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Racing Disasters, With Jess Towl
Triathlon Tips and Tales
So as races have started again, I thought I would give you some tips for racing and funny stories from my own experiences. Yes we all mess up and learn lessons the hard way, even the pros!
Never use new equipment on race day
It was my A race of the season and I was in the shape of my life looking forward to competing against a field of world-class athletes. One of my friends offered to let me borrow his race wheels, he met me the morning of the race so I didn’t test them out before hand and in the stress of race morning I didn’t even fully check them. I put them on my bike and headed into transition. I was out of the water and into the lead pack, 3 of us had a 1-minute lead on the second pack, which had Olympic medallists in it. I felt good and strong and suddenly as I took my turn on the front I heard a bang and immediately felt like my breaks were on. I had a blow out.
As pros racing an Olympic distance race there is no time to change a tyre or replace the wheel. Once you lose that pack your race is over and the walk of shame back to transition begins.
Always know where your transition rack is
Seems simple enough right? Well even when I had my name board on my transition rack I still managed to mess this one up.
Flying into T2 in a pack and wanting to be the first one out onto the run all I saw were my shoes and my white towel. Bike racked, helmet off, shoes on in a second and off I go. Something didn’t feel right and about 1km into the run I realise that the shoes I was wearing were not mine, they were a few sizes too big!
People are going to have similar shoes and towels so just make sure you know where your transition rack is, put crazy coloured elastic laces in your shoes, use a bright towel, anything to help you find your rack easily.
Wear your goggles on the inside of your hat and tuck your wetsuit zip cord into it
I have had my fair share of violent starts; pontoon starts always seem the worst as you literally dive on top of each other when the gun goes.
One race I did in France we had 60 female athletes starting on a pontoon with 20 lanes, it was carnage.
Whether it was on purpose or by accident ill never know but someone ripped my goggles from my head and completely unzipped my wetsuit. It immediately filled with water and my arms became so heavy I could barely lift them. My goggles were gone at this point but I had to stop and try to zip myself back up so that I could carry on. From that day I always kept my goggles under my hat and tucked my wetsuit cord deep into it. That way no one could grab either of them and even better I could find my wetsuit zipper easier as I was running from the water to transition.
Know the course – following others isn’t good enough
Make sure you are familiar with the course. Study the map and go for a small recce ride the day before to familiarise yourself with where you will be going.
One year in the London Triathlon I was following what I thought was the lead vehicle, but it was actually just a cameraman on a motorbike. I noticed that the usual barriers that line the streets had gone and before I fully realised we were off course we hit a dead end! There was a group of about 6 of us that came to a full stop. We had to turn around and head back until we found other cyclists that were on the right route.
It is easy to blame race officials, to just follow other athletes, to blame bad signage, no barriers, no lead vehicle etc but at the end of the day you are responsible for knowing and executing the correct route. Do not rely on others and just blindly follow other athletes.
Nutrition and hydration is key no matter the distance
It doesn’t matter if you aren’t hungry or thirsty, you must eat and hydrate well for a triathlon regardless of the distance. One summer in an Olympic distance race I had taped a gel to the cross bar of my bike. In the rush of draft legal races I accidently dropped it before I could eat it. I didn’t have a back up and I only had water in my bottles. Moral of the story: always be over prepared! It’s better to finish a race with an extra gel than to be suffering without one.
In the same race I didn’t drink on the run because I was desperately trying to hold onto a podium position. I thought if I grabbed water I might lose my rhythm or lose a few seconds and I just didn’t want to risk it. 1km left to go and I didn’t even know my own name, I was suffering from heat stroke and running in zigzags. The next thing I remember was waking up in fully naked in a bath of ice and an IV in my arm. Funny part to this story is the first thing I said when I woke up was “please tell me you didn’t cut off my Tri suit”
It was my GB Tri suit, my pride and joy the thing I had worked so hard to get. You had to earn those by racing at either European or World level. Since that day I have made sure to never have a nutritional or hydration issue racing again.
Practise mounting and dismounting – a lot!
In my opinion you cant practise this enough. I recently stood at the dismount line at a local triathlon in Dubai and it was very entertaining albeit quite dangerous.
I saw people brining their leg over the cross bar rather than behind. People completely stopping and others fly into the back of them and some athletes with their feet still inside shoes toppling over.
