Right, as I’m hitting 50 next year I need a goal, so I’ve decided to have a go at the Upton Triathlon – it’s next July so I have a year or so to get fit.

Swimming quite happy.
Cycling yep, can ride a bike.
Running mmm, need to start.

So any advice will be gratefully received.

cut the arms off your cycling jerseys.

HTH

Head over to tritalk.

What distance is Upton?

Check swim technique….

….ride a lot…..

….plenty of speed work plus a few runs off the bike (brick session) to get used to the feeling.

Have fun!

good pair of running shoes…..

thomthumb – Member
cut the arms off your cycling jerseys.

HTH

And buy a pointy hat.

What distance is Upton?

Distances involved –

1.5k Swim
40k Bike ride
10k Run

Make sure that you get your swim technique sorted out. Triatheltes have a really lazy crawl techniques to save their legs, so get that sorted.

Running, 10k is not too bad. Look up a decent 10k plan and get that followed and you’ll be fine. Just gety some decent shoes.

Swim twice a week,
Bike twice a week
Do the couch to 5K run program then build up to 10K+

4 months before your event maybe do a structured training program.

i found i could ride less, and run more and my riding fitness would not suffer. if i did it the other way round, my running got really bad.
put in plenty of off road run hill intervals, easy on the joint, great cardio and run fitness.
dont overdo cramming in the training of the different aspects, reduce the time of doing them, rather than getting to the stage of skipping them due to injury…
good luck and enjoy!

If you can get any sort of coaching or lessons in swim technique then do so, I found it made a huge amount of difference. Do some winter miles with the local road club as well. And take it easy on the run training – this is where you’re most likely to injure yourself.
I used to love triathlons: coming last out of the swim then barreling past loads of muscle bound swimmers on low-profile TT bikes on the bike leg 🙂

try and find a local masters swimming time, or have a look a swimsmooth, 2 sessions a week will see time drops as you sort out technique and also mean you can swim more efficiently saving energy for the ride and run, decent 10k run plans on mcmillan running site.

Practice falling off your bike so you’ll fit in

I did a triathlon in Oban last year (off road). The swim was open water so was choppy and had current so open water swims are key(i’m a kite surfer so open water swim often to self rescue) practice open water swims. Practice cycle to run ,as the bike was fantastic i made 14 places up and when i started to run ,really bad calf cramps and back ache(only 2 runs training) i loved it really felt i accomplished something. Good luck ,train ,train,train ?

Join a local tri club and you should get swimming technique help and be prepared to get addicted. Go to triradar and search programme they have loads of programmes for all dofferent distances. I think hardest thing is learning to run off the bike so a few brick sessions. Doesn’t need to be long only 10 min run off bike regularly to get used to it.
I’m doing first half Ironman in sept. Started with sprints upped distances and addicted love it!

The words “Brick session” looks worrying. 😯

Its just a fancy word for practicing running after a bike ride – don’t worry, just practice!

To add some more tips:

Swim: start early on technique (as you have a year). IMO swimsmooth (Paul and Adam) are the best source of coaching online and their material is excellent. Lots of tips on their website, a great book, and lots of material in the training section on tritalk. In time learn about CSS training (from their website) and get used to training at this intensity. Plus you will need to buy/hire a wetsuit and get used to OW swimming. You can’t “win” a tri in the swim but you can lose it!!!

Bike: is key! Good fit. Aero bars. Cadence and pacing. Get the miles in!

Run: Pretty straightforward 10k training but with added bonus of the previous 1.5k swim and 40k ride!! At this stage not much to worry about. Build speed endurance.

Nearer the date, you can start thinking about tips, nutrition, kit etc – eg elastic laces, practicing transitions, lubrication (!!!), energy stuff. Look for end of season bargains (sic) re trisuits etc in about 1-2 months time.

Warn family that you will be addicted as you build up to Half/full IM over next four years!!! 😉

Sounds like you need to work on the run so may I suggest joining your local a running club.

Getting out with others of varying ablility really will help you.

As will joining a tri-club…. especially for the open water sessions your local club may well run.

Brick sessions have their place… but I wouldn’t worry about them until closer to the event

Have fun, it’s addictive and you’ll now realise … no longer are you just going for a bike ride… you are training !!

As others have said – the best thing is to join a local tri club.

They will have sessions that will help in all aspects of training so make sure you get to several and you’ll pick up what you need to know.

