Power is an output. Just like speed or pace, it’s a result of the effort, or stress, that you put your body through. And similar to all outputs, it’s absolute. In fact that’s one of the talking points that the uber powermeter crowd touts. A watt is a watt. I would agree. Most outputs are. A pace is a pace, a mph is a mph. BUT, and this is a big but, your body’s ability to produce that watt is variable. And therin lies rub #1.

A lot of the discussion out there is that a power meter is more accurate than a heart rate monitor, so just training via power  alone is a better way to go. I gotta say, that statement doesn’t really make a lot of sense to me. That’s like saying the fuel gage in your car is more accurate than the temperature gage. They measure 2 entirely different things. Powermeters measure the power that your body has generated. Heartrate measures the stress your body is under while you produce that power. So if you leave the heart rate monitor at home for your next ride or race and simply go by the goal wattage that you have calculated for the event, you may be setting yourself up for a tough day. This is because 250 watts in hour 1 in comfortable weather is much different that 250 watts in hour 5 in the heat. It’s these slow changes over time that make it so critical to have an eye on your body while you have the other on the power.

Another problem you run into is the need for constant testing if you want to do it right. Since a watt has no connection with effort of the body, your improvement will be tougher to recognize without constant testing. For instance, lets take our fictional athete Joe. He does a threshold test for power and comes up with a wattage of 100. So he builds a training plan around that wattage and follows it to the T.  After a couple weeks of training though, his body has adapted and improved. So now his effort level has dropped well below what it was intended to maintain the test goal power. Because of lower effort levels his improvement stagnates some. The next test shows that his power has increased to 150.  So somewhere along the way he should have increased the ride wattage to keep up with his improvement. Without testing though, it’d only be a guess. 

Now take Larry who trains wattage and heart rate, but does his threshold tests based on heart rate. So Larry finds that at his threshold heart rate of of 150 he is crankin out 100 watts as well. Larry follows his plan just as religiously, except Larry’s wattage increases througout the training cycle as he maintains the goal heart rates. The next time Larry tests he finds that his his threshold heart rate has increased to 152, but his wattage at that effort level is now 165. Larry’s rate of improvement is faster because he’s monitoring both the stress of the work and the output of that stress.

The other big problem with training exclusively with watts has less to do with the technology and more with the approach. If you look through the training practices, you’ll see that there are goal and average wattages that tested for. So Joe buys a powermeter, tests for his functional threshold power (ftp) and finds an average or goal power for any given distance. So far so good, but the next part is the problem. Once given the average power, Joe tries to stay at that average regardless of terrain. So he ends up riding  easier than normal up the hill and then harder than normal on the descent.  On the surface, not a big deal, but add in aerodynamics and wind resistance and the worm starts to turn. The air resistance on the climb is much different than the descent not to mention the gravitational resistance.  So while power is much more important on the climb, Joe eases up, and when aerodynamics are much more important on the descent, Joe pushes harder. Need an example? Where is the Tour de France won and lost? The mountains. An not just the mountains, but the climbs. If you have 2 riders exactly the same size, and both average 250 watts for a ride, they should have the same time, right? Wrong.

Take rider A, who does just as I mentioned earlier. His goal for average watts is 250, so he keeps that wattage across the entire ride. Up hill, downhill, flats, whatever. His effort is balanced and his ride seems strong. Well done.

Now take rider B, who rides the exact same course and averages the exact same wattage, but takes into account all aspects of the ride. On the climbs when he can get the most power bang for his buck, he pushes 350 watts instead of 250. While this is a bit more tiring, he also makes huge ground on rider A. With little air resistance climbing, all that added power translates directly into speed. Then, rider B only puts up 150 watts on the descent, and at times, even coasts. Why? because the air resistence is exponentially stiffer as speed increases, so with a focus on aerodynamics and rest, rider B only loses a small amount of time to rider A and is able to fully recover.

"The Look"

Now the real world example (although admittedly a bit extreme). Watch a mountain stage of the Tour de France. All the moves are made on the uphill because the power output most directly influences the pace. Once you’re dropped, it’s pretty much over. Sure, riders can make up some time on the downhill, but it’s incredibly small by comparision, even if the wattage is considerably greater than your compeition. You could even call it return on investment.  So while you kill it on the downhill and get a small return, your competition is banking that effort for the uphill, where they will get a huge return by comparison.

