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How long would you go without training?
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 2016-08-12 6:42 PM |
 319  Sarasota, Florida |  Subject: How long would you go without training?Well, life got demanding this year and I have found myself nearly sedentary for a month now working 6-7 days a week working through lunch on many days. I have an Oly in 2 months. I haven't done a race in a while, haven't done a brick in nearly 4 months. I thought I could ease through a sprint now if I had to, and squeezed in a little transition work today and nearly fell on my face due to calf cramps. Took 3 minutes of stretching and massaging to continue. Thought this would be a fun question to ask. If you were race ready, then life threw something your way how long would you go without training before expecting to survive a sprint or oly? |
| 2016-08-12 6:55 PM in reply to: runtim23 |
Expert 2373  Floriduh | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I think that completing (not competing against the field or even myself) a sprint takes nearly no training. I think I could fall out of bed on any day and finish a sprint, prolly with a pretty crummy time, but I could finish the course. An oly not so much, I would think that anything over 4-6 weeks off would damage my performance and jeopardize being able to ccmplete the course. |
| 2016-08-12 9:02 PM in reply to: runtim23 |
Master 8247  Eugene, Oregon Bronze member | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I would probably survive either on pretty much no training. Those distances are all within what I do recreationally, though the Oly run might be a pain if I really had done zero running! I think with more than three weeks off, though, if I'd been truly sedentary, I'd back off the intensity and not try to race it, just do it to finish. That would particularly be true on the bike leg--if you push it too hard, you'll nuke your run, especially if run fitness and overall endurance is weak. I did one of my best sprint races ever after five weeks vacation in Europe that included a lot of bike touring (but with ZERO race-pace efforts--I was riding with Mom, who's well into her 70's), and only four or five runs and swims each, again, nothing at race effort/pace. I guess it's not quite zero training, since it was an active vacation, but it kind of made me wonder if structured training is overrated sometimes (or if I overtrain?)! |
| 2016-08-13 8:46 PM in reply to: runtim23 |
| 233 Ventura, California | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? My training has really suffered lately due to a new job, lots of driving (avg 700 miles per week), very hot desert temps (100*F+) and lots of smoke from recent wild fires. With that said I finished a sprint last weekend and did well, but not as good as I had wished. 500M/30K/5K (1:55, 23/49 in AG 45-49). In 2 weeks I have a long course olympic 1.2mile/35mile/10mile. and I am very concerned especially for the run portion. My running distance has plummeted in the last couple of months. Today I was on a 60 mile training ride and cut it short at 48 miles due to muscle fatigue. In approx. 30 days I have a century ride with over 8,000 ft of elevation gain and I am also worried about being ready for that. Bottom line is if I can't be competitive then their is no reason to do the race. I have no desire to simply 'finish' or 'check off the box' any more. Good news for you my friend is you have 2 months to train your azz off and not make any more excuses, so lace up those running shoes and get out the door before daylight, hit the pool on the way home from work, brush the dust off the bike and hit the road on the weekends. No reason not to be ready for your oly in 60 days!
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| 2016-08-14 12:19 AM in reply to: Hot Runner |
| 319 Sarasota, Florida | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? That would have been fitting advice to go easy, but I was trying to go hard with the reduced mileage. Getting to know your body during training and events is one thing, but learning vulnerabilities in disruption is another. Yes. 2 months! I am taking a month off so I will have a lot of time to train, sleep, and eat. Probably find a good balance between family, home projects, social life, and training for a change. Can't wait to break free from this chair. I don't see how people do it. I think another lesson to take is to not neglect transition work if prone to cramping, which I have faced before, but never thought of it as a regular problem. |
| 2016-08-14 11:42 AM in reply to: 0 |
| 265 | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I did a sprint yesterday after converting my entry from the olympic distance race. Due to extensive work travel and putting together a family wedding going into this thing I'd done exactly one swim, one bike and one run in the preceding 2.5 weeks. I went into yesterday deciding I would go for broke, especially on the bike, and if I fell on my face or ran out of gas so be it. I, too, am at that transition from simply wanting to finish to pushing the limits and being more competitive. Well, I did great on the sprint distance and bettered my time significantly. This is my second sprint this year and third ever. I also completed a HIM this year. I am 61 years old. Your experience may differ, but I agree with those who have posted that if you have a good base you can enter a sprint distance triathlon and do well after somewhat slacking off on the training. Edited by HaydenHunter 2016-08-14 11:44 AM |
| 2016-08-14 8:00 PM in reply to: runtim23 |
| 1055 | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I usually take off a good three to four weeks at the end of the year. The fitness falls off, but it comes back. When I start back, I feel super fresh and I sometimes have to remind myself to take it easy. So I'd say that I could probably take a couple months off and still squeeze out a respectable race. You should be fine in two months time, at least back to where you were. |
| 2016-08-14 9:22 PM in reply to: #5194981 |
| 370 , North Carolina | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I wouldn't race a sprint if I couldn't do at least 50% of my volume for the three weeks prior. I wouldn't do it with no training for two weeks prior. Longer distances would add weeks to the go/no go I almost bagged my A race a two weeks ago due to low volume. But, stuck with it. Now into a two week taper. Feeling ok about it. Still going to hit the pool hard. |
| 2016-08-17 3:20 PM in reply to: Nick B |
| 319 Sarasota, Florida | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? Yeah, I was thinking a month tops for both if race ready for the respective race, but I think I'd give a sprint a go no matter what but I might have to hang out in transition areas for some breathers. Well, I've been squeezing in a mile run every lunch. Don't know what good that will do but at least it's something before I begin next week. |
| 2016-08-18 10:48 AM in reply to: runtim23 |
| 137 Birmingham, Alabama | Subject: RE: How long would you go without training? I had a bike wreck in March, followed by surgery that put me out of the pool and meant no running for about 8 weeks. I could tell that I definitely lost some fitness, but not as much as I expected. I did ride the stationary bike 3 times a week during this period. So I was able to keep the cardio up for the most part. I was also training for a marathon over the winter before running into some serious digestive issues. I went from running 30-40 miles a week down to nothing for 2 weeks, then only 6-10 miles a week for the 4 weeks leading up to the race. I dropped to the half-marathon, but ran a PR at 7:06 pace. In hindsight it kind of forced me to rest up which may have actually helped me run a better race. In summary, I lost fitness being away, but was able to mitigate it by doing whatever I had time or ability for. Good luck. |
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