Tips or training for a sub 10 hour Ironman?
Welcome to Trifuel. We had a member a few years ago who was sub 10 and a Kona qualifier. I do not know of any member since then that has gone below 10 hours. There are some in the 10 hour range and a few others who are probably capable of a 9 hour IM. I do remember that the person was very big into heart rate training. Sorry I couldn't help and good luck on your quest.
"If we help someone else up a steep hill, we get nearer to the top ourselves." ~Unknown~
~Garen~
http://baldhungariantriproject.blogspot.com/
My husband goes sub-10... but much of the "what to do" depends on what your other IM time was, your experience in each of the sports, etc. I didn't go to your site, but if you share some of that here people can provide better tips :)
Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV
I don't know so much about going sub-10 from personal experience, oh, the information is out there. You can find it easily - training schedules, periodization, nutrition, but I know this:
you gotta love it.
You have to love it so much it lives in your gut, you gotta want it, want it so bad that it gnaws at you, that the goal becomes a need, a need that you would give anything for. You have to be willing to go out in appalling weather to bike for four hours before dawn, to run on blistered feet with an aching back and pain in your lungs, to forego the beer with your non-tri friends because you have to be in bed by 8pm.
Going sub-10 is beyond most mortals. It means being willing to sacrifice pride, to mess yourself in front of God and everybody, to sweat and bleed and puke if necessary to get to that line before it hits 6 digits 10:00:00. It means putting it all out there, everything you've got, being honest, being human - with all the weaknesses and frailties. You gotta want to wallow in the mud and the blood and the tears, to take your body where your will wants it to go.
If you want it that much, maybe you can go sub-10.
Then you can tell the rest of us how you did it.
Good luck,
PoC
""Your ass looks fantastic. Are the kids in bed yet???"
- TonisTri. 10/2009

Awesome POC, but you left out the important part. The genes that enable you to withstand the brutal training and that give you the edge on race day.
"If e wishes to sweem in dangerous waters, oo are we to deny im?
-Chef Skinner
http://antonspath.blogspot.com
"The genes that enable you to withstand the brutal training and that give you the edge on race day." Ha ha ha nice Anton. Is there some sort of test I can have done to see if I have these? ;)
seriously though, aim for the moon and land in the stars right......if you never train for a 10HR Iron....would you ever know if you could do one?
-N
What was your one IM finish time?
Good luck with that!lol
Didn't mean to put you on the spot, nlamphear just curious to see the amount of work and dedication you would need to reach your goal. Under 10h is a hard road to travel, hell I'd be happy with an under 13.
gfd mentioned an under 10h poster from a while back, red 5 I believe, and to hit those numbers you really need someone crawlin up your but everyday to keep you on track and motivated.
Have you considered a coach?
Pick your race, get in the base training and then maybe consider a coach to get you to the finish line on time.
Break it down to its parts... what are your strengths?
You could do it w/
1:15:00 swim
5:30:00 bike (20.36/mph pace)
3:14:59 run (7.43/mph pace)
Obviously treat it as a sliding scale. Can you kickass at anyone particular discipline? Are your times proportional to the model above? I think, hell yea, you can do it. I'm trying to get fast on my open marathon, there is a thread started on that which might help you w/ your run. http://trifuel.com/forum/21016/speed-work-and-weight-training
Maybe sharing your splits will help others give more pertinent guidance to the specific disciplines. Congrats on the IM!
So what are your strengths? Your weaknesses?
I don't completely agree with PoC -- it doesn't always have to be completely life consuming to go those kinds of times. But it does often take talent and/or years of building to it. Honestly, it's taking off over a third of your IM time! In a year or two, assuming that last IM was somewhat recent, I don't know if that would be possible unless that last IM race didn't show what you were possible of (major nutrition, pacing, or injury issues during it).
And just watch some of the Kona coverage from past years -- plenty of non-pros make it under 10 hours.
Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV
thanks cayman, kylie, and ithinkIcan
I know this is going to be a killer road, and that a 10 hour ironman is approaching crazy.......but I wouldn't call it a dream otherwise. I finished Ironman New York in 2006 and trained for the entire thing while I was going through architecture school at Kansas State University.
