0 CrossFit For Triathletes: Get Stronger and Faster

Like it or not, us triathletes operate in a fairly narrow, specialised range.  Our training is designed to move us through the swim, run and ride in the most efficient way possible.  If you're training for Ironman 70.3 or Ironman events, you may not even be worried about how fast you cover the ground, concentrating on just building the endurance necessary to simply survive 12 or so hours of torture.

An unfortunate side effect of this concentration on covering miles and building volume is the loss of speed, and in some cases strength.  No matter how far you run or ride, you may very well finding your performance plateauing as your body adapts to the consistent running, cycling and swimming.  Adding more volume can often just lead to overuse injuries.

A relatively new, and increasingly popular, addition to many triathletes training regime is CrossFit.  Designed to increase conditioning and strength, CrossFit's combination of weight lifting, resistance and explosive movements can help stagnating endurance athletes get faster and stronger without compromising their ability to "go long".

As a busy person, I can appreciate the real benefits to my performance that are packed into a short CrossFit session.  Most of the "real" training that I do involves a two-three hour time commitment that is not always possible in a modern professional's life.  An intense, blistering circuit of exercises could be just the thing that I, and many others, need to spice up a mundane training regimen.

Staying healthy is an additional benefit of CrossFit to endurance athletes.  A focus on core strength and whole body conditioning add not only stability and improved posture, but also help to prevent injuries that often result from the body's response to a weak core.  Back, lower leg and other common triathlete injuries can be avoided through an improvement in core strength.  Strengthened back and shoulder muscles aid in swimming, cycling and obviously in the run leg of any event.

If you are constantly getting injured, trying to get faster, or just looking for a bit of variety in your training, maybe you should look into CrossFit.

0 Look After Yourself. Knowing When You've Had Enough Exercise

Pushing yourself hard is the best way to see improvement in your mental and physical conditioning.  Nothing beats the satisfied, warm feeling you get after a strong week of hard training.  Whilst you need to keep challenging yourself, it's very important that you know when it's time to take a break.  Pushing your body to far will almost always result in an injury or illness that will set your training back further than you might think.


As I've mentioned before, rest and recovery are the most important part of any training regime.  Your body needs time to repair damaged muscles and overcome built up fatigue.  Without adequate sleep (at least 7 or 8 hours a night), and regular rest days (where you do nothing), you will find yourself feeling worn out and your body will begin to let you down.  Injuries are all to often brought on, or exacerbated, by a lack of sufficient recovery time.


In order to provide the power you need for training and racing, your body needs the right kinds of fuel.  Make sure you are eating regular healthy meals.  Fuels that release energy over an extended period are better suited to your needs, and will prevent you from feeling hungry between meals.  Your body will be burning through it's stored energy at a much faster rate, so make sure you are getting enough, healthy, low fat food to sustain you.  There are a million different diets out there, but the bottom line is be sensible.  You know which foods are good for you and which aren't.  Indulge in the unhealthy ones every now and then if you want to, but try to be consistent with the healthy foods.


The most important thing to remember is to listen to your body.  If you feel too tired to work out, take a rest day.  A niggle can turn into a much more serious injury if you try to ignore it and "push through the pain".  I am currently recovering from an annoyingly persistent bout of shin splints that would no doubt be more prolonged if I had kept running as frequently as I have been. 

If you are feeling worn down after a period of sustained training, give yourself a couple of days off, or re-energise yourself by mixing up your training.  If you are swimming and riding on a regular basis, add a trail run, weights session or a spin class to your training.  You'll not only get the benefits of cross-training, but you will find you remain motivated to train longer and find it easier to get out of bed in the morning.  Your brain is just as important in the training process as your muscles, so keep it interested with variety.  Just as we get bored of the same diet or repetitive task, we need to continually vary our training.