Be Iron Fit: Time-Efficient Training Secrets For Ultimate Fitness

This fantastic book helped me achieve my goal of finishing an Ironman race. Congrats to you for taking on the challenge of an Ironman! I wish you the very best on this journey you are about to start. Here is what I like about the book in no particular order: It's heart rate based. So all the workouts are based on your heart-rate and time. So, as Don Fink says you get quality workouts and eliminate junk miles. I loved that approach especially because it helped me manage my daily schedule. I knew a 60 minute Zone 2 run would last exactly 60 minutes. Unlike other plans that say "go run for 5 miles." well, how long will that take and can I fit that in during a 60 minute slot? There are three training plans to choose from, Competitive, Just Finish, and Intermediate. I chose the intermediate plan for my training as it struck the perfect balance with my work/life. The training plan got me to the finish line feeling good and smiling. I felt well prepared for all three disciplines. At no point during the race did I feel like I wasn't ready and needed more training. The training volume and intensity that Don prescribed in the Intermediate plan was spot on. I loved the brick workouts. Bike to run. They helped so much, that by the time I finished the 112 mile bike, I wasn't dreading the run. It was just a natural transition into the run. And the bricks helped for my shorter races throughout the year leading up to Ironman. The training plans are 30 weeks long, perfectly doable for busy people. The book has a nice chapter on mental training. The writing is good too. It's not overly blah blah technical. Don Fink tells you what you need to know and just a little more. He doesn't bombard you with boring minutia. I would HIGHLY recommend the paper back version. That way you can highlight and pencil in notes as needed. My book looks like a well used college textbook! Here are some basics of my situation. That way you can assess how you can relate to this book: I used this book exclusively and stuck to the Intermediate plan as close as I could. I am not going to go back and count days to give an exact percentage, but i'll take a nice guesstimate that I completed close to 90% of the workouts. I am human so some stuff was missed due to illness. my only goal throughout the whole Ironman experience was to finish, and if possible finish strongly. I didn't have a specific time I was going for other than to beat the 17 hour limit. Books can only do so much. Don Fink recognizes that some times you need an actual coach to look over your form and technique. Especially with swimming, so he encourages you to seek proper guidance when needed. So, in keeping with that spirit I did the following. I swam with a masters swim group as recommended by Don Fink, and followed the swim workouts in the book on days I was on my own. I always maintained the swim volume prescribed by Don. So if my swim group only swam 2000 and Don said 3500, I made up the difference by swimming an extra 1500 to get the total up to 3500. End result: Masters swimming corrected my swim stroke tremendously and with that came confidence in the water. Zero shoulder injury thanks to the swim instruction. Many of the rides I did were with my local bike club since the rides fit the prescribed workout. For example Wednesday rides fit perfectly with the scheduled 60minute ride at zone 2. End result: I kept in touch with my club and received tremendous support. As for running, I took a few clinics for technique guidance and followed the running workouts in the book. End result: Zero injuries from running. A close friend gave me the following advice, "listen to your body." So regardless of what the training plan says, listen to your body. Those words have probably helped me the most in staying injury free. In the end, Believe in yourself. You'll soon discover exactly what you are capable of. After 30 weeks of hard work (this is ironman not easyman) it is sweet to hear Mike Riley call out your name with those famous words... You Are An.......