I have broken down the race and have to achieve the following goals in each category to complete my dream:
SWIM
under 01:00:00
(currently swimming 1:13:00)
BIKE
05:20:00 (21 mph avg. or better)
(currently 18 avg)
RUN
03:38:00 (8:20 pace)
(currently run 9:00 pace)
TOTAL
09:58:00
given perfect race day conditions, and flawless transitions that is my plan, the distances are no problem for me, I am a swimmer at heart and 2.4 miles is a walk in the park for me. My bike and I have gone everywhere together, the speed is the issue here. The run however not only am I not that good at......I seriously do not like running and never have, so for obvious reasons this will be the most challenging part for me.
I agree with everything that has been laid out on the table so far, and fully expected some laughs (lala2021) but the end of the story is normal people do this..........and if you have enough dedication anyone should be able to with a little help ;)
thanks for the support thus far
_N
SWIM
under 01:00:00
(currently swimming 1:13:00)BIKE
05:20:00 (21 mph avg. or better)
(currently 18 avg)RUN
03:38:00 (8:20 pace)
(currently run 9:00 pace)TOTAL
09:58:00
I would recalculate for more then two minutes of transition time in an IronMan...just sayin
thanks cadenceguy, wasn't really planning on that part yet, just laying out times and speeds to get close to ten hours. I wonder what the average total transition time is for the ironman (11 HR and under) ...anybody know?
-N
Now we're talkin'
PoC
""Your ass looks fantastic. Are the kids in bed yet???"
- TonisTri. 10/2009

VANZK It sounds like the money you spent was well worth it,
I unfortunately don't have that luxury.
thanks for the tip,
Thanks to all for the feedback, positive or negative, I will keep all up to date either way
-N
Live and breathe nothing but IM for 6months, then maybe.
Without a coach though...It's going to be tough
Having a strength in one of the legs will help.
What are your splits for your first IM
Don't count the days, make days count.
The genes that enable you to withstand the brutal training and that give you the edge on race day.
I'm 6'4". I can't dunk. There are thousands of guys shorter than I who would posterize me. Why? Genetics. I've finished an IM in 13:00. I'll never get close to 10:00 for the same reason.
Ir your dream of going sub-10 is for your next IM, my questions are: Is this realistic? And Why the rush? Not that you can't do it...eventually. You are asking your body to do something dramatically different form the past. I would consider a three year plan or something in that realm. Take your training to the next level of speed and intensity. See how your body responds. You are going to have to push the pace big time in your bike and run training. Running close to a 3:30 marathon is tough when you are running a stand alone marathon. Off the bike is going to require will, genetics, an incredibly solid training background, an excellent nutrition plan, and some luck.
Test everything out in an IM next year (you can get into an indy somewhere). Set your goal for that race based on a realistic assessment of where your training has put you. You are young, so time is on your side. Reset your goals after that IM and then see if sub-10 is in the cards. At that time, maybe you will be in a position to hire a coach. You also need to put away some $ because if you do go sub-10 you might be heading to Kona.
"If we help someone else up a steep hill, we get nearer to the top ourselves." ~Unknown~
~Garen~
http://baldhungariantriproject.blogspot.com/
It's going to take different things for different athlete's. I think PrinceofClydes post, although very inspiring, is a bit intense for what it takes to go under 10 hours- in general but not for all. And by his user name for a Clydesdale it might take that level of commitment to go under 10; that would be very impressive. I agree with gfd that there is no rush, especially with just 1 IM and a 15+ hour finishing time. I did my first IM in 11:15 which got me fueled for next IM to qualify for Kona, go under 10 hours, etc. and because of my lack of IM experience this lead to overtraining, injury, burn out and my worst IM finish to date. Since then I learned to be patient, listen to your body, training consistantely 15-20 hours per week with a strong consentration on intensity on the bike and really nailing my nutrition plan. It's now been 4 years since first IM, i've done 7 and only now am realistically approaching IMAZ in about 1 month with a goal of going sub 10 hours- the numbers add up and have backed them up this summer with 2:02 Oly race and 4:15 1/2 IM. As of now I don't qualify for for sub 10 hours but feel free to follow up with any questions but it is going to take different things for different people. Also, select a race that fits your strengths.
