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Trigirl HITT Training is Back!

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Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training – Descending Intervals Bike Session

Trigirl’s HITT (High Intensity Triathlon Training) sessions are back by popular demand! (HITT is a hit!) This week, we’re back on the bike for a scorcher session that will increase both your aerobic and anaerobic capabilities and burn loads of calories in minutes!!

Before beginning… If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly high-intensity triathlon training, see week one for more information on HITT, how it works and how to approach the sessions.

Though high-intensity triathlon training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

Your HITT Session for the Week:

This session can be performed indoors or out. Outdoors is best, though if the weather isn’t very cycling-friendly, you are forgiven if you can’t bear to ride outside.

If you are training indoors, it’s recommended that you ride on a turbo trainer, Wattbike or spin bike, with a typical gym bike being the least-recommended option. (The closer that you can train to your actual bike set-up, the better!)

We’ve adapted this session from Olympic coach Gale Bernhardt’s “miracle intervals”, originally published on Bicycling.com. If the long recoveries seem a bit much, do them anyway. They’ll allow you to go “ALL OUT!” doing the fast intervals for maximum HITT benefits.

Warm-up for 8 minutes:
– 5 minutes gentle spinning, making sure that you have enough resistance not to bounce in the saddle.
– 3 minutes – add a gear or two, then ride 3 x [30 seconds spinning your legs up to the fastest cadence you can spin without bouncing, followed by 30 seconds easy recovery]

  • 45 seconds all-out fast with 4:30 easy recovery
  • 40 seconds all-out fast with 4:25 easy recovery
  • 35 seconds all-out fast with 4:20 easy recovery
  • 30 seconds all-out fast with 4:15 easy recovery

Cool down, riding another five minutes in an easy gear (still not bouncing!)

Well done and…

Happy HITT training!

High-Intensity Triathlon Training

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In Trigirl News

Week six of HITT, High-Intensity Swim Session

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Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training. Today is High-Intensity Swim Day!

This HITT – high-intensity swim session will help build strength and increase your aerobic and anaerobic thresholds in very little time. If it feels tough – good! The results are worth it and you can do it!!

Getting Started

If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly HITT training, see our introduction for more information on HITT. Here we explain how it works and how to approach the sessions. Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

Your HITT Session for the Week:

This high-intensity swim session has longer intervals than our last HITT swim session, but try to keep up the intensity. For the sprint intervals, the goal is efforts around 90% of MHR (maximum heart rate). It should feel HARD. If you’re training without a heart rate monitor, think ‘all out’.

You may need to gradually build speed and endurance over a few weeks, but don’t give up!

Warm-up (10mins):
5 minutes, easy swim
3 minutes front crawl, increasing speed gradually throughout

2 minutes, changing between front crawl and kicking every length



Interval Set:
Sprint 50 metres (2 lengths), swim slowly (active recovery) one length, repeat four times
Sprint 1 length kicking hard (no arms), active recovery one length, repeat four times
Sprint 25 metres, active recovery 25 metres, sprint 25 metres, active recovery 25 metres. Rest at the wall for 20 seconds, repeat four times.

Cool Down (5 minutes):
2 lengths easy kicking

Swim easy for the remaining time, mixing breaststroke, backstroke and front crawl

Happy HITT training!

High-Intensity Swim Training - Trigirl HITT

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high intensity run session
In Trigirl News

Week five of HITT, High Intensity Run Session

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Trigirl’s HITT Training – High Intensity Run Session

This HITT run session will help build strength and increase your aerobic and anaerobic thresholds in very little time. If it feels tough – good! The results are worth it and you can do it!!

Getting Started

If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly HITT training, see our previous post for more information on HITT, how it works and how to approach the sessions. Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

Your HITT Session for the Week

For this high intensity run session, you will need a hill that will take you just less than 60 seconds to run up to complete this session. It should be a real hill, but not so steep that you can’t run it with good form.

Warm-up for 10 minutes:
– 8 minutes of gentle jogging
– 2 minutes or more of dynamic stretching to loosen joints and prepare them for the session

HITT the Hills! (See what we did there?)

Run up the hill at a 9 out of 10 effort for 60 seconds. Ideally, you will just crest the hill and have about 10 seconds on the flat at the top to practice running hard out of an uphill.
Jog or walk to recover down the hill, then immediately run back up.
Start with 3-4 hill repeats, ultimately building to 8-10.

Cool down with an easy run on the flat and with static stretches to ward off muscle soreness.

Happy HITT training!

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In Trigirl News

Emily Chong – Marathon Training Without Long Runs

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Successful and injury-free Marathon training without the long runs?

Performance coach, massage therapist and friend of Trigirl, Emily Chong, subjected herself to a nighttime off-road marathon to test out her own theory about interval training.

