- Are you new to triathlon?
If so, you might well be struggling
to know where to start
when it comes to putting three,
very different sports together.
Well I've recently had a few friends
who've done their first event
and they've had so many questions, and understandably so.
So I thought I'd put together some tips
and pieces of info that will help you prepare for
your first event.
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It goes without saying, you are going to need to do
some training, ahead of your first triathlon.
Now it obviously depends
on what background you're coming from,
but say you've got no experience of the three sports,
well I would seriously recommend
that you head along to a club,
or at least speak to a coach
to get some advice and guidance for that.
And we've also made a series of videos
on how to train for your first triathlon,
so check those out.
Now, before you get too carried away
and start worrying about putting all three sports together,
you need to focus on each one individually
and make sure that you're happy and confident
to complete the distance,
or hopefully a little bit more than,
that's going to be in your event.
So let's say you've entered a sprint triathlon,
which is a great distance to start with.
Well for that you going to need to be
very comfortable swimming 750 meters,
you need to be able to cycle at least 20 kilometers,
and run at least five k.
Once you've got to grips with each sport,
and you're confident at covering that distance,
it's time to look at putting them all together
before race day.
Now the swim to bike isn't really too concerning,
because the swim predominantly uses your arms,
whereas the bike is predominantly your legs.
But when it comes to the bike to run,
well that's a different matter.
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Well as the bike and run rely on your legs,
it really is a good idea to practice doing a bike ride
and then going straight out onto a run after.
You're going to experience that jelly leg feeling,
and it's always better to have this the first time
in training, so at least you're going to know
what to expect when it comes to race day.
And with a few practices in your legs,
you'll get more used to it as well.
And these types of sessions are known as brick sessions,
in case you've never heard of that term
and you had no idea what people were on about.
If the swim is something you really struggle with,
don't worry you're not alone.
It's the most common challenge for triathletes.
And as a result of that, there's actually an event
that's a super sprint, which involves just a 400-meter swim,
but the bike and run are still the same distances
as the sprint that we already mentioned.
Now sticking with swimming and talking about training,
you also need to make sure you prepare
for the type of swim that you've got coming up.
There are plenty of pool-based triathlons
available for beginners, but if you have opted
to do your first triathlon in an open-water event,
then please, please make sure you go and practice
in similar conditions, because it is very different.
Swimming in a wetsuit is different in itself
and there's a lot to think about,
when it comes to open water.
So if you do want some more advice on that,
then check out some of our GTN videos,
which we'll share with you in the description below.
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Yes you do need a fair amount of kit to train
and race in a triathlon.
But that doesn't mean you need to head straight out
and buy everything to do with swimming,
cycling, and running.
Admittedly, you are going to have to invest
in a few key pieces, but most of those will hopefully
be able to double-up for training and race day.
Now I'm not going to go into loads of detail here,
'cause that's a video in itself,
but if you think logically, so for the swimming
you're going to need a swimsuit, hat, and googles.
And then when it comes to the run,
you'll certainly need a pair of trainers,
and at least some running kit.
Well as for the cycle, you can do quite a bit of training
indoors on a gym bike, but ideally you will need to head out
onto the road at some point, and all you need then
is a functioning and safe bike with brakes
and preferably some gears.
If you've got something basic at home
you can use that to train on.
And if you get the triathlon bug,
then you can always upgrade after your first event,
or maybe even borrow a bike for race day.
Safety is important.
So it's definitely worth getting your own helmet.
You don't need to get anything fancy here,
just make sure that it meets those safety requirements.
And then there's some other expensive pieces of kit,
which you don't necessarily need to start with,
such as bike shoes, tri-suit and wetsuit.
There's nothing wrong in doing your first event
in your trainers.
You can then get changed after each discipline,
so you won't need a tri-suit,
and you can usually manage
to borrow a wetsuit if you want to.
But I would say, that maybe buying a cheap tri-suit,
or finding one you could borrow,
would be a really great help for your first race,
as it's one less thing to worry about,
as you don't need to get changed between each discipline.
There are a few other pieces
that are just small investments,
but can make a significant difference to your race day.
So a race belt for example.
You attach your race number to that
and then you can wear it on your back for the bike,
and you simply spin it round to the front
when it comes to the run.
It saves you having to pin it onto a different top,
or getting changed afterwards.
And also elastic laces are a great invention.
They simply make it that much easier to get your feet
into your shoes when they're a little bit wet and clammy.
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Well that leaves us with race day
and obviously you need to choose the event
that you're going to enter.
And I would suggest that you consider location.
Go for something that's closer to home,
as you're more likely to be familiar with the surroundings,
which should automatically make you feel
that much more relaxed, as well as, maybe you can
convince your friends and family to come along and support
if that's something that you want.
And obviously it's going to be cheaper,
as you shouldn't need accommodation costs
and travel to get there should be less.
And then you need to think about
whether you want to do an open-water, or pool-based swim,
which we've already talked about.
And on top of that you need to consider distance.
But I would recommend
starting with a shorter-distance triathlon,
'cause you can always build up as you get more confident.
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Now you do need to have a grasp of the basic rules at least.
And the more you know them, the more you can then relax
and actually focus purely on your performance.
So there's things such as the helmet rule.
You must have your helmet done up,
and on securely before you take your bike
out of the racking.
And at the other end of the bike leg,
you must make sure your bike is back securely
in its position, before you take your helmet off.
Then there's the mount and dismount lines.
You need to know where you can get on and off your bike.
Also that distance between you and the rider in front.
So there's quite a lot to consider there.
Also really good idea to be familiar with the route,
so you don't need to worry about where you're going.
And the start times are obviously important.
And on that note, do try and get there
with plenty of time so you can set up
and hopefully even have a little bit of time to relax.
Stick with what you do know on race day
and please don't go trying anything new.
You might hear other athletes talking about tactics,
or maybe you see some of the guys in the earlier waves,
doing flying mounts onto their bike.
Well I would save these for practicing at home
and right now, just concentrate on your own performance,
and hopefully you can then enjoy it,
as you've always got plenty of time
to go back and hone those skills.
And hopefully you'll be back to do another race soon.
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I've already mentioned a few of our GTN videos
that could be helpful,
but we've got loads of tips for beginners,
so do go and check out our GTN archive,
and if you've still got a question
that hasn't been answered, well do let me know
in the comments section below,
and we'll do our best to get back to you.
But if you want to make sure that you get all of our
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if you've enjoyed this.
And I talked about those videos of how to train
if you are new to triathlon, well we've got a playlist
for you and that's just down here.