Myofascial Release – Your New Best Friend

By: Rob Foreman

As an endurance athlete since high school I’ve had my fair share of injuries. Some were significant, requiring invasive surgery and others needed just a couple days of rest. Hindsight has taught me that the majority of these were preventable:  I probably shouldn’t have run my first two marathons within five weeks of each other and swapping some bench press time for flexibility exercises during college would have done me good. Self-control can be your best asset in injury prevention, and as endurance athletes, we are notorious for having very little.

The dedicated triathletes out there know the critical moment I am talking about… when you feel the twinge in your tendon and keep running, when something pinches in your shoulder and you keep swimming or when your knee stiffens up but you still go for that long ride because you don’t want to miss a solid day of training. It has been my experience that triathlon tends to attract the serious “nothing will get in the way of my PR” kind of personality.

Since I can’t convince you to take a day off, I’ll introduce you to another painful aspect of endurance training (which I’m sure you’ll embrace) so we can prevent some of the overuse injuries that endurance athletes are prone to. One of the best, and most under utilized techniques at our disposal is myofascial release. This technique reduces adhesions within our connective tissue and allows muscles to move more freely over each other and within their sheaths. By releasing adhesions — or bound up muscle fibers — we can relieve tension within muscles and at their attachment points therefore diminishing the possibility of injury.

Myofascial release can be accomplished in a couple different ways. Due to personal budget constraints, I rarely spring for the first approach, a deep tissue massage. However, if you’re one of those competitors who dropped 6,000 dollars for your tri bike — by all means, don’t cut your massage therapist (he/she better be a good one) out of your payroll — there are benefits to allowing a professional to push their elbows and body weight into every little nook and cranny between your muscle fibers. But don’t expect a series of miracles, regardless of what you spend, it still won’t rid you of your cellulite.

The second approach, which is my specialty, would be self-inflicted torture treatment. This can be accomplished with a few different tools:  the foam roller, the “stick,” the lacrosse ball, the tennis ball, trigger point release systems and a number of other similar products. These test how much pain you’re willing to inflict on yourself. Body weight is most commonly used to apply pressure to the adhesions.

            Directions:  Begin SLOWLY rolling your problem areas and don’t assume you know where these are. It’s easy to identify a sore tendon but harder to identify what specific imbalances are creating that soreness. Work muscles groups above and below the sore tendon to help identify adhesions. Once you find a particularly bound up group of fibers, apply pressure to that area (prepare to insert a leather belt into your mouth because you hit the sweet spot, just make sure to breathe).

            When to do it: I find myofascial release particularly beneficial on rest days and in the days before competition. I also recommend doing it before a workout. It can help work out some of the kinks in muscles before they are fully warmed up.

Common Problem areas in triathletes:

            IT Band and Quad Complex:  The Iliotibial band runs from the hip to the knee on the outside of the leg and is arguably the most painful area to roll. Use a foam roller or ball and lay sideways or in the prone position on top of the device. Keeping your forearm(s) flat on the floor slowly move back and forth over the ball or roller. Move from just above the knee to just below the hip flexor or pelvic bone.  Be sure not to roll over the knee joint itself.  This can help reduce knee and hip pain.

Calf and Lower Leg:  It takes strength to hold oneself up to do this technique and can be more work for your upper body but bear with me. Start with the roller directly above the Achilles tendon and roll with both legs on the roller up to the back of the knee. Do not cross the knee joint. Continue up and down while doing “windshield wipers” with your feet. To increase discomfort effectiveness, stack one leg over the other and repeat.

            Upper and Middle Back:  Miles and miles on the bike can lead to a stiff neck and middle back. Start by crossing your arms across your chest with a foam roller perpendicular to your body just above the small of your back. Roll slowly from the lumbar-thoracic junction to the base of the neck. Repeat, then lay your head over the roller so your neck is directly on top of the roller. Turn your head from side to side. Next, lie on your side with the roller at the junction of your ribs and Lat roll toward the armpit releasing the Lat.  If you experience any numbness or tingling in your arm or hand while doing this one, stop.

