Your First Triathlon

by Joe Friel

Your First Triathlon is the best-selling book for beginner triathletes because it makes preparing for sprint triathlons fun and easy. This clear and comprehensive book prepares aspiring triathletes for the challenge of their first tri through a simple, 12-week training plan that requires fewer than 4 hours a week. By race day, you’ll have the confidence and fitness to enjoy your first swimming a half mile, riding a bike 12 miles, and running 3 miles.
Your First Triathlon offers a 12-week training plan for total beginners as well as custom plans for athletes already experienced in swimming, cycling, or running. The easy-to-use plans include achievable swim, bike, run, and optional strength workouts that will slowly but surely build you into a triathlete. As you build endurance, Joe Friel’s technique workouts will improve your speed and efficiency. Helpful tips will ensure you’ll know how to handle problems like a flat tire, soreness, and how to navigate questions about etiquette in the pool or on a group ride or run.
Joe simplifies the complexities of the swim-bike-run sport with his smart advice on gear, how to prepare a transition area, finishing a stress-free swim, and ensuring that race day goes as planned. Joe offers tips on choosing a beginner-friendly triathlon and then walks you through your entire race week covering packet pickup, knowing the course, the pre-race briefing, what to eat for breakfast, check-in and body marking, how to set up your transition area, warming up, what to do in unexpected weather, a smart race plan, and what to do after you’ve finished your first triathlon.
Joe Friel is the coach experienced triathletes trust most. His book The Triathlete’s Training Bible is the best-selling resource in the sport and now his trusted advice is available to help you enjoy your first triathlon.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Fitness, Health, Self Help

223 pages, Paperback

First published May 12, 2006

Reviews

[Jo * Smut-Dickted * · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm more a runner than a triathlete but triathlon is always something that's been in the back of my head. Your First Triathlon is a good general book with a lot of good information. It is not too overwhelming (leaving aside the training plans) and covers everything fairly well including quite a bit on strength training and nutrition which you don't always find a ton of in other books or it is very cursory.

The initial few chapters were great introduction and well written. I thought the fact that the author acknowledged this can be a lifestyle as well as the need for support to be helpful for newbies. This is no small goal you've set out for yourself. The gear and what is required vs. what is nice to have broke things down well. The only irritant I have (and this is a common complaint for me for triathlon books so far!) is there is the assumption you already have a bike. Repeatedly you are told "Don't buy one" (not unique to this book) and not given a ton of advice if you do not have a bike (any bike) for what you should do. Just told "Don't buy one now you'll regret it". That is all well and good if you have a bike or someone to borrow one from. For those of us who have not been on a bike for a while and who do not possess one I'd like to see some one (anyone!!) actually offer up an opinion of what you can do in this situation.

Well, since no other has done that, I will tell you what I did. I did not have a bike. So, clearly, I need a bike. I also didn't want to invest thousands into a sport I wasn't sure I'd like and for a bike that might be too specific too it. I mean I can see myself going casually riding and maybe with a group but beyond that not so much - not planning on going for 5 day rides or something. So I compromised and bought what I'd call an entry level road bike. It was seven hundred dollars which is no small amount. I had it fit for me at a Local Bike Shop (LBS) and the only thing I added was a more comfortable Saddle (Terry Liberator X Gel Saddle for me is perfect). The advice I got was to buy a cheap bike or go for the gusto. I did neither. Too cheap means it would be likely I would not want to use it more than a race or two nor to train. Too pricey and I"d feel guilted into doing tri's forever to pay off that bike. The way I look at it I can sell it (there is a large market for second hand bikes in great condition) for a good amount.

The section on race day and the transition are was outstanding.

The information on swimming and cycling is basic and I think sufficient to get you going. I always supplement my book learning with lots of stories of people doing what I want to do which includes blogs, beginner sport websites, etc. Get yourself exposed to the sport and the lingo - you'll be thankful for it.

So why not more stars? Well, honestly, I didn't really like the running chapter but that's just me. It seemed a lot more complicated than a beginner would want or be capable of while having a life and doing 2 other sports. My advice is, if you have never run, do a Couch 2 5K program via app or any of the one's online for free to get to your 3 miles of running or so for a Sprint Tri. The apps can be very motivating and helpful and will leave you feeling confident.