We used to do series of super super sprint races that were extremely fast. Imagine 20 riders coming to that narrow dismount line at very high speeds all wanting to be the first out onto the run. Believe it or not it’s not as bad as you imagine. Pros practise and practise this until it becomes second nature. They are so smooth and fast and safe around others. Of all the triathlons I have ever done I only ever had one issue here, my bike somehow got interlocked with another triathletes and we couldn’t separate them, we were both pulling our bikes and getting nowhere in the end we racked them still stuck together and were just very lucky we didn’t get penalised.
Don’t follow everyone else on the swim – sight your buoys.
Its easy to get caught up following someone else’s feet in the swim, its good to sit on someone’s feet but make sure you also know where your buoy is and keep sighting it.
A race I did in Australia that had a very long triangular shaped swim, the men set off an hour before the females so the sea was clear of any swimmers. I lead from the start, sighting the buoy very far out. The closer I got to it the more I realised how far to the left I has swum when it was supposed to be a straight line. I stopped, took off my goggles and could see the actual buoy about 400m to the right!! I panicked; I was so far off course surely that would be the end of my race. I turned around and noticed that every single other triathlete had followed me, like a line of sheep. Not one person had gone the correct way. So I headed in the right direction, still at the front and with everyone following.
As a former professional triathlete I have seen and done (nearly) every mistake. Thankfully this gives me an extra edge as a coach! So please reach out if you have any questions or want to discuss coaching options.
ENGINE
Repeatable efforts will be the name of the game this week!
GYMNASTICS
Tuesday is about handstand push-ups: strict, kipping, and everything in between. Then on Thursday, we’re walking the walk, upside down. As always, we’ll break down each movement to help you nail that first rep or step, or clean things up and go further than before.
HYROX
This week in HYROX class, we are working through a ski and row time trial to determine race paces for HYROX, followed by some lower-body endurance work.
MOBILITY
This weekend, we will focus on the ankles and feet—their mobility and strength, as well as their crucial role in supporting overall balance and stability. By targeting these often-overlooked areas, we build a stronger foundation for movement. The session will finish with full-body flow sequences to integrate that stability into more dynamic movement.
PURE STRENGTH
Monday, we start the week with some heavy bench press paused singles, doubles, and some amrap sets, followed by some push-and-pull accessory work. On Wednesday, we deadlift to some heavy doubles, followed by some Box squat doubles.
WEIGHTLIFTING
Weightlifting this week is cleans. We are working on the explosive power out of the bottom of the squat. Some technique work followed by Complex of clean pull, hang power clean, squat clean. Finishing with some clean pulls.
The Monday Ride
A cycling session at BikeDxb led by Marcus Smith.
Suitable for anyone able to ride 30kph plus on a flat course.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: The Loop Cafe, Nad al Sheeba
Track Tuesday
Our weekly on track speed session! For any level of runner looking to build their run speed, threshold and Vo2max fitness and run with the best running community in Dubai.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Thursday - Endurance Strength
A strength class focused on key movements for endurance athletes to help avoid injury, build speed and develop strength.
Time: 06:30 am
Location: This is a paid class session at InnerFight HQ. If you're interested to join, email winning@innerfight.com
Friday -Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast.
Brief time: 05:54 am
Start time: 05:59 am
Start Location: Common Grounds
Saturday - Long Ride
Our weekly endurance ride. This ride always begins with 18 - 20km at 30kph before a longer segment with various formats. Expect the main group to ride around 34kph, slower groups will break off and form. Anyone is welcome to join.
Time: 05:59 am
Location: Bottom of the Stick, Al Qudra.
Monday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Tempo
This week will be running blocks of 6 mins each with a 2 mins rest. But the blocks will increase from a 5/10 RPE to a 8/10 RPE as we progress through the session. Keep the recovery chilled so that you can maintain quality on each rep.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Session: Track Tuesday
This is your chance to run fast with the wider IFE community and coaches. This week we have 500m repeats on the menu.
Wednesday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Intervals
Today we have intervals in the morning and evening. We will warm up in the pack behind IF and then head into the session until 6:50am/pm. Running 1x easy loop of the park, into 1x fast shuttle.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Common Grounds
Session: The Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast. This week we will be running up and over the canal bridge and tollerance bridge while dialing in some 7/10 feeling.
