Triathlon Weight Training Program
Triathlon training is a lifestyle commitment. Between running, biking, and swimming, you have got to push your body like never before. You’ve also got to teach yourself physically and mentally how to endure. A triathlon requires much more than a simple, daily exercise routine. It requires you to run like you’ve never run before, bike like you are always pushing uphill, and swim as if the current is about to carry you off. It’s easy to understand why every triathlete needs triathlon weight training. Weight training builds up your muscles. The more strength you have, the more you can get from your body.

Of course, every athlete has to train, or practice. If they didn’t, we wouldn’t have professional teams, but each athlete had to spend some time conditioning their bodies and testing their strengths. Having strong muscles that you earn while triathlon weight training does you no good if you can’t run more than a mile. A triathlon is not a track and field competition. You have to give yourself to training by a 110% or more if you’d like to come in first. Everything is determined by the amount of time you have to train.

Yes, you do want to push yourself, but you want to do so without provoking some sort of injury. You may not have time to deal with an injury. You may not have the time to devote your whole self to triathlon weight training. Weight training can be a very delicate thing and there can be a lot of risks involved. If you do begin a weight training routine, you need to treat it the same as you do running, cycling, and swimming. Everything you do to get ready for the big competition needs to be done as though your life depends on it because the event does depend on it.

Triathlon Swimming Training Is Key To Race Performance
Swimming is a difficult sport even for the most fit athletes. It is usually the leg of a triathlon that gives people the most challenges. The key to a great swim in a triathlon is having excellent form. Even if a person is the strongest and most fit in the field, a poor swim technique can guarantee that they will not finish anywhere near the top. Swimming does not come naturally for most people, and the freestyle technique is a difficult stroke to master. It requires huge amounts of practice and triathlon swimming training. It takes more time to improve than running or biking because the mechanics of the swimming stroke are much more complex. The payoff for mastering the swimming technique can be huge when it comes to triathlons. Many people never become great swimmers, so it is an area where an advantage can be gained.

Another area to focus on during triathlon swimming training is the kick. Many people feel that the kick is an essential part of the swimming stroke, but for triathletes it really isn’t. The other two legs of the race are going to demand a lot from an athletes legs, so saving them as much as possible during the swim is an excellent strategy. The kick should be mainly used to keep balance because it does not do much in the area of propelling the swimmer through the water. When kicking is used as part of the stroke, it should be short and done with just a slight knee bend. Athletes will often flail their legs and have their knees bent too much. This just wastes energy and adds more drag in the water. Ankles should be kept loose, and feet should be kept fairly close when doing the kick portion of the stroke.

The glide is an area of the freestyle stroke that often gets overlooked. The glide portion of the stroke is time that your body can be moving through the water without any energy being spent. The swim portion of a triathlon should be the most relaxed part for your body. You are going to endure a lot of pounding on the bike and the run, so try to keep this part of the race fairly calm. During triathlon swimming training, remembering to glide on each stroke can help maintain a comfortable steady pace. As you get that good rotation to the side, glide for a second before making the next stroke. Developing a good rhythm in this aspect of the stroke can pay off big time on race day.
Recognizing some of these areas during your triathlon swimming training will be a challenge, but it will be well worth it in the long term. Instead of spending hours in the pool with poor technique, really think about these areas of your stroke and work on fixing them. Having a swim coach is ideal, but many of these areas can be fixed if you focus on doing them correctly. Like anything else, it takes time to master these parts of the stroke, but with dedication you will reap the benefits.

Tips For Successful Triathlon Bike Training
Most beginner triathletes own a bike. At a minimum, they have a mountain bike that they have taken out for short rides. While swimming is usually the area that most triathletes put the most time into, the biking portion of the race can be an area that costs athletes the most money. Bikes can be expensive, and good bikes can be really expensive. The first tip to triathlon bike training is to use the bike you already have. This might seem simple or obvious, but it is truly a good tip. Many athletes feel they have to run out and buy the best bike on the market, but what they need to focus on first is refining their technique, and building up their endurance for this portion of the race. It doesn’t really matter what type of bike a person has, pretty much anything with two wheels that will operate safely will do when starting out.