            Chest: This is often an over looked area in triathletes and can get tight from the aero position and laps in the pool. Put a lacrosse ball, tennis ball, or myoball against a wall and lean your body weight into the ball applying pressure on one Pectoral at a time. Do not cross over into the Anterior Deltoid. Switch sides and repeat.  Ladies may not like this one, so work around those delicate areas as women have tight Pecs too.

Myofascial release is one of many methods we can employ to maintain healthy muscles. The basics — proper hydration, diet and rest — are all important in fueling injury prevention as well. Now go forth and grimace as you contort your body on a lacrosse ball on your living room floor while your family dog stares at you in curiosity.  Stay healthy through the summer and I’ll see you at the Nations Tri!

About BA Rob:
Rob's career in fitness was originally inspired by his HS cross country and collegiate rowing coach. He has a degree in Kinesiology from the University of Maryland and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach. After college Rob wanted to try a challenging and dynamic event so he signed up for his first Triathlon. Rob has only participated in Olympic distance races but plans on doing his first Half Ironman this year. He considers himself a recreational participant and enjoys pushing his mind and body to the limit. Rob was one of the Achieve Triathlon Camp coaches and has spent years as a youth swim instructor. If you see Rob on the race course you're probably passing him on the bike leg.

KEEPING IT FRESH

Expanding your boundaries to become a better triathlete

By BA: Travis Siehndel

Like many of the athletes that will participate in the 2012 Nation’s Triathlon, I didn’t grow up as a lifelong athlete. I came to endurance sports fairly late in life when I took up running after college as a method to stay fit. I didn’t initially think of myself as a runner and I certainly hadn’t embraced the ‘running lifestyle.’   I also quickly learned that I’m not the type of athlete that can log a lot of mileage running on the road. Even now, I have a hard time running more than 4 times a week while keeping the aches and pains away. But as a new runner, I was having a hard time running pain free more than three times a week.  My daily runs were beginning to feel more like a chore than fun. After a couple of seasons running 10k, 10-mile and marathon events, I was in a rut and I needed a change to keep me active.

In one of those lucky events of life, a friend of mine suggested that I give a triathlon a shot. Once I got over those initial fears of trying something new that so many of us feel, I signed up for my first race, joined the DC Triathlon Club and the rest is history.

What quickly drew me to triathlon is the lifestyle feel of the sport. Suddenly I realized that I wasn’t limited to a few achy runs a week but I now had room for 3-4 bike rides and swims as well. This ability to add activity to my daily life was exactly what I had been looking for when I began running and I had finally found a home in the multisport lifestyle.

Now that I have been racing triathlon for a few years, I still have to work to keep things fresh to avoid getting back into that dreaded training rut. If you are feeling stuck, change can be as simple as trying a different distance in your triathlon events. You can try going longer and attempting a new distance. Or maybe even going shorter to try and quicken your speed and pace.  Then again, if you are really looking to expand your boundaries, you can try a different sport altogether.

In another lucky occurrence, last year a great friend of mine talked me into getting a mountain bike. With the help of our friends at The Bike Rack, I picked out a new bike and began taking to the many great parks and trails that we have in the Washington DC area.  This season, in addition to racing a few Olympic and 70.3 distance races, I’m also attempting some off-road challenges.

First up on the docket is an adventure race at the end of April. Training for this event has already introduced me to new methods of training including mountain biking at night and orienteering off-trail in the backcountry with the help of nothing but a map and compass. I’ve also challenged myself to race an off-road triathlon and the Shenandoah Mountain 100 mountain bike race this fall. So far, training for these events has added variety to my training and has already reaped great rewards with my regular triathlon performance. My baseline fitness has improved and my cycling is as strong as it has ever been. 

Look for my race reports following these events to see how getting dirty on the trails has helped me keep my training fresh. In the meantime, leave us a comment and let us know what tricks you use to keep your training exciting!

Altitude Training – Passion Challenged, Patience Required

By: BA Becky McLean

A fellow triathlete and someone dear to me showed me this quote “A great triathlete is not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion”.     Well, that passion has been tested recently.  Why you ask?  Because altitude sucks.