I kind of agree with many of the above posts. Anything is possible, but this seems like a 3-5 year goal. It will take three things, patience, consistency, and discipline. My advice would be to gradually build up to the training volume it takes to go sub-10 hours. The first year or two should focus on olympic or half iron distance. When you can go sub-6 hours in a half, then maybe start training for the long stuff. But to immediately start doing the kind of volume it takes to go sub-10 hours is really asking for injury/burnout (weekly volume in the range of 10-15,000 yards swimming, 100-200 miles biking and 20-35 miles running). And the discipline may be the hardest part of all. You have to basically focus your life around training for at least a year or two prior to posting this sort of time. This includes nutrition, training, and recovery. Just my opinion, I am a humble sub-12 hr IMer with hopes of going under 11 this year at IM Florida.
- Doran
"Ironman is not just a race, not just a title, its a lifestyle"
I wonder what the average total transition time is for the ironman (11 HR and under) ...anybody know?-N
Does anybody know? Of course I know. You should've just asked me. I have the definitive answer. I downloaded every race result from every year's Ironman North America events, which if I recall, was was like 30 or 40 races with 80,000 finishers. The average finish time, irrespective of age or gender . . . (drumroll)

Edit: I just went back and read that you were asking about transition time? And that matters because . . . Regardless, my response is still apt. Finishing < 10 is way, WAY faster than average on any Ironman NA course. I can't find the Excel sheet or I'd give you a standard deviation and actually be able to tell you likelihood of finishing < 10.
Go to an IM race website and check the4 "Results" You can request any info you want, eg. "ALL" displayed in ascending order of Total Time, display T1, T2, Total Time
You will easily be able to scan the <10 hour finishers and see their transition times.
I'm guessing 5 minutes + or - 1 minute.
IMC is Ironman Canada
PoC
""Your ass looks fantastic. Are the kids in bed yet???"
- TonisTri. 10/2009

24 posts in 2 days? My suggestion: less time on Trifuel, more time in the saddle.
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
how long does it take you to post krazyfranco?
Between browsing the forums, thinking about the questions and topics being discussed, writing up posts, correcting my copious spelling and grammar errors... it adds up. Why do you ask?
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
Be at ease, Nic, KF is only teasing you. It is not a scolding. It's so hard to judge tone in a post, but I know we'd ALL just love to see you go sub-10, and to be part of it, if only vicariously..
and we'll probably dog your ass, tease you and cajole you every foot of the way.
It will be a thrill to see someone in our midst with that kind of boldness and enthusiasm undertake that kind of challenge and succeed.
Go for it.
PoC
""Your ass looks fantastic. Are the kids in bed yet???"
- TonisTri. 10/2009

Be at ease, Nic, KF is only teasing you.
True. Sorry, Nic, if that wasn't clear. Keep us posted on your IM journey.
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
hey no problem guys, wasn't expecting any less than a brutal response for that post. Guess I was being a cranky bitch.......it must be the gray weather.
While I haven't gone sub-10 yet, I'm on the path. At the moment it's all coming down to a non-dismal run. Soon....
At the end of the day, it's all about the run. You bike to run. You have to come off the bike strong enough to be able still run strong.
I've heard some interesting tidbits over the years for timing:
1) Take your half-iron time...double it...and add an hour
2) To run a 3:15-3:20 in an IM, you need to run a sub-3 marathon time
And there are a lot of them, I'm not saying I agree or disagree with them, but they help put in perspective some of the time goals. I would say that it takes a hell of a lot of training for a normal person (I think I fit in that category) to get to that level. I train a ton, and at the moment I'm 105% confident it all comes down to race day mental execution. It comes down to pushing through the pain - whether it be on the bike, or mile 2 of the run. Watch any of the top IM pro interviews, and all of them say the same thing - 'It's all about pushing through the pain'. And sometimes the pain isn't even physical, it's just mentally wanting to stop.
