(energetic music)
- [Narrator] The common plastic bag!
Who would've thought it,
but actually this could be a triathlete's best friend.
You can use it in packing,
helping to keep your wet kit away from your dry kit,
but it has another use.
Now, you might find on race day
when you're a bit hot and flustered
and you're trying to squeeze
your feet and ankles into your wet suit,
well the plastic bag could be your saviour.
All you need to do is pop your foot into the plastic bag
and then you'll be able to pull your wet suit over your foot
and ankle with no problem at all.
Now, elastic bands are great
for keeping your cameraman alert.
But on a serious note, they are very useful for a triathlon,
especially if you're confident enough
to be doing a flying mount like these people,
then an elastic band is essential.
As you need to tie it from your shoe onto your bike
making sure your shoes are in the right position
so that when you come onto the bike,
they are ready for you to slide your feet straight in
and head out of T1, wasting no time.
And as soon as you stop pedalling,
the elastic band will just break and come straight off.
If you're racing outdoors, it's a good idea
to take a couple of options of different goggle lens colours.
That's because, if you're racing early in the morning,
for example, and it's really cloudy and overcast,
then you'll want to have a clear
or brighter goggle lens colour.
Or, if the conditions are really bright, or the sun's
just coming up and it's going to be in your eyes,
then you'll want a tinted or mirrored goggles like these.
And another thing to bear in mind,
if you do have a spare pair with you at the race start,
or as close to there as possible,
because there's nothing worse than your goggles breaking
last minute and trying to swim without any goggles.
If you're doing a longer-distance race
and you need lots of gels,
you might struggle to find enough room in your bento box
and maybe your tri-suit doesn't have pockets at the back.
So there is a solution, you can use a water bottle
and you can just empty your gel packets into your bottle.
And then, depending on the consistency of the gel,
you might need to add some water.
Just enough so it can make it's way out
through the top of your bottle.
And another point on this, it's quite good to mark
exactly how many gels you've got in there
and a line as to where each gel would be.
So you still know roughly how many gels you've had
throughout the race.
And, if you don't want to do that
and you want to actually have the gel
directly from the packet,
you can attach it onto your bike directly
with a piece of tape.
That makes it easy to rip off and take the gel directly.
A quick and easy tip, is just to replace
your original shoelaces with some stretchy elastic ones.
Meaning you can put your foot straight into your shoe
and you don't have to waste time faffing,
trying to tie a bow.
But, I do recommend you practise this beforehand.
You need to make sure you've got the right tightness
across the shoe and you can get your foot in easily,
but it's not too sloppy so it's going to fall off.
If you get it right,
it can save you a lot of time in transition.
Cable ties!
These are an essential piece of kit that should always
be in your bag when you're travelling
to any triathlon race.
And, not only can they solve several emergency situations,
they're also great for adding security
to anything that you've got attached to your bike.
Now, a common use of these is for securing
your bottle cage in between your arrow bars.
So you can just add these on top of the fastenings
you've already got there,
just to make sure your bottle doesn't pop out
when you're going over any bumps.
You can use a little bit of petroleum jelly
inside your running and your cycling shoes
in the areas that are prone to rubbing.
And then also maybe pop a little bit around the tops
of your shoes, as it'll just help you get your foot in
in transition.
If you are doing a longer-distance race and you're opting
to wear socks, maybe put them in your shoes ready
so you know which is the left and which is the right sock.
And you can just make that even quicker
by rolling them down.
So that means you save even more time in transition.
Travelling for triathlon is never a light and easy task.
So trying to keep the weight down and avoid needing
an extra bag will save costs.
So the best idea is to put your lighter, bulkier kit
inside your bike bag.
And it also doubles up as extra padding,
and then, if you've got any really heavy things,
you can maybe take them in your hand luggage.
And another tip, a lot of athletes do take
their running shoes, their cycling shoes
and their helmet in hand luggage.
So, if the worst comes to the worst
and your luggage does get lost on the way to the race,
you can probably borrow the rest,
but you have the essentials.
Not all of us will have the luxury of taking
your own personal masseur with you on race day.
So the next best thing is a foam roller.
And you might think, "I haven't got room in my luggage."
Well, several of them are hollow as you can see.
So then you can just stuff any extra clothes in there.
Now, if you don't have the space or you forget
your foam roller, you can improvise with a bottle of water.
Fill it up, turn the top on tight,
and then you can use that as you would your foam roller.
Another hack, though, is these two tennis balls.
Now, a tennis ball can be used on it's own
as a massage tool.
You can roll on it, put it against the wall.
You could also use a golf ball or a hockey ball,
depending on what works for you.
But if you put these two tennis balls together
and you use some tape,
you can make a peanut, or a monkey nut.
And that's great for massaging areas such as your back
cos it fits down either side of your spine.
Using a neoprene-friendly lubricant such a baby oil
underneath your wetsuit around your ankles and wrists
is great for preventing any areas from rubbing,
but also, it makes it that much easier
to get your wetsuit off when you're trying to rush
through transition.
All of these are fairly easy and inexpensive items
to invest in and can end up making a significant difference
on race day.
The key is to be prepared.
So, if you are going to try any of these tips
for the first time, just make sure you practise them
at home before you get to the race.
And if you've got any ideas or hacks that you do
and you want to share with us,
we would love to know.
So please leave them in the comments section below.
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And if you want to watch a video
on eight exercises you can fit around your day,
click down here.
And if you want to watch a video from Ask the Pros
on their pre-race breakfast, click down here.