The ANC Race & Training Playbook Library
The ANC Race & Training Playbook Library
Seven free race playbooks. From your first sprint tri to a 200-mile gravel race. Built by a professional endurance athlete and coach on two decades of racing and peer-reviewed sports science.
Every Race Distance. Every Discipline. One Coaching System.
Race-day execution is built in training, not on race morning. This library gives you the same playbook structure I use with the athletes I coach — race-specific pacing, training blocks, fueling integration, taper timing, and the mental side. Whether you're chasing a first finish or a podium, the principles are the same.
Pick your distance below. Read it cover-to-cover once, then return to specific chapters as you build each race plan.
The Triathlon Playbooks
Three distances. One progression. From sprint to long course.
The Sprint Triathlon Playbook
Your first triathlon — or your fastest. 750m swim, 20K bike, 5K run. Pacing for a short, hard effort; T1/T2 execution; race-week taper; and the exact warm-up that gets your engine open before the gun.
Open the Sprint PlaybookPlaybook 02 · OlympicThe Olympic Distance Playbook
1.5K swim, 40K bike, 10K run. The classic distance — where threshold durability starts to matter and pacing errors get expensive. Bike-to-run transitions, fueling that fits in 2–3 hours, and how to negative-split the 10K.
Open the Olympic PlaybookPlaybook 03 · 70.3The 70.3 (Half-Distance) Playbook
1.9K swim, 90K bike, 21.1K run. Where durability becomes the deciding factor. Bike pacing that protects the run, the 60+ g/hr fueling window, half-marathon-off-the-bike strategy, and the build blocks that get you there.
Open the 70.3 PlaybookThe Running Playbooks
From the 5K to the marathon. Physiology-first run coaching.
The 5K & 10K Run Playbook
Short, fast, painful, glorious. VO₂max work, threshold development, and the race-day pacing that separates a good 5K from a great one. Plus the 10K math: where the first mile costs you the last mile.
Open the 5K/10K PlaybookPlaybook 05 · Half MarathonThe Half Marathon Playbook
21.1K — the sweet spot of run racing. Threshold endurance, long-run progression, race-week sharpening, and the pacing strategy that keeps you working with the second half instead of against it.
Open the Half Marathon PlaybookPlaybook 06 · MarathonThe Marathon Playbook
42.2K. The distance that rewards durability over capacity. Aerobic expansion, long-run progression, the 20-miler debate, fueling above 60 g/hr on the run, and the taper that actually leaves you fresh. Wall optional.
Open the Marathon PlaybookThe Gravel Playbook
Every gravel distance, one comprehensive resource.
New to Race Planning? Use This Sequence
A natural progression — distance first, then the technical pacing, then the fueling layer that locks it in.
- Pick your distance — choose your playbook above Start with the playbook that matches your next A-race. Read it cover-to-cover so you understand the race shape and demand before you build your block.
- Map your training block Each playbook outlines the training architecture — base, build, race-specific, taper. Use it to set the calendar backwards from race day.
- Layer in fueling — The ANC Fueling Library Race execution is fueled or it isn't. Once your block is mapped, layer in the daily training nutrition, the carb load, race-morning timing, and in-race g/hr targets.
- Rehearse race-day execution The pacing, the fueling, the warm-up, the transitions — rehearse all of it in training 2–4 weeks out. By race week, it should be automatic.
- Race week — taper and trust The work is done. Each playbook has a race-week section: workouts, sleep, fueling, mindset. Follow the script.
- Race day — execute the plan One race at a time. Pacing by feel calibrated to your data. Fueling on schedule. The plan is the plan.
- Review and rebuild What worked, what didn't, what would you change. Every race teaches you something. Bring the lessons into the next block.
The Playbooks Give You the Map. Coaching Gives You the Plan.
The playbooks are the principles. ECHO 1-on-1 Coaching and Foundational Coaching build the personalized plan around your physiology, your schedule, and your A-race — with weekly review, data analysis, and full race-day strategy.
Apply for ECHO Coaching → Foundational CoachingWho Built This
Angela Naeth is a professional endurance athlete and coach with over two decades in the sport — including IRONMAN champion titles and 70.3 World Championship competition. ANC Coaching brings that experience together with peer-reviewed sport-science to give every athlete the same caliber of race system the pros use.
Learn More About ANC Coaching →