Now you have two people saying "No," but get ready for the "Sure, go for it!" peanut gallery . . . This timing issue comes up a lot. Being a three-time Ironman finisher, I understand why you would want to be 100% sure you are ready and it seems logical to think that 70.3, even a few of them, will ensure your success at 140.6. It won't. In fact, I argue that your timing for your 70.3s will sabotage your 140.6. That is especially the case with Steelhead a month out.

Here's why: You don't need a single 70.3 to ensure you will do well at 140.6. They are completely different races. No one would take your 5:55 and turn that into 11:50 at Canada. You want to work on pace and nutrition? That's what training is for. Races (of any distance) are not for practice; they are for racing. If you've done 13.1 and 26.2, you can attest to the idea that training for and racing a half is way different than a full 26.2. (BTW, training for and finishing a Spring marathon will serve you better than any 70.3). At the end of your 140.6 training program, you need to have gotten in all (or most) of the training necessary for an Ironman, and that does not include a bunch of races. Put differently, 70.3s get in the way. It's that simple.

Olys are fine, like in March and April. By May, you should be 100% into an IM plan. Most training programs eschew the 70.3 unless it is ~ 2 months out. Why? It all boils down to taper and recovery. You said you will race your 70.3, hence you will lose a week of Ironman training to taper for a 70.3, and you will probably lose a week of training for Ironman to recover from a 70.3. Do you see the pattern here? Essentially you are farting around with a 70.3 and foresaking the IM training to assuage your concerns. Which is more imporant? Going sub 6:00 again at 70.3 (they don't say, "JWS, you are halfway an Ironman" and no one - I hope - gets 70.3 ink) or hearing, "JWS, You. Are. An. Ironman." (Spoiler alert: You won't hear it anyway, but it's there, floating in the ether, and can never be taken back.) You will build more confidence and ability by doing your Ironman training.

So let's say you do Steelhead, here's what will happen: You taper a little bit the week before (-1 week), you'll recover for a few days and then have sub-par training that weekend (-1 week), you'll have only one long week of dedicated IM training, then you'll start a two-week taper (-2 weeks). So there, you've managed to negate two of the last three weeks of actual training (taper not included).

+1...it depends on your approach...if your going more for the accomplishment and experience, and to enjoy the tris...race them all...including the Oly's
But, if you're going for maximizing your potential and really racing the event...focus on the IM

Hi kylie and TriSooner,

I really appreciate both of your comments--sounds like you're both on the same page. I think you've both convinced me enough NOT to do Steelhead a mere 4 weeks out, but I'm still toying with the idea of doing a half in early/mid June.

Kylie, to answer your question, I really want to maximize my chance for success in Louisville. I don't have any sort of time goal in mind at this point--just want to finish--but the faster the better. If past experience is any guide, I'm likely to take my first stab at the distance very conservatively pacing-wise (e.g. my first marathon was a 4:50, my second less than a year later--this Jan--was 3:50; and when I ran the 5:55 70.3, I had a fair bit of gas left in the tank).

So with that in mind, does the extra bit of race experience and the chance to really gauge my progress at a local half IM in June really not fit? And for it to be a worthwhile experience, would I want to really race it (say, shooting for 5:40ish) or just use it more as a walk-through?

Thanks again. You two are AWESOME! Just talking to the two of you is getting me pumped.

J

I would agree with the above. I would definitely not in any way plan to do a HIM a month out from IM. That's sure to be a bad idea from any perspective - you can't really race it that close to an IM and hope to recover in time, and it sabotages your IM training.

I agree on the earlier HIM, you really have to come down on one side of the equation or the other. Either you want to do the HIM and race it and make a good time, but know that compromises your eventual IM time in some way, or you completely train through the HIM and focus on your IM as the most important race for you this year. In the 2nd scenario, for reasons outlined above, you're really better off not doing the HIM, unless (and this is a big unless) it keeps up your morale and your enthusiasm going through your IM season.

Personally, although I normally race a HIM per season, I did not do a HIM the year I did my IM. I did Olys earlier in the season just for fun, but that was before I entered the last 16 weeks of IM training. IM training is a different animal from every other triathlon training, and I personally think you're better off putting your focus there if you can. The payoff in a well-prepared and well trained for IM will be worth it. Remember that a lot of people have death-march IM experiences, and others complete their IM feeling strong and prepared. Personally, the IM is such a long race that I'd really rather fall in the latter camp, and if you want to do that, you have to train specifically for the IM.