Benefits of Strength Training For Triathlon
Strength training WILL NOT make you a faster triathlete; swimming, cycling and running will do.
But strength is a PLATFORM you can build your specific training on. Think a strong fundament.
Only the fool builds his house on the sand.
”Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house, and it fell—and great was its fall.” The parable of the Wise and the Foolish Builders
Decent foundations are essential. It is crazy to build your triathlon specific training on the flimsy foundation because it will be unstable and you will ultimately suffer some kind of damage.
This will waste resources, and all the time and hard work you put into the building will have gone for nothing.
So what are the critical components of the strength?
Mobility – will allow you to be efficient; you will have a better posture while running, more aero position on the bike and streamline in water.
Foundation Strength – become as strong human as possible and then build endurance performance on the top
Stability – postural strength and fitness, will allow you to keep your form for longer, so when the fatigue kicks in (it will, especially on the long course) you will be able to perform strong.
Synchronisation and Coordination – again, more efficiency!
Power Production – increase number of fibres used, so you can generate more power, hence move faster
Injury Prevention and recovery – strong muscle recover quicker and are less prone to the injury
