Dear athletes, below the relevant updates for the upcoming month
* Last call! 10 days to go for our long distance camp
* Sponsorship deals on bikes, wheels & frames
* Run session confirmed on April 6th (Chakri holidays)
* Songkran dates announced (no classes 11th-14th = 1 week added to your membership)
We are now 10 days away from our camp, we still have some slots if you want to kick start your long distance season with the camp as well as our race simulation
Talking about season, we are now approaching the hottest period of the year combined with a few long races early in May. I’m seeing a lot of you are struggling to even finish workouts in this heat, so I did a post on Social Media page in which I will replicate it below, its a good time to forget a little about the numbers, the garmin pace, lower the expectations and just learn how to read the current conditions (race day & training) to adapt.
And finally, we renewed our partnership with Optima bikes, not only they provide very fast equipment at a great value but the fact it’s a Thai brand based in BKK, means superior Customer Service
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana
ironguides Head Coach
Members Updates – Racing in the heat:
Songkran Dates Announced – Week Long Break
All 3 classes will be cancelled on Songkran Week (11th to 14th), memberships will be credited 1 week. Reminder that on April 6th, also a public holidays (Chakri) we will be running our run session
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Ironman 70.3 Vietnam & Why you should lower your time expectations into the race and plan to walk all aid stations.
This is likely going to apply for Pattana 70.3 as well since the run there is rolling and it may be just as hot:
I’m sharing this with some of our athletes, and I figured I would post this here if you also plan to race Vietnam.
I’ve been to Ironman Vietnam 4x to work at the event (2015-2018), the day before the race in the first year in 2015, we had a big team from BKK and I thought “This is going to be a disaster, everyone will be blowing up and walking” as we sat in the shade with the perceived temperature at 42 degrees.
Turns out race day was only “very hot”, the average run split of the top 5 male (minus the fastest & slowest) was 1h23″30. I also checked the other average times
Now, these are world class athletes, capable of running ~1h09-12′ in cooler conditions. If THEY slow down 10-15+min, you can count that the damage on your own time will be much greater (20-30min) unless you are an outlier who handles the heat extremely well.
Why this is important:
a) Vietnam is not a race for fast times – chances are you won’t PB there and you should lower all the expectations.
b) Adjust your race day strategy accordingly, the run:walk protocol works very well here, at worse case scenario, walk & dont rush every aid stations. Be careful with pacing too
c) Adjust your training – you will see our track sessions becoming longer and slower, we still do threshold work (10k pace intervals) but not a lot of very fast intervals for the next 2 months. Attention also with technique, higher stride rate = bonk proof technique.
All that said, the tougher the race, better opportunities there are in terms of placing if you show up fit and execute it well on race day.
Final Call! Long Distance Training Camp & Race Simulation:
C55 events has just announced a ironman 70.3 distance event (non ironman branded) on May 1st and Roboman will also hold a middle distance event Mid May. The below camp is a perfect prep weekend for this 4-6 weeks out.
It will include a race Simulation 1.5k swim / 90k bike / 10k run with 3,000THB symbolic prize purse to spice things up (women get 30min time bonus!) and 16 lucky draw items, as well as a long ride of 130km (90k for beginners), open water swim & a QA session with the Coach.
Many of you are training for Ironman Vietnam 70.3 as well as a full ironman in the summer, this camp will be perfect to transition you into long distance racing, the shortened run will take less out of you while you can still practice pacing, nutrition and race day strategy.
Beginners athletes are welcomed and we have a shorter version too as course will be multilap (2x 750m swim, 3x30km bike, 2.5km run).
Please read the FAQ carefully especially the cut off guidelines as well as cancellations policy (now with an insurance option to keep it simple)
We have renewed our multi-year partnership with Thai bicycle and wheels brand Optima Bikes. ironguides athletes and members get discounts exclusive prices – must have a valid membership
20% off for Omega Frameset (Price 69,900) with free Aero caliper brakes (7500THB.)
10% off for Carbon Wheels
5% off for Omega Completed Bike
In this month’s newsletter, learn more about Optima Wheels options (prices shown are pre-discount)
Sponsors & Discounts:
–
OTHER SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
Find the discount codes at the members area of our website (login at the footer of ironguides.net)
OPTIMA BIKES
The exclusive prices for ironguides members – email info@ironguides.net for more information:
20% off for Omega Frameset (Price 69,900) with free Aero caliper brakes (7500THB.)
10% off for Carbon Wheels
5% off for Omega Completed Bike
TRI-DASH THAILAND: 10% OFF at any event during 2022 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race http://tridashthailand.com/
UJAMU: 10% OFF Ujamu herbal drinks – use our coupon code when checking ou https://ujamu.net/
As we head full on into race season, tapering is the topic on everyone’s mind. Should we taper for every race, how do we recover from the race, and how do we get back to productive training as soon as possible. The process of tapering I have talked about in previous articles. What I want to talk about here is the process of training through smaller, less important races that we use as stepping stones to our BIG races.
We can only really go through a full taper process 2 or 3 times per season without losing fitness—these tapers should ideally be a month or more apart.
For smaller races we do not maintain our full training schedule right up to the race either. Instead we have a mini refresh before the race and train as normal immediately following the race, essentially treating the event as an important training session.
