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QUESTION
What percentage of my power threshold should I plan on pacing the bike leg of a half ironman? How about a full Ironman?
ANSWER
The percent of power threshold that someone should plan on pacing the bike leg of any long-distance race is different based mainly on experience. For my Half-Ironman distance athletes I like to see them be between 80-85% of their threshold, and for Full distance 68-78% of threshold with beginners being around the lower end of the range.
I also want the athlete to ride at a consistent power output with the difference between average power and normalized power being as close to zero as possible (e.g., no spikes in power for hills or sprints). Lastly, I have my athletes do 2 training rides of race distance using their projected target % of threshold to test it out with race day gear and nutrition, so changes can be made if need be.