It can be quite addictive once you get going, the variety of training makes it fun and varied.

Don’t bother with aero bars and all the gear for now, buy the basics, do some training and enjoy. Too many oeople splash out a fortune on kit have no idea how to set it up/use it. The amount of peopls I overtake using tri bars which are vertical and giving them NO gain (I dont bother with them can get just as aero for me on hoods). Elastic laces worth it CRC £3 so just get practising. Brick sessions only need to be short 20 mins hard on bike to get HR up then 10 mins run soon get used to it.
Loads of stuff on line to help too.

Not bothering with tri-bars or any other tri-specific kit other than maybe a pair of shorts, heard the pad dries quicker.

Will consider elastic laces however.

Brick sessions now don’t sound so intimidating.

Buy the Triathlete’s Bible by Joe Friel.

What are you trying to do, just drag your bum round or go as fast as you can?

Get a trisuit or shorts, the good thing about a suit is you don’t have to try to put a top on while you are wet.

Aero bars can be picked up really cheap on ebay and make a big difference, I use a set of these on a road bike… http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Profile-Design-T2-Clip-On-Aerobar-Great-Condition-/330971473119?pt=UK_sportsleisure_cycling_bikeparts_SR&hash=item4d0f6fe4df

Elastic laces are useful for getting the shoes on quick.

It’s easier to learn to save 30 seconds in transition than it is to take 30 seconds off your 10k time.

Will tri bars make that much of a difference in a draft legal triathlon over 40km?

Unless you’re racing elite it won’t be draft legal.

If you’re racing draft legal then there’s a whole load of restrictions on the bars you can use for safety and they are very small. Some use them, some don’t.

Tri bars really do make a big difference, you have to make sure you set yourself up right on the bike of course (although it’s not rocket science).

It’s also worth testing the riding position over an hour and try to do a short run off it. They won’t help you if you’re too crippled by the position to run after, even a ‘bit’ of aero makes a difference though.

According to Boardman and Co. you can get 5% more aero just by covering the vents on your helmet.

As you’ve got a year, you’ve got plenty of time to find some cheap bars, try them out in training and do yourself justice on the day.

I did Upton this year! It’s small and a bit quirky, lovely location, you can camp the night before in the field next to the transition area and have a massive piss-up in the marquee afterwards. This year was brutal due to a 1pm start in 30deg heat in early July, and the river was very low. The bike and run courses are undulating but with no tough climbs. Last year the swim was cancelled because the river was in flood, so they turned the event into a run-bike-run duathlon. This can happen with river swims – if you want something more self-contained, better organised and with more predictable conditions then I’d recommend any one of Human Race’s events at Eton Dorney. Avoid the Virgin one at ExCel as it’s usually a shambles and the swim is in the open sewer that is the Royal Docks. September is a better time of year than July, because the weather is cooler but the water is still warm. That said, Windsor is my fave UK event, but the June date can mean cold, fast-flowing water in the Thames and it’s harder to get the training done in time.

I keep training simple and simply make sure to put the hours in – when I’m on it I do 1 session per week on each event plus one in addition, which might be a repeat of one of the other three, a bike-run, mountain bike ride or something else. Having an open water venue nearby is a huge bonus.

One tip for the race… always, always bear in mind that triathletes are crap cyclists and will fall off, impede you and do the daftest things when you least expect! Honestly, you’d think that some of them do all their training on a spinner in the gym and only get their bikes out for the race! This shower are the pros, truly hopeless: Hyde Park T1 2010

How do they police the drafting?

Randomly… if you don’t take the piss you can get away with it a bit!

Doing Upton because it’s just down the road from me in Malvern.

Get a medical checkup first before taking heavy exercise?

I’m sure you’re fine but just to be safe.

Get to the distance then add speed training 7 weeks before the event.

IRONMAN TRIATHLON POSITION: How marketing overcame reality for some.

You can get away with drafting if you are cheat, just like you could dope as well… all a bit unnecessary for a local race though eh.

I raced London triathlon at the weekend, it’s massive, loads of novices, loads of support. Think London marathon for triathlon, very different to a friendly local race. We had fun though.

Once of the best local races I’ve done is the Dartford Bridge triathlon. Closed road for the bike, nice lake swim but NOT scenic in the slightest.

Thanks for the tips.

Main thing at the moment is to build endurance and stamina, so swimming I’ve slowed down to concentrate on my technique and started running gently on softer ground.