Walker Johnson Official Coach Thread [PlanEN]
Here's your personal Coach Thread, as promised. This is where you'll return to post all your "coach" questions as responses; I'll see them and reply. This first post is here to guide you through your first year on EN, so you can always come back here.
As you'll see in this forum, I handle all manner of edits and changes. So post away, know that I reply here usually M/W/F each week.
Power User Tip: Click the Star icon by the Title of this thread to subscribe, and you'll get email updates when I do reply.
Coach Notes
Your Races
- Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga (2020-05-17) #70.3Chat_20
- Ironman Louisville (TBD) #IMLou_20
Your Notes
Have been out of consistent training for a while.
Most recently I did:
Ironman Florida 70.3 (Haines City) 2018
Ironman Steelhead 70.3 2018
Louisville Triple Crown of running 2019Training recently has been running 3-4x/week for an average of 15-20 miles. Averaging a 9:00/mile pace
Nice and easy, just getting back consistent.
Fitness level is well below where I have been in the past, but I'm excited to be back on the train.
I recently did my first 3 bikes for the year.
3 weeks ago 50 miler
last week 25 miles on Labor Day
75 miles on Sunday 9/8.
Averaging 16 mph on the longer 2 rides
Season Outline
These are your recommended training plans, including the date you should start each one (sometimes you won't complete a full plan but transition to another one). You can change your plans on Final Surge by clicking on Training Plans / My Plans. Learn more about each plan on the Training Plan Central Page.
>> Last updated by Coach on September 11, 2019
- On 9/9/2019 Load the -- Run Durability for Triathletes 1 (9 months out) -- 4 weeks to end on 10/6/2019
- On 10/7/2019 Load the -- Run Durability for Triathletes 2 (8 months out) -- 4 weeks to end on 11/3/2019
- On 10/28/2019 Load the OutSeason (Bike Focus) Plan, 14wks to end on 2/2/2020
- On 2/3/2020 Load the -- Swim Camp to end on 2/16/20
- On 2/17/2020 Load the -- EN Half Bike Focused to end on 5/17/2020
- On 5/18/2020 Load the -- Post Half Iron Transition Plan, All Levels (2wks) to end on 5/31/2020
- On 6/1/2020 Load the -- Bike Focus Block, 6 Weeks to end on 7/12/2020
- On 7/13/2020 Load the -- EN Full Bike Focused to end on 10/11/2020
- On 10/12/2020 Load the -- Post Ironman Transition Plan, All Levels (4wks) to end on 11/8/2020
Training Plan Support in Your First Month
You can connect with @matt limbert as needed in your first month to get dialed in with your training plans and data. You can set up a call with him online here: https://calendly.com/new-member-phone-call/1 and he'll be on this thread shortly!
Your Homework
Tell Me Your Season Goals
- What will make you consider this season a success?
- What's your biggest limiter right now?
Start Learning
Every month we hold live events as part of our commitment to make you just as smart as you are fit. Feel free to visit our Coach Lesson page and our Office Hours page to find the next opportunity to connect with Coach Patrick and your Teammates.
Contact Points
As part of your journey to becoming a Self Coached Triathlete inside TeamEN, we are prepared to give you excellent support for your first 90 days. Our goal is to transition you from live, in-person support to using our digital resources and the Team to help you continue your progress as you execute your Three Year Plan.
These are all the key points in your first year where we must talk. Please remember to include your phone number.
- Welcome Call in Week One (set it up here)
- Training Plan Call in Week Two to talk about your season (set it up here)
- End of Trial Call -- We review your experience & Unlock Year One / Race Execution for you (set it up here)
- End of Season Call -- We review your year & Strategize for your End of Year Gap and Year Two (TBD in this Coach Thread)
Questions
- Coach Questions - Right here in this thread. Always reply to this same thread, it keeps a record for us as we evolve together!
