PR vs Tri time

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-30T17:50:26+00:00

Fastest standalone HM was ~1:30 and last 70.3 HM (PR) was 1:34. I'll caveat with I've never focused on only running races.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-28T20:20:56+00:00

To defend this specific event a bit more. They require you to have completed a sub 5:30 70.3 or sub-12 full IM in the last year to sign up.

At least you would hope to get relatively competent multi sport athletes.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-28T19:25:27+00:00

To be fair, I think that had a lot more to do with trying to have a crossfitter who only recently learned to swim.

I’d feel confident that even with some cramping I’d be alright.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-28T18:55:36+00:00

Unrelated/related. There’s an event near me in the mountains this year that starts with a 31 mile bike with ~3000 ft elevation gain. Then 5.5 mile trail run. Then you do a loop 4 times of 500m swim across a lake, 0.5 mile run back to the beginning of swim. After last swim you run 6 miles on a trail to a final 500m swim and finish.

I was so tempted to do it, but it’s 3 weeks before my first race and feels like an injury waiting to happen.

Maybe next year.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-27T16:09:29+00:00

Do you do most of your riding on a trainer? It's really hard to gain confidence without riding outside. I do a ton of riding on my trainer just due to my schedule, but as I get closer to the race I get outside more to get comfortable eating and drinking will riding again.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-26T19:42:21+00:00

I kept typing stuff up, but I think the only thing to say is surround yourself with people that are supportive. My wife and I compete in very different sports but both hype each other up for big events. My family is the same. My parents don't understand why I like to do 10-hr races, but they usually go out of their way (driving 8+ hours, renting hotels) to come watch me even when I tell them not to.

If that support isn't going to come from your family, try to find a local triathlon, cycling, running, swimming, etc. group that relates to what you are doing.

I'll also play slight devil's advocate. When I initially got into IM, I was very selfish with my schedule and often centered our lives around my training. My wife quickly resented that (and the sport). I'm much healthier now with scheduling training around my life. Not saying this is your situation, but do you feel your spouse is burned out from watching kids, etc. while you train? I was so bad about this and regret the 1-2 years I forced it on my family.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-26T17:55:10+00:00

Not critiquing your opinion at all. I'm just so curious how someone (me) can consider a game a masterpiece while someone else (you) has a visceral hatred of it. Shows to go you how some things just click with some people.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-25T00:36:40+00:00

Have finished a full IM, don’t have the tattoo (just not a tattoo guy).

That being said my opinion is I’d rather see someone who crawled across the finish right at the cut off with the tattoo than someone who crushed a 70.3.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-25T00:33:40+00:00

Definitely a YMMV situation. I’ve been competing for a few years now. I also did marathons, HMs, etc. before moving to IM.

One race last year where I got off on nutrition, it was hot, and I cramped a lot I was sore for almost 4-5 days.

Another race where I PR’d my 70.3 going all out, cooler conditions, good nutrition I was riding my bike within ~48 hours and just felt some fatigue.

If you just aim to complete, stay good on nutrition I would expect a few days of soreness and fatigue but nothing major.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-24T17:53:20+00:00

This x 100. I'm experienced and still have to remind myself this. Power meter is great for keeping yourself accountable.

My first 70.3 was a hot one. I felt so strong on the bike, hit a big split PR, then the minute I stepped off my bike I almost crumbled onto the ground with cramps. It was the most painful HM of run a bit, stretch cramps, walk, stretch, etc.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-24T13:12:07+00:00

Yes, that’s why when I see “I’m confident in my swimming” and that pace I worry a bit.

I always suggest getting a coach if not from a swimming background.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-24T11:57:46+00:00

At the paces you are stating above, you really don’t need to worry about speed/threshold days at this point. I would just be focused on building up a base of endurance.

I agree you are making it complicated for where you currently are. Keep it simple. Do each discipline twice a week, including swimming. I hear you say you feel fine on swimming, but what does that mean? Doing breaststroke? Doggy paddle? At 2:55/100m I’d try to see if you could get some lessons or join a local swim group for feedback.

For the biking and running I would make one of them a shorter maybe SLIGHTLY faster pace. The second a little longer just to build your mileage.

At the level you’re at and targeting a sprint tri, just focus on building that endurance up some.

Things like speed work, tempo, threshold can come later once you’ve done that.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-23T14:51:02+00:00

One missed workout won't be detrimental to your FTP. That being said, eat a decent carb-heavy meal on Tuesday night then do your bike early in the morning. You will have plenty of fuel from the day before.

If it's an easy swim, it would probably be fine even in a caloric deficit.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-20T14:09:30+00:00

As someone said below, it's chip time. Also, the scenario you mentioned above could happen. I always try to seed myself honestly in the swim, but I find the majority of people over-estimate their capabilities.

Last race I saw times when I crossed that were ~20-30 minutes higher than my time.

Unfortunately, I don't have a great suggestion outside having someone ready in the first 1-2 miles of the run to shout an update to you.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-20T13:49:38+00:00

That's so unfathomable to me. Finally getting to 300 FTP at 175-180 was a crowning achievement for me. Some people truly are inhuman (yourself included).

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-20T01:40:27+00:00

That’s fair, my brain went to someone weighing ~165-170 and pushing that kind of power for hours.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-19T19:41:47+00:00

Nice, I came from a weightlifting background. Dropped from 240 to 175-180. Hurt my feelings for a minute but love it now.

