Josh’s 2018 IMChoo Race Plan
Find my mistakes...
Background
This will be my fourth full IM and third time at Choo. This was my second OS with EN FTP went from 251 tp 279 and Vdot 48 to 50. My build to this race was unconventional due to work schedule but Im pretty happy with the work I was able to do. Long story short I did a big volume week followed by lower/recovery week. I always kept my long run during both weeks on Thursday but did all my long rides during my volume week. I didn't do this alone so a big thanks to those in the forums for giving me the confidence that this approach would work. I did some google sheets tables just to keep up with data and compare it to last years. Ill throw them in below.
Personal Stats:
FTP 279,4.1W/Kg
VDot 50
Weight 146-250
Pre-Race Days/Admin is pretty much identical to last year
Thursday
No more fiber/vegetables
Swim
Breakfast
Travel to Chattanooga- Bluff View Inn
Lunch
Athlete Check-in and Village
Dinner- 6 pm
Friday- EN Checklist
Last Short workouts/ Bike Checks
Breakfast
Athlete briefing
Lunch- 200 carbs
Organize all transition bags:
T1-helmet, salt pills,Gu
Bike S/N- extra Co2,tube Run S/N- extra salt, lube
T2- Go Bag(hat, race belt/bib, salt, Gu) Socks/shoes
Big dinner- 200 carbs
Saturday
Breakfast-Largest Meal- 350 Carbs, NO COFFEE :(
Lunch- 300 carbs
Continue sodium/hydrating
Bike Drop off
Dinner- lite early meal 4:30-5pm
Bed 8:30
Race Day
Up at 0345
- 2cups applesauce, honey, banana, 16 oz Gatorade Endurance, 8 oz Naked Protein Smoothie
- Morning clothes bag and special needs ready
- Suite up body glide and chamois cream everywhere.
- Out the door 0420-0430
Arrive at transition 0440-0445
- Re-familiarize myself where bike and T1/T2 bags are
- Pump up tires and Sunglasses on bike
- Infinit in BTA bottle and down tube
- Give Amber bike pump
- Get on bus to swim start 0450-0500
- Chocolate Gel /water 1 hr before swim start
- Gel/water 15 min before Start
Swim
Goal: 50 min or less
>Depending on current. Last year was 53:17 min.
> Count strokes, focus on a good catch and steady turn-over.
>Swim till my hand hits the stairs.
T1:
Goal 3:05
- Last year 3:20, 4th in age group
- Get up swim exit and regain balance, steady jog while removing cap and goggles, swim skin to waist.
- Get up the crowded ramp. Yell out number but remember where I'm at incase volunteers aren't swift.
- Open bag, helmet out by the time I enter tent, swim skin rest of the way off and snap chin strap. Get on the bike!
Bike
Goal: 5:26:00 - 5:30:00
After working with best bike split and the EN Calculator( below) this is my power plan. I always struggle setting a plan for the bike. I hate leaving too many TSS on the bike course although, this could have been a blessing in disguise on the run course. I just hope to execute a “solid” bike instead of just a “conservative” one. I guess I need to just remember, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A GOOD BIKE AND A BAD RUN!
Here are links to my camp week rides in Chattanooga and my Final RR
- http://tpks.ws/EB6PZ6FLYBI423YDWDI75UFFKI
- http://tpks.ws/R3IJTUOX5AGCPZI2A3ZG3FM2XI
- http://tpks.ws/6M3HNVKKZ2BTNFQMAWWSDWBTUM
- Stay calm and collected. Its an easy 3-5 admin miles before settling in. Watch for Ricky Racer, bottles flying, and railroad tracks. Depending on where I come out of the water, it might be less hazardous than I expect. Let HR settle out of T2, don't over power and let HR limit power if needed!
- After crossing the state line stay in aero bars, no more crazy turns. Keep HR 130-134 and hydrate during this first hour.
- Let watts grow to 180-183. Have ninja execution.
- HR historically bounces around 143-145 in the last hr. I will keep it as low and steady as possible.
Nutrition
- Starts out with Infinit (300cals/hr), Salt spills(2 per hr) and water for 2hrs.
- After finishing Infinit I switch to GE 1-1.5 bottles per hr based on heat and Cliff Blocks for 3hrs, Salt pill every hour. Extra water with the cliff blocks keeps my tummy happy.
- Start caffeine towards last half of bike
- Finish off with water/saltpills/cliff gel. I have found this leaves my stomach feeling nice and empty. Able to run and continue fueling without feeling too full.
