ASK 220
WATER INHALATION WOES
Q Why do I take in lots of water in my mouth when I swim? What can I do? Paul Briston
A First and foremost make sure that your body is level in the water by engaging your core muscles (stomach and back) to help keep your body straight, and then look down at the bottom. Looking down is incredibly counter intuitive, as it brings your hips up towards the surface, but this will help you roll your hips and shoulders to the side – allowing you time and space to turn your chin towards your shoulder (and not lift your head, which is what your subconscious will tell you to do!).
From here, as long as you make sure that your breathing action (i.e. body roll and head turn) is smooth, you shouldn’t have too many issues. The more you snatch at the action and try to rush, the more water you’ll disturb and likely swallow.
A really good drill to practise this is side-kicking – kick on your side, with the bottom arm stretched out in front and the other arm by your side. Build up to 6 kicks to one pull (6-1-6) to build in the rhythm.
Finally, make sure you exhale properly. By breathing out under the water, all you have to do is then breathe in when you turn your head. Practise breathing out under the water when you get in – you don’t need a lungful, just enough to get through 3-4 strokes. John Wood
IRONMAN BIKE TRAINING VOLUME
Q How much bike training do you need to do for an Ironman? Owen Phillips
A With 11 to four weeks to go you must have achieved three of the following rides that I will describe in more detail. If you train by distance then you need to be able to comfortably complete 85 miles at
least three times. Or if you train by time, then do 75% of your expected race time. E.g. if your target is 7:30hrs, then complete at least three rides of 5:40hrs.
Make the workout specific to your event. Ironman Wales’ bike course has a total elevation of 2,400m. To replicate this you need to experience 214m of climbing every 10 miles during key bike workouts.
During the final 14 weeks, complete weekly time trials (TT) starting with 30min efforts above Ironman race-day effort, increasing this to 60mins over the last 12 weeks. During your two-week taper complete one 30min TT and in the final week do a 15min time trial, no later than five days before your Ironman.
If you’re time-poor, complete a weekly time trial and a recovery training technique session once a week, and a long ride once a fortnight replicating the effort and terrain. A run of 20-30mins after the long ride will highlight how you’re improving on the bike. Once you become fitter and more efficient your runs will feel a lot easier. Mark Kleanthous
SWEAT RATES Q I sweat profusely during exercise – am I unfit? Mason Gray
A Contrary to popular opinion, fitter people can actually sweat more than unfit individuals. This is because the more well trained you are the more physical work you can do, and therefore the more heat your body can produce as a by-product of an increased metabolic rate. To cope with the ability to heat up faster, your body adapts its sweating response to kick in earlier, and causes your sweat glands to secrete more sweat to allow for more effective cooling overall.
The misconception that unfit people sweat more comes largely from the fact that if you get two people of differing fitness levels to do exactly the same physical task at the same intensity (e.g. walking up a large flight of stairs), those who are unfit will be working much closer to their maximum capacity to do it, so they will get hotter and sweat more. Whereas the level of exertion will not illicit the same kind of response from someone well trained, and who finds the task physically easy.
Genetics also play a big role in how much you sweat – some people do just have higher sweat rates than others, and it is, unfortunately, not something you have much control over. Andy Blow
TRAINING WITH SCIATICA
Q How can I fix/alleviate sciatica when training for tri? Barbara Holden
A Sciatica is a painful condition that’s caused when the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve are irritated or compressed. Symptoms include: tingling, numbness and burning sensations, which can make walking and bending very difficult.
An effective technique to alleviate the pain is ‘nerve flossing’, which repeatedly mobilises and releases the sciatic nerve through the lower leg’s soft tissues. E.g:
Lie on your back and pull the knee of the affected side towards your chest. Place both hands on the back of the thigh and hold the knee in a fixed position. Slowly begin to straighten the lower leg. Maintain dorsiflexion of the foot until you feel the stretch. Hold for no more than 1-2secs. You should feel the stretch through the back of the knee, hamstring, calf and possibly the foot. Release and return to the start position. Repeat x 30.
Please note, this is not a sustained stretch and should not be held for long if you’re experiencing pain. When the pain becomes manageable, try these two variations:
As above, but hold the knee in the fixed position. Flex and point your foot x 30. Increase the difficulty by adding a large resistance band. Nick Beer