Building Upon Your Base
Whereas base training primarily involves an increase in training volume, the build training phase is marked by a leveling off or reduction in volume with an increase in intensity. But keep in mind that regardless of the training phase, the bulk of your total training time will be done in the aerobic range.
In other words, during the build training phase time spent in Zones 1-2 still forms the largest portion of the training pie. But now you will dedicate some slices of that pie to higher intensity aerobic and anaerobic work. This means you will target threshold workouts done in Zones 4-5a, or “comfortably hard” pace. In addition, you will add VO2max workouts in Zone 5b, or “uncomfortably hard” pace. More advanced and competitive triathletes, especially those targeting short course races, may add anaerobic capacity workouts in Zone 5c to the mix.
Threshold workouts have already been discussed. You already began to incorporate these types of workouts during your late base training, whether at the low-level sub-threshold (Zone 3) or high-level sub-threshold (Zone 4). Now, you will continue to build upon your threshold work by targeting tempo and cruise intervals in Zones 4-5a and increasing the time spent near threshold. You also have two types of anaerobic workouts to draw from, discussed below.
VO2max Workouts
The purpose of the VO2max workouts is to increase the maximal rate of oxygen transport in your body (that is, your “aerobic capacity” or “VO2max”), to build lactate tolerance (remember, lactate builds up at higher intensities), and to increase your anaerobic endurance. Ultimately, these workouts aim to help you learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable, which is what you need to do if you want to move as fast as you can over your race distance.
The VO2max workouts consist of work intervals of 3 to 7 minutes in duration with a recovery interval equal to or slightly less than the work interval—for example, 3-minute work intervals with a 2-minute recovery interval in between. The intensity is in Zone 5b, or at “uncomfortably hard” pace. See table 5-10 for a summary of this type of workout.
| VO2max Workout | |
| When | Build and peak training phases |
| Why | To increase the maximal rate of oxygen transport (aerobic capacity or VO2max), build lactate tolerance, and increase anaerobic endurance |
| What | Work intervals of 3-7 minutes in duration with recovery interval equal to or slightly less than work interval; intensity is in Zone 5b, or at an “uncomfortably hard” pace |
| How | Use heart rate, power, pace or perceived exertion to monitor intensity |
VO2max workouts form a valuable addition to any triathlete’s repertoire regardless of the distance you are racing. Even if you are racing long course events where you rarely venture into anaerobic territory, this type of anaerobic workout will help you perform better as an endurance athlete because, as noted earlier, it helps to expand your aerobic capacity. So don’t shy away from VO2max intervals. But do keep in mind that workouts in the anaerobic range take more out of you. They therefore require more recovery time. With anaerobic training, the saying that “a little goes a long way” holds true. And with all that said, you can still go far to improving your fitness and race times by simply focusing on threshold work even if you don’t venture into higher end anaerobic training.
Anaerobic Capacity Workouts
The purpose of anaerobic capacity workouts is to improve your endurance in the anaerobic range, or your ability to maintain short durations of speed up to 2 minutes in duration. This is important for race starts, surges during a race where you need to match a competitor or drop a competitor, and finishing kicks.
Anaerobic capacity workouts consist of work intervals up to 2 minutes in duration with a recovery interval equal to or greater than your work interval—for example, 1-minute work intervals with a 2-minute recovery interval in between. With these types of intervals, you want to recover fully in between each work bout. The intensity is in Zone 5c, or “all out” effort. See table 5-11 for a summary of this type of workout.
| Anaerobic Capacity Workout | |
| When | Build and peak training phases |
| Why | To improve the ability to maintain short durations of speed of up to 2 minutes in duration (starts, race surges, finishing kicks) |
| What | Work intervals up to 2 minutes in duration with recovery interval equal to or greater than work interval to allow full recovery; intensity is in Zone 5c, or at an “all out” pace |
| How | Use heart rate, power, pace or perceived exertion to monitor intensity |
Build Phase Sample Schedules
Tables 5-12, 5-13, and 5-14 illustrate sample weekly schedules for the build training phase for triathletes doing two, three, and four workouts per discipline per week, respectively. Common among these schedules is one or more endurance/recovery workout plus a higher intensity workout. At first, that higher intensity workout targets threshold work. As you progress, that higher intensity workout targets VO2max intervals. Eventually, anaerobic capacity intervals may also be added to the schedule, depending upon the goals and background of the athlete.