- Stay cool with water when it heats up. That means having 2 bottles of water for the body coming out of Chickamauga, this is when I usually feel the heat.
- Load up on water at the last aid station before the right hand turn back to town. Stay wet and cool cruise into town with confidence. Feet out of shoes right after the left hand turn to T2.
- Flip up helmet visor
T2: Goal 1:50
- I was 2 fastest in age group last year 2:01
- Fancy rolling dismount and continue jogging after bike hand off. Unclip chin strap keep sunglasses on. Yell out number find and point to the volunteer closest to my bag. Open bag while running, shoes in hand when entering tent. Dump bag near exit, Socks and shoes on, get volunteer to bag helmet, grab go bag and exit.
- Manage GoBag- race belt and hat on. Stash extra chamois cream and salt in jersey and shorts. Eat Gu out of transition if hungry.
Run: Goal 3:50:00 (whatever the heat allows) (2017: 4:01:00)
- All based on HR. Really wanting to pay more attention to RPE this year and be a little gutsy at the right time.
- Hill right out of transition- will take this very easy, walk some if HR requires.
- Target last hour bike avg. HR (138-142) and hold that for 6 miles.
- Walking 15-20 steps at aid stations for the first 6 to stay fueled.
- Get lots of GE and gels at mile 3 and 5 within the first hour before hitting the hills.
- Will continue GE and gels as stomach allows. Throwing in some caffeine around mile 10-11 and will repeat as needed. Coke if needed.
- Allow HR drifting to 156 climbing Barton not sustained. HR will drop back to 138-140 on downhill.
- Miles 7-20 let HR go 150, make that rise slow and steady. Limit aid stations to 15 steps as long as things are under control.
- If HR has been well controlled all day, at mile 17 or 18 I want to push HR to 156+ and see how that feels. I will not do this if its too hot or I’ve struggled to keep HR down.
- Steady on front side of Barton hill, Let HR fall as much as possible on downhill. Steady 156+ through the neighborhood one last time.
- Mile 23.7 last effort on Barton and let it fly to the finish line. Skipping the last aid station at the bottom of the hill.
Below is 2017 run segments. Heart rate will be similar but I expect 15-20 secs faster per mile if I’m lucky.
Overall
I want to have fast transition, fuel well, make wise decisions on bike, and suffer more on the run.
I’ll be looking for my teammates on the course and I’ll yell at you if I’m in the right mind!
Comments
@Josh Church, look like a solid plan. you have done your homework and no doubt it will pay off! I'll be tracking as I make my way back from IM Maryland!
@Josh Church Have a great race.
1) 3 minute + PR on the swim. That's huge over a year. DId you put it significant swim time? Not saying don't do it but is the 3' worth the extra physical exertion? Swim solid but don't go too hard here. Swim only as fast as you can maintain form.
2) You are definitely on the pointy end and the bike IF seems very conservative to me. Looking at your camp week rides and the final RR only one of the three had a more aggressive IF of .71 while the other two were .66. NP for these three rides was 183, 184 and 199. I'd at least like you to bump it up to 190 NP.
Also as you get in better shape you can shorten the JRA (Just riding along) and go from the conservative ride to the more aggressive ride. Your two .66 IF rides have a TSS of 242 and 246 so there is some bandwidth to do more work.
I'd like to see at least .69-.70 on the bike but given your two rides at .66 I'd like to see some more information. You might even have more than that but do mention some challenge in training.
3) Run "Walking 15-20 steps at aid stations for the first 6 to stay fueled." If you need it, especially if hot do this throughout the run. Don't run through an aid station to save a few seconds to skip fuel.
@Josh Church looks like a solid plan. I know you are familiar with the area, but if you are looking for high carb on Friday check out Tony's pasta, right near where you are staying. If you haven't been there before, its one of my favorites. Look forward to seeing you out on the course (as a spectator). You will fly.
@Gordon Cherwoniak Thanks for reading.
About the swim, with the current I really don’t know I’m just throwing out a number. Only thing I did this past year was use my stretch chordz consistently, along with normal swimming. I feel stronger so I think I might be more steady and not fade. Does that net me 3 min idk, wishful thinking.
I feel like 185 Watts is a safe zone for me. I can ride the .71 IF (198w) with no issue and I ran off that during my camp week just fine. I really think 190w .68-.69 IF would be a good goal I may shoot for. May need to get the ok from CoachP or go rouge lol
im holding off till mile 6.5-7 before entering my “steady zone” because the hills of the course start at that point. On that course I see very little advantage in doing much before this point, at least for me.
