Gymnasium

Triathalon

 

Cycling

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Swimming

Training

Beginning Swimming. I did not learn to swim Freestyle or “Front Crawl” as a child. I didn’t get it. I had no interest in swimming aerobically as an adult. But I wanted to do a Triathalon, so I knew I had to learn. So I taught myself, and have become a proficient freestyle swimmer in just 3 months. My problems were:

  1. Getting water in my nose, eyes, and ears which made me really uncomfortable, and made me worry I’d get ear infections (that’s common for me). I found gear (earplugs, custom goggles) and techniques (positive pressure during flips/turns) that eliminated these issues (see gear & techniques below).

  2. Sucking in water when breathing which made me choke and sputter and stop mid swim. There are lots of small technique items that add up, but I’ve included the key beginnner videos that helped me. Applying these videos I saw my max distance jump by 4x in a single day.

  3. Feeling really conspicuous in the pool trying to learn and being judged. This heightened my anxiety around the whole process. I asked the lifeguard what the slowest days & times were.

  4. Ideal body posture in the water, should be flat with the surface of the water, with the back of head just breaking the water. You should be looking down at the swim line of the pool.

    Drag from your feet/legs, causes you to move more slowly, which makes everything harder. DITCH baggy board shorts etc. You need something very form fitting. You will be shocked at how much easier swimming becomes. Moving faster also makes breathing easier (bow wave).

  5. Breathing is the next hardest part. Watch the videos below. They were game changers for me. There is a synergy here. Breathing creates drag which increases effort which increases the need to breathe. As you figure things out, you’ll get more efficient at form, which decreases your need to breathe. You’ll likely have a breakthrough where you go from dying after 50 or 100m, to 400m or more once you get the basics.

    If you need it: give yourself more time to breathe. This saves me if I get going too fast and get out of breath. I open up my stride, slow down a little, and get some nice big breaths.

    How? As you rotate out of the water, keep your leading hand (the one about to being the stroke) in front of you and your trailing hand in the water behind you, until you’re ready to rotate back into the water.

    Starting your stroke before you’d done breathing means either terminating your breath early, and feeling out of breath, OR, starting your stroke while you’re still breathing which will cause your body to shift out of the proper body posture. See the SwimGym video.

  6. Consider videoing yourself once for a 5 minute streak and review what your see.

  1. Videos:

  2. Drills:
    How To Make Swim Breathing Easier, Global Triathalon Network
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEpHB-9jUHQ

  3. Breathing during Freestyle - This was my epiphany/breakthrouhg moment.
    Swimvice: Freestyle Breathing - How To: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wZ7gyOVPcw

  4. What To Do when Your Legs Sink: Also very helpful and must watch after the Swimvice video
    Effortless Swimming: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpxjezgUQ2c

  5. Freestyle Breathing: Some good notes on frequency and volume. I would add to this: You can breathe out more than half as you become more experienced, AND, it is helpful to breathe out as clearing the surface of the water to make sure your airways are clear.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMSP3cZzy-8

Equipment

Running

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Planning & Transition

Picking a race. Start by choosing races that are local to you, where you can easily get to the venue, and put your bike in the car. Your first race is stressful enough without also adding planes, hotels, bike-reassembly, etc. at the same time.

Fastest Ironman and 70.3 Courses (Triathlete)
IM Average Temperature Reference (Slowtwitch, Triathalon Forum)

Pack List

Strength Training

Kettlebells, How Many Do You Need (Boxlife)

Equipment

Events

  • Kerrville Triathlon Festivalhttps://kerrvilletri.com

Shoulder Exercises: https://kevinwilk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/shoulder-exercises-protocols-downloadable.pdf

Wetsuits - Forbidden above 22 degrees celsius, mandatory below 14, discretionary between unless otherwise stated by the course specific fule