How hot is Kona?/Heat Acclimation
I just started the final 12-week push toward Kona, and I'm curious what people's thoughs are on heat acclimation.
1) How hot is Kona? I know that the average high in October in Kona town is 84, but everyone says it's much hotter up on the Queen K. How much? Worse that a muggy summer day in DC? I've read articles saying the air temp goes over 100 with pavement temps above 120. Is that for real? I know the tropical sun heats things up, and I'm on black asphalt in the middle of black lava, but is it really 15 degrees+ warmer than the surrounding areas?
2) How much of my training, and what types of workouts, should be done in the heat? It's supposed to be 100 in the DC area the next few days. I'm supposed to run 100 minutes tomorrow. Should I do it in the morning, do it over a long lunch break during the heat of the day, or obey the "Code Red" and stick the to the treadmill?
In other words, do I need to do every workout in the heat to acclimate, or is a couple per week sufficient? Is there an advantage by doing more in the heat, or a disadvantage because the quality of the workout will suffer? Should I be doing the longer, less intense workouts in the heat, or the shorter interval sessions, or does it not matter? Is there any point to acclimating 12 weeks out, or should I just play it safe until the race gets closer?
Comments
Slogging out runs in these temps week after week won't help your form and could compromise your ability to do the plan as written (Heat/Humidity really saps you).
Be curious for comments from the smarter folks...
1) It was not nearly as hot as I expected it to be. I remember one climb on the bike around maybe mile 80 or 90 where I was quite warm as there was no wind right at that spot and I was going really slow up hill, otherwise the bike was not that hot at all and I had a black aerohelmet on and it was sunny for the majority of the time. The run was interesting for me, I was quite comfortable and felt great the entire time on Ali'i. It could be that I was just taking my time and enjoying it but I never got hot. The majority of the time I was heading out on the Queen Q on the run it was slighly overcast and there was a slight breeze so I was pretty comfortable. However about a mile before the energy lab the sun came out and it was really hot in the energy lab. For about 5 miles (including the energy lab in the middle) it did was hot and I could feel the heat coming up off the road and the heat from the sun, it was pretty misserable. However once I settled in on the queen K it was partly sunny most of the way back and the breeze was back and it wasn't too bad again. So maybe 30-40 minutes of the entire day I was really warm and uncomfortable but otherwise it just felt like any other hot summer race.
2) Totally agree with Jeff here, right now zero of your workouts should be in extreme heat. Do them early or inside so you can hit the target zones. I started to gradually transition to running/riding in the middle of the day about 5 weeks out from the race. At 3 weeks out I got to know the suana and steam room really well, every day. It sure seemed to help me as I was very comfortable the majority of the time I was in Kona and at home and at my office before and after I was always freezing.
Others in the house (i.e. Al, Matt S) know much more than I do about heat acclimation but the general consensus seems to be that you get the majority of the benefit with about 2 weeks of acclimation and much more than that diminishing returns set in.
How hot is Kona? I've done it once when it was 75-80, overcast, and even a little drizzle on the bike, then hazy and 80-84 on the run, with a downpour just after I finished. Three years later, I did it with bike temps clearing 90, and no clouds at all. That't about the range I think. I've ridden in IM WI and IM CDA in much hotter conditions. But several other things make the conditions worse than they might seem. First, it's closer to the equator, so the sun is right overhead at midday, and that increased angle of radiation makes it feel worse. Second, the Queen K seems to be made of black crushed lava asphalt and is surrounded by a lot of bare black lava. All the black absorbs that brutal sun, and blasts back up at you. Third, there are those crazy winds - no predicting them, but they can play havoc with your hydration needs as your body fluids get sucked right out and blown away.
On the run, it depends on when you start - you'll probably be running from a bit before 2 until sometime after 5, eh? The first ten miles is along the shore, with a fair amount of shade and a sense of an ocean breeze, with temps usually @ 84. Then up a big hill onto the Queen K. If you're lucky, it will be a day which sends clouds down off the mountain in the afternoon, and you get some relief from the radiant heat, but it's still warmer there than on Ali'i - usually upper 80s.
Acclimation is really only necessary during the 2+ weeks ahead. I hope you get to spend a week + there in advance of the race so you can get a sense of what it feels like to run in each of the environments at the time of day you'll be racing: along Ali'i from 2-3 PM, Along the queen K from 3-4, and in the Energy Lab around 5 PM.
Here's a link to a good summary article (a bit technical) about heat acclimation. In the end, the key to success there is no different than anywhere else - a prudent bike, and close attention to pace and hydration in the first hour of the run. It just "feels" different, but the same old EN strategy will work, you'll just be slower than you want to be. As we all know who've raced there, and as Coach P emphasizes, there is a very narrow bandwidth for success there - no margin for error in pacing and hydration/nutrition. Witness all the high powered pros who blow up or DNF every year. Me, when I made my primary goal to "not blow up on the run", I had a PR (as of that time) for the marathon, and beat my overall qualifying time. When I actually tried to "race", I boogered myself and ended up in the medical tent.
http://endurancenation.us.dnnmax.com/Training/TrainingForums/tabid/101/aft/2610/Default.aspx