Whether aiming to complete your first triathlon or trying to get faster than your last race, effective training is the key. Put in the hours and the right mix of training and you'll be reaching your goals in no time! 

There are many coaches, books and online resources that will give you week by week training plans. Here is a flavour of some of the training ideas out there.

Most training falls into 1 of 3 types:

• Aerobic

• Tempo/threshold

• Interval

Aerobic training is done at a pretty comfortable intensity over quite long periods, typically an hour or more. It Develops the heart and lung capabilities and thereby increases endurance/base fitness. Most winter training falls into this category.

Tempo/threshold work is done at race pace. You are on the limit of the work rate you can keep up for extended periods. This type of training improves speed and tolerance to lactic acid build-up in the body.

Interval training is repeated short intervals of very high intensity efforts. Working at this rate is only possible for a couple of minutes at a time. This type of training improves strength and speed.

Usually all training sessions start with a warm up which eases the body into the session and helps reduce the risk of injury.

Before you start a session, have in mind a plan of what you want to achieve, i.e. a hard tempo session or long slow distance session. Fit this in with how your body is feeling on the day and what training you've already/recently done.

General

Swim

Bike

Run

Bricks

HRM & RPE

Transitions

Gear

GENERAL