The Time-Crunched Triathlete: Race-Winning Fitness in 8 Hours a Week (The Time-Crunched Athlete) [Paperback]

Chris Carmichael (Author), Jim Rutberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 8, 2010 | Series: The Time-Crunched Athlete

The Time-Crunched Triathlete presents a fast-paced triathlon training program that delivers competitive speed without the time demands of conventional approaches. In as few as 8 hours a week, triathletes can develop the speed and endurance they need to be competitive in triathlon, from sprint to half-iron distance races.

Drawing upon principles refined while coaching busy endurance athletes, Chris Carmichael shows triathletes how to build fitness in three sports on a realistic schedule that fits into their busy professional and personal lives.

Complete with training plans, case studies, nutritional guidelines, and success stories, The Time-Crunched Triathlete is the book active working professionals and parents have been waiting for.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“You will want to plan your 2011 schedule with The Time-Crunched Triathlete at your side.” — Active.com

“With this science-backed program to reduce time but not results, The Time-Crunched Triathlete might be the answer to your busy calendar.” — Triathlon Magazine Canada

“Written for the huge majority of triathletes who have limited training time...A novice triathlete should have no difficult understanding the book’s concepts, yet a veteran triathlete will still gain valuable, time-saving tips and strategies.” — Liberty Sports magazine

Book Description

The Time-Crunched Triathlete presents a fast-paced training program that delivers competitive fitness and speed without the difficult time demands of conventional approaches. In as few as 8 hours a week, triathletes can develop the speed and endurance they need to be competitive in triathlon, from sprint to half-iron distance races.

Drawing upon principles refined while coaching busy endurance athletes, Chris Carmichael shows triathletes how to build fitness in three sports on a realistic schedule that fits into their busy professional and personal lives.

Complete with training plans, case studies, nutritional guidelines, and success stories, The Time-Crunched Triathlete is the book active working professionals and parents have been waiting for.
 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Velo Press (November 8, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934030619
• ISBN-13: 978-1934030615
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.8 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #109,068 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #26 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Exercise & Fitness > Swimming
  • #62 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Exercise & Fitness > Triathlons
  • #65 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Individual Sports > Triathlon

More About the Author

Chris Carmichael is an endurance coach and adviser to Olympic athletes and teams around the world. He is Lance Armstrong's personal coach, as well as coach to athletes of all levels. During 1997 and 1998, Chris dedicated his time and talents to shaping Lance Armstrong's return from cancer to professional racing. In 1999, he founded Carmichael Training Systems (CTS) to bring quality coaching to elite athletes and active people alike.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

64 of 66 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Time Crunched Triathlete November 12, 2010

By cyclic17

Format:Paperback

I've just started competing triathlons, with decent results for a guy my age with young child and a full-time job. I'm not trying to be a pro or anything, just trying to have some fun, stay in shape, and compete every once in a while. I've read a few of Chris Carmichael's other books, and like those, The Time-Crunched Triathlete is clear and concise. It moves along quickly and if you want to skip around it's organized well so you can find the information you want quickly. Since the book just came out (I actually ordered my copy from Chris's website because they got their shipment before Amazon and my local bookstore), it's too early for me to say if the training programs themselves work, but as a book on triathlon training it's a great read and really informative. I liked the fact that Chris kept returning to pragmatic solutions and advice where other books go on and on about theory or assume we can all put training as the top priority in our lives. Chris gets it. He understands athletes like me. I'm motivated, I'm ready to the do the work, but my family and my job come first. And this is the first triathlon book I've read that really addresses the challenges that I - and all my triathlete friends - deal with every day.

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but has embarrassing flaws March 29, 2011

By Pablo

Format:Paperback

Good, useful, smart, etc. All the things you would expect from Lance's coach.

Except that the training plans themselves are sprinkled with mathematical mistakes that make following them confusing. Total minutes spent per discipline on a weekly basis don't always add up to the minutes assigned for all days of the week when added up (also, per discipline). So which do you follow? You attempt to reach the weekly total? You follow the daily volume and ignore the weekly total? You end up trying to guess what they meant to prescribe... But you really can't guess. This is supposed to be science. The book is all about being as scientific and specific as possible.

The errors are not small, they are significant.

It's a shame. And I tried contacting the publisher to get a solution (corrected training plans) and they have not replied yet.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars No Complaints So Far! November 14, 2011

By OSU

Format:Paperback

I've read this book through several times, and am just starting on the Olympic training program. It's very good and very in-depth, without overloading you with a lot of unnecessary details. I'm a big believer in internal training above lactate threshhold, and I like the idea that you can become a competitive age-group triathlete training 6-8 hours a week. This is the perfect book for me. I've also looked at Joel Friel's "Triathlete's Training Bible" and -- while that book no doubt goes into greater depth -- it felt too much like a textbook to me. I think the Time Crunched Triathlete is much more accessible.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Really Helpful book, a lot of useful information April 23, 2012

By fire26

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Really Helpful book, a lot of useful information, in fact I am currently in week 4 of the training schedule for the intermediate olympic , and never felt so confident about the training..

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Revolutionary! March 20, 2011

By Anaestasia

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The author is well qualified in the area of training for triathlons and the book is not just another training for triathlon book. This is a revolutionary approach to reducing the hours to train while improving outcomes. Throughly reccommended. Have a life and enjoy triathlons, a new concept!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great resource for triathlon training January 28, 2011

By Ladybug

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have done a mini-triathlon, but wanted to move on to a Sprint distance event. I found this book to be very useful in everything from understanding how to train to when to rest and be realistic. The suggested workouts, in my opinion, lean too much on the biking and not enough on running or swimming, but the proposed schedule and "brick" approach helped me formulate my own in ways that I hadn't thought of prior to reading it.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book April 26, 2011

By Sergei VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Good book overall. I haven't used any of the plans (didn't even read through them, really), but the main points of the book served to confirm my belief that 6-8 hrs a week could be sufficient for olympic and half-irons, IF you focus on getting the best quality work-out out of this time and cut all the junk yards, miles, long group rides/runs at conversational pace, etc. So far I can't complain about the results.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Got me through my first 70.3 IronMan May 13, 2013

By Ronelle Bolton

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I found this book incredibly helpful in preparing for my first 70.3 IronMan event. His advice on training and tips on competing are invaluable.