Female-First 70.3 Training Plan
Built female first, not female adapted. A plan for your IRONMAN 70.3 at a sustainable 10 hours a week, with the recovery your training actually needs and progressive strength work held...
Female performance
Female first, not female adapted.
Most plans are built around male physiology and handed to women to get on with. I do it the other way round. Your plan starts from how a female athlete actually trains, adapts and recovers, and when I coach you it bends around your cycle and your life, not some average that was never you in the first place.
Why "female adapted" fails
Most training plans, most research and most coaching were built around the male athlete, then shrunk to fit everyone else. Women got trained as small men. That ignores what actually shapes how a female athlete responds to training: how you recover, how you fuel, the strength work that protects your bones and tendons, and how load is best spread across your week. Turning a men's plan down isn't the same as building the right one.
What female first actually means
Female first means the plan starts from the female athlete rather than a template. It means recovery-respecting structure so the work lands instead of grinding you down, and strength work built in for long-term bone and tendon health rather than bolted on as an afterthought. And it means I'm honest about what each level of support can and can't do.
Plan Only and Coached by Tom
Genuinely cycle-aware coaching
This is where female-specific training stops being a label and gets personal. When I coach you, three things happen that a downloadable plan can't.
- The plan adapts around your physiology. Load, recovery and intensity are shaped to how you respond, not to an average athlete.
- Feedback reads your sessions in context. What your body actually did, alongside your reported symptoms, recovery and where you are in your cycle.
- Strength for bone and tendon is built in. Not bolted on, because long-term durability is part of performance, not separate from it.
I'm honest about the limits: coaching is personalised week to week, and I'll never overclaim what it does. I coach with a particular emphasis on female-specific performance development, built from years of working with female athletes from first finish lines to the front of the race.
The women who prove it
Real names, real results
Female results, not female participation.
Horsepower is proud to have supported some amazing women on their journey to Ironman wins, XTRI podiums and course records. Every name below is one of them.
Hannah S
- Ironman Wales 2022 champion
- The ROC Wales 2021 - 1st, bike course record
- XTRI Celtman 2021 - 3rd, bike course record
More results
- Welsh 100 Mile Time Trial Championships 2023 - 1st
- XTRI Norseman 2022 - 3rd
Madison S
- Ironman Wales 2025 champion
- Overall women's age group champion, Ironman Wales 2025
- Welsh 100 Mile Time Trial Champion 2026
More results
- 10th, Ironman World Championships Nice 2024
- Wales Middle and Long Distance Champion 2025
- Ironman Swansea 70.3 2024 - 1st age group, 2nd overall
- Cotswold 113 2024 - 1st, Cotswold 51 Fiver 2024 - 1st
Naomi S
- XTRI Swedeman 2026 - 2nd
- XTRI Celtman 2025 - 3rd
- Slateman Triathlon 2024 - 1st
More results
- Brutal Triathlon 2024 - 1st
Elly B
- Outlaw Half Triathlon 2026 - age group winner
Female performance, answered
What is female-specific endurance training?
It is training designed for a female athlete from the ground up, not a men's plan with the numbers scaled down. It respects the physiological differences that shape recovery, fuelling, strength needs and how training load is best spread across the week.
Do Horsepower's off-the-shelf plans sync to my menstrual cycle?
No, and I won't claim they do. A downloadable plan cannot know where you are in your cycle, so instead my Female-First plans use recovery-respecting structure and dedicated strength work for bone and tendon health that benefit every female athlete. Genuine cycle-aware training comes with coaching, where the plan adapts around you.
What makes Horsepower's coaching cycle-aware?
When I coach you, I read the sessions you actually complete in the context of what your body was doing, and I adapt the next block around your physiology, your symptoms and your feedback. It's personalised to you, not a generic template.
Which female-specific training plans does Horsepower offer?
Four Female-First plans are live now: 70.3, Olympic-distance triathlon, marathon and century. Each is built for a female athlete targeting that specific event.
Is female-specific training only for elite athletes?
No. The same approach that supports my racing athletes supports a first-timer. It's about training the athlete in front of me properly, at every level and life stage.
The entry point
Female-First training plans
Start here. Four plans, each built for a female athlete targeting its event, with recovery-respecting structure and dedicated strength work for bone and tendon health. What they do not do is claim to sync to your menstrual cycle: an off-the-shelf plan cannot know where you are in yours, so I won't pretend it does. That's what coaching is for. One-off, delivered through TrainingPeaks.
Female-First Century Training Plan
Built female first, not female adapted. A plan for your 100 mile ride at a sustainable 8 hours a week, with the recovery your training actually needs and progressive strength work held...
Female-First Marathon Training Plan
Built female first, not female adapted. A plan for your marathon at a sustainable 6 hours a week, with the recovery your training actually needs and progressive strength work held through...
Female-First Olympic Triathlon Training Plan
Built female first, not female adapted. A plan for your Olympic-distance triathlon at a sustainable 8 hours a week, with the recovery your training actually needs and progressive strength...
Want it built around your body?
Pick your way in. Start with a proven plan off the shelf, have me write and read your training block by block, or go all in with a coach in your corner for all of it. Whichever path you choose, the training bends around your physiology, your event and your life.