A triathlon is a multi-sport event that encompasses swimming, biking and running set distances. While race distances vary, the standard distance for beginner triathlons, or sprint, begins with a half-mile swim followed by a 13-mile bike ride and finished by a 3.2-mile run. Because each sport requires different strengths and skills, preparing for a triathlon, even a beginner race, requires training in three disciplines.
Swim Workouts
Even for a beginning triathlete, it is important to swim efficiently. Swim workouts should focus on specific movements of the forward crawl, or freestyle stroke. This includes arm movement, body position and kicking. Swim workouts should also include one session for distance training, which develops endurance and gives you confidence to finish the swim portion of your race.
Schedule your pool workouts two to three times per week. Practice drills that develop good form, such as counting the number of strokes to swim 25 yards. Ideally, it should take only 22 strokes. Endurance workouts of 300 to 400 yards develop your ability swim continuously. Include a 20-second rest before repeating the same swimming distance. For sprint workouts, time yourself swimming 50 yards and 100 yards. Repeat these timed distances four times before moving on to another drill.
Because most triathlons take place in open water, such as a lake or river, it is important to spend time training in open water. Because it is different than pool swimming, open water can initially cause anxiety in racers. Becoming comfortable in an open water environment eases your anxiety. Additionally, lake and river water is murky, which limits your line of sight during a race. According to "Competitor," beginning swimmers can practice a blend of strokes -- freestyle and breast stroke -- to sight direction during a race. Use the freestyle stroke for forward momentum and add a few breast strokes with your head above water to sight race boundary markers before returning to the forward crawl.
Bike Workouts
Bicycling workouts should include climbs, sprints and distance training. Climbing and distance rides develop stamina and strength in your legs. Find hills that offer a sustained pitch, or angle, and challenge yourself by remaining seated during your climb. Develop endurance using distance training by riding for time, such as one hour, or mileage, such as 20 miles. Increase the time or mileage every other week. Sprinting helps increase your cadence, or leg turnover. Use a bike computer to measure your cadence during each training session.
Running Workouts
Like biking, running workouts focus on endurance, distance and speed. Repeated hill climbs build stamina. Fartlek training, or speed drills, helps increase running speed. For example, during a run decide on a distance interval, such as the length of a city block. Use this interval to vary your running speed, from jogging to sprinting. Repeat this drill over a distance of two miles.
It is also important to include a combination workout, or a bike-run workout, during your triathlon training. The initial transition from biking to running causes the legs to feel heavy and lethargic. Because both biking and running rely on muscle power in the legs, you should incorporate bike-run workouts prior to your triathlon race. This will help you push through the first 500 yards of the running event.
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