So if you get more bang for your buck generating more power on the uphill, how can you tell when more power is too much power for you to handle? That great big red thing between your boobies. Strap on a heart rate monitor my friend, and find out how much stress your putting on yourself.

Power on Wayne. Power on Garth.

In 2009, there were 630 cycling fatalities nationwide. Initially the number seems a bit large, but that breaks down to about 13 fatalities per state. Of course fate doesn’t yeild it’s sword evenly, so I would assume states like Texas and California are going to have a much greater percentage of those deaths than North Dakota or Wyoming. Still, given all the cycling in this country, 630 didn’t seem alarming. But here’s where it got interesting for me.

Bicycle fatality statistics are not reported for just those who ride competitively or as a form of exercise. It records all deaths on a bike. Of that 630 deaths, 28% of those people were drunk. Even more surpising to me was that 91% of fatalities happened when the rider wasn’t wearing a helmet. That means 53 people died last year on a bike while wearing a helmet, or roughly 1 per state per year. There were some other interesting statistics such as percentage that were riding against the flow of traffic and those within 25 feet of an intersection.

I watch enough politics to know that numbers can be resuffled to fit your agenda. (Ever heard the old saying, ” Theres 3 types of lies. Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics”) Perfect example was an article that I read in looking up this stuff that stated that cycling was one of the most dangerous sports around. Why? The writer took similar statistics that I’ve used and calculated deaths per mile ridden. Since most people (including those who choose to ride drunk at 3 am) ride a very short distance, it skewed the numbers to fit his purpose. Maybe I’m doing the same thing. I don’t know.

Anyway, this is what I learned from my little exercise. If you ride with a helmet, with traffic, sober, during normal people hours (7% were killed between 3am and 6am) and obey the traffic laws (i.e. stopping running red lights). Then you have considerably lowered your chances of getting hit.

Now I’m quite aware that sometimes bad stuff just happens. I’ve seen friends get hit and been hit myself. There will always be jackasses who are allowed to get behind the wheel of a car, not to mention the true accidents that happen. But taking a few precautions will keep your risks quite low.

Oh, and I tried out the route and rode to work the other day. It went much better than expected, and was a great way to add 50 miles to my training.

Keep the rubber side down.

So why is it met with such resistance? Beats me. The good cyclists all know how to ride in a pace line. No one says “don’t learn how to ride in a group because you don’t draft in a triathlon”. Riding in a group teaches handling skills, pace, and often can push you beyond what you would normally do by yourself in an effort to keep up with those faster. While the skill set learned by doing a flipturn varies a great deal from that of riding in a paceline, the indirect benefits of learning to flip are just as important. So let your guard down for a minute and let’s go over a few perks that come with an effective flipturn.

1. Uninterrupted swimming. I figure I would start with the most obvious benefit. For those who swim in an 25 yard pool (most of us) and do an open turn (meaning you put your hand on the wall to turn around), you are interrupting the pace and rhythm of your swim at least a couple times a minute. Better swimmers who have dialed in the open turn a little are also getting a little extra rest and an added breath.  Hey, wait a minute…you don’t get to grab a wall and take an extra breath every 25 yards in an open water swim! Why the heck are you doing it then? Because it’s easier.

Quick side story. Every year I do a swim clinic for a local sprint race here where I live for first timers or those unsure about open water swimming. We go through a number of things regarding anxiety, sighting positioning, etc. When it’s time to swim, without fail I have a few people who swim 30 to 40 yards, roll over on their back and paddle to the shore (see where this is going?). They almost always get out and tell me how they regularly swim lap after lap in the pool without a problem and they can’t figure out what happened. I will tell you that there are a number of things that go wrong in the first minute of a lake swim, but the lack of a wall to grab to get an extra breath is a large contributor to their problems.

By doing an effective turn, you eliminate breaktime every 25 and create a more continuous workout. It’s going to make you tired faster, but it will also make you faster faster.

