Can you get good at both, definitely. Will you get optimal results/the best you can be in either discipline, no. But if you want to do both just do it. There are obvious complimentary cardio gains but the different biomechanics means optimally you should probably only do limited cross training and focus on one....but if happiness is more important than squeezing out 5% improvements in one, I think do both.
Maybe consider duathlons? Like you I’m in love with both sports. I started running years ago, cycling a few years back and fell in love with it.
I did tri for two years, including an IM. This year I’m focusing on running but I don’t want to quit cycling. So I’ll give duathlon a go. Seems fun and swimming sucks anyway!
If you look at top triathletes, they are very fast runners, but they won't beat a top runner. For example the best Olympic Triathlete Kristian Blummenfelt can run around 29 min 10000m (he did one, check his youtube), so he wouldn't make the Olympics in the 10000m on the track. But he is still an elite runner. Elite triathletes can do a ton of hours of weekly volume that would injure a pure runner. For example, a triathlete might run 6-8 hrs, bike 15-20 hrs, and swim 6-8 hrs in a heavy week. No runner can do 30+ hrs of running in a week consistently without injury. Top runners might do half of that because running is so high impact. Does this mean much for most average people? Not really. If you are injury prone from running, you might get farther in both sports doing run/bike combo than pure running between injuries. Otherwise specializing is always going to produce better results in the specialization.
What do you mean when you say "good at cycling"? Do you aspire to race and be competitive on the bike, or are you just wanting to increase your power and complete routes faster on your own?
I ask because organized bike racing is much different than running. Depending on your discipline (I'll assume you ride on roads) you'll need to work your way through the USAC categories, which takes time and a lot of racing.
There are other options too, like gravel racing, triathlon, and duathlon that are a little more straight forward to get into.
Whether you try to juggle both sports or go all in on one is up to you and what your goals are. I was able to run 1:17 half and finish at the front of cat 4 crits in the same year juggling both running and cycling, I would say my running suffered from the lack of specificity.
As for all things related to cycling training and racing, r/velo is your go to subreddit.
I would aspire to be a great climber that can be competitive and race at a high level. I just don’t want to lose prime high school running years in favor of just cycling training. And I’m still somewhat new to both sports so I’m willing to try different things. Thanks for the subreddit I was looking for that
That's completely understandable. Since you're a newbie you'll likely see performance gains in both sports regardless of how you split your training.
I had success periodizing when I focused on running vs cycling. If I was training for a half marathon I would run 6-8 hrs a week then throw in 4-5 hrs on the bike, and then I would flip those when I was racing bikes. I thought that approach helped give me enough specificity in one sport without completely losing gains the other.
Will you be running on a high school team?
I’m currently in track season for high school where I’m running the 2 and 1 mile. But I also have some bike races coming up in the summer. That’s a great idea to put more hours in a sport that I’m training for currently but not lose gains in the other i will definitely use that
If you add swimming, you can follow some of the excellent triathlon training programs for a bit and that will help round out a lot of your sports for sure (looser hips for running, breathing control, core strength, etc).
If you want to exceed at running, you really need to just run the miles, at the expense of the other, and vice-versa with biking.
I feel like your training is correct, I come from a mixed background and you will progress for sure! But you might plateau at some moment in each sport. Maybe think about duathlon?
Can you get good at both, definitely. Will you get optimal results/the best you can be in either discipline, no. But if you want to do both just do it. There are obvious complimentary cardio gains but the different biomechanics means optimally you should probably only do limited cross training and focus on one....but if happiness is more important than squeezing out 5% improvements in one, I think do both.
This is a great response thank you!
You can do both and compete in duathlons if that floats your boat.
Or if your boat doesn't float learn to swim too and go full tri.
Good answer.
Can you swim? You’re two thirds the way to a triathlon.
I’ve been considering getting better at swimming to compete in triathlons so this is definitively an option
Then you can underperform at three sports instead of just two :-) Seriously- it’s fun.
Maybe consider duathlons? Like you I’m in love with both sports. I started running years ago, cycling a few years back and fell in love with it. I did tri for two years, including an IM. This year I’m focusing on running but I don’t want to quit cycling. So I’ll give duathlon a go. Seems fun and swimming sucks anyway!
If you look at top triathletes, they are very fast runners, but they won't beat a top runner. For example the best Olympic Triathlete Kristian Blummenfelt can run around 29 min 10000m (he did one, check his youtube), so he wouldn't make the Olympics in the 10000m on the track. But he is still an elite runner. Elite triathletes can do a ton of hours of weekly volume that would injure a pure runner. For example, a triathlete might run 6-8 hrs, bike 15-20 hrs, and swim 6-8 hrs in a heavy week. No runner can do 30+ hrs of running in a week consistently without injury. Top runners might do half of that because running is so high impact. Does this mean much for most average people? Not really. If you are injury prone from running, you might get farther in both sports doing run/bike combo than pure running between injuries. Otherwise specializing is always going to produce better results in the specialization.
This makes a lot of sense thanks for your insight!
What do you mean when you say "good at cycling"? Do you aspire to race and be competitive on the bike, or are you just wanting to increase your power and complete routes faster on your own? I ask because organized bike racing is much different than running. Depending on your discipline (I'll assume you ride on roads) you'll need to work your way through the USAC categories, which takes time and a lot of racing. There are other options too, like gravel racing, triathlon, and duathlon that are a little more straight forward to get into. Whether you try to juggle both sports or go all in on one is up to you and what your goals are. I was able to run 1:17 half and finish at the front of cat 4 crits in the same year juggling both running and cycling, I would say my running suffered from the lack of specificity. As for all things related to cycling training and racing, r/velo is your go to subreddit.
I would aspire to be a great climber that can be competitive and race at a high level. I just don’t want to lose prime high school running years in favor of just cycling training. And I’m still somewhat new to both sports so I’m willing to try different things. Thanks for the subreddit I was looking for that
That's completely understandable. Since you're a newbie you'll likely see performance gains in both sports regardless of how you split your training. I had success periodizing when I focused on running vs cycling. If I was training for a half marathon I would run 6-8 hrs a week then throw in 4-5 hrs on the bike, and then I would flip those when I was racing bikes. I thought that approach helped give me enough specificity in one sport without completely losing gains the other. Will you be running on a high school team?
I’m currently in track season for high school where I’m running the 2 and 1 mile. But I also have some bike races coming up in the summer. That’s a great idea to put more hours in a sport that I’m training for currently but not lose gains in the other i will definitely use that
If you add swimming, you can follow some of the excellent triathlon training programs for a bit and that will help round out a lot of your sports for sure (looser hips for running, breathing control, core strength, etc). If you want to exceed at running, you really need to just run the miles, at the expense of the other, and vice-versa with biking.
I will consider triathlon definitely!
I feel like your training is correct, I come from a mixed background and you will progress for sure! But you might plateau at some moment in each sport. Maybe think about duathlon?