Training Load Guide

Training Load Guideline :

Hi Team ! .... In line with an "awareness" theme this week I thought I would put together some guidelines on what sort of training loads you could expect out of each level of development / commitment in triathlon.

The danger in this sort of article is that you can shoot holes in it as of course, with everything, we have outliers. One outlier may be if you are a pointy end athlete but have limited in time to train. Another might be you are a beginner level athlete but you are working on doing some more training to move up a level.

Remember ... this is a guide designed to help you get an understanding of what other athletes may be doing.

So with that said and the correct warnings mentioned, lets look at the chart.

I have done 4 levels as that is generally how athletes can be roughly categorised.

Level 4 would be an top end age group. Has plenty of time to train and may even be aspiring to become a pro. This category could also represent professional athletes but they would obviously be at the high end of the ranges.

Level 3 is a most likely a pointy end AG athlete. They have a bit more time to train, possibly no kids and a flexible workplace that allows freedom to train.

Level 2 would be the largest population group. They have been in the sport a while, generally go quite well in their age group. They most likely have a young family and a demanding job and as such every session needs to count.

Level 1 comprises a variety of athlete in terms of personal situation. They could be new to the sport. They may even be a Level 2 athlete that has to back off a bit in terms of training due to a medium term commitment such as a new family member arriving or a big project at work coming up.

In the chart I have included a number of pieces of data to look at. The main thing to note is the weekly and daily TSS demands. TSS is the true indicator of training load as it takes into account both duration and intensity. 8 hours at T1 is obviously much less load to carry than if you did it varying between T2 and T5. This is why we use training load, not distance or time, as the main guidepost.

I have included also a weekend TSS. This is so you can get an indication of what mid-week load would be also. For instance, someone on a Level 2 load of 500TSS a week would roughly do 250 on the weekend between a long ride and a long run, which leaves 250 to be done during the week (50 a day on average).

So how can you use this?

You could use it to see ahead and to get an indication of roughly what commitment you might be up for if you wanted to dip into the "next level".

Or you can use it to see the ranges within your level. For instance you might start the training year post the winter break at the lowest end of the range and build to the highest.

I hope this helps and gives you some perspective on the training demands of triathlon.