2. Breath control. I don’t want to turn this into a long winded (get it? man I crack myself up) discussion on hypoxic training, but I will say this. Trying to simulate altitude training simply by holding your breath is ridiculous, but in swimming there is still a need (and some benefits and adaptations) to learn how to control your breathing while you swim. Swimming is one of the only sports that you don’t have free access to oxygen at all times. Because of this, you need to be able to manage and time your breathing to match your effort. Flip turns are a great way to get better at all of this. If you do, say, a race pace 500 in a workout you will notice that towards the end of the 500 that you have more and more trouble finishing your turns as the need for oxygen becomes overwhelming. Yet over time, your body will adapt by increasing lung capacity, alveolar number and pulmonary diffusing capacity making those turns easier. The nice carryover that you get is that you can manage your breathing in-between turns better because of this. So that desperate gasp for air late in a hard swim becomes lessened. Now apply this to open water. At the start, we have all been or will be hit, kicked or run over at that start and thereby disrupting our breathing. Same goes for wavy or rough conditions. Your ability to adapt easily and not get panicked or out of breath will allow you to maintain form and speed, even you missed some air.

3. Better Technique. In the swimming world, it’s referred to as “feel for the water”. I would also call it better awareness in the water. As I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, very small adjustments in swimming can lead to very large improvements. I mostly discuss the larger aspects of swimming here so as not to muddy the waters (get it? man I’m on a roll here. tip your waitress), but there are lots of smaller items that add up as well. Did you know some of the best swimmers glide with their hand at a 25 degree angle and not flat? You get the idea. So with flip turns, the motion of your hands, arms, head, torso, legs, etc will all effect what happens as you turn. Learning that awareness, and applying it to the rest of your swimming will give you tools you didn’t have before in your attempt to get better. The little things add up.

4. Pool Swim Triathlons – Obvious, but worth mentioning. As you can see in this clip of me flipping under a lane rope, if you can swim a snake in a pool and use turns, you can make some serious time on your competition.

5. And of course …Street Cred: Let’s face facts, if you are doing flip turns in your workout, your street cred goes up. You look like you know what you are doing. We’ve all seen (or in my case been) the guy who wore tennis shoes and a tshirt to his first club bike ride. Not a thing wrong with it, but you knew right away that this guy was new to the sport. Compare that to the day you saw the tshirt guy show up on a new rig and had cycling shoes and cycling clothes. Looked like he knew what the heck he was doing didn’t he?

There are other perks to learning how to do a flipturn, but really now, if you aren’t interested in seeing the light then there aren’t any examples I could give that are going to change your mind. And that’s ok. I am quite aware that there are many out there that deep down aren’t that interested in getting much better at swimming, which is perfectly fine. Sports are about having fun, not torture. Get out there and enjoy yourself. Plus, the less you want to do flipturns, the further down the road I will be before you climb out of the water. And I have no problem with that at all.

Happy flipping.

 The first thing that catches your attention with the IM Tech Paddle is it’s shape. the shape is a little different than other paddles as it has a curved kidney been look to them, rather than the typical mishapen oval of other paddles. The purpose of the shape is so that each stroke will benefit from the paddle. During freestyle you wear the paddle as shown in the picture and  breaststroke you would switch hands. Initially I tried the paddles using freestyle and noticed immediately the difference between my Strokemakers and the IM Paddle. Swimming freestyle with these paddles was odd initally because of the way the paddles directed my hand through the water. it took 100 or so of getting used to before I started getting comfortable swimming freestyle. Once I adjusted it was very comfortable. I also noticed that my pace was not quite as brisk with these paddles, but I must admit that I use a pretty large hand paddle (Strokemaker Blue) so I was expecting a difference.  The gold in these paddles though are in the ability to swim other three strokes. when I reversed the paddles and swam breaststroke and backstroke I immediately saw what they were intended for. Typically in breaststroke for someone to train with paddles they have to use a traditional paddle and size down a couple sizes so that they can control their stroke more effectively, but with these paddles I found that my stroke was very natural right from the start. So I was able to get up and work the stroke right away. No adjustments, no awkwardness, no nothing. I put them on and starting working. Same with back and fly. It was a very natural feel and I could work the pull right away.

