Home / Tips / Training Tips / Top 5 Triathlon Strength Workouts

Top 5 Triathlon Strength Workouts

Strength in triathlon is often overlooked as not being very important. This is truly a shame for multiple research studies show a serious performance benefit from regular strength training. During the winter months, in base training especially, it is the ideal time to build foundational strength. After implementing a strength routine with workouts such as those below you will notice improvements in swimming through rough water, climbing on bike, and running up hill. As a bonus, athletes who do strength training regularly are also lower the risk of injury.

Notice how the workouts below are all in circuit fashion. This saves time and provides an additional cardiovascular benefit from having little rest. As I tell the athletes I coach, you don’t pause and repeat during a triathlon, but rather go from one discipline to the next.

Before doing any of the strength workouts below its important to warm-up and cool-down properly.

For a warm-up I recommend doing 3-5min of light aerobic activity such as biking or running with a few 20-30sec sprints mixed in. After that do a few push-ups and squats to get your entire body warmed-up

Cool down with some light cardio such as a 5min spin on bike. I personally commute to the gym and just bike home as a cool down.

“Triathlon Suspension Trainer”

Complete the following sequence of exercises as a circuit, with minimal rest between exercises. Do entire circuit 3-4x through.

10-12 Atomic Push-ups

10-12 Single Leg Lunge w/high knee

10-12 Suspension Plank Reaches

10-12 Squat with row

10-12 Sprinter starts

10-12 Swimmers pull

 

 

“Body Weight”

Complete the following sequence of exercises as a circuit, with minimal rest between exercises. Do entire circuit 3-4x through.

Exercise:

10-15 Pushups or Knee Pushups

10-15 Body Weight Squats

10-15 Tricep dips on a bench or table

20-25 Standing Elastic Band or Cable Rows

10-15 Lateral Lunges per side

20-25 Sit-ups

50 Jumping Jacks

 

“Triathlon Power”

Complete the following sequence of exercises as a circuit, with minimal rest between exercises. Do entire circuit 2-3x through.

10-15 Single arm Dumbell row

10-15 Stability ball Dumbell press

10-15 Alternating Bicep Curls

10-15 Cable Tricep Pushdowns or Dips

10-15 Lunge Jumps

10-15 Side-to-Side Hops

60sec Front Plank

CoolDown

 

“Stability Ball”

Complete the following sequence of exercises as a circuit, with minimal rest between exercises. Do entire circuit 3-4x through.

Exercises:

10-15 Stability Ball Pushups

10-15 Stability Ball Squats

10-15 Stability Ball Dumbbell Rows

10-15 Stability Ball Single Leg Squats

10-15 Stability Ball Knee-Ups

10-15 Stability Ball Leg Curls

 

“Injury Prevention”

Complete the following three injury prevention sets.

Injury Prevention Set 1: Complete the following rotator cuff exercises as a circuit, 3-4x through, with 30-60s rest after each time through, before proceeding to the next Set.

Exercises:

20-25 Elastic Band or Cable External Rotation

20-25 Elastic Band or Cable Internal Rotation

12-15 Dumbbell Uppercuts

 

Injury Prevention Set 2: Complete the following gluteus medius and lateral exercises as a circuit, 3-4x through, with 30-60s rest after each time through, before proceeding to the next set.

Exercises:

20-25 per side Fire Hydrants

10-12 per side Lateral Lunges

10-12 per side Hip Hikes

 

Injury Prevention Set 3: Complete the following core exercises as a circuit, 3-4x through, with 30-60s rest after each time through.

Exercises:

60sec Front Blank

30sec per side Side Plank

12-15 per side Bicycle Crunch

 

“Kettlebell fun”

Bring a kettlebell with you to a steep hill. Then complete the following sequence of exercises as a circuit, with minimal rest between exercises. Do entire circuit 4-5x through:

10 Kettlebell Swings

10 Kettlebell Squats

 

About The Author

Brad Haag is a Triathlon Coach, Personal Trainer, and a National Qualifying Triathlete. As a graduate of Ben Greenfield’s Superhuman Coach program, Brad specializes in coaching endurance and warrior class athletes to peak performance. He can be found at HaagsAthletics.com or as a featured coach at PacificFit.net

About Eric H. Doss

Eric is a triathlete and writer. He has competed in all distances of triathlons, from sprints to full Ironman distance races. He founded FitEgg.com in 2009 to meet the increasing need for professional, unbiased reviews of triathlon gear.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*