Latest / Happy Pace - a triathlon podcast / Episode 3: How to Train for a Triathlon (and Find What Works for You)
Transcript
- Jaclyn: How's your wake being muddy? Mardi: ⁓ Really good. We are at episode three of the Happy Pace podcast, which is awesome. And, it's been really lovely to hear the feedback from people ⁓ I've got Western Sydney 70.3 weekend. So just been doing my couple of key sessions. ⁓ for heading down to Sydney next week, but yeah, feeling pretty good. And yeah, it's all starting to come together, which is good. How about you? Jaclyn: Amazing. I am good. Yeah, putting out the first couple of episodes of the pod has been really, really exciting. I training cans at moment. just ⁓ starting to back a bit more of a base following ⁓ Gold Coast ⁓ about a ago and we'll start to get into some specific stuff over the next few weeks. Mardi: Yeah, great. And we've got a really good episode today. We are going to be talking about triathlon training and all the different ways that you can train for triathlon. We'll also share our session of the week and do a bit of a debrief on Ironman Texas and preview the T100 Singapore coming up this weekend. Jaclyn: Perfect, let's get into it. Mardi: So session of the week, Jacqueline, what was your session of the week this week? Jaclyn: I'm actually going to go with my Wednesday morning bike session. ⁓ This week we were at Kew Boulevard. So for those of you that are not in Melbourne, it's a, I think it's a 13 and a bit K loop ⁓ from top to bottom. And I had two really hard efforts ⁓ on Kew. So two laps of Kew, both between 90 and a hundred percent of FTP, which we'll go through. in a couple of weeks. and then I had off that ride home, had a 20 minute run off the bike. So it was a pretty spicy bike session for the middle of the week. ⁓ What about you, Muds? Mardi: Yeah, my session of the week was my also my bike session. I do intervals usually on a Tuesday and Thursday morning at the moment at a crit track, which is very fortunately about one or two Ks from my house. So it's about a one K loop has a little mainly flat, but has a little downhill uphill section, which is really good to practice gearing and efforts into corners. But it was a 90 minute session and the main set was eight. times one minute over FTP, one minute under FTP and one minute at FTP with two minutes easy in between. ⁓ My coach did put six to eight reps. Happy for you to stop after six if feeling a bit cooked. But I feel like if you asked me to be like, jump this high, I have to jump that high. So yeah, yeah, yeah. I did all eight. ⁓ Jaclyn: We are the same. Mardi: And yeah, it was just a really beautiful morning. I've been starting just before sunrise. So you feel like every lap I get to see the sky in a different color and shade. And yeah, I just feel really grateful on those mornings, even when I'm working hard and have time for a quick coffee stop after and then off on my way to work. But that was definitely my session of the week. Jaclyn: It's so nice getting to ride before work. You go to work and you feel like you've really achieved something or even here in Melbourne, we're starting in the dark at the moment. And at the moment, by the time we finish, it is light, but it's so nice to tick off those really solid bike sessions before heading into work, isn't it? Mardi: the ⁓ it's so is. I used to do a lot of my bike sessions on the trainer during the week, just based on, you know, the weather and just where I lived in Melbourne, but it's been so nice to be able to do them outside. I feel like I can push harder and, ⁓ yeah, just feel like I get that fresh air in the morning as well, which really sets you up for the day. Jaclyn: It really does. So nice. Should we dive into this week's topic? Mardi: Yeah, we're going to dive in. So this week we are talking about all the different ways to train for triathlon. So last week we talked through all the types of triathlons from Ironman, 70.3, T100, Sprints and Olympic. So say you've picked a goal, you've decided which one of those you want to do either for your first time or for your next event. And then it's how do I get there? How do I train for it? Jaclyn: May Angelic Christian. Mardi: Yeah, I think it is really overwhelming when you first get into triathlon or, you know, your first sort of looking at how to go about training for triathlon because there are so many training options. Jaclyn: ⁓ agree. ⁓ ⁓ I guess there's more than one way to train. Like ⁓ and I both have very different setups in our week and, ⁓ different approaches to how we train for triathlon. And even amongst our friendship groups, like everyone kind of does a little bit of a different way. So I think if you can take home ⁓ thing from ⁓ conversation today is ⁓ the option that's going to work best for you. Mardi: Yeah, 100%. And yeah, I think that there's different ways to train which we'll talk through. And then there's also different coaching and training approaches, which we won't dive into today, but different principles behind training, load management, things like that, which are generally laid into each of the types of training that we're going to talk through. Jaclyn: Yeah, Mardi: yeah. ⁓ So then talk through few of the main ways to train for a triathlon a few of the main training methods. ⁓ One of them being following a generic training plan. I'm to talk about training platforms, squads, clubs and groups and 101 coaching. Jaclyn: So