After a few hundred yards of swimming with these paddles I found them really enjoyable during all four strokes. The downside?   Not much. The way you fasten your hand to the paddle is similar to most all other hand paddles using rubber tubing to strap your wrists and fingers to the paddle, but one thing different with this paddle is that the rubber tubing doubles back on itself. This created a minor problem for me as it forced my fingers to separate in order to accomodate the extra tubing and started to irritate by the end of my swim. This is not a big deal though as you as you can cut down and adjust the rubber tubing to fit your personal preferences (something I didn’t do), and you shouldn’t be wearing them for an entire workout anyway. Overall I found these paddles to be an asset to my equipment bag and have left them there (something I don’t normally do). I’ve also added them to my regular workout rotation. If you are looking for something different to train all four of your strokes or are needing to focus some attention on your pull, I would highly recommend these. Enjoy your workout.

First Ironman? Never started swimming with 2500 people all at once? Scared out of your mind? Let me help. I will be there putting on a swim clinic to help you get through the most intimidating part of the Ironman. We will go over all sorts of things, from the mass start to navigating tips, pacing, conditions, and strategies to get you to Town Green Park and off on your bike.

Swim Shops will also be on hand with the WTC legal #1 selling TYR Torque, goggles tri gear, and anything else you might need.

Try not to miss it because THIS IS YOUR ONLY CHANCE TO SWIM IN LAKE WOODLANDS BEFORE RACE DAY. Lake Woodlands is a private lake that doesn’t allow swimming. If you try to swim the lake on your own you will be arrested. Trust me on this one. I’ve lived here for 30 years, and they are serious when they say “No Trespassing”.

To sign up for the clinic or the swim, go to:http://activenet11.active.com/wcscparksandrec/ and search “triathlon”

Open water swim 2011 flyer

The problem is that if you want to compete in endurance sports, then quantity (or volume) IS quality.  Let’s face it, the basis of our racing is quantity. Heck our sport is used as a punchline when referring to extreme endurance. So let’s split the triathlon up and look at the best in the three individual sports to see how much they train. Then we’ll circle back around to the triathlon sport as a whole.

Swimming – Outside of open water swimming, most of the events in competitive swimming are relatively short compared to the other two sports in triathlons.  Swimming also has an enormous emphasis on technique; something the other two sports don’t really have to worry about. Having said that, because the low impact/ low stress nature of swimming, you will see the highest training volume to racing distance ratios. Just look at Olympians Ryan Lochte, Michael Phelps, and even sprinter Alain Bernard.

Lochte has mention that regular training for him is around 100,000 meters per week. Phelps was training 90,000 meters per week as early as age 11 and well above that now. And Bernard? the 100 meter sprint champion? You got it. 100,000 meters per week for a race that lasts less than 50 seconds.

Cycling – While an incredible amount of volume is done to compete in the sport of cycling, there are usually great distances covered in the races as well. The average pro cyclist spends about 450 to 500 miles per week on the bike. Of course if your name is Lance Armstrong then you would be riding almost that much by the age of 13. Want to make the podium of a major tour? Then find a comfy saddle because you’ll be sitting on it for about 700 miles per week.

Running – fits inbetween swimming and cycling when it comes to the training volume to race distance ratio. The tricky thing with running, moreso than the other two sports, is that training durability is much more of an issue. To put it another way, because of the high impact/ high stress nature of running, large amounts of volume need to be built up very gradually so that you don’t get hurt. Having said all of that though, You would be hard pressed to find a middle distance or distance runner in the elite ranks running less than 100 miles per week. Sort of a training minimum in the world of the elite. Take Deana Kastor, marathon Olympic medalist and American record holder. When asked about her training volume in Track & Field Magazine, she responded, “We haven’t really focused as much on mileage this time around as we have on quality workouts. I was typically getting up to 140 miles per week and keeping it up there for a few weeks in a row in the past. This time, I’ve gone to about a 120 miles and feel great doing it.” Hmmmm….decreasing to a meager 120 miles per week.

Triathlon – While training for 3 sports instead of one can be a complicated task, one thing is consistant with the single event sports. Volume. Triathletes don’t do near the volume that single athletes do in their respective sports, but if you look at the training as a whole, you’ll see that top triathletes put in some very long days in their quest to be the best. Numbers you typically see are 300-400 miles on the bike, 45-60 miles running, and about 20,000+ meters in the pool.