Being comfortable on the bike is another aspect that deserves some attention during the triathlon bike training. If you are feeling any discomfort during a longer bike ride, then it might be time to make some adjustments. Getting professionally fit is ideal, but it is not necessary when starting out. There are some simple things that can be tweaked, but make sure that none of these changes are too drastic. Seat height is a simple one to play with. Make sure that your leg is comfortable on the downward stroke. The seat position can also usually be moved a little forward or back, and the seat angle can be tipped slightly up or down for a different feel. The angle of the handlebars can also be adjusted slightly to get a better feel for your arms, and the position of your feet on the pedals can make your legs feel more comfortable.

As mentioned earlier, it is not necessary to go out and get a new bike for your first few races. Ride the bike you have, and know that you will not be the only person riding a mountain or hybrid bike at the race. If, however, you decide to stick with triathlon, then buying a new bike can be a great way to improve that leg of the race and make your triathlon bike training even more productive and fun. Start with your local bike shop if you decide to get a new bike because they are going to be able to answer all of your questions about which bike you should buy. Make sure to fill them in on what type of riding you will be doing and ask to see any of their triathlon specific bikes. You might be able to find bikes cheaper online, but getting the proper fit and supporting the local shops is very important. Remember that you don’t have to buy the most expensive bike, but buy one that has a quality frame. You can always upgrade the other components in the future, but the frame is the foundation.

Ironman Triathlon Training Program
What Is an Ironman?

Before starting a training program for a Full Ironman, it is helpful if you have already been training at least eight hours a week and competed in some races considered Olympic distances in the past year or two. Having competed in a half Ironman would be even better.

Since the goal is to finish the race having participated fully, while enjoying your experience, (that means finishing running not walking) it is therefore important to have a consistent plan of action designed to build up the number of training hours per week from around 8 hours to begin with to closer to18 hours during the optimum training weeks. One of the things that happens, besides building up time endurance is to work on building strengths and improving weaknesses. Many will use a coach to work on specific areas of need as part of the training regimen
Each person has to design a training schedule that works around their own life and schedules. A significant amount of time will need to be set aside, as part of an overall commitment to participating in this event. The suggested time frames are based on what the most successful beginners who finished the race, and finished without walking, have used. Within each week, and withing each daily session, time can be tweaked to fit your schedule, your physical condition, but overall the suggested weekly times are what will best prepare you for the Ironman event. It can be done in less time, if that is all you have, but if a commitment cannot be made to something close to the suggested times, then it might be wise to re-think the decision to participate in a full Ironman.
The Ironman should not really be the first endurance event ever trained for. It is generally something you work up to, so when the term beginner is used, it does not mean beginner to endurance racing, it means beginner to the longer and more intense endurance event called the Ironman.

1. The most common beginner will have trained and competed in a triathlon.
2. You could have only competed in a marathon or biathlon, but used swimming, biking and running during the training regimen.
3. Some beginners competed in a half Ironman.
4. To race in an Ironman you should have competed in one of the above sometime in the past 2 years, and spent the intermediary time training at least 8 hours a week.
5. You should be pretty equal ability-wise with swimming, biking and running. One may need more work than the other, but it is a mistake to think strength in two of the three will compensate for a weakness in the third.
For those whose goal is to do an Ironman, and do not meet this definition, there are two choices.
A. If you have competed in endurance races before, but have not been keeping up with at least and 8 hour a week exercise regimen, then you can become a beginner Ironman by adding 3-6 weeks of endurance training to the suggested schedule to get you back on track.
B. Put off the Ironman for six months to a year, train all out for a triathlon and compete. Then naturally evolve into preparing for a Ironman.
For most beginners to the Ironman event the goal is simply to finish, preferably in a standing up position, however the goal also needs to be to meet this goal in the best condition and frame of mind as possible.
1. A commitment to 5-6 day training regimen.
2. A commitment to from 1 hr 20 minutes at first up to 3 hours a day.
3. A commitment to making the changes needed in technique, diet, schedule to become a well rounded or “complete” athlete.
What an ironman training plan will look like:
1. Training needs to begin 20 weeks prior to the date of the event. Longer if you need to add endurance training weeks to build up to at least 8 hours per week.
2. The 20 weeks will be divided up into a progression of 4-5 week sections. Each section has build-up and recovery sequences, with the intensity and length of training sessions increasing with each section. This helps train the neuro centers, as well as the body to get used to what is needed to successfully compete
3. Workouts will begin with 8 hour weeks and build to18 hour weeks with one to two workouts each day.