The basics of strength training for triathletes

Strength training is important for triathletes to build muscular endurance and power, but it is also crucial for injury prevention.

Benefits of strength training:

• Helps change body composition and helps you get faster
• Can help take you to the next level in competition
• Plays a major role in injury prevention

Do’s and don’ts

• Do make sure you have a tailored program set up, doing random or excessive exercises can be a waste of time and can lead to injury.
• Don’t overload muscles with heavy sets, make sure to gradually build up to heavier sets.
• Do balance the focus on different muscle groups and make sure to give each muscle group enough time to rest and recover.
• Do focus on quality over quantity, make sure that the movements of each exercise are clean. Clean movements help improve muscle functionality.
• Do work your core muscles. A strong core teaches the rest of the body to work together properly and creates a solid foundation for overall body stability.
• Don’t forget to work your soft tissue, doing so can help prevent issues later.

Many pro triathletes credit strength training with getting them to the next level. Mark Allen saw dramatic results once he started incorporating strength training into his training schedule. He uses a program that cycles through four phases–each meant to focus on different aspects of your overall strength and match up with the different phases of aerobic training throughout the season.

If you’re new to strength training, make sure to ease into it. Try incorporating it into your training schedule once or twice a week with lighter weights and fewer circuits. As you progress, you build up to two to three days a week.