Fitness
Triathlete Ben Kanute on Chasing History at Escape From Alcatraz
Winning any professional triathlon three times in a row is impressive, but Escape From Alcatraz isn’t just any triathlon. Participants take a chilly plunge into San Francisco Bay’s choppy water for a 1.5-mile swim, then haul 18 miles up twisting hills by bike, and finish with an eight-mile run. The pièce de résistance: a brutal set of cliff stairs called the Sand Ladder. Two thousand amateur and professional athletes from over 50 countries will test their limits on Aug. 15—when the venerated race celebrates its 40th anniversary—but the man to watch is Ben Kanute.
The 28-year-old American athlete will attempt to swim-bike-run down history as the first man to win Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon for four consecutive years. After winning this race from 2017 to 2019, Kanute has been waiting two years for his chance at the record after 2020’s race was canceled due to COVID-19. We caught up with the 2016 Olympian to learn more about this legendary race, his dedicated training schedule, and the mentality it takes to win a triathlon.
Men’s Journal: How do you prepare yourself to stay in the moment during a race that’s so long and grueling?
Ben Kanute: The mental side of the sport is something that gets taken for granted. I go into each workout with purpose to stay focused and try to accomplish goals––whether it’s within the rep, set, or the entire workout. While I’m training, I go through my checklist and make sure my form is good, I’m hitting my pace, finding the rhythm, and trying to find that flow state where everything is working. Once you get to the race, you can hit your cues, go through your checklist, and get the most out of yourself.
What kind of cross training do you do throughout the year?
During the season I try not to branch out too far. My coach lives in San Diego, so I go out there quite a bit. I do enjoy the ocean and love skiing, but a lot of these sports get put on the back burner while you’re training as a professional athlete. It’s risk management. Those sports work completely different muscles, so the injury risk goes up. I work with strength coach Matt Pendola, who’s very good at specific types of cross training and strength training that reinforce the swim, bike, and run. A lot of it’s mobility-based plyometrics and strength training cycles to go along with my normal training. It’s been a nice complement. It’s made me less prone to injury and improved my form in all three sports.
Despite being a shorter distance than other triathlons, Escape From Alcatraz features an extreme swim leg. How do you overcome San Francisco Bay’s notoriously strong current and frigid water?
I love the Alcatraz swim. I think it’s a great challenge. It’s as much a physical challenge as it is a mental and tactical challenge with the way the wind, waves, and currents are. It definitely changes your stroke. You can’t just put your head down and go. Escape from Alcatraz is about reading the water and figuring out where to swim. Of course it’s difficult to do that—you have to adjust as you’re in the water, trying to deal with the current, which is pushing you out of the Bay. While the current helps you over, if you don’t get close enough or cross that “river,” it could end up pushing you past the swim exit. I like to rely a lot on the local knowledge and just ask questions about what the conditions are like that day.
What’s the transition like to the bike leg? What are the biggest challenges?
Even coming out of the water, there’s another challenge to run about a thousand meters to transition. Your feet are numb and you’re trying to get to your bike. But you’ve got to shake the cold to push. The first couple miles of riding to the first hill is pretty flat, then from that point, there’s really no flat section. It’s all pretty steep and, at the far end of the course, there’s one long, grinding climb. In total, I think there are about seven major climbs and the rest is downhill, which can be technical.
Overall, when we’re talking about the Alcatraz course––whether it’s swim, bike or run––there’s no settling in. It’s a lot of high-end efforts for short periods of time. You get a little bit of recovery on the downhills or sections leading to the next challenging part, then you’re pretty much hitting it again. But over the past few years of racing, I’ve found my rhythm.
It ends up being a relatively long race, even though some of the distances are different. It’s an all-out effort, but you’ve got to keep yourself in check because you can put yourself over that red line if you’re not careful.
What’s the key to keeping your competitors behind you in the final stretch—and that notorious Sand Ladder stair climb?
There are a couple miles of flat on the front end and back end, but the rest is either uphill, downhill, or in the sand. I think this is the most rhythm-breaking part of the entire course, because you’re running straight up stairs. The Sand Ladder (400 steps up a cliff) coming off the beach is always tough. You really need to gauge your effort and keep yourself in check for that first half of the run, then leave a little something for the Sand Ladder, and the last sprint home.
Those last couple miles can change a lot depending on how fatigued you are—especially with the guys I’m racing. It’s all about leg turnover. You just need to trust that you’ll get your legs back, you’ll get up and over the hill, then use those downhills as free speed and time to recuperate.
You’ve said you ‘Hate losing more than you like winning.’ When you get to the end of a race, how much do you rely on that mindset to cross the finish line first?
It’s all about mind games––using the feeling of not winning to drive you. But besides outcome goals, such as winning, I always try to have process goals. If I execute my race as well as possible, I can still walk away happy even if I get second or third. Oftentimes outcomes are the only thing looked at throughout the season, but it’s also important to have process goals and make sure you’re executing things correctly. I feel like when I execute all of my processes, I’m hard to beat.
What about Escape from Alcatraz suits your race style?