I relocated back to Denver in January after living in Washington, DC.  While in DC, I had taken my training to the next step.  I had just come off my first 70.3, I PRed at the Annapolis Half marathon, was swimming more than ever and despite bringing my bike in for the winter, I was teaching spinning classes and was attempting to retain the muscle memory during those workouts (because we all know indoor cycling classes just cannot replicate the road).



Becky with her dog atop Mt Sanitas in Boulder



Fast forward a few months and I am surrounded by the Rocky Mountains.  This is great!  I can continue to increase my running speed, will jump on my road bike, tackle those Colorado hills (DC, hills, what?) and will be swimming again in no time.   And bonus?  I will be surrounded by some of the most elite athletes in the world – talk about a positive influence!

One of my favorite places to run in Denver is Washington Park and I am excited to get back to it.  After two miles, reality hits me.  Becky, you are not immune to the altitude.  I see my heart rate spike, my lungs burn and I slow down.  One of the most miserable runs of my life.  Same thing happens to me a few days later when I am in the pool and I have to stop every six to eight laps.  The altitude monster has reared its ugly head; I couldn’t stay hydrated and I am no longer the confident triathlete I was back in November when my level of performance was high.

Here we are in April and two and a half months later, I finally feel fully acclimated.  I am back to enjoying my runs, I teach four cycling and two strength training classes a week, hop on my bike when I can and I am no longer dreading my pool workouts.  I never lost sight of my passion for the sport, but really had to push through those mediocre workouts in order to get back to a place where I felt strong and worthy of the sport.  Looking back, I was unprepared. 

Living in Washington, DC is one of the ideal places to compete because our bodies perform best at sea level. That’s also why The Nation’s Triathlon is a great race to compete in.  However, like many of us, we like to travel for races.  We must prepare our bodies for new environments and all of the factors within it.  As I can attest, our bodies can acclimate faster or slower than others and in different ways – just be patient and willing to suffer through it. 

If any of you are training or competing above sea level this season, Competitor has put together a great list of things to remember:

Hydration - Rising altitude means that breathing is shallower and more frequent; this increased ventilation along with dry air leads to greater fluid losses through the respiratory system. Additionally, sweat evaporates quickly, which can lead you to believe you are not losing much fluid and are less inclined to drink.

Fuel Utilization - Basal metabolic rate (BMR) increases at altitude, especially in the first couple of days.  Appetite is also suppressed by hypoxia, so to minimize reduction in body mass and loss of muscle, take care to match your caloric needs.  If flying in for a race, you might consider frequent small meals that are carbohydrate-rich to maintain energy levels.

Immune Stress - Altitude places stress on the body, which might affect your immune system when combined with hard training. A diet rich in natural antioxidants is perhaps even more important to help the body cope, adapt and stay healthy. Along with a healthy diet, good hygiene habits and plenty of recovery will also help.

Please learn from my mistakes!  Don’t take your training for granted and be prepared if you are training or racing above sea level.  If you’re training has plateaued, take some vacation days, ship your bike and come to Colorado.  You won’t regret it.  Your passion will be challenged, but you’ll ultimately be again inspired by the sport of triathlon.  And of course, celebrate your finish after with some good beer!

Odell's Brewing Company

Weather & Performance: Learning to Get Acclimated to the Heat

By: Kaitlin Sighinolfi

I don’t know about you all, but I’m getting pretty tired of DC’s schizophrenic weather patterns. While I have enjoyed the gentle, balmy winter, 85 degrees in the middle of March does not make my body happy! This morning’s early jog in the crisp, cool air was perfect… but I know it’s short lived.  Whether you love the heat or loathe it, one thing I quickly learned on my Friday run was you can’t mess around with it.

Every Friday a group of work colleagues and I get together and go for a run along the mall. The quick and comfortable route down to the Lincoln Memorial and back allows us to take a break from the weekly grind and catch up with each other in a more personal and friendly way. It’s something I look forward to every week. This past Friday was no different. I had a tough week and was truly excited for an epic vent session while on an easy recovery run. No such luck. Although the run started out well, by the time we reached Lincoln, I knew something was wrong. There were little yellow spots floating in my vision and I couldn’t seem to consume enough water.  I experienced my first MISERABLE run of 2012 by getting nauseous, seeing spots and almost fainting on friends. Overall it was just not a good scene and I was not only embarrassed but completely distressed about how a typical run could go so wrong

A complicating factor for runners is that everyone reacts to heat differently – while I’m miserable in it, my friend Ryan flourishes.  However, given my own personal fitness and racing goals, living in DC presents training challenges, ‘cause not running is just not an option.  But because I refuse to relegate myself to a summer of gym drudgery, running on the gerbil wheel most refer to as a treadmill, or suffer from a lack of sleep so that I can run super early in the morning, or late at night when the city gets a few moments of “comfort”, I have no choice but to deal with the heat. 

