How long does it take to train for a triathlon?

Hi Girlrose, good choice of sport :-)

To answer the question really depends on the distance you're intending on doing? a 'try a tri' may be as little as 500m swim, 10km bike, 5km run, and with this in mind, I'd say that with any basic level of fitness you could enter and finish without issue.

If you're intending on moving more to a sprint, olympic or iron distance, then you've got some work cut out, and depending on the distance will determine the way you train. For example, training for a sprint will be no good for iron distance.

As a guide, however, olympic distance from total beginner to race, with sustained and determined effort (i.e. exercising every other day with a big run/ride on weekend) will be achievable in around 9 months.

Half iron might be as long as 2-3 years, full iron you're looking 3-5 years.

Happy to provide further input, but really I'll suggest that if you're looking at the longer distance events, you'd be best to get in with a tri specific club. cycling/running clubs simply wont train you correctly for the task ahead.

Woop woop, sprints for the win! :-)

So the things I'd work on:
1. Know your course. If the swim is in ocean, you need to become comfortable in the sea. Depending on the water temp at that time of year, you may be able to wear a wetsuit (think its below 24 degrees? anything above and no neoprene allowed).

2. Gear your cycling/running to that of the course profile (i.e. x km distance with y m elevation) and train an equivalent course profile.

3. Get used to doing 'bricks'. A brick is a series of training exercises which cover transitions. Get used to jelly legs when hitting the run. Embrace the pain. :-)

4. Get fast. Its a given that if you intend to do the race on your mtb, you wont hit any course records, but that doesnt mean you should come last. The run is often the most overlooked element of the race, yet is the bit which really tests people (they go too hard on the bike).

5. Practice. If you know that August is your A race, then get a bit of practice in with some minor/cheap events prior to, so that you can iron out any dramas (how to spot your bike from the swim when there are a few thousand racked up...for example).

6. If you use a heart rate monitor, expect to spend much of your time in zones 3-4. Thus, train appropriately with HIIT exercises.

Hope this helps!

You said you need to improve your breast stroke. While breast stroke is allowed it's a LOT slower than frontcrawl- also called "freestyle". Get a good instructor and learn the crawl and it's faster and more efficient.

Way back when I was fit, I saw an ad for a local triathlon. My sister, a swimmer, and I joked we should do it as a team (didn't know we could at that time). I was a runner and in good shape at the time. That same week my running magazine came with an article with a 12 week program to finish a sprint distance. I decided then that someday I would do one when I was in better shape. It was my goal ever since.
A few years later after an accident, I was an overweight and out of shape. On my quest to get back in shape, I joined a master swim club in January. I also started running (very slowly) again. I did not know how to properly swim and learned through the group. I could only swim the length of the pool at first.
Before I knew it this crazy group (most of whom are also triathletes) convinced me to sign up for a July sprint triathlon. I was an average biker, a slow runner and not a great swimmer and I still finished. I was not training hard either, just swimming, biking and running a couple of times a week. I haven't looked back.
It was so funny to me that I was scared to do it in the best shape of my life but did it when I was pretty much at my worst.
The best part is, every year I get faster.


You go some great advice above. If it's open water - practice open water! Don't cheap out on a wetsuit. I wen with a cheap Canadian Tire suit not meant for swimming and paid dearly. You can get pretty cheap entry model ones online or rent one.

And when you get in the water, remember - just breathe. It's funny how you forget that but I often spent the first meters calming myself down and focusing on my breathing.

You can stop swimming at any time and rest. You can even grab the paddle board if there is a life guard near you, you just can't move forward while holding on.

I say go for it.

Oh and join as master swim group if you can. And check your area for a local tri club. These people changed my life.

ETA - a swim coach is definitely. But a master club can often be a little more affordable.

Your First Triathlon by Joe Friel is also helpful.


2nd add - I debated the super sprint and the advice to me was to do the sprint. I'm glad I did.

I also finished dead last and didn't care. (The race was extremely small, around 100 total for sprint/Olympic distances)

You have plenty of time to train for a sprint in August. Check of beginnertriathlete.com. They have free training plans that you can download, and plenty of other helpful info. Also check to see if there are any local tri groups in your area. Sometimes the ymca's will offer some sort of triathlon 101 or training class this time of year.

It would definitely be worthwhile to take a few swim lessons. The swim is the shortest part of the race, but you really want to feel comfortable in the water. It's very common for people to become overwhelmed in the open water, especially with all the other bodies out there.

Include lots of bricks (swim-bike, and especially bike-run) in your training workouts. Running after being on the bike feels very different than just running, so you want to train your legs to get used to that feeling. Even a short 5-10 minute run after your bike training will help.

Practice in the clothing and equipment you plan to wear for the race. You don't want any race day surprises.

Good luck! And enjoy!!!

There is plenty of time for you to work on it and it sounds like you are already most of the way there! I am working towards my first sprint tri (5k run, 20k bike and .75k swim) in July, 7 months should be good to work on what I need. I will look over all those other comments of people who have done a tri as well and use what I can to help me.

Good luck to you!

bump

That is plenty of time for you to compete in a sprint triathlon. One thing that helped me was to join a local triathlon club. They typically have group training sessions with athletes of all levels. The coaches will give you great tips and you will likely meet someone at your same level that you can train with and gauge your progress. Best of luck.