RACE REFRESH
As we head through a training program at ironguides, we have our athletes training with a certain level of fatigue. This fatigue is an insurance policy against going too hard—it allows really good consistent training without the risk of going too hard as the body is too tired to do so!
When we have a small race coming up and we are in full training, the idea is to allow the body to freshen up without dropping all the fatigue and to not allow the body to change its hormonal state to one of deep recovery. With this, you are never going to be fully race sharp but you will be surprised at what you can do on a little fatigue.
I also use this to show athletes how hard they can push their bodies—tired body will not give you that top 5% speed but without that level you can’t blow up so you can really hammer away at your limit without fear of crawling home. This race suffering is a great lesson to take to your main races.
So how do we go about that freshening up?
I like to take the 3 days heading into the race as freshen-up time; any longer and we lose the training pattern and risk the body shutting down and going into deep recovery.
DAY 1: 3 days before the race
This is your day off, but I prefer it to be an active recovery day with just 1 training session, which is best done in a non-weight bearing sport so either swim or bike. The session should be all easy and 40 minutes is the maximum you should do. Listen to your body and just enjoy your training. I personally love to choose a route I know to be around 30 minutes and to not take a watch; BE FREE and feel your body. If you feel like a little more then go for it and if you feel terrible do not push through.
TRAINING
* easy 40-minute swim or bike
DAY 2 – 2 days before the race
This is an easy aerobic day, training the same hours as normal but the intensity is lower. This maintains fuel burning as normal within the body. This day would normally include a short run and a longer bike. The run would include a short period or set of moderate-pace intervals, while the bike includes a few 10 second ALL OUT sprints to make sure all muscle fibres are activated and kept in motion for the race. During a period of heavy training these 10-second sprints can really refresh the muscles very quickly—at the end of 10 seconds you get a short but intense burn throughout the muscles and this is exactly what is needed to produce a short secretion of growth hormone into the body to accelerate recovery.
TRAINING
* RUN – 30 minutes with 10 minutes of moderate pace intervals
* BIKE – 60-90 minutes easy with some 10-second sprints
DAY 3 – 1 day before the race
This is a short training day where we touch on all systems, so a little strength, a little speed and a little tolerance work. It is always good to do a little swim on this day and I prefer the bike also as it’s non-weight bearing and allows for faster recovery than a run session.
TRAINING
* SWIM – 20 minutes with some short accelerations to above race speed.
* BIKE – 40 minutes ride with some short all-out intervals and some moderate-paced strength intervals on a climb if possible.
RACE DAY
As we are still going to be a little fatigued heading into the race, a good warm-up is essential. This does not need to be fast but, just as in training, sometimes we need 20-30 minutes for the body to wake up, you should also be prepared to not feel great for the first part of the race, just keep positive and keep faith in the fact your body will come around.
POST-RACE RECOVERY
This is the important part to maintain consistent training; it is essential you do not stop as soon as you cross the finish line. It’s always tempting, but think that you would never do this after a hard session. Keep mobile, walk around a little or a small bike/ jog as you would after any hard session—remember, you have to think of the race as just a hard training session.
The next day you are right back into your training plan as though you had done a hard session, not a race. This style of training is the reason pro athletes can maintain such good shape all year despite racing almost every weekend; they do not taper for each race and they are straight back into training following the events.
Most ITU athletes will race Sunday, wake up sometimes crazy early on Monday morning to run before traveling home or to the next race. Running at airports etc is all part of the lifestyle to not allow the body to go into rest mode and then on Tuesday it’s back to the hard work. Typically these athletes are back to track intervals on Tuesday, training through the fatigue!
Alun “Woody” Woodward, Certified ironguides Coach – Europe
ironguides is the leading Lifestyle Facilitation company for athletes of all abilities. We provide coaching and training services, plans and programs, as well training education, health and fitness products to help you learn and live a healthy lifestyle. Come get fit with one of our monthly training subscriptions, event-specific training plans, coaching services, or a triathlon training camp in an exotic location! ironguides also provides Corporate Health services including Corporate Triathlons, Healthy Living retreats and speaking engagements. At ironguides, your best is our business!
Dear athletes, below the relevant updates for the upcoming month
*Members updates: Overall Win & Bike Course Record @February Long Tridash
*Get ready for the Ironman 70.3 events in May with our long distance camp – Final 7 slots
*Available for Download – Swim pacing template sheet
*Songkran dates announced (no classes 11th-14th = 1 week added to your membership)
Another good day at the Tridash, our team took the overall win as well as the overall bike course record
For the data geeks, I’ve created a template sheet to help find your ideal pacing on your next swim as well as added three olympic gold performances with their data. Document is now available for download at members area.
A reminder that we have just a month to go to our long distance training camp, if you are training for the new non-branded Ironman 70.3 distance event in Thailand on May 1st, Ironman 70.3 Vietnam or any Long Distance during the summer, this is a perfect prep.
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana
ironguides Head Coach
Race Report & Members Updates:
ironguides @Tridash – 6 in the top 11, including overall race winner (Victor) & a new bike course record (Romain)
— Tridash & Pool Time Trial pacing strategy
Now available for download @members area (website login)
Tridash & Pool Time Trial pacing strategy – including 3 Olympic Golds performance
— Songkran Dates Announced – Week long Break
All 3 classes will be cancelled on Songkran Week (11th to 14th), memberships will be credited 1 week.