Monday:
This week at InnerFight, we start the week with some heavy back squats, coupled with some rowing, wall balls, and burpee pull-ups.
Strength:
Every 2 mins x 5 - 2 back squat + 1 set amrap @ 85%
Conditioning:
2 Rounds:
In a 5-minute window:
300/250m row
30 wall balls
AMRAP Burpee pull-ups
Rest 2 mins
In a 5-minute window
15 burpee pull-ups
30 wall balls
Max cal row
Rest 2 Mins
Tuesday:
We are working to a heavy, strict press and then hitting some close-grip bench press before tackling an AMRAP with ever-increasing reps.
Strength:
A) Every 90 sec x 5 - 3/3/2/2/1 SA seated DB strict press/arm
B)Every 2 mins x 5 - 8 CGBP @30X1 + 15 Unbroken Russian KB Swings
Conditioning:
AMRAP 18
5 DB Hang Snatch
5 Cal Bike
5 TTB
5 Cal Ski
*Each round increases reps/cals by 5
Wednesday:
Some single-leg deadlifts followed by a power clean complex and barbell-focused workout.
Strength:
A) Every 2:00 x 4 - 6/6 Single leg Deadlift
B) Every 90 sec x 8 1 power clean + 1 hang power clean
Conditioning:
For Time:
21-15-9 Power Clean
50 DU after each round
into
15-12-9 Front Squats
50 DU after each round
Thursday:
Thursday, we have a gymnastics session in the form of a static strength-focused strength piece, into an EMOM workout to build your gas tank.
Strength:
A) EMOM 10 -Min 1 - 20 sec kipping pull-ups & Min 2 - 30 sec Dual KB OH hold
B) Every 90 sec x 6/5/5/5/3/3 Pendlay Rows
Conditioning:
EMOM x 24
Min 1 - 30 sec Mixed Rack March
Min 2 - Cal Row
Min 3 - Box Jump Step Down
Friday:
Friday, we finish the week with an upper body session followed by 16 rounds of a fast-paced triplet.
Strength:
Every 90 sec x 9 - A 8-10 DB Fly / B 8-10 Inverted row / C 8-10 strict knees to elbow
Conditioning:
16 rounds For Time
10 DB Thruster
1 Rope Climb
10 Cal Ski/Row
So as races have started again, I thought I would give you some tips for racing and funny stories from my own experiences. Yes we all mess up and learn lessons the hard way, even the pros!
Never use new equipment on race day
It was my A race of the season and I was in the shape of my life looking forward to competing against a field of world-class athletes. One of my friends offered to let me borrow his race wheels, he met me the morning of the race so I didn’t test them out before hand and in the stress of race morning I didn’t even fully check them. I put them on my bike and headed into transition. I was out of the water and into the lead pack, 3 of us had a 1-minute lead on the second pack, which had Olympic medallists in it. I felt good and strong and suddenly as I took my turn on the front I heard a bang and immediately felt like my breaks were on. I had a blow out.
As pros racing an Olympic distance race there is no time to change a tyre or replace the wheel. Once you lose that pack your race is over and the walk of shame back to transition begins.
Always know where your transition rack is
Seems simple enough right? Well even when I had my name board on my transition rack I still managed to mess this one up.
Flying into T2 in a pack and wanting to be the first one out onto the run all I saw were my shoes and my white towel. Bike racked, helmet off, shoes on in a second and off I go. Something didn’t feel right and about 1km into the run I realise that the shoes I was wearing were not mine, they were a few sizes too big!
People are going to have similar shoes and towels so just make sure you know where your transition rack is, put crazy coloured elastic laces in your shoes, use a bright towel, anything to help you find your rack easily.
Wear your goggles on the inside of your hat and tuck your wetsuit zip cord into it
I have had my fair share of violent starts; pontoon starts always seem the worst as you literally dive on top of each other when the gun goes.
One race I did in France we had 60 female athletes starting on a pontoon with 20 lanes, it was carnage.
Whether it was on purpose or by accident ill never know but someone ripped my goggles from my head and completely unzipped my wetsuit. It immediately filled with water and my arms became so heavy I could barely lift them. My goggles were gone at this point but I had to stop and try to zip myself back up so that I could carry on. From that day I always kept my goggles under my hat and tucked my wetsuit cord deep into it. That way no one could grab either of them and even better I could find my wetsuit zipper easier as I was running from the water to transition.