So what can I do to make sure that my training doesn’t get sidelined simply because it’s hot outside? Being the endurance geek I am, I researched the subject to realize that that there are 2 main things I can do to optimize my performance: acclimatization – meaning that I need to get my body used to exercising in the heat; and proper hydration - which will stock blood-plasma stores and replaces fluid lost through sweat.

Acclimatization in this city is a true challenge. Last week temperatures were in the mid 80s and it was sunny out every day; this week it’s been significantly colder and windy. With those conditions, how does one even start acclimating in preparation for a race day?  While I’m certain that by running every day around the same time, no matter the weather, my body is already naturally adjusting to seasonal temperature changes, but when the weather patterns aren’t following normal seasonal changes, this presents a true challenge.  In particular, like many of you reading this, I am beginning to get concerned that this is the time in my training when I need to increase my mileage, and truly prepare for a hot weather races, meaning I need to consciously plan and strategize on how to adapt to the heat.

 According to a recent article I found in Runner’s World, “the average at-rest body temperature is 98.6 degrees; normal while running in the heat is 101 to just below 103. Some people who hit 103 will feel fatigued and light-headed, while others will feel fine. Same with 104 degrees.  At this point, your body may be generating more heat than it can dissipate, and you may feel like death—or feel nothing at all.” "The symptoms are the key," says , says Douglas Casa, Ph.D., A.T.C., COO of the University of Connecticut's Korey Stringer Institute."If you feel poorly—light-headed, nauseous, extremely fatigued, have cramps or a headache—those are big-time warning signs to back off the pace." Perhaps the most important symptom, he says, is when everything seems harder than it normally does. "That's a sign to ease up and slow down. Your body is now locked in an internal battle, trying desperately to keep itself cool while you are forcing it to keep working."

So if acclimatization means gradually training my body to run in the weather conditions I can and will face on race day— then it’s probably smart to start off with short, slow runs in the coolest part of the day, and work up to running at race pace in DC August-esque temperatures. The acclimatization process is supposed to fortify your body against the heat by prompting several important physiological adaptations: your sweat rate increases, which helps cool you more effectively; your blood volume increases, which makes more fluid available as sweat; and your body starts to utilize sodium more efficiently, which helps maintain fluid balance in and around your cells. It takes about 7-10 days to acclimatize.

When I was struggling on Friday, Ryan - yes, the same Ryan who loves running in the heat – told me a pretty crazy story of one of his buddies who recently ran the Badwater Ultramarathon, a 135-mile, nonstop running race across Death Valley in the stiffing July heat.  In an attempt to get his body into a condition where finishing well would be a possibility, Ryan’s friend built a sauna-like room around his treadmill. He would run every day trying to simulate the expected conditions in Death Valley and as a result, he DOMINATED his race last summer.  He was smart about running in the heat. He properly prepared for it and definitely was better for it.

I believe that training smart will pay off in the long run, however consistently smart training will ALWAYS pay off – you will feel better, and more prepared during the race, with a better chance of putting up a PR! It is important to recognize that acclimation is only one step in preparing to race in the summer or heat. It remains incredibly crucial to be cautious in the heat and pay attention to the signals your body will be sending you, no matter how well you believe you have adapted to the conditions.  

Another crucial step to help you prepare for a good race is hydrating. As endurance athletes, I feel like we talk about fuel and hydration a lot. This is even more important during the hot spring and summer months.  Just like acclimation, it is crucial that hydration occur on an ongoing basis, not just when you exercise.  In fact, many of you may be interested to know that according to experts and coaches, most people are somewhat dehydrated at all times; as a culture we simply don't drink enough fluids.  After my Friday run, my coach and I went over my day in an attempt to figure out what went wrong.  It definitely was a collection of things, but I made one particularly obvious and stupid mistake – enjoying Thursday’s patio happy hour a little too much and not consuming nearly enough water to make up for it. 

