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Ironman Books (Read 1486 times)

libbys04


    I'm taking the plunge and am going to start training for my first Ironman. Does anyone have any suggestions of good books? I'm looking for something that is substantive in information - not a book that is just full of lots of pictures and colors :-)


    Along for the Ride

      I don't have suggestions - but questions. What is your background; mostly running or tri's? Which is your strongest discipline? Have you raced an Half Ironman? Which race are you looking at? Congrats on making the decision! Hopefully I get to hear the words 'You are an Ironman' in my lifetime ... gotta button up that open water swimming a bit more before I sign up for another Tri ...

      Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.

      Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.

       


      The voice of mile 18

        I'm not a ironman (yet) or a coach but check "going long" by byrn/Friel, or 'triathlete training bible' by friel or training plans for multisport athletes by bernhardt. have you done any other tri's before this? what race are you training for? also check 'becoming an ironman' by kara douglas thom for great Ironman race reports also check trinewbies.com and trifuel.com and beginnertriathlete.com think they got canned generic training plans.

         Tri Rule #1 of Triathlon Training/Racing - If Momma ain't happy nobody is happy 

        libbys04


          Great - thank you! I have done a few tris - no half ironmans - but I am planning to do at least one before next spring. I am aiming for a tri in november of next year - probably Cozumel- which gives me about 14-15 months to train. I've done some ultra marathons and running is my favorite but my strongest is swimming. It's really the bike that I will need to work on the most. I've read a lot of good reveiws about both the Triathlete Training Bible and Going Long - think I will check those both out! Thanks for your suggestions!!


          The Greatest of All Time

            I used Joel Friel's first edition as a reference when training for Ironman Florida in 1999. There's no great secret to training for an Ironman. 3 one hour swims per week 1 long ride ~100 miles 1 long run ~ 20 miles 1 fast ride ~ 40 miles 1 fast run ~8 miles Everything else is recovery.
            all you touch and all you see, is all your life will ever be

            Obesity is a disease. Yes, a disease where nothing tastes bad...except salads.


            Gotta TRI

              I used Joel Friel's first edition as a reference when training for Ironman Florida in 1999. There's no great secret to training for an Ironman. 3 one hour swims per week 1 long ride ~100 miles 1 long run ~ 20 miles 1 fast ride ~ 40 miles 1 fast run ~8 miles Everything else is recovery.
              Wow! I love the way you summed that up. I'm thinking maybe 2010 for first full Ironman, I"m sticking with Halfs for now.
              2010 Dec. California International Marathon 2011 Jan. Disney Marathon


              The Greatest of All Time

                Wow! I love the way you summed that up. I'm thinking maybe 2010 for first full Ironman, I"m sticking with Halfs for now.
                It's really not rocket science unless you're an elite and do it for a living. I was being very simplistic. There are other workouts you can do, like hill repeats on the bike or run, or 400's in the pool at LT. But really in the end I don't know they help all that much. Volume is way more essential in IM training than speed work...IMHO. You can do all of the mile repeats or 800's you want but by the time you get off the bike you can throw that stuff out the window. I will add that weekly brick workouts are an essential. I skipped that one. My favorite was a 50 mile ride followed by a 10k run. It's nasty enough to give you a taste of the real deal. I was also training during a south Texas summer and it was brutal. Ugh.
                all you touch and all you see, is all your life will ever be

                Obesity is a disease. Yes, a disease where nothing tastes bad...except salads.
                  I did my first IM in 2007, and am now training for my 2nd one. I did not read any books but did use a work out plan and found everything I could on the iternet. This link is to a 20 week program that I used (and am using again). I found it to be very good. The Beginner Triathlete website has a lot of information for people doing an IM, including things like nutrition on race day and what to put in the transition and special needs bags. http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=441 Good Luck!


                  The voice of mile 18

                    wow up to 18hrs. a week! anyone ever use gale bernhardt 13hrs plan. thinking about chespeakeman but have to get the boss to sign off on it. weekends I think I can find 8 hrs but the week is always harder

                     Tri Rule #1 of Triathlon Training/Racing - If Momma ain't happy nobody is happy 

                    kimmy


                      THE Woman Triathlete by Christina Gandolfo give you programs ,strength training , setting goals and staying motived happy training kim
                      ronperth


                        " I will add that weekly brick workouts are an essential. I skipped that one. My favorite was a 50 mile ride followed by a 10k run" Ha haha, was that part of the recovery? Seriously, I love your plan. I'm just not a numbers guy. I'm hoping to do my first IM this September, but not unless I've swum the whole swim a few times and feel comfortable with it, so long swims are in my own plan, and thankfully right at the race site, so that's one big stressor I can deal with beforehand. If I'm not good with the swim, I'll do it as a duathlon. Ron


                        The voice of mile 18

                          just read Fink's book 'be ironfit' and liked it a lot seems more geared to folks like me who want to do a iron distance race and stay happily married

                           Tri Rule #1 of Triathlon Training/Racing - If Momma ain't happy nobody is happy 

                          db7


                            Be Iron Fit is a great book. DB

                            Tougher than most, dumber than the rest. "You can not count the miles until you feel them" TVZ


                            Runner

                              I'd like to do an ironman distance but maybe not the ironman series. How many of those races are there out there?

                              2010 Races: Snicker's Marathon(2:58:38), Scenic City Trail Marathon(3:26:36), Laurel Highlands Ultra 77(19:13:44), Ironman Louisville(13:07:07) 2011 Races: Mount Cheaha 50k 5:22:47, Tobacco Road Marathon, Mohican 100 Miler