Become a triathlete

By: Tom Weede

July 7, 2008

Training like a triathlete will fire up your workouts and chisel your physique.

Even if you never intend to enter a triathlon race, you can reap the benefits of triathlon training - which covers swimming, biking and running. First off, learning new skills keeps your mind interested and your body guessing . . . and growing. "You tend to stay on a program if there's variety involved," says Sally Edwards, a 16-time Ironman finisher and national spokesperson for the Danskin Women's Triathlon Series, who coaches triathletes at both asimba.com and onhealth.com.

Second, triathlon training will translate to everything from the tennis court to the soccer field to the gym. While single-sport athletes usually develop sport-specific muscles - running, for example, targets your legs but doesn't benefit your upper body much - you train nearly all the muscles in your body with triathlon. So says Michelle Blessing, coach of the U.S. men's and women's Olympic Triathlon teams and a highly accomplished triathlete (she finished eighth at Ironman Canada in 1996). "I'm a big believer in total-body strength for all sports," she notes. "You train upper body and lower body, and you end up with a very nicely sculpted, very fit body, head to toe. It makes you stronger and it helps develop coordination."

Still need convincing? This kind of cross-training will also reduce your chance of injuries, Edwards explains. "You're not constantly working on one set of muscles, or one set of tendons and ligaments, so you tend to reduce your risk of injury and prolong your athletic career."

The Program

So how do you train like a triathlete? 
To get you started on the right track, we sought Blessing's Olympic wisdom to design a program ranging from beginner to advanced. Triathletes typically train in each of the three sports 2-4 days a week, as well as strength train. The schedule will keep you busy, but if you stay dedicated, you'll see increased fitness within weeks. It's important to start slowly and build an aerobic base, gradually working up to longer distances and more frequent workouts. 

Before we begin, let's brush up on the lingo: "Tempo" refers to a light to moderate pace at 65%-75% of your maximum heart rate (220 minus your age). It's the pace you could maintain for about an hour, and it will build endurance and increase your lactate threshold, which corresponds to the pace you can hold without going anaerobic. "Interval" refers to a moderate to hard pace at 80%-90% of your max heart rate (to build speed). An important caveat: If you develop chest pain, consult your doctor immediately.

Bike
Technique
The idea is to deliver power on the down stroke as well as at the top and bottom sections of the stroke. You'll automatically deliver most of the power on the down stroke, so it's best to focus on pedaling circles to get some power out of all parts of the stroke, Blessing explains. Even top cyclists have problems being consistent, so practice by pretending you're scraping mud off the soles of your shoes at the bottom of the stroke. At the top, think of pushing into the toes of your shoes.

To maximize power, make sure your bike is set up properly. Any good bike shop should be able to help.

Training
For the beginner, spend some time on uncrowded streets or easy trails getting used to shifting and braking. Once you're comfortable, Blessing recommends shorter rides of a half-hour to one hour during the week, and one longer ride of anywhere from 2-4 hours on the weekend. As you progress, you can add intervals, tempo rides and hill repeats into your workouts.

Swim
Technique
This is important in swimming - inefficient form gives you greater drag and will slow you down. Blessing suggests swimming with a master's team three days a week, which will provide coached workouts. "It's really difficult to get better swimming on your own," she says. Check with a local college or pool to find a program, and don't be intimidated - all kinds of abilities are usually represented. Another good resource is a swim camp like Total Immersion (totalimmersion.net; 800-609-7946), where instructors give detailed stroke advice.
In the meantime, stay relaxed while swimming, Blessing advises, and make your body as streamlined as possible. "Keep the stroke really long, and try not to turn your arms over in the water too quickly. Let your body glide through the water before you take a stroke."

Training
Beginners should focus on getting used to the feel of the water, swimming 500 yards straight or broken into intervals of 25-100 yards (most training pools are either 25 yards long or a slightly longer 25 meters). You should swim 2-3 days a week. As you progress, you can add length and intervals of 200 yards or more. Advanced swimmers may do up to 3,000-4,000 yards in a workout.