Given that I’m a creature of habit, my coach made a pretty genius recommendation: to improve my water consumption she suggested actually scheduling drinking water into my daily routine, just like I schedule workouts.  While she cautioned me not to water load, in fear of how hot it is outside, I need to do a better job of being conscious of consuming enough fluids throughout the day to optimize my hydration level.  In fact, a recent article I read said that “an individual can sweat up to 3 liters an hour in extreme conditions, the most water your body can take back in the same time period is 1 liter.” If this is true, that that means you'll finish extended workouts at a hydration deficit.  Hydration should not only be a preemptive measure, but also a part of your training and recovery plan, particularly in the heat and humidity.  By being properly hydrated, the goal is to make sure your body is better able to handle the heat, and in turn be able to match (or at least be close) to what your body is losing from sweating, and in turn have a more effective workout. I’ve already attempted to work this into my routine, and have quickly begun to realize that I am definitely one of those people mentioned above, who is constantly dehydrated. I’m optimistic that I’m going to get better about it!

It is vital to recognize that even with proper training and preventative measures, the most important skill is listening to your body and knowing the danger signs of dehydration, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, heat cramps and hyponatremia.  If you can, on those particularly hot days that I’m certain are quickly approaching, run in the morning (usually just before sunrise) for the coolest temperatures of the day. When possible, you can also seek out shady routes for relief from incessant sun. Dressing in light-colored, synthetic clothing (to reflect the sun's rays, wick and dry quickly), that fits loose enough to promote airflow will help to evaporate sweat and thus maintain body temperature. I would also recommend finding a running buddy if you don’t already have one. Even when I didn’t want to admit something was wrong, my colleagues expressed concern because my behavior was off.  I think stubbornness is a trait that many endurance athletes pride ourselves in – the ability to push ourselves past that normal threshold of pain. I get that. I often am that. But Friday was just an easy recovery run with friends and there was no shame in recognizing that something was wrong, and taking a break to recover from it.  It is because I was with friends that I did stop, drank some water and took a moment in the shade. It’s because of my own stupidity and stubbornness that I was dizzy, lightheaded, and nauseous. Please be smart.  

Running in hot weather is an important skill to hone, especially when living in the city, but every year, sometimes every month in this city is a little different. So I hope you will take this advice, recognize that it might take a few weeks to adjust, take general precautions and use good common sense, and I assure you that you will be able to successfully continue to train for your entire race schedule through what promises to be a grueling DC summer.

Good luck!

Multisport World Comes to DC!

Join us THIS SATURDAY, March 24^th, at the Multisport World Conference and Expo at Georgetown Prep in North Bethesda, MD. Developed in partnership with USAT Mid Atlantic Regional Council, this is the definitive kick-off to the new tri season offering you seminars, clinics, workshops, competitive events, activities for the kids, a vendor expo and much, much more. Headlining a terrific list of speakers is 6x Ironman World Champion DAVE SCOTT.  Also appearing is OUR OWN BRAND AMBASSADOR JEFF HOROWITZ, renowned swim coach and founder of Total Immersion TERRY LAUGHLIN and USAT Olympic triathlete JARROD SHOEMAKER.

Admission to the seminars and expo is FREE and if you register today you will be eligible to win a CompuTrainer Pro (a $1,500 value!)… you’ll also be eligible to win other great prizes, snag a swag bag and receive exclusive discounts on clinics and workshops.  Click here to register now: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e5gh1zt651ac149b&llr=njuuivbab

For complete details on all Multisport World DC has to offer click here:

http://www.multisportworld.com/Washington_DC.htm

We look forward to seeing you there and be sure to stop by our booth on the expo floor!

From Injury to Opportunity

By: Taldi Walter

Does your life sound something like this? Chlorine before coffee, a run during lunch, and Happy Hour spent hammering at Hains Point? You’re starting to see the rewards of long hours training, and having the best triathlon season of your life.