- General Questions - Simple stuff can go to the Q & A Central Forum for the Team to answer. For example, Best Bike? How to improve run cadence? How to flip turn?
- Need Help? - Please check the EN Help Site first!
- Admin Questions - Billing or orders or whatnot? Use the red chat button at the bottom of the Members Site (not forums) or email us here.
- Specific Questions about a Race or Power, etc? - You can post those into the General Discussion Forum and set the title or tags for that topic. Race questions to the Racing Forum, etc. Not sure where to post? Put it in the General Discussion forum and we will sort it out. Whatever you do, PLEASE ask your questions!!
For short or last minute questions, we recommend you use the Red Chat Icon on the main Members website.
We have also organized a complete chart of the best ways to contact us online here.
Your First Month on the Team
You have quite a few things to do when you start up. There are instructions on the top of the website, but you can review them under Resources / Trial Member Welcome.
Your First Year Inside Endurance Nation
This will be unlocked after your trial expires.
Looking forward to working with you this year,
~ Coach P
Comments
Hey Walker, Welcome to Endurance Nation!
Let's get you ready for Louisville! And Chattanooga! Its good to hear you are motivated and ready to get back in shape. Coach Patrick has laid out your Season Plan - starting with Run Durability. Your running 3-4x a week and biking so far will transition nicely to your Run Durability plan. Let me know if you want to move things around or adjust the schedule. We want you to get started on the consistent work and building that first layer of fitness Coach Patrick talked about.
I'm Matt and I'm here to help you get started. We will chat here or you can set up a call with me here: https://calendly.com/new-member-phone-call/1
I'll help you get up to speed with your plan, your basic schedule, workout terminology, and all of our resources. I'll send some links to articles, forums or coach videos that apply to your training. I encourage you to look around and let me know what you are interested in. There are ton of videos, coach lessons and forums that are available to you now.
Here are some easy steps to get the most out of your training plan, Coach Thread, EN learning library and Final Surge. Get smarter to get faster.
First, Power user tip! Subscribe to this Coach Thread and get an email when we respond. Your Coach Thread is the best way to get a hold of us, it documents all of your training and it helps to keep the communication moving. Click on the red star and check box just to the right of your thread title. This way you will get an email when we respond in your Coach thread. See video here to set it up:
Next, get setup in Final Surge. Coach Patrick has just made your season plan in Final Surge, and I see you have already posted some workouts in there. Nice work.
Consider downloading the Final Surge App. This makes it way easier to add comments about how you felt, ate, weather etc (for the bike) and sets, paces etc (for the swim). Those are all super helpful to you as you track your progress, prepare and plan your for your race.
It's super easy to make comments about your workout. Click on the "pencil" icon to tap "how I felt" or "perceived effort." You can add a few notes about what you ate/drank (helps to figure out what works best for you on the bike), how you felt mentally, the weather or any aches etc. Those comments are really handy when you are comparing workouts, tailoring your own training, evaluating progress and planning for your ride. It also makes it easy to look at and plan for your upcoming workouts. Just a quick not goes a long way.
You can also setup Final Surge to send you emails with your workouts every day.
Final Surge | Mobile Apps
https://www.finalsurge.com/apps
My goal is to make your first month of Endurance Nation as simple and as awesome as possible! For any questions you have getting started - chat with me here in this forum or schedule a call with me here: https://calendly.com/new-member-phone-call/1
Learn More About Your Plan.
Learn EVEN more about your plan(s).
All of our plans are listed here: http://members.endurancenation.us/TrainingPlan/TrainingPlanCentralPage.aspx#rdp
I look forward to hearing more, helping you build your fitness and learn more about training and racing.
Talk with you soon.
Matt, Training Plan Coordinator
Walker, It was great to talk with you. I love your story and tremendous potential - doing an IM on Cross-Fit training and the series of HIM races you have done tell us that you have the mental toughness and and discipline we like to see. I look forward to what you can do with triathlon structured program and getting you smarter on execution (i.e. pacing, fueling and hydration) to get your best race from your fitness. We have a ton of folks on the Team in the forums that have additional experience to share. We'll start now with consistency and frequency - by the first week in November you and the rest of the team will get after it with a focus building bike strength and fitness.