It was several years ago when I was in Cold Stone (of all places), and I saw a man wearing an Ironman technical T-shirt. I had always wanted to do one, but I didn't have the time, resources or talent. That didn't stop me from asking him how he trained for it. He said simply, "Buy the book 'Be Iron Fit', the rest will fall into place." I never saw him again. A couple of years later friends of mine and I did a couple of Olympic triathlons, and one friend signed up for Coeur d'Alene. I remembered my ice cream shop conversation, and I bought this book, gave it to him, and told him I wanted it back when he was done. He blew it out of the water and thanked me profusely for the recommendation. Then the winds of time, talent and drive collided and I signed up for Ironman Tahoe. I told my friend I did it and he said, 'Read that book cover to cover.' I grabbed the book and opened up page 1. As other reviews have noted, the writing style is very readable. From the beginning he motivates you in believing that you can not only complete an Ironman, but you can do well too. He does not sugar coat the effort required, it is a commitment, but he makes it sound achievable. He gives dozens of examples of people that are busier than you, and they complete them. A discussion of each of the disciplines is provided, with recommendations for drills and training for each. He gives good advice on technique drills, especially for cycling and running, Then he he presents a 30 week schedule, and divides the programs into Just Finish, Competitive, and Intermediate. The workouts increase incrementally, and he explains how it's necessary to start small with short workouts six days a week and then build to larger training volumes. Races are built into the program so you aren't competing in your first triathlon before you do the Ironman. The best advice he gives is to seek advice from mentors. He tells you the importance of Masters swimming classes, training coaches and mentors. Advice on how to work the program into your daily schedule. How to recover after missing workouts, how to handle being sick. It's all there. I have a couple of nits: 1. The swim programs are rather cryptic, written in a shorthand that is legible to swim coaches, but it would be hard to follow on your own. That being said, his suggestions to take master's classes, and the long swims are spot on. 2. I basically followed the Intermediate program because I knew Tahoe would be one of the slower courses (it was the first time they had it there, and the bike course has 7,500 feet of elevation). The Intermediate program did not include runs after the long rides, where they were in the Competitive program. My mentor basically said if I didn't train my body to run after a six hour ride, I'd be toast on race day, and I have to agree. They should be there in all cases. So it was September 22, 2013, freezing cold, and I was standing on the beach in a cheap pair of flip-flops ready to enter the water. Part of me wondered if I was ready, but then I remembered, I read this book cover to cover and did what it told me. Did I finish? Search the Slowtwitch.com triathlon forum for Hussman IM Tahoe RR and find out (spoiler: hell yes I did).

I bought this to help me create my own plan for an upcoming ironman. The plan for the 30 wk ironman is pretty good. Like with all generic plans you have to just use it as an outline and change the days, times, and/or distances to suit your own availability and level. It's easy to follow and the workouts are based on zones which he also explains how to determine.

This is one of my favorite books, all-time. Here's why: The Be Ironfit program provided me with the time efficient training plans and advice to become an Ironman in 2008, and again in 2009 (and beyond). Don Fink (an Ironman age group legend), draws upon his vast racing and coaching experience to inspire and prepare any triathlete to achieve the Ironman dream. Just as important, before I finished reading Be Ironfit (the first time) I felt belief replace my doubts about whether I could ever train for and race 140.6 miles. This 2nd edition is even more comprehensive (I've read and studied both editions). It updates the latest core and strength training techniques with Don's tried and true time-efficient heart rate based training and swim/bike/run techniques advice. It is extremely well-written and organized and provides invaluable information and tips on: time management, nutrition, pre-race, race day, post race, race selection, mental strategies, and more. You can choose to follow the competitive program, the intermediate program, or the 'just finish' strategy. With Don's guidance, and this revised edition in hand, I am training for my third Ironman race this year. With consistent adherence to Don's training plans and advice, I continue to get faster and faster. In fact, my P.R.'s continue to drop significantly at all distances (from sprint to olympic to 70.3 to 140.6) -- at the age of 45! Buy the book, read the book, do what Don Fink says, become an Ironman! It really is that simple.

I consider myself a well-read, veteran triathlete after 7 very full and busy race seasons. Beginning early 2012, I began making plans to compete in my first Ironman and this book immediately floated to the top. It offered three very detailed, very well put together training programs based on experience. I went with the competitive plan (likely a type A personality mixed with race experience) and only found myself buried toward the end because of other responsibilities that took the back burner over my training. I found most of the material new, well-placed, and insightful, although some of the chapters offer the same generic stuff found in many triathlon books. Really, this book was worth its salt in providing a detailed routine for pushing yourself to new limits, while also providing you with other information such as nutrition, race strategy, what it's like on race day, etc. Definitely a must-own. I supplemented this with Going Long: Training for Triathlon's Ultimate Challenge (Ultrafit Multisport Training Series) , another phenomenal book for the Ironman in all of you! My book now has underlines and highlights all over it, many page flags where I found some insightful piece of information, and worn out from taking it nearly everywhere with me. I did find the light humor scattered throughout a welcome relief from the daunting 140.6 mile task at hand. I completed Ironman Coeur d'Alene in 2013 with a time of 11:07, and look forward to tackling the Ironman circuit again next year. I'm also excited to apply the full 140.6 training regime to a season filled with multiple 70.3 races.