Topping podiums, breaking PRs, and crushing your training plan makes it easy to ignore nagging pains from conditions like patellar tendinitis, iliotibial band syndrome, or Achilles tendinitus, that may forewarn more serious injuries. Endurance sports are based at least partly on an ability to endure discomfort. You’ve heard that pain is just “weakness leaving the body,” when in reality, it might be the sign of a muscle or ligament about to tear.

Athletes know that consistent training is the way to attain the highest possible fitness, and that extended or frequent downtime will inevitably result in a loss of fitness. It’s simple: the bigger your triathlon goals, the more things in your life that must be focused on achieving your goals.

The mere thought of an injury brings the frustration of not being able to do the thing we love most at the level we’d like. But this singular focus on training and pushing through the pain can oftentimes be counterproductive. Our bodies compensate for weaknesses by putting additional stress on other parts, which can lead to stress fractures, torn ligaments, and worse.

I learned this lesson the hard way when I allowed a minor foot injury to fester, leading to months of pain, a chronic injury and serious damage. Being injured taught some important lessons about keeping mental balance —one of the hardest and the most important aspect of recovery and well-being for a competitive athlete.

The first step is to admit you’re injured so you can move on. It sounds simple, but admitting you’re injured means accepting the uncertainty of not knowing if and when you will race again. It took me four months in a walking cast to finally accept that I was injured; however the shift in mental energy from resistance to acceptance freed me to explore other aspects of myself.

My time away from training allowed me to realize that my love of triathlon is more than just an addiction to speed, spandex, and surpassing personal limits. It’s the community of people, the competition, and the places triathlon can take you that keep me coming back. I was also forced to find creative ways to stay in shape with a hope of one day returning to the starting line.

Your heart and cardiovascular system don’t care exactly what you do to get them in shape. So find any exercise that causes an adaptive response in these systems, whether in the gym or on the roads, and it will prepare you to some to come back strong.

·         I Love to Swim.  Like most Triathletes, I didn’t believe “love” and “swim” could or should be in the same sentence. However my downtime forced — I mean, facilitated — a greater focus on my least favorite split, the swim. In order to get myself to the pool, I signed up for a challenge, swimming between the islands of the Adriatic Sea with a group of friends on a Swimtrek vacation. I had such a great time that I came home and joined a Masters Team. Masters swimming continues to feed my competitive nature; motivates me to get to the pool, and has resulted in better form and performance.

·         Bike Commute to Work. It’s not hammering at Haines Point, but you can do a lot of short all-out efforts between lights. Take advantage Washington’s bike lanes, embrace the hills in the city, and work on your bike-handling skills as you bounce off buses and avoid car doors. Depending on the length of your commute, you can rack up some pretty good mileage in a week. Check out WABA for commuter safety tips and always wear your helmet!

·         Get your Zen on. Yoga at a studio like Stroga is a great way to increase core strength, flexibility, and body balance. Core work strengthens the powerful muscles of the midsection, which help stabilize the body during all movement – think aeroposition on the bike. Meanwhile, weakness and lack of flexibility in your hips can compromise your running mechanics, putting stress on your IT band and knees, thereby leading to pain and injury. Poses like Pigeon can increase hip flexibility, and balance exercises like Tree pose challenge your proprioreceptors, the muscle-nerve connections that create an awareness of our bodies in space. It sounds odd, but close your eyes and stand on one-leg for 10 seconds. That little wiggle you’re working with highlights the importance of proprioreceptors, because they make tiny adjustments to help you from falling on your face when your body is in motion. 

·         Embrace a Lower Heart Rate. Anaerobic exercises support your multisport training and make you a healthier, more well-rounded, and less injury-prone athlete. Not being able to run means having more time to focus on the things that make you a better runner. Functional exercises strengthen the muscles that are directly involved in running, often in the same way they are used. A good resource for functional exercise is Smart Marathon Training, by Jeff Horowitz. Horowitz’s approach focuses on three runs a week and building full-body strength in a sensible approach to training in less time and with fewer injuries.

·         Give Back. Your local triathlon community keeps you going; use your downtime to help keep the community going. Volunteering for local races like Nations Triathlon is a great way to feed your desire to swim-bike-run. You can step up your game and volunteer as a coach for the next generation of multisport athletes through ACHIEVE Kids Tri.

