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Triathlon Workout: Cycle 1 (Sprint Distance) – Week 3, Day 5

Completing your first triathlon takes strength, speed, endurance, and flexibility. These whole-body workouts will help you achieve them all and prepare for a sprint distance event.

Jeff Kline

Written by Last updated on Oct 20, 2021

Completing a triathlon takes strength, speed, endurance, and flexibility. Triathlon training is balanced, whole-body training. In other sports you may wind up building strength in some areas, while accruing weaknesses in others. Triathletes get body benefits from running, cycling, and swimming, and as a result are lean and fit from head to toe.

A great goal for a new triathlete is the sprint-distance event. If that’s your goal, then this comprehensive program is for you. This program is designed for the individual who has a busy life with a full-time job, a family, or other responsibilities. Just follow the workouts on a daily basis to get you to the starting line, fit, confident, and ready to have a successful and fun experience.

Requirements: You should be able to swim two lengths of the pool (50 yards), bike at least thirty minutes, and run or run/walk thirty minutes. The schedule consists of two to three workouts per week in each sport, as well as one to two days of strength training and core work. The maximum volume is around 5.5 hours and some of the easier weeks are around three hours.

With that in mind, completing this easy-to-follow training plan to your first sprint triathlon requires three simple things: passion, commitment, and consistency. Be healthy, train smart, and have fun!

Week 3, Day 5

Swim: Drills: 6/3/6 drill and catch­up
Duration (P): 0:15:00
Distance (P): 350 yards

Workout Description:

  • Warm Up: 50 freestyle
  • 2x 50 6/3/6 drill: Take 6 kicks on your right side, with your right arm outstretched and left arm at left side. Then swim three strokes, and switch, taking 6 kicks on the left side, left arm outstretched and right arm at side. Repeat the length of the pool.
  • 2×50 Catch­up drill: Start swimming freestyle. As you take a stroke with your right arm, keep your left arm extended forward in the water. Complete the stroke with your right arm. Now start the stroke with your left arm. Keep your right arm extended forward in the water until the left stroke is completed and repeat.
  • 50 kick
  • 50 cool down
Jeff Kline

About Jeff Kline

Jeff Kline has been coaching runners and triathletes since 1999. At the end of his competitive running and triathlon career, he knew there was only one direction to take his life. That direction was to help runners and triathletes of all abilities work toward and achieve their goals. Jeff felt it was incumbent upon him to give back to the communities that supported him and brought so much joy to his life.

In an effort to accomplish this new path, he took the opportunity to study under and work with some of the most highly regarded experts in the industry. He became a certified personal trainer as well as a certified running and triathlon coach. He also completed his studies in the nursing and nutrition fields. All in an effort to bring each individual he works with the best and most up-to-date training sciences and practices available.

To this day, Jeff continues his education daily by keeping his mind open to new medical discoveries and training sciences. He believes that each teammate’s training experience should be a learning experience as well. The more you understand the why’s, the better you will accomplish the how’s.

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