let's start with following a generic training plan, which Often they're free or you can download them from places like ChatGPT or Google and you'd be able to sort of pull up something that would give you a little bit of structure for ⁓ a training program. Mardi: Yeah, so you typically might find like a, six, eight, 10, 12 week training plan for, sprint distance and Olympics 70.3 or Ironman triathlon. ⁓ Generally it will have, two to three sessions per week of each of the disciplines, ⁓ some kind of structure to, or long training sessions, potentially based on, heart rate, rate of perceived exertion, effort or power. or pace percentage. So I guess it's really accessible in that you can just literally and find these things. ⁓ very a lot of the time or, ⁓ noticing more and more that there's ⁓ maybe who are online coaches or sort of fitness influencers who maybe have downloadable ⁓ plans. ⁓ And to be honest, they're actually a really good starting point. ⁓ you are looking for something that's accessible and achievable for Jaclyn: Yeah. Mardi: Your first race. Jaclyn: Yeah, I agree. I guess the challenge that you come up against with these free or downloadable programs is they're not personalized. So while they set out sort of a really good structure for your week, it can be challenging to adjust them when life happens or you get injured ⁓ if you are time poor one week and then you're trying to still fit all of the sessions ⁓ ⁓ within the week, I guess this is where we can see things like over training or overuse injuries, which can be really, really challenging to manage, especially if you're training on your own. Mardi: And I have seen a few, maybe more for like the 70.3 level where it actually starts from a pretty high baseline. So it might be a 70.3 training plan for, 12 weeks, which is, an achievable ⁓ timeframe to build to a 70.3, but starts with a training load of, being able to run 10 K, ⁓ being able to swim 2 K being able to for two hours, which some people actually ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah. Yeah. Mardi: can't do it. As you say, from load perspective, going from zero to running 40k riding six hours per week is a recipe for disaster. Jaclyn: ⁓ For sure. Perhaps a really good option if you're training for an Olympic distance or a sprint distance and, and your goal is to finish or you're just kind of starting to test the waters, I guess, ⁓ with literally with triathlon. If you're just starting to sort of get a bit of a vibe and see if it is something that you do enjoy doing. And if you're something that you're prepared to invest money into down the track. Mardi: Yeah, totally. And I actually used a training plan for my first 70.3. I printed it out. was from Triathlete Magazine, which is a publication. I'm not sure if they still do a hard copy, but they're definitely online still. And yeah, I printed it out, had it on the fridge and in my diary. And I followed the sessions for, my first 70.3 in 2018. So that was sort of before. Strava and everything else got big of recording all your sessions. So yeah, I found it really good. It was really achievable. And I mean, at that point I had already done quite a number of sprint and Olympic distances. kind of knew what my base was and things. And I found, yeah, it was a really accessible option for a training plan. Jaclyn: I guess if you've got a bit of a background in endurance sport, if you've come from a running background or you'd done those couple of sprint distance triathlons, you knew what to expect. You had a bit of an idea of where you were going and what things should maybe feel like. Mardi: Yeah, totally. Jaclyn: Let's go into second ⁓ and ⁓ training platforms, things like training peaks. Mardi: Yeah, you will hear the term training peaks use quite a lot in triathlon. It is the most widely utilized training platform by professional and avid athletes in the sport. It essentially is like a calendar looking app, both on the website and on your phone. And you can have a coach or a sort of preloaded plan into the app and then it can connect into your Garmin Coros. your Strava, any other apps or devices that you use so that your sessions can be preloaded into those devices and automatically come up throughout your sessions. Jaclyn: Yeah. And I think again, ⁓ well, guess the advantage with things like programs in training peaks is it does help to measure your load a little bit. ⁓ it, it does have a measure for fatigue and, ⁓ how well you're adapting to the training that you're doing, which can be really, really helpful, especially if you're just getting into the sport. But again, it's, it's probably one of those things that is only as good as how well it fits into. ⁓ into your life. Mardi: Yep, totally. And I know that there's quite a few plans available through Training Peaks. My pro coach is probably the most well-known sort of coach on that platform. So that guy's been doing it, I forgot his name, he's been doing it for years, has heaps of sort of plan options, similar to those generic plans that we've talked about, but they're loaded into Training Peaks. And it means like all of the sessions and stuff come up on your watch, on your... Jaclyn: Yeah! Mardi: you know, computer, whatever else it might be. And yeah, it can be really helpful. As you say, it's only good as how you use it. You know, the data points that you get from your Garmin or other devices are going to be the inputs to