Know the course – following others isn’t good enough
Make sure you are familiar with the course. Study the map and go for a small recce ride the day before to familiarise yourself with where you will be going.
One year in the London Triathlon I was following what I thought was the lead vehicle, but it was actually just a cameraman on a motorbike. I noticed that the usual barriers that line the streets had gone and before I fully realised we were off course we hit a dead end! There was a group of about 6 of us that came to a full stop. We had to turn around and head back until we found other cyclists that were on the right route.
It is easy to blame race officials, to just follow other athletes, to blame bad signage, no barriers, no lead vehicle etc but at the end of the day you are responsible for knowing and executing the correct route. Do not rely on others and just blindly follow other athletes.
Nutrition and hydration is key no matter the distance
It doesn’t matter if you aren’t hungry or thirsty, you must eat and hydrate well for a triathlon regardless of the distance. One summer in an Olympic distance race I had taped a gel to the cross bar of my bike. In the rush of draft legal races I accidently dropped it before I could eat it. I didn’t have a back up and I only had water in my bottles. Moral of the story: always be over prepared! It’s better to finish a race with an extra gel than to be suffering without one.
In the same race I didn’t drink on the run because I was desperately trying to hold onto a podium position. I thought if I grabbed water I might lose my rhythm or lose a few seconds and I just didn’t want to risk it. 1km left to go and I didn’t even know my own name, I was suffering from heat stroke and running in zigzags. The next thing I remember was waking up in fully naked in a bath of ice and an IV in my arm. Funny part to this story is the first thing I said when I woke up was “please tell me you didn’t cut off my Tri suit”
It was my GB Tri suit, my pride and joy the thing I had worked so hard to get. You had to earn those by racing at either European or World level. Since that day I have made sure to never have a nutritional or hydration issue racing again.
Practise mounting and dismounting – a lot!
In my opinion you cant practise this enough. I recently stood at the dismount line at a local triathlon in Dubai and it was very entertaining albeit quite dangerous.
I saw people brining their leg over the cross bar rather than behind. People completely stopping and others fly into the back of them and some athletes with their feet still inside shoes toppling over.
We used to do series of super super sprint races that were extremely fast. Imagine 20 riders coming to that narrow dismount line at very high speeds all wanting to be the first out onto the run. Believe it or not it’s not as bad as you imagine. Pros practise and practise this until it becomes second nature. They are so smooth and fast and safe around others. Of all the triathlons I have ever done I only ever had one issue here, my bike somehow got interlocked with another triathletes and we couldn’t separate them, we were both pulling our bikes and getting nowhere in the end we racked them still stuck together and were just very lucky we didn’t get penalised.
Don’t follow everyone else on the swim – sight your buoys.
Its easy to get caught up following someone else’s feet in the swim, its good to sit on someone’s feet but make sure you also know where your buoy is and keep sighting it.
A race I did in Australia that had a very long triangular shaped swim, the men set off an hour before the females so the sea was clear of any swimmers. I lead from the start, sighting the buoy very far out. The closer I got to it the more I realised how far to the left I has swum when it was supposed to be a straight line. I stopped, took off my goggles and could see the actual buoy about 400m to the right!! I panicked; I was so far off course surely that would be the end of my race. I turned around and noticed that every single other triathlete had followed me, like a line of sheep. Not one person had gone the correct way. So I headed in the right direction, still at the front and with everyone following.
As a former professional triathlete I have seen and done (nearly) every mistake. Thankfully this gives me an extra edge as a coach! So please reach out if you have any questions or want to discuss coaching options.
The Monday Ride
A cycling session at BikeDxb led by Marcus Smith.
Suitable for anyone able to ride 30kph plus on a flat course.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: The Loop Cafe, Nad al Sheeba
Track Tuesday
Our weekly on track speed session! For any level of runner looking to build their run speed, threshold and Vo2max fitness and run with the best running community in Dubai.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Thursday - Endurance Strength
A strength class focused on key movements for endurance athletes to help avoid injury, build speed and develop strength.
Time: 06:30 am
Location: This is a paid class session at InnerFight HQ. If you're interested to join, email winning@innerfight.com
Friday -Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast.
