MultiSport Canada Triathlon Series

5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE STRENGTH TRAINING IN YOUR TRIATHLON PROGRAM IN MAY, JUNE AND JULY by Richard Pady

1. Strength training is not all about doing heavy lifting. Strength training can help improve the weaker areas (stabilizing muscles) of your sport and force you to slow down or have to take time off.

2. Increase in strength can enhance the skill, power or efficiency of the sporting movement. An example would be if you are having trouble getting a good "catch" (front end pull in freestyle) in the water then you may want to try some “straight arm pull downs” in the standing position to help strengthen the lats and triceps.

3. Strength training will reduce the risk of injury. The fact is our bodies are not symmetrical and we are in a sport with high repetition. If you have a serious enough muscle imbalance it could spell trouble down the road. Balance between the strength of the quads and the hamstrings is recommended specifically for running injury prevention, while good rotator cuff muscle function is recommended for swimming injury prevention.

4. Explosive jumping movements train both the major leg muscles and the tendons, helping you become more ‘spring-like’ and therefore more economical. These exercises require a warm-up and can be performed after the end of a steady run without much difficulty, ideally on a soft flat surface such as a track or field. Jumping exercises need to be introduced gradually, which is why I advise controlling the number of contacts for each exercise until you are used to performing them every week. One example is Vertical jumps: Stand feet hip- to shoulder-width apart. Squat down slightly, swinging your arms back, and then rapidly jump up as high as you can, driving your arms upwards. Make sure you fully extend your hips, knees and ankles at take-off. Land softly on the balls of your feet and absorb your landing with a squat. Perform 3 x 5 reps, building up to 3 x 10 reps. Take 1-2 minutes’ rest between sets.

5. If you do nothing else mentioned above, then at least add in the following "Core" exercises after every run. By now you have heard of the importance of "Core Training". The exercises in this routine are geared to developing good core stability for all three sports. The routine targets the strength endurance of the abdominal, oblique, low back and glut muscles.

Make sure before starting any from of strength training that you have a program designed for you by a certified coach or trainer. Remember you are only as strong on race day as your weakest link.