Similarly the training for cycling and swimming I think is too complicated for the true beginner. They are doable - just you'll have to memorize some stuff in the beginning. I found it interesting that a lot of the cycling workouts really work well and best on an indoor trainer and are so noted. I prefer to ride outside. That's personal preference but it means that likely I (at the beginning of a cycling journey) am not going to do drills as I've just got my balance on the bike. For the swimming you might be best off copying down the workouts and laminating them or putting in a waterproof pouch for the pool. I haven't tried them. I'm actually working through form and skill via Total Immersion and SwimSmooth books which are helping tons (and which I'd recommend).

This is a good book - maybe not quite "fresh meat" beginner in level in many ways - but the info is solid and strong and it's a great resource to have on hand. If you want some personal'ness to the story (this is a just the facts book) then I'd recommend Triathlon for the Every Woman: You Can Be a Triathlete. Yes. You. and/or Slow Fat Triathlete: Live Your Athletic Dreams in the Body You Have Now (older book) that I found inspiring. I'm not an Athena (larger woman) but found plenty to enjoy about these journey's that so amply portrayed what conviction, dedication, and consistency could do if you had the will.

[Mark Fajet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Updating my review now that I have finished my first triathlon.

I think the book is good with lots of helpful advice. I think the plans it had were too easy. I did a sprint triathlon, but I followed the Olympic plan instead and also made the swims longer.

I finished my race with no issues and had lots of fun which is what the author said my goal should be.

[Scarlett Hill]

I like that this book provides separate training plans that work for those who already have a strong sport. All the other plans I've looked at assume a beginner triathlete is a beginner at all three sports.

[Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I see it, this is a perfect practical book. All of the things you have to know, packed in a concise way, and none of the things you won’t need.
Totally recommend.

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I already completed multiple sprint, olympic and half-Ironman distance triathlons, this book came my way and decided to check it out. Maybe these is some basic thing I still don't know?

Notable takeaways:
- when doing a first triathlon (IMO also first in particular distance) your goal should be to finish with smile; time is secondary
- best way to prep for Ironman is to start with sprint, do a few Olympic and half-Ironman distance tris first
- exercise first thing in the morning where there are fewer demands on your time - this is what most serious triathletes do; scientific studies have shown that people who exercise in the morning are more regular and consistent than those who exercise at any other time of the day
- if you don't feel like exercising, tell yourself you will only do it for 5 minutes and then stop. This will get you out the door, and once into it you'll probably finish the workout. But if you still don't feel up to it after 5 mins, call it quits and head home. This almost always works for me!
- tips for better sleep: go to bed at regular time every night, take a warm bath before bed, darken the room in the last hour before bedtime and narrow focus by reading or light convo (no TV), sleep in dark, well-ventilated room that is 60-64F, don't drink coffee and team in the last several hours before going to bed, and restrict alcohol at least a few hours prior sleep
- it's been estimated that each pound of additional body fat causes a runner to slow by two seconds per mile and requires additional 1.5W of power when climbing a hill on a bike
- tips to reduce weight: 300-500 calories deficit per day with break (no deficit week) every 2-3 weeks
- for workouts <1h - drink just water (take some food, e.g., gel before)
- author recommends avoiding fruit juice before exercise...but I've seen Kristian Blummenfelt drinking two cups am:P
- for workouts 1h+ drink water with supplements/electrolytes (LMNT, nuun)
- recovery smoothie recipe: 8-12 oz. fruit juice, 1 serving fruit (banana/frozen berries), 1-2 pinches salt, 1-2 teaspoons protein powder, 1-2 handfuls ice
- when eating protein bars, you need to drink 8-16 oz of water to absorb
- drink when consuming gels - otherwise body will pull fluid from blood -> dehydration
- choose protein powder made of eggs, or whey, or soy. Avoid vegetable powders
- good fats: monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated omega-3 oil
- bad fats: saturated fat, trans fat, polyunsaturated omega-6 oil
- treat swim as warm up for the race
- kick should only be used to keep balance, not to add speed :O
- quick way to learn running properly: run barefoot on grass
- do strength workouts only if you can consistently do 1-2/week, if you cannot don't bother
- when combining swim with strength workout, do swim first as it's not good to swim with tired muscles - it will cause to build bad swim habits

Book also has a recommendation for strength workouts with alternatives of workouts that can be done at home without gym equipment. There is also a few stretch exercises recommended.

