January 26th, 2012 — Swim Bike Run, Triathlon Training
If you want to compete successfully in a triathlon competition, then you need to be willing to put time and effort into strengthening your body. However, this is quite obviously easier said that done, because training for three different events and training for cardiovascular fitness, strength, endurance and good technique can be time consuming as well as hard on the body. For this reason, triathletes often skimp when it comes to strength training because they feel like they have time constraints and that strength training can be given up in favor of more important training forms. Triathletes are also often worried that they will become burned out if they take on strength training, which as far as they are concerned is only a marginal concern in the first place. Unfortunately, weight training and forms of resistance training are absolutely vital for building up healthy muscular strength for someone who is going to participate in a triathlon.
When it is done right, and when the focus is present, your weight training regimen does not need to take up much time but it can deliver vital results. Shorter and more intense workouts are better when it comes to developing balanced and healthy muscular development. If you go about your triathlon strength training the right way, then you really will not have to concern yourself with burn out or bulking up too much, and you will enjoy all of the excellent benefits that come with this very necessary training aspect.
1 – It is important for triathletes to focus on core strength training which allows one single part of the body to transfer energy to the other parts of the body. Core strength training will allow you to improve your power in swimming, and your capabilities with uphill climbing and sprint cycling as well. Core strength training will also help you resist injury and will keep you in better shape by strengthening your body. Core strength training primarily focuses on the superficial and deep abdominal muscles, the lower back and lumbar region and the middle and upper regions of the spine, the thoracic and cervical regions.
2 – When you are doing your strength training routine it is vital that you listen to your body. On days where you do lighter workouts, you should push yourself harder with the strength training. On days where you are going harder with the endurance training, you should go easier in terms of strength training.
3 – You need to make sure that your diet is high in protein, and you want to consume a good amount of protein within a half hour of performing your strength training. On days where you know that you will be working out harder, you should try to eat soft foods with good protein in them like apple sauce, and it may also be advantageous to take creatine supplements which are all natural and will benefit your body.
Photo Credits: 1
Originally posted 2009-01-20 05:24:48. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Preparing Yourself for the Triathlon Run Running in a triathlon is unlike any other running you have done in your life. This is because the triathlon run is completed after you have already swum and rode a bike. You will be tired and ready to stop, but you will need to dig in and find a...... -
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Train for Your First Triathlon Determine What Your Goals Are Figure out how long you want your first triathlon to be. How you start your training for your first triathlon will depend largely upon you and what shape you are in. Do you want to do a half sprint, a full sprint, or an Olympic......
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December 5th, 2011 — Swim Bike Run, Swimming
One thing most any person who was on a swim team will lament is swimming drills. They will tell you tales of torturous coaches who created long drills. They will tell tales of practices which seemed to last all day and left them drained. All will admit in the end the drills made a difference in their ability to swim strong and outlast the competition. These are drills which you can complete yourself with the same stellar results. The important thing to remember is you may not enjoy the drills while you are doing them. Stick with it and you will see undeniable results.
Pyramid Drills
One of the swimming drills which are done by most coaches is the pyramid drill. This drill involves starting with a short sprint of about 50 yards and then building gradually to 500 yards. You then go back down to 50 yards. The trick is to allow only a certain amount of time for each interval as you go up and down. You will notice a difference in your ability to complete the intervals as your strength and skill improves. You will crave the breaks as well as the increased speed this drill will help to create.
Timed Drills
This is a drill which is similar in nature to the pyramid drills. The difference in the timed swimming drills is you maintain a certain length of swimming. The amount of total time in which you have to complete the length will remain constant. What will change is the length of the intervals. A normal overall length for these drills is 500 yards. You will start with 25 x 50 yard drills. Increase to 1 x 500 yard drill with either 25 or 50 yard increases. The goal is to increase your endurance by increasing the speed at which you can complete the sections.
Drag Drills
Creating drag is one of the swimming drills every coach seems to like to use. This means using kick boards, floaters or weights to create drag and resistance. The object is to complete increasing lengths every time you work out. This will help to develop the strength in upper and lower body strength. You will train your muscles to pull an even heavier load than your body weight. This way when you are swimming without the resistance you will be able to glide through the water. This is also a good opportunity to concentrate on your swim stroke.
Closed Fist Drill
There are many variations on swimming drills which do not occur normally to people. Closed fist drill is a drill which teaches you to use your forearm as a mechanism to pull you through the water. By not being able to use your hand to pull you through the water, you have to use the forearm to pull you. The drill is completed by completing 10 x 25 yard sets. Start out with untimed sets with a one minute rest between. Gradually work in time restrictions with less rest in between swims.
Photo Credits: kenoncjones
Originally posted 2010-03-31 10:15:35. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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November 14th, 2011 — Biking, Swim Bike Run
Handicap - Handicap races are quite popular in Australia, in them, the racers start at different points on the track based on their performance. “Scratch Men” are the fastest of the riders, and start at the traditional starting line and “out markers” are the rest of the riders and depending on their speed can get up to a 250 meter head start.
Hang On - To hang on means to be able to just barely keep up with a group.