So what is my point? Afterall, you’re not a pro and don’t have the time to spend all day training. While you may not be able to put up the huge numbers the pro’s do, the strategy should be the same. Volume first, intensity second. If you are looking to get better in triathlons, or would like to do well in an Ironman, then volume needs to be far and away your first focus. Are you going to be able to fit in 45 miles of running every week? Maybe not. But if you take a look at your training logs and you find yourself focusing your week around the track workout at the expense of the long run, or trying to fit in weights instead of swimming or cycling, then you’d be wise to reevaluate. Speed workouts are great, just make sure they don’t negatively effect the total volume. If you’re racking up 15 miles of running per week in your preparation for an Ironman, look for ways to get a little more quantity in each week, not for ways to add another speed workout in that 15 miles. No one ever gets to mile 23 of an Ironman run and wish they had done more windsprints.

Which brings me back to my initial thought. When I surf around the internet in the various forums I read a lot of training advice from triathlon coaches of all kinds. The information they offer is often all over the place. Some good, some strange, some dangerous. Many of these coaches have taken a weekend seminar and are now certified experts. Others have grabbed a book or two and after flipping through them consider themselves experienced. If the one’s that you’re looking at claim that you will get more out of short, intense workouts then all that boring volume, then start asking some questions. If they say that they don’t believe in a ‘base’ period (more on the here), you might want to get a second opinion before you open your checkbook.

I was having a conversation with a good friend of mine (and college coach) this past weekend at a championship meet and we got on a very similar discussion. When she goes to swim meets where the athletes are slower/newer, the coaches at those meets have training philosophies that are all over the board. When she goes to a national event where the faster swimmers race, the coaches are extremely similar in how they think. I think you see my point here.

Something to keep in mind the next time you’re shopping for a coach or reading all those opinions on the internet.

Good luck with your training.

 Happy Training.

I don’t really feel like picking apart my own stroke in any great detail, but I will admit that my stroke does have flaws. Since I don’t slow down the video or point any of them out, most of you won’t see too many of them though. That works just fine for me, because if I let you peek behind the curtain to see the real wizard, then you won’t tap your ruby slippers together anymore…

From under the water:

Above View:

Head On:

See ya at the pool.

This is the time of year in which athletes and non athletes alike take some time to endulge in all the wonderful things that the holidays have to offer. With that brings a bit of guilt, and that rolls right into New Year’s and the infamous New Year’s Resolution. Year in and year out the number one resolution in this country is to workout more or to get in shape/lose weight. For many (including myself), this means committing yourself to an event such as a marathon (or an Ironman).

Gone are the days that you could decide to enter a major endurance event such as a marathon 30 days before the race. Marathons are filling up 6 months to a year out and Ironman races can sell out in as fast as 25 minutes, a full year in advance.

The drop out rate for the very popular marathon training programs are ridiculusly high. People sign up with great intentions, hit the ground running with some big runs early on and then burn out just as fast. The success rate would be much higher if people just approached it differently. They’re trying to eat an elephant in a few bites and we all know that’s not how  it’s done.  If you want to finish a marathon, you need to do it one mile at a time.

Here in the Houston area, where I live, most of the marathon programs start in early to mid July for the Chevron Houston Marathon that takes place in mid January. For the average recreational runner, 6 months is plenty of time to ramp up for a marathon, but many of those signing up are starting from stratch in July. Not a good idea, because you have to start covering some pretty big distances in a hurry, and that can be quite overwhelming.

I would suggest that if you think you want to run a marathon, start the training now, but start in very small doses. The key to success in any endurance event is consistency in your training, not how early you can go big. So, instead of trying to kill the world right away, spend the first few months just getting into a habit. Telling you to get out 3 times a week and run 1-2 miles each time for the first 4 months sounds a lot more palatable than to tell you that in just a few weeks you must be able to run 8 miles.

Same thing goes for intensity. There is no reason in the world that you need to hit the track and do wind sprints or interval work if you are trying to finish your first marathon. No one out there walking/jogging in the final miles on race day is wishing that they had done more speed work instead of endurance work. Plus, the rate of injury goes through the roof when you add intense workouts to your training program.

The same philosophy holds true with any endurance event, not just a marathon. If you decide you want to do the MS150 or local 100 mile bike ride, an adventure race, or the Ironman, take small bites from very early on. Because if you start too big, you are going to start to hate the training and there’s a good chance you won’t even make it to the starting line. What ever ‘mountain’ you decide to to climb, remember that it’s small steady steps that get you to the top, and that, “Joy is found in not finishing an activity, but doing it”.*

Happy Training.

*Author Greg Anderson