Final 7 slots! Long Distance Training Camp & Race Simulation:
C55 events has just announced a ironman 70.3 distance event (non ironman branded) on May 1st. The below camp is a perfect prep weekend for this 4 weeks out.
It will include a race Simulation 1.5k swim / 90k bike / 10k run with 3,000THB symbolic prize purse to spice things up (women get 30min time bonus!) as well as a long ride of 130km (90k for beginners), open water swim & a QA session with the Coach.
Many of you are training for Ironman Vietnam 70.3 as well as a full ironman in the summer, this camp will be perfect to transition you into long distance racing, the shortened run will take less out of you while you can still practice pacing, nutrition and race day strategy.
Beginners athletes are welcomed and we have a shorter version too as course will be multilap (2x 750m swim, 3x30km bike, 2.5km run).
Please read the FAQ carefully especially the cut off guidelines as well as cancellations policy (now with an insurance option to keep it simple)
–
OTHER SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
Find the discount code at the message board of our app
TRI-DASH THAILAND: 10% OFF at any event during 2022 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race http://tridashthailand.com/
UJAMU: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race https://ujamu.net/
Another year has flown by—we are heading into the new year and all the challenges it will bring. Making New Year’s resolutions can be very rewarding and actually lead to significant change—however, for 99 percent of us it is just a thought that lasts a day and then is forgotten as we go about our daily lives.
Dear athletes, below the relevant updates for the upcoming month
*10 slots left! Long Distance Race Simulation & Training Camp 2-3 April
*Road to a Summer Ironman 70.3 and Full ironman
*Members updates: 7 athletes in the top 8 – January Tridash
The 2022 season started very well for our team at the Tridash, we had 7 athletes in the Top 8 of Saturday race as well as the plenty of PB’s and Wins on Sunday’s event. For February Dash, I suggest you register for the Long event so we can enjoy another day of fun and battleSeveral of our members are aiming to race long distance triathlons in the middle of the year, most popular choices are Ironman 70.3 Vietnam, and Full Ironmans in the European Summer, for that reason we are adding a long distance schedule to our programe, as we get closer to these events, athletes will have the choice to do a longer workout at the track and in April we are organizing a training camp weekend which includes a race simulation so you can build yourself into your key long distance race
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana
ironguides Head Coach
Race Report & Members Updates:
ironguides @Tridash – 7 in the top 8 – In February lets all do the Long Dash, enjoy your 10% off ironguides discount code
Long Distance Training Camp & Race Simulation:
Very excited to announce a Long Distance Training camp on April 2-3 with the focus will be Long Distance Triathlons. It will include a race Simulation 1.5k swim / 90k bike / 10k run with 3,000THB symbolic prize purse to spice things up (women get 30min time bonus!) as well as a long ride of 130km (90k for beginners), open water swim & a QA session with the Coach.
Many of you are training for Ironman Vietnam 70.3 as well as a full ironman in the summer, this camp will be perfect to transition you into long distance racing, the shortened run will take less out of you while you can still practice pacing, nutrition and race day strategy.
Beginners athletes are welcomed and we have a shorter version too as course will be multilap (2x 750m swim, 3x30km bike, 2.5km run).
Please read the FAQ carefully especially the cut off guidelines as well as cancellations policy (now with an insurance option to keep it simple)
Free for coached athletes, tri-club members (1x week only), swim club members (1 or 2x week)
600thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Running
Weekly Coached Sessions
Where: National stadium (warm up 200m blue track ) When: Wednesdays @18.30-20.00Cost:
*Free for members & coached athletes
*400thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Cycling
Online training! Download the sessions of your training plan to Zwift or Trainerroad and upload to the app folder, they will appear under Custom workouts. More instructions in the members area of our app
Download file from the ironguides app and move to zwift folder
You can now let zwift guide your ironguides training
NEW! Swim Sessions only 1x week: 4000 THB per 3 months
NEW! Swim Sessions only 2x week: 6500 THB per 3 months
Includes access to weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
3 Months – Sessions + Training Plan + Coaching Access: 2 options
Run Sessions only: 4500 THB per 3 months
Run + Swim Sessions: 6500 THB per 3 months
Includes access to training plans via app, quarterly email with Coach to structure your training plans, weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
All Training Plans are available in 2 loads, high and low (# of hours and training days) as well as 3 levels of workouts (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
Plans available
Ongoing Triathlon (short course & overall development)
Balanced Running (5, 10k & overall development)
16-weeks Ironman 70.3
20-weeks Ironman Full
Bike Development, Swim Run maintenance
Run Development, Swim Bike maintenance
Swim Development, Bike Run maintenance
How it works: Sign up for the plans package, fill in the questionnaire with goals & background, discuss with the coach your 3 month plan, start training. Watch our explainer video.
Build an Online Community
The message board is more structure, a good place to find training buddies doing the same training plan and sessions as you on non-coached days. Organize trips to races or events. Stay updated on coaching announcements
The social wall is a casual place to exchange information such as racing opportunities, training photos, members updates.
