Innehållsförteckning för January 2020 från 220 Triathlon

UNDER £50 VEL 300 LUMENS £30 The new lights range from VEL consists of a choice of three front lights of 500, 300 or 100 lumens. The lightweight (53g) 300 has dayflash and memory modes, is USB rechargeable and also water resistant. sigmasports.com UNDER £125 KNOG PWR £109.99 The beam of the Knog PWR Trail (a road option is available for £84) pumps out 1,000 lumens at its max strength, with a huge feature list for the price. The USBrechargeable battery pack also doubles as a power bank to charge devices, while battery life can extend to 300hrs. silverfish-uk.com UNDER £150 SEE.SENSE ICON2 £149.99 See.Sense’s smart light innovations continue in the Icon2, with this front/rear set becoming brighter and flashing faster at risky road moments. The front offers 400 lumens,…

I saw an article for the London Triathlon in 2006 and thought: ‘I can swim, ride a bike, and run a bit and it looks epic.’ It also fell on my 34th birthday. The atmosphere was electric, I finished 30mins under my predicted time and was hooked. I slowly increased the distances until I got to Ironman in 2011. Fifteen finishes later it was time to push my limits again with a double Iron, which then led to the real ultimate triathlon distance: the deca. My work allows flexibility when it comes to training, so if the sun’s out the bike’s out! None of my friends or family are sporty, so there’s a lot of eye-rolling and the classic: ‘I get tired driving that far!’ I’m a real pie and…

MOST WANTED HUUB ANEMOI+ £299.99 Is the latest Anemoi from Huub a sequel that delivers? Launched in 2018, the original Anemoi from Huub became a landmark in triathlon suit design. Where aero speedsuits had previously been swift but largely restrictive, the Anemoi softened the boundaries between these uneasy bedfellows to produce an exhaustively tested suit (from top aerodynamicist and cyclist Dan Bigham) that still offered comfort for long-distance racing. It backed this up with its aero claims, joining the Endura QDC (see p60) as the suit Britain’s finest long-distance athletes were queuing up to wear on the Ironman circuit. A high-profile example was David McNamee, while the eagle-eyed of you will notice certain similarities with Alistair Brownlee’s Adidas-branded non-drafting suit (Brownlee was involved in the Anemoi’s test period at the…

GORE R7 LONG SLEEVE £89.99 There’s no escaping the price of the R7 from Gore but, sometimes, you get what you pay for and there’s no denying this is a quality garment. The lightweight, breathable fabric heightens the versatility and we’ve happily used this for long runs in late summer, autumn and winter with a base layer below. The sleeves hold their position when rolled up, and the barely-there collar and internal seams add to the long-distance comfort. Unlike their bike jacket on page p53, Gore’s R7 has been designed specifically for backpack use, with strap-friendly features including protective chevrons on the shoulders and optimised underarm seam placements away from where the straps sit. The blue fabric does show up sweat patches a touch, but there are reflective details on…

One of the best ways to include strength and activation work in your off-season sessions is by taking your training to the hills for longs reps or strength blocks. And the winter months are the ideal time to work on any weaknesses you might have in this area. In this month’s session, you’ll need a climb of around 4mins, alternating sitting and standing for 30secs each until the effort is completed, while also changing down the cassette on each interval to alter the cadence. Once done, there’s then 20mins at moderate pace to finish the session off. This is a great session to help increase your strength ready for the 2020 race season. I’d complete it once a week, adding one extra interval to a maximum of 10 reps every…

How does sugar differ to artificial sweeteners? And which is best for you? Artificial sweeteners are synthetic sugar substitutes. But they may be derived from naturally-occurring substances, such as herbs or sugar itself. They add virtually no calories to your diet, and you only need a fraction of artificial sweetener compared with the amount of sugar you’d normally use. Because they’re not carbohydrates, unlike sugar, sweeteners generally don’t raise blood sugar levels. Which muscles do you use when walking? In short, a lot – mainly the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, core and calf muscles. Secondary muscles include: the pelvis’s stabilising muscles – external abductors, the internal adductors, the abdominal muscles at the front, and the spinal muscles at the back; the symmetrical tibialis anterior muscles in front of the calf; and…

We take gear testing seriously – you need to know that the kit you buy will help you reach your goals in all three disciplines and work as hard as you on race day. Our test team is made up of experienced triathletes, cyclists and runners who test each product that appears in 220 to the max during training and racing, rating it honestly for performance and value. JACK SEXTY A triathlete since blowing his student loan on a bike, sub-2hr Olympic athlete Jack moved to Ironman at Lanzarote in 2016. Winter training destinations “You can’t beat Cannock Chase in Staffordshire for a run in the woods.” HELEN WEBSTER 220’s editor made the move from marathons to tri six years ago. Happiest when in the open water, she also competes…

JUST AN ADDED CHALLENGE! Triathlons are all about challenges, and this year has been a challenge for me. I’ve gone from doing triathlons with full vision, to this year doing them partially sighted having lost my peripheral vision in one eye. It certainly has been a massive learning curve for me, and there have been a lot of mountains to climb just to continue competing. I have to ask race organisers if it’s okay for me to compete before I enter. Running on trails was the biggest challenge for me, though, as last year I did a 10-mile trail run, didn’t see a tree root, and really hurt my ankle. That’s when I knew my vision had gotten bad. The bike is another challenge as I can’t see behind me…

It’s the middle of autumn, a cold wind is sweeping over Leicestershire and I’m freezing, tired and bordering on grumpy. Tim Don isn’t. The genial 41-year-old is in his 23rd season as a professional. He’s hardly stopped since his accident of 2017, where a car struck the London-born athlete while riding along the Queen K Highway in Kona, Hawaii, days before his best chance at glory at the 2017 Ironman World Championships. It nearly stopped his career, leaving Don with a broken neck and three months clamped into a Halo Brace that was screwed into his skull. Unbelievably, just six months after the accident, Don was crossing the line at the 2018 Boston Marathon in a time of 2:49:42. The secret to Don’s recovery? It’s simple – a child-like enthusiasm…

SUNDRIED ZERO THERMAL £120 Stylish Brit brand Sundried has kept its focus on making this jacket as warm as possible. On test it delivers on that front and also proves to be reasonably – if not outstandingly – breathable. The makers further boast it’d continue to deliver warmth even when temperatures drop as low as -5°C, which makes it a good choice for those really cold winter days. Three big pockets at the rear make storage easy, while the addition of a security zip pocket is welcome. The jacket is waterproof and windproof, and does look fairly stylish both on and off the bike, meaning it could have a dual use if required. It’s deliberately designed to be a tight fit, which aids in delivering warmth to the rider, but…

MISSED AN ISSUE? ISSUE 371 30 ways to smash your first Iron; 12-week IM beginner’s training plan; How to maximise recovery; £500 road bikes tested ISSUE 370 The ultimate guide to going off road; How to fuel your race; 12-week bike training plan; Pool goggles and £2k road bikes on test ISSUE 369 18 ways to reach your peak in 2019; Dirty Sanchez takes on a Deca Iron; Kona showdown preview; On test: run shoes, swim kit ISSUE 368 Special Anniversary issue! We race Windsor in 80s kit; The ultimate 30 training tips; What will tri look like in 30 years’ time? ISSUE 367 Smash your UK race; How to beat the heat; 8-week trails training plan; Discover the world’s toughest tri; Sub-£2.5k road bikes ISSUE 366 Ultimate guide to…

“Although there are very specific technical aspects to each sport, aerobic fitness is relevant across all three” One of the great things about triathlon is that when you train one of the sports, you’re training all of them. Although there are very specific technical and physiological aspects to each sport, aerobic fitness is relevant across all three. And the off-season is the time to be having fun and doing things that you can’t normally do during the season because triathlon can take up so much of your precious training time. That’s why this issue’s session is about having fun – with aerobic fitness as an added bonus! The session is very simple and can be completed (just about) in any way you like – mountain biking, turbo trainer, treadmill, trail…

1 The Quest Series returns to the UK on 20 June 2020 for the second edition of Quest Wales in Betws-y-Coed, Snowdonia. 23km, 38km and 50km run, bike and kayak routes are on offer. 2 The snappily-titled Artemis Great Kindrochit Quadrathlon charity event returns on 4 July 2020 for some more swim, bike, run and kayak fun at Loch Tay in Central Scotland. 3 From adventure racing behemoths Rat Race comes Man vs Coast on 4 July 2020; a 37km run from one side of the Cornish peninsula to the other punctuated by water jumps and short sea swims. 4 The Quest season concludes at Quest Killarney once again on 10 October 2020 in the south of Ireland.…

WETSUITS Build quality, comfort, flexibility and insulation – the four key factors when choosing your neoprene. Spend more and the quality for each factor tends to increase. ZOOT Wave 1 £2 2 0 Solid construction, warm and buoyant. Love the chest panels, too. Issue 36 6 zootspor ts.co.uk ORCA Equip £2 39 Peerless comfort and flexibility for the price. Great for frugal swimmers. Issue 36 6 orca .com ROKA Maverick Comp III £32 5 Superior arm flexibility and reach, plus assured buouyancy. Issue 365 roka .com AQUA SPHERE Racer 2.0 £399.99 Striking graphics, a decent price and a superior build – winning! Issue 365 aquasphereswim.com/uk YONDA Ghost 2 £549 A highly comfortable and superb all-rounder wetsuit. Issue 364 yondasports.com AERO ROAD HELMETS Decent ventilation, low weight, comfort and how easy…

Wondering what a ‘brick’ is, or where to find your M-dot?! Make things easy with our guide to common tri terms… AGE-GROUPER Non-pro triathlete (most of us!) AEROBIC Aerobic exercise involves or improves oxygen consumption by the body ANAEROBIC How much energy your body can produce without using oxygen BILATERAL BREATHING Breathing every 3 strokes when swimming BRICK SESSION When you ‘brick’ two disciplines together, e.g. bike & run DNS/DNF/DQ Did not start/Did not finish/ Disqualified DRAFTING Hitching a ride on someone else’s slipstream in the bike or swim INTERVALS Intensive training using repeated on/off efforts M-DOT Abbreviation for the Ironman logo – often seen as a tattoo! REST INTERVAL (RI) Period of rest between reps T1/T2 ‘Transition 1’ (swim to bike) and ‘Transition 2’ (bike to run) TAPER Reducing…

The original Tacx Neo and Neo 2 were proclaimed as the quietest turbo trainers in history upon their releases, and the Dutch brand state that the Neo 2T sequel makes even less noise than its predecessors due to a redesign of the internal magnets and air channels. Key updates of the Neo 2T Smart include the ride feel of the direct drive unit, especially during climbs and sprints say Tacx, with more power (up to 2,200 watts) and resistance levels available via the new motor. The addition of Ant+ cycling dynamics means you can analyse your left- and right-pedal strokes via third-party software (i.e. a Garmin Edge bike computer) and set about improving your power distribution. It’s directly compatible with the vast majority of rear axles (except 135 x 12…

In 1983, Dave Scott and Sylviane Puntous won the men’s and women’s Ironman Hawaii titles in 9:05:57 and 10:43:36, respectively. In 2018, Patrick Lange and Daniela Ryf won in 7:52:39 and 8:26:18. The difference in Kona-winning times is huge but, as investigated by a group of researchers, which discipline has enjoyed the greatest performance improvements in this period? The team, led by Lucas Barbosa, analysed the top-three men and women each year between 1983 and 2018 and discovered that, perhaps not surprisingly, it was the 180km bike leg that witnessed the greatest evolution. Men enjoyed a 16.9% boost; women, a staggering 26.4%. Swimming saw the slowest rate of performance growth – men just 3%, women 12.1%. The reasons why the bike trumps the swim or run? Gear, of course, with…

1 NAIL THE 180KM BIKE For the bike, you must spend time in the saddle. And when you’re out on the bike, ideally four or more times a week, you must nail the fourth discipline – nutrition. Some Ironman athletes are racing for up to 17hrs. You’ll only get through that if you fuel consistently and the bike is the best place to do that. But ensure you practise in training. I’ll consume up to 14 energy gels on my long bike set, and you must get your gut used to taking on calories as well as the sweetness of energy products; in fact, you almost need to overfuel in some sessions to acclimatise to feeding on the move. Ironman is an expensive commitment, both time and money wise. Few…

If you think turns aren’t important in triathlon swimming, think again! Investing a little time learning how to turn efficiently can give you significant ‘free speed’ gains in both the pool and open water. By working on your streamlining and body position off every start and turn, you’ll quickly improve both your swim times and overall technique. Performing tumble turns requires you to both focus on your breathing and become slightly hypoxic out of each turn, which will improve both your fitness and breathing control. Similarly, practising open-water turns (i.e. no wall touch) in the pool is great skill practice for the open-water season. In this session, you’ll progress from simple grab starts and turns into touch/tumble turns. No-wall open-water turns are used for a more physically challenging contrast conditioning…

With the development of technology and the desire for greater interactive equipment, there’s no doubting that training indoors has become easier, more enjoyable and in many cases just as competitive as taking on your club mates out on the roads. Of course, we can’t escape the fact that triathlon is an outdoor sport and that racing does not happen within the confines of your very own pain cave. But at this time of year, when there’s less daylight and a higher chance that sessions will be called off due to bad weather, we need to find indoor-training options. The benefits of indoor training are clear – an indoor session is never rained off; you never fear being blown off your bike; it gives you the opportunity to measure pretty much…

NIK COOK Wheel size vs speed Cycling writer Nik is a competitive multisporter who’s competed for Team GB in duathlon. BRAD BEER Joint care Brad is the founder of POGO Physio, author of You Can Run Pain Free! and the physio for Super League Triathlon. JOHN WOOD The Wim Hof Method An award-winning multisport coach of 10 years, John is also a former international swimmer. ANDY BLOW Post-exercise nausea Andy is the founder of Precision Hydration, which specialises in tailored sports hydration.…