Triathlon Blog

I hope to do some races for charity and such this summer as well as future seasons. You have probably heard about various marathons for various causes. Most probably involve only running, rather than an entire triathlon. However, triathletes have more endurance than most. Consider using that endurance to participate in some of these races that raise money and awareness about certain causes, such as poverty and illnesses.

If you have participated in any such races, or if you know of any coming up, please tell us in the Triathlon Forums.

I found a local park that has an outdoor pool and has tennis courts. The pool hasn’t opened for the season yet, but it probably will soon. I’ll likely need a new pool pass from the town, but I can probably get one cheap. In addition to my triathlon training, I can get some good exercise by playing tennis.

Kevin Koskella recently wrote an article about how to structure your swim training plan:

There are generally two types of people who seek out swim help for their triathlon swim (and become Tri Swim Coach subscribers!):

A) Novice. This person hardly swims. They have not done a race yet or have done one but floundered. They may sink when trying to kick on their side. Or they may not be able to swim at all!

B) Advanced Beginner/Intermediate: This person has done a few races but feels like they don’t “get” the swim portion. They feel like they don’t have the endurance and feel wiped out after a long swim.

Both A & B types should spend some time on the basic drills: kicking on your side and shark fin drill. These will help to improve your balance in the water, which ALL of us, as humans, need to work on.

However, A-types should spend more time on these basic drills. Keep practicing until you feel more balanced in the water. Use Zoomers fins at first. Take a whole month to master these drills if you have to before moving on to more advanced drills and swimming sets.

B-types should move on to more advanced drills after working on the basics for a week or two. The focus should shift to Fist drill and Fingertip Drag to further improve stroke technique. At this point you can start mixing in some swimming.

Here’s a general sample training program for each type:

A-Type Triathlete (Novice)
14-week training plan for next race.

Weeks 1-2: Side kicking and shark fin drills (no swimming!)
Weeks 3-4: Practice the more advanced drills with some swimming mixed in (75% drills, 25% swimming)
Weeks 5-6: Drills combined with swimming (50% drills, 50% swimming), while building yardage slowly.
Weeks 7-10: Work on building up yardage, and on some interval training (75% swimming, 25% drills)
Weeks 11-12: Continue to build yardage, and work on intervals (80% swimming, 20% drills)
Weeks 13-14: Taper. Back off intensity and yardage (80% swimming, 20% drills)

B-Type Triathlete (Advanced Beginner/Intermediate)
12-week training plan for next race.

Weeks 1-2: Start with basic balance drills and move to more advanced drills, slowly adding in swim strokes (80% drills, 20% swimming)
Weeks 3-6: Build yardage. (75% swimming, 20% drills)
Weeks 7-10: Peak training. Keep building your yardage, and lowering your intervals. (90% swimming, 10% drills)
Weeks 11-12: Taper. Back off yardage and intervals. Focus on technique. (90% swimming, 10% drills)

Keep in mind, never sacrifice technique for speed! If you feel your stroke is slipping or if you are not ready to advance to the next level, keep hammering the drills! There is no hurry!

The above are very generalized training plans. You will have to be the judge and adjust accordingly for your level and your goals.

The upcoming interactive log product will help organize your plan further, but you can start now with the plans and drills in the Complete Guide.

Happy training!

About the Author: Kevin operates the website Tri Swim Coach, a resource for beginning through intermediate level triathletes looking for help with swimming. The site features a free email newsletter offering tips and articles on triathlon swimming. Kevin has also written an electronic book titled “The Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming” which is sold on his website in downloadable form.

Kevin Koskella recently wrote an article, entitled “Do You Hate Swimming?” Here it is:

Overwhelmingly, when I talk to triathletes and aspiring triathletes, I hear a similar theme when it comes to their view on swimming. It usually goes something like this:

“I could to a triathlon, if it weren’t for the swim!”

or

“My training is going well- except for my swimming- I’m just not getting any better!”

or

“I love doing triathlons, but I hate the swimming part!”

If you’ve thought or said anything like the quotes above, the first thing you need to do is change your attitude!

Admittedly, swimming is the most difficult part of triathlon in terms of technique and learning curve. It takes a lot of practice and drill work to get from beginner to competent open water swimmer.

Most triathletes just want to work out hard and see the results in their race. Swimming starts to be looked at as a thorn in their side because it is much more complicated than just putting out more effort or adding distance.

