An Olympic triathlon is a great "next step" up from a Sprint distance race, and even a good beginner race if you've got the fitness to swim 1.5K, bike 40K and run 10K. But before you jump into your training, you should take into consideration a few of these olympic triathlon training myths from the Rock Star Triathlete Academy, at
http://www.rockstartriathleteacademy.com/olympictriathlontraining.
Olympic Triathlon Training Myth #1. Paddles and Fins Are For Making Your Muscles Stronger.
Contrary to popular belief, paddles should not be used to make your swimming muscles "stronger" or increase the force of the water against your hand. Furthermore, water is a fluid medium and doesn't "tear" muscle fibers, which means you're not going to grow new muscle by using paddles. They should instead be used to enhance your feel for the water.
By increasing the surface of your hand, a paddle instead allows you to have a better idea of where your hand is as it enters the water and initiates the pull. I am personally a fan of the Finis Freestyle paddles, because they help direct your entire arm into a high-elbow position, which is ideal.
In the same way that paddles should not be used as merely a form of strength-training in the water, fins should not be used simply to make the legs more tired while you¹re kicking. Instead, fins should be used to enhance your feel for the water, and should be used to encourage you to keep your legs relatively straight, kicking from the hips rather than the knees. Because they tend to give you a good feel during both the up and down portion of the kick phase, I am a fan of the Zoom H2 fins.
Olympic Triathlon Training Myth #2: You Should Wear Your Wetsuit the Same Way As Your Pants And Coat.
The biggest mistake a triathlete can make when putting on a wetsuit is to pull the sleeves and legs too far down the extremities, the same way they would put on their pants and coat. This mistake results in inadequate rubber left for the chest and shoulders, and a feeling of tightness, lack of mobility, and shortness of breath. Instead, the wetsuit sleeves should be pulled several inches up from the hands, and the wetsuit legs should be pulled several inches up from the ankles.
To more quickly and efficiently enter the wetsuit, wear socks or plastic bags over the feet. For both wetsuit entry and wetsuit exit, use a sports lubrication (such as BodyGlide) on the hands and feet. For a fast wetsuit exit, be sure to have the wetsuit rolled down to your waist by the time you enter bike transition, and practice exiting your wetsuit while in a standing position.
Olympic Triathlon Training Myth #3: To Be A Better Swimmer, You Don't Need To Use "Toys" In The Water.
You should certainly learn to swim without the use of accessories, but they do have a proper place in the pool. In addition to paddles and fins, a few other useful pool accessories we encourage our athletes to use are: A) a waterproof swimming metronome to assist with rhythm, turnover and pace; B) an old bicycle tube to tie the ankles together and teach how to eliminate "runner¹s kick"; C) tennis balls or round paddles to learn how to use the hands less and the forearms more; D) a short pvc pipe for practicing the "catch-up" drill, in which the pvc pipe is handed from one hand to the other when both arms are extended in front of the body.
