RonI started this site 10 years ago after doing my first triathlon in 2001. My goal for this site is to get people healthy and happy. I firmly believe that triathlon is the best 'sport' for your body as it has less impact then the more popular single sport(running) while incorporating your upper body from swimming allows for a balanced-body approach to fitness.
NEW! Mini Sprint Triathlon Plans
We have new 10 and 20 week training plans for the New Year! These mini sprint plans are very conservative and will get any person thinking of training for a triathlon ready to cross the finish-line.
Mini sprint distances
A mini sprint or mini triathlon are one of the distances that have no set distance. Usually if two or three of the three triathlon sports is below sprint distance, you can call it a mini sprint. These two plans will train you for a triathlon with these distances:
These minisprint triathlon plan will have you ready for a mini sprint race in 10-20 weeks. Yes, this seems like a long time to train for a half-a-sprint, but this plan takes you from zero aerobic base. Both of these plans are perfect for the person that has no athletic background and hasn't even worked out in years.
When I started creating these plans, I wasn't out to hit a certain number of weeks. I started designing it with a longer plan in mind, with the conservative workout approach I had in mind from when I started training 10 years ago. What came out was a very nice 20 week plan. Though knowing that many people will also be able to handle more training, faster, I whittled down the 20 week plan to a 10 week plan also - with the same workouts in both.
The inspiration for these plans is that we don't have many 'pure' couch-potato triathlon plans. We have some cycling-only, some couch-to-5k's and a few beginner swim programs, but not a total triathlon plan that has the detail needed for every workout to learn how to swim, bike or run.
Needed background
NONE. All you need is desire. You can be overweight, out-of-shape and sit behind a desk all day. As long as you have the medical clearance, these are great low impact and very conservative plans. You should have some experience doing the backstroke or breast-stroke and the 'freestyle' stroke - even it's from your swim lesson days as a kid and you haven't done them since. As long as you know the motions, you will be ok.
If you come from a running, biking or swimming background and are currently doing single sports, you may want to jump directly to the sprint plans. If you are a recreational cyclist, this plan could be good for you. If it becomes too easy, you can transfer to a sprint plan. If you are a runner doing at least 5k's, a sprint plan will be better suited to you as you will have the lung capacity to handle those plans. If you are a current swimmer, you will be better off on a sprint plan or start one of our couch-to-5k plans and bike on the weekends - you will be tri-ing in no time! But if you have no workout experience, or can't remember the last time that you went to the gym, keep reading.
The workouts
The workouts are from my own personal experience learning to train for triathlons from no base whatsoever. I still remember what it was like not being able to swim half the length of the pool and needing to turn around, gasping for every breath of air. I still remember how my lungs were on fire trying to learn how to run and I just kept asking myself 'why am I doing this?' There are some schools of thought where you want to work on stroke technique first, from the very beginning. I don't necessarily subscribe to this 'at the outset'. If you haven't worked out in over a year, your limiter will be your lungs as you swim. You can practice all the technique in the world, but if you don't have the lungs developed for breathing, you won't be able to focus on technique. Once you are done with this plan, getting a coach, or a book that focuses on technique will make you a lot faster, quicker.
Starting swimming or run training form zero experience other than swim lessons as a kid, really requires first-and-foremost, aerobic development. Your lungs just aren't ready for the demands of running and swimming. Your lungs will be your limiter. Your lungs will quit long before you muscles ever will. Running is going to be tough. Swimming will be even tougher. But these plans were designed to make it as safe and as easy as possible.
*Note, in the graphs below representing the weekly workout time, 'sports' = walking
VIEW THE 10 WEEK AGGRESSIVE MINI SPRINT TRIATHLON PLAN
VIEW THE 20 WEEK CONSERVATIVE MINI SPRINT TRIATHLON PLAN
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