Escape from Alcatraz is one of the classic triathlons. It’s been around for 40 years, so it was there essentially from the start of the sport. It’s an odd distance, and goes back to the roots where they didn’t care what was in the way. It’s almost like they designed the course to be as hard as possible, and I love that. Racing through the city is scenic, and it’s one of the most unique starts: jumping off a boat in the middle of the San Francisco Bay. I think if you go back and look at a lot of the winners of Escape from Alcatraz, you’ll see people who’ve been very successful in the sport. My goal is to win the race, but I also want to go out there and just feel strong and have fun. If somebody else is going to beat me, I want to make them bury themselves to do it.
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The key to 360-degree muscle: 90-degree eccentric isometrics. It might seem like we’re throwing a lot of geometry at you, but the concept behind time under tension (TUT) is simple, says Joel Seedman, PhD, owner of Advanced Human Performance: “Perform the lowering phase of a movement in a slow, controlled fashion, usually 3 to 5 seconds; pause in the stretched position, typically around 90 degrees; then perform the lifting phase in a powerful yet controlled fashion.” Believe us, a time-under-tension workout can humble even seasoned lifters…Eccentric isometrics are like the pressure cooker of training.
“Rather than mindlessly performing slow-tempo reps, you’re using the increased time under tension as a means to fine-tune your body mechanics and alignment, which requires more mental engagement and focus,” Seedman adds.
If you want to forge functional muscle mass and strength while simultaneously bulletproofing the joints and connective tissue, give this 10-move, full-body eccentric isometrics workout a go.
Directions
Perform the following moves as 90-degree eccentric isometrics following the above protocol. Use heavy weight, but not at the detriment of proper form. Rest 60 to 90 seconds between sets and 2 minutes between circuits. Perform once every 2 to 4 days for optimal results.
Best Time-Under-Tension Workout for Total-Body Strength
Circuit 1
A. Barbell Back Squat
Set a squat rack up with heavy weight, then grasp bar and step under it. Squeeze shoulder blades together, then stand to unrack bar and step back with feet shoulder-width apart. Inhale, hinge at hips and slowly bend knees to 90 degrees. Pause, keeping natural arch in low back, then extend through hips to powerfully stand. 3 x 4-6 reps
B. Renegade Row
Start in the top position of a pushup with hands shoulder-width apart on moderate-to-heavy dumbbells (shown). Explosively drive right elbow back to row dumbbell toward ribs while balancing on opposite hand and feet. Pause, then slowly lower weight, stopping a few inches above floor. Switch sides after all reps are done. 3 x 5 reps each side
Circuit 2
A. Dumbbell Bentover Row
Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding two moderate-to-heavy dumbbells in front of thighs, palms facing you. Push hips back and hinge torso forward so it’s nearly parallel to floor, soft bend in knees. Dumbbells should be near shins. Drive elbows back to row weights toward ribs. Pause, then slowly lower down for 3 to 5 seconds. 3 x 4-5 reps
B. Incline Dumbbell Chest Press with Legs Raised
Set an adjustable bench to a 30- to 45-degree angle and lie back with dumbbells in either hand. Engage core and lift legs off floor, flexing feet. Press weights overhead, palms in. Slowly lower to 90 degrees, staying tight and compact. Pause, then drive weights up directly over chest. 3 x 4-5 reps
Circuit 3
A. Dumbbell Bulgarian Squat
Stand lunge-length in front of a flat bench, holding heavy dumbbells in each hand by your sides, palms facing in. Rest the ball on top (shoe’s laces) of your right foot behind you on the bench. Slowly lower your body until your front thigh is parallel to the floor. Pause, then drive through your heel to stand. Switch sides after all reps are complete. 2 x 3-4 reps each side
B. Single-leg Romanian Deadlift
Stand with feet hip-width apart holding dumbbells or kettlebells. Drive right leg up, foot flexed, knee aligned with hip, making a 90-degree angle. Hinge at hips as you slowly lever your torso toward floor, lowering weights and driving right leg back for counterbalance. Hold, then squeeze glutes to reverse. 2 x 3-4 reps each side
Circuit 4
A. Pullup
Hang from a pullup bar using an overhand grip with legs extended and feet flexed. Engage lats and draw shoulders down your back, then pull yourself up until chin is higher than hands. Pause at the top, then slowly lower. Pause at bottom, then reset before your next rep. 2-3 x 4-5 reps
B. Kneeling Overhead Barbell Press
Hold a bar with moderate-to-heavy load at shoulder level with forearms perpendicular to floor. Kneel at end of bench with feet flexed to grip edge for support. Inhale, engage your core and glutes, then press the bar overhead, pushing your head forward so it passes your face, exhaling at the top.
Slowly lower until elbows are at 90 degrees, then hold to maintain tension. Begin your next rep from here. 2-3 x 4-5 reps
Circuit 5
A. Dumbbell Pushup
Place hands on dumbbells (this provides greater range of motion) at shoulder width and feet wider than shoulder width with just toes touching the ground. Keep head neutral and hips high to increase tension on core, chest and tris and reduce stress on spine. Slowly lower to the floor. Stop
once elbows hit 90 degrees, pause, then push up to start. 1-2 x 6-8 reps
B. Biceps Curl
Stand with feet hip-width apart with moderate-to-heavy dumbbells in each hand hanging by sides. Engage biceps to curl the weights up, keeping upper arms still. Pause at the top, then lower slowly. Don’t let arms drop all the way down to keep greater time under tension on biceps. 1-2 x 6-8 reps
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