Emily adopted a “no long run” style of training for the marathon, using gym-based strength training and high-intensity intervals in the pool and on the bike to boost her fitness, to great success.

Read more about Emily’s marathon training and why it could help to keep you injury-free here:

marathon training without long runs

It’s cold, dark, wet and icy outside. You’re feeling tired or maybe you’re recovering from an injury. Perhaps you have a marathon booked in a few months. Should you grin and bear it and stick with the mileage written in the training plan? Should you listen to your body and rest?

Is Marathon training without long runs possible?

Your answer may be interval training, cross training and pushing weights in the warmth of a gym.

At the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, Emil Zátopek became the first person to win the 5k, 10K and the marathon in the same Olympics. Before then he had never run a marathon, not in training, nor in a race. His secret? Interval training.

Combustion Triangle

The “combustion triangle” of sports training consists of:

  • Cardiovascular fitness
  • Strength & conditioning and
  • Technique

Using just one activity to train for these components is not uncommon; many runners only run. However, this can be time consuming and risky considering the amount of impact and the time it takes to recover from running.

My Marathon Training Experiment

I wanted to experience how effective cross training and interval training could be for this blog post, so I signed up for a marathon as an experiment. Apart from a very slow Ironman in 2014 (with a 5hr run split), I had never run a marathon before. While I’m used to high volume swimming and cycling, I don’t run more than 10km at a time.

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Oregon Triathlon Training
In Trigirl News

Week Four of HITT, Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training!

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Oregon Circuits for Triathlon Training

We’re back to run training this week, but we’re mixing it up with a high-intensity session that works on overall body strength as well as run strength and speed. Once again, you’ll get extra benefits in less time!
Welcome, Trigirls, to Oregon Circuits for triathlon training, Trigirl HITT-style!!

Getting Started

If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly HITT training, see week one for more information on HITT, how it works and how to approach the sessions. Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

This week we’ve got Oregon Circuits on the agenda. So what are they and how can you use Oregon Circuits for triathlon training?

Oregon Circuits were invented at the University of Oregon by coach Luiz de Oliveira. Combining run intervals with bodyweight strength exercises, they definitely suit our ‘more benefits, less time’ training approach.

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tabata bike session
In Trigirl News

Trigirl HITT Training, Week Three – Tabata Bike Session

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Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training – Tabata Bike Session

If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly HITT training, see week one for more information on HITT, how it works and how to approach the sessions.

Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

Your HITT Session for the Week:

This week we’re getting on the bike for a super-fast, super-efficient leg burner!

You can perform this session indoors or out. However, if you are training indoors, it’s recommended that you ride on a turbo trainer, Wattbike or spin bike, with a typical gym bike being the least-recommended option. (The closer that you can train to your actual bike set-up, the better!)

We’re basing this session on Tabata, discovered by Japanese scientist Dr. Izumi Tabata.

Tabata and his team conducted research on two groups of athletes. The first group trained at a moderate intensity level while the second group trained at a high-intensity level.

The moderate intensity group worked out five days a week for a total of six weeks; each workout lasted one hour. The high-intensity group worked out four days a week for six weeks; each workout lasted just four minutes (20 seconds of hard training followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times).

The results; Group 1 had increased their aerobic system (cardiovascular), but showed little or no results for their anaerobic system (muscle).

Group 2 showed much more increase in their aerobic system than Group 1, and increased their anaerobic system by 28 percent!

In conclusion, high-intensity interval training has more impact on both the aerobic and anaerobic systems.

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HITT training
In Trigirl News

Trigirl HITT Training, Week Two – Swim Session

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Welcome to week two of HITT, Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training!

Getting Started

If you’re new to Trigirl’s weekly HITT training, see last week’s post for more information on HITT, how it works and how to approach the sessions.

Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

Your HITT Session for the Week:

This HITT swim session can be performed in very little time, but a decent warm-up and some drills are included to get you and your swim form prepped and ready for the hard work HITT intervals. There is also a recommended cool down at the end, but all-in the session still clocks in at under 30 minutes!

Warm-up for 10 minutes:
– 5 minutes front crawl easy
– 3 minutes light kick (keep it fairly easy!)
– 2 minutes pull (front crawl using a pool buoy)

Drill set:
4-6 x 50 metres (as 25 m 6-3-6 drill, 25 m front crawl)

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HITT
In Trigirl News

Trigirl HITT Training, Week One – Run Session

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Welcome to week one of HITT, Trigirl’s High-Intensity Triathlon Training!

Getting Started

If you’re just starting out, there’s nothing wrong with incorporating high-intensity. However, since running involves impact, it’s suggested that you build up to the sessions to get your body prepared.

