As we head into another tri season, I find myself as a coach regularly fielding questions from newbie triathletes looking to enter the sport and get ready for that first event. If you haven’t done much exercise for a while (or you are over 35 years of age) then it is advised to go and see your doctor to get a general checkup. Remember that many clubs/squads/coaches offer beginners courses heading into the new season, structured for those getting started sprint (750m / 20km / 5km) or even standard distance (1.5km / 40km / 10km). Keeping things pretty basic as far as high-tech training is concerned is generally how you’ll be introduced. Keep in mind that the main aim is to get you in shape with the limited time available to train.
The one thing that I always look to highlight right from the start when discussing how to go about tackling triathlon as a beginner is that everyone is an individual and that nothing is “set in stone” when it comes to training. What may work well for you, more often than may not work for someone else. We all have different limits in our lives with time available to train around work, family and what your goal/s may be.
Ultimately you can start with a standard recipe but you can and should add your own “special ingredients” along the way to tailor your program to suit your lifestyle. Some terms that you may have heard already are goal setting, balance, structure, patience, consistency, adaptation, recovery, nutrition and most important of all – fun.
Goals
Be realistic with your goals and the amount of time that you can devote to training. If you have realistically 6-8 hours per week to train don’t try to squeeze in 13. When you are starting out, the goal is to simply get to the finish line. State Triathlon associations would have the new season’s event calendars out so that is a good place to start to look at doing shorter pre-goal events to aim at. A great distance to start the season with would be something around the 400m swim / 15km cycle / 4km run. Balance is the key as far as you’re training goes. A good number to aim for as far as weekly sessions go is to try to fit in at least 6 sessions per week with 7- 9 would be great (3 sessions) per week in each discipline but you can work up to that if time and desire allow it. You should devote an extra session to your weakest leg. If it was your swim leg which was lacking and you could manage 7 sessions of training each week then do 3 x swim / 2 x bike / 2 x run.
You can find plenty of info on the net with generic basic training programs if you are not linked to a squad or club. A basic 12-week program will build in volume and then intensity working towards you’re race goal. Typical start week distances for someone coming with no swim or bike but some run background may be much less to start with. Adding distance of up to 10% per week is generally accepted for a gradual adaptation.
In the third or fourth week of a program, it may give you an extra day off and work on a 5 or 6-day week and drop the volume by 20-30% so you can adapt to the previous two-three weeks of training. This practice is called periodisation which is employed by many coaches and athletes in order to gain sufficient recovery after an increase in training volumes.
Consistency of course is the key to whatever we do.
Also knowing when to push and when to back off at the right time is not something that you can learn straight away. It takes time to learn about what your body can and can’t do, and sometimes learning the hard way is the best way to learn a lesson. The human body is a unique piece of work and the body can adapt to most stresses placed upon it as long as it is done progressively. The problem with most of us is that we usually don’t want to wait to get the results. Many forty-something former athletes in their youth look to resurrect their past sporting glory by taking up triathlon for a new challenge and may have experienced a few idle years on the physical training front while climbing the corporate ladder and raising a family.
To keep progression moving from year to year once beyond your first season, one must increase training stimulus over time otherwise you won’t keep improving.
There is so much information available these days regarding training, racing and how to be a better athlete that it’s easy to become confused and frustrated. The one thing for certain though is that if you stick to it you will improve each season and it has been said that it takes up to seven years to reach your endurance potential – provided it is progressive, kept real and will still allow some recovery and downtime and the end of each season.
You must be honest with yourself when it comes time to plan your training and race schedule for the upcoming season. Every session that we do should have a purpose. Some sessions are long; some are short, some fast, some slow. By dividing your training year and season into stages i.e., Base, Intensity, Peak, Racing and Rest or active recovery, you accomplish several different benefits over training in an “ad-hoc” no direction kind of fashion.
Some things to consider for your planning
- Identify our weaknesses – with the help of a coach or by knowing what this may be yourself, emphasis should be allocated to your weakness initially and ongoing eg the one you may like the least!
- Keep a log to record your progress and weekly distances and times plus things like resting morning heart rate and weight. Online coaching platforms / Apps like Final Surge / Training Peaks or Garmin Connect for example are ideal.
- Build up a good support network such as a good physiotherapist, massage therapist, sports doctor and bike shop that you feel comfortable with which will be a positive to your ongoing progression.
- Get a heart rate monitor and find out how to use it properly.
- Test yourself in time trials over a standard distance in all three sports through the season periodically to plot progress and record key data of distance covered – if doing to a time eg a 30-minute effort / heart-rate / time of day and temperature.
- Work towards finding your true threshold heart rate in each of the 3 sports as it usually is different for each sport. This can be done by either a trained exercise physiologist or in your field tests.
- Purchase a wind trainer or smart trainer so you can still get in quality bike training when it’s too wet or late to train on the roads – it’s a great way to do quality work when you have limited time to train.
- Warm-up and warm-down should be included in all sessions. That is a gradual increase in pace and heart rate over at least a 10-15 minute period.
- Get into a club/training group or squad that has a coach involved or at least an experienced mentor. This will help in so many areas for your progression and assist greatly in developing you faster and avoiding some of the pitfalls.
When you get to the events this coming season, remember what your goals were at the start. Your original aim was to maybe just finish a triathlon and get some fitness in the process. Build on this and don’t forget to have some fun and enjoy the journey.
You can find all of the State Associations and affiliated clubs throughout Australia on the Triathlon Australia website.
For any further coaching advice or interaction contact coach Nick at Multisport Consultants.
Nick Croft
- 2 time Noosa Triathlon champion
- 35 professional race wins
- 1990/91 Australian Triathlete of the year-award (Aust Tri Sports magazine)
- Triathlon Australia Accredited triathlon coach since 1995
- 2005 Triathlon Australia Ironman Coach of the Year
- 2018 Triathlon Australia Legends inductee
- 2021 Noosa Triathlon Walk of Fame inductee
