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Hi All,
Thanks in advance for help with my Q.
I completed my first 70.3 last year in Staffordshire which was great fun and has really focused me in terms of goals, certainly for the next 5 years. I went into the 70.3 having trained, but not in any methodical or serious way. 8020 has given me that insight and structure I’ve been looking for, so thank you.
I have the Weymouth 70.3 coming up in the UK on sept 20th. It falls into that trap of having not been cancelled nor postponed.
Obviously time will tell in regard to what will happen surrounding covid limitations, however, I was planning on subscribing to a full 70.3 plan as the race is 21 weeks away. Would this be worth doing? I’ll be subscribing to a plan after this all blows over anyway, but is it worth doing now or is it worth sticking with a maintenance plan for the foreseeable?
This is also the only race I have planned this year (I’m aware I could also race this virtually?).
Final Q on the maintenance plan. I’ve noticed it only runs for 12 weeks, can this be completed back to back or followed indefinitely? Any insight on when not to use the maintenance plan before/after a 20week tri plan would be helpful.
Thanks again,
Andy
To note:
I’ve just finished the 80/20 tri book, signed up to trainingpeaks, synced my garmin FR935 with the maintenance plan to see how it all comes together online and on the watch. I’ve also used the zone calculator to workout my TP from a recent all out 1hr run I did a few days ago and inserted the zone perameters on Tpeaks. I’ll be doing the same with the BIKE HR zone stats soon (ordering a power meter for the bike in a few weeks for a better representation through the use of power zones).
Andy,
Thank you for using our plans and checking in. The waiting is the hardest part for those Fall events, yes?
Your question is an important one: is it worth committing to starting a formal ~21-weeks plan not knowing if it will actually take place?
Ultimately, only you can answer that question! It’s a risk/reward calculus where only you can place correct value on that risk and reward.
However, you came here for advice, so I’ll advise: I consider these Fall event a low-risk commitment. My observation is that the Spring events were all taken by surprise, with races cancelled just weeks in advance. The summer events have been better, maybe 1-2 months notice. By the Fall, local governments and race directors will really understand, coordinate, and be able to project a couple of months in advance based on the curve of COVID-19 infections in their area.
Therefore, I suspect that unless there is a second wave of infections, you’ll have 2+ months notice which means you are really just committing to 3 months of intense training. That is the risk calculus.
For the reward, if a virtual race is acceptable from a 5 month commitment, then the decision is clear. If a virtual race is not acceptable, you’re back to the risk decision. Additionally, the training will provide many other benefits other than cashing in on race day, which adds to your reward considerations.
Regarding the Maintenance, it was not written to be used for more than 12 weeks at a time. But, I’m finding that our Maintenance plan has become the “duct tape” of training plans. It was designed for purpose A, but has incredible utility for purpose B, C, and Z. As the author of the plan, I’d recommend no more than 12 weeks of Maintenance. But, use it liberally to stitch together plan A to B to C, there is no disadvantage to using it over and over to bridge the gap between formal training plans.
Hi David,
Thanks for taking the time to respond and provide me with your sage advice, it’s greatly appreciated.
I do have a few additional Q’s in regard to the training plans/bundles but i’ll drop them across to you/team via the “Contact Us’ form on your website and spare the forum the constant thread bumps.
Thanks again,
Andy
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