike

Bike workouts have shown some pretty big gains since the last update. I started this effort focusing on VO2max. The idea being to push VO2max higher so that I had room to grow FTP. On an absolute basis, I finished IMMT @ 3.83 L/min compared to 3.92 L/min leading into IMWI in 2016. Since then, I’ve driven it to 4.04 L/min. That is a new high for me on the bike. At race weight, the will be 56mL/min/Kg.

This chart shows the growth through the year and since IMMT (8/20/2017)

I’m feeling pretty good about that and have started transitioning my workouts to longer efforts at high IFs. For example, yesterday I pushed 250+ for as long as I could hold it (chart below):

I could really feel the benefit of the VO2 work that I’ve done since IMMT. I held 95% for 1:20 and was able to finish a 93-mile ride at 80% and a pretty strong HR. This is a huge change for me since IMMT.

The chart below shows the changes to my Power Duration Curve. Red represents my fitness finishing IMMT. Blue shows the gains since then.

Looking towards the next couple weeks, I will focus on the raising the curve (below) in two areas:

1. Some maximal efforts in the 30-40 minute range, and 

2. Start focusing on longer efforts at higher intensities (Stamina)

3. More emphasis on running off the bike

I really like the approach of using WKO4 to target specific powers / durations to attack in my workouts.

Jeremy Behler

@Rich Stanbaugh these are some serious gains at the tail end of the season when fatigue is typically setting in for mortals.   Your ability to recover and grow in relatively short order is impressive.   

And I've said this a dozen times, but I love your analytical approach....numbers don't lie and they can often be very insightful if you know where to look. 

Rich Stanbaugh

@JeremyBehler - Thanks! I struggled all year (leading into IMMT) to get consistent work done. In the end, I had lost some of the early-season strength and just focused ton stamina the last six weeks so to get through the race.

I've used the last 5 weeks to focus on bike power and building VO2/FTP. I mentioned in my last posting that I was going to do a maximal effort in the 30-40 minute range... After sleeping on it a couple days I decided that with 6 weeks left until the race, it is time for me to start focusing on extensive workouts to carry higher intensities over 5-hour durations. This morning I did a 20-minute test to see where my fitness is and will use these numbers to drive the final weeks of training.



My 20-minute max Pnorm was 298w, Pavg was 297w. These are the highest numbers I have ever recorded for a 20-minute test. This puts me at FTP=283w by the traditional means of measuring. My goal at the start of this build was to get to FTP=285w... I'm going to call 283w pretty close. Should have sucked it up that last 5 minutes!

WKO4 has me at mFTP=267w over the last 30 days. This model is always lower than my 20-minute test... but 267w is the highest mFTP that I have ever achieved


The 20-minute test also helped me spike the Vo2max numbers.




I'm pretty happy with this. 4.12 L/min is an all-time high for me. If I lose a little weight, the 55.0 mL/min/Kg should take a nice jump! 

So - I'm hovering around 3.9w/Kg now... time to lose a little weight :-)

And time to change do the Stamina/Endurance phase of this build.

Peter Greagg

@ Rich Stanbaugh - I don't know what you intend to do in the Stamina/Endurance phase? I have written a few thoughts that might heip you focus?

https://endurancenation.vanillacommunities.com/discussion/23899/possible-use-of-tte-and-stamina-metrics-in-wko4-to-improve-long-course-triathlons#latest

BTW, I am loving your posts here detailing you journey!

Rich Stanbaugh

@Peter Greagg - thank you. I am in the process of sorting out what to do for Stamina/Endurance. I find the materials Tim Cusick puts together to be really educational and I learn a lot from them. But they are really focused on shorter duration efforts. 

One aspect of the PDC that I find a little frustrating is that there seems to have been a TON of thinking put into the shape of the curve between 1sec and TTE... but after TTE it is best-fit to exponential decay. Maybe that is accurate? Because there is not a "critical point" on the curve at durations beyond TTE, I find it hard to influence that portion of the curve other than long, hard efforts. I also find it difficult to infer meaning from it.

This is compounded by the fact that my training rides are on open roads which have the reality of traffic, traffic lights, carrying a finite amount of fluid on the bike (need to stop)... so the mean maximal data gets lowered by the slow downs and stops. I tend to focus on Pnorm rather than PDC or MMP at the longer durations.

