marathon + ironman in one year?

I know that in The Triathlete Training Bible by Joe Friel, he presents an annual training plan for someone who has an Ironman at the end of his season. His schedule features a marathon about 1/3 of the way through the year as part of his training...

So Joe Friel thinks it can be done...

I am no expert, but having run a few marathons and trying to get ready for an IM distance this season ...

I think you have your work cutout for yourself but your driven and have a great cause, so go for it! Depending on your running base right now I would want to be on it for the March marathon. You have 4 under your belt so I assume you know how much they wear you. And since you run a marathon in the IM, it being part of the plan seems to make sense. But I think the time to Aug is plenty for the IM, again not knowing about your base training buildup but assuming you have a good plan. As long as your not killing yourself with "A" race intensity you should be fine. Awesome goals! GO, GO, GO!

INCONCEIVABLE!!!!! or something like that.

Thank you so much for this so far...

Well, let's give you some background. I ran 4 marathons and did a try-a-tri in 356 days last year (Oct to Oct) and haven't done any official races in 04 yet. I have a half in March and a full in May and October so that should give me a strong enough base heading into next winter (I'm in Toronto so running in Jan/Feb/March can be a challenge) when I'll be doing more indoor work.

The running is easy for me and the bike is nothing (not overly experienced with it but what I have done hasn't been a weakness) BUT the swim in my try-a-tri was harder than expected. It was my first open water swim ever so that could have had something to do with it...that's the part that scares me most. I figure hitting the pool will only help that though...besides, I have more than a year to go, right?

From the sounds of things, it can be done. And it's all being done for charity so the extra motivation can't hurt.

That should be plenty of time between races. The big concern is being ready for the full ironman. This year, make sure you can get comfortable in open water and swim the whole distance. Get some long bikes in as well as long runs. Most training plans are about 4 months, but you need a deep base before you begin. I volunteered at Ironman Europe in 2000 and said in 5 years I'll do one. I am finally ready to get it done.

Start training now and you should have no problem.

Oh no - now you've scared me again! You figure 3 years was what you needed for a "deep base"? I don't have that in swimming or biking but I like the idea of doing both a full swim and bike (at least once) this summer.

Thanks!

I did Quelle Challenge Roth, the former Ironman Europe, in July 2002 and then The Casino Niagara Marathon at the end of October that same year. I didn't have a good marathon in either race. My first Ironman distance race was faster in 2001. I did a lot of running races that year and I think that was my problem. Instead of doing long bike rides and runs on the weekend I was burning it up in 5km, 10km and half marathon races. I was running faster than ever but didn't have the running base or endurance to do a good marathon. I think March is probably perfect for the marathon as training for Ironman Canada. Between the two races I think you should try to stay out of a most of the smaller races because for Ironman it is very important to do those long steady bike rides and runs. I will limit my races to a maximum of once a month while training for Ironman Germany this year. Endurance is #1 for Ironman.

I could have done the Ironman sooner. I have not had the time to do all the training I need. I feel more confident, because of a deeper base, but you have plenty of time. I would try and do a Half Iron man this year just to get an idea of what you have in front of you. Your long running background will be a big bennefit for you. I think you should go for it.