Brief time: 05:54 am
Start time: 05:59 am
Start Location: Common Grounds
Saturday - Long Ride
Our weekly endurance ride. This ride always begins with 18 - 20km at 30kph before a longer segment with various formats. Expect the main group to ride around 34kph, slower groups will break off and form. Anyone is welcome to join.
Time: 05:59 am
Location: Bottom of the Stick, Al Qudra.
Monday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Tempo
This week will be running blocks of 6 mins each with a 2 mins rest. But the blocks will increase from a 5/10 RPE to a 8/10 RPE as we progress through the session. Keep the recovery chilled so that you can maintain quality on each rep.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Session: Track Tuesday
This is your chance to run fast with the wider IFE community and coaches. This week we have 500m repeats on the menu.
Wednesday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Intervals
Today we have intervals in the morning and evening. We will warm up in the pack behind IF and then head into the session until 6:50am/pm. Running 1x easy loop of the park, into 1x fast shuttle.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Common Grounds
Session: The Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast. This week we will be running up and over the canal bridge and tollerance bridge while dialing in some 7/10 feeling.
Monday:
This week at InnerFight, we start the week with some heavy back squats, coupled with some rowing, wall balls, and burpee pull-ups.
Strength:
Every 2 mins x 5 - 2 back squat + 1 set amrap @ 85%
Conditioning:
2 Rounds:
In a 5-minute window:
300/250m row
30 wall balls
AMRAP Burpee pull-ups
Rest 2 mins
In a 5-minute window
15 burpee pull-ups
30 wall balls
Max cal row
Rest 2 Mins
Tuesday:
We are working to a heavy, strict press and then hitting some close-grip bench press before tackling an AMRAP with ever-increasing reps.
Strength:
A) Every 90 sec x 5 - 3/3/2/2/1 SA seated DB strict press/arm
B)Every 2 mins x 5 - 8 CGBP @30X1 + 15 Unbroken Russian KB Swings
Conditioning:
AMRAP 18
5 DB Hang Snatch
5 Cal Bike
5 TTB
5 Cal Ski
*Each round increases reps/cals by 5
Wednesday:
Some single-leg deadlifts followed by a power clean complex and barbell-focused workout.
Strength:
A) Every 2:00 x 4 - 6/6 Single leg Deadlift
B) Every 90 sec x 8 1 power clean + 1 hang power clean
Conditioning:
For Time:
21-15-9 Power Clean
50 DU after each round
into
15-12-9 Front Squats
50 DU after each round
Thursday:
Thursday, we have a gymnastics session in the form of a static strength-focused strength piece, into an EMOM workout to build your gas tank.
Strength:
A) EMOM 10 -Min 1 - 20 sec kipping pull-ups & Min 2 - 30 sec Dual KB OH hold
B) Every 90 sec x 6/5/5/5/3/3 Pendlay Rows
Conditioning:
EMOM x 24
Min 1 - 30 sec Mixed Rack March
Min 2 - Cal Row
Min 3 - Box Jump Step Down
Friday:
Friday, we finish the week with an upper body session followed by 16 rounds of a fast-paced triplet.
Strength:
Every 90 sec x 9 - A 8-10 DB Fly / B 8-10 Inverted row / C 8-10 strict knees to elbow
Conditioning:
16 rounds For Time
10 DB Thruster
1 Rope Climb
10 Cal Ski/Row
ENGINE
Repeatable efforts will be the name of the game this week!
GYMNASTICS
Tuesday is about handstand push-ups: strict, kipping, and everything in between. Then on Thursday, we’re walking the walk, upside down. As always, we’ll break down each movement to help you nail that first rep or step, or clean things up and go further than before.
HYROX
This week in HYROX class, we are working through a ski and row time trial to determine race paces for HYROX, followed by some lower-body endurance work.
MOBILITY
This weekend, we will focus on the ankles and feet—their mobility and strength, as well as their crucial role in supporting overall balance and stability. By targeting these often-overlooked areas, we build a stronger foundation for movement. The session will finish with full-body flow sequences to integrate that stability into more dynamic movement.
PURE STRENGTH
Monday, we start the week with some heavy bench press paused singles, doubles, and some amrap sets, followed by some push-and-pull accessory work. On Wednesday, we deadlift to some heavy doubles, followed by some Box squat doubles.
