Hi there, I am an avid marathoner who has decided to celebrate my 40th birthday by trying a triathlon for the first time.It seemed like a good idea at the time of registration but now, I am getting very nervous.I am not a good swimmer and currently cannot swim continuously in the pool.I need to stop between laps and currently can only do 11 laps.The event\'s swim portion is 1/2 of a mile which is something like 22 continuous laps in the pool. My questions... 1. During the race, what do newbies do if they get tired during the swim since it seems like it would be hard to rest.2. Also, my race has a swim cut-off. How hard is it to make this cut-off.I would hate to train for the event and not be able to continue the next legs.3.What are things you have learned over the years of doing these events that you would like to share with a scared newbie like me? smile :)

Stacy from GA   

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Hi Stacy,

Thank you for contacting TriathaNewbie.com!

What a great goal you have made for yourself and we commend you for stepping out of your comfort zone to try something you've never tried before.

We've got a lot of flak for answering questions like this, but it is disrespectful to the sport to enter a race unprepared. If it's an issue where you would like to walk instead of jog during the Run segment, we always urge readers to train so that you can complete the Run jogging or running. If you need to walk because you have a cramp or an injury, it's not a big deal. Just remember, if they wanted you to walk, they would call it a Walk instead of a Run.

Swimming is very different though. If you can't swim the distance of your race, there's no "walking" option. We rank safety above anything else on this website and advise accordingly. You should be able to swim the .5 mile and an additional 100 yards on top of that. If you are in an ocean, you will have to put up with currents and waves. If you are in a lake or pond, you will still have to contend with other swimmers around you. Either way, you will not be swimming in a direct line and will be swimming longer than .5 miles.

In an emergency, you can stop at the surf boards where the lifeguards hang out, but you shouldn't count on this as a way to get from the start to T1. It is much better to train completely and be excited about what your time will be rather than if you'll make it out of the water in time.

A swim resource we recommend to all of our readers is:

Triathlon Swimming Made Easy: The Total Immersion Way for Anyone to Master Open-Water Swimming

There are so many books written on how to swim, but this book can not only teach a brand new swimmer how to swim, but it can take an experienced swimmer and reteach a stroke that is much more effortless and smooth. A TriathaNewbie.com staff member, who is a veteran swimmer, has begun using this technique in her workouts and has found that her core is stronger, her pull and kick are more efficient and is looking forward to using these techniques in her upcoming triathlons. Although the book is well written, we recommend that you purchase the DVD as a visual companion. The drills and techniques are much easier to understand -- almost as easy as having a personal coach on deck explaining and demonstrating them!

We know this is a great program and we hope you have enough time to follow the drills so that you are able to meet your 2010 goals.

Please let us know if we can answer any other questions for you.

Be well.
~Julie

Julie McGuire
TriathaNewbie.com