Triathlon: Gym Training

Carlos Sánchez 3 min. of reading Triathlon Leave a comment

Triathlon is one of the most complete sports out there, maybe the most, since besides combining three demanding sports like swimming, cycling, and running, you also need to train hard in the gym to boost your power and endurance.

A common mistake newbie triathletes make is hitting the gym only in winter, when the weather keeps them from training outside as much as they’d like. But strength training during a triathlete’s season in the gym should be continuous and progressive.

Periodizing gym training

Usually, the training is fully periodized, from the start of preseason until reaching the set goal (it’s key to have a clear goal to hit your best peak form), and it’s typically divided into 5 phases:

1st: Muscle activation

At the start of preseason, the focus is on muscle activation, aiming for neuromuscular adaptation so your muscles recruit more muscle fibers during strength training.

This is based on beginner gym training, where the key is learning technique, increasing capillarization, and starting that neuromuscular adaptation. It lasts between 4 and 6 weeks, applying an intensity between 30 and 40% of your 1RM.

2nd: Muscular endurance

This phase aims for improving muscular endurance, working the slow-twitch fibers (ST) to give muscles greater capacity for longer exercise duration. It lasts between 3 and 5 weeks, with a medium intensity from 40 to 60% of your 1RM.

3rd: Muscle hypertrophy

The goal here is to increase muscle mass, boosting collagen fibers that form tendons, as well as the muscle’s elastic capacity, developing IIa (fast) fibers and further increasing capillarization. This phase lasts about 4 weeks, with an intensity between 60 and 80% of your 1RM.

4th: Strength

This phase targets increasing absolute and relative strength, enhancing motor unit recruitment, which leads to greater specific strength. It lasts about 4 weeks, applying an intensity between 80 and 100% of 1RM.

5th: Maintenance

Once you’ve completed the first 4 strength training phases, you need to maintain the adaptations gained by training each muscle group at least once a week or swapping specific strength workouts for strength training done on the bike, in the water, or running.