The Dreaded Long Distance Run!

Training during spring has progressed great, and except for 10 days with a cold, I have managed to follow my training program. This has meant three weeks with nine sessions per week (three each discipline) with a total of 10-12 hours, followed with one easier week at around 6-7 hours. Compared to last year I have a much more regular training flow, and by skipping cross country skiing this year, a much more consistent training in the triathlon disciplines. I also skipped training camp in Mallorca this year, so total hours is probably less compared to last year. Bike hours are also fewer, but last year my main training set-up during May was a very long group ride on the weekend (4-6 hours) and then only one extra ride per week - this as I then trained for Vätternrundan and was what I could squeeze in. Now I have more sessions and have used the trainer much more for more controlled efforts during training. I believe it is giving good results in power output, and I don’t need the 4+ hours rides for the distances I will compete in this year. I have also managed to keep a consistent swim schedule with three times per week (last year two) and also uninterrupted running since November. The feeling right now is that my overall physical state is slightly better than last year: I set a new PB in 1000m pool swimming in April, good pace on the bike on the longer runs and doing higher wattage indoors, and running feels great with a few PB’s on my training loops. Key – as always – will be to keep the consistency and stay away from injuries, especially while running. I am very happy with the set-up of reducing the effort on my long runs, keeping them at 4:50-5:00 pace, but maintaining high effort on the shorter runs, this seems to allow me to stay away from overtraining symptoms.

New shoes this year - Asics Nimbus

Running Fast in Your 40's - Injuries and Recovery

Around the time you turn 40, running becomes a little more exciting as you seriously must start to take into account the risk of injury. Gone are the days where going out on a run or increasing running load a lot just meant that you had to overcome some initial fatigue and soreness in your thighs afterwards. Around when you turn 40 terms like IT band, Runners Knee, Plantar Fasciit and the dreaded “Gubbvad” (old man’s calves – chronic muscle tear) are phrases you start googling about and try to avoid. I have had close experience with most of them…

As a younger man I did my share of running. A few half marathons at respectable time (1:40?), part of the cross country team in high school (bottom half…) and kept up my running to and fro once or twice a week as I approached my 40’s. In 2013 however (at the age of 42), I drastically change my training regime and increased it a lot, and quickly. My brother was going to run the Stockholm Marathon, so I took up running a little more seriously then at the same time. However, it didn’t take long until during one run I got what in Swedish is called “Gubbvad” (Old Man’s Calf) – a muscle tear in the calf. It feels like someone stabs a knife in your leg, and the only option is to limp back home... My brother told me to google “Gubbvad”, and at first I thought it was a joke… But alas, it was not! No running for a while, but the good thing is that I took up biking instead.

Muscle tear/rupture in the calf.

How to manage 10 hour training weeks

How do you fit in 8-10 hours of training per week in a normal life is a question I get quite often when I talk to non-triathlon friends and tell them what I dedicate my time and energy on. Well, for sure it is not easily done, but let me tell you how I structure my time to manage it.

So first of all, why 8-10 hours per week? Well, for me, a person who really doesn’t have an athletic background or real talent for doing sports (I was at best mediocre at school at athletics), it is the time I see required to build up a strong aerobic ability to do half ironman distance races at good times for my age group. I might maybe get off with less time, but training three disciplines in a constant fashion and getting the speed I look for (1:30 min/100m swim, 4:00 run pace and 36 km/hr bike speed) does require both volume and strength workouts. The training programs I follow means 2-3 sets per week in each discipline in average, which sums up to 7-8 sets per week, thus 8-10 hours per week in average. Some weeks less (5-6 hours), some more (15 hours).

Race schedule 2017 and start of training season

After some half hearted training during November, I have now managed to squeeze in two months of well structured and focused training, averaging about 40 hours per month, which is fairly high for myself. This year I am not doing Vasaloppet (cross country skiing), so I have been able to use that valuable training time to work on the triathlon disciplines. I have a target to improve my bike power mainly, while managing to maintain my run fitness over winter without injuries so I can start of at a good level when the outdoor season starts end of March.

I have also put quiet a lot of time in swimming, increasing to three sessions per week, to see if I can get some improvements in this area as well. That is much more difficult as it depends very much on technique, hence in January I have started swimming with a coach once per week. Lost of things to work on, and as a 45 year old it is difficult to change…
Training wise I am following more strictly now a four week block structure: three weeks of high volume (10 hours per week approximately) and then one week of reduced volume (5-6 hours) to build up strength and compensate. I have gone through three sets now, and can see at least some improvement in the biking with increased wattage, going from 250W to 290W on my 4 minute intervals. By following more strictly the four week structure I also hope the body will use the compensation weeks better to build up endurance and strength after the three weeks of hard workout. Looking at the development of training load/fatuigue and performance I have a much better development this year compared to 2016, so so far, so good!

Säsongavslut och summering 2016

Sådär, då var sista loppet för i år avklarat och sista nitratshotten och gelen svald. Efter Tjörn Triathlon i augusti hade jag ett sista mål för året att satsa på: 10km löpning sub-40 minuter, och detta skulle hända på Hässelbyloppet den 9:de oktober. Hässelbyloppet är ju känt för att vara en snabb bana, och med svalt väder i börja på oktober brukar förutsättningarna vara bra för att slå personbästa. Sub-40 har jag klarat en gång tidigare, för cirka 27 år sedan då jag gjorde lumpen och klarade mig in på precis under 40 minuter (39:56?). De senaste tre åren har jag trendat nedåt ige, och 2015 års Hässelbylopp klarade jag på 41:10, fortfarande långt ifrån att ta sig under 40 minuter.

Race Report, Tjörn Triathlon 2016

Tjörn Triathlon, medeldistans. 1:a i AG 45-49, 43:a totalt. 4:39:33 totaltid – nytt personligt rekord för medeldistans med 20 minuter!

Race planering 2016

Mars månad nästan slut, så dax att sätta på pränt planerna för 2016. De har ju funnits i huvudet en tid redan...

Det blir som förra året tre huvudmål:

1. Klassikern under 17 timmar

2. Triathlon

3. Övrigt