By Coach Brendon

Planning for Ironman is critical, It's going to cost a lot of your time, energy and money for the next 12 months if you want to make Ironman Day a memorable time. But you need to start moving towards the goal now if you want to be ready.

Get a Coach

Every year post Ironman, it's so common to hear "if only someone had told me....". The classic to me is that probably someone did but it got lost in amongst all the 'expert' advice being thrown around. I heard a great saying at Ironman NZ - listen to many but communicate with one. This is why you should get a good coach early (now) and make them the person that you communicate with. It amazes me how many people want to spend $5000 on a bike when the difference between that and a $2000 bike is only a few minutes in the finish time. Ridiculous when getting a good coach who gets your training, race tactics/strategy right which in turn saves you hours. From my experience working with Ironman Athletes, the earlier you engage a coach the better they know you and the more information they have to go on when it counts (2 Months out). Getting a coach in the last 3 months is going to help but you are also taking a huge risk with getting the build up right, as they wont have the detail about how you respond to training to work with. Don't skimp on your coaching. Getting a good coach is the number one thing you can do to ensure success in 10-12 Months time. Also a good coach isn't afraid to tell you that it's really going to be a 2 year project if it is.

Oh and I should also point out that getting a training plan on paper is not coaching. That's going to help but it's not going to compare with some week-to-week feedback or chatting with a coach about progress/issues. You just can't beat the interaction and advice. It's going to cost a bit more but in the big scheme of things I'ts also going to make things a lot easier and increase the likelihood that you'll finish and enjoy the experience, which is after all the name of the game.

Unfortunately there is a huge range of abilities and experience amongst people that call themselves Triathlon Coaches, so be careful who you choose. Something I'd consider is if they have experience working with people with similar circumstances and a proven track record in Coaching.

Physical Check Up

You should also get in and see your doctor for a full physical. If you can see a sports medicine specialist that would be even better but if you live a long way from one, it's better to get in and see your local Doc than to wait. Make sure you ask them if a blood test is appropriate. It amazes me how many things we can pick and correct quickly with this type of information.

Physiotherapy

I also recommend a muscle balance assessment with a physio. By doing this you can identify areas that may cause you problems as you start to increase the training load on your body. Remember what's fine running for 30 min may not be good enough to keep you injury free when you hit 3 hours. There are very few triathletes (even elites) that don't have areas that need work. Identifying these early and then doing something about these while you have time is a bloody good idea. Plus getting this stuff sorted often results in improved efficiency -training gets easier.

Nutrition

If weight is an issue and especially if you really need to lose some to keep injury free when running, then now is also a good time to address your general nutrition. Also if you know your nutrition is poor and it's impacting on your recovery from training then get in and get some advice here also. I'm not saying eating the odd pie is out of the question, but it can't be a regular thing and certainly not part of the final 3 months when you will need everything working for you to get it right. Finally, if you have no idea about nutrition, don't waste time here - get advice from an experienced nutritionist preferably someone with experience with Athletes Training. It's often the obvious things that just need a minor change and the weight comes off or the training gets a lot easier. It's also essential that you don't drop the weight too fast, as you'll get run down (training plus weight loss = danger). A little and often is the key here.

An Example of a Real Life Athlete

Let's take a look at a real life example of an Ironman Athlete, Tracey Richardson as she built up to the 2004 New Zealand Ironman.

In the period 12 to 11 months from race day (March to April), Tracey started working on her swimming and also slowly increasing one run - our goal was to have her run 60min in Early May. In addition, we had a real emphasis on drills and improving technique, especially with her swimming. Apart from that we also just wanted to set a regular routine of training (as realistically possible). Fortunately she had already gotten to a level where she could swim with a swim squad and work on technique in a group situation. This is what a real week of her plan looked like in late April:

I should point out that at this stage in the game, running itself was not actually 'Easy' for Tracey. So we were also biding our time while her fitness improved enough so that the running was not so hard. Don't underestimate the value of being able to run and for it to feel easy, too many people start increasing their running when it's still too hard. Training hard and increasing the total time is another dangerous thing to do. Be Patient!

In Summary

So to summarize, here's your checklist for 12-10 Months Out from race day:
· Contact a coach and agree on a year plan through to your Ironman, start building your training
· Make a financial plan (what's it going to cost to get there) and decide if you can afford to do Ironman
· See your Doctor and get the OK to proceed.
· See a physio for a general check of your muscle balance and get an exercise plan from them.
· Start working on your swimming technique and get comfortable swimming 800m Easy.
· Be able to ride 60min on the road and know how to ride safely in a bunch.
· Be able to run 50-60min easy and continuous.

Additional Resources: Technique and Drills. This is a great time of the year to invest some time into technique, there are a number of great free resources - free swim, cycle and run drill articles are available on our website here: www.endurancecoach.com/Articles.htm . We also recommend the Striding On! DVD with great run examples and excellent running drills - you can read more about this and purchase from us here.

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