Ironman Triathlon Coaching

Almost nobody fails an Ironman because they didn't train enough. They fail because they went out too hard, under-fuelled by hour four, or spent nine months accumulating hours without ever building the specific durability the day demands. Long course is an execution sport.

It isn't an Olympic plan with bigger numbers

Athletes stepping up from short course tend to make the same three mistakes, and generic plans do nothing to prevent them.

Volume without structure

More hours feels like progress. But undifferentiated middle-intensity riding builds fatigue rather than fitness, and it is the single most common pattern in the data of athletes who plateau at long course.

Fuelling as an afterthought

You cannot absorb on race day what you have not trained your gut to take in training. Carbohydrate tolerance is a trainable variable, and most athletes only discover theirs at mile eighty of the bike, which is far too late.

No durability work

What matters at 140.6 is not your fresh FTP. It is what you can hold after five hours. Sessions that build fatigue resistance look different from sessions that build peak power, and most plans do not distinguish.

How an Ironman build is structured

A full-distance build typically runs twenty-four to thirty weeks. A 70.3 build runs sixteen to twenty. Each phase carries a different job, and skipping one shows up on race day.

Weeks 1 to 8: foundation

Aerobic base, consistent frequency, and technical work, particularly in the swim where the biggest time savings usually sit. This is also when we address any limiter that would otherwise cap the whole season: weak run economy, a poor bike position, or a recurring niggle.

Weeks 9 to 16: build

Threshold work enters alongside progressively longer rides and runs, and brick sessions start in earnest. Load climbs in a controlled progression with genuine recovery weeks, the ones self-coached athletes quietly skip because they feel unnecessary.

Weeks 17 to 24: specificity

Sessions now replicate race demands. Sustained efforts at target pace and power, long rides finishing with race-pace running, and full nutrition rehearsal. Hilly course, we train hills. Hot race, we prepare for heat.

Final two to three weeks: taper

Volume drops sharply while intensity is maintained. Tapering badly is genuinely common. Too much rest leaves you sluggish, too little leaves you tired. We also finalise pacing targets, fuelling numbers and a contingency plan for the things that go wrong.

Four things coaching gets right

Pacing discipline

Your Ironman is decided in the first ninety minutes of the bike, almost always negatively. We set target power or heart rate bands from your actual testing data and rehearse them until holding back feels boringly automatic.

Fuelling strategy

Carbohydrate per hour, fluid, sodium, and what you carry versus take on course. Worked out as numbers, then tested repeatedly in long sessions until your gut tolerates them reliably. Nothing is trialled for the first time on race day.

Durability

Sessions specifically designed to develop what you can sustain deep into fatigue. This is where long-course training diverges most sharply from short course, and where generic plans are weakest.

Race execution

Transition rehearsal, special needs bags, what to do if the swim is cancelled, and how to respond when you are twenty minutes down at halfway. Decided in advance, not at hour seven with a depleted brain.

Coached, or self-guided

A structured 70.3 plan gives you a complete periodised half-distance block delivered through TrainingPeaks, with swim, bike, run and brick sessions, a strength and conditioning guide and written guidance for each phase. It suits athletes happy to self-manage who simply need the right training in the right order.

Ironman coaching gives you a plan rewritten weekly around your real life, full data review, email and telephone coach access, fuelling strategy, regular benchmark testing and a race-week planning call. It suits athletes targeting a first finish, a specific time, or qualification. Coaching is monthly with no minimum term.

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Frequently asked questions

How long before my Ironman should I start coaching?

Ideally twenty-four to thirty weeks out for a full distance, and sixteen to twenty for a 70.3. Earlier is better, because the foundation phase is the one athletes are most tempted to skip and the one that determines how much training you can absorb afterwards. If your race is closer than that, we build the best plan the time allows and adjust the goal accordingly.

How many hours a week does Ironman training take?

A realistic full-distance build peaks around twelve to sixteen hours a week for age-group athletes, with most weeks considerably lower. A 70.3 build typically peaks around eight to twelve. Anyone promising an Ironman on six hours a week is selling you something. That said, the plan is built around the hours you genuinely have, and consistency at ten hours beats sporadic fifteens every time.

Can I train for an Ironman with a full-time job and a family?

Yes, and most coached athletes are doing exactly that. It requires the plan to be built around your genuine availability rather than an idealised week, and honesty at the questionnaire stage about what you can sustain. The failure mode is rarely a lack of talent. It is a plan that assumes time you do not have.

Do I need a power meter for Ironman training?

Strongly recommended for full distance. Pacing the bike accurately is the biggest single determinant of how your run goes, and heart rate alone drifts too much over six hours to pace reliably. For 70.3 it is very helpful but not essential.

What if it's my first Ironman and I just want to finish?

A completely legitimate goal, and it changes the plan considerably. More emphasis on durability and fuelling, less on threshold work. Be clear about it at the consultation and the whole build gets shaped around getting you to the start line healthy and to the finish comfortably.

Can Garmin Coach or a free plan get me through an Ironman?

Garmin's adaptive triathlon coaching covers sprint, Olympic and half-distance. Full distance sits outside what it was built for. Free full-distance PDF plans exist, but they cannot adapt to your week, cannot build fuelling tolerance around your gut, and cannot tell you when the trend in your data means you should back off.

Which race, and when?

Book a free thirty minute consultation. We will talk through your race, the time you have available, your history at distance and what a realistic target looks like, and you will get a straight answer on whether the timeline works.

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