Triathlon - Am I over training

Hey y'all. I'm just starting to get into the triathlon thing and I want to know if I'm over training. I'm trying to get a solid base down, and then I will relax the schedule a little. Here's what I have going on:

Monday: AM-swim; PM-Run (flat, easy 5mi)
Tuesday: AM-Upper Body Lift; PM-Bike (12mi flat, hard pace)
Wednesday: AM-swim; PM-Run (1hr intervals) followed byYoga
Thursday: AM-Lower body lift; PM-Bike (15mi, hills)
Friday: AM-swim; PM-Run (5 miles, big inclines)
Saturday: REST
Sunday: Bike (long, challenging ride)

I've been running and riding for a little while, but I am just getting into the swimming. I'm about to start using the 0-1650 swim program. The first race I'm looking at is the first week of November and it's a sprint competition.

What do y'all think?

Are you overtraining? You tell us, how do you feel? Everyone is different.

we cannot really tell if you are overtraining for your skill level. I know I am training about double that, but i am also doing olympics, and plan to do a half next year. And I am 17.

If you feel good, then no, but if you feel like you are overtraining then yes. Another way to tell is to look at your progress.

If you are getting faster in your training, or holding about steady, you are not overtraining. if you are on a trend of getting slower (not just a bad day or two) and you feel terrible, then you might be overtraining.

You are overtraining if any of the following are true:

1. You get on your bike to do a bike workout, and on the first hill or major effort, you feel AWFUL.
2. You get to the pool for a swim workout, and find yourself wishing the pool was closed so you could go back home and sleep. (Or, if the pool *is* closed for whatever reason, you are happy and drive home with a smile.)
3. You find yourself snapping at your partner/spouse/children more than normal.
4. You are tired all the time, but have trouble sleeping.
5. You can't get your heart rate up during bike and/or run workouts.
6. You are overeating and feel bloated all the time.

Of course, there are other ways to tell if you're overtraining. And, for some people, some of these may not apply. But, generally speaking, look for signs like these. Some get overtrained at 8 hours/week, some train just fine at 25 hours/week. It's really all about how you personally feel.

Hi,

I'm 37 and a regular guy (work, wife and 2 kids), and i train about 2 hours every morning (Tuesday to Friday), swim 4 times a week in the afternoon for about 30 min to 45 min and then saturday and sunday train for about 3 hours.
Now after 3 or 4 weeks, I usually take a week where I train lighter.

hope that helps.

eric

Endurance Mag - My blog (http://endurancemag.wordpress.com)

Thanks for the replies. They definitely help.

Rahzel, those are some great points to look for. We all have days when the legs feel heavy, but most of the time they feel great about 5 minutes into the workout. I would imagine that to have success in this sport you have to be comfortable being uncomfortable. Thos are great points of over training to look for beyond pyshical tiredness.