I'm not big fan of training plans. They have workouts scheduled almost every day! I think for beginner doing 2 runs/week + 1 swim + 1 bike ride is enough. Also going to the gym to do 10mins swim (as suggested in workouts) is not the best use of time. Unless you have all the time in the World you can try these plans.

Author suggest field tests to find lactate threshold heart rate (LTHR).

For running: warm up for 10 mins, every 200m increase speed a little, continue increasing until you notice the onset of rapid and deep breathing while experiencing a feeling of hard effort (RPE: 4/5) - once you get there your HRM should show your LTHR.
For biking: on long hill, or flat road without stops, start riding easy and increase effort every 30 seconds. Once you first start to breathe rapidly and deeply (RPE: 4/5) you are at your LTHR.
tl;dr - your LTHR is when your RPE (Rated Perceived Effort) is 4/5.
Not sure these would provide very accurate measurements, as it depends on day, how tired you are, etc. and gauging RPE is VERY subjective.

There are useful checklist of what to bring to the race. One I'll apply for my next race is to bring my own pillow when traveling for race!

tl;dr - there is a few good insights, some I really need to double check as I've seen conflicting advice from top athletes, and I would for sure recommend different training plans

[Nicolas Cuervo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this book as a present after having a successful full year as a beginner runner, having joined some fun races from 5k to 15k. Being involved by the feeling of competition, I started grasping the idea of mixing the runs with bike rides and swimming laps, which ended up in me having this book.

I had had many encounters with products from the author (I read some of his blog posts here and there, and was eyeing TrainingPeaks intermittently), but I didn't come to connect all of them until I started reading this book. He is a really knowledgeable person and is something that is reflected in his writing.

The book, as it's said in the title, is quite beginner-oriented and encompasses a wide reach, from nutrition to gearing, up until training. Quite useful for someone who hasn't done a triathlon competitively before. Some competition-addicts might find the book a bit too superficial, as it, openly on purpose, only scratches the surface and wants you to know what you are facing if you sign up for a tri, with the sole goal of *having fun*.

That being said, the book is great and right on point. Got a lot of nice tips from it, and will recommend it to anyone who is a first timer in the sport.

[YANCHI FENG · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Very practical. I’m currently training for my first sprint distance triathlon, with pool swimming.

I’m following what he’s saying, especially for my weakness, strength workouts and swimming. I started following the 12 weeks strength training program today. I already have a swimming instructor with whom I train almost every week. Now I’ll add this book’s suggested swimming method.

I find it very helpful, practical and straightforward for 1st time triathletes. It’s probably not so helpful for people who already did it. Or people who have issues following a plan. It does take a lot of discipline to keep up with plans given in the book. Personally I’ve been following running plans for the past 5 years. So this isn’t a shock for me. I’ll just incorporate some changes.

5 stars in my mind.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but basic - very basic - introduction to triathlon training. Probably would be useful if you have absolutely no background in any kind of endurance sport at all, but even if you know your way around one of the sports that make up a triathlon there’s going to be a lot here that’s redundant.

Also now in need of an update. The tech chapters are very dated now in an age of Apple Watches, Fitbit ,Strava, Zwift, etc. which is a minus.

[Denis Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you don't know nothing about biking, running and swimming- read this first and then find more detailed books about each.

The overview of different kinds of triathlons might be good here, yes, if you have no friends who are athletes.

Good training schedule in the end of book, should be helpful for new athletes.

For me it was only useful to go through, ensure I'm training right and that I'm not willing to prepare for ironman.

[Steven Garlick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was mildly informative. It reinforced some helpful concepts around nutrition that I had been neglecting. It also gave me confidence that you don't need to be running 20 minute 5k times to have a chance at a sprint triathlon.

With that being said, anyone who is interested in athletic performance and has spent some time around the subject probably could pick most of this stuff up already. It truly is for a beginner who doesn't know where to start.

