I´m kind of limited to Low Volume plans due to work- and familylife.
Anyone done the Low Volume plans for 70.3 and would like to share some stats/perfomance history?
Today I´m:
Swim: 1000m - 16:20min (1:38/100m)
Bike: FTP 265w
Run: 1k - 44min
How much improvements may I get from the Low Volume Plan?
I’ve tried them over the years, but don’t have any specifics for performance results, mainly due to not following them that well once outdoor season came along and/or getting burnt out on them and changing direction. I would say to look closely at the intensity level of the low volume workouts and see if you can realistically handle that AND stay consistent with your training across all three disciplines–consistency is king. The bike workouts can be especially difficult to recover from when you’re not doing full rest days like a low volume cycling plan and while the bike is a very large part of your 70.3 performance, the run still matters a ton so as with everything triathlon it’s a balance. If you have more time on the weekend you could look at incorporating the longer rides from the higher volume plans to help offset any reductions in intensity during the weekday rides you might need. Note that the tri plans haven’t received any tweaks like the cycling plans have based on failure rates of workouts and whatnot, which IMO they could use (but that’s just me).
I did the Half IM Low Volume plans for the same reasons (family/work/life). 2019 was my first season doing triathlons after about a 10 year hiatus so I did make a lot of newbie gains. I hit 95% of the bike/run workouts. I usually swam once per week but swimming is my strong suit and the time commitment to benefit just wasn’t enough for me. My actual progression for the year was Olymic MV Base->Build->Specialty then HIM LV Build-> Specialty. As for improvements my swim I don’t really have any comparison. My bike FTP went from 189->282 w/kg went from 2.1->3.4 (with some weight loss). For the run I did an open half marathon almost exactly one year before the 70.3 in 2:17 and my 70.3 run time was 1:47. As for my times
Swim- 25:xx (with a current)
Bike- 2:41:xx
Run- 1:47:xx
Overall- 5:02:xx
I was very please overall and will continue to do the LV plans until life gets less in the way.
I will probably update it mid-june to see where I got with it, but in 2019 I did my first 70.3 with following times:
Swim - 43min (I’m a floating turd at best)
Bike - 2:25 (about 800m of ascending, undulating course)
Run - 1:38 (about 200m of ascending, undulating as well)
Total 4:52.
I trained about 6-7h per week on average from Sep 2018 to Jun 2019. No idea about my numbers as I did not have a PM.
I’m on a low volume plan with a slight modification of adding more running volume (I ran 2:55 marathon in Oct 2019 and 1:22 half in Sep 2019). I still run 3x a week with an occasional TSS filler run (1 Vo2max, 1 easy run, 1 long run) with around 40-50km per week total (higher than LV plan suggests). I think LV running volume just isn’t enough for me and it’s better to add workouts than skip them.
My goal this year is to crack 4:30 on that same undulating/hilly course with a stretch goal of 4:25, but it depends a lot on whether I can actually swim by then or not. I think for that, LV plan should be sufficient enough (bearing in mind the added running volume). I occasionaly switch 2h endurance ride for a 1.5h one when I’m time crunched and hopefully when the weather permits, endurance rides will be done outside. Also, should lose a bit of weight as well for this to happen.
If you listen to the Kona podcast series, I think there was a guy who did 8:40 IM on a low volume plan and there wasn’t anybody IIRC that was on a high volume plan, which is brutal and outright impossible if you have anything else going in your life besides training.
Followed low volume Half/Full ironman plan during 2019. Did a half distance race at the end of June and a full IM in the middle of August. Compliance was good on bike and run but i skipped swim sessions, did 1-2 a week.
FTP around 280 (4 w/kg).
Half distance
Swim 0:37 (long swim)
Bike 2:21
Run 1:35
Total 4:35
Full distance
Swim 1:00
Bike 4:54
Run 3:30
Total 9:29
Averaged around 8.5 hours of training weekly.
Curious what races you did? Looks like you crushed the full in comparison to your half. 
The half (Halmstad Sweden) has hills both on the bike and the run.
The full (IM Kalmar Sweden) is flat and fast. The wind speed and direction last year was benificial. A lot of fast times. I bearly made top 100 (pro included).
Hey guys - stumbled across this thread as I’m trying to figure out feasibility of the upcoming year. For the folks who stuck pretty close the low volume plans and had these awesome performances - did you stick to the TR bike plans? Particularly the long rides which are relatively short in comparison to traditional plans.