This year's men's and women's Ironman World Championships might be split between Nice (10 September) and Hawaii (14 October), but both genders will remain linked by the top athletes heading to altitude in the build-up. Current men's champ Gustav Iden often heads to Sierra Nevada, though mixed things up in Morocco this January, while 2022 women's victor Chelsea Sodaro headed to the luxury resort of St Moritz earlier in 2023 in search of peak performance. But how much of a boost are the likes of Iden and Sodaro seeking when hitting the heights? And what exactly is happening beneath the physiological bonnet that's so goddam alluring to endurance athletes? Breathe easy and find out...
INCREASE IN PERFORMANCE
Stints at altitude are an ever-increasing strategy for professional triathletes and the occasional top-end age-grouper for one very good reason: studies show a period sucking in rarefied air can realise a 2% lift. How? We'll dig a little deeper shortly but, broadly speaking, by exposing yourself to an environment that's low in oxygen, your body will generate more red blood cells in an effort to grab and use what oxygen's available.
And that availability is key because while oxygen percentage remains at around 21% no matter what height you're at, the 'effective' oxygen percentage changes. That's because the higher you ascend, the less compressed the air, the thinner it is and the harder it is to breathe. It's why a triathlete swimming off the coast of Tenerife will be sucking in 21% of oxygen but will be struggling somewhat after ascending 2,300m up Mount Teide as that 'effective' oxygen percentage is below 16%. This pain comes with some gain, though, as when you're back racing at sea level, you're an oxygen-saturated monster and primed for peak performance. Which begs the question, how high should you go?
Denne historien er fra October 2023-utgaven av 220 Triathlon.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra October 2023-utgaven av 220 Triathlon.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
"I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO INFLUENCE THE GROWTH OF TRIATHLON"
British Triathlon CEO Ruth Daniels talks Paris, her plans to grow tri and her own personal goals... knees allowing
ZWIFT RIDE
£1,199.99 Zwift's new Ride is an indoor bike that might help you break your PB... but won't break the bank
PARIS SHOWED THE VALUE OF OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE
With the spotlight on triathlon like never before at these Games, debutant athletes talked about being overwhelmed by the unique environment
THE OLYMPIC CHAMPION
On 31 July, Great Britain's Alex Yee put together arguably the greatest one-day performance we have ever seen at an Olympic Games to win gold. And we were there at the finish line to speak to tri's new poster boy...
GAMES AT THE GAMES
After watching and enjoying the Olympic triathlon events, Brunt amused himself by playing the 'guess how far into each event I would die' game...
WHERE EAGLES DARE
With little heat prep, the wrong gear choice and a course-recce mistake, would experienced extreme triathlete Sean McFarlane soar like an eagle or drop like a stone in Italy?
HOW TO INCREASE RUN PACE WHEN FATIGUED
The ability to dig deep in the latter stages of a race helped Alex Yee achieve Olympic gold. Here Ben, a member of Team GB's coaching staff in Paris, explains how you too can find that extra gear...
HOW TO CARB LOAD
PACKING YOUR WORKING CELLS WITH CARBOHYDRATES IN THE BUILD-UP TO YOUR BIG RACE IS A PROVEN STRATEGY TO RACE STRONGER AND FASTER...
BUYER'S GUIDE: BIKE COMPUTERS
Log your rides, find your way and monitor your multisport training with a quartet of impressive bike computers...
POLAR GRIT X2 PRO
\"You can't be anything other than impressed with the GPS, whose design is one of the significant changes to the V3\"