WEIGHTLIFTING
Weightlifting this week is cleans. We are working on the explosive power out of the bottom of the squat. Some technique work followed by Complex of clean pull, hang power clean, squat clean. Finishing with some clean pulls.
So as races have started again, I thought I would give you some tips for racing and funny stories from my own experiences. Yes we all mess up and learn lessons the hard way, even the pros!
Never use new equipment on race day
It was my A race of the season and I was in the shape of my life looking forward to competing against a field of world-class athletes. One of my friends offered to let me borrow his race wheels, he met me the morning of the race so I didn’t test them out before hand and in the stress of race morning I didn’t even fully check them. I put them on my bike and headed into transition. I was out of the water and into the lead pack, 3 of us had a 1-minute lead on the second pack, which had Olympic medallists in it. I felt good and strong and suddenly as I took my turn on the front I heard a bang and immediately felt like my breaks were on. I had a blow out.
As pros racing an Olympic distance race there is no time to change a tyre or replace the wheel. Once you lose that pack your race is over and the walk of shame back to transition begins.
Always know where your transition rack is
Seems simple enough right? Well even when I had my name board on my transition rack I still managed to mess this one up.
Flying into T2 in a pack and wanting to be the first one out onto the run all I saw were my shoes and my white towel. Bike racked, helmet off, shoes on in a second and off I go. Something didn’t feel right and about 1km into the run I realise that the shoes I was wearing were not mine, they were a few sizes too big!
People are going to have similar shoes and towels so just make sure you know where your transition rack is, put crazy coloured elastic laces in your shoes, use a bright towel, anything to help you find your rack easily.
Wear your goggles on the inside of your hat and tuck your wetsuit zip cord into it
I have had my fair share of violent starts; pontoon starts always seem the worst as you literally dive on top of each other when the gun goes.
One race I did in France we had 60 female athletes starting on a pontoon with 20 lanes, it was carnage.
Whether it was on purpose or by accident ill never know but someone ripped my goggles from my head and completely unzipped my wetsuit. It immediately filled with water and my arms became so heavy I could barely lift them. My goggles were gone at this point but I had to stop and try to zip myself back up so that I could carry on. From that day I always kept my goggles under my hat and tucked my wetsuit cord deep into it. That way no one could grab either of them and even better I could find my wetsuit zipper easier as I was running from the water to transition.
Know the course – following others isn’t good enough
Make sure you are familiar with the course. Study the map and go for a small recce ride the day before to familiarise yourself with where you will be going.
One year in the London Triathlon I was following what I thought was the lead vehicle, but it was actually just a cameraman on a motorbike. I noticed that the usual barriers that line the streets had gone and before I fully realised we were off course we hit a dead end! There was a group of about 6 of us that came to a full stop. We had to turn around and head back until we found other cyclists that were on the right route.
It is easy to blame race officials, to just follow other athletes, to blame bad signage, no barriers, no lead vehicle etc but at the end of the day you are responsible for knowing and executing the correct route. Do not rely on others and just blindly follow other athletes.
Nutrition and hydration is key no matter the distance
It doesn’t matter if you aren’t hungry or thirsty, you must eat and hydrate well for a triathlon regardless of the distance. One summer in an Olympic distance race I had taped a gel to the cross bar of my bike. In the rush of draft legal races I accidently dropped it before I could eat it. I didn’t have a back up and I only had water in my bottles. Moral of the story: always be over prepared! It’s better to finish a race with an extra gel than to be suffering without one.
In the same race I didn’t drink on the run because I was desperately trying to hold onto a podium position. I thought if I grabbed water I might lose my rhythm or lose a few seconds and I just didn’t want to risk it. 1km left to go and I didn’t even know my own name, I was suffering from heat stroke and running in zigzags. The next thing I remember was waking up in fully naked in a bath of ice and an IV in my arm. Funny part to this story is the first thing I said when I woke up was “please tell me you didn’t cut off my Tri suit”
It was my GB Tri suit, my pride and joy the thing I had worked so hard to get. You had to earn those by racing at either European or World level. Since that day I have made sure to never have a nutritional or hydration issue racing again.
Practise mounting and dismounting – a lot!
In my opinion you cant practise this enough. I recently stood at the dismount line at a local triathlon in Dubai and it was very entertaining albeit quite dangerous.