Wow, this is a motivational book! After reading half way through it, I selected a full distance Triathlon and backwards planned to figure out the start of my 30 week program. I love the common sense approach to the training, nothing so overly complicated that it takes more time to decode the workout plan then to actually do the race. His basis for the training is heart rate, time and progression. He has the bricks, transitions and two training races (Oly and half iron) worked right into the 30 week plan. He covers all bases so there is no working in additional training on top of this. The only thing you have to do is follow the plan and train. The three different plans are based on how much time you have to commit to training and how you want to finish. He has great time management tips and examples of real people achieving this goal while still working and having a life. If you already enjoy triathlon and want to try a full distance race, read this book. I originally bought it for kindle but I am buying the actual book too so I am be able to thumb through, make notes etc. This is by far the best book I have read on triathlon.

I agree with most of the reviews here and would like to add that I am benefiting a lot from the book. I also read Matt Dixon's book which was a little difficult to follow for me as an intermediate triathlete and an Active Duty soldier. IronFit, however, is different. Yes, it may contain info and data from the last decade. So, what? I am impressed by its easy applicability and explanations of trainings which make sense of why you do it the way you do it. I am currently on deployment and with the exception of swim portion, I am able to fit the trainings into my routine. All I need is a HR monitor and I am good to go. If you are more than a year in to the sport and have at least a couple of races under your belt, this book is for you to get to the next level, in a very affordable way. Before deployment I did a 70.3 and after a little break, now I am training for the full thanks to the tip and advices in this book. Great job Don Fink!

I purchased this book 1 year prior to competing in my first Ironman triathlon. After reading the book I couldn't wait to start the 30 week training program. I ended up following the intermediate training program (up to ~15 hours a week), which fit perfectly well into my busy work schedule. Don really focuses on time management and scheduling workouts around a normal Monday - Friday workweek. The result is a manageable training load during the week (1-2 hours/day), with increasingly demanding workouts on the weekends... but that's how he gets it done. In the end I fully trusted the training program to get me through my first Ironman race. Not only did my performance exceed my expectations, I also made it through the training season injury free, due to Don's structured heart-rate based training approach, which prevents athletes from overtraining.

Trés bon livre en anglais

No great game-changing secrets in here, but as a one-stop-shop for someone looking to put a plan together for iron-distance triathlon, it's a good option. Having some weekly plans to hand makes life simple, but Fink also gives enough rationale to allow readers to make choices about scheduling training sessions to suit themselves. If I was only allowed one triathlon training book, I would still choose the Triathlete's Training Bible by Joe Friel, but this book is good to have in combination.

Excellent book. Easy to read. Very clear and with examples. One of the best books I have read about triathlon

I can't wait to use this book! My big "plan" is to enter an Ironman in 2012 but first overcome a middle distance in 2011. This book has excellent plans for those wishing to just get round, intermediates and the very experienced (competitive) triathletes. I have already plotted my training plan and can't wait to get started. Full of easily readable hints and tips and lots of guidance. A refreshing read for those who are just so busy with life and struggling to fit in training into their busy schedules. (July 2012) - I had to update my review and tell you that I completed my first Ironman using this book and I have never felt better. A little sore in the quads after the race but a good Pilates work out on the third day after the race has sorted me out. I feel fit and well. Fully recommend this book and I will continue to use the weekly structure (although maybe not to the same intensity) until I decide to do another Ironman race - but will be following this programme again..!

Strengths: - it collects a large quantity of "real-world" small tips very useful for the time scheduling; - it offers training plans, that sound very substantial: organized in mesocycles (base/building/peak), based on hearth zone and the gradual increase (+10%) concept, sharing an overall structure with other plans claimed in the literature - it suggests very reasonable rules for the "what to do in case of short stop" case. - it covers also, even if marginally, the strength training, stretching, and techniques Weaknesses: - nutrition should be better treated (e.g.: Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes by Monique Ryan)