Triathlon/Marathon training question

Darla1

posted: 4/3/2010 at 7:14 PM

Question about training for a triathlon AND marathon. My tri is July 18th, and it is a Swim 1/2 Mile, Bike 21 Miles, Run 5.3 Miles. Then I'm running the Twin Cities marathon October 3rd, which I'm shooting for a 4hour PR. My body likes xtraining, so I know the tri is really good for me. So what are your recommendations for training for both of these events?

protoplasm72

posted: 4/3/2010 at 9:58 PM

I did a marathon a month before my first triathlon. I was able to follow a regular marathon schedule, running in the morning, and do all my swimming in the evening without a problem. I fit the biking in when my legs felt decent enough on my off day and then after the marathon I got a lot of biking in.

In your case they are pretty far apart. You should be able to get a lot of biking in before your marathon training really picks up. I would follow your marathon plan and bike on your day off, maybe replace the easiest running day with a bike ride or turn it into a brick workout. I wouldn't skip any runs to swim unless you don't have any extra time to do both.

Son, when you participate in sporting events, it's not whether you win or lose; it's how drunk you get. -- Homer Simpson

RunB

posted: 4/4/2010 at 6:54 PM

Doing the marathon after the triathlon is best, because it'll take you less time to recover from the triathlon and resume your training. So you should be fine in terms of timing.

Triathlon training works great for me in preparation for marathons.

For the running, I've been following the FIRST marathon program: http://www.furman.edu/first/fmtp.htm

The program is on their website. I also bought the book which give more detail.

What I do is run only three times a week, but three quality workouts: 1 tempo, 1 intervals and 1 long.

The easy run days you have in a usual marathon training plan, you can replace with cross training. I joined a local triathlon club I do my swimming with (2 x 1h30) and try to fit 2-3 bike rides a week with one longer one on the week-end.

I find that combination easier on the legs and helps avoiding injuries. I end up doing much more cardio training with less strain on the legs and it helped me get better marathon results.

For the swimming, I suggest either joining a triathlon club or check your nearby pools for master swims.

- R

Darla1

posted: 4/5/2010 at 7:47 PM

Thank you for the great suggestions! I will check out the FIRST marathon training programs. I've managed to stay healthy and increase my miles, but it seems this eventually takes a toll on my body and I always end up injured. I'm thinking xtraining is the way to go!

Good luck to you all on your xtraining/running goals!

Triathlon/Marathon training question (Read 793 times)