Manage your Performance
A training log to manage and log your training information with special features such as performance calculators and training performance analysis
Desktop View of your training plan. Mobile version also available
Manage your Performance – Mobile Performance analysis
Lockdown Members! We need to confirm your membership status
Regarding the time left on your membership, and you can track it following the steps in this video using your login access on our homepage footer (if you can’t retrieve yours, reply to this email).
We are offering our members 3 options – we need you to confirm via this form your preferred option:
a) Run Only Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at a third of the usual rate (ie 20 days will be frozen monthly).
b) Swim + Run Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at two third of the usual rate.
c) Maintain membership frozen until you are comfortable to come back to training
If you opt for option B, you will also need to select in the form one day to come swimming. Both days will offer the same workout, for now and all levels are welcome. Pick the day that best suits you.
if we dont hear from you, we will maintain the membership frozen by default Here is the form
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OTHER SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
Find the discount code at the message board of our app
TRI-DASH THAILAND: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race http://tridashthailand.com/
UJAMU: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race https://ujamu.net/
Time for the next session—but you’re tired and unmotivated to head out of the door. You’re not sure if the fatigue comes from having had a stressful week at work, or if you went a bit too hard at those weekend sessions. You are a dedicated athlete who feels very guilty whenever you miss a session. At the same time, you know that training through fatigue or illness is bad for your health. So what to do?
For this scenario, The Method athletes are given a few simple guidelines to “test drive” their bodies to help decide if they ought to skip a training session on any given day.
The key? WHEN IN DOUBT … try it out!
This does NOT mean that you train when you’re sick.
But on those days when you’re unsure whether your should train, or not, The Method encourage athletes to simply try out your body to see what it tells you. Start the session with a very, very easy 20 to 30 minutes before making that call.
If you feel better, continue your session as planned. If needed, back off and take it easy later in the set if you find that you’re deteriorating.
If after that initial 20-30mins you feel the same, i.e. neither much better nor much worse, modify the session so that it places less strain on your body. For example, if you’re to do a long endurance effort, cut the duration. See how you feel later in the session before deciding if you’ll carry on. If you’re to do a lactate-tolerance session, greatly moderate both the duration and the intensity of the efforts and give yourself a lot more rest between each effort. You still engage your high-end aerobic system and fast-twitch muscle fibres, helping to maintain your accumulated fitness gains until you feel strong again.
If you feel worse after testing your body for that very easy 20-30mins, pack it in and head home. Your body’s telling you that it’s not prepared to train today; you might be fighting an impending illness or simply need to recover. Heed the warning and take the day OFF.
A stitch in time saves nine—if you’re ill or fighting illness, having a few days of rest from training will prevent a prolonged forced break from training and racing.
Use these simple guidelines to judge the most appropriate response on days when you feel sluggish or off. Often, you’ll have a great training session on a day you might otherwise have written off.
And on days you feel great?! Go for it! Just remember, the goal is not to deliver hammer blows to the body, but to generate a long-term, consistent training stimulus.
Illness
Try as we might, there is simply no way to avoid getting sick once in awhile. For these times, The Method stipulates you take time off and recover. Remember: With The Method everything is relative. When you’re sick, the body is weakened and needs to recover from training. The goal is to achieve maximum, effective consistency.
Rest
With all that said, The Method doesn’t set in stone when you’re to take rest from training. Unfortunately, this heretical notion of The Method has led to more misinterpretation than any other of its principles.
Life has a funny way of throwing curve balls at us: work, family and community commitments often cause us to miss out on training. Rather than worrying about missed training when this happens, take comfort from the fact that you’ve been training consistently and diligently until then. Your days off due to commitments elsewhere become your rest days from training, and are automatically suited to your life schedule since they come when you truly need the time elsewhere, rather than when a schedule hammers them out.
You can also look at it this way: No schedule can accurately predict what you’ll be doing each day for months down the road. Quite simply, what The Method tells an athlete is rest when you need it.
Many amateur athletes spend the better part of their day physically recovering from their training at a desk or otherwise in their daily work. The Method accepts that most amateur athletes do not have the luxury of a daily routine dedicated to sport alone.
For this reason, The Method distinguishes between mental rest and physical rest. For example, a stressful work-travel day on which you can’t train may cause you much mental fatigue while your physical training systems have been resting. Consequently, that stressful day counts as a rest day, even though you might be tired from it.
Keep in mind that everything is relative in The Method training. The hormonal context in which The Method places you determines how you ought to train subsequently. If the stressful travel day
comes on top of a lot of other stress in your life, it can create a significant catabolic experience for your body. In this situation, The Method’s approach advises you to avoid endurance work or excessive lactate-tolerance training immediately following or during this (or other) high-stress period.
After taking a day off, be smart when getting back into the training. If circumstances required you to rest, use these simple rules to get back on the plan:
* Add some volume to the start of the workout in order to kick start your body again before trying any intensity. You don’t want to go too hard while being too rested. Rather, add volume to tire yourself a little bit without pushing the intensity. Then do your intervals. For example, add 30 minutes of easy running before the main set.
* If you are a performance-oriented athlete, then take an easy day in each of the sports after your day off. The reason is that you probably needed the day off due to deep fatigue levels, and the extra bit of easy training will help you recover back to normal fatigue levels. Then you’re most likely good to go again!
