Any advice on Triathlons?

Question

I want to start doing Triathlons however, I have VERY little experience... Any advice?

Answer 1

What distance are you interested in? Sprint? Olympic? Ironman? I assume you'll start with a shorter one. Check your local or regional sources for races. A local bike shop that sells time trial or triathlon bikes would be a good place to start. They can also put you in touch with area clubs or teams of like-minded people. Also, try to watch the Olympic triathlons. I doubt they'll be on TV but you should be able to find them online. Take a look at how the pros do it.

Triathlon can be an expensive sport (bike, wetsuit, etc.) but you don't really need much more than any old bike (and a helmet) to start out. No matter what race you try, there will be people like you, just starting out. The race will also be broken down by category (age, gender, experience) so you won't race at the same time as the experts.

If you're in the US, try www.active.com to find events near you.  

Answer 2

Read Triathlete and/or Inside Triathlon magazines.  Both have lots of training information and lists of upcoming races.  Also, see below for the website of Triathlon's governing body.   A good place to start would be the rule book, which they have in pdf format.  

Answer 3

plan- figure out how you are going to fit in all three disciplines and recovery time.  i get up at 3:30am for the runs, do the swims on lunch, and bike in the afternoons.

control your body weight- watch the diet.

stretch- i stretch several times a day.  it is important to help prevent injuries.

lift weights- the stronger you are as a whole, the more durable and less prone you are to injuries.

finally, listen to your body.  doing this really stresses it.  small pains turn into large ones that put you out of training for weeks or months on end.  to stay on course it is very important that you stay injury free.  when your body says it needs rest, listen.  it is better to modify and back down one day that to push too far and get hurt.