that. So all of the sessions that upload with your heart rate data, your paces and things like that will be able to help determine ⁓ some of those things. But yeah, I love training peaks. Jaclyn: Yeah, I use Training Peaks as well. My programs are uploaded into Training Peaks by my coach, which we can go into shortly. ⁓ And I just really love how it's all laid out there. I know what I'm doing week to week. The sessions come up in my Garmin, which is really helpful. And then obviously auto-dumps back into Training Peaks once we've completed the session. Mardi: And I think that probably lends itself really well just to ⁓ do little sidebar to indoor training, particularly for the bike. So there's also a program or a widely used program called Zwift ⁓ for indoors. Jaclyn: Yeah. Mardi: So that essentially gamifies ⁓ bike trainings, be it an interval session, long whatever it might be. ⁓ Looks kind of like a Mario Kart scenario, but it's actually just use cycling in different lands and different worlds and ⁓ other people as well from all over the world. that was fantastic during COVID loved using that when we were in lockdown a couple of years ago. Training Peaks had their own version of that similar setup. Yeah. Jaclyn: Training Peaks Virtual. Yeah, Training Peaks Virtual. It's much the same kind of setup and yeah, can be really useful for getting those quality bike sessions done. Mardi: On a trainer, should say, not riding, not riding indoors as in like, riding around the house. Yeah. On a bike trainer. Jaclyn: Indoor's. Indoor's. Correct, we should clarify that. Mardi: Yeah, yeah, no, I as a coach too, I've been recommending TrainingPeaks Premium with that TrainingPeaks virtual platform for my clients. Also because it's included in the TrainingPeaks Premium subscription, whereas Zwift is a separate subscription on its own. So Zwift, would say has a few extra like worlds and challenges and things like that that you can do if you're really doing a lot of indoor training, but know if it is just like a session or two a week the fact that it's included in your training peaks subscription is like mwah. Jaclyn: Agree. Agree. Mardi: Yeah. also been, I've noticed ⁓ and more AI or ⁓ sort of coach based platforms aren't training peaks popping up. One of them ⁓ is which I think maybe owned by Ironman. ⁓ That is like an AI platform with some professional coach support. ⁓ I did give that a trial, I think year or two ago. It's probably changed or improved since then, but I just found it a little bit clunky, little bit awkward to navigate and customize. And I think, you know, people who are runners and are familiar with like the Strava AI sessions or maybe the runner app may also find like it is as much as it is AI and, and, you know, adaptive to your individual training. It's still generic to a degree. Yeah. Jaclyn: Mmm. Mmm. Yeah, ⁓ next going to talk about squads and sessions. So this ⁓ is you are really ⁓ going build your triathlon community. Marty and I have spoken about that a bit over the last two podcasts is ⁓ that that we really enjoy as part of our, ⁓ our ⁓ so it can look, it can look different for everyone. Like someone might have like a swim squad. that they go to as part of their triathlon program. So if someone's using maybe one of the training peaks programs or a downloadable program, they might still attend a swim squad to get that quality swim done. Run groups, cycling groups, it can be really helpful for building your technique, both swimming and cycling and having those coach run sessions as well. And I guess the advantage that comes with attending squads and sessions is you've got that accountability piece. If you're, I know for me, if I'm paying for something or got a commitment to meet someone else, like I'm going to go, it's a lot harder to wake up and not go to a session if you know that someone's waiting for you to be there. Mardi: Yeah, agree. And also with triathlon, you sort of get to get to do it all because you can go to triathlon squads, which we'll talk about shortly. being able to go to swim squads or run groups and cycling bunches that are purely that single sport. I mentioned last week I've been going to a run group in Melbourne ⁓ for many years and I find that so motivating. I would guess at least half of those people wouldn't go near a triathlon. ⁓ You know, it is great because I do get that quality run session in. same with some of the friends that I've made through triathlon and through cycling is like some of them would again, absolutely love riding with them, but equally aren't as interested in triathlon. So it's also great to find those groups, you know, to that you get along with socially as well. You know, and if you are coming into triathlon from another sport, Don't give up Run Club, keep going to Run Club, it's still supportive of your triathlon goals and obviously fills you up socially as well. Jaclyn: Yeah, I guess the cons or the difficult challenges with ⁓ squads is there generally fixed times. ⁓ Like swimming might be 6 a.m. ⁓ which ⁓ if things come up life-wise, it can be to negotiate. It means that you do end up doing that swim maybe on your own. ⁓ And especially if it's not a triathlon specific group, those sessions can be less ⁓ specific. what's your experience been with things like swim squats? Mardi: I love Swim Squad. feel like, it is just ⁓ so good to swim with other people. I feel like it really pushes you along ⁓ particularly