Learn how to read your body and stay consistent to your plan!
Enjoy your training,
the ironguides team
ironguides is the leading Lifestyle Facilitation company for athletes of all abilities. We provide coaching and training services, plans and programs, as well training education, health and fitness products to help you learn and live a healthy lifestyle. Come get fit with one of our monthly training subscriptions, event-specific training plans, coaching services, or a triathlon training camp in an exotic location! ironguides also provides Corporate Health services including Corporate Triathlons, Healthy Living retreats and speaking engagements. At ironguides, your best is our business!
Dear athletes, below the relevant updates for the upcoming month
*6th December Swim is cancelled (Father’s day & Public Holidays)
*Race Report: ironguides draft legal triathlons & Open water swim race
*End year break dates announced Dec 20th to Jan 9th
The last month was all about racing. We hosted 3 events, the lake swim race at Taco and two triathlons, Sprint and Olympic Distance in the draft legal format. These were on the same weekend as Laguna Phuket Triathlon was supposed to be and the goal was to fill in the gap and boost motivation as well as pick up some different skills by racing in a different format.
There are three Tri-Dashes within the next 10 weeks, so for December and January we are focusing on the training, the timing as perfect as we believe in ‘reverse periodization’, which means work on speed first, and slowly build the distance towards the longer races happening later in 2022, so for now, its all about speed and short races.
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana
ironguides Head Coach
Race Report & Members Updates:
Best images from the Draft Legal weekend of racing 20-21 November @Pranburi
Results:
SPRINT DISTANCE – MEN
Name
FINAL
Kenshin
1:00:29
Romain
1:00:49
Golatat
1:02:15
SPRINT DISTANCE – WOMEN
Name
FINAL
Vansa
1:14:42
Mujiratat
1:23:47
Gam
1:24:39
OLYMPIC DISTANCE
Name
FINAL
Zach
2:02:51
Victor
2:05:14
Romain
2:06:22
—- ironguides Team Swim Race – 30th oct 2021
Our open water event at Taco Lake is in the books. It was perfect weather for our 2 loop cable swim (about 1.4k).
Twelve swimmers competed in the event. The swimmers were divided into two teams of six. Each individual swimmer contributed to his or her team’s score.
Congratulations goes to Team Sanook consisting of Mathias, Vanza, Vicki, Mike, Vinh and Gam for just edging out Team Sabai Sabai made up of Zachary, Vinnie, Helder, Andrew, Ben and Finola. Every swimmer put in a strong effort.
The finishing places were:
1. Mathias
2. Zachary
3. Vinnie
4. Vanza
5. Mike
6. Helder
7. Vicki
8. Andrew
9. Vinh
10. Ben
Tie for 11. Gam and Finola
Thank you event sponsor U-Jamu herbal drinks for the prizes
—- Train like the World Champion & Olympic Champion – the science of our track workouts explained
While the ironguides training Method may come across straight forward and simple, there’s a lot more science behind the workouts we do together.
Last month Coach Champ got you to alternate in between 2 efforts, which he called 10k pace (or short course triathlon intensity) and marathon/half marathon pace (or 70.3 and Ironman intensity), we can translate that to scientific terms of Anaerobic Threshold and Aerobic Threshold when lactate reaches 4.0mmol and 2/0mmol respectively. Each intensity is specific to a certain distance, we often spend most of the workout at around 4.0mmol to develop or anaerobic threshold (or FTP for the cycling friendly terms), when we switch back and forth, we build the ability to be more efficient at 2.0mmol since you put your body in a stage it must clear the excess of lactate from the previous set WHILE you are cruising at your race pace.
We add to this the component of pacing (being in control of your speed and associating with effort) and technique at each effort, and we have a simple yet effective workout. “The Norwegians” (World Champion Gustav Iden pic below on a long run, likely targeting 2.0mmol) collect their lactate via blood from ear lobe whilst on their training run to make sure they are exact at those numbers, we can however get pretty close with perceived effort.
Swimming
Coached Sessions at Racquet club
IMPORTANT:
*SESSION CANCELLED ON DECEMBER 6TH (PUBLIC HOLIDAY & FATHER’S DAY)
*LAST SESSION OF THE YEAR 15TH DECEMBER
Free for coached athletes & club members (1x week only)
600thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Running
Weekly Coached Sessions
*LAST SESSION OF THE YEAR 14TH DECEMBER
Where: National stadium (warm up 200m blue track ) When: Wednesdays @18.30-20.00
Cost:
*Free for members & coached athletes
*400thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Cycling
We are planning quarterly sessions at the velodrome which is currently closed, meanwhile refer to your training plan for a structured workout, you can download the sessions to Zwift or Trainerroad and upload to the app folder, they will appear under Custom workouts. More instructions in the members area of our app
Download file from the ironguides app and move to zwift folder
You can now let zwift guide your ironguides training
Includes access to weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
3 Months – Sessions + Training Plan + Coaching Access: 2 options
Run Sessions only: 4500 THB per 3 months
Run + Swim Sessions: 6500 THB per 3 months
Includes access to training plans via app, quarterly email with Coach to structure your training plans, weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
All Training Plans are available in 2 loads, high and low (# of hours and training days) as well as 3 levels of workouts (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
Plans available
Ongoing Triathlon (short course & overall development)
Balanced Running (5, 10k & overall development)
16-weeks Ironman 70.3
20-weeks Ironman Full
Bike Development, Swim Run maintenance
Run Development, Swim Bike maintenance
Swim Development, Bike Run maintenance
How it works: Sign up for the plans package, fill in the questionnaire with goals & background, discuss with the coach your 3 month plan, start training. Watch our explainer video.
