Discussion: Advice on training for multiple sports

hi, as of now I haven't done an adventure race. I was hoping to find some 'kindred spirits' on this site and hopefully do a race in the future. My question is if I can get advice from any of you that train for multiple sports.
Currently I compete in sprint triathlons, surf most days (I was a competitive surfer for a few years) and a practicing Jiu Jitsu martial artist with hopes to compete eventually in this. I thought since you adventure racers also train for multiple sports at a competitive level you could point me in the right direction for how to set up a training log that allows for adequate recovery but also adequate volume and intensity. I've done well in competitive running, swimming, triathlons and surfing as individual sports but how do you put them all together? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

I also weight train. Adventure racing looks marvelous and I am interested in what your training schedule looks like!
Thanks!

start by doing lots of time on your feet and bike. Find a pack you like and wear it all the time. You need to get your body use to longer efforts. Then the speed comes. It will really help if you an find a team near you. Think of AR training as more of a lifestyle than workouts.

One of the benefits of attackpoint is that you can look at what everyone is doing. I think we all approach our training in a different way, but if you click on "Training" and then "browse logs" you can see all kinds of different "training philosophies." Some are more effective than others. Like Randy said though, build up to at least a few hours on the bike and on your feet each week and try to get in the canoe/kayak once a week or so (once the lakes and rivers are thawed.) Get in a good long brick (or two) on the weekend and don't forget to make sure you recover.

If you want to see the training schedule of a top adventure racer who logs everything on Attackpoint, a good example is Kyle Peter's log leading up to the Adventure Race World Championships in December, where he won a bronze medal. Maybe look at October, which was a big volume training month. You don't need to train hard enough to medal at the world champs but you can see how one successful adventure racer set up his program.
http://ar.attackpoint.org/viewlog.jsp/user_6427/pe...

We don't want this to go to Kyle's head though, so what are some other good examples we can share with Mochachick?

JayXC / 2 = good normal person 24 hr race training targets

Shrek Feet trains as a triathlete and has AR success

Both of those are high volume; you can certainly do well on less.

hi hayley-
here is what i would do. look at your life commitments and figure out how many hours per week you could use for training. then i would dedicate 40-50% of those hours to biking, 20-30% running, 20-30% other (paddle, strength, swim, surf, jiu jitsu, etc). then try to hit those targets for a few weeks, see how body responds, and adjust from there. adjust overall volume for overall fitness, sport-specific volume to work on weaknesses or hone strengths, etc.

my personal experience is that my running fitness carries over into biking but not vice versa. strength work has improved everything. a mix of intensities on the bike is great for building fitness and also active recovery. increase your volume by adding more easy/mod workouts/hours.

that is a 10 cent answer to a million dollar question. i'd be happy to discuss more. also find yourself some awesome training buddies/teammates, they make everything better.
--emily.

silkychrome and runninghils have great logs to review. Also, check into the local orienteering club, navigation is important and often the meets are great experience, fitness and training buddy builders. I think you are female, and strength training is super important.

Carbon and I also did a solid training program in 2011, designed by a multisport coach. It delivered good results. It had us training up to 3.5 hours each day which may be more than you are looking for, but you can see how the program is built and scale it to however much time you have. I wasn't logging on AP yet, but you can find it on Carbon's log.

So far you have been given great input. My two cents are to sign up for a sprint AR in order to gauge your current abilities. Sprints are typically less skill demanding (CP plotting/orienteering) than longer events yet will give you an experience to draw conclusions on regarding the areas needing improvement. It will also give you a feel for how these races flow.
From your post it sounds like you have two areas that you want to be competitive in: jiu jitsu and adventure racing. It will be a balancing act to maintain but if you find your groove you will be happier person. I say that after many years of doing what I didn't love and finally finding my groove and trying to prioritize them....and I'm still working on that becoming a lifestyle.
No matter what, have fun. As LegendaryRandy says, go fast and take chances.