Training for a triathlon

I’m training for a triathlon.

As a kid I was not a fan of swimming, and my hands are sensitive to cold water, so I mostly avoided it. For my whole adult life I’ve told myself “one day I’ll properly learn to swim”. I decided it was finally time to fulfill that promise I made.

Knowing that deadlines and tracking metrics are incredibly motivating for me, I signed up for a triathlon in June 2026 as a forcing function.

Here’s my progress so far:

Process

I read all 3 triathlon books by Taren Gesell, which were the perfect minimum knowledge I needed to get into action. I highly recommend these books to get started.

Here’s the condensed version of the tips that have been most helpful to me as I progress:

[Swimming]

• Focus on the weakest thing first: for me, that was swimming.
• Spend a lot of time on breathing. The first several times I got into the pool, I noticed a tightness in my chest, a low-level anxiety when under the water, and a shortness of breath, even though I was breathing more.
  • The shortness of breath is not lack of oxygen, but rather too much CO2. I noticed a shift when I was able to start breathing out consistently. A useful primer was to train myself to hum whenever I was underwater - that way I was always breathing out.
• At least at beginner level, the purpose of kicking is just to keep your legs from sinking and maintain body alignment. Almost all the propulsion comes from the arms!
• Body alignment is key.
  • Looking straight down (rather than looking ahead) makes a big difference.
  • Fins and snorkel are perfect to to train body alignment. Taking the breathing out of the picture was super helpful so I could just focus on my kicks, my head position, my arm position, and keeping my torso from wobbling.

[Cycling]

• The cycling is where the wheat is separated from the chaff. The difference between strong swimmers and slow swimmers isn’t large. But for cycling, there’s a big difference. So if you’re trying to be competitive, it makes sense to focus a lot of time on cycling.
• I haven’t got a bike yet, so I’m just training on indoor bike (which kinda sucks to be honest). I really need to get a bike!

[Running]

Before starting triathlon training, I used the Nike Run Club app from April to August 2025 to get comfortable running 10k. I had never run consistently before, so this was my foundation.

• Running is the hardest on the joints and the easiest and shortest distance of the three. Also, improving cycling benefits running, but not so much the other way around.

Gear I used

General

• Trainiac Taren’s Swimming/Cyling/Running Foundations books
• Smartwatch - Garmin Forerunner 255. I only use it during workouts, I don’t want notifications on my wrist at any other time.
• Polar H10 Chest strap - I had this already, gives accurate HR data. Kinda redundant now that I have the watch.
• Mottiv - Simple app (also by Taren) to plan my weekly workout schedule

Swimming

• Prescription goggles - so I can see the bottom of the pool in HD
• Swimcap
• Speedos (ha!)
• Face moisturizer (my face gets very dry after swimming in the chlorine)
• Snorkel - Finis Swimmer’s Snorkel
• Fins - TYR Crossblade 2

Cycling

• Headband
• I haven’t bought a bike yet, so I’m just training on a stationary bike at the gym for now

Running

• Shoes