if you're doing like, ⁓ sets of or two hundreds or something like that. ⁓ I feel that those swims you just dip less into the mental bucket. just that mental like put particularly on say a Monday night when it's kind of a recovery really pushing yourself after a weekend of training like just when you feel like there are other people doing it alongside you it just feels so much easier. Jaclyn: for sure. for me was so intimidating to start going. I hadn't been at a swim squad since I was in year seven, I think. Mardi: Yeah, I completely agree. They can be quite intimidating. ⁓ Most squads will be organized into lanes. So depending on how many lanes that they have have sort of like a... I used to say a fast lane and then a faster lane and then a fastest lane. So no one felt slow. Yeah, yeah, yeah. No one's in the slow lane. We're all in the fast lane. ⁓ But yeah, putting you with people who are similar, similar paces to you, Jaclyn: ⁓ like it. I like it. ⁓ Mardi: The squad that I trained with in Melbourne had three lanes. The squad that I'm at in Brisbane has five. ⁓ And yeah, it's really good. And like one or two of them are type swimmers. So I think being able to train with people who are at that similar level of ability is really, really good ⁓ no what your current ability is. ⁓ Yeah, it's really good. Jaclyn: ⁓ wow. It's also really good for those sessions where you might be dragging your feet a bit to there and you end up actually getting so much more out of it than if you had have gone on your own. Mardi: Yeah, definitely. ⁓ Cycling bunches or cycling groups are also another option. ⁓ And, you know, one of the girls I'm at the moment, ⁓ Britt, she's up in Mackay and she ⁓ ⁓ like they do crit racing and like bunch up there. And that is such awesome training for her. She can get out with a group on a Saturday ⁓ ⁓ and then do some really great intense crit racing. What I will say about ⁓ groups and even just riding in a group, be it through a tri club or a group of friends is like learning bike skills. They're super important. And a lot of tri clubs will cover that in their beginner triathlon courses. ⁓ But you are thinking about joining a cycling club or group, definitely look out for some skills type sessions because bunch riding is ⁓ a art a science. ⁓ Jaclyn: by kendallien Yeah. I agree. just group riding makes it so much more enjoyable. ⁓ Learning those bike handling skills. They're skills that you're not gonna practice or you're not gonna get from riding on the trainer. And you might notice that if you've ridden indoors for a few weeks in a row, like you get a little bit rusty on those bike handling skills pretty quickly. But that's where group rides and bunch rides are really helpful. I also find there's something about pushing yourself on the bike with a group of friends or other people who ride bikes. There's something really vulnerable about that as well. You build some really good connections. You have some really great conversations. And I'm sure, especially cycling groups, there's always coffee at some point of the ride, whether it's at a midway point or when you get back. Mardi: Yeah, absolutely. You know, I guess just with squads and sessions, like you touched on them being sort of fixed times and less specific, like, you know, if you are working shift work or parenting or job responsibilities, whatever it might be, missing those sessions or not being able to make those sessions might be a challenge, but then that's where with Triathlon, there are other options for your training, which is great. Jaclyn: And I guess that leads us perfectly into tri clubs. Mardi: Yeah, absolutely. So tri clubs, as I said in the first episode is where I started and having a club or group which train together generally in local areas is just fantastic. A lot of them will do some kind of beginner level course to get you into triathlon train towards your first sprint. And I think, being able to learn some of really great skills you need for triathlon. obviously your road and cycling skills, but transition skills, ⁓ open water swimming, all of that sort of thing. It is such a great environment to be able to learn those things and also kind of have a social side as well. Jaclyn: I am part of a triathlon club now. And I think for me, it's been that community that I've been able to develop. Like some of my best friends have come from triathlon clubs, which is really, really nice. It's, as you said, that mix ability. There's something about not being the strongest athlete as well, which really pushes you. There's always going to be someone there who is maybe a little bit stronger in the pool than you or stronger on the bike, or maybe runs a little bit faster that can really push you and help you build on your abilities and your skills. I know I just remember my first squad ride I ⁓ would have been dropped than five Ks ⁓ into the ride. ⁓ ⁓ managed to get back on, but then over time it just gradually improves and your skills get better because you're just pushing yourself that little bit harder than maybe what would have if you were training on your own. Mardi: Yeah, totally. And I would say definitely worth around and looking around at different tri clubs, when their session times are, what their culture's like, things like that. Because yes, you got dropped on some of your first group rides, but ⁓ know that there are other clubs where ⁓ maybe is a little bit less about that effort and more about being able to support beginners and making sure everyone has a great time on their first go. Yeah, ⁓ definitely shop around. ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah. Yeah! for sure. Mardi: shop around, try gloves. But you know, definitely have a look around. You know, a lot of them will do trial sessions and things like that. find one that fits with you because as you currently do, they, spend more time with them ⁓ than you do with family and friends some weeks. Jaclyn: No! Absolutely. Yeah, find the one that aligns with your values and what it is that you're looking to achieve would be my takeaway from that. Mardi: ⁓ One thing I do really love about the ⁓ Triathlon Club community is also just that sense of community. you have to browse through a group message or Facebook group for a tri club to see messages about, someone a wet suit or, ⁓ meeting someone for an open water swim for the first time, things like that. And I think ⁓ Just that sense of community that people feel in a tri club is really, really special. You know, it's people who you don't know anything and they don't owe you anything, but you're all just doing it for the love of it. And, cause you have had a good experience ⁓ or want to be able to give someone else a really good experience with the sport. ⁓ I that's, ⁓ yeah, what's magic about it. Jaclyn: I don't think that I've found where you can get that kind of community and in another sport or anywhere else. The other really good thing about tri clubs is on race day. So if you are doing a sprint or a triathlon, a sprint triathlon or an Olympic distance triathlon or an Ironman triathlon is often tri clubs will have a tent set up and it acts as a little bit of a base for you on race day. For us, it's a nice spot where we can kind of catch up and meet before the race, go and race, but then also come back to that and have a little bit of a debrief ⁓ after race. ⁓ And bigger races like Cannes, ⁓ Ironman and Cannes 70.3, the club tents line up ⁓ so cool to run through well. The vibes are really high. Mardi: And I think we'll probably do a whole different episode about, the race day experience. But yes, certainly have that, sense of community and group on race ⁓ Matching kits and everything, which we've got for happy pace as well. Jaclyn: ⁓ huh. Mardi: So one-on-one coaching, one-on-one coaching is sort of the fully personalized option. We're probably a little bit biased because we're both getting one-on-one coaching at the moment, but it is certainly not the best and only option based on your circumstances. I guess having one-on-one coach in Triathlon, it's not exclusive to professionals or people who are winning age groups by any stretch. one-on-one coaching is really about having training that fits into your life. And if anything, if you are working full time, you have family commitments, other responsibilities, like you need that more than someone who has unlimited hours in the day, because being able to make the most of the time that you have available, being able to manage your training load with the stress in other parts of your life ⁓ is, ⁓ such, ⁓ ⁓ a big effort and if you are even trying to plan your own training or attend sessions around the available time that you have, like even doing that planning thinking and decision making around your sessions is effort itself. Jaclyn: Yeah, for sure. Having that guidance and support can be really, really helpful well. ⁓ know there's been times when ⁓ I've had a session that I haven't been that happy with or ⁓ little bit of support around a race, like in terms of what the plan ⁓ or ⁓ I should be aiming for throughout a race can be really, really helpful. ⁓ guess the downside though to having one-on-one coaching is ⁓ cost. It can be prohibitive. for some people, ⁓ but I think if it is something you are able to do and depending on what your goals are, it's a really great option. ⁓ And the thing is, ⁓ and I necessarily think this is a downside of having one-on-one coaching, but ⁓ it does you to communicate quite effectively and quite open and honestly ⁓ with the who is ⁓ coaching you being able to have those really honest conversations about how ⁓ the program's or what you've got going on. in your life. Yeah. Mardi: So generally with one-on-one coaching, will have a, I mean, you will have a coach that's the, that's a point, but you will, your coach will put sessions in for you into training peaks or another platform. They will be, as I said, tailored to your lifestyle and available time. And we'll be able to be periodized and managed toward. Jaclyn: That's the idea! Mardi: your specific goals. So being able to manage your training load and manage when you're going to peak and taper and all of those sorts of things leading into your goals. ⁓ if you're not training for anything, it may be relative to the phase of training you're at, whether you're trying improve your sort of baseline fitness, or whether you're just trying to fit training into an already busy life. ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah, for sure. Mardi: I think, what's really important with ⁓ one-on-one is finding someone who will fit, who fits your, your sort of values and what you're looking to get out of triathlon. Jaclyn: Yeah, which it might be a little bit of trial and error to start with. You might start with someone that you think is going to be really great for you or maybe someone that's had really great success with a friend of yours, but they may not be the right match for you. So I think being prepared to also have those conversations if something's not working out. Mardi: Yeah, absolutely. And I think, you know, with the clients I've coached over the years, it's very much been about being a values match in the first place. Like generally they're being drawn to happy pace based on the values and based based on my philosophy, which has been a great first step. ⁓ And then secondly, that conversation with me and just, can I help you and am I the right, the right fit for you ⁓ as a person? Because as you said, we do talk about a lot of stuff. with your coach, you you're often sharing all of those daily stresses or things that are happening in your life, both with work or personal commitments. And I think for us girls as well, generally our cycle information. Jaclyn: Yeah, for sure. Mardi: Yeah, so I think really, really important to find someone who's a good fit. Yeah, good fit for you personally. Jaclyn: Yeah, I agree. think that making sure that whatever you choose to do, whether it's with a group or with a person or with a on your own, I think it's really important to, to really come back to your why it's really easy to fall into traps of doing too much or trying to compare yourself to other people as well. And potentially what other people have got, got time for in their lives based on their own situation. So I think take a step back and maybe back and listening to what we've discussed today, the pros and the cons of each and working out what's going to align best for you. Mardi: And I think to kind of round it out, the best up is really one that is you can stick to it's one that is not just achievable, but maintainable, which, something can be achievable for a short amount of time to sort of throw everything else away and just focus on triathlon training. ⁓ But I finding something that's maintainable and sustainable over time, both physically, ⁓ but also in terms of. Jaclyn: Especially, especially if you want to be in a sport for a really long time. Mardi: Yeah, we see a lot of people come through who are a little bit one and done. that could just be because it's a bucket list goal, but it could also be because they've just gone really hard, really fast and ⁓ either enjoyed it or their body hasn't been able to keep up with the training. So I think, you know, finding one you can stick to, I'd also say that it can evolve over time, depending ⁓ what your commitments look like and you're located. it could be a mix of going some squad sessions, following a plan. ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah. Mardi: It could be doing one-on-one coaching, but also, attending some tri club group rides, things like that. I think making it, yeah, making it flexible, making it human and unique to you, I think is one of the awesome things about being able to train for a triathlon. Jaclyn: Yeah. Yeah. For sure. Mardi: So what's been happening in the pro triathlon world? Jaclyn: We had Ironman Texas last weekend, was really, it was a relatively exciting race, especially on the women's side. And I guess there were a few unexpected things on the men's side as well. I know that Marty and I probably would have been expecting Kat Matthews to take out the win following her performances at. Mardi: Mmm! Jaclyn: I am a New Zealand and Geelong 70.3. Unfortunately, she got a flat tire that couldn't be fixed. Mardi: Yeah, poor thing. And it was also right where they had a cameraman. So if you do go into the Ironman Instagram, you watch the whole ordeal. And basically, she got the flat, couldn't be fixed. They had the on course bike mechanic come to assist and they just did not have the the right wheel and the right equipment to be able to help her out. So she did go on for a little bit, but then had to pull out of the race, unfortunately. ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah, disappointing. But we had ⁓ Solveig Losseth from Norway take out the win. She is the current Ironman full distance world champion at the moment. Really quick, really quick run. think it was around 2.48. We then had Taylor Nibb in second, who ran her first sub three hour marathon in an Ironman. And then Martha Sanchez came third. Mardi: well, a of things that stood out to me from, ⁓ you know, obviously the proteome and ⁓ what information has come since about those three. ⁓ On I think she did, I think it's 132 grams carbs per hour. Jaclyn: Oh yeah, so I saw the summary of her nutrition during the race and I think it landed around 119, 120 grams an hour, which that's insane. Mardi: Mm. Yeah. Yeah. And for context, the sort of recommend, I say the recommended, like dietician recommended guidelines are what, 60 to 90 or like 90 to 120 these days. 90 to 120, which, you know, lot of age groups are starting to push up into that, but stomaching that much carbs, it takes effort. You really have to be enjoying the buffet of, you know, precision gels or Jaclyn: Nice one. Yeah, Mardi: ⁓ Taylor, 10 minute marathon PB. ⁓ Jaclyn: Huge, first time under three hours. Mardi: Yeah, that is massive. And like that is not just an incremental gain. That is she has been working on her running. Jaclyn: and overnight success that's taken many years. Mardi: Yeah, incredible. Marta Sanchez, so her husband also raced and I have to check this on Instagram, but I'm pretty sure they had a bet on in