As you start to ramp up your training this spring, resist the urge to be an overachiever. Overcome your ego, and to listen to your body. Many athletes are so used to existing on the edge of overtraining that it seems a natural state. But when you feel a twinge of pain, and not the good kind, take a day off even if it hurts to miss a workout. It will hurt worse if you miss a whole season. The idea of placing limits on training is a scary thought for most of us, but a more balanced training routine has gotten me where I want to be – off the sideline and in the race.

Breathing Techniques for Newbies Doing Triathlons

By: Ronald Molina

Ask any triathlete or someone who wishes to do a triathlon which part they dread the most, and they’ll probably say the swim. But, with understanding proper breathing techniques and plenty of practice in the swimming pool; anyone can overcome this dreadful part of the race.

As a beginner triathlete myself, with just 3 races under my belt, swimming can be a daunting task, but with time and constant learning, the swim part can be an enjoyable one without it being terrifying on race day.  As we all know, breathing is easy on the bike and run. While there are a few tricks to rhythmic breathing in both of these legs, you don't have to move around and ask your surroundings permission in order to get a breath. In swimming, you do.

From a beginner standpoint and what I have read and learned so far; the two most important aspects of breathing in swimming are becoming comfortable with:

1. your face in the water while swimming
2. a rhythm to your breathing

Face In the Water

Keeping your face in the water is step one, because if you swim with your head up or your face out of the water, your legs and hips will drop. A high-head/low-hip position requires you to push more surface area through the water, creating more drag and makes you splash all over the place, which you don’t want.

There are different tricks to keeping your face in the water. Be sure to have comfortable goggles. Focus on looking at the bottom or staring at the black line down the center of the lane in the pool. If you experience anxiety due to being under water, take a lot of rest breaks and remember that as far as pool training goes, you are never very far from the wall and an exit. Taking swimming lessons, signing up for Tri Clinics, and lots of practice will help.

Rhythmic Breathing

Once you are comfortable keeping your face/head in the water while swimming, you need to figure out how and when to breath. The critical action here is to begin exhaling through your nose/mouth as soon as you finish breathing in.  The tendency for beginning swimmers is to hold their breath while their face is in the water, then try to exhale and inhale very quickly when turning to breathe. This will create a shallow breath and a quick buildup of carbon dioxide in the lungs. They will have to stop and take a break in training or roll over on their backs to catch a few deep breaths on race day, which I have done before.

You must exhale while your face is in the water. So when you turn to breathe, your lungs are mostly empty and ready to accept a fresh breath of air. You do need to force the rhythm a bit. You should forcefully exhale through your nose/mouth as soon as you complete the breath. There's no pausing. It is a constant rhythm.

Two- or Three-Stroke Breathing

If there is one important thing I have learned by attending swim clinics in the area is that the three-stroke or bilateral breathing, will help you create and maintain an even stroke and improve mechanics on both sides of your body. However, it will increase the time between breaths by 50 percent over a two-stroke or one-sided breathing pattern. That is a huge decrease in total oxygen flow while swimming.

The best thing to do is to incorporate bilateral breathing in your workouts during warm-up, drills, easy aerobic sets and short sprints like 25s and 50s. Work on stroke balance by breathing to the left going down the pool and to the right coming back.  The main problem with breathing to one side all the time is that it usually creates a hitch or imbalance in one side. Typically one side becomes a bit stronger and you will veer off course in open water. The main benefit, however, is more air, which is nice when you are trying to swim fast.

You can definitely learn more swimming techniques and open water advice at the next DC Tri Clinic on Sunday, March 25.

About Ronald:

Ronald recently started doing triathlons in June of 2010 and has been hooked on the sport. During his childhood and throughout his life he has loved swimming and biking; then in 2010, he was introduced to the sport of triathlon by his older brother and was intent on training hard for his first one. He completed the 2010 Washington DC Triathlon and volunteered at the ACHIEVE Youth Triathlon. Recently he ran the 5 Mile Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. Ronald is looking forward in introducing more minority athletes and others to the sport of triathlon and to promote a healthy and active lifestyle.