Monthly Subscription – Ironman Recovery – Plan

Week 1 to Week 4

Welcome to the ironguides 4-week Post-Ironman Recovery Program!

Congratulations on your recent race! After an Ironman event it’s important to focus on Recovery First, and Fitness Second! The Program below is designed to help you recover from your recent effort by giving your whole body — aerobic system, muscles and skeletal system, immune system and your mind — some training to maintain your hard-fought fitness gains, while enabling full recovery from the race.

Ideally you would start this program 1 week after your race and you can follow this through to completion, or use it to get back on your feet for the first 4 – 6 weeks after Ironman and then shift gears to full racing again, depending on your goals and time of year.

A note on rest days: Unless otherwise indicated, your rest days are to be taken when you really need them, or if circumstances demand it (such as a travel day, if you or a family member are ill, and other life events as they occur). On days you are unsure of how you feel (ie. you wake up or head out the door to train feeling unduly tired) — head out anyway and just go through the motions of training VERY easy for twenty minutes or so!

* If you feel better, try to do the scheduled session.
* If you feel the same (still tired, but not worse), do an easy session and adjust as indicated below.
* If you feel worse, pack in the session and head home.

First Workout

Second Workout

Notes

Monday

Main Set (Full Session):
SWIM

20min broken down into 50m kicking repeats (with a board) 30sec rest
20min easy swim with a pullbuoy

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: 20min (10/10)
Week 2: 30min (15/15)
Week 3: Full session
Week 4: Full session

SWIM: The kick set is a nice way to get some fresh blood into your legs without the impact of the run and staying off the bike for the day. Then do a relaxed and continuous swim with your pullbuoy.

Tuesday

Main Set (Full Session):

RUN

15min warm up
5x30sec FAST / 3min easy jog
10min cool down

 

Build into the Full session as below:
Week 1: 20mi easy jog
Week 2: 30min easy jog
Week 3: 3x30sec
Week 4: Full session

RUN: The fast strides are not long enough to stress your aerobic system but enough to maintain your leg speed while you recover from the IM. Try to do 50 steps (count one foot only) for each 30sec effort, working up over time to the full session by Week 4.

Wednesday

DAY OFF
A mid-week rest day, something you don’t get very often when training for an IM. Enjoy it!!!

Thursday

Main Set (Full Session):

SWIM

40min of 150m repeats / 20sec rest as:
125m easy/25m all out

Use pullbuoy and paddles

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: 20min of 150m repeats all done easy with pull gear
Week 2: 30min of 150m repeats all done easy with pull gear
Week 3: Full session
Week 4: Full session

Main Set (Full Session):

BIKE
40min easy spin on the trainer

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: REST
Week 2: 30min
Week 3: Full session
Week 4: Full session

SWIM: Working up to the all out sprints in the water with pull gear will maintain your speed and strength.

BIKE: Ride in a higher cadence then usual just to loosen up from Wednesday’s ride.

Friday

Main Set (Full Session):
SWIM

Broken into 100m repeats – 20sec rest
15min easy
10min moderate
2×100 hard
5min easy

No pull gear

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: 30min of 100m repeats all done easy
Week 2: Full session
Week 3: Full session
Week 4: Full session

Main Set (Full Session):

RUN
40min easy jog on the treadmill

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: REST
Week 2: 20min
Week 3: Full session
Week 4: Full session

SWIM: This is the only session of the week that you should feel like “training hard”; we are doing the work in the pool since there is less impact and your upper body is less likely to get a post-IM injury.

RUN: Easy jog on the treadmill, focus on a high leg turnover rate (minimum of 90 steps per minute)

Saturday

Main Set (Full Session):

BIKE
10min warm up
30min as
10x [30sec HARD (Biggest gear) / 2min30sec very easy spin]

Build into the full session as below:
Week 1: 4x30sec
Week 2: 6x30sec
Week 3: 8x30sec
Week 4: Full session

OR

Cross Training

BIKE: Strength training on the bike. The intervals are just long enough to recruit all your specific biking muscles, but is too short to stress your immune system.

CROSS TRAINING: Skip the bike if you are doing some physical activity outside, such as rock climbing, trekking, mountain biking, rollerblading, tennis, kayaking, etc

Sunday

REST
REST: Instead of the long training sessions on the weekend, use this day to do something different, something you don’t have the opportunity to do when training for an IM, be it spending the entire day with the family, a lazy morning reading the papers and watching TV, catching up with friends for a coffee, etc.

Switch this with Saturday’s workout if that fits you better!

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