the family. Jaclyn: Yeah, it was about doing chores at home, I'm pretty sure. Mardi: Yeah so Marta won, she beat her husband and they had some footage of him coming over the finish line and she actually presented her husband's medal to him which was very cute but yeah he is doing the chores around the house for the next 12 months. fourth and fifth on the podium we had Jackie Herring who we love because she was in Cairns last year, won Cairns Ironman. She had another awesome run battle with another favourite Grace Tech. So they both were up against each other, you know, running shoulder to shoulder for a lot of the Oceanside 70.3 a couple of weeks ago. So to see them both battle it out on the Ironman course was awesome. And that is a matchup that I hope continues throughout this season. It's so awesome to see not only the rivalries at the top of the podium, but also the ones further down. And I'm not that much further down. Those girls are only a couple of minutes behind in that top 10. Jaclyn: Yeah, really cool. On the men's side, we had Kristen Blumhofer Wynn again. I think we really need to emphasize again. Off the back of his Ironman New Zealand Geelong Wynn and then Oceanside Wynn as well. Mardi: Yeah, he has done four races in six weeks, which is a lot. All in different parts of the world, ⁓ he's come, he's won three of them and then just had that unfortunate day in, I met New Zealand with a few things not going quite right, but that guy is an absolute machine. Jaclyn: oof, a lot Do reckon he's at his best? Or do you reckon there's more to come? Mardi: I think it's really tricky because a lot of people in triathlon will say, Oh, you know, you can't peak it this time of the year. You know, won't, um, you won't be, you won't be good for, for championship season come September, I don't know, my gut says he's going to have a really good year. And he also just looks so strong. Like even if he took some time off now, He will have the opportunity to peak again. It's just, you know, how everyone else is, is. matched at that time of the year as well. Jaclyn: Yeah, I'm really excited for the second half of the year. Who else do we have on the podium for New Zealand? ⁓ sorry, for Texas, for the men. Let me ask that question again. Who else do we have on the podium? Mardi: So we had. Just... Yeah, so we had Martin Van Riel in second. ⁓ Martin Van Riel was originally a short course athlete and he's worked his way up into the T100 distance. He was T100 world champ. Was it last year or the year before? Year before, Yeah, so he was a T100 world champ in 2024. Had ⁓ a really strong race at the Ironman World Championships last year. ⁓ Jaclyn: ⁓ Yeah. Mardi: He came fourth just off the podium and he is proving to be a very, very strong Ironman athlete. So to come second to Christian Bumenthal is such an epic achievement. You know, he was only about a minute and half behind in second place. And third place was Caspar Stornes. So Caspar was the world champ last year. He's also Norwegian ⁓ and Christian and Caspar ⁓ ⁓ Jaclyn: Amazing. Mardi: Gustav Eden, they all train together and they are such a tight unit. People will refer to the Norwegians in triathlon as being some of the best athletes in the world and certainly prove that with him backing up the 70.3 Oceanside podium a couple of weeks ago as well. Jaclyn: ⁓ I think we should also mention ⁓ Gaines. ⁓ He ⁓ attempting to do his first ⁓ and unfortunately ⁓ didn't end up finishing him, but I think massive by him. I think he was really prepared to go all in on this race. Mardi: Hmm Yeah. And Yelly, another one who's come up through short course 70.3 world champion twice now, is it 2024, 2025? Um, obviously just sort of being his toes in for an Ironman distance. I do think it would be cool if he then came to Cairns later this year, or it's only later this year, it's only in two months, he lives on the Gold Coast. fingers crossed we get to see him. up at Cairns, selfishly, It would have been really good to see him get up at Texas. Jaclyn: Yeah. ⁓ yeah, and I just want to know on this, 11 of the 15 men of the top 15 men ran sub three hours. That's insane. Mardi: Yeah, that's wild. Trathon getting very fast. ⁓ Jaclyn: Yeah, absolutely. What stood out to you? What else stood out to you? Mardi: ⁓ You know what, actually think probably what does stand out to me is some of the kits and some of the bikes. I know that's very superficial, but I know people make choices, right? And I really think in the last couple of years, we have seen so many awesome triathlon suits and also stunning bikes. And being the start of the season, lot of athletes will get either a new bike from their bike sponsor. They maybe have some new sponsors, which they want to put on their kit. Jaclyn: Tell me more Mardi: And they also really want to stand out with some really great colors. So I think in terms of, what stood out to me was ⁓ some the tri suits. I'm going to see if I can pull up a picture. Jaclyn: Yeah. well, while you're looking for that picture there, Marty, ⁓ I just want to make a note of Sarah Sphinx bike. Obviously we are very much of the purple lilac kind of vibes over here. ⁓ and her Trek bike is insane. It is so pretty. It's like this like pinky purple, pinky purple metallic. Mardi: Yeah Jaclyn: color and it's amazing. Mardi: Yeah, Janice, if you can bring up a photo, So, kits I noticed in particular, and there's this really great photo. I don't