Headset – On a bicycle frame, the headset is described as being the area where the handlebar, the fork, and the stem are fitted to.
Hook – This is a maneuver where the back wheel of the bike is moved to the side in order to prevent another rider from passing.
Hooks - On handlebars that are turned down, the hooks are referred to as being the curved areas.
Individual Pursuit – This is a type of two rider race. In individual pursuit, the riders start at opposite sides of the track, and pursue each other until one rider manages to overtake the other, or they travel from 3,000 up to 5,000 meters. If neither rider catches the other the winner is based on speed.
Interval – A method for wearing out other riders by alternating between resting and hard bursts of speed.
Jump - This is described as being an abrupt spurt of speed that tends to turn into a sprint while cycling.
Keirin – This is a single motorbike variant of motor pace racing from Japan. Up until the last lap, riders compete to position themselves in the slipstream of the motorbike. The motorbike leaves the track slightly before the final lap and the riders then sprint to the end of the race. This is a popular sport for pari-mutuel gambling in Japan. Keiren is also an acceptable spelling of the same concept.
Kick - A kick is when a rider makes a final push near the end of a race to attempt to pass other riders.
Lap - In a race where multiple trips are being made around a single course, a lap is considered to be just one trip around the course.
Lead Out - This is a tactic where one rider will sprint in front of another, a teammate in nearly all cases, so that the other rider is able to ride in their draft for a while before making a faster sprint to cross the finish line.
Mass Start - A race with a mass start is a type of race in which all riders start simultaneously or at the same time. This is the starting method used by miss-and-out, points, and scratch types of races.
Photo Credits: doviende
Originally posted 2009-11-16 03:45:36. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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November 9th, 2011 — Biking, Swim Bike Run
Here is the final installation of our glossary of triathlon cycling terms and definitions.
Team Pursuit - This is a type of race that is similar in nature to the individual pursuit style of racing, however instead there are two different teams, each of which is made up of four riders. These teams will ride in pace lines, with the leader changing either every half lap or with every lap. The standard distance for this type of race is a distance of 4000 meters. The time for the team is taken upon the third rider crossing over the finish line, meaning that the fourth rider on the team does not have to finish the race.
Technical – This describes a portion of a racing trail that is designed to test the handling skills for the rider.
Time Trial – This is a race that involves riders or teams of riders going around the course or the track individually. The team or the rider that has the fastest time is deemed the winner of the competition.
Toe Clips – These are either straps or clips that are designed to securely fasten the feet of the rider to the pedals of the bicycle.
Track Bike - This is a very simple style of bike that is used for the purpose of racing on a track. This type of bike only has a single speed gear without any freewheeling, and it does not have any brakes.
Track Stand - This term describes the act of balancing the bicycle while the feet are on the pedals. During a match sprint style of racing, the riders typically begin in track stand because they want to allow one another to set the pace for the race so that they can take full advantage of the slip stream for the purpose of drafting.
Velodrome – This is a type of track that is specifically built for the purpose of bicycle racing. It is typically comprised of two long straight areas and two short curved areas that bank sharply. Most of these types of tracks are only 1/3 of a kilometer in length, though some can be as short as only 200 meters, or as long as a full 500 meters in length.
Weenie Gear - This is another word that is used to refer to granny gear. Granny gear is described as being the lowest of all gears on the mountain bike, and this particular gear is typically used when you need to climb a very steep grade while riding your bike.
Wind Out - This is a type of sprint that develops relatively slowly, and involves a gradual level of acceleration to the top speed.
Photo Credits: Nelson D.
Originally posted 2009-11-12 03:42:14. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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October 25th, 2011 — Biking, Swim Bike Run
A good part of understanding your triathlon training and performance is having a grasp on the lingo. Here is a guide to cycling terms that you should know in order to get the most out of your experience.
Derailleur - When gears are shifted on a bike, the derailleur is the mechanism that changes which gear sprocket the bicycle chain is on.
Devil Take the Hindmost - Devil take the hindmost is a race type in which the last rider across the finish line in each lap of the course is eliminated from the race, this type of race is also known as a miss-and-out.
Disk Wheel - A disk wheel is a spokeless solid wheel used for its aerodynamic properties, mostly in time trials but also in other types of races.
Domestique - The domestique is a rider in long races who has the responsibility to retrieve items such as water and food to pass along to their teammates from the support vehicle.
Draft - Drafting is a way to decrease a cyclist’s wind resistance by riding closely on the tail of another cyclist.
Drops - On handlebars that are turned down, the drops are the lower portion.
Echelon - An echelon is a formation used by groups of cyclists not competing with each other. By riding in a diagonal pattern with each rider downwind of the one in front of them the lead rider lowers the wind resistance of the whole group. To spread out the extra effort, members of the group take turns riding in the lead.
Field - In a race, the field refers to the main mass of riders.
Field Sprint - A field sprint usually occurs towards the end of a section of a long race, it is when riders within the main group.
Fixed Gear - Seen in track bikes, a fixed gear is what is known as direct drive, where the rear cog is linked to the chain ring, with this configuration a rider cannot coast as the pedals will spin whenever the bike moved.
