Triathlon Training Articles
Long-form articles on training, race execution, and the decisions that move the needle for age-group athletes. No supplement reviews. No marginal gains theatre. Just the stuff that actually matters when you're training on limited hours with a real race on the calendar.
New here? Start with these guides:
• The Time-Crunched Triathlete: Maximising Limited Training Hours
• Why You’re Not Getting Faster: The Forgotten Role of Technical Skills in Triathlon
• Full Distance Race Strategy: Calm Execution Beats Chaos
• Strength Training for Triathletes: Build Strength and Crush Races
Big-Gear Done Right: A Triathlete’s Guide to Low-Cadence Strength
Many triathletes benefit from low-cadence strength training, which involves pedaling at a lower RPM in a higher gear to build muscular endurance and fatigue resistance. This training enhances power, efficiency, and neuromuscular coordination, helping athletes perform better during races, especially in challenging conditions. Consistent, structured workouts are key to gaining these advantages.
How to Train For and Race Short-Course Triathlons
Sprint and Olympic racing demands intensity, not just fitness. How to train specifically, pace each discipline, and use transitions as free speed.
After the Finish Line: A Coach’s Guide to Navigating the Post-Race Period
Finishing a triathlon is a significant accomplishment, but the post-race phase demands attention. Athletes often face emotional lows, physical fatigue, and uncertainty about future goals. Effective recovery involves acknowledging feelings, reframing perspectives, avoiding common mistakes, and planning wisely for upcoming training cycles. Prioritizing recovery leads to long-term athletic success.
The Mental Trap of Always Feeling Fit
Fitness and freshness are not the same thing. Why chasing the feeling of fitness in training produces the grey zone, and how to read what flat actually means.
Serious Fun: Why Play Matters in Triathlon
Play is not a distraction, it’s a training tool. This piece shows where it fits in your week, what it improves, and how to keep it from turning into random chaos.
How to Nail Your First Triathlon Without Drowning, Crashing, or Bonking
Preparing for your first triathlon involves focused training in swim, bike, and run disciplines to improve performance without unnecessary fatigue. Key strategies include practicing in open water, smart pacing on the bike, and integrating brick workouts for run adaptation. Nutrition, effective transitions, and mental toughness are essential for race day success.
You 're Not a Norwegian Triathlete — And You Shouldn't Train Like One
The Norwegian Method in triathlon emphasizes high-volume training, double-threshold sessions, and precise data monitoring, leading to Olympic success. While effective for professionals, age-group athletes risk injury and burnout if they mimic this approach. Understanding the principles and personalizing training within real-life constraints promotes sustainable improvement without unnecessary complexity.
The Missing Ingredient in Athlete Development: Pressure
The key to breaking performance plateaus in triathlon training lies in applying purposeful pressure rather than simply increasing volume. Athletes must step outside their comfort zones, embracing physical, technical, psychological, and ego-based pressures to foster adaptation and resilience. This approach transforms stagnation into growth, enhancing preparation for race-day challenges.
Challenge Roth – What Racing There Is Really Like
Roth stands out as a unique triathlon experience, drawing athletes for its festival-like atmosphere. However, the race week can overwhelm with distractions, making planning essential. Success relies on discipline, adaptability, and avoiding the temptation to expend energy too early. Athletes must balance excitement with strategy to perform well.
Triathlon Training in Your 40s, 50s, and Beyond
Triathlon is not exclusive to the young; athletes aged 40 and above can excel by understanding age-related changes in endurance performance. This article explores how to adapt training strategies, emphasizing continued fitness through strength training, managing intensity, prioritizing recovery, and maintaining proper technique. Embracing a growth mindset and redefining success can enhance performance at any age.
The Time-Crunched Triathlete: Maximising Limited Training Hours
You can train well on limited hours, but only if the week has a point. This piece shows how to prioritise sessions, build strength and skills, and stop wasting time on filler.
Why You’re Not Getting Faster: The Forgotten Role of Technical Skills in Triathlon
Triathletes often focus solely on fitness for performance but neglect technical skills, which are equally crucial. Technical deficiencies manifest under fatigue, leading to efficiency loss. This article emphasizes prioritizing technique alongside endurance training to improve race performance and prevent injuries. A mindset shift from ego-driven training to efficiency is essential for true progress.
The Session That Felt Like Nothing
The unremarkable session is usually doing exactly what it should. Why purposeful repetition beats novelty, and how to measure training value correctly.
You’re Not “Overtrained”: You’re Underprepared or Misaligned
Many endurance athletes often mislabel their fatigue as Overtraining Syndrome (OTS), a rare condition. In reality, issues like inadequate nutrition, poor sleep, high life stress, and misaligned training plans frequently cause fatigue. Understanding these factors can lead to actionable solutions, allowing athletes to correct their approach and improve performance.
Stuck in No-Man’s-Land: Why Triathletes Plateau and How to Break Through
Triathletes don’t plateau because they’re lazy. They plateau because almost everything they do sits in the same grey zone: not easy enough to truly recover, not specific or hard enough to force real adaptation. This article unpacks how that “no-man’s land” creeps into your swim, bike, and run, and shows you how to restructure training so you finally move the needle again.
Slow Doesn’t Mean Safe: Why Conservative Training Can Still Get You Injured
Most triathlon injuries happen during easy training, not hard sessions. Why conservative training can still get you hurt, and what actually builds durability.
How Fitness Actually Builds: Recovery, Adaptation, and Timing in Triathlon Training
Fitness is built during recovery, not during the session. Why the lag effect, supercompensation, and recovery timing matter more than training load alone.
Marginal Gains in Triathlon: A Costly Myth
Many amateur triathletes mistakenly prioritize expensive gear upgrades, believing in "marginal gains" to improve performance, while neglecting fundamental training principles. Elite athletes employ marginal gains as fine-tuning after perfecting core skills. To enhance performance, amateurs should focus on consistent training, skill development, recovery, and nutrition rather than costly equipment.
Heat Adaptation Strategies for Triathletes
Triathletes from cooler climates must prepare for hot racing conditions to avoid health risks and poor performance. Heat adaptation enhances endurance by improving body cooling efficiency. Key strategies include gradual heat training, hydration, smart pacing, and effective cooling techniques on race day. Monitoring symptoms and adjusting effort is crucial for safety.
Coaching the Committed vs the Curious Athlete
Two athletes can train the same hours and get very different results. This piece breaks down the committed and the curious mindset, what each does well, and what tends to trip them up.