I am riding 95 tomorrow. Unless I have a better idea, I may try to break that into two blocks of 2:30 at ≈220w...???

Peter Greagg

I noticed Tim is keen for us to keep our power meters recording when we are stopped "a rest is a rest".

Rich Stanbaugh

IMLC Update 10/25/2017

A lot of work since the last update… I’m reminded once again why I do not like November Ironman races!

I caught a pretty nasty cold right as I finished the VO2 build. I missed several workouts and had several low-quality workouts as I tried to get started again. Really, it was a mental struggle as much as anything from the combination of having my routine disrupted and trying to stay focused late in the season. You can see the gap in my training log below. 

 

The weather in Michigan went from warm to cold overnight – but the weather in Cabo has been extremely HOT. 

  

The hot weather combined with the wandering focus had me worried, so I booked tickets to Naples to visit Mom and have a week of Camp Rich. I was blessed with some pretty extreme heat (although still cooler than Cabo).

 

At this point, my plan to focus on durability was overshadowed by a need to focus on specificity. During the days that I was there, I got 5 rides and 5 runs, with 3x running off the bike. The absolute temperature was never below the mid 80s and the humidity never fell below the very high 70% range, giving me training in with heat indexes ranging from mid 90s to lower 100s.

Nutrition wise, the six days were obscene:

- 1 carton of Powerade Gels

- 1 carton of Honey Stingers

- 32oz container of Gatorade Endurance powder

- 10 packages of Skratch Hyper Hydration powder

- 8 Cokes

- 5 20oz bottles of regular Gatorade

The first couple days were very difficult, but by the third day, I was starting to acclimate and was getting some good work in. I had a 7.2mi and a 12.6mi run off of 60min bikes and a 7.2mi run off of a 86mi bike. By the end of the week, my heartrate was starting to respond fairly normally to work in the heat, as long as I didn’t let it climb too high. In one sense these workouts were worse than race day because I did not have access to ice or refills with cold drinks during the training unless I stopped at a convenience store.

I’m back in Michigan now and travel to Cabo in two weeks. I do not see much reason to get back out on the roads and freeze, so I plan to move the majority of my training indoors with the aim of keeping my bike sharp and finishing my work on the Vasa. I will also add my hot yoga sessions in over the remaining time to help hold onto my heat acclimation.

Time to write a race plan!

scott dinhofer

totally hear where you are... I am thinking of rolling back my hard cap on season length next year to end at Wisconsin... unless of course some magic happens at LP!!

question on your chart ^^up there^^ - is that WKO4 or TP online? 
are you manually entering your wkos into TP/wko4?

Al Truscott

Excellent climate simulation. Like most things, 50% of heat acclimation is 90% mental. Just knowing/remembering, having body memory of the work you were able to do in those conditions should be very helpful. Now, running/biking indoors with no fan may be indicated. Just watch your HR and fluid needs...

Also, I assume you have seen the recent heat acclimation via sauna thread. 3-4 of those sessions in the last week before you leave might also help. As soon as possible after running, no hydration  in sauna.

tim cronk

@Rich Stanbaugh Nice work and preparation.  What is the structure to next weekend (2 weeks out from race) going to look like?

@Al Truscott  That sounded like Yogi Berra but actually made sense:-)

Rich Stanbaugh

Scott Dinhofer - The chart is from TrainingPeak Online (vs App).

@Al Truscott Yes - I've been following the heat acclimation thread... haven't figured out how to make it work for me since it would mean starting/stopping runs from the gym; I haven't found the admin cycles to get to/from the gym and keep all the other balls in the air.

@tim cronk - I agree with Al... It's 90% mental, the other half is physical! Here (below) is what I have laid out for training leading into the race. This comes with a government health warning... I am notorious for adjusting the plan based on the weather forecast or my attitude :-). I'm open to suggestions/improvements! The key thoughts are:

• Replacing outside rides with trainer time and adding some intensity
• Trying to keep up running frequency without runs that are very long (I'm somewhat tired and I also think that I have enough fitness from the season to get me through the duration one more time).
• If I get a nice day - all bets are off and I will take advantage of being outside.
• I haven't included the Yoga sessions because I am sorting out the calendar
• I would like to get some mountain bike sessions in here :-)