Swim, Bike, Run Tips from a triathlete :: Fitness :: Cardio Exercise

Swim, Bike, Run
by author Matt Jackson

Matt Hill describes himself as a person who was “running when he came out of the womb.” The Vancouver-based voice actor and long-time triathlon competitor just can’t seem to stop moving his legs.

It was running that first drew Hill to the triathlon, and he has since fallen in love with its multisport menu. He completed his first Olympic distance triathlon when in his early twenties, and after his first competition Hill knew he was hooked for life.

He soon became a regular participant in Ironman competitions—the marquee member of the triathlon family. “It’s not just about competition,” says Hill. “For those who participate regularly, it becomes a lifestyle.”

Three of a kind
Triathlon was introduced in the 1970s in California and migrated north into Canada soon thereafter. Some 50,000 Canadians participate annually in these continuously timed competitions, which feature segments in three of the world’s most popular sports—swimming, cycling, and running.

Triathlon is considered continuously timed because the transitions in between these three sports are also timed.

Swimming, cycling, and running form the backbone of triathlon events. The standard Olympic triathlon consists of a 1.5 km swim, a 40 km bike, and a 10 km run. However, a super-sprint category has competitors completing a 375 m swim, a 10 km bike, and a 2.5 km run. Ironman events are rigorous endurance tests that pit athletes against a 4 km swim, 180 km bike, and a full-length marathon run (42.2 km).

Other members of the triathlon family include the duathlon, a race with run-bike-run components. The aquathlon features run-swim-run segments. And finally, the winter triathlon features running, cycling, and cross-country skiing.

Kids of Steel events focus on introducing children as young as five to the sport in a positive way. The youth race segments are shorter than adult races and, depending on the age of the participants, can feature as little as a 50 m swim, 1.5 km bike, and a 500 m run.

Practice makes perfect
A triathlon swim is a long-distance affair that requires participants to conserve energy for the other segments of the race. In general, efficient triathletes keep their stroke count low, reduce the intensity of their kick, and rotate their hips and glide with each stroke.

Cycling has everything to do with cadence—that optimal pedaling rhythm that sacrifices neither power nor endurance. Triathletes should time their rotations per minute (RPMs), and on flat ground they should be somewhere between 60 and 80 RPM. For increased efficiency, triathletes should also practise exerting force on the pedals during all 360 degrees of their rotation.

Although running is the simplest segment of the triathalon, plenty of errors can still occur. First and foremost, runners should stand tall while running to ensure maximum oxygen flow into their lungs. They will be more efficient by taking quicker and shorter steps and by striking the ground with the ball of the foot rather than the heel. Runners should also avoid bouncing, as it wastes kinetic energy in a vertical direction rather than using it to move forward.

Burn baby burn
The number of calories burned while training for a triathlon can vary greatly, and depends on how hard an athlete trains, how often and, of course, the unique physical characteristics of the participant. Online calorie calculators such as the pace calculator on the Training Tools page at triadtriteam.com can help to estimate.

During an Olympic-length triathlon, a 200-pound male would burn about 550 calories during the 1.5 km swim, 1,400 calories during the 40 km bike, and nearly 1,000 calories during the run. That’s 2,900 calories—more than the 2,500 recommended daily intake for someone of that size! Calorie intake should increase as training demands increase.

Eat your heart out
Every person is different, so it’s impossible to recommend a fit-all diet that will work for everybody. One rule of thumb is that approximately 50 percent of an athlete’s calories should come from carbohydrates—simple (sugar) or complex (fibre and starches)—because glucose, the energy source that carbohydrates contain, is released soon after consumption.

1 2

Next Page >>>

Matt Jackson is a writer living in Vancouver.

Source: alive #318, April 2009

Running the Risks: Running vs Walking
There is no simpler or more natural workout than walking. It's easy, inexpensive and a great way to get in shap.

Bicycling To Better Health
It's never too late-in the year or in your life-to start cycling. It's one of the safest and best cardiovascular exercises.

Free-Wheeling Fun On the Road to Fitness
People tell me that I'm a role model. At 68, a mother of five and grandmother of two, I ride my bike everywhere. It's not only for fun (although it is): I prefer to ride the eight kilometres into Nanaimo and back four or five times a week. I don't even own a car! It wasn't always this way.

Make a Splash!
Many of us are irresistibly drawn to lakes and rivers, the ocean, local swimming holes and pools. Outdoor bathing invigorates and rejuvenates like nothing else. It's a welcome relief from the summer heat and reconnects us with nature, helping us relax and heal. Water exercise provides unique benefits.

Running and Your Health
Do you love the feel of running in the great outdoors yet worry about the bad press running sometimes gets? You can continue to enjoy running as long as you alternate this activity with other types of exercise and take certain precautions.

Outdoor Biking
Many people tire of spending countless hours peddling on the same old stationary bike. Bring excitement back into your exercising by stepping off the stationary bicycle and moving outdoors.

Walk On
Walking - everybody's doing it! In fact, millions of North Americans have adopted walking as their main form of exercise. Walking is popular because it can be enjoyed just about anywhere.

