April 25, 2024

Take your Fitness to the Next Level!

July 3, 2015 By Leave a Comment

Take your fitness to the next level…

Join #HealthyWayMag Fitness Chat every Monday at 5pm(Pacific)/8pm(Eastern) on Twitter. Pick up exercise tips, workout ideas and your weekly fitness motivation.

How does a Twitter Chat work?

 

1. Log onto Twitter.

2. Enter hashtag #HealthyWayMag.

3. Follow along with our conversation about all aspects of fitness.

4. Interact with fellow fitness-enthusiasts. During our Question and Answer discussion, you’ll learn about new exercise methods, top gear and best practices for success. Your motivation will soar!

5. Enjoy fitness friends, accountability and FUN!

 

 

Monday July 6, 2015 #HealthyWayMag Fitness Chat Sponsored by SaltStick:

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Triathon Tip: Running fast off the bike by Mark Kleanthous

May 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Competing in triathlon takes specific training.

See listed 4 of my best tips for running fast off the bike:

1.  A back-to-back session is your best way to stimulate running fast and effortlessly straight after a cycle ride.
A threshold bike which should be very hard @ 95%+ and take 30-55 minutes on the same course each time to compare changes in fitness. Choose flat courses where you will not need to stop and keep your heart rate high all the time, on hilly courses your heart rate goes high then drops too low on the downhill’s for this type of session. Many people run faster after these sessions. By running very fast for 400 after the bike it should make the actual race pace seem a lot easier.

Ironmate suggests 2×400 2×600 1×800 2×600 2×500 2×400 = 5,800 m

Short recovery between each interval should only be 20-30 seconds so you only partially recover to simulate race conditions.

2. Pushing a slightly bigger in training also helps. The idea is when you run off the bike in a triathlon it is much easier. However, this should not be done at the end of a bike to run session during a race.

3. Cadence running also helps. What stops you running fast after the bike is length of stride so to overcome this increase your stride with a shorter cadence. Part of your drills should include shuffle cadence high leg turnover but short strides, it takes a while to get good at them, but not many people do them, just like one legged riding on the turbo to improve economy.

4. Refrain from drinking fluid the last 5 minutes of the bike. Another problem with not being able to run fast straight after the bike is drinking in the last 5 minutes of the bike or in the first few minutes of that run, this only puts more stress on your body resulting in you slowing down or taking a lot longer to get going. Another quick note: don’t drink unless you are thirsty in the final 10 minutes of the run because this fluid will not be absorbed until you have crossed the finish line and can slow you down.

Mark Kleanthous has competed in more than 450 triathlons and has competed as an elite and recorded some of the fastest T1 & T2 transition times overall. Mark Kleanthous has competed in triathlons for 30 consecutive seasons and crossed the finish line in more than 450 triathlons including 35 ironman events. He is the author of The Complete Book of Triathlon Training and is a full time sports and nutrition coach. Mark can be contacted via his web site www.ironmate.co.uk

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5 Factors for Triathlon Fitness written by Mark Kleanthous

April 25, 2013 By Leave a Comment

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5 Factors for Triathlon Fitness written by Mark Kleanthous
 

There are five main factors that contribute to fitness in triathlon – aerobic threshold endurance, nutrition, economy, strength and recovery – but your approach to them has to be balanced. Neglect one and your performance will suffer.
 

Aerobic threshold endurance

The use of intense aerobic-threshold training (which effectively, means training at your predicted triathlon pace) is perhaps the best way to get fit – the more you do the easier the training session gets and the faster you become. However, the problem is that we have a limited tolerance to it, and the result can be over-training. Therefore, not all your training should consist of intense, aerobic-threshold work-outs, also known as a ‘key work-outs’. Unfortunately, it is a common mistake to do too many of them with more than eight weeks to go before a triathlon.

Nutrition

In order to compete successfully in any triathlon event you must be able to load your body with all the fuel necessary to propel yourself across the required distance at the desired speed. But this factor isn’t only important when racing, because in order to complete your training successfully your body must be constantly carrying the correct amount of fuel. By that I mean the type of carbohydrate that can be accessed and fed to the muscles during training, as well as when racing.

Economy
 
Top triathletes all have one thing in common – they don’t waste energy doing things they don’t need to do. Having 10% extra energy is not good if you use up 15% more running compared to a fellow competitor. Economy of movement is something that can be learned early and needs to become automatic.

Strength

Strength is important in all sports. However, what is required in triathlon is sport-specific strength to the level required. For example, resistance training using hand paddles, cycling up hills and running off road is more specific than weight training.

Recovery

Full-time athletes are obviously more successful than those who work full time because they can dedicate more time to training, but another equally important reason is because they are able to take more recovery time. Most injuries and illnesses are caused more by the lack of consistent sleep, regular massages, healthy food, stretches and cool downs than anything else. These recovery essentials  not only help you recover from work-outs, but more importantly they allow you to tolerate a greater amount of training. Fitness is about being able to recover as you train; the quicker the recovery the greater the effect it has on fitness.

This article is written by Mark Kleanthous. Mark has competed in triathlons for 30 consecutive seasons and crossed the finish line in more than 450 triathlons including 35 ironman events. He is author of The Complete Book of Triathlon Training and is a full time sports and nutrition coach. Mark can be contacted via www.ironmate.co.uk

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