Event programs
Train for the day that matters.
Tell Helios the race. It counts back from race day (base, build, peak, taper) at your level, across every sport the event needs, and shows you exactly what changes before anything lands on your calendar. 37 events · 109 level plans · 188 citations.
Pick the race. Pick your level.
Every plan is transcribed week by week from a research dossier, cites its sources, and says plainly where the evidence is thin. Too little time? It compresses base and build, never the taper, and tells you when you're under the minimum.
Cycling
CyclingStrength
Gran Fondo
100–180 km mass-start sportive with 1,500–3,500 m of climbing: aerobic riding broken up by repeated 10–40 min climbs.
- Beginner16 wk · 4-8.5 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 7-10 h
- Advanced12 wk · 9-13 h
CyclingStrength
Century
100 miles (160 km), mostly flat or rolling, ridden in groups: steady aerobic power, drafting and eating on the clock.
- Beginner16 wk · 4-9 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 6-10 h
- Advanced10 wk · 8-12 h
CyclingStrength
Long Gravel — Belgian Waffle Ride / Unbound
Mixed-surface ultra-distance: hours of riding on gravel, sand and singletrack, timed KOM / KOD / sprint sectors, self-sufficiency between aid stations.
- Beginner14 wk · 5-9 h
- Intermediate16 wk · 8-12 h
- Advanced16 wk · 11-16 h
CyclingStrength
Criterium
30–75 minutes on a short circuit with 4–8 corners: dozens of surges out of corners, soft-pedalling between, and a sprint.
- Beginner10 wk · 3-6 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 6-9 h
- Advanced8 wk · 8-12 h
CyclingStrength
Time Trial
A solo effort against the clock over 16–40 km in the TT or aero position: even pacing at threshold, and the position you can hold.
- Beginner10 wk · 3-6 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 6-9 h
- Advanced8 wk · 8-12 h
Running
Running
5K
5 km on the road or a parkrun: about 85–90% aerobic, run near 94% of threshold pace — VO2 and threshold work dominate the build.
- Beginner9 wk · 1-1.5 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 3-4.5 h
- Advanced10 wk · 4-6.5 h
Running
10K
10 km on the road at about 97% of threshold pace — for most runners close to threshold itself.
- Beginner10 wk · 1.5-3.5 h
- Intermediate10 wk · 3.5-5.5 h
- Advanced12 wk · 4-7 h
Running
Half Marathon
21.1 km at about 101–103% of threshold pace: threshold endurance, a long run near two hours, and fuel if you'll be out over 90 min.
- Beginner12 wk · 2-4 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 3.5-6 h
- Advanced14 wk · 4.5-7.5 h
Running
Marathon
42.2 km at about 104–108% of threshold pace: endurance, marathon-pace work, 60–90 g/h practised in the long runs, and a 3-week taper.
- Beginner20 wk · 2.5-6.5 h
- Intermediate18 wk · 4-7.5 h
- Advanced18 wk · 5.5-9.5 h
RunningStrength
50K Trail Ultra
50 km on trail with 1,000–2,500 m of climbing: time on feet, hiking the steep climbs, effort-capped for the first half.
- Beginner20 wk · 3-8 h
- Intermediate16 wk · 4-9 h
- Advanced14 wk · 5-11 h
RunningStrength
50 Miles / 100K Trail Ultra
80–100 km on trail with 2,000–5,000 m of climbing, usually into the night: Endurance-capped first half, 200–400 kcal/h, caffeine after halfway.
- Beginner24 wk · 3.5-10 h
- Intermediate20 wk · 4-12 h
- Advanced16 wk · 6-13 h
RunningStrength
100-Mile Ultra
161 km — mountain (5,000–10,000 m D+) or flat / loop — through one or two nights: at or below aerobic threshold early, front-loaded carbohydrate, caffeine at night.
- Beginner24 wk · 4-12 h
- Intermediate20 wk · 5-12.5 h
- Advanced16 wk · 6-15 h
Swimming
Swimming
1.5 km Open-Water Swim
1,500 m in open water — essentially a threshold event: CSS is roughly 1500 m time-trial pace, plus sighting, starts and drafting.