Flyer - A flyer is when a lone rider makes an unexpected attack.
Force the Pace - Forcing the pace involves speeding up to force the rest of the group to speed up as well.
Full Tuck - The full tuck provides an improvement in a riders aerodynamics by having the rider assume a crouching position.
Gap – The gap is described as being the amount of time that is between riders or between groups of riders. This can also refer to working to increase a lead and widen that gap.
Granny Gear - Used for making difficult inclines, the granny gear is a name for a mountain bike’s lowest gear.
Hammer - To hammer is to ride at the very limit of an individual’s capabilities, or to ride extremely hard.
Hammered - To be hammered is to be completely exhausted.
Photo credits: Futurilla
Originally posted 2009-10-29 03:20:04. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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October 21st, 2011 — Swim Bike Run, Triathlon Tips, Triathlon Training
Are you planning on training for your first triathlon? This is not an easy task for anyone to master if they do not know the ropes. There are three completely unique disciplines that are involved, and you are also going to need to be lifting weights and training in other ways. How are you going to find the time that you need in order to achieve this goal? This particular answer is actually a great deal easier than you think, if you have prepared yourself by choosing the right first triathlon.
In other words, let us start by selecting the right first triathlon. There are four different triathlon distances that you can choose from. The shortest distance types of triathlons are known as sprints. Because they are so short, they really are more like a sprint in nature, and therefore are typically regarded as the hardest ones to master. The second type of distance for a triathlon is twice what the sprint typically is, known as the international distance or Olympic distance triathlon. Where the sprint would end with a 5K run, the Olympic distance triathlon is going to end with 10K run. The Olympic distance type of triathlon is generally the most common one that you will find.
Once you have mastered what the sprint as well as the Olympic triathlon lengths have to offer, the third type of triathlon is the half ironman triathlon. This is a race that concludes through a 13.1 mile run. The final type of distance is the ironman distance, which ends with a 26.2 mile run. If you are doing your first ever triathlon, then you should be avoiding these two types of triathlon for fairly obvious reasons. Even if you do believe that you have the stamina as well as the endurance necessary for such a length, triathlons are about more than simply physical fitness. You need to work all of the kinks out with one of the smaller triathlon events in order to prepare yourself mentally as well as physically for the longer triathlon events.
The sprint distance is typically 400 yards worth of swimming, 5 miles worth of biking and then 5K worth of running. You can spend time practicing for all of these triathlon events together, but if you do not learn how to transition from one to the next, and the second to the third, then you really are not as prepared as you think you are. Your goal for your very first triathlon training event should be to combine your running days and your biking days. Each and every single time that you get off your bike, you should begin running, even if you are only running for a few hundred yards. There is a serious muscle transition that needs to occur from pushing on your bike pedals to running. This particular muscle transition needed to excel in triathlon competitions is difficult to achieve unless you have spent time practicing, so do so!
Photo Credits: Ben Lawson
Originally posted 2009-06-26 16:22:39. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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October 10th, 2011 — Triathlon Tips, Triathlon Training
Determine What Your Goals Are
Figure out how long you want your first triathlon to be. How you start your training for your first triathlon will depend largely upon you and what shape you are in. Do you want to do a half sprint, a full sprint, or an Olympic triathlon? We will start slightly ambitious and go for a sprint length triathlon. Doing a 15 mile will allow you to test yourself, help you familiarize with the transition areas, and allow you to test your equipment.
Starting out
Obviously you are not going to be able to just walk out of your house and start running for five miles, or swim a half mile. You would spend yourself, not to mention possibly damaging your joints. You have to work into things, so you ease into it. Begin with a walk / run program. There are many websites out there with programs for this, and they are effective at getting you running in weeks. If you are overweight you may want to start out with riding a bike and losing a bit of weight before attempting jogging or running. Your joints will be grateful to you. Something else you can start out with is high rep strength training.
- Never increase your training duration or distance more than ten percent over the previous week.
- Always have one week a month be a rest week of sorts. This is extremely important.
- Try to train for your single event three to four times a week.
Focus on either bicycling or running for between two to six months to build your aerobic capabilities. Once you have done one for the range given, then move to the other. Do not attempt to do two or even all three until you are in the kind of shape that will allow for it without hurting yourself.
Plan for swimming, running, and biking
Once you have yourself built up and ready from your previous training regimen, it will be time to train for all three sports at once. In general for a sprint triathlon, you will only have need to train two times a week in each of the three sports. That equates to six days with one rest day. You could also have one day where you do two of the three events, and then the next four days you only train for one. Then you can have 2 days off a week.
Thirteen weeks to race day
Despite what you might think you can lose weight in a weight lifting routine if you keep it serious and do not slack off. It would need to be a high rep / low weight routine so that you do not bulk up. Combine this with your jog routine. It will also help build bone density, and strengthen your joints. At first all of this exercise will leave you sore. After a few months you will feel better, you will be less sore, and you will have more energy.
Photo Credits: Photo Mojo
Originally posted 2009-10-13 03:03:50. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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