[Affad Shaikh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goal- Complete the race with a smile on your face. I like that idea. It works for me. Can't ask for more from a book then what Friel provided, its an excellent beginning point for triathlete noobs like myself. Dismantled some big myths and helped set realistic targets and goals, especially with the training plans.

[Kip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent overview of the sport, the schedule is clunky and requires daily page flipping... a nice calendar app or even PDF with the workouts described on them would be more useful. Also already very dated with no reference to technologies like Fitbit or Strava and how to leverage them. Also an over emphasis on weight loss and calorie restriction without any clear guidance on ideal weights.

[Teymour Javaherchi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read for new folks to triathlon training.

If you have no background information on becoming triathlon, this is a great read. However, if you already know stuff about it and/or did one then the materials in this book are 80% redundant.

I belong to latter group, but read it to the end ;)

[Vitaly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Answers all the billion questions before the 1st race

Super structured information. A bit specific for US but easy to apply to you country.
As a beginner, I had many questions before the 1st race. This book is quite short and answers them all. Also there are many good advices, like how to deal with your immune system right after the race

[Elsie Ekhluun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic, truly basic things. The training plan seems too simple.
But I have learned a lot things about nutritional balance. I run a marathons and almost ignored the nutrition diet, but thanks to this book I decided to do more cooking/nutritional research.

[Adrian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy to understand. If you're somewhat of an athlete Its a skippable book as the basics of athletics are introduced
If you're getting up off the couch this book is definitely for you and full of motivation.

[✩ *̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙ Fran *̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙ ✩ · Rating 5 out of 5]

PLEASE READ THIS!
Amazing book . I was looking for a book that give me the essentials of tri, and this was it !.
Also , the author give you a plan for you to schedule your workouts.

I highly recommend it, this book is short and straight to the point, giving you the essentials.

[Paul Wandrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very useful information for someone who knows next to nothing about tris. I now feel like I have a decent understanding of what to expect, what gear I need and what gear is nice to have, and a general training regimen.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book to get started with for a triathlon. It had some great tips and hints. I think I am ready to try my 1st triathlon this year. Chiago Triathlon 2018, here I come!!!

[Sippy van der Meer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Prima handleiding, handige schema’s

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The workouts feel overly simple, but I thought it was a great over all introduction for a newbie to the sport.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty basic information, but nice if you have very little background in endurance sports!

[Alex Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

More my speed, also gave me confidence that I can do a triathlon much sooner than I anticipated.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great book to guide my training. Very simple and suited to the beginner athlete.

[Liza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got me motivated perfectly for my first triathlon!!

[McKenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

hope this helps 🤞

[Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super useful. Literally a step-by-step guide, and so specific where necessary. I feel prepared!

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only rate books five stars if they changed my life or the way I see the world. This book got me through my first triathlon, and (not to be cheesy, but) it was pretty life changing.

[Adan Caballero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excelente invitación a este deporte

Leí este libro por curiosidad hacia la práctica del triatlón. Viendo amigos practicarlo con tal intensidad me parecía algo sumamente difícil y fuera del alcance de personas comunes y corriente que solo queremos ejercitarnos y divertirnos en e proceso. Este libro te abre los ojos al mundo del triatlón de una manera muy sencilla y le quita el misterio y el glamour a un deporte que me parece de lo más divertido.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been hemming and hawing about whether or not I could finish a triathlon for several years now. I've completed many half marathons, a marathon, and various other running events, but for some reason a TRIATHLON sounded like something scary and completely unattainable. My own fears of failure/inadequacy kept me from even thinking about participating in a tri. I bought this book several years ago and have finally dusted it off from the bookshelf and signed up for a sprint tri! In addition to reading this book, I joined a triathlon training group and feel like having both tools at my disposal has boosted my confidence about my ability to PROPERLY train, prepare for, and complete a sprint triathlon. As I started my first few swim, bike, and run training sessions- I began reading Your First Triathlon. This book is terrific for beginners! There are so many tips that you get prior to your first race that you might not have figured out until it was too late on race day. Some examples- how to lay out all of your gear at the transition stations and what to wear/or not to wear for the different sports. This book has a 360 degree view of what you'll need leading up to race day including nutritional advice, training logs, tips for each individual sport, and lots of motivation! I'm totally confident that after reading this book and getting my training in, I will be completely prepared for my first sprint triathlon this summer!