As a random aside looking at your page briefly, the RHR (70's) seems really really high for someone your age in good athletic shape. Are you measuring it when you first wakeup and are lying still for a while?
Anyways...just random ramblings from me...
-Ray
Tri Blog: Http://dcrainmaker.blogspot.com
TryScott, are you shooting for sub 3 at Boston?
"If we help someone else up a steep hill, we get nearer to the top ourselves." ~Unknown~
~Garen~
http://baldhungariantriproject.blogspot.com/
I love posts like this.
My IM goal for this year is not near 10 hours, but I have trained with a few sub 10 guys. They love triathlons. Sometimes when my alarm goes off at 4am, I don't get out of bed. I don't remember them ever missing workouts.
That being said, I'd still like to post an amazing time that I can one day brag about to my grandchildren. I'm in year 3 of a 6 year plan to get there. My focus this year was getting fast as the marathon. I've never wrote these down before, but my goals/timeline leading up to a fast IM are the following:
1. sub 3 hour marathon in spring of 2010
2. bike focus (current weakness) in 2010 after spring marathon
3. get fast at sprints and halfs in 2010
4. test IM in spring of 2011
5. improve weakness in summer of 2011 and another half in fall
6. personal best IM in 2012
This is all assuming my love for the sport continues to grow. Over the last 3 years, I've liked it more each year. As crazy as it sounds, I've always trained a little less than I'd like to in order to keep the drive. I don't want to get burned out, or a divorce, or injured. It's also assuming my time for a HIM in 2011 isn't 5:30. If it is, I'll probably stick to shorter stuff and scrap my plans for a Kona quality effort the next year.
Keep in touch and keep us updated on your goals, training plans, and results.
edit: forgot that I want to drop weight for the extra 2 seconds per mile per pound that it reportedly gives you. If that's accurate, my last marathon would of been 2:55 if I was at Dr. Stillman's ideal non-active weight.
http://www.serpentine.org.uk/pages/advice_frank02.html
gfd wrote:TryScott, are you shooting for sub 3 at Boston?
yes.
That is a great goal. Good luck and maybe I will see you there.
"If we help someone else up a steep hill, we get nearer to the top ourselves." ~Unknown~
~Garen~
http://baldhungariantriproject.blogspot.com/
Hey Garen did a sub 12 this year, so he is a little bit better than average according to the stats......
I know nothing but I am not stupid so i would say hell yes you can do a sub 10, but not 12 months after doing 15. maybe 24 or probably 36..........make it gradual , whats the rush man? ;-)
Dreams are the stars which charter the course of our lives. Happy the one who follows their dreams
I'll be the naysayer in this group. I know everyone is supportive online, but I'll be the first to say It's impossible. Even if you eat, sleep tri's for 12months. It's not going to happen.
It's like the average joe asking to go from couch to boston marathon in a year.
I'd be more than willing to bet big money, that you could not do it.
Now if youre striving for sub 11 or sub 12 in a year. cool.
I dont even think sub 10h30 is possible in 12 months, coming from a 15+
good luck though.
I'll be the naysayer in this group. I know everyone is supportive online, but I'll be the first to say It's impossible. Even if you eat, sleep tri's for 12months. It's not going to happen.
It's like the average joe asking to go from couch to boston marathon in a year.
I'd be more than willing to bet big money, that you could not do it.Now if youre striving for sub 11 or sub 12 in a year. cool.
I dont even think sub 10h30 is possible in 12 months, coming from a 15+good luck though.
Your post makes me a little upset.
First of all, how do you know what nlamphear is capable of? Do you know anything about him, or his training for the last IM? Maybe he completed a 15 hour IM on no training. Maybe he had 3 tires blow. Maybe he was injured. Maybe his goal was just to finish. We don't know.
It certainly is not impossible. Many people go sub-10 each year.
People can go from couch to Boston in a year. I went from couch to Boston in 4 months. Unlikely? Yes. Impossible? No.