Here is our guidance for 'Workout Triage' if you need to modify a workout to fit your schedule:
WorkOut Triage
We suggest, in order:
1. Cut the Interval Length but Keep the Intensity. IOW if 2 x 15' on the bike isn't working for you, can you do 3x10 with more rest or 4x7.5, etc.
2. Do the Time but Drop the Intensity. If #1 doesn't work, then get in your 2x15' at .9 or .85 instead.
3. Do the Time Only. If #2 doesn't work, then just get your 45-60 minutes done.
4. If You have Zero Motivation/time and #3 is Wicked Unappealing, Do Nothing. Stretch, core, etc is okay but take the day. Better to save now than pay later.
**Please do not try to "make up" workouts or double double if you miss one - just drop back into the schedule.
Customize your training Zones.
Once you have your avg heart rate for a 5k and trainer road FTP test, You can further customize your workouts in Final Surge. (If you have a power meter on the bike - you can use that too.)
Once we have that, you can customize your own training plan. For example, your workout will read something like: 20" @ (135-142) vs 20' @ zone 2.
Here are the instructions (with a video to walk you through it):
https://www.endurancenation.us/help/final-surge-how-to-update-your-integrated-training-zones/
Get Smarter to Get Faster.
Watch the Overview video on the OutSeason (scroll down, it's the first section of the page)
OutSeason Best Practices:
Here is an example of the discussions on training in the Forums with the rest of the Team - that you might find interesting.
https://endurancenation.vanillacommunities.com/discussion/25774/cycling-pmax-frc-v02-etc#latest
https://endurancenation.vanillacommunities.com/discussion/25107/the-value-of-zwift-racing-vs-just-intervals-to-improve-your-high-end-power-outputs#latest
Remember to read more about your Run Durability plan in the links in the post above, here is the background on the OutSeason which will start 28 Oct.
Talk to you soon.
Nice job with your 8 miler this weekend.
Thanks! It was fun. A lot of hills- especially more than I have been running.
Nice job with the run test and updating your plan with integrated heart zones. Are you getting the hang of managing your perceived effort with the HR data?
@Walker Johnson I love your consistency. It looks like you found your groove. Have you checked out the social network and connected with the rest of the team yet?
GroupMe is the live version of all things Endurance Nation. This is an app you can download to your smartphone, visit on the web, and even search if you want. The forums are our long-term memory, these chats are Team right here, right now.
In a few weeks we will have race plans and then race reports from folks that will be helpful for you as you pick your fall IM - if Louisville is out, you can research our library of race reports for the other fall events.
Race selection here:
Race execution here:
AND
Also, in a few weeks you will start the OutSeason with an increased emphasis on developing bike strength and power - with intervals and intensity. The EN 24/7 and Zwift Chat are fun and good places to chat with folks about your workouts.
Hey Walker, just checking in with you. You start your 2nd block of run durability next week. How's everything going?
You are also approaching your 30 day mark with EN. In a few days, Brenda will ask you what you want to do with your membership PlanEN or TeamEN. Coach Patrick made a video to talk about what the differences are between the levels and which one makes sense for you.
We can chat about it here or give me a call https://calendly.com/new-member-phone-call/1
Hey Matt, Sorry I have been silent over the past few days. Last week and this weekend was a booger with a lot of long days and weekend at work. Missed a little more than I wanted. I'll be getting back up to speed this week.
Thanks for the feedback and encouragement.
Hey Walker - good to hear from you. Weekend at work! I look forward to you getting back at it.
@Walker Johnson
@Walker Johnson sent you an email about your membership, but it does not look like you are opening our email up. Can you take a look and get back to me please. Thank you.