In order to succeed in swimming, and to fully enjoy the sport of triathlon, you must let go of these negative thoughts! There is no room for holding on to the beliefs that will hold you back.

If you continually say that you “hate” swimming, you will dread going to the pool, and you will show up to your race with all kinds of uncertainty- and your chances of success will be slim!

On the other hand, if you can train yourself to actually enjoy the swim, success will be yours!

Try these tips to turn yourself around and get the most out of your triathlon:

1. If you’re using the word “hate” around swimming, drop it! Hate is a powerful word, and the more you say it, the more your brain will prevent you from being successful in the water, and it will make it pretty tough to ever enjoy the process!

2. It’s not a destination! It’s a journey! Yes, it’s a cheesy, sometimes overused expression. But keep it in mind with swimming. You will grow as an athlete and as a person while you spend time doing your drills and improving your stroke.

3. Set reasonable goals and reward yourself. Don’t think that because your race requires you to swim 1 kilometer, you have to do that distance on your first workout. Instead, set attainable goals for each swim workout (or each week of your training). The first few weeks it may be just working on one drill until it feels comfortable. Later, you may need to add 100 yards to each workout. Make sure that you recognize your accomplishments, even the ones that seems small!

4. Realize that you are not a “bad swimmer”. Nor do you “suck at swimming”. You are a good swimmer that just has not realized your potential yet! Do all the right things and in time, you will see massive improvements.

The physical part of training is easy. This is why many triathletes get tripped up in the swim- it goes far beyond cranking out hard workouts to improve.

Improve your mental outlook and the way you look at the swim, and you will be amazed at the progress you make- and the FUN you will have along the way!

Kevin operates the website http://www.TriSwimCoach.com, a resource for beginning through intermediate level triathletes looking for help with swimming. The site features a free email newsletter offering tips and articles on triathlon swimming. Kevin has also written an electronic book titled “The Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming” which is sold on his website in downloadable form.

Kevin Koskella wrote an article in which he explains how to swim straight in open water:

Swimming straight is a major challenge to open water swimming (and even swimming in a pool with lane lines!), and the key lies in one of our other fun challenges in swimming: breathing!

Here’s a quick guide to swimming straight:

1. Simply doing alternate (or bi-lateral) breathing would go a long way towards making you swim in a straight. If you are comfortable with this, breathe every 3 strokes and you will be much more in line with where you want to go.

2. If you cannot get enough oxygen while breathing bilaterally, this can be a big problem on a distance swim. Practice swimming and breathing 2 strokes on the left, 2 on the right, then go to 3 breaths left, 3 right. Then try 2 on the left, 1 on the right, 3-1, etc. Find what works for in keeping you in line and stick with that plan in your race.

3. Practice sighting less often, as this will disrupt your stroke rhythm and balance. If you tend to sight every 4 strokes, lower this to 6, then 8. See if you can get to 12 strokes head down and one peak up. You can do some of this in a pool but getting in the lake or ocean will be essential before you race!

4. Keep your strokes long and extend that arm out in front on each stroke and drive it forward.

5. Practice the One Arm Drill (in the Complete Guide), and pay attention to your arm pull, making sure you are not crossing in with your hand.

6. Practice open water swimming. Just being used to the environment will get you more comfortable, and you will intuitively pick up on swimming straight out there.

Notice the use of the word “practice” consistently throughout these tips. Keep that in mind as you learn this new skill!

Kevin operates the website http://www.TriSwimCoach.com , a resource for beginning through intermediate level triathletes looking for help with swimming. The site features a free email newsletter offering tips and articles on triathlon swimming. Kevin has also written an electronic book titled “The Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming” which is sold on his website in downloadable form.

I used to prefer running on a track to train rather than running around the town. In fact, I would drive to the track to run.

However, after switching to the streets, I must say I wouldn’t want to go back to tracks. Nowadays, I trace out a route that is about the number of miles I want to run. I make the route a loop, so I finish back at home. I can easily add or decrease mileage by decreasing how many blocks I include in the route. I find it easier to run one big route, rather than do loops at a track, because I cannot stop anytime I want. I could stop running, but I’d still have to get home. Plus, I do find it a little less boring, since I am not always in the same place.

I haven’t found any public pools open in my town for the summer, yet. I hope I do, because swimming would help offset the heat. When I run, I go at night to keep cool, but I sweat from the heat during the day even when I am just sitting at my desk.

What do you do to keep cool during the summer? Do you usually train for triathlon during the day? Tell me at the Triathlon Forums.