If you're reading this article, then you qualified—or plan on qualifying—for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. You've poured the past several months of your life into swimming, cycling, and running. You ventured into that painful, dark place during your qualifier, and somehow came out on the the other side. You bested your competitors and won your qualifying certificate, and now you realize that you have only a few months until you must do it all again.

Not only must you do it all again, but you must do it in a much more difficult environment, surrounded by sweltering lava rock fields, fierce winds, an unfriendly combination of heat and humidity, and a field of competitors just as motivated as you. So now what? How do you prepare for success on the Big Island?

In some races, you can get away with following a non-race specific program. But Kona is not your average race.

Whatever you've been doing so far has probably worked pretty well. After all, you qualified for Kona. The same plan that got you through your qualification race is often the best plan to use or modify for the World Championships. You're familiar with the terminology, the program layout, the workouts, and how your body responds to each session. With just 12 weeks to train, attempting to tackle the learning curve of a new training system is risky.

But you will have to make some crucial program modifications to prepare your body for the Hawaii Ironman course. Here are a few training specifics to help you get in the proper shape for one of the most esteemed race courses in the world.

Practice drafting. You're going to be in a swim in which the majority of the competitors will be emerging near the one-hour mark. Most of them will swim fast and straight, so it behooves you to be a good draftee. The most efficient drafting position is between the hip and thigh of the swimmer ahead of you. An acceptable position is also up to two feet from the toes of the swimmer ahead of you. Find a partner, preferably someone faster than you, and begin practicing open water or pool drafting at least once per week. Ideally, you should combine your drafting session with your long swim session.

Ride in the heat. If you're in a dry, hot climate, then don't worry about the humidity. Hot and dry training is a good physiological acclimation transfer to hot and humid conditions. Simply focus on completing your long rides during the heat of the day, and practice water and salt intake. If you are in a cooler climate, you'll need to perform heat acclimation sessions involve an indoor trainer, radiating heat fan or radiator, and humidifier. Build these sessions into your Kona training plan at least once per week for the bike and run.

Ride in the wind. You must train your body to maintain a high cadence and an aero position while riding into the wind for long 10-30 minute intervals at race pace. During the ride out to Hawi especially you will encounter fierce headwinds and crosswinds,— if you have a habit of "mashing gears" in the wind you will destroy your marathon. Stay low, ride at 80 to 90 RPM, and embrace the wind.

Run in the heat. This time of year, most individuals try to get the long run "out of the way" by starting in the morning and finishing in the mid-morning. The unfortunate news is that you won't be running in the cool morning in Hawaii, but in the heat of the afternoon sun. Switch your long runs to the afternoon, and engage in a high amount of R&R afterwards, including an ice bath and foam roller to flush the inflammation that will occur.

Run on the highway. Most highways have shoulders that enable you to safely perform a weekly race pace trek on a long, straight section. The other option is an old farm road or any long stretch of road where you're required to simply stare at the ribbon of pavement and focus on your cadence and pace. This is exactly what you will encounter while trekking to and from the energy lab.

Run-walk. The aid stations in Kona are beyond fabulous, with some of the best triathlon volunteers on the planet. They'll have what you need. To keep your core cool and to practice taking the time to dump ice anywhere you can get it at these stations, insert a 30-second walk every two to three miles during your last long runs before your taper.

In some races, you can get away with following a canned, non-race specific program and still succeed. But the World Championship is not your average race, and you must engage in focused (and occasionally uncomfortable) race-specific preparation if you want to succeed. I’ll see you there in October, and if you have more Kona specific questions, please write to me at rockstar@rockstartriathlete.com.

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Ben Greenfield is a coach at the Rock Star Triathlete Academy, which opens it's official "Qualify for Kona" section this July. This section of the academy will include Kona-specific training videos, audios and articles, along with a training plan building up to World Championships, and an official pre-race strategy meeting with Ben Greenfield in Kona during race week. New members are now being accepted at www.rockstartriathlete.com.