Staying healthy and injury free is something athletes strive for. There are no guarantees that you won’t get sick or your won’t get hurt. All you can do is try to prevent. The key to injury prevention is threefold: 1) have a solid program for strength and conditioning, 2) know how to progress safely, and 3) listen to your body.

First, a good foundation in strength and conditioning is vital to injury prevention. Due to the nature of triathlon, many muscle groups are under trained, i.e. the lateral hip stabilizers, or certain muscle groups are over trained, i.e. the upper extremity internal rotators. Strength training builds strength, improves resistance to fatigue, maintains proper biomechanics, and increases endurance – which ultimately decreases the chance of injury. Strength training also establishes the correct relationship between muscle groups. The proper biomechanical relationship between agonist and antagonist muscle groups is key to preventing injury.

Second, knowing how to progress safely will help decrease the risk of over use. Usually, a ten percent increase in mileage or yardage is a safe parameter. Remember, a part of progression is also knowing when to recover. You can’t go at race pace ALL of the time. Your body only gets stronger when you recover!