TriDot’s objective in triathlon training is simple: Get the best results in the least amount of training time – maximize your training return. It’s simple to say, but more complex in execution.
Why?
The fact is effective triathlon training requires an athlete to balance five key variables:
- Intensity
- Duration
- Frequency
- Sequence
- Technique
To better understand this truth, consider these five key questions regarding these variables:
- At what level of intensity should you be training day in and day out?
- How long should your workout be?
- How often should you train?
- In which order should you train (sequence matters—and can produce different results)?
- What technique should you use in your training?
All of these questions greatly affect your overall fitness and performance depending on how you treat them. Moreover, the parameters set by your body must be also be considered BEFORE addressing these five points.
Those parameters are the physical factors – or what TriDot calls “PhysiFactors.” These factors help determine the proper balance of key variables in your training. Here are some examples of PhysiFactors:
- Age
- Gender
- Body Height, Weight, Composition
- Sport Age
- Relative Performance Ability
Age, gender, body height, weight, and composition are tangible, physical parameters that will affect your ability to efficiently address the training variables.
The sport age takes into account previous injuries, how long it takes you to obtain a specific level of fitness, and how long it takes you to reach that level after a certain amount of time off.
The relative performance ability is the proportion of how good you are in one discipline as compared to the others. This is why TriDot created the TriDot Score? Each athlete receives a personalized 1-100 index for swim, bike, run and overall. These scores are the foundation for establishing your training and define your triathlon fitness. Everyone is different so a strong cyclist will need to train differently than a strong runner or strong swimmer.
Relative performance ability is also simply the comparison between your power threshold ability and your stamina. See “Power Versus Stamina in Triathlon Training” for more details about this point.
All of these PhysiFactors constitute how you’ll be able to balance the five training variables.
Let’s use an example to put it in context:
Suppose you’re cooking a meal and you’re following a specific recipe. The instructions call for you to bring four cups of water to a boil in a three-quart saucepan. Next you’re called to slowly stir in two cups of rice. Cook for 15 minutes frequently stirring and then remove from heat, season to taste, and serve.
Notice that for this rice recipe all five training variables come into play. The heat applied is intensity. The cook time is duration. How often you stir is frequency. Performing the steps in order is sequence. And lastly, the call to stir slowly is technique.
The PhysiFactors in this metaphor are objects such as the three-quart saucepan, the stove’s heating power, and the spoon used to stir. If the saucepan was smaller, or the stove wasn’t as powerful, or the spoon inefficient, then these factors would change the training variables relative to the recipe. How?
With a weaker stove it might take longer to bring the water to a boil. A smaller saucepan prohibits the full four cups of water. Both Intensity and duration are affected. A different spoon might require more stirring or stirring in a different way. Thus, frequency and technique are affected.
In the same vain, your PhysiFactors will have a direct influence on your training variables. TriDot’s advanced analytics factor your PhysiFactors to ensure your training is optimized to deliver better results in up to 30% less training time.
In other words, TriDot gets you cooking.
TRIDOT TAKEAWAY:
The five training variables mentioned above must be treated with great attention if you are to predict how your triathlon training is going to most benefit you. The inclusion of your PhysiFactors is essential to this greater attention and is why TriDot uses this data in its predictive analytics.
TRIDOT TALK:
Do you understand the value in knowing your PhysiFactors? If not, ask us a question and we’ll answer it!
JARED MILAM is a professional triathlete, TriDot coach, and member of the Tri4Him Pro Team. He has 16 years of competitive running experience and 11 years of competitive triathlon experience with a half Iron PR of 3:59 and a full Iron PR of 8:30. Coaching under the TriDot system since 2011, Jared loves working with aspiring triathletes of all ages and performance levels.
