DIGITAL ISSUE
How to conquer your first IRONMAN triathlon
From structuring your training week to investing in the right gear, four elite coaches break down exactly what it takes to finish your first IRONMAN
AN IRONMAN is one of the most difficult – but rewarding – physical tests humanity has managed to come up with. Doing a 3.8km swim, a 180km bike ride and a full 42.2km marathon all in one day is certainly an intimidating prospect. For most first-timers, the distance alone is enough to induce a mix of awe and anxiety. But according to the coaches who prepare athletes for this exact challenge, conquering your first IRONMAN isn’t about wrecking your body with never-ending workouts, it’s about patience, planning and consistency.
“It’s one thing to complete an IRONMAN,” says Tim Ballintine, of KOA Sports. “It’s another to have a good experience and be happy with your result.” You can, of course, do both. We can’t promise that your first IRONMAN will be a breeze, but with the right approach, it can be a lot easier.
We sat down with a number of elite coaches and competitive triathletes to get the inside word on how to prepare for your first IRONMAN. Here’s what we learned.
Give yourself enough time
The biggest mistake first-timers make? Underestimating the runway required. “Giving yourself four to six months of training is probably the most responsible way to prepare and have a good experience,” says Ballintine.
While a 12-week plan might work for someone with a heavy endurance background, it’s rarely ideal. “You could get away with a 12-week prep if you have a really strong base,” he says, “but if you want that ultimate IRONMAN experience, allow yourself the time to absorb the training load.”
Understand the time commitment
So what does a typical IRONMAN training week look like? The coaches all agree that it will involve at least ten hours of training. Liz Blatchford, a podium finisher at the IRONMAN World Championships and a coach at RPG Coaching, says ten is the minimum time commitment. “If you’re preparing for an IRONMAN, you’re looking at around 10 to 14 hours per week of training, possibly more,” she says. “Everyone has different backgrounds so what the focus of your training is will be different, but the time commitment will stay roughly the same.”
“For a full IRONMAN, you’re looking at 12-plus hours a week of training,” Ballintine agrees. “That might be three hours of swimming, six hours of cycling, three hours of running and one hour of strength training.”
Keep in mind, the 12 hour+ training commitment is for a full IRONMAN, which is the pinnacle of endurance racing with 3.8km swim, 180km ride and 42.2km run. An IRONMAN 70.3, which is effectively a half-IRONMAN, won’t require as much of a time commitment but is still a great test of endurance.
“Cycling is your bread and butter in IRONMAN preparation because it really helps you in all sports,” Ballintine explains. “A lot of triathletes are already great runners, but they become better runners because they’re deloading their running volume while increasing their aerobic and cardiovascular work.”
Tim Reed of RPG Coaching, an IRONMAN 70.3 world champion, echoes that approach. “For most athletes, you typically want to build up your fitness, mainly on the bike and in the swim. The running is what breaks athletes down and leads to injuries if it’s progressed too quickly,” he says. “The typical ratio is roughly the same amount of time running and swimming, and then at least twice that amount cycling.”
But if you’re a runner coming into triathlon, you can’t afford to get complacent. “Triathlon running is a whole different game than regular running,” Reed says. “It’s really affected by how much the bike has taken out of you. If you’re a great runner but not strong on the bike, by the time you get to the run you’re going to have nothing left.”
What an IRONMAN training plan can look like
Ballintine has put together a sample, two-week training block so you can get an idea of what your IRONMAN prep should look like. And while he says you can access similar plans for free, seeking expert coaching is the most beneficial path to take. “You can get ChatGPT to churn out some generic plan,” Ballintine laments. “But finding a good coach for that personalised guidance can be a real difference maker.”
Here’s Ballintine’s two-week sample, which he says represents a standard week towards the end of a six-month IRONMAN training plan. Don’t be too intimidated by the time commitment – we aren’t asking you to start with this much output. At the peak of your training plan, your weekly schedule should look something like this.
