Triathlon Training For Beginners - Get More Strength Fast

Strength training is a very important part in a triathletes training program. Maximizing the quality of a work out is a prime objective in developing a good strength program.<br><br>Today there a many different types of tools that an athlete can use to benefit themselves in getting stronger. Conversely there are also many things that are not in the best in maximizing gains for a triathlete. Most machines in a gym or a good example of this. Triathletes need to learn how to coordinate and support there own body effectively in order to maximize gains come race day.<br><br>The chest press machine is a perfect example of an exercise that is not great in getting the most out of a work out. The machine allows one to sit and then push out straight with resistance. The one track movement on the chest press machine prevents the upper body muscles from developing a balanced stability. Sitting on the machine also engages the core and legs less than if one were to stand and support there whole body.<br><br>To get the best results from your triathlon training, the more you simulate race conditions the better. The question one must ask is how many of the machines and contraptions out there simulate what I'm going to be doing in a race? The answer is not many. In the case of the chest press machine a better alternative for a triathlete is a push up. With a push up an athlete is supporting there whole body while using balance and coordination in developing strength.<br><br>Here are 3 things to focus on<br><br>1) The focus for a triathlete should be more on whole body multi-joint exercises. Multi-joint means getting more than just one joint involved in the exercise movement. Squats and lunges are a good examples of multi-joint exercises where the ankle, knee and hip are all moving together to produce movement. Multi joint movements are what triathletes do when swimming, biking or running.<br><br>2) Free weights and bands are more practical for the triathlete VS a machine. When using these tools for strength training one usually has to stabilize there body more than if they were to use a machine. This intern builds a more race day specific strength.<br><br>3) Supporting ones whole body while doing exercises should be an aim. Sitting on a stable surface again takes away from race day specificity.<br><br>Some have argued that bands are not as good for strength training as the snap back nature of them in the negative phase of a lift is not seen in real world athletic situations. A recent study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research has displayed that use of bands in strength training actually produced greater strength gains than using standard free weights.<br><br>Both bands and free weight are useful in certain applications. Bands can be very useful in providing resistance while simulating a swim stroke pattern. Using free weights to do the same can be more of a challenge but they are great for lunges and a wide variety of other exercises.<br><br>In all the focus for the triathlete should be doing strength training where one is supporting the whole body while doing multi-joint exercises specific to race day movement patterns.<br><br><br><br>