Dive Right In
Often overlooked as a form of exercise for children, recreational swimming is an excellent all round activity. Recreational swimming is quite different from the competitive sport. Regular weekly visits to the pool can help your child reap the benefits of this most calming form of exercise.

Diversify for Fitness
If you've been faithfully logging miles in your jogging shoes and wonder why you are not getting fitter-or why you are not getting fitter faster-you may need to diversify your training. Improving your fitness requires challenging yourself by changing your routine occasionally.

Out of the Cold
My Norwegian friend Ingre swears by the health benefits of her daily swim in the cold waters of the Atlantic. Every morning, she's down at the beach off beautiful Sogne Fjord-even in the sub-zero temperatures of December-to "take the waters" and experience the blood rush that results.

Getting Into the Swim of Things
When I was in my early teens, I was a competitive swimmer. I swam for a club in White Rock, BC, and trained in a rectangle of wharves at the end of the pier under the watchful eye of our coach, Merle McGrath.

Cocoa, Croissants, and Killer Hills
Quebec's sugar maples rustle a sweet breeze...Or maybe it's the cocoa powder puffing off the chocolate truffles we found on our pillow at the end of a day of cycling. In my post-exercise inertia, it's all I can do to lift the truffles to my face.

Run for Your Life
You could look better, feel healthier, improve mood and self-confidence, sleep like a baby, reduce stress levels, boost energy, protect your heart and cardiovascular system, increase bone density, sharpen your vision...and all you need is a pair of running shoes. Sound too good to be true? Not so!

Take a Hike!
Hiking offers a cardiovascular workout that burns up to 400 calories an hour, calms the mind, and nourishes the spirit. The body is pleasantly relaxed, the mind lets go of trivial worries, and the beauty of the natural world reawakens the spirit.

Keeping an Older Metabolism Young
Let's face it-most of us never worry about our metabolisms when we are young. Unfortunately, as we age, our metabolic rates naturally declines. But research indicates that we don't have to experience a decline in metabolic activity with age-if we do the right things.

Move It or Lose It
Aging is inevitable. It is possible, however, to curb many of the effects of aging with regular physical activity. We all want to maintain quality of life and good health as we age, and exercise is essential to maintaining good health. The less we move, the more susceptible we are to various conditions and diseases, and thus the vicious cycle of inactivity begins.

Walking: The Ultimate in Fitness Freedom
Elizabeth was looking for a way to reduce stress, depression, and anxiety and achieve a heightened sense of well-being. She told me she hates going to the gym or swimming pool and is looking for another form of exercise to help her reach her fitness goal.

All It Takes is 10,000 Steps
Have you heard about Shape Up America's 10,000 Steps Program? Supported by the 2005 Healthy Living Strategy here in Canada, the program recommends that we strap on a pedometer to measure whether we're walking enough for good health.

I Walk; Therefore I am
More than 2,000 years ago, Hippocrates told his patients, "Walking is the best medicine. In the 18th century Thomas Jefferson pronounced, "Walking is the best possible exercise.

Extreme Frisbee
Had enough of playing Frisbee with your dog? Want to toss that disc with people who, like you, love the exhilarating feeling of pushing their bodies and working as a team? Then, ultimate Frisbee may be the sport for you.

The Cycle of Life
Cycling has enormous physical benefits. In a one-hour ride, you can work on strength and endurance, aerobic capacity, balance, and, depending on how many car doors you managed to dodge, agility.

Take a Hike!
As a child I loved to wander the hills surrounding our home in rural Pennsylvania. Today, preparing for a day hike up Chinese Mountain on Quadra Island, I get that same feeling of wanderlust as I pull my backpack from the closet and fill it with hiking gear and food.

Just Do It Together
In our busy, hectic lives, both family time and fitness time may get shuffled to the bottom of our to-do lists. But maintaining good health and spending time with our families are essential to stress relief, longevity, and truly enjoying life. What's the solution? Turn family time into family fitness time!

Free Wheelin'
Inspired during a recent power walk, my friend Mary and I hatched the idea of going on an overnight bike trip to nearby Cortes Island.

Step Out with a Pedometer
How many steps do you take in a day? Studies show that Canadians take an average of 3,000 to 4,000 steps a day, and according to Health Canada, that's too few.

Aqua Fit
Exercising in the pool is a great way to add variety to your fitness routine. Improved muscle tone and cardiovascular fitness are just two of the many benefits you will gain from putting on your swimsuit and jumping into the water.

One Step At a Time
For some of us, the idea of starting a fitness program can be daunting; there are so many different exercise options to choose from. But we all do something every day that, when harnessed into a purposeful fitness regimen, can do wonders for our overall health and well-being.

Swimming for Gold
Swimming is one of the healthiest exercise activities you can do. It's a great fitness solution for anyone with little time to exercise because it's a whole-body workout. Endurance, muscle strength, and ardiovascular fitness are all accomplished with each arm stroke and leg kick in the pool.

Nordic Walking
My wife and I love to take a walk after dinner every evening, usually along the shores of Vancouver's False Creek inlet with mugs of tea in hand. Perhaps tonight we'll set down our tea and instead pick up a pair of lightweight Nordic walking poles for our stroll.