- Beginner10 wk · 1-2.5 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 2.5-4 h
- Advanced6 wk · 3.5-5.5 h
Swimming
5 km Open-Water Swim
5 km in open water — an aerobic-capacity and pacing event, where losing technique late in the race is the usual failure.
- Beginner14 wk · 1.5-4.5 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 3-6 h
- Advanced10 wk · 3.5-7.5 h
Swimming
10 km Open-Water Swim
The marathon swim: 10 km in open water, decided by lactate threshold, even pacing and feeding on the move — often against a 4–5 h cut-off.
- Beginner20 wk · 2.5-5.5 h
- Intermediate16 wk · 3-7 h
- Advanced12 wk · 3.5-9 h
Triathlon
SwimmingCyclingRunningStrength
Sprint Triathlon
750 m swim, 20 km bike, 5 km run in about 1–2 h: the bike near threshold and the run close to 5K effort.
- Beginner10 wk · 3-7 h
- Intermediate10 wk · 5-10 h
- Advanced8 wk · 7-14 h
SwimmingCyclingRunningStrength
Olympic Triathlon
1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run in 2–3½ h: the bike just under threshold and the run close to 10K effort.
- Beginner14 wk · 4-9 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 6-12 h
- Advanced12 wk · 9-16 h
SwimmingCyclingRunningStrength
IRONMAN 70.3
1.9 km swim, 90 km bike, 21.1 km run in 4–8½ h: a capped-IF bike that protects the half marathon, and fuelling on the clock.
- Beginner18 wk · 5-12 h
- Intermediate16 wk · 7-15 h
- Advanced16 wk · 10-19 h
SwimmingCyclingRunningStrength
IRONMAN
3.8 km swim, 180 km bike, 42.2 km run in 9–17 h: an IF-capped bike, 60–90 g/h of carbohydrate, and a marathon that decides the day.
- Beginner24 wk · 6-14 h
- Intermediate22 wk · 9-19 h
- Advanced20 wk · 13-24 h
RunningCyclingStrength
Duathlon (standard)
10 km run, 40 km bike, 5 km run in about 2–3½ h: a restrained Run 1, an Olympic-intensity bike and a strong Run 2 on loaded legs.
- Beginner10 wk · 3-8 h
- Intermediate10 wk · 6-12 h
- Advanced8 wk · 8-14 h
SwimmingCyclingStrength
Aquabike (70.3)
1.9 km swim and 90 km bike in about 3–5½ h, no run: a bigger swim share and a bike that can ride a little harder than in a 70.3.
- Beginner12 wk · 5-10 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 7-13 h
- Advanced10 wk · 9-16 h
Racket sports
PickleballStrengthRunningCycling
Pickleball Tournament
A pickleball tournament — repeated 3–9 s rallies at about 1:1.6 work:rest, 3–6 matches a day, where tissue injury is a bigger risk than fatigue.
- Beginner6 wk · 1.8-3.2 h
- Intermediate7 wk · 2.6-5.4 h
- Advanced8 wk · 3.3-6.8 h
TennisStrengthRunningCycling
Tennis Tournament
A tennis tournament — 5–10 s points at 1:2–1:4 work:rest, up to 2 matches a day over 2–3 days, with sprint, jump and serve accuracy falling from day 2.
- Beginner6 wk · 2.2-3.3 h
- Intermediate7 wk · 3.1-5.8 h
- Advanced8 wk · 3.5-7.6 h
PadelStrengthRunningCycling
Padel Tournament
A padel tournament — 9–16 s rallies at about 1:1, best-of-3 matches of 60–120 min with frequent overheads, 1–3 matches a day over 2–3 days.
- Beginner6 wk · 2-3.4 h
- Intermediate7 wk · 3.3-6.3 h
- Advanced8 wk · 3.5-8.3 h
SquashStrengthRunningCycling
Squash Tournament
A squash tournament — the most aerobically demanding racket sport (elite play near 92% of HRmax), best-of-5 matches of 40–90 min, 1–2 matches a day over 2–3 days.
