Carefully Curated Triathlon News for January 18, 2024

IN THIS EDITION…

  • 5 endurance workouts for triathlon swimmers
  • What really is the “Norwegian Method”?
  • 9 tips for building off-season bike speed
  • Which comes first: weights or cardio?
  • Is fructose detrimental to athletes?

HARVESTING SPEED

The off-season is a great time to level up your cycling.  But beyond spending countless hours on the indoor trainer, you should also plan and prepare for improving your aerodynamics and rolling resistance.

To ride closer to your potential, Conrad Goeringer provides a 9-point checklist for harvesting more bike speed. 

We especially like his tips for optimizing body position and hand height.  Learn why you don’t just want to get lower, but you’ll also benefit from becoming narrower.

WHICH COMES FIRST?

Should you do weights and cardio on the same day?  That’s one of the most common questions among those trying to maximize their training on a time-crunched schedule.

In this comprehensive article, coach Katelyn Tocci looks at the latest science to formulate recommendations you can use now.

While double sessions are valuable – and probably necessary – you’ll be interested to learn that the order and timing of your two-a-day workouts are critical.

Tocci spells out the details and even provides a sample training week schedule to design a program that works best for you.

EPIC DISTANCE

To post better IRONMAN swim splits, you need to train like a real distance swimmer.

Here are 5 challenging endurance swim workouts curated by Olivier Poirier-Leroy that will teach you how to swim faster over longer distances.

For any level of fitness, these sessions can be personalized by adjusting the number and pace of each interval.  Use them as a template for your own training to achieve a breakthrough in your triathlon swimming.

SWIM FASTER NOW

Nothing helps you build the strength, endurance and technique required for successful triathlon swimming than the accessories offered by FINIS.

Consider the FINIS Tempo Trainer Pro.  This unobtrusive underwater metronome will help raise your turnover to the ideal 35 strokes per minute. It will also help smooth out your power curve and increase your efficiency.

You’ll also benefit from their variety of swim paddles, like the strapless Floating Agility Paddles or the innovative Freestyler Paddle.

Or elevate your swim-specific strength and warm-up routines by grabbing a set of Slide Dryland Cords that mimic the entire swim stroke cycle with consistent resistance.

Best of all TriathlonWire readers get a 20% discount by using the coupon code TRIWIRE at checkout.

NORWEGIAN INTENSITY

In what might be the clearest definition yet of the “Norwegian Method,” coach and elite cyclist Dylan Johnson investigates the training techniques that have made Norway a dominant force in endurance sports.

What’s their secret?  Johnson believes it comes down to an obsessive adherence to managing training intensities through careful lactate-guided interval sessions.

In his informative video he also explains pyramidal, polarized and sweetspot training and when to use them in your own program.

FRUCTOSE FEAR

Fructose – and the related sweetener high fructose corn syrup – is often vilified as a cause of obesity and metabolic illness.

Fortunately for athletes, when energy expenditure is high (i.e., when training or racing), consuming fructose in the presence of glucose or maltodextrin allows for greater carbohydrate absorption and better endurance performance.

Dr. Asker Jeukendrup examines how athletes can benefit from fructose consumption while avoiding its negative effects.

QUICK HIITS:

  • Commit to the Plan
    Take a lesson from 2-mile world record holder, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, on the importance of training consistently and sticking to the fundamentals.  Don’t focus on heroic one-off workouts.  Don’t go too hard in training.  Every session in your program must have its purpose and contribute to your overall training goal.