know if you can see it. So there's Jackie Herring and Grace Tech. So this is them in that little run battle I mentioned earlier. However, excellent kits. Look at this, girls. Like Jackie's got the pink and purple going. know, Grace has got this gorgeous Win Republic blue and green number. We love it. And I know that they're both putting in lot of effort on their coordination ⁓ there. So definitely some standout kits for me. I also just really love the bright colors. Cause I feel like a lot of the guys have been going for like a plain white lately, which is fine. It's probably very aerodynamic, but yeah, loving, loving the colors from the girls and from Grace and Jackie in particular. Jaclyn: And here we have Sara's bike. So pretty. Mardi: Oof. Yeah, so actually I have a Trek bike and that was the one that I wanted originally. As it turns out, that paint job is an extra $4,000. Jaclyn: Holy moly. Mardi: Mm-hmm. So I was, I was really happy with mine based on that first difference. But if there was, yeah, if there was a dream bike. Yeah, it's definitely that one. Yeah, Trek, you listening? Jaclyn: I think it's both of our dream bikes. All right. Mardi: Yeah, I think the only thing I'll say like, you know, just with Kat having that, that DNF at Texas, you know, it'd interesting to see what she decides to do for the rest of the season. Cause it means she doesn't get those pro series points. she is already signed up for challenge Roth, which is at a full distance race. That's not in the Ironman ⁓ brand Ironman pro series. So, if she wants to go for the pro series, she will probably have to do. ⁓ another Ironman distance or do very, well at some 70.3s. Jaclyn: Yeah, for sure. Mardi: All right, T100 Singapore. Jaclyn: ⁓ so got the men racing in Singapore we are recording before The men's race so we'll do a little bit of a recap next week ⁓ But ⁓ really exciting matchup. We've got Hayden wild Racing who is the current t100 world ⁓ he is joined by ⁓ Mika newt ⁓ and ⁓ Mateus Magier who have done T100 races in the past and performed really, really well. But they are joined by Ozzie Matthauser who is doing his first T100 race. Maddy, I know you're really excited for this. Mardi: Yeah, I'm really excited. So Matt Houser is the current world champion for the world triathlon series. He did try to, well he did try, yep, to move up to a middle distance race at Geelong 70.3 last year, but had some issues with his bike and had to pull out quite early on in the race. So this is going to be his first real foray into the middle distance race scene. Hayden is an athlete also who's come from short course and has been so dominant at the hundred K distance. So, you know, I think we're really excited to see what Matt can do if Matt can really, bring the fight to Hayden because Hayden's really been able to run away with a lot of these races in the T 100, Hayden's is just like absolutely dominated. So I think, you know, not only us as an audience, but some of the other athletes from watching know the T100 YouTube this week are pretty excited to see what Matt can do. Jaclyn: Yeah, I'm excited to watch Mardi: one of the factors with the Singapore race is definitely the heat. So it's in the heat of the Singapore ⁓ afternoon. it is probably about like late twenties degree Celsius and also super humid there. ⁓ We saw years ago, Yuri Kulin won the race, his first T100 race and ⁓ collapsed at finish line. Couldn't make the podium, was hospitalized. ⁓ So this can be brutal, hopefully. ⁓ the Gold Coast has prepped Matt Hauser really well for it. And ⁓ yeah, forward to seeing what he can bring to the table. The other race this weekend, there is a World Triathlon Series race in Samarkand, which is in Uzbekistan. And that is the first official World Triathlon Series race for this year. So that is, they were originally racing in Dubai about six weeks ago and that got canceled ⁓ And ⁓ yeah, that be great race. As we mentioned last week, the LA Olympic qualifying period starts in, I think it's toward the end of this year or the start of next year. But a lot of people are getting onto that bandwagon now because if they do well in these races, they get a higher ranking, which gives them a better starting position ⁓ for the races. ⁓ So ⁓ definitely to watch. ⁓ Probably won't too deeply into it other than to say, athletes like Matt and Hayden Wild on the men's side. still racing some middle distance racing with T100 and will probably drop back into the World Triathlon Series races later in the year or early next year. Jaclyn: For sure. And even already, like we spoke a little bit about Taylor Nibb last week, she has rolled onto the start list for Japan, which is in a couple of weeks. So yeah, for the World Triathlon Series, yeah, she's rolled onto the start list for Japan. So she's definitely preparing herself for that qualifying season as well. Mardi: for the World Triathlon, is it? Yeah. Yeah, exciting times in triathlon. Very good. So that brings us to the end of episode three of the Happy Pace podcast. If you enjoyed this chat or any of the others, please make sure to subscribe so you can find out as soon as we drop the next episode on Apple or Spotify. Give us a rating, And what's most important is we would love for you to share with a friend, ⁓ someone who's either into triathlon or interested in getting into triathlon. so they can learn more about the sport and find your happy pace. Great, let's get into it.