The Basic Gear You Need For Triathlon
Learning from athlete mistakes :)
If you want triathlon training to go well, you need the right gear.
These are the Level 1 must haves.
But I have to warn you…
I didn’t just pull this list out of nowhere.
Everything here is included because I had an athlete overlook it in the past.
I didn’t think some of the stuff needed to be confirmed (like that you need goggles to swim - ha!).
But I was wrong about that.
At least I got some good laughs (and clarity on how to improve my coaching).
I hope this post helps you avoid creating unnecessary obstacles in your training.
PS: I included some links to gear that I use/recommend
Swim
I couldn’t believe I had an athlete do his first swim with no goggles.
A more common mistake is swimming in board shorts you’d wear at the beach.
Either of those gear mishaps are the easiest ways to swim as slow as possible (and make swimming miserable).
Pro Tip: goggles should be comfortable on your face. If they hurt your eyes or are painful to take off, get a new pair with more cushion around the eye socket.
Bike
Bike
Helmet
The Big 2 that people overlook here are bike shorts and bike jersey.
Bike shorts have padding that make riding 100x more comfortable.
Bike jersey has huge pockets for fuel, phone, keys, wallet, etc. (and is crucial for looking the part… riding in a tee shirt is amateur hour).
Pro Tip: you should be pumping your tires before EVERY SINGLE RIDE
I had an athlete buy a new bike last year.
He walked out of the bike shop with freshly pumped tires. But he never pumped them once after that…
Thank God I was with him in person just a few weeks later.
Right away I said, “Dude, your tires are flat.”
Then he said, “They are? Maybe that’s why I’ve been riding so slow.”
When I went to pump them up for him, they were at 30 psi.
They should have been at 90.
That’s like playing basketball with a ball that doesn’t bounce.
Run
I almost didn’t want to share that link to the Altra Torin 6s.
I was going to keep it a secret.
They’ve been my last 8 (!!!) pairs of road shoes. I’m not exaggerating. They’ve been discounted on Amazon for almost a year.
They stay on sale and I just keep buying them when I need them. I even buy two pairs at once now.
Anyway… a huge beginner mistake is just running on whatever beat up shoes you already have.
I had an athlete start marathon training with old, shitty shoes like this.
He ran in the same shoes he wore to the coffee shop, to walk the dog and pretty much any time he was headed out of the house.
One day (after I had begged him to buy running shoes) he sent me a pic of what he had been wearing.
They were black with dirt and beat to shit. The soles had no tread!
But he was new to running and just going with what he had.
After 3 months of consistent run training (and starting to see himself as a runner), he invested in new running shoes.
His reaction was simple: “they made running more enjoyable and made me financially committed to getting better at running”
Enjoyment + Commitment = Unstoppable Gains
Tech
I’ve had my Garmin Fenix 6 for years and the Polar H10 is the most reliable HR chest strap I’ve used.
Pro Tip: ditch the Apple Watch. Be an athlete and get a Garmin.
Questions?
I’ll share Level 2 Triathlon Gear Tips in a future post.
Do you have questions on gear/tech in Level 1?
Click the button below and I’ll answer you directly.