Irontwit

Image under a CC license from Sylvain Mercier (Sylmercier) on Flickr

It’s less than 2 weeks to the Bala triathlon and I’m finding the training tough. The problem is that although I’m well rested after the Ironman and have loads of stamina, I’ve got no speed. And gaining speed means only one thing: sprint reps. I’m fartleking around the roads of Hazel Grove on foot; doing pyramids on the bike and throwing in the occasional TT effort for good measure. There is a big difference between going for a 60 or 70 mile endurance training ride, even though you might have to put in some big efforts to get over hills, and a sprint reps session. It’s a mental thing, I think, you just know that a sprint session is going to hurt – and if it ain’t hurting, you ain’t sprinting (Usain Bolt excepted). On an endurance ride when things are hurting, you back off a bit (at least I do, or I won’t get to the finish ) I also find that when switching from high volume/lower intensity to lower volume/higher intensity hurts the muscles requiring longer recovery.

I feel I’m capable of snagging a pb at Bala (as long as the swim isn’t too hardcore, which it has the potential to be), so I’m putting up with the pain. Let’s hope it’s worth it.