Calling all triathletes - current and former

Hey, maybe that's the purpose of the ubiquitous Mankini - to keep the heart rate monitor in place. :lmao: On the original point.. I too am a triathlete, although swimming is definitely my favorite of the three disciplines. This past winter I stopped biking entirely except for the occasional ride on the trainer. I swam between 3 and 5 times a week, ran maybe 2 to 3 times a week, and lifted weights. I did a few swim meets in the spring. Then I switched over to "triathlon mode". Started commuting on the bike, doing long rides on the weekends, bricks. Simultaneously kicked up the run training - more intervals, speedwork, hills, and threshold runs.. while ratcheting down the swimming. No more 4 or 5X a week, no more breaststroke-specific days. :( Started doing some open water swims, both with and without the wetsuit. All of this seems to be working pretty well, because my results from the sprint triathlon on Sunday were 10 minutes better than last year's last sprint. That really isn't as great as it sounds, last year was a slow year because I worked too much and trained inconsistently. Also I can probably attribute around 2 minutes to the new bike chain which no longer pops off on hills.. Still, it is good to know I'm on the right track, and I haven't been injured in a long while. Overall I like my current balance of training. I've got my bike speed back and I'm gradually getting more comfortable with running. I wouldn't necessarily recommend my "training plan" to any triathletes, since it involves ignoring the bike for 4 months. For me it's not a problem since biking is my strongest suit and I do a whole lot of kicking and fin swimming. I find that legwork in the pool translates pretty well to the bike, but nothing carries over to the run. The only thing that improves my running is running. Other people's results may vary. For me, it is a worthwhile trade-off so I can focus more on swimming during the winter.

Hey, maybe that's the purpose of the ubiquitous Mankini - to keep the heart rate monitor in place. :lmao: On the original point.. I too am a triathlete, although swimming is definitely my favorite of the three disciplines. This past winter I stopped biking entirely except for the occasional ride on the trainer. I swam between 3 and 5 times a week, ran maybe 2 to 3 times a week, and lifted weights. I did a few swim meets in the spring. Then I switched over to "triathlon mode". Started commuting on the bike, doing long rides on the weekends, bricks. Simultaneously kicked up the run training - more intervals, speedwork, hills, and threshold runs.. while ratcheting down the swimming. No more 4 or 5X a week, no more breaststroke-specific days. :( Started doing some open water swims, both with and without the wetsuit. All of this seems to be working pretty well, because my results from the sprint triathlon on Sunday were 10 minutes better than last year's last sprint. That really isn't as great as it sounds, last year was a slow year because I worked too much and trained inconsistently. Also I can probably attribute around 2 minutes to the new bike chain which no longer pops off on hills.. Still, it is good to know I'm on the right track, and I haven't been injured in a long while. Overall I like my current balance of training. I've got my bike speed back and I'm gradually getting more comfortable with running. I wouldn't necessarily recommend my "training plan" to any triathletes, since it involves ignoring the bike for 4 months. For me it's not a problem since biking is my strongest suit and I do a whole lot of kicking and fin swimming. I find that legwork in the pool translates pretty well to the bike, but nothing carries over to the run. The only thing that improves my running is running. Other people's results may vary. For me, it is a worthwhile trade-off so I can focus more on swimming during the winter.