The commuters triathlon planning mission impossible

I set myself the goal of completing a triathlon during my placement year of university (which starts August). Well me being over ambitious and thriving on the buzz of races i signed up to the Maldon Triathlon (700m swim/14 mile bike ride/ 5k run - 23rd July) in Essex, bought a bike and got all excited!

here's the issue, I cycle to my summer job (7 miles) and back every day getting home at 5. How on earth do i fit in adequate rest with the need for the swimming/run/cycle training!! How do you guys cope!?

im just baffled by it and feel lost before ive started! Determined to smash the race I need some help and support and this forum has that in buckets! So any advice would be fantastic and just stories of how you commuters fit it all in......

I myself am a 45 min 10k runner with 1 london marathon under my shoes, little cycling experience, and two years of lifeguarding related swimming under my belt.

 

THANKS GUYS!!!

Comments

  • If you're cycling 14 miles, 5 days a week then I would suggest you don't need to do any other cycle training for a sprint tri. 

    Additionally you can do a decent 10km - so a 5km isn't a problem. 

    If I were you I'd do a brick session once a week - cycle home, then go straight out for a 20 min run. I'd swim two evenings - focusing on technique not distance, and do a longer run on a weekend day - leaving the other weekend day as a day off. 

    Easy. 

    Really if you've got a marathon under your belt, you are logging 70 miles a week cycling and you must be a competent swimmer if you used to lifeguard - really nothing to worry about. image

     

    *This is absolutely nothing like my training schedule so it's not "How I do it" but I would definitely feel it is manageable

  • If you can leave your bike at work cycle in and run home.  Fit in some lunchtime swims and trainng won't take up any of your evenings all.  I do almost all my training going to or from work or at lunch.

     

  • There's an awful lot of people who have trained for iron man distance and working a lot longer hours than that.



    14 miles of cycling shouldn't tire you out - if it does - then ride easier.



    You've all weekend to swim and run if you can't face it after work / but I think you'd be a bit wussy to not manage mid week training too.
  • Given what you'e done and doing, a sprint doesnt seem overly ambitious, and you could do the race tomorrow and get around. If you want to 'smash it', make/find time and train hard(er), otherwise relax, enjoy the experience, and learn from it.

  • Kanga I'm defiantely looking to place well in the race, thanks for all your help guy's! Think I was a little bombarded with information to start with, but feel much more relaxed now. Cougie thanks the plan next year I think! Thanks for all the help guys it's been really helpful xxx

  • Second MedicGirl's brick advice - I ride a similar distance commute and it makes a great setup for a solid run-centred brick.

  • Cheers engineer, how am any stunning sessions do you hit a week? And how many of those are brick?

  • You could run to work and run home too, double days are good training sessions I find.

    The more bricks you do the better you will feel coming off the bike, the run session  doesn't have to be that far. A couple of k's would do for some with some longer ones once a week.

  • Love the forum name!!^^^^^ And as my first Tri is only a 5k I could hit that as a block? I have some 10k races prior to the Tri in July too so will have to balance the miles image Do you guy's use any apps opposed to a garmin or other GPS device? Looking for cadence (not that I'm too clued up on this just yet) , ability to draw routes then follow them, plues the normal time/distance etc?

    Also I need a gears 101 if anyone has a link to a web page or thread?

    p.s. what shite weather image

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