- Beginner6 wk · 2.1-3.6 h
- Intermediate7 wk · 3.3-6.3 h
- Advanced8 wk · 3-8.5 h
BadmintonStrengthRunningCycling
Badminton Tournament
A badminton tournament — ~7–10 s rallies at about 1:2 work:rest, 3 games to 21, and 3–6 matches in a day for a singles + doubles + mixed entry.
- Beginner6 wk · 1.9-3.4 h
- Intermediate7 wk · 2.7-5.8 h
- Advanced8 wk · 2.7-7.1 h
Combined events
AthleticsStrengthRunning
Decathlon
Ten events over two days — the highest in-competition injury rate in athletics, and almost no research on how to train for it.
- Intermediate14 wk · 6.5-12.75 h
- Advanced14 wk · 9-15 h
AthleticsStrengthRunning
Heptathlon
Seven events over two days, where the speed events — hurdles, high jump, 200 m and long jump — explain most of the score.
- Intermediate14 wk · 6-11 h
- Advanced14 wk · 7-12.5 h
Obstacle & hybrid
HybridRunningStrength
HYROX
8 × (1 km run + 1 station) — an aerobic race with repeated strength-endurance spikes, about half of it running.
- Beginner12 wk · 2.25-4.5 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 2.75-5.25 h
- Advanced12 wk · 3.75-7.5 h
HybridRunningStrength
Spartan Sprint
5 km and 20 obstacles on steep trail: grip-limited pass/fail obstacles, heavy mandatory carries, crawls and walls.
- Beginner8 wk · 2.5-4 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 2.75-5.25 h
- Advanced8 wk · 3.25-6.5 h
HybridRunningStrength
Spartan Super
10 km and 25 obstacles on steep trail: grip-limited pass/fail obstacles, heavy mandatory carries, crawls and walls.
- Beginner12 wk · 2.25-5.5 h
- Intermediate12 wk · 3-6.5 h
- Advanced12 wk · 3.25-7 h
HybridRunningStrength
Spartan Beast
21 km and 30 obstacles on steep trail: grip-limited pass/fail obstacles, heavy mandatory carries, crawls and walls — five or more hours on your feet for many.
- Beginner16 wk · 2.5-6.75 h
- Intermediate16 wk · 3.25-7.25 h
- Advanced16 wk · 3.5-7.75 h
HybridRunningStrength
Tough Mudder 15K
About 9.3 mi and 20+ obstacles: less running pace, more cold water, grip and teamwork.
- Beginner10 wk · 2.25-5.25 h
- Intermediate10 wk · 3-5.75 h
- Advanced10 wk · 3.25-7 h
HybridRunningStrength
Obstacle 5K / Mud Run
5 km with 10–15 obstacles — a Tough Mudder 5K, a charity mud run or a local obstacle 5K, mostly untimed or chip-timed without penalties.
- Beginner6 wk · 2-3.5 h
- Intermediate6 wk · 3.25-5 h
- Advanced6 wk · 4.25-6.5 h
HybridStrengthRowingRunning
CrossFit Open
Three weekly workouts, each a 10–20 min mixed-modal test — wall balls, box jump-overs, dumbbell work, pull-up to muscle-up ladders, burpees over the bar, cleans and thrusters.
- Beginner9 wk · 2-3.25 h
- Intermediate9 wk · 2-4 h
- Advanced9 wk · 2.75-6.5 h
HybridRunningStrength
Murph
1 mile, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 air squats, 1 mile — with a 14/20 lb vest for Rx. Usually done on Memorial Day, often in the heat.
- Beginner8 wk · 2-4 h
- Intermediate8 wk · 2.5-4.25 h
- Advanced8 wk · 2.5-5.5 h
One program, every sport it needs.
- Counted back from race day
- Base, build, peak, taper, race
- Tapers sized to the race's length, recovery weeks on a 3:1 rhythm (2:1 if you recover slowly).
- Honest about short runways
- Compresses, never guts
- Base goes first, the taper never. Under the research minimum you confirm, or take the later race or shorter event it suggests.
- Fits your week
- Hours dial ×0.8-1.2
- Moves easy volume only; key sessions stay as researched. Your other sports keep running and steer where the hard days land.
- Your coach runs it
- Claude · ChatGPT · any MCP client
- Your coach can set up the program for you and adjusts sessions week to week from how you actually train.