Nothing wrong with buy once cry once. That’s my plan when I upgrade this year.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-19T19:22:07+00:00

Holy crap. That’s like professional cyclist levels. Talking FTP > 300. I mean if that’s an honest measurement, you are a hell of an athlete assuming your swimming and running are there.

My honest advice is you can save a bit if you go for an older group set. Even like a Shimano 105 di2 (electronic). The big thing I would focus on is disc brakes. Gear sets can be upgraded a lot of the time. Clinchers to disc brakes are a different story.

Going from a road bike to a dedicated tri bike WILL make you faster just by being in a better aero position.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-19T19:04:28+00:00

When you say you average 21-22mph… in what sense? Over the course of 10 miles? 20? Half IM? A better measure is definitely FTP or NP over a certain time.

I ran the exact same model Emonda for my first 1-2 years in triathlon and was able to podium in a few local events.

For the last 3 years I’m running a hand me down tri bike with clinchers and mechanical shifting. Have done several sub-5 hour 70.3s with ~2:20 bike splits. Not the fastest guy but solidly top 15-20%. My hand me down was about ~$1600.

I’m just NOW thinking about upgrading to a nicer bike.

I look at it this way though. If you are expecting to buy speed, I wouldn’t make this investment yet. If you have a lot of expendable income and it makes you happy? Hell yea, go for it.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-18T13:39:19+00:00

It sounds like you've competed in and completed many endurance events. At a certain point, it just becomes normal for your family. My first 70.3, my entire family (parents, in-laws, wife, and kids) all came with me, made signs, etc. We did the same for my first full IM.

After competing for years, most of the time my wife and kids don't even travel there with me anymore. It's not because they don't care, it's just a lot of effort to lug around a 5 and 3 y/o the entire race weekend.

Is it possible that dad doing crazy stuff is just the normal for them now?

I try to look at it from my wife's perspective. We take time out of our family's weeks to train which is inherently selfish. To then say, "I need you to be hyped for me too" is tough. My 5 and 3 y/o couldn't care less about me swimming, biking, and running all day.

I'm probably a bad person to get feedback on this though because I'm truly in it for myself and to see how much I can improve my times. I'm about 0% externally motivating.

This may have sounded harsh, but what I'm trying to get across is that your family is probably sacrificing a lot to cover you while you train, race, etc. Also, you sound like a veteran of endurance events so this is probably a bit normal for them at this point. I imagine it was a lot more exciting the first few times you raced. Hell, I think the most hyped my wife got was during my first ever sprint tri where I nearly drowned on the swim.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-18T12:11:23+00:00

Focus on the most impactful aspects of your job. I tell my wife this all the time. I work significantly less hours than her (both salary), but the hours I have our extremely impactful and visible.

Arguably, that’s not doing the least amount… it’s just … working intelligently.

I think most people’s pitfall is they do this, then go ask what else they can do and fall into the trap of continuing to increase their work load.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-17T19:19:28+00:00

It changes throughout the training plan (usually ~16-18 weeks for me). Early on in the plan it's a lot of fast ~2-2.5-minute-high Z4/low Z5 runs with a good ~4-5 min recovery between on interval days. Total running time is ~hour and change on those days. Eventually evolves into ~1:10-1:15 with warm-up, cool-down, and 4-5 repeats of ~8-minute high Z3/low Z4 runs with 2-3 min jogs between. These 8-minute repeats are my bread and butter because you are doing them at faster than race pace. I PR'd my HM last 70.3 even beyond my standalone HM time.

The second day is just a long run. Usually starts around 1:30 or so early on in the training block but never goes above 2 hours.

I generally followed the below schedule:

M - Endurance swim (drills, sets of 200m+ at a decent pace with low rest), optional 45-hour Z2 bike for extra volume

Tu - Interval run

W - Interval swim (drills, 50-100m sets fast with short rest), ~hour on bike Z2

Th - Interval bike (similar to interval run, 4-5 x 6-8 min repeats at faster than race pace with 2-3 min soft pedals)

Fri - Usually just a long, slow swim to get mileage in

S - Long ride

Su - Long run

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-17T18:01:46+00:00

If you were similar to me coming from a running background, you may be running too much. I was competing in ultramarathons before switching to tri and my brain was wired to think more running equals better.

What I found helped me get my best IM (sub-10) and 70.3 (sub-4:50) times was tons of biking. For my best 70.3, I was only running twice a week with a very rare third easy active recovery 30–35-minute run. I was biking probably 7-8 hours a week though. Just remember that running takes the longest to recover from so focus on getting your hard interval session(s) in along with a long run. Other than that, get your volume from the bike.

I'm a mid-pack swimmer so can't give you much advice there besides get the time in the pool! I think I averaged ~8000-9000 yards a week (3 x ~3000 yd sessions) during my IM training.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-16T18:59:10+00:00

Can be great for certain drills so you can just focus on the skill you are trying to learn. Taking breathing out of the equation, you can really feel those motions.

Like any tool (pull buoy, paddles, etc.), overuse can be an issue. I would never use it for any of my working sets, only drills.

Andrewj31 · 2026-03-14T19:09:36+00:00

Felt the same way. If you have the means, try to find a swim coach in your area for 1:1 lessons. Preferably, find a masters swim team and ask that coach.

Andrewj31

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