Hi, friend!

This email is JUST about triathlons. There will be the normal email in a few days!

• What is a triathlon, plus the different lengths

• The equipment you need

• Everything I learned during my training

I got several messages on Instagram and through email from people saying they’ve been inspired to sign up for a triathlon as well. Wow! I figured it would be helpful to share everything I’ve learned so that you can have a head start.

And if this email isn’t for you, that’s okay! I’ll be sending out a regular one on Friday.🥰

What’s a triathlon, plus the different lengths

Okay I’m sure everyone knows this, but juuust in case… a triathlon is 3 sports back to back in one race: swimming, biking, running.

There’s also a duathlon, which is just the biking and running.

When you say “triathlon” you’re probably referring to an Olympic distance (referred to as an “oly” by triathletes).

• 1.5 km swim (0.93 miles)

• 40 km bike (24.8 miles)

• 10 km run (6.2 miles)

There are 2 distances below that: sprint and super sprint. Generally, you can take the Olympic distance and multiply or divide by 2 to get the other distances. A sprint tri is about ½ mile swim, 20 km bike (12.4 miles), and 5 km run (3.1 miles). A super sprint is half of that!

There are 2 distances above that: half Ironman and Ironman. As I said, you basically multiply the Oly distances by 2, then by 2 again. A half Ironman is 1.2 mile swim (1.9 km), 90 km bike (56 miles), and a half marathon. A full Ironman is 2.4 mile swim (3.8 km), 180 km bike (112 miles), and it ends with a full marathon (42.2 km, or 26.2 miles).

My race was a sprint, except that the bike was 18.2 miles (it was a loop around the lake).

Equipment

This is based off my own experiences. I worked with a coach for about a month. I also talked to tons of people along the way! Any time I met a new person who knew something about swimming, biking, running, or triathlons, I’d ask questions.

For this section, I’ll just share all the equipment you might need. There will be no links or anything. You can find most things at a bike shop or sports supply store. But here’s one big tip: find a local triathlon club. The tri community is amazing. I got SO MUCH free or cheap stuff along the way. People had extra tri kits, swim caps, race belts, goggles, and more, and they’d just give them to me. Find a local group, join it, ask questions!

Running

• Get fitted for running shoes if you can. If not, at least get some decent running shoes!

• Running shorts - I’d find some that do not ride up in between your legs and that have a pocket or two.

• Sports bra - You’ll likely need to wear one under your tri kit unless you’re really small chested.

• Socks that won’t slip down while you run.

• A reliable fitness watch to keep track of your distances and speed while training

Biking

• A street or hybrid bike - There are also bikes specifically made for triathlons, but they’re very expensive. I was very fortunate that a church friend of mine had a nice street bike that he gifted to me. I’d check your local tri community and see if anyone has an extra bike they’d be willing to sell you OR loan to you during training (if you aren’t sure you’ll do more than 1 race).

• Helmet

• Padded bike shorts are helpful but not necessary for a sprint distance, in my opinion

• Possibly a new bike seat - Some of them will hit your sensitive areas in a way that can be damaging longterm. The factory seat is often not made for long distances. If your seat causes discomfort on your sensitive parts, you want to get a new one. Talk to the person who works at a bike shop near you, if you’ve got one!

• Water bottle attachment

• Squeeze water bottle that doesn’t need to be opened and closed each time

• Bike pump

• A reliable fitness watch, as mentioned above

• A bike trainer is helpful if you’d like to practice biking indoors sometimes! It essentially turns your road bike into a stationary one. The only downside is that you can’t keep up with your distance this way unless you get a …..

• Bike computer. It attaches to your bike so that when you use the bike trainer, you’ll still see your pace and distance.

• Sports sunglasses (they should be shatter proof in case of a crash)

• If you’re up for it, you can get the special pedals and biking shoes that clip into them. I’ve not tried them, but I believe they make things much easier once you’re used to them. You use all your leg muscles because you’re doing work pushing down AND pulling up.

• Bento box - I did not know that a bento box was anything besides the divided lunch boxes. But cyclists apparently call a bento box the little zippered pouch you can attach to the front of your bike. I kept my phone, some tissues, a snack, and an electrolyte stick in mine.

• Flat tire repair kit - I’ve never had to use mine, but it’s a kit with a spare tube, tire lever, and CO canisters, and it attaches under your bike seat.

Swimming

• Sports swimsuit, something streamlined, no ruffles or anything

• Dark goggles - They act as sunglasses when you’re on the open water.

• Swim cap - These are not very expensive and make a huge difference if you’ve got any amount of hair on your head. They don’t keep your hair dry at all. It just helps with moving quicker and smoother in the water.

• Wax for your ears, if you get water in your ears a lot - I didn’t use it much, but I had it for open water practices.

• My gym has hand paddles, foot flippers, foam boards to hold onto for practicing kicking, and foam pieces that go between your legs to help keep your legs up so that you can practice strokes.

• Inflatable buoy - If you plan to practice in open water, don’t do it alone. And keep a buoy attached to you so that you can be spotted from the shore.

General triathlon stuff

• Tri kit - These are 1 or 2-piece outfits that are meant to be worn for all 3 sports. I prefer the 1-piece, but I practiced a lot in the 2-piece as well. It’s a preference thing!

• Race belt - My tri club folks had several extras. You attach your race bib to it and then clip it on quickly and easily.

