- General
He Took 12 Years Off. Then He Came Back and Beat His Old Time by Over an Hour!
80/20 ENDURANCE — ATHLETE STORY
“I Didn’t Do Anything Extraordinary. I Simply Followed a Well-Designed System.”
How Brad Jansen returned to Ironman 70.3 Geelong at 55 — and finished 65 minutes faster than he did at 42.
In 2014, Brad Jansen crossed the finish line at Ironman 70.3 Geelong in 6:30:39. He was 42, placed 95th in his age group, and then — life happened. He stepped away from triathlon for a decade.
In late 2025, he decided to come back. Same race. Same course. Smarter approach.
He used the 80/20 Endurance Half Distance Level 2 plan. He finished in
5:25:26 — an improvement of 1 hour, 5 minutes, and 13 seconds — and placed 11th in M55-59.
At 55, he raced over an hour faster than he did at 42. He’d predicted a 35-minute improvement. He got 65.
Here’s what he learned — and what he wants other athletes to know.
The Plan: Half Distance Level 2, Bike Power and Run Pace
Brad went in with his eyes open. The Level 2 plan is designed for athletes who want a serious, structured build — and it delivered on that promise. Over roughly four months, he was approximately 85% compliant with the program, navigating real-world disruptions including an injury setback in the final two months.
That’s worth pausing on: 85% compliance, an Achilles injury, and still a 65-minute 70.3 PR.
Lesson 1: Easy Training Was the Hardest Part to Trust
In Brad’s own words:
“My Zone 1 and Zone 2 sessions felt almost comically slow, to the point where I genuinely questioned whether they could be doing anything useful. More than once, it felt like I was out there getting passed by old ladies on walking frames and their three-legged dogs, which did not do much for my ego.”
Sound familiar?
This is the most common stumbling block for athletes new to the 80/20 method. The training feels too easy. It feels like you’re not doing enough. Every instinct tells you to push harder.
But that’s exactly the point. The 80/20 principle — roughly 80% of training time at low intensity, 20% at moderate to high — works because it lets your aerobic engine develop without constantly digging yourself into a recovery hole. The science is clear. Athletes resist it anyway.
Brad resisted it too. Then he went 65 minutes faster.
“Learning to trust easy training was one of the biggest mindset shifts I’ve had, and one of the most valuable lessons from the plan.”
Lesson 2: The Books Made the Plan Click
Brad paired his training plan with Matt Fitzgerald’s 80/20 Triathlon and The Endurance Diet. He credits both with giving him the understanding to execute with real intent — and the nutrition to absorb the workload.
“The book gave me a much clearer understanding of the purpose behind each session. That extra context helped me execute with more confidence, patience, and intent.”
Understanding why you’re training the way you are changes how you train. Once Brad dialed in his fueling alongside the plan, the sessions started to stack.
Lesson 3: TrainingPeaks Integration Removed the Guesswork
“Each session came with clear, step-by-step guidance, so once everything was set up, all I really had to do was turn up and follow the instructions. In many ways, it felt like having a personal coach in my ear for every workout.”
That’s by design. Every 80/20 plan integrates directly with TrainingPeaks, so each session — with targets, structure, and step-by-step guidance — is ready on your watch or bike computer. No guesswork. No pre-workout math. Show up and execute.
Lesson 4: His Biggest Mistake — and What You Can Learn From It
Brad is honest about where things went wrong. After running 5km in 21 minutes during a sprint triathlon mid-build — a significant jump from his original baseline — he updated his run threshold in TrainingPeaks too aggressively. His run load jumped roughly 25% overnight. The result was Achilles tendinopathy that he managed through physio for the final two months of his build.
His takeaway: Retest regularly, but apply improvements conservatively. The progression is already built into the plan. Overcorrecting your threshold compounds it.
This is precisely where coach support pays for itself. Before race day, Brad reached out with questions about threshold management, plan customisation, and training load — and got detailed, personalised answers from 80/20 Coach Jim Vance directly. That kind of guidance is included for all 80/20 subscribers, and even for individual plan purchasers for the full duration of your plan.
Lesson 5: The Taper Requires Trust Too
“Reducing the training load, watching my CTL trend down from its peak, and feeling physically flat 9 to 14 days before the race all brought their own mental challenges. Having the plan to trust during that period helped me stay calm and avoid the temptation to do too much.”
The taper is where undertrained athletes panic and overtrained athletes dig deeper holes. Having a structured plan to follow — and knowing the reasoning behind it — is what keeps you on the right side of that line.
Race Day: The Plan Paid Off
Brad described feeling more in control, more purposeful, and stronger across all three disciplines than he had in 2014. The preparation showed in how he paced himself, stayed controlled, and executed consistently from start to finish
5:25:26. 11th in M55-59. A 65-minute improvement. Twelve years later.
And when we reached out to share the news, Brad’s response said everything:
“I didn’t do anything extraordinary. I simply followed a well-designed system. The result is a reflection of how effectively you and the team optimise the time and effort athletes are already willing to invest.”
What’s Next for Brad
Brad isn’t done. He’s already planning his next build — this time targeting Sunshine Coast 70.3 on September 13, using a Level 3 plan. His wife is a Gold member. The 80/20 system is now part of how this family trains.
“I now turn my attention to setting goals with greater clarity, perspective, and ambition, and to continuing to build on my relationship with 80/20 Endurance as a key partner in what I hope to achieve next.”
His Advice to Other Athletes
“Choose your plan level carefully. Trust easy training. Retest your thresholds regularly but conservatively. Read the books. And when you consider the total cost involved in preparing for a race like this — training time, equipment, nutrition, physio, race entries — the price of the plan is tiny by comparison. The ROI is the best you’ll ever find.”
Ready to Build Your Story?
Brad’s result came from a well-designed system, executed consistently, with the right support behind it. That same system is available to you.
Team 80/20 Gold gives you access to 600+ training plans — including every Half Distance triathlon plan — plus 5,000+ workouts, TrainingPeaks Premium, device sync, free coach email support for all your questions, and a free 30-minute coach consultation when you join. One subscription covers every race you train for this year.
Prefer to start with the specific type of plan Brad used? Browse all of our Half Distance triathlon plans — available at Silver and Gold levels, with coach email support included for the full duration of your plan.
Whatever your goal, the structure is here. The coaching support is here. You just have to show up.
👉 Browse Half Distance Triathlon Plans
Questions? Email our coaches: results@8020endurance.com
Have a result you’re proud of and a story to share? We’d love to hear from the 80/20 community.