@Josh Church One final comment relating to this from your plan "I just hope to execute a “solid” bike instead of just a “conservative” one." Heat is also a factor in all this as well so if it's super hot that needs to be factored in.
I don't want to push you too far out of your comfort zone but you have a 4.1w/kg and a at least 3 112 miles bike rides one at .71. Add to this it's your 4th IM and 3rd time at this venue so you know the course and what to expect come race day. Finally you 50 vdot is strong as well.
IM IF is .7-.74, and I think for you for .7-.71 and pushing up the TSS is doable. Your current plan calls for a conservative bike and run in my opinion, again which is fine. 190W is still on the low side and maybe you target 195 on the back half if you feel well.
Yes there is some additional risk involved in upping your intensity but the question becomes how much do you want to push this race.
@Josh Church - Great plan! I assume it is 1 to 1.5 total for GE and not every hour. Either way, it sounds like this is what you practiced. I am really excited to see how you do this weekend!
@Gordon Cherwoniak
i agree, heat usually dictates what I do on the second lap. That’s were I start cooling with water. I would like to push the race some, this will definitely be a learning race.
@Brian Hagan
I switch to GE after my Infinit, not compounding them together 🤢. So I do 1 to 1.5 bottles of GE with 3 shot blocks every hr after finishing my Infinit. Thanks for the encouragement, I’ll try and represent well!
@Josh Church
Curious, have you trained with two cups of applesauce before big training sessions? Is it unsweetened or sweetened?
"2 cups applesauce, honey, banana, 16 oz Gatorade Endurance, 8 oz Naked Protein Smoothie" That is a lot of fructose which can be tough on digestion. If you've tried it with success - don't change.
Also, why no coffee on your Saturday breakfast?
Your execution plan looks amazing. Good luck Josh.
@Sheila Leard
Yes, I have used 2 cups applesauce for a couple years now. Seems to work for me.
I have in the past cut out my coffee from Thursday on but last year I just started the cut on Sat. I know it has a half-life of say 5ish hrs or so but I think it’s just part of me “getting ready.” It might heighten caffeine boost during race? I’m sure there are studies on both sides about cutting out caffeine before races. I steal a couple sips from my wife if the craving is bad though😁
@Josh Church, great plan. So looking forward to racing with you. After racing the 70.3 in May, I took my bike data, input it into BBS and made some bike adjustments until my 180NP/21.8mph on the course = 180NP/21.8 in BBS. That became my baseline. I then uploaded the full course, plugged in my planned 175NP, and BBS says 5:24. We’re the same exact size, so make being and staying aero a priority. No reason you shouldn’t put 10 minutes on me on the bike.
Because of the stupid first-come, first-serve swim start, I plan on being there when TA opens. If you do the same, maybe we can con your lovely wife to drive us to the start? 😙 Getting out early means less crowded swim and ride, and might mean getting ahead of some of the wind on the bike.
I’d go with Naked juice with limited (not extra) protein on race morning and get rid of the bar an hour before he gun (liquids and gels).
Love your transition focus - they matter (I came out of the water 9th in AG at Choo 70.3 in May, started bike in 3rd, passed the other two in the first mile and never saw any of those 8 again. Of course, I proceeded to get passed by faster bikers/runners, but that’s a different story).
Run - I agree you should go stupid slow the first 6, but you’re still racing. Even with the hills, I will try to go with a steadier HR than what you describe. I’ll target 143-45 after I settle in, allow it to spike to 150 on the wall we have to climb before the first/third bridge and on the nasty climbs across the river, trying to keep HR in mid-140s on the way down. And if it’s hot (it will be), my HR (effort) will stay the same, the pace will just be slower.
Last year you jogged for 22, ran for 4. Probably left a lot of time on those first 22. If you can sustain the 150-55 you managed on the second half last year, you should consider getting out of the 140s far earlier.
Beyond strategy and tactics, what are your core goals here - break 10:30, break 10, top 10 AG, KQ? Even if you don’t want to reveal them here, ypu’ll need them if/when you have to dig deep. Personally, I want to put some time on you in the water, have you take it all back on the bike, then run shoulder-to-shoulder for 3:44, with you getting pipped at the line by an old man 2x your age 😎
@Josh Church I like your race plan and the fact that you have done this a few times before tells me you know the course. The swim seems to be a simple one and one you know well. On the bike you seem to be doing a lot of various nutrition, but YOU know it and have a plan. My question to you is what happens if you lose something or something changes? Do you have back up? Keep in mind this is the best time to feed. Once you get on the run, it only becomes tougher to take in nutrition, even when walking (I did the same thing on that course).