Monday
2.4km swim
12km run
Tuesday
1 hour 20 minute bike
30 minute strength training
Wednesday
2.4km swim
15km run
Thursday
1 hour 35 minute bike
30 minute strength training
Friday
Rest day
Saturday
3 hour 40 minute bike
40 minute run off the bike
Sunday
15km run
Monday
2.9km swim
1 hour 20 minute bike
Tuesday
30 minute strength training
12km run
Wednesday
1 hour bike
2.7km bike
Thursday
17km run
Friday
30 minute strength training
2.8km swim
Saturday
3 hour bike
Sunday
2 hour 20 minute bike
1 hour 20 minute run off the bike
Build your training schedule around your life
“Like any endurance sport, your prep needs to respect both fitness development and life balance,” says Nadine Hunt, the first First Nations woman to finish the IRONMAN World Championship and the co-founder of Adapt Endurance. “Race day is far more enjoyable when you are standing on the start line feeling well prepared.”
Echoing Hunt’s sentiment, Ballintine says the twelve hours per week you should be training isn’t static, but is more of an average. “When you’re spending so much time training, you really have to fit it into your life and build your training plan around your life,” Ballintine says. Some weeks you’ll train more, some weeks less. Don’t expect your training to be on a completely linear trajectory, as you might expect from a marathon training plan.
“You might plan a busy week as a recovery or deload week. When you’ve got more time, you might do more training,” Ballintine says. “You can also periodise within sports. You can deload running one week and keep your cycling volume high.”
“The maximum amount of training without injury is the goal,” Ballintine adds.
Utilise strength training
If endurance is the engine, strength is the chassis. “Strength training is the glue of the three sports,” says Ballintine. “Its purpose is to protect your vulnerabilities.”
Training for an IRONMAN means thousands of repetitive movements every week, so any imbalance or injury history will show up eventually “If you have a history of injuries or imbalance caused by injury, IRONMAN training is going to expose those issues,” he says.
Blatchford adds that strength training “complements things in a lot of ways. It can make you a better athlete, but it also helps on the injury prevention side.”
Reed has seen the benefits of adding strength training to a routine in many of his clients. “There’s a pretty clear pattern in all the athletes we’ve worked with,” he says. “Those who don’t skip the strength work have a lower rate of injuries.”
For older athletes, he recommends year-round strength training. Younger athletes might periodise it, with two to three sessions in the off-season tapering to one maintenance session per week during race-specific phases.
Train easy most of the time
Many first-timers assume every session needs to hurt, and that high intensity should be the norm. This is simply not the case. “A lot of newer athletes to the sport don’t understand how much of the training should feel quite comfortable,” says Reed. “Eighty per cent should be relatively comfortable and then 20 per cent should be harder.”
This 80/20 approach builds aerobic capacity without frying your nervous system. A heart rate monitor can help you find what’s actually easy. “By using a heart rate monitor, you can know where your heart rate is rather than just guessing whether it’s easy,” Reed says.
Invest in the right gear
You don’t need every gadget on the market, but a few key investments can transform your preparation. “The biggest one would be an indoor trainer to put your bike on,” says Reed. “For a lot of people who are time-crunched, you need a time-efficient way to get your cycling in.”
Ballintine agrees. “An indoor smart trainer, something like a Wahoo Kickr or Tacx NEO, is a great investment. It allows you to do structured workouts in your living room. It’s safer than being out on the roads and a much better use of your time.”
Blatchford highlights another often-overlooked upgrade: a professional bike fit. “Cycling is the component you spend the most time doing, so if you have an ill-fitting bike, it can lead to pain, injuries and discomfort.”
Pick an event that's fun and convenient
The physical aspect of finishing an IRONMAN is already hard enough, so it’s important you mitigate factors like jet lag and travel time by choosing an event that’s convenient. The fun factor is also important, as the crowd’s energy and the overall atmosphere can make the whole experience more enjoyable.
Across Australia and New Zealand, there are IRONMAN events in Busselton, WA, Cairns, QLD, Port Macquarie, NSW, and Taupō, at the centre of the North Island. All of these are great choices for your first IRONMAN.
Ready to take the next step and start planning an IRONMAN? Find more information on how to get started here.
