The Strength Plan That Took Me to Ironman World Champs on 50 Minutes a Week
Strength for life. Speed when it counts.
My right arm screamed in searing pain as I pressed on for one more pass through the backyard before switching arms.
I was deep in my new favorite workout: The Mow and Hold
The rules were simple:
Push the mower with one hand. Hold Jack Jack with the other.
I could switch arms
But I couldn’t set him down
And the mower couldn’t stop
It was ridiculous. It was challenging. It was fun.
And one of the best tests of strength as a dad that I’ve found yet.
Because that’s the point: to be strong for life
One of the most common challenges I see in beginner endurance athletes:
Harmonizing endurance and strength training.
For newer endurance athletes coming from a gym background, there’s often resistance to reducing strength work.
For experienced endurance athletes, it’s the opposite: a desire to maintain strength and size, but a struggle to stay consistent in the gym.
This write up will help you bridge the gap.
Who is this for?
Guys who want to:
be strong and healthy in daily life
build durability, speed, and perform in endurance
I’m going to share:
where to start
the #1 strength trap I see
my annual 4-phase approach to strength
data I’m collecting and results from the past year
how to apply this yourself (my favorite strength programs)
This is practical and easy to implement - right away.
Let’s go.
1. Start By Clarifying The Goal
My goals aren’t just about getting fast and going long.
I’m not interested in over-optimizing to chase the top 1% of performance.
I want to:
be fit and strong as a dad and in everyday life
do cool stuff with cool people
have fun and live a long time
be up for any adventure
But that’s not an excuse to stop improving as an athlete…
I also want to:
perform well in competitions
make progress and see what I’m capable of
I believe you can have it all
Next, Map Out Your Year
Instead of viewing strength as an on/off switch…
Step back.
Map out your year with intention.
when is your A Race?
when is your endurance “offseason”?
what B and C races are you doing throughout the year?
This will create the outline for your annual strength plan.
For most, this will look like:
Fall “A Race” (ex: Ironman or Marathon)
Winter “offseason”
Spring Ramp Up
Summer B and C Races
If you’re 70.3 or Ultramarathon focused, this may be shifted to a spring or summer A Race.
But the process of phasing your strength throughout your year will be the same.
We’ll do that in a moment.
2. Avoid This Trap
Before I get into the protocol, here’s a quick coaching story that applies.
Earlier this year, I had an athlete training for his 3rd 70.3 with me.
It was also his first 70.3 since becoming an Ironman, and he was ready to go full send.
The goal? Go sub-5 for the first time
The result? 5:29:53
We were able to pull wins and growth out of the experience…
But we also needed to be objective with what created the gap in Expectation vs. Reality.
I ran a report in Training Peaks on this athlete’s completed duration percentage across all forms of training in the last year.
What stood out to me:
23% of total training time was spent in the gym
this athlete raced 10 lbs up from his prior year’s race weight
Both too much if we’re measuring success in long course speed.
I observed the trap…
Trying to peak in:
Speed
Strength
Body comp
… all at once.
I think most guys (myself included) have fallen into this trap.
But I’ve since learned there’s a better way…
And it starts by taking a longer view.
3. A Different Approach
To break out of the “chase every peak at once” mindset, we need to see that we can be our fastest, strongest, leanest - at separate points in the year.
This is my annual 4-phase approach:
Phase 1: Recovery —> Return to Strength
Phase 2: General Strength Build
Phase 3: Transition to In-Sport Strength
Phase 4: Peak Speed
Now lets dive into the details of each phase:
Note: My strength programs are available at the bottom of this post.
Phase 1. Recovery —> Return to Strength
When: Immediately after your “A Race”
Focus: Rest, reset, then reintroduce strength
Take a few weeks off structured training
Maintain light movement (easy rides, short swims, walks, time in nature, fun gym stuff)
Avoid rushing back into heavy loading too soon
This phase is about letting the body/mind fully recover and preparing for the start of your next training cycle.
It’s also a good time for nutritional cycling/testing (I did this with Fruit Till Noon/Tribal Shred this past year).
Phase 2. General Strength Build
When: Winter into Spring (assuming fall Ironman A Race)
Focus: Build maximal gym strength progressively over 12+ weeks
This is your time to go hard in the gym.
Build strength and durability that will make you strong in every day life (this will also help you unlock speed later in your year).
2-3 strength days/week
High weight, low reps
Track reps and sets, apply progressive overload
High emphasis on primary movements like squats, pulldowns/rows, chest presses
Keep endurance training mostly easy Zone 2 work, with focus on frequency and technique/skill development
“It’s just so helpful to hear that it’s okay to push strength hard in November, December, and January.
It makes me feel like I’m training smart instead of just guessing.”
Phase 3. Transition To In-Sport Strength
When: Spring through Summer
Focus: Convert gym strength into sport-specific power
Introduce big-gear cycling, big vert, hills and rolling terrain runs, medley swimming, and long days
Maintain 2 gym session per week, shift to total body lifts
KEY: limit CNS fatigue
Begin increasing endurance volume
Gradual introduction of high intensity intervals
B and C priority races fit well in this block and can be useful measures of how well your strength is applying to sport
My B and C Race examples from this year:
coaching/running Great Divide 50k - 9 hour effort at 9k elevation
running Leadville Trail Marathon - 5.5 hour effort at 10-13k elevation
Make your strength useful in the real world of endurance.