Build an Online Community
The message board is more structure, a good place to find training buddies doing the same training plan and sessions as you on non-coached days. Organize trips to races or events. Stay updated on coaching announcements
The social wall is a casual place to exchange information such as racing opportunities, training photos, members updates.
Manage your Performance
A training log to manage and log your training information with special features such as performance calculators and training performance analysis
Desktop View of your training plan. Mobile version also available
Manage your Performance – Mobile Performance analysis
Members! We need to confirm your membership status
Regarding the time left on your membership, and you can track it following the steps in this video using your login access on our homepage footer (if you can’t retrieve yours, reply to this email).
We are offering our members 3 options – we need you to confirm via this form your preferred option:
a) Run Only Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at a third of the usual rate (ie 20 days will be frozen monthly).
b) Swim + Run Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at two third of the usual rate.
c) Maintain membership frozen until you are comfortable to come back to training
If you opt for option B, you will also need to select in the form one day to come swimming. Both days will offer the same workout, for now and all levels are welcome. Pick the day that best suits you.
if we dont hear from you, we will maintain the membership frozen by default Here is the form
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OTHER SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
Find the discount code at the message board of our app
TRI-DASH THAILAND: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race http://tridashthailand.com/
UJAMU: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race https://ujamu.net/
If you have a mid-year Ironman race, there is no better time to start building your routine for the long Ironman training ahead. This is the base period, and if you are an intermediate athlete, and have not lost much fitness in the off-season, this phase will allow you to immediately jump in a formal structured training plan. For intermediate athletes who have been doing this for years and have several ironman finishes on their resume, it is important not to start early and immediately build it up, to prevent an early peak and burnout prior to your A race.
In contrast, if you are an ironman newbie, it is imperative to train the body first before jumping to the formal 20-week ironman training ahead. That means a 8-12 weeks of basic training that will serve as a foundation in developing the motor skills needed in building up in intensity in later phases of the training.
Since more than 50% of your ironman training will be spent on the saddle, we will give out 3 key bike workouts in this building-a-routine phase of the 20-week ironman training plan. The repetitive nature of this period will teach your body to acquire the motor skills and improved strength that you will definitely need in the build stage of the program. The following workouts will be your staple for the 1st 4 weeks of your base period or Building-A-Routine part of your Bike Leg ironman training:
1. Bike Power Intervals
On stationary bike, do:
20min easy warm up
Full session: 20x POWER Intervals [1min at 40-50 cadence HARD RESISTANCE / with 1min VERY EASY recovery]
Cooldown: 10min EASY
Tip: Make each effort ALL OUT against VERY HIGH resistance! The cadence should be low (40-50 rpm per leg per minute) because you can’t push any harder because the resistance is so high! We are aiming for rubbery legs.
Note: Build up to the full session: On your 1st week, start with 5x interval. By the 4th week you should be able to do the full session. You can also do this interval set on a steep hill, seated on your bike with a very gentle touch of the brakes to stop forward momentum. This session works your cycling-specific strength without stressing your aerobic system too hard – so it’s important that you make each effort count! If you find your knees are sore after this, raise your bike seat slightly and ensure you use ice (see http://www.ironguides.net/all-about-ice/) and keep your muscles loose between sessions with gentle stretching and easy self-massage or a treatment from a masseur.
2. Weekly Time Trial Effort
60min on road or stationary, as:
20min easy w/u
Main Set:
WEEK 1: 60min easy cycling on stationary or outside
WEEK 2: 75min moderate cycling on stationary or outside
WEEK 3: 6x [3min FAST / 2min easy]
WEEK 4: 6x [5min FAST / 1min easy] •
Ride in Heavy Gear, cadence 70-80 • Easy gear for VERY EASY
Recovery 20min easy cooldown
Tip: You will build this, the week’s only high-intensity session on the bike, into a weekly Time Trial effort. When it says ride Fast – make it count!!! This is your only opportunity all week to push a hard time trial effort. You can ride this on a stationary or on the road, but try to hit a known, measured course that you can test yourself on once every 3-4 weeks after Week 4.
3. Long Bike
WEEK 1: 120-180min easy and flat
WEEK 2: 120-180min easy and flat
WEEK 3: 180min as 120min easy / 60min moderate
WEEK 4: 190min as 90min easy / 90min moderate
Tip: Push a bigger gear and keep your muscle tension high – but not maxed out! Aim for cadence around 70-80 – this will mean pushing quite hard at times.
This bike workouts if done in the first month of your ironman training will adapt your body and help you cope with the more demanding phase of the plan. The key tip here is to build it slowly. If you missed a workout, no need to make it up or add to the next work-out.
