triathlon training

This last Saturday, I became a triathlete.  

Even though I crammed training into a whole two weeks (stupid, right?), it was such a fun experience! I was excited to hear that I got second place in my age group too!  I've had so many friends tell me they want to do one but are too scared, or feel like they wouldn't ever be able to finish.  Well allow me to let you in on something....YOU CAN DO ONE.  I saw every body type and every age at my race...and guess what? They ALL passed through the finish line.  If you get tired, just walkkkk.  And don't feel dumb doing it, cause I saw most people ending up taking a few breaks anyways.  Sign up because you won't regret it.  

I know I'll do more of these races and here's some tips on how you SHOULD train.
This is for someone who is a BEGINNER triathlete, or maybe training for their first one.  For more advanced training schedules, you can find a great schedule here or for intermediate training plans, click here.


10 weeks to a Sprint Triathlon

This is the schedule from the Salt Lake Running Company and I like how it's not so much about distance training, but training with time intervals...swim for 30 min, bike for 45 etc.

All of the workouts listed here are to be done in the "aerobic zone" which means that you should be able to carry on a conversation while doing them (except for swimming of course).  This is why training with someone else is valuable! I was surprised to find out that even the best triathletes in the world spend 70-80% of their time training in this zone.  So, go catch up on the latest gossip while you work out. The BRICK days are when you combine two activities, and these are the most important days.  I would recommend doing them on the day before your rest day so your body has time to recover.

I liked this schedule because I prefer to have Sundays OFF as my rest day, but you can switch it around according to your own personal schedule.  If you want to take another break day, doing it before you have your BRICK day would be the best choice, since you'll see that those are the most important training days of the week and use most energy.  Just make sure to be as consistent as possible and DO THE BRICK days every week.  I made the huge mistake of never really practicing two activities back to back, and that's what knocked on some serious time when I actually got to the race: my body was not used to doing those things back to back.  I'd especially train with the bike-run more than anything else, but practicing swim-bike would be valuable too.

When I went to train at the pool one day, I met a 61 year-old lady who was apparently a national champion triathlete.  She gave me lots of important advice.  If you are doing an open-water swim, you need to incorporate "spotting" into your freestyle stroke.  This is where before you turn your head for a breath, you "spot" by looking forward real quick to see where you're headed.  If you are a beginner swimmer, spot every 2-4 strokes in open water or you may end up going in the wrong direction.  There would be nothing more frustrating than that.  If you train in a pool, try going to one where you can swim 50 meters across, instead of 25...this way you can't touch the wall as often and can practice your breathing better.  Focus on the EXHALE, is what I was told by this woman.  Also, most triathlon wetsuits shouldn't be tested in chlorine, but if you have no other option, trying them out in a pool once or twice during training won't hurt.  They add a lot of buoyancy, so make sure to try it out at least once before the race!  Don't think you can do a triathlon in a regular wetsuit for wakeboarding/boating... it will be very uncomfortable!  The tri-wetsuits are the only way to go.

Good luck with your training, and remember to have fun! Out of my marathon, half marathon, and other races, I'd say the triathlon was my favorite!
The training is fun, and with all the variety your body will end up feeling so good!

**For the ten most common triathlon mistakes click here. I probably should've read through those before doing mine! ;) These are good things to know!

If you have any other training questions, shoot me an email.  I've read a whole bunch on this stuff, and if I can't answer your question, I can lead you to someone else who knows better.  Good luck!

WHO WORE THE GOGGLES BEST? haha