FAQ: Swimming And Triathlon
Who is eligible to join the Endurance Swimming program?
Anyone who wants to learn! We just ask that you are prepared to work had and are committed to the process. We accept all abilities levels from people who can't swim or are afraid of the water all the way through elite athlete. Come join us...we won't bite!
Do I need to know how to swim? How much should I be able to swim before joining?
In short No! You don't need to know how to swim at all. That is what we are here for. We want to work with you to make you a better swimmer whether you know how to swim already or not. There is no swim test and we expect many swimmers joining the program to barely be able to make it one length. We are on a journey together so let us help you go from nothing to a swim star!
What makes Endurance Swimming different than other programs?
Our program is different from most programs out there for a few different reasons. We are not a traditional masters program. We do not require members to know or even learn any strokes other than freestyle. We do not require our athletes to participate in any swim meets or races. If you are just looking to use swimming as a form of exercise, then that is good enough for us! What makes us special is we have athletes from those learning to swim all the way up to elite athletes. In the summer months, unlike most programs, we take you out into the open water and teach you everything you need to know to be safe, have fun and swim fast out of the pool too!
I’m new to swimming and triathlon. When should I start training for my triathlon?
DON’T WAIT! GET IN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! Swimming is a very technical sport which means you will need to commit a good amount of time to just working on your technique and building your fitness. Many athletes wait until 1 month before their first race to find a coach to work on the swim. This is a HUGE mistake. If you are newer to swimming, then you will need 4-6 months of consistent training (2-3 swims per week) to get through your first triathlon. Many athletes find out the hard way that just because they have good bike and run fitness does not mean they have swim fitness at all. Now if your race is 1 month away and you need help, it isn’t too late but you can’t cram for a triathlon. If you can’t get through the swim portion, then you can’t do a triathlon!
I'm new to triathlon. What distances should I be training to swim?
Welcome to the triathlon community! Triathlons come in all different shapes and sizes but there are a few distances that you should focus your training toward. For sprint distance triathlons, you will swim between .25 miles to .5 miles. For olympic distance triathlons, you will swim between 1500 meters which is about .9 miles. For Half Ironman distance triathlons, you will swim between 1.2 miles. For Ironman distance triathlons, you will swim between 2.4 miles.
What equipment will I need for swim and triathlon swim training?
At a minimum, you will need goggles and a bathing suit. There is a specific purpose for each piece of equipment and we recommend a few other items beyond goggles. A swimmer’s snorkel, fins, paddles and a buoy are all recommend as you will use them your entire swim career. Check out this blog post all about swim equipment for more information!
What swim terminology should I know?
That is true, there is a lot of swim lingo but don’t worry to much about it. You will learn what everything means over time working with our coaches. You can find a long list of all the terms we use in our program here! Here are just a few of the common terms. Warm up, the beginning of practice when you being to move slowly to get the muscles ready to work. Kick, this is moving your legs only keeping your arms motionless. Pull, this is using your arms only and it is also one of the phases of your swim stroke. Build, this means you start slow and get faster within a given distance. The main set, is largest segment of the workout with the main focus of the swim session.
How should I train for a triathlon swim?
We recommend you train how you plan to race. So the first step is finding a good coach or swim program to teach you the basics in the pool. This will allow you to get comfortable in the water, it will teach you how to be safe in the water and it will build your fitness. Once you are more comfortable in the water, then it is time for you to move your workouts out of the pool and into the open water. The open water can be a lake, pond, river, ocean or other body of water that isn’t a pool. Our favorite place to train is in the ocean. Initially you should start with a one buddy to get used to swimming in the open water where you can’t touch or see the bottom. Once you are more comfortable in the open water with one person, then you should start training with a group of people so you can get used to getting bumped and hit which is what will happen in a race. At Endurance Swimming, we will take you through all these steps and you will only want to be swimming in the open water! Check out our blog post giving you 5 ways to become a faster triathlon swimmer!
How many times a week should I be swimming when training for a triathlon?
It depends! It depends on your ability, how much base you have, your comfort level in the water and a bunch of other variables. In general we like our athletes to be swimming a minimum of 2 days per a week. This isn’t really enough but we understand that you all have lives outside of triathlon. We prefer that you do 3 to 4 swims per week in the off season and pre season and then you can drop down to 2 to 3 swims per week as the season gets closer. In the off season we recommend 2 to 3 of your swims be in the pool so you can do very focused technique and speed work. As the season approaches, we like athletes to do at least 1 pool session per week focused on speed and technique and then the other 2 sessions can be open water. Think of the pool session like you think about your track workout when running. That is your time to really work on speed since it is in a fairly controlled environment. For a more in-depth discussion on this topic, please check out our IGTV video all about this topic!