Dear athletes, below the relevant updates for the upcoming month
*25th October is a public holiday but swimming is on
*We have opened additional slots for our drafting triathlon races – 5 slots left for both days
*ironguides team swim race next weekend – registrations still open
*Swimming now starting at 6.30pm,
*Swimming Mondays = Technique Focus + Conditioning. THURSDAY = Conditioning Focus + Technique
*End year break dates announced Dec 20th to Jan 9th
It was great to see you all back in training enjoying the relaunch of our group workouts in the new format.
For the upcoming month, only a few adjustments after the initial kick off. Starting with the swim, we are starting a bit earleir at 6.30pm (until 7.50pm) and the dynamics of each day is a slightly different with Monday being
Technique Focus + Conditioning while THURSDAY is Conditioning Focus + Technique. As a member or coached athlete you are welcome to attend one swim per week. While monday the 25th is a public holiday, this month we are exceptionally training on all public holidays to gain some momentum back.
The other good news is that restrictions have eased in Phrachuap Kiri Khan, so we are opening an additional 10 slots for each of our races November 20-21. There are also slots available for our team open water swim race next weekend at Taco Lake, Bangkok.
We have also set the calendar at the end of the year, we are taking three weeks off training weeks of Dec 20th, 27th and Jan 3rd, training resumes on Monday the 10th. All memberships will be credited 3 weeks.
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana
ironguides Head Coach
Members Updates: `Month 1 of the Relaunch in the bank`
Coach David Milziner on deck Mondays (Technique Focus + Conditioning)
&THURSDAY (Conditioning Focus + Technique)
Coach Champ at the track – 200m fast repeats to welcome the members back
ironguides Races Series
5 slots left for our draft legal race 20 & 21st November
The province of Prachuap Khiri Khan has now been downgraded to ‘red’, allowing mass gathering of up to 100 pax (from 25) – this means we can allow some more athletes in the ironguides draft legal club race.
Come race the sprint, the Olympic Distance or both (like most people)! Time Trial bikes are allowed. Drafting is legal.
You can download a PDF file with full information about our race as well as register on our website https://www.ironguides.net/camps/
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30th October = ironguides Open Water swim team race 1.5km
There will be 2 teams with 12 athletes max per team. 2 races separate by level (12 athletes per race), your final ranking counts points for the team. Winning team get special prizes.
Team 1 has 6 athletes on the beginner race and experienced race
Team 2 has the same distribution.
1st place = 12 points
2nd place = 11 points
…10th place = 1 point
Slots limited to 20 swimmers, first come first served.
60 THB commitment fee for members (must still register entry time on google docs)
600 THB for drop in via our website then register entry time Register now https://www.ironguides.net/camps/
Free for coached athletes & club members (1x week only)
600thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Running
Weekly Coached Sessions
Where: National stadium (warm up 200m blue track ) When: Wednesdays @18.30-20.00
Cost:
*Free for members & coached athletes
*400thb for drop in athletes (book & pay online, in advance)
Cycling
We are planning quarterly sessions at the velodrome which is currently closed, meanwhile refer to your training plan for a structured workout, you can download the sessions to Zwift or Trainerroad and upload to the app folder, they will appear under Custom workouts. More instructions in the members area of our app
Download file from the ironguides app and move to zwift folder
You can now let zwift guide your ironguides training
Includes access to weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
3 Months – Sessions + Training Plan + Coaching Access: 2 options
Run Sessions only: 4500 THB per 3 months
Run + Swim Sessions: 6500 THB per 3 months
Includes access to training plans via app, quarterly email with Coach to structure your training plans, weekly sessions, ironguides member status (preferred pricing on events & apparel)
Members! We need to confirm your membership status
Regarding the time left on your membership, and you can track it following the steps in this video using your login access on our homepage footer (if you can’t retrieve yours, reply to this email).
We are offering our members 3 options – we need you to confirm via this form your preferred option:
a) Run Only Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at a third of the usual rate (ie 20 days will be frozen monthly).
b) Swim + Run Classes (+ bonus training plan and access to the ironguides app). This membership will run at two third of the usual rate.
c) Maintain membership frozen until you are comfortable to come back to training
If you opt for option B, you will also need to select in the form one day to come swimming. Both days will offer the same workout, for now and all levels are welcome. Pick the day that best suits you.
if we dont hear from you, we will maintain the membership frozen by default Here is the form
All Training Plans are available in 2 loads, high and low (# of hours and training days) as well as 3 levels of workouts (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
Plans available
Ongoing Triathlon (short course & overall development)
Balanced Running (5, 10k & overall development)
16-weeks Ironman 70.3
20-weeks Ironman Full
Bike Development, Swim Run maintenance
Run Development, Swim Bike maintenance
Swim Development, Bike Run maintenance
How it works: Sign up for the plans package, fill in the questionnaire with goals & background, discuss with the coach your 3 month plan, start training. Watch our explainer video.
Build an Online Community
The message board is more structure, a good place to find training buddies doing the same training plan and sessions as you on non-coached days. Organize trips to races or events. Stay updated on coaching announcements
The social wall is a casual place to exchange information such as racing opportunities, training photos, members updates.
