Companion Training Plan Resources
Your training plan is the TrainingPeaks version of the equivalent plan in Unlocking Triathlon. Same workouts, delivered right to your training calendar.
New to the book? Unlocking Triathlon supplements the training plan with discussions of skill development across all three sports, detailed information on fueling and hydrating for training and racing, coaching guidance from plan start to finish, and detailed race-day prep. The training plan plus the book provide the complete package to set you up for success on race day.
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How to Read the Workouts
The TrainingPeaks plans provide workout details in a few different ways. All workouts include a “Description” that mimics the workout instructions from the Workout Reference Guide (Appendix A) in Unlocking Triathlon. The workout Description will provide all the steps within the workout along with a Training Zone target for each step.
Some workouts also include a blue bar chart that visually illustrates the workout, along with corresponding TrainingPeaks-generated “Workout Details.” These workout details essentially repeat the information in the workout Description, just in a slightly different format. Swims will use RPE targets for the blue bar charts and Workout Details, bikes will use power targets, and runs will use pace targets. (See “Using power or pace targets” below for more info.)
Training Zones
All workout Descriptions will provide a Training Zone target for each step of the workout. Use the table below to understand each Training Zone along with the associated RPE (“Rate of Perceived Exertion”). The Training Zone target and associated RPE are the primary prescription of effort level for each step of your workout – learn your zones, acclimate to the RPE for each of them, and use that to drive your workout execution. Even when a power or pace target is provided for a bike or run workout, your RPE is your primary metric for workout execution.
Using Power or Pace Targets
Some bike and run workouts provide specific power (bike) or pace (run) targets for each step of the workout. These targets are only accurate if you have accurate power and speed/pace threshold and zones set in your TrainingPeaks settings. TrainingPeaks will set default power and speed/pace thresholds and zones for all athletes, but they may not be accurate for you. If you don’t have individually-set power and speed/pace thresholds and zones for bike power and run pace, you can learn how to test and set them through this TrainingPeaks article.
You can estimate your bike power threshold by using 95% of your 20-minute best-effort bike power; zones can be set using the Threshold Power / Any Coggan zones. You can estimate your run pace threshold by using your 5k race-day best-effort pace; zones can be set using the Threshold Speed / Joe Friel for Running zones.
⇒ Accurate thresholds are necessary because the plan’s power and pace targets are calculated as a percentage of your threshold. Your zones aren’t used to set any targets, so setting them is optional, though most athletes set them alongside their thresholds anyway.
Connecting to Devices and Apps
Structured bike and run workouts (with the blue bar chart and power/pace targets) can sync to compatible devices and apps. Learn how to connect your devices and apps to TrainingPeaks here.
Swim workouts and unstructured endurance bikes and runs do not have power or pace targets, so they will not appear as structured workouts and will not sync to devices and apps.
Coach Cues
Each week includes a Note with “Coach Cues” for the week. The Coach Cues draw from the sport-specific, execution, and race-specific cues included throughout the book. They are your weekly areas of focus – the aspects of execution and racing and the sport-specific skills that should be top of your mind as you move through your week and complete your workouts.
You can find the Coach Cues here:
E = Execution cues (chapter 11)
S = Swim cues (chapter 4)
B = Bike cues (chapter 5)
R = Run cues (chapter 6)
T = Triathlon cues (chapter 7)
C = Race cues (chapter 13)
Adjusting Your Plan
All plans include six scheduled training days, with Monday as your “off” day. If you prefer Friday as your “off” day, you can shift the Tuesday through Friday workouts back one day to rearrange your weekly workout pattern. (If your plan includes swims on Sundays, you can execute the Sunday swim session on Sunday or your scheduled “off” day.)
If your life schedule doesn’t align with the workout schedule in your training plan – which workouts are done on which days – you can rearrange the workouts to fit your schedule. Be sure to use the principles outlined in Chapter 9 of Unlocking Triathlon when doing so.
All plans assume a Sunday race day. You can modify the plan for a Saturday race day with some minor adjustments: For sprint- and Olympic-distance races, replace the Friday workout (if you have one) with the Saturday pre-race workout, opening up Saturday for race day. For half-distance races, you can do one or both of the Friday and Saturday pre-race workouts on Friday, and then race on Saturday.
Finally, if your training plan gets disrupted due to injury, illness, or just life, refer to the guidelines in Chapter 12 of Unlocking Triathlon to understand how to adapt your training plan accordingly.
⇒ Note that rearranging future workouts requires a TrainingPeaks Premium subscription. Please don’t blame the messenger – I don’t make those rules.
Questions?
You’ve got this. If anything comes up as you’re working through your plan, I’m here. Email tricoachalison@gmail.com for plan questions – be sure to include your plan distance and levels for each sport if you have questions about the plan or workout details.