Spend  a few weeks getting your body used to running (and swimming and cycling) with some easier efforts. Then, progress by adding minimal intervals, building up the number of intervals each week.

Start with one high-intensity session weekly, with the aim of ultimately doing at least one per week per discipline.

Though high-intensity training has been proven safe, if you are starting a new exercise plan (whether traditional triathlon training or HITT), it’s always a good idea to speak with your doctor.

How does HITT differ from other triathlon training plans?

Traditionally, triathlon training plans are written based on the concept of periodisation. This breaks a season into base, build, peak and race phases.

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In Trigirl News

HITT – High Intensity Triathlon Training

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HITT – try time saving High Intensity Triathlon Training sessions this season

If you take classes at the gym or have paid attention to the fitness world over the past several years, you’ve probably heard of HIIT. But what is HIIT and how does it apply to you as a triathlete-in-training?

HITT - High Intensity Triathlon Training

HIIT, short for high-intensity interval (or intermittent) training, is a training programme that incorporates high to very high levels of effort, mixed with short rest or easy recovery intervals. Though it’s been around since the 1970s, HIIT has recently gained greater popularity in the fitness community because it equates to better fitness and higher levels of weight loss in less time.

As written in an article in Shape magazine, ‘When it comes to HIIT, less might actually be more. Squat jumps for joy.’

So, is high-intensity training right for triathlon? (Yes.) Is it right for you? (Probably.) And how do you incorporate high-intensity triathlon training into your training regime? (We’re here to help.)

Stay tuned for our new weekly training session offering HITT tips and a suggested workout that you can incorporate into your overall training plan.

It will help you get to the finish line in less time – both in training, and on the race course.

Save time and achieve your goals with HITT!

Happy Training!

Click here to read more on HIIT and high-intensity training for triathlon.

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High Intensity Triathlon Training

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Could High Intensity Triathlon Training be for you?

If you take classes at the gym or have paid attention to the fitness world over the past several years, you’ve probably heard of HIIT. But what is HIIT and how does it apply to you as a triathlete-in-training?

HIIT, short for high-intensity interval (or intermittent) training, is a training programme that incorporates high to very high levels of effort, mixed with short rest or easy recovery intervals. Though it’s been around since the 1970s, HIIT has recently gained greater popularity in the fitness community because it often equates to better fitness and higher levels of weight loss, in less time. As written in an article in Shape magazine, ‘When it comes to HIIT, less might actually be more. Squat jumps for joy.’

high intensity triathlon training

Of course, as with all training styles, HIIT is not for everyone. To get real results from a HIIT workout, you have to work hard (80-90% of maximum heart rate, which can feel like 100% effort). Working that hard, especially if training on your own, requires a lot of stamina- psychological stamina that is.

But if time is of the essence (as it is for most people) and injury is a concern (as it is for most triathletes), could HITT (High Intensity Triathlon Training!) be for you? And does it work in a sport commonly know to emphasise quantity sessions, sometimes at the sake of quality?

The answer is yes.  Studies (and anecdotal evidence) are proving that shorter workouts, performed at greater intensity, could equal faster race times and less injury. This is useful throughout the season, not just during the speed phase of triathlon periodisation.  And you can have a life outside of triathlon- a win-win! Save time and achieve your goals with HITT!

Obviously, the time-saving benefits are greater for an iron-distance triathlete (some training less than 10 hours* a week, as opposed to the legendary 20+ at peak) than for a sprint-distance triathlete. However, even when training for a sprint triathlon, doing speed work makes sense and the speed gains from HITT could lead to fast race times with less training!

So how do you incorporate high intensity triathlon training into your training regime?

We’ve got seven suggestions for workouts that you can incorporate into your overall training plan, as well as HIIT tips to keep you training happy and injury-free:

HIIT Session One, Run: HIIT Started– an intro to HIIT plus a track session to fire up your speed

HIIT Session Two, Swim: Speedy Swim Set– pool power!

HIIT Session Three, Bike: Tabata Bike Session– a quicker way to get quick!

HIIT Session Four, Strength: Oregon Circuits– intense all-around workout for strength & speed!

HIIT Session Five, Run: Hill HITT!

HIIT Session Six, Swim: Swim Sprinting and Kicking

HIIT Session Seven, Bike: Adapted ‘Miracle Intervals’, inspired by Olympic coach, Gale Bernhardt

These sessions will help you get to the finish line in less time – both in your training, and on the race course!

Happy Training!

High Intensity Triathlon Training

* An article in Triathlete magazine, posted by British Triathlon, talks about the virtues of low-volume, high-intensity training for triathletes. Triathlete Eric Wheeler, who achieved a sub-10 hour Ironman after training less than 10 hours a week said: “I didn’t think I could ever go long due to time constraints and family obligations. That approach was a game changer for me.”

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