LUCY CHARLES-BARCLAY’S HAWAII VICTORY CAME OFF THE BACK OF TRAINING IN ARTIFICIAL HEAT, BUT IT’S SOMETHING US MERE MORTALS COULD TRY THIS OFF-SEASON, AS IT HAS BENEFITS IN THE COLD, TOO.HERE’S THE THINKING...
WORDS JAMES WITTS IMAGES SEAN M HAFFEY/GETTY IMAGES
THE HOT PAIN CAVE
“I’ve always felt like the bridesmaid at the world championship,” Lucy Charles-Barclay reflected after her Kona victory. And with good multisport matrimonial reason, finishing second in Kona in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022.
Those near-misses were left in the past on the Kona lava fields this year as she stormed to a new course record of 8:24:31. An incredible performance that planted the ceremonial cranial garland upon a British triathlete’s head for the first time in 12 years, after Leanda Cave’s win in 2011.
But what had changed to send the Hertfordshire Ironwoman to the peak of the podium? Experience helps, of course. But what specifically? It’s clear that remaining cool in the hot and humid environs of Hawaii played an integral role in the masterplan. So here’s how Charles-Barclay simulated the heat of Hawaii… and what it feels like for a recreational athlete (your humble writer) to do similar… Click on the Charles-Barclay vlog that went live a day before Ironman Hawaii and you’ll be greeted by a sweltering Lucy turbo training against the backdrop of an empty washing basket while being fanned down with a bodyboard by her coach-on-the-ground and husband, Reece. The couple had switched from their preparation base of Lanzarote to train at home in the UK where they used heaters to crank up the temperature in an effort to acclimate to the heat and humidity of Hawaii.
“She’s had a very controlled environment,” Reece commented in the build-up. “I could set the temperature exactly and make sure she was having the right nutrition and hydration every hour. It was like being in a lab for six weeks.”
It’s that precise acclimation strategy, devised by Dan Lorang who oversees Charles-Barclay’s plan and who also steered Anne Haug to second, that’s of interest as just 10 days before Charles-Barclay became the third Brit ever to win the Ironman Worlds, we headed to the Porsche Human Performance Centre at Silverstone, taking up a sadistic invite from nutrition outfit Precision Fuel & Hydration to experience the conditions of Kona for ourselves… ←
❺ PREPPING TO PEAK
“The chamber’s dialled into 40°C,” says lead physiologist Jack Wilson. “We can’t change the hum
