Drew Robinson [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 Des Moines (2020-06-21) #70.3DesMoines_20
- Ironman 70.3 Texas (2020-04-05) #70.3Texas_20
Your Notes
Three HIM in 2019 (Texas, Madison and Boulder); 10 HIMs since 2011. Typically a 5:45-6:00 HIM racer. Have maintained a base level of fitness post- Boulder but just returned from a two week vacation with no working out. Workout 5-6 times a week; current fitness would allow me to comfortably finish a sub 30 min. 5k. Cycling is getting stronger, recently added a Garmin power meter which is already improving my workouts.
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 November 18, 2019
- On 11/18/2019 Load the Durability for Triathletes 2 (8 months out) -- 4 weeks to end on 12/15/2019
- On 12/2/2019 Load the OutSeason for Triathletes (Bike Focus) Plan, 14wks to end on 03/08/2020
- On 2/10/2020 Load the EN*Half Bike Focused to end on 4/5/2020
- On 4/6/2020 Load the Post Half Iron Transition Plan, All Levels (2wks) to end on 04/19/2020
- On 4/20/2020 Load the EN Half Run Focused to end on 06/21/2020
- On 6/22/2020 Load the Post Half Iron Transition Plan, All Levels (2wks) to end on 07/05/2020
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 General Discussion 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 Drew,
Your Season Roadmap is all loaded up. I saw that you already sync'd your Garmin and made some comments on your first workout. Nice work.
Here are some things to do in order to get the most out of your workouts, Final Surge, and learn how to race smarter. The first of our 4 keys is the race is all about execution and not fitness. We can teach you how to get the most speed out of your fitness, just by being smarter about your execution on race day.
For any questions you have getting started, looking at your Garmin Power meter data - chat with me here in this forum or schedule another call with me here: https://calendly.com/new-member-phone-call/1
So, First thing! 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 8 sec video here to set it up:
Consider downloading the Final Surge app.
To get the most out your training - you need that workout data (DONE!) and the story. Together, they give you (and us) the complete picture of your training. We definitely want to see those hours, miles, and heart beats - but we also want to know how you felt, mood, how mentally easy or hard the workout was, what you ate and drank on those long rides (helps dial in your fueling and hydration for long races), what went good (as a reminder) and what you want to work on next time. This takes your Final Surge account from just workout data to a full on training log - where you see your progression and become a smarter athlete.
The app 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. 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.
Final Surge | Mobile Apps
https://www.finalsurge.com/apps
Customize your workouts Final Surge
Your new Garmin power meter will be powerful training tool, combined with the heart rate monitor for the run. You will do a bike power test (5' max and 20' max effort) and a run test (5k race or time trial) and you will use your 20' nominal power (bike) and average heart rate (for the run) during each test to set you customized workout zones. Once you customize them, the workouts will say 20' @ (135-145 heart rate) vs. 20' @ Zone 2.
Here is how you update your training plan with integrated and customized zones (there is a video here too):
https://www.endurancenation.us/help/final-surge-how-to-update-your-integrated-training-zones/
Your new Friends are waiting for you.
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.
· EN Live 24/7 [Join Here]
· Run Group [Join Here]
· Zwift Chat [Join Here]
· Events [Join Here]
· Race Groups [Join Here]
#5 Learn More About Your Plan. Videos! Too easy!
You can watch these videos to get a better understanding of the "why" behind each workout and how they all fit together. Start with these Run Durability -
· Run Durability Training Plan Guidance (PDF)
· OutSeason® Run Durability Overview
· OutSeason® Run Durability Part One
· OutSeason® Run Durability Part Two
There is another good one that explains the OutSeason and our emphasis on bike intensity during the winter to build fitness and then transition to more volume and racing specificity once the weather gets a bit better.
Chat with you soon,
Matt
Nice work this past week and use of the training notes. Glad you are feeling better.
💪
@Drew Robinson
Drew, Glad to hear from you. Nice work - getting it done with consistency through the holidays! That's no small feat.
You can add some pool time whenever fits your schedule. Things to keep in mind: swimming is a lower priority so keep it low key. The bike workouts are key, so keep track of how you feel in your workout notes - if swimming adds too much fatigue and impacts your bike power we need to talk. Experiment with it for a few weeks and give us an update. We can make some adjustments from there. We have plenty of time before your race in Des Moines. Be conservative.
How does that work for you?