This study examines the metabolic effect of a 1.2 mile swim preceding a 50 mile cycling time-trial compared to a 50 mile cycling time-trial without a preceding swim in elite Half IronmanTM triathletes. Seven elite triathletes completed two trials, one swim (S) trial and one no-swim (NS) trial. In both trials, the athletes completed a 50 mile cycling time-trial using a Computrainer while having measurements taken for their absolute VO2 (Lmin-1), relative VO2 (mLkgmin-1), RQ ratio, blood lactate concentration (mmolL-1), blood glucose concentration (mgdL-1), and heart rate. The S and NS trials for each athlete were separated by at least one week, and up to three weeks. The study followed a ‘counterbalanced’ format. Upon completion of the two trials, the assumed hypothesis is that there will be a significant increase in the absolute metabolic demand in the S trial compared with the NS trial. This decrease in performance would indicate that the 1.2 mile swim causes more metabolic effort than many triathletes account for when training for the Half IronmanTM. Currently athletes are still in the midst of completing both trials, and by mid-April there will be concrete data and analyses to compare against the hypothesis.

Does a 1.2 mile swim significantly affect the absolute metabolic demand of a 50 mile bike trial.