Also, in your run plan, you stated that around mile 17 or 18 you would take you run up to a 150+ HR and see how you feel. By this time you should have an idea of that (with all the times on the course). This may not be a time to see how you feel. I did that on previous races and I ended up doing the IM shuffle about 2 miles later. Don't forget, the key is not to slow down. You may find that your HR may already be there and if its not, I am sure, looking at your numbers, you'll get there.
I am really excited to see you race and execute this. I find this course to be a fun yet challenging one (especially on the run). Kick its butt and take names!
@Mike Roberts throws down the gauntlet, there’s going to be some racing to be done at IMChoo. 😁 Maybe I’ll just be chasing🤔
I feel like aero is always my secret weapon and that’s something that I repeat on the bike. “Stay aero, steal speed when passing and pedal steady power!”
She just might be up for it, I’ll bank a lot of SAU’s this week and hope to cash them with the ride!
I will stop jogging earlier this year lol a steady 150-152 will be achieved sooner since I do feel comfortable there. A 3:44:00 🤯 I accept the challenge. Preparing for the dark place I hope to push to the last 6 instead of staying in the gray area.
@Eric DePoto I actually lost a bottle of Infinit in 2016 or 2017 so I switched to on course Gatorade Endurance and cliff blocks earlier that’s all.
I will also stash extra salt pills on bike Incase I bobble some on the crappy roads on north GA.
@Josh Church I'm going to ask you to challenge yourself a little more. You've got a lot of things going for you, to let you roll the dice a bit and see just where your limits are (you never know where they are until you risk going past them). You have this course wired from experience. You have a solid nutrition plan, again confirmed by experience. You are an organized, monster executer, as evidenced by your Transition times. You have bike strength galore. You are lean (I am assuming your weight above is 148, not 248!) You seem to be in this game for the long haul, and you are young, meaning you can easily take another crack at the whole thing any time you want.
I agree with @Gordon Cherwoniak , that you are vastly underestimating what you are capable of in an Ironman on the bike. Given your second day effort at camp week (when you we're presumably quite tired), given your FTP, given the taper/peak you will have and all the little aero tweaks, legal drafting opportunities on race day, marshaled, catered course, etc., I think you can safely program into BBS an IF of 0.7 (even that seems conservative to me, but one step at a time, OK), with an NP in the mid 190s, like 195/6.
I am sure you will surprise yourself on race day that even though your legs will feel tired at the end of the bike, and you will think/feel in the moments coming into T2 that you can't possibly run as fast as last year, you can and you will. If you can successfully replicate or slightly improve on your run time from last year, then the next step will be working on fine-tuning that run execution strategy next time, to get those extra 10-20 sec/mile.
Small admin thought...you probably already have this in hand, but assuming you do checklists, make sure you include morning clothes bag, and also a complete list of all the gear that will be a part of race day, if only to assure yourself that it is all up to snuff.
I'm not a "Good Skill" guy; I say, when someone is as prepared as you are, all you need is "Good Luck"
@Al Truscott
cant thank you enough for more encouragement to really go all in with what I have for this race.
Yes to a checklist. I’ve been using the same EN checklist from 2016 for my races. I really don’t know how it’s not destroyed after the race. Got lots of little notes and tricks that pertain to me written all over the thing.
Here’s to Pushing the Limit!
Josh
Excellent advice above. 5x what @Al Truscott said. At this point in your IM training/racing progression, you are stronger and more capable of what you think you are. It's time to stop being conservative or aiming for a do-no-harm bike split and push closer to your limits (that's the only way to discover your potential). That's a mind set I had to change for IMLP. I think you're leaving a lot of TSS on the bike course with a 245. What numbers to you get from BBS when you put in a 270 or 280 TSS? A 280 TSS is an ideal range to still have a great run. I agree with aiming for .70-.72 IF and backing off on the second half if RPE starts feeling too high or the temps cause HR to hit your caps.
Can't wait to watch you crush this race! Have fun and don't forget to smile.
@Josh Church , nothing to add except mojo ... CRUSH IT! ... will be tracking you and sending good vibes your way!
Thanks so much @Derrek Sanks I have definitely updated my race plan and it’s going to be one heck of a race!
Thanks @Rory Gumina congrats on the BQ by the way. I hope to run like that Sunday!!