Weekly Volume Planner

How to plan a triathlete's week

The planner splits your available hours across the three disciplines in proportion to the demands of the distance: the longer the race, the bigger the bike share — you spend more than half of race day on it. Your weakest discipline gets +5% of time taken from the largest share. Session counts are set so every workout is worth doing: three real swims beat five 20-minute dips.

Why these proportions

A typical Olympic-distance split is 20% swim, 50% bike, 30% run; for Ironman the bike grows to 55%. Running stays near 30% at every distance: more sharply raises injury risk, less starves the segment where races are decided. Swimming is the most technical discipline: frequency beats volume, so keep at least 2 swims per week even for sprint.

Frequently asked questions

How many hours do I need to finish an Ironman?

At least 10–12 hours per week in peak months, comfortably 12–15. A 70.3 takes 8–10, Olympic 5–8 and sprint 3–5 hours per week.

Where do brick workouts fit?

Once a week inside your bike hours: a short 10–20 minute run straight after the long ride. Generate the structure in our brick workout generator.

How should I spread sessions across days?

The classic layout: 2–3 morning swims on weekdays, a quality bike mid-week, the long ride on Saturday and the long run on Sunday or off the bike. One full rest day per week is non-negotiable.