More Weight Training = Better Results? (Page 2)

I think just the opposite.  I think the OP will likely see benefits and get faster as he is starting down his triathlon road.  BUT....the time will come when he will have to do more swim/bike/run specific work in order to keep getting those gains.

I don't think you have to quit doing strength work.....but the type of work you do to continue making gains becomes more specific to your race..  HIll repeats on the bike, overspeed treadmill for thr run, hand paddles/parachute in the swim are all examples of "strength training" that will reap benefits toward a faster race.

Lifting weights......maybe at first......not as you progress.

I think any perceived negativity towards strength training or crossfit or anything other than swim/bike/run comes down to time management.  And I am speaking from my own personal experience.

I want to run faster, bike faster, swim faster.  The best way to do that is to train specifically at these activities.  To make significant progress in three disciplines at the same time is very, very difficult when you look at the time commitment involved in getting in enough sessions in each to improve.  There is not a huge amount of cross benefit between these activities when you reach a certain level.  You have to work hard and put time in to EACH one.  While other activities may be enjoyable there is little to support their overall benefit to swim/bike/run.

Quote from Jack Daniels:

"Specificity of training. The system which is stressed is the one which stands to benefit from the stress. While training for one particular sport usually has little or no beneficial effect on your ability to perform a second sport, in some cases there may actually be a detrimental effect. An example of this would be the negative effect that long-distance running has on explosive leg activities, such as sprinting and jumping. The same thing could be said for what body building would do for distance running; the extra muscle mass developed can act as dead weight, interfering with a runner's ability to optimize his or her distance-running capabilities.

To become really accomplished at something, you must practice doing that thing, not some other activity, which may not only take time away from the activity of primary interest, but may also actually produce results which limit performance in the main sport. This is not to say that all non-specific activity is bad, but considerable thought must be given to every aspect of running, and you must know what everything you do is doing for (or to) you."

True enough on the bolded.....I was thinking more in line with strength training instead of weight training.  I just don't know an application for weight training that can help make you faster or fix imbalances over other methods of "strength training".  We have a lot of weights in our home gym......we use the racks to hang bikes and the dumbells are covered with mats, towels, tires, etc.

As for the twin deal.....I'm game....if you can get #2 to trade in her horse for a bike I'll get her and #1 to try the experimenht.......I'll make money on that deal.

x2 to what johnnyo said.

When people think about "power" in cycling, it really has very little to do with the type of power required to do squats.  400 watts would be considered a lot of power in cycling, yet it is roughly the same amount of power required for a 70 kg person to walk up stairs.  IOW, if your legs are strong enough to walk up stairs, then they are strong enough to push 400 watts on the bike.  The question is...HOW LONG CAN YOU SUSTAIN IT?  That's not a question of increasing power, or building more muscle...it's a cardiovascular question of endurance.

My guess is that if the OP continues what he's doing, he's going to get faster.  It generally happens when one is not as active, and then starts spending time doing activity...regardless of the activity.  The OP could go incorporate hiking, skiing, and chopping wood into his training and it would likely improve his overall fitness.  But as Shane mentioned...to what end?  And when do you start realizing that changes in overall fitness will not reap as much benefit as specificity...such as running more.  

Chris... allow me.

You're not seeing the forest through the trees here.  What are the reasons the pros incorporate ST into their regimen?  Why they do it vs why you think you should do it are very different.  You're making an incorrect assumption that strength is somehow limiting your performance.  Your aerobic fitness is what is limiting your performance.  To improve that you need to increase your aerobic conditioning.  Swimming, cycling, and running for example.  ST is anaerobic.  Until you have reached your peak of aerobic fitness, which I can guarantee you're nowhere near, ST will be of little to no value making you faster.

Professional triathletes are near their peak of aerobic conditioning.  In that case, strength "may" be the limiter in extracting that extra 1% performance gain that separates them from the win or podium.

Ask yourself... are you at the absolute peak of your aerobic conditioning?  The answer is a resounding no.  Once you get down to a 3:50 70.3 or 1:50 Oly you can worry about extracting that miniscule performance boost out of the weights.

Medical science and physiology say otherwise.

Let's play a game.  Guess which group of folks are endurance athletes and which are not.

or

or

And I would add in the another part he said in getting used to working hard. It's usually easier to do that with something really short and intense.

Part of the frustration you are probably getting from people's responses is that this is wrong.  You will not "know".  All you will know is what you did and what happened.  You will not know "why".   You will not know, for example, what would have happend if you had done something differently.  You will not know how much the strength training is contributing and will certainly not know if you would have performed better by replacing it with more sport specific training.  There are very good reasons to guess that you would be better off with the latter (several explanations provided in the posts above).  But continue to do what you want and enjoy.

The second set of choices was a tough one...poor Andy.  

I typed in "Scrawny cyclists" and Google said "Do you mean Andy Shleck?"

Here's my feedback. I've been bike racing for the past 7 years, mostly road and track. My A race this year was some track races in Japan in July. I spent more time in the gym than ever and I do think it helped with my power on the track. However, I did gain weight and I think that was a disadvantage to me on the road.

There's so many other variables though, so I'm not sure I can be of much help.

Also, I read this recently and found it interesting.

http://www.ridethetrack.com/pdf/train_paulrogers.pdf

Go back and re-read the posts by Shane, Jonathan, and the one by Jenny above.  They know what they're talking about, and are giving you good advice.  There is also a lot of good advice by other posters, but their's are all based on both science and their hands-on experience.

I'm a proponent of strength training for athletes, but not just general sessions and not at the expense of SBR training.  It needs to be specific to the individual, to correct imbalances, or help avoid imbalances to reduce the chances of overuse injuries, and in the case of aging athletes to help maintain muscle mass and bone density.

In short, what you seem to be saying that you're doing is going to result in a lower level of triathlon performance than if you listened to what the guys above are saying.

A very simple concept that for whatever reason gets ignored by many.

Most of us have finite time to workout.  Let's say you can get in 12 workouts per week.  If your goal is overall fitness then I have no issues with doing something like 3 swim, 3 bike, 3 run, 3 strength training.  If the goal is to become a better triathlete the person would most benefit from all 12 of those workouts being S/B/R.  It's that simple.

I have no issues with ST.  I have issue with folks that think replacing a SBR workout with ST somehow is better for triathlon (or the triathlon activities) than the SBR workout.

What about ST that is s/b/r based?  I don't do any of it, but my kid does quite a bit of it...... swimming with paddles, parachute, massive kick sets, and even pulling weight stacks...... hours and hours of hill repeats on the bike, overspeed treadmill run sessions and tons of intervals.....all strength work, but all incorporated into s/b/r workouts.  The results have been excellent as he continues to gain more speed and build a faster race.