Aim to repeat a particular type of workout 5 to 12 times before progressing to a workout type of higher intensity; this will allow you to achieve the fitness gain from that type of workout and ensure you are ready to progress to the next level. This means you should do 5 to 12 threshold workouts for a given discipline before moving into VO2max work for that discipline. Again, you can go far by simply focusing on threshold work. Don’t skip or cut short your threshold work to prematurely jump into high intensity anaerobic work. Although you can reap great gains from VO2max work, if you jump into it without an adequate base you risk greater exposure to injury and overtraining.
The approach of doing one higher intensity workout per discipline per week works well for most multisport athletes. However, advanced triathletes with a solid base can handle a threshold workout plus a VO2max workout in later build or peak phases. You could also just single out one or two disciplines for a VO2max workout in addition to a threshold workout in all three. This would allow you to target a discipline you need to improve the most.
Keep in mind that anaerobic work for swimming, cycling, or cross country skiing, will take less of a toll on the body than anaerobic work for running. Doing your VO2max run workouts on an incline and/or on more forgiving surfaces (e.g. grass, dirt) will lessen the strain on your body’s supporting structures.
| Day | Discipline | Workout |
| Monday | SWIM | Recovery w/drills |
| Tuesday | BIKE | Threshold or VO2max |
| Wednesday | RUN | Recovery w/drills |
| Thursday | SWIM | Threshold or VO2max |
| Friday | BIKE | Recovery w/drills |
| Saturday | RUN | Threshold or VO2max |
| Sunday | off | Recovery |
| Day | Discipline | Workout |
| Monday | off | Recovery day |
| Tuesday | SWIM BIKE |
Threshold or VO2max Threshold or VO2max |
| Wednesday | SWIM RUN |
Recovery w/drills Recovery w/drills |
| Thursday | RUN BIKE |
Threshold or VO2max Recovery w/drills |
| Friday | SWIM | Long |
| Saturday | BIKE | Long |
| Sunday | RUN | Long |
| Day | Discipline | Workout |
| Monday | SWIM | Recovery w/drills |
| Tuesday | SWIM BIKE |
Threshold or VO2max Threshold or VO2max |
| Wednesday | BIKE/RUN SWIM |
Endurance Endurance |
| Thursday | RUN BIKE |
Threshold or VO2max Recovery w/drills |
| Friday | SWIM RUN |
Long Recovery w/drills |
| Saturday | BIKE | Long |
| Sunday | RUN | Long |
In sum, building upon your base involves gradually adding higher intensity work on top of your aerobic foundation. This involves work directly above/below your lactate threshold and anaerobic work. To successfully handle the increase in intensity, reduce the total weekly volume in your schedule. Given that “a little intensity goes a long way” and the fact that “all intensity all the time” is a recipe for overtraining, keep in mind that the bulk of your training time during the build phase remains dedicated to aerobic work in Zones 1-2. This allows you to actively recover in between the interval sessions and to continue to add to your aerobic foundation. As always, begin where you currently are and progress gradually and systematically from there. Once you have built your base and built upon that base; then you are ready to peak for your target race.
TRAINING GUIDE CONTENTS
Preface
1. Introduction
– Train with a Purpose
– The ABCs of Systematic Training
– The R&R of Training
– Begin with the End in Mind
2. Exercise Science Concepts
– Stimulus-Response-Adaptation
– Overload
– Overreaching and Overtraining
– Reversibility
– Specificity
– Energy Systems
– Aerobic Capacity
– Lactate Threshold
– Aerobic Threshold
– Muscle Fiber Types
– Periodization
3. Monitor Your Training Intensity
– What is Training Intensity?
– Key Indicators of Intensity
– Using Training Zones
– Training by Feel, or Perceived Exertion
– Training with Pace
– Training with Heart Rate
– Running with Power
4. Create Your Training Plan
– Prioritizing Your Events
– Overview of the Training Phases
– Choosing Your Periodization Schedule
– Filling in the Details of the Overall Plan
5. Create Your Weekly Workouts
– Creating Weekly Schedules
– Establishing and Developing Your Base
– Building Upon Your Base
– Peaking for Your Target Event
– Race Week and Race Day Warmup
6. Functional Strength
7. Recovery and Nutrition
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