To measure how well your strength is showing up in sport, consider:
injury/niggles in race and post
how quickly your body recovers
Any issues that arise are signals to get more proficient at your sport.
Do these 3 steps:
improve technique/mechanics
continue in-sport strength focus
back off general capacity strength, prioritize endurance specific movements (see Phase 4)
Bad form breaks you before distance does
Phase 4. Peak Speed
When: Summer through your A Race build
Focus: Maintain strength. Sharpen race fitness. Maximize speed and efficiency.
This phase is all about transitioning from strong to fast.
And doing it without burning out.
Increase endurance volume and race-specific workouts
Reduce gym strength to maintenance and shift to endurance specific movements
Single leg, plyometric, isometric movements
Maintain strength maintenance up until taper start
Drop strength training during race week
Example V02/Threshold/Speed workout from last week, 10 weeks out from Ironman World Champs:
Tuesday: Interval Bike Workout
3 round of… [10 x 40 sec Z5 / 20 sec Recovery]
This ride gave me lots of time generating high force production on short recovery.
Most intervals were between 370 and 400 Watts (120-130% of FTP).
Force + Skill = Speed
But it didn’t crush me.
Thursday (2 days later): Big Mountain Ride - 6 hours / 86 miles / 7k elevation gain
Saturday (4 days post-intervals): Strong Z2 Ride - 3 hours / steady power / 40 min run off the bike
4. My Last Year As A Case Study
Here’s a question a reader sent in recently:
“While I’m not a dad, I’ve got two similar goals: (1) build strength to support endurance racing and (2) stay generally fit for everyday life.
You mentioned doing 20-minute sessions twice a week (I'm guessing to keep it time-efficient).
But what would you recommend as the optimal amount of strength work when training for a sub-3 marathon?”
His 20-minute session comment was referencing a prior post I made.
And we’ll get to that in a minute…
But first let’s consider the 70.3 athlete case study mentioned earlier…
If 23% is too high to set speed PRs, what’s a better approach?
Here’s what the numbers say:
Over the last 365 days:
Only 6% of my total training time was spent on strength
I averaged just over 10 hours per week of total training time (hikes logged in yellow, normal walks not logged)
My strength work averaged 41 minutes per week (closer to 50 mins/week excluding Ironman deload in Oct. ‘24)
Is 50 Minutes A Week Enough?
Let me show you…
PRs I’ve set in the past year:
July ‘24: 4:33 at Oregon 70.3 [Top 5% overall]
Sept ‘24: 8:45 at Ironman Chattanooga (swim cancelled) [Top 10 in Age Group, World Champs Qualified]
April ‘25: 1:30 local Half Marathon
June ‘25: 5:36 at Leadville Trail Marathon [Top 20% overall]
Body Comp from the past year:
Blue Shorts: 175 lbs, my fastest Ironman shape (Sept ‘24)
Beanie: 172 lbs, Tribal Shred diet + return to strength after post-race deload (Jan ‘25)
Ball Cap: 181 lbs, adding strength and size (May ‘25)
Speedo: 178 lbs, transitioning strength to speed (July ‘25)
And through it all… zero injury.
What’s working:
swim, bike, run year-round
a phased strength approach
consistency across the board
The phased approach also gives me a seasonal flare that keeps things fresh and exciting:
fun at home lifts (ex: sandbags, jump rope)
progressive overload in the gym (being a bro)
endurance workouts that build strength (being a beast athlete)
endurance specific strength work that keeps me healthy (always ready)
Objective Measures To Consider
Here’s what the data I’m tracking in my own training, and across my athletes is showing:
For 3 sport athletes, 5 to 10% of total volume is sufficient for strength progress.
For run only/run focused athletes, that percent can be 10 to 20%, depending on the presence of bike volume in their training.
Any endurance athlete lifting longer than 45 mins at a time should assess workout quality, effectiveness, and goals.
Subjective Experience
Endurance opens up life in ways strength alone doesn’t.
There’s a different kind of confidence that comes from knowing I can rip off a 10 mile run or a 50 mile ride at a moment’s notice.
Not because I’m a pro. But because I’ve built that capacity over time.
And that’s what I want more people to experience.
Not elite speed…
But the energy, belief and ability to do more in life - with boldness.
Remembering The Goal
I want to:
be fit and strong as a dad and in everyday life
do cool stuff with cool people
have fun and live a long time
be up for any adventure
I also want to:
perform well in competitions
make progress and see what I’m capable of
5. Tribal 25s
Here’s what I’ve learned as an athlete, and after 4+ years of coaching athletes with holistic endurance, strength, and life fitness goals similar to mine:
2 x 25 minute, highly effective lifts per week is the sweet spot.
anything longer and consistency falls off
anything shorter and strength needs aren’t met
Lower the bar, raise the execution
If you want help putting these ideas into practice, you can download my favorite strength programs (across all 4 phases) HERE.
They’ll give you a clear place to start, whether you’re training for your first race or trying to get better at endurance, while staying strong for everyday life.
Click HERE for access to my strength programs.
Thanks so much for reading. Hope this helps you level up your life!
Onward.
— Ryan
I feel like you wrote this for me. Exactly what I've been needing to read and wanting to learn!
Legendary dad workout.
Would be interested to see some of the elements of your strength plan? What are your favorite exercises for lower back. My lower back tends to get tight and painful due to bike volume.