Triathlon Training Plan for Beginners

12 weeks·sprint·beginner

Weeks: 12
Sessions: 71
Peak week: 4h 05; week 10
Long ride: 1h 15; week 10
Taper: 2 wk

BaseCutbackBuildPeakTaperRace

Heart-rate zones use the Karvonen formula from max HR 185 and resting HR 55. Enter yours to recalculate.

Week-by-week training plan
Wk	Focus	Sessions	Volume	Biggest session
01	Base: technique + aerobicLong ride 45 min	6 · 4 key	2h 25	Long ride 45 min
Tue Oct 6 Swim technique + aerobic 15 min 8 × 50 drill/swim 4 × 100 @ 2:20/100 yd, 15 s rest Wed Oct 7 Bike intervals 25 min 10–15 min warm-up 3 × 5 min Zone 3 (146–159 bpm), 3 min easy 10 min easy Thu Oct 8 Swim endurance 15 min continuous or broken 400s @ 2:22/100 yd · bilateral breathing, sighting every 6–8 strokes Thu Oct 8 Run + strides 20 min easy with 6 × 20 s strides Sat Oct 10 Long ride 45 min Long ride, Zone 2 (133–146 bpm) · fuel 60–80 g carbs per hour Sun Oct 11 Long run 25 min Zone 2 (133–146 bpm) · flat to rolling route
Weeks 2–12 locked Unlock the full plan. Every session, every week Paces and loads from your numbers PDF, calendar and Garmin export Re-plans when you miss a key session Billing period$79 / year$14 / month Annual works out at $6.58 a month Secure checkout with Stripe · Cancel any time
02	Base: technique + aerobicLong ride 45 min	6 · 4 key	2h 35	Long ride 45 min
03	Base: technique + aerobicLong ride 45 min	6 · 4 key	2h 50	Long ride 45 min
04	Recovery weekLong ride 30 min	6 · 2 key	2h 00	Long ride 30 min
05	Build: threshold + weekly brickLong ride 45 min	6 · 5 key	2h 55	Long ride 45 min
06	Build: threshold + weekly brickLong ride 1 h	6 · 5 key	3h 10	Long ride 1 h
07	Build: threshold + weekly brickLong ride 1 h	6 · 5 key	3h 25	Long ride 1 h
08	Recovery weekLong ride 45 min	6 · 2 key	2h 25	Long ride 45 min
09	Peak: race-specific bricksLong ride 1 h	6 · 5 key	3h 45	Long ride 1 h
10	Peak: race-specific bricksLong ride 1 h 15 min	6 · 5 key	4h 05	Long ride 1 h 15 min
11	Taper: less volume, keep intensityLong ride 45 min	6 · 5 key	2h 55	Long ride 45 min
12	Race weekRace	5 · 1 key	1h 00	Race

Your paces

Swim CSS: 2:13/100 ydcritical swim speed
Run easy: 13:10/mi
Run threshold: 10:03/mi
Run race pace: 9:37/miopen-run pace; expect 3–8% slower off the bike

Heart-rate zones · Karvonen

Zone 1: 120–133 bpmrecovery
Zone 2: 133–146 bpmaerobic base
Zone 3: 146–159 bpmtempo
Zone 4: 159–172 bpmthreshold
Zone 5: 172–185 bpmVO2max

The numbers

About this plan

This triathlon training plan for beginners runs 12 weeks for a beginner athlete, from 2.4 hours in week 1 to 4.1 hours in week 10. Week 6 is 3.2 h, split about 22% swim, 45% bike and 33% run across 6 sessions. Over the plan that is 24 swims, 23 rides and 23 runs for a 750 m / 20 km / 5 km race.

The 1 h 15 min ride in week 10 stays in Zone 2, 133–146 bpm on Karvonen zones. 24 swims use a 2:13/100 yd critical swim speed; 6 bricks follow long rides.

Week 4 (2 h) and week 8 (2.4 h) recover. The 2 taper weeks go from 4.1 h to 1 h; the 34-hour block ends with run race pace near 9:37/mi.

Week 1, shown in full above, is 2.4 hours: Tuesday — swim technique + aerobic, 15 min; Wednesday — bike intervals, 25 min; Thursday — swim endurance, 15 min; Thursday — run + strides, 20 min; Saturday — long ride, 45 min; Sunday — long run, 25 min.

Structure: base weeks 1–3 (2.4–2.8 h), build weeks 5–7 (2.9–3.4 h), peak weeks 9–10 (3.8–4.1 h), taper week 11 (2.9 h) and race week 12 (1 h).

Questions

FAQ

How many hours a week is this triathlon training plan for beginners?

2.4 hours in week 1, 3.2 h in week 6, 4.1 hours in week 10; 34 hours in all.

What heart-rate zones does the triathlon training plan for beginners use?

Karvonen zones: Zone 2 133–146 bpm for 3.2 h weeks like week 6, Zone 4 159–172 bpm for the 47 key sessions.

How many brick workouts are in the triathlon training plan for beginners?

6 bricks across 12 weeks, the longest behind a 1 h 15 min ride.

What is the longest bike ride before the sprint triathlon?

1 h 15 min, in week 10, before a 2-week taper to 1 h.

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