I saw people brining their leg over the cross bar rather than behind. People completely stopping and others fly into the back of them and some athletes with their feet still inside shoes toppling over.
We used to do series of super super sprint races that were extremely fast. Imagine 20 riders coming to that narrow dismount line at very high speeds all wanting to be the first out onto the run. Believe it or not it’s not as bad as you imagine. Pros practise and practise this until it becomes second nature. They are so smooth and fast and safe around others. Of all the triathlons I have ever done I only ever had one issue here, my bike somehow got interlocked with another triathletes and we couldn’t separate them, we were both pulling our bikes and getting nowhere in the end we racked them still stuck together and were just very lucky we didn’t get penalised.
Don’t follow everyone else on the swim – sight your buoys.
Its easy to get caught up following someone else’s feet in the swim, its good to sit on someone’s feet but make sure you also know where your buoy is and keep sighting it.
A race I did in Australia that had a very long triangular shaped swim, the men set off an hour before the females so the sea was clear of any swimmers. I lead from the start, sighting the buoy very far out. The closer I got to it the more I realised how far to the left I has swum when it was supposed to be a straight line. I stopped, took off my goggles and could see the actual buoy about 400m to the right!! I panicked; I was so far off course surely that would be the end of my race. I turned around and noticed that every single other triathlete had followed me, like a line of sheep. Not one person had gone the correct way. So I headed in the right direction, still at the front and with everyone following.
As a former professional triathlete I have seen and done (nearly) every mistake. Thankfully this gives me an extra edge as a coach! So please reach out if you have any questions or want to discuss coaching options.
Monday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Tempo
This week will be running blocks of 6 mins each with a 2 mins rest. But the blocks will increase from a 5/10 RPE to a 8/10 RPE as we progress through the session. Keep the recovery chilled so that you can maintain quality on each rep.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Session: Track Tuesday
This is your chance to run fast with the wider IFE community and coaches. This week we have 500m repeats on the menu.
Wednesday
Time: 5:59am & 5:59pm
Location: InnerFight
Session: LRC Intervals
Today we have intervals in the morning and evening. We will warm up in the pack behind IF and then head into the session until 6:50am/pm. Running 1x easy loop of the park, into 1x fast shuttle.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Common Grounds
Session: The Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast. This week we will be running up and over the canal bridge and tollerance bridge while dialing in some 7/10 feeling.
Monday:
This week at InnerFight, we start the week with some heavy back squats, coupled with some rowing, wall balls, and burpee pull-ups.
Strength:
Every 2 mins x 5 - 2 back squat + 1 set amrap @ 85%
Conditioning:
2 Rounds:
In a 5-minute window:
300/250m row
30 wall balls
AMRAP Burpee pull-ups
Rest 2 mins
In a 5-minute window
15 burpee pull-ups
30 wall balls
Max cal row
Rest 2 Mins
Tuesday:
We are working to a heavy, strict press and then hitting some close-grip bench press before tackling an AMRAP with ever-increasing reps.
Strength:
A) Every 90 sec x 5 - 3/3/2/2/1 SA seated DB strict press/arm
B)Every 2 mins x 5 - 8 CGBP @30X1 + 15 Unbroken Russian KB Swings
Conditioning:
AMRAP 18
5 DB Hang Snatch
5 Cal Bike
5 TTB
5 Cal Ski
*Each round increases reps/cals by 5
Wednesday:
Some single-leg deadlifts followed by a power clean complex and barbell-focused workout.
Strength:
A) Every 2:00 x 4 - 6/6 Single leg Deadlift
B) Every 90 sec x 8 1 power clean + 1 hang power clean
Conditioning:
For Time:
21-15-9 Power Clean
50 DU after each round
into
15-12-9 Front Squats
50 DU after each round
Thursday:
Thursday, we have a gymnastics session in the form of a static strength-focused strength piece, into an EMOM workout to build your gas tank.
Strength:
A) EMOM 10 -Min 1 - 20 sec kipping pull-ups & Min 2 - 30 sec Dual KB OH hold
B) Every 90 sec x 6/5/5/5/3/3 Pendlay Rows
Conditioning:
EMOM x 24
Min 1 - 30 sec Mixed Rack March
Min 2 - Cal Row
Min 3 - Box Jump Step Down
Friday:
Friday, we finish the week