Manage your Performance
A training log to manage and log your training information with special features such as performance calculators and training performance analysis
Desktop View of your training plan. Mobile version also available
Manage your Performance – Mobile Performance analysis
–
OTHER SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
Find the discount code at the message board of our app
TRI-DASH THAILAND: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race http://tridashthailand.com/
UJAMU: 10% OFF at any event during 2021 – use our coupon code on the members area when registering for the race https://ujamu.net/
Time for the next session—but you’re tired and unmotivated to head out of the door. You’re not sure if the fatigue comes from having had a stressful week at work, or if you went a bit too hard at those weekend sessions. You are a dedicated athlete who feels very guilty whenever you miss a session. At the same time, you know that training through fatigue or illness is bad for your health. So what to do?
For this scenario, The Method athletes are given a few simple guidelines to “test drive” their bodies to help decide if they ought to skip a training session on any given day.
The key? WHEN IN DOUBT … try it out!
This does NOT mean that you train when you’re sick.
But on those days when you’re unsure whether your should train, or not, The Method encourage athletes to simply try out your body to see what it tells you. Start the session with a very, very easy 20 to 30 minutes before making that call.
If you feel better, continue your session as planned. If needed, back off and take it easy later in the set if you find that you’re deteriorating.
If after that initial 20-30mins you feel the same, i.e. neither much better nor much worse, modify the session so that it places less strain on your body. For example, if you’re to do a long endurance effort, cut the duration. See how you feel later in the session before deciding if you’ll carry on. If you’re to do a lactate-tolerance session, greatly moderate both the duration and the intensity of the efforts and give yourself a lot more rest between each effort. You still engage your high-end aerobic system and fast-twitch muscle fibres, helping to maintain your accumulated fitness gains until you feel strong again.
If you feel worse after testing your body for that very easy 20-30mins, pack it in and head home. Your body’s telling you that it’s not prepared to train today; you might be fighting an impending illness or simply need to recover. Heed the warning and take the day OFF.
A stitch in time saves nine—if you’re ill or fighting illness, having a few days of rest from training will prevent a prolonged forced break from training and racing.
Use these simple guidelines to judge the most appropriate response on days when you feel sluggish or off. Often, you’ll have a great training session on a day you might otherwise have written off.
And on days you feel great?! Go for it! Just remember, the goal is not to deliver hammer blows to the body, but to generate a long-term, consistent training stimulus.
Illness
Try as we might, there is simply no way to avoid getting sick once in awhile. For these times, The Method stipulates you take time off and recover. Remember: With The Method everything is relative. When you’re sick, the body is weakened and needs to recover from training. The goal is to achieve maximum, effective consistency.
Rest
With all that said, The Method doesn’t set in stone when you’re to take rest from training. Unfortunately, this heretical notion of The Method has led to more misinterpretation than any other of its principles.
Life has a funny way of throwing curve balls at us: work, family and community commitments often cause us to miss out on training. Rather than worrying about missed training when this happens, take comfort from the fact that you’ve been training consistently and diligently until then. Your days off due to commitments elsewhere become your rest days from training, and are automatically suited to your life schedule since they come when you truly need the time elsewhere, rather than when a schedule hammers them out.
You can also look at it this way: No schedule can accurately predict what you’ll be doing each day for months down the road. Quite simply, what The Method tells an athlete is rest when you need it.
Many amateur athletes spend the better part of their day physically recovering from their training at a desk or otherwise in their daily work. The Method accepts that most amateur athletes do not have the luxury of a daily routine dedicated to sport alone.
For this reason, The Method distinguishes between mental rest and physical rest. For example, a stressful work-travel day on which you can’t train may cause you much mental fatigue while your physical training systems have been resting. Consequently, that stressful day counts as a rest day, even though you might be tired from it.
Keep in mind that everything is relative in The Method training. The hormonal context in which The Method places you determines how you ought to train subsequently. If the stressful travel day
comes on top of a lot of other stress in your life, it can create a significant catabolic experience for your body. In this situation, The Method’s approach advises you to avoid endurance work or excessive lactate-tolerance training immediately following or during this (or other) high-stress period.
After taking a day off, be smart when getting back into the training. If circumstances required you to rest, use these simple rules to get back on the plan:
* Add some volume to the start of the workout in order to kick start your body again before trying any intensity. You don’t want to go too hard while being too rested. Rather, add volume to tire yourself a little bit without pushing the intensity. Then do your intervals. For example, add 30 minutes of easy running before the main set.
* If you are a performance-oriented athlete, then take an easy day in each of the sports after your day off. The reason is that you probably needed the day off due to deep fatigue levels, and the extra bit of easy training will help you recover back to normal fatigue levels. Then you’re most likely good to go again!
Learn how to read your body and stay consistent to your plan!
Enjoy your training,
Vinnie Santana,
ironguides Head Coach
ironguides is the leading Lifestyle Facilitation company for athletes of all abilities. We provide coaching and training services, plans and programs, as well training education, health and fitness products to help you learn and live a healthy lifestyle. Come get fit with one of our monthly training subscriptions, event-specific training plans, coaching services, or a triathlon training camp in an exotic location! ironguides also provides Corporate Health services including Corporate Triathlons, Healthy Living retreats and speaking engagements. At ironguides, your best is our business!
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