Training and alllll the stuff I learned

When I say I asked everyone questions, I’m not even kidding. Every time I went to the bike shop, I learned something. Nearly every time I went to the pool, I learned something, usually from a new person each time. If I found out someone had done a triathlon, I asked questions.

Here are all the things I learned from my coach as well as everything else along the way!! Remember, I essentially started from zero: could not run for more than 1-2 minutes, could not bike for more than about 1 mile, and could not swim at all (I could survive for a bit in a swimming pool but no way I could do laps).

Swimming

1. Your body should be horizontal. When your head is facing down, your legs will naturally lift upward, keeping you horizontal. If you are not horizontal, you create drag, which slows you down.

2. If you’re just starting out, move slowly and steadily. Don’t go for speed until your form and breathing are solid.

3. Breathe just on one side.

4. Turn your head to the side, keeping one ear in the water, and take a sip of breath. Then breathe out through your nose as you put your face back down in the water. When you come back up on that side, exhale as you exit the water then take a sip and repeat. Be sure to breathe out all of that air while under the water. If you don’t, you’ll build up CO2 in your lungs and it will tire you out very quickly. If you take in too much air, you won’t have the time to breathe it out, and you’ll get tired.

5. If you get more efficient, you can take bigger breaths and just take a new breath every 3-4 strokes rather than every other. I’m not there yet. 🙂 

6. When you kick, think of flutters. Your feet should occasionally slap each other. Big kicks are unnecessary and will wear out your legs.

7. When you push your arm back into the water, it should be in front of you and slightly downward, with your fingers together. Then thrust your arm forward as well, so that your shoulder kisses your ear.

8. Picture a bird flying. They beat their wings then just glide. That’s how you want to move through the water. Just glide.

9. The water is your friend. Work with it. Don’t fight against it. If it’s windy one day and there are waves on the water, don’t be afraid of it.

10. Your body should rock back and forth, so when you take the breath, your whole body should rotate slightly.

11. Learn to SIGHT. At regular intervals (I did every 6 breaths), lift your head up to see where you’re going, then turn to the side and go back into your regular rhythm. It’s just a glance to make sure you’re going straight - this is for open water swimming.

12. In open water, if you’re unable to go the whole distance, practice rolling to your back and slowly moving forward that way. Then when you have caught your breath, roll back over and continue.

13. If you can, learn to do the breast stroke as well. I did not really learn it well enough but I plan to learn it moving forward!

14. Get a coach if you can find one and can afford it. As someone with basically no swimming experience, I found it to be the best use of my time and money!

Biking

1. Learn to use your gears!

2. When you go up a big hill, you want to change your front tire gears as well as your back. You’re basically going to be pedaling quickly but very easily. You’ll be moving forward suuuper slowly, but it’s a lot easier than wearing your legs out by pushing super hard on a higher gear.

3. When you go up a hill, push your heels down further than usual.

4. When you’re pedaling, your leg should be nearly straight. If your legs are too bent, you want to raise your seat.

5. The drops are the lowest part of your handlebars; they curve under. When you are going downhill or into some wind, you can drop your hands down to that position to reduce wind resistance.

6. If you can, stand up while you’re pedaling up hills. I can’t do that yet but I’m working on it.

7. Your big muscles (like your quads) have about 90 minutes of stored…something. My coach told me about it a few times, and I can’t remember the term. But she said that after about 90 minutes, if you haven’t been constantly replenishing those stores, they’ll run out. You’ll cramp up and will not be able to move your legs! So be sure to drink a few ounces of electrolyte water every 15-20 minutes.

Running

1. Practice running up STEEP hills to force your form to be better. You should be fairly quiet when you run. If your feet are slapping the ground, it’s not good form.

2. Walk 1 min, run 1 min. Whatever it takes, just keep moving!

I don’t have much else on the run. It was my least favorite part. Maybe in the future, I’ll have more info to offer there!

Other stuff

1. Depending on how much time you have before the race, find a training plan. I found an 8-week sprint triathlon plan. I followed it almost 100%, to the best of my ability. Some days I couldn’t do the distances in the “right” way, but I did my best.

2. The week before the race is a taper week. Very light workouts. This is important. Don’t overdo it! Same goes for rest days. Honor them.

3. Nutrition and hydration are super important. Get good at staying hydrated, not just chugging water right before and after a workout. You should be drinking water throughout the day, every day.

4. The week before the race, eat less meat, more carbs. Natural sugars. No alcohol, no processed junk. Fish and veggies are good.

5. The day of the race, my coach suggests something like an egg sandwich for breakfast. Then after the swim, suck down an applesauce pouch or eat half of a PB&J. During the bike, snack on a fruit bar, something with quick and easy carbs and sugars. (NOTE: These may not be the same suggestions for a longer race; I did a sprint, and that’s what she suggested.)

6. Be sure to check the USAT website for all the rules you need to know for a triathlon! For example, you have to leave 5 bike lengths between you and the person in front of you; otherwise it’s considered drafting. Another one is that your helmet must be on AND secured if you are touching your bike. Once it’s racked, you can undo your helmet!

That’s it!

I think it is such an amazing experience, and I plan to do more of them. If you’re considering signing up for one, I say go for it!!

That's it for this BONUS email. Have a good one!❤️ Bethany

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