Understanding how to train with the proper intensity represents a critical skill for any triathlete, no matter how accomplished you are. Going at a rate too low can dilute your training and fail to prepare you for the actual race conditions. Conversely, pushing too hard during certain workouts creates a clear imbalance and disallows your body to adapt properly to that portion of the race for which you are training. Either way, not knowing your level of intensity can devalue the workout you thought you had planned so well.

To solve this situation, you should seriously consider purchasing a heart rate monitor. Most triathletes swear by these, using them to get immediate feedback during the bike or run portion of their daily training. Integrating the use of a monitor lets you stay within a prerequisite zone, one that gives your body the correct amount of work for that given task. If you can gauge your intensity in real-time you can make the needed adjustments so that your workout is maximized and ultimately relevant. Any time spent working out should always be good time, as preparing for triathlons is hard enough without wasting precious hours training in incorrect ways.

The monitor itself normally consists of two parts: a strap with a sensor that goes around your upper torso, near the heart, and a watch you wear on your wrist that communicates the information as you train. Most are entirely comfortable and do not inhibit your training in any way. Some more expensive versions offer only a watch piece.

Therefore, you would do yourself a true favor to purchase and get acclimated to a heart rate monitor. You don't need to spend a bundle to get the basics you need, so make the investment and watch your bike and run training improve almost immediately. You'll love it on race day.

Open water swimming, especially for a beginning triathlete, represents a stern test, one that extends well beyond the physical challenge presented during pool training. With currents, waves, chop, other triathletes, cold temperatures, and poor visibility, ocean or lake swims can intimidate a triathlete, all the while extracting excessive amounts of energy and confidence. So, the need to get out and practice in open water prior to race day is critical.

Yet all too often people forget one skill that will destroy an open water swim: sighting. No one, no matter how advanced or accomplished you are, swims in a straight line in open water. The ocean floor, if you can even see it, has no lane markings, and no lane lines will exist to keep you headed toward the finish. Instead, knowing that swimmers, if left alone and without ever sighting, will swim in a large circle, you can see the need to practice finding your way in open water.

Whether training in a pool or in the ocean, any triathlete can work on sighting. First, pick a point in the distance: a buoy, the end line, a rock formation, etc. Then, as you swim, practice slightly pulling your head up—just enough for your goggles to be above the water every few strokes to find that marker and readjust your line. You should look forward at the bottom of your rotation to see your target, twist to the side to breathe, and then re-enter into your regular rhythm.

Another drill to practice sighting while working in a pool is to swim half a length with your head held out of the water, and then resume your regular stroke until the wall, doing the same thing on the return trip. Complete this as a set of 200 to 300 meters. Sighting will make your open water experience much more enjoyable, as you will likely swim the line closest to the finish. Your body will not be too happy if you swim in zig zags, forcing it to cover 1,000 meters for a 700 meter swim.

In the end, sighting practice will let you understand the old advice of your geometry teacher: the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Not only will your teacher be proud, but your body will applaud your efforts when it comes time to hop on that bike.