The Total Triathlon Almanac 4: The Essential Training Tool and Information Source for the Triathlete and Duathlet (Spiral-bound)

~ Tony Svensson (Author) "This section can be used as a training and preparation guide for anyone interested in reaching and maintaining above-average fitness..." (more)
Key Phrases: total triathlon almanac, key workouts, weekly distance, Weekly Focus, Day Swim, Weekly Goal Weekly Actual Year (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

The format allows both elite and beginners to chart their progress and set goals while also reaping the latest advances in physiology and motivation. -- USA Today, 1995

You can book it: Here's a sure way to help any triathlete. The manual is full of training methods. -- The Chicago Tribune, 1994

Product Description

This is a comprehensive logbook and training manual for the triathlon athlete. It offers a foundation for establishing a proper training programme which conforms to current advances in exercise physiology, training and race preparation. It can be used as a year-round organizer and record-keeper. Included is an undated 55-week logbook, with over 20 per cent more room to write than in previous versions of the almanac. Advice is offered from world-class triathlon athletes such as Mark Allen, Lori Bowden and Thomas Hellriegel, and the almanac shows how to: prepare for a triathlon of any distance; plan training and the racing year; peak before a race; and prevent burn-out and injury. It provides an in-depth chapter on common types of injuries, how to avoid them, and what athletes should do if they become injured. Also offered is: a method for avoiding flat tyres and fixing them during a race; doing running intervals using a heart-rate monitor; and using periodization as top athletes do.

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Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 164 pages
• Publisher: Trimarket Company; 4th edition (August 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1887565019
• ISBN-13: 978-1887565011
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,148,409 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars IN DEPTH REVIEW BY MARK ALLEN, April 9, 1999

By A Customer

The Total Triathlon Almanac 4 reviewed by Mark Allen

There are three requirements for developing a great training program that actually brings the results we are all after: knowledge, documentation and review.

Knowledge ... First, you need some intellectual knowledge about training techniques from which to draw upon when you lay down the basic framework of your weekly plans. Having a rough idea of appropriate ratios for both the distance and intensity for swimming, cycling, and running will make planning a schedule infinitely more effective than guesswork, the method we used in the early 1980s.

Understanding reasons why a successful season requires different workouts at different times of the year helps you point more effectively to your key events. And seeing how others have successfully blended the three sports can be a living example of how to utilize this basic knowledge.

Documentation ... The second requirement for evolving your personal program is a tool to document what you actually end up doing week-to-week throughout the year. What we plan to do and the reality of what we actually end up doing can be worlds apart. It is also important to log your workouts and how you felt, along with other events that affected them.

Review ... Documenting your personal workout history brings us to the third requirements for a successful training program: And that is to look at the results of your training and then change the program for the upcoming weeks, months, or the season, to reflect how your own body has responded to the training. It is through this constant process of refinement that you become your most valuable resource for success, both in training and in other areas of our life.

Scientific information is the best starting point for creating something that works. But from that point forward, it is up to each of us to become experts on the subtleties and quirks of our own personal dynamic internal ecology.

THE TOTAL TRIATHLON ALMANAC-4 is the best tool for blending all three of these requirements for a great training program. It is a concise resource filled with the essential information you need to construct the framework of a successful regime. It is also an easy-to-fill-in log that gives you a way to chronicle your workouts and your racing results. Then with this personal history stored in the Almanac, you can change your program to create a time-efficient and highly effective personal workout schedule.

I wish THE TOTAL TRIATHLON ALMANAC had been around when I first started triathlons!

Mark Allen 6-Time Ironman World Triathlon Champion

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Overpriced logbook with pictures and quips., January 28, 1999

By A Customer

For a biginner to intermediate triathlete looking for information, this is not the"book". It's a glorified blank logbook. The author even states that much of the needed information is in almanac -3 which you can purchase separately

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars IT JUST GETS BETTER AND BETTER, October 12, 1999

By A Customer

Tony Svensson has done it again. The Total Triathlon Almanac-4 is not just a revamping of previous versions. Each of the first three almanacs has had a particular editorial focus. The Total Triathlon Almanac-4 offers injury prevention tips and secrets from the top professionals, making it the ultimate resource for even the newest multi-sport athlete. You'll learn everything from changing a flat tire to swim technique, along with a full spectrum of cycling and running workouts.

What do Ironman champions Paula Newby-Fraser, Thomas Hellriegel, Mark Allen, Lori Bowden, Heather Fuhr and Peter Reid do in training? How do they build towards their biggest event? What are their favorite workouts? How do they make use of a heart rate monitor? The answers are all here.

The Total Triathlon Almanac-4 is the best-and least expensive-piece of training equipment you will ever buy.