The bottom line is that you don't know what other people are capable of.
Bring the negativity somewhere else, please.
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
psoasminor wrote:
I'll be the naysayer in this group. I know everyone is supportive online, but I'll be the first to say It's impossible. Even if you eat, sleep tri's for 12months. It's not going to happen.
It's like the average joe asking to go from couch to boston marathon in a year.
I'd be more than willing to bet big money, that you could not do it.Now if youre striving for sub 11 or sub 12 in a year. cool.
I dont even think sub 10h30 is possible in 12 months, coming from a 15+good luck though.
Your post makes me a little upset.
First of all, how do you know what nlamphear is capable of? Do you know anything about him, or his training for the last IM? Maybe he completed a 15 hour IM on no training. Maybe he had 3 tires blow. Maybe he was injured. Maybe his goal was just to finish. We don't know.
It certainly is not impossible. Many people go sub-10 each year.
People can go from couch to Boston in a year. I went from couch to Boston in 4 months. Unlikely? Yes. Impossible? No.
The bottom line is that you don't know what other people are capable of.
Bring the negativity somewhere else, please.
Oh boo hiss and not fair krazyfranco......
An opinion is asked for , and an opinion given. Even if it's negative it's been done with respect, no one has put nlamphear down. There is a difference between negativity and honesty. And a hell of a difference between being positive and being in cloud cuckoo land.
If you are hurt by the post, maybe it says more about you than you think. I say rain on with the negativity anyway, it's not going to stop anyone doing a Iron man if that's what the really want to do. nlamphear might actually take that bit of negativity and turn it into what he needs to be sub 10.... Just look at yin and yang, positive can exist without negative.
I hope you let us know your progress nlamphear..... I am all agog.
Dreams are the stars which charter the course of our lives. Happy the one who follows their dreams
Oh boo hiss and not fair krazyfranco......
An opinion is asked for , and an opinion given. Even if it's negative it's been done with respect, no one has put nlamphear down. There is a difference between negativity and honesty. And a hell of a difference between being positive and being in cloud cuckoo land.
I hear you, Warrior. I'm not opposed to people having differing opinions, when it is done respectfully. I don't feel that this post is respectful, though, for a few reasons.
First, and most importantly, the poster is actually betting against nlamphear.
I'd be more than willing to bet big money, that you could not do it.
Since when do we bet against other people achieving their goals? This is completely disrespectful, in my opinion, and contrary to what our TF community is about.
And the disingenuous (IMO) good luck at the end of the post just made it seem more disrespectful.
good luck though.
Maybe I'm reading it the wrong way, or blowing it out of proportion. I'm not saying everything should be rainbows and butterflies, but even criticisms and differing opinions need to be leveled in a respectful manner.
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
er Krazyfranco..............I just re read my post and it sounds harsh, I think I missed out on injecting the humour somewhere.........probably says more about me than anything else, apologies if you took it as an attack it wasn't meant to be.
Dreams are the stars which charter the course of our lives. Happy the one who follows their dreams
and just got your reply too :-) cheers man, and I hear you too.
Dreams are the stars which charter the course of our lives. Happy the one who follows their dreams
er Krazyfranco..............I just re read my post and it sounds harsh, I think I missed out on injecting the humour somewhere.........probably says more about me than anything else, apologies if you took it as an attack it wasn't meant to be.
I didn't take it as an attack, its all good. :)
Hard days hard, easy days easy.
I personally take it as a dare when people tell me I can't do something...bet against me. After I had my son, I told my dad/family that I was going to train for a triathlon. He gave me this *rolleyes* disbelieving look and said, "You are NOT gonna do a triathlon."
REALLY?!
watch me.
Taper Naked
I'm sure if he did a 15.5 hour IM because he had a blowout, bike problems, etc,. he would've said it, but since he didn't say it, he probably didnt have any technical problems.
As far as you qualifying for boston in 4 months, I'm sure theres more to the story behind that.
But if you said, "I weigh 200lbs have never ran 1 mile before without running out of breath. Can I run a boston in 4months. " I'd say No.
But if youre already a great athlete in another sport can u run boston in a month, sure absolutely.
I would bet that no person has EVER gone from 15.5 hour IM (no techinical problems) to sub 10 in 12 months.
Just my humble opinion.
I know plenty of people that spend YEARS going from 11 hours-10.5 hours to try to get under 10.
hey but prove me wrong, come back and post in a year, your sub 10 time.
I'd be happy to send you a dinner gift certificate.
Nic,
aim high,
give it your best shot,
let the chips fall where they may.
PoC
""Your ass looks fantastic. Are the kids in bed yet???"
- TonisTri. 10/2009

It's like the average joe asking to go from couch to boston marathon in a year.
Maybe our definition of average joe from couch is different, but I bet if you took a back of pack 30 year old (25 min in 5k?), he could run a sub 3:10 in 12 months. Obviously not by watching Family Guy, but by getting a coach (not couch) and committing 7 to 8 hours a week to running.
Got no advice whatsoever...but I find this thread fascinating. nlamphear, can you give us a RR for that IM, some splits, more about your experience, weaknesses? There are definitely a bunch of people here who can help you improve if they have more info. Oh, and good luck!
That which does not kill me makes me faster...
I have no real advice--I went 14:20 on my last IM and was shooting for 12 hours this time before my surgery sidelined me. Based on my training, in theory I should have done it. Would I ? Who knows. It will be my goal for next time though. You never know what will happen race day.
Do I think a sub 10 hr IM is possible for a guy your age? sure. Is a 12 hr possible for a female my age ? Of course it is...
I DON'T subscribe to the theory "anything is possible" if you 1. want it, 2. train hard enough. Everyone is genetically different. I know I will never do a sub 10 hr even though plenty of women my age do. Personally I would pick a realistic goal and if you surprise yourself and do better then cool.
Don't have a clue on the IM of whether 12 months is long enough or not. But I do subscribe to the line of thought that a lot of it is genetic.
I will use my dear wife as an example. She has the heart of a sub-20 min 5kr. She has the atheletic ability of a 30 min 5kr. Even at optimum 105 lb weight and running with her dad who was training her she never got below 24 min in the 5k. She just isn't fast. There are no if ans or butts about it. She could spend the next 15 yrs and 8 hrs per day trying to break through that barrier and would not succeed. Myself, well I get in trouble as I used to lug my 190 - 200 lb. donut eating self off the couch to train for 3 or 4 months for something and then set a decent time in the event (upper 50% in the event). For sprints that 4 or 5 weeks of training. (Wife was not amused at all)
So yea we all know the people who have spent 2 or 3 yrs trying to drop minutes off their times. My suspicion on most of them is that they have reached there athletic pinnacle. Does that mean you shouldn't try. Heck no you should still give it your all. Does that mean that I should tell nlam that he can't hit his goals. Heck no, he may or may not be fully capable of hitting his goal.
So if you want it I would say go for it and may God's speed be with you on the attempt.
I too am about to jump into unchartered territory. I am mentally targeting a half next spring and then shooting for a full the following year. Yes my first half and full, Iwill be trying to go under 6hrs in the half and under 12 in the full. My sprints and speed work indicate from the guys at EN that I should hit both times when I drop back fully to fighting weight after moaning and complaining and feeling sorry because I spent most of the summer training for a half that work intervened and canceled. Subsequently took 1/2 the month of Sept. off and the full month of October off. Added back 15lbs. Oh well. GFD looking forward to the 30 days of Nov. running challenge.






















I have completed one Ironman, and would love to do another one in a year or two....the major difference being I want to do the next one in 10 Hrs or less. Any Sub 10Hr people out there have any secrets they would like to share?
All of my workout results, and personal stats are being posted on a sort of web journal
( www.trainforten.vex-d.com ) for people to follow ....harass......support......or what ever they so choose to do.
For right now though, I just need to hear that there is a "non-Pro" human out there that has done this.
Thanks for the help guys!
-Nic Lamphear
http://www.trainforten.vex-d.com