Some of you that follow my training will have seen that I've been doing some big swims. While I don't think that we need to be spending three hours (plus) in the pool, I do think that there are benefits to extending ourselves from time-to-time. So think about the longest swim session that you've ever done -- add about 750-1500 meters -- set a date and go for it. It's a fun way to build endurance. The early season is a good time for these very long, easy paced endurance workouts.

Another thing that I've noticed is that I've learned quite a bit about my stroke when trying to swim 5-6x per week. A nice time to build this work into your season is when it's really lousy cycling weather. For most the crew on this list that's January. I also like to co-incide swim camps with the higher intensity strength training phases. When increasing swim volume, I've found that it's best not to use paddles.

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Planning Your Season

• Constant travel to/from race venues is disruptive to your A race preparations. So if you are going to travel to a race there should be a good reason. Racing against a strong field, racing on a challenging course,

• Be sure to choose some races that are challenging. I think it can be tempting to chase a PB at every course. Last season, the events that gave me the most benefit were World's Toughest, Leadville Trail Marathon and the Triple Bypass. These were tough, challenging situations -- my race results were about an hour slower than they would have been on an easy course.

• Resist the urge to freshen up for your C races. By choosing local events for your C events, you'll be able to turn up, race, recover and get back to your training. The way I set up my season is that I tend to rest more after a C race than before. I use the event to end a block of training, having a couple of easy days before then 2-4 easy days after. If you have an easy week before, say, a Half Ironman then you'll end up with about two weeks where you only have one decent workout. Obviously, this advice is only appropriate for experienced IM athletes.

• Unless you are a very strong and experienced athlete, then avoid stacking a number of races on consecutive weekends. When I race, I like to put in a best effort performance (I might not be 100% fresh but I'll give a good effort with whatever I've got). As an IM athlete, our key sessions are our endurance workouts -- so lots of racing will, for most of us, erode our endurance base.

• A "training vacation" is probably the single best event that a working athlete can insert into their season. Take 3-9 days and try to swim, bike and run nearly every day. Don't go crazy with the intensity. Sleep lots, train frequently and leave your work obligations behind for a short while. You'll be amazed at what you can get done and how fast you recover when you remove outside stressors.

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