Just finishing an IM in 29 weeks time

Hoping there's still time and I have lots of time to train.

At the minute I can run for 30mins (slow)
Bike for 2hrs (slow)
and swim 30 lengths (really slow)

Is it feasible for me to just finish Ironman Wales with 29 weeks training?

Or should I just give it a miss?

Oh and by the way I'm 2 stone overweight

Thanks

I think you may need to up your training a bit

yes you can finish but it won't be a pleasant experience if you're undertrained as it's a tough course. be realistic with yourself.

and 2 stone overweight??  based on what??  I did IM Wales as a 16+ stoner but then I'm an ex-prop.....  

Wow, its a big ask, depends on how much you want it and how much time you can put aside to training between now and then.

Ironman is a tough event, Wales is one of the tougher Ironman races.

Please give some idea about how much training you can do per week in hours

Thanks!

I can do as much training per week as my body can cope with !

I have lost 2 stone in about 2 months with all the training, but to make no joke of it, it is going to be hard, I am finding it tough and I am doing the base period stuff which is supposedly the easy bit!

The correct diet helps, a lot as does a structured plan, but your own belief and pig headedness will help and the ability to kick yourself out to run\swim\bike etc, and being sensible and getting rest...

Chris

realistically

you should be up to at least 50 miles on the bike in one ride by now - preferably more - and be aiming for your 1st 100miler by May

you should be able to run a 1/2 marathon comfortably by now

swimming will/can improve once open water starts as you will get the benefit of wetsuit support which will help improve endurance.  but you're still behind where you should be by now

autumn/winter pre-IM is when you should be building your aerobic base so come spring you should be able to add the extra distances and improve your speeds on top.

if that's all the training your body can cope with at the moment, something is wrong

what sort of sports background do you have??

FB, I can't do any of the things you mention, well I can do the bike and can swim, although need to do a continuous swim as I am doing drill sets and having coached session for over an hour a time, running..... 4.2 miles is my longest but this is increasing every week as the weight comes off and I get fitter.

So, go on, ruin my chances, as I am doing the Outlaw half and Ironman UK in August

Chris

I'm in a similar position with my race coming up in August although I have a bit more running experience I've only been on the bike twice so far this year and the swimming has ground to a halt.  So I look forward to reading all the good advice.

Ironman Wales in one tough cookie....

I would ask what you call slow./.............give us an idea of the distances you can cover in those times as everyones definition of slow is different...

also how long have you been training to get there...........have you just decided this week to enter and thats your first attempt at any sessions........

The weight is not a big deal.......it might come off with training.....for lots of us it doesn't though becuase we overcompensate for the training and get even fatter........

the main point is..How much do you want it..........if you want it enough and put in all the effort for the next 7 months then yes maybe you can

have a read of Be Iron Fit by Don Fink. Loads of training advice and contains 30 week training plans for 'Just Finish'. Should give yu a good idea of how much training is required. Good luck

Chris68 - the running is probably the least important part of the IM training in many ways.

to finish and IM the key things are to get around the swim within cut-off so you can get onto the bike, then finish the bike within the cut-off time which is usually 10:30hrs after swim start.  that leaves 6:30 for the marathon - you can walk it in that time!  most of us know that the chances of running the whole marathon is not going to happen - even many of the top pros struggle with that - so you develop a run/walk strategy to fit.  being able to get off the bike to start the "run" is the key.

obviously if you want to go quicker you need to be able to get well within the cut-offs and be able to t least run a lot of the marathn - but that often comes with experience and dedicated training

Cycling pace I'm aiming for 15-17 mph average, swim 2 minutes per 100 metres is my target, marathon is a 10 minute run 2 minute walk strategy at the moment.

The overall plan is to have a good swim and bike and leave plenty of time for the marathon, and keep losing weight which will meve me a little quicker and make the hills easier, I live 2 miles off the bike course for IMUK and 4 miles off the Marathon course, so I will know them come race day! Plus with training on the hills I have a very good idea of what to expect

I think I am more worried about the Clitheroe pool triathlon in 7 weeks! Then Keswick a month later!

A last word about the training, I am running later, and I ran yesterday, this was unthinkable in December so things are getting better, I seem to be wrecked whilst running but i am recovering really quickly and well.

Chris

 PS FB, a rugby league prop or one of those Onion fellas?

Keswick will be damn cold............ 

I hate Derwentwater with a passion.. Can't think why I keep going back

Dave, you keep warning me about Keswick, are you coming, I'll buy a beer or three?

Chris

Yep I'm doing the swim sportif on the Saturday... The tri itself is a "been there got the t shirt" .... And I'm racing the following weekend anyway

cougie wrote (see)

You would have to swim really slowly to miss the swim cut off.
Say you are out on the bike after 2 hours - you have 8.5 hours to bike 112 miles. That's an average speed of over 13 mph. How does that compare to your pace ?

Problem is, it's one thing doing (say) 30 miles in two hours on the flat now, 13mph at Wales is another beast altogether.  If you overcook the bike early on you can't just turn the legs over and ride easy to the end like you can at Outlaw, you're going to end up walking the hills towards the end and that's when times really suffer.  There were a lot of people flirting with the bike cut off - heck, Barley wasn't miles off it and he's no mug.  But on the plus side, (a) you've got 6 months to get lots of cycling in, (b) if you have lots of time to train then (unlike running) you can ride lots with little risk of injury, and (c) as FB & cougie have said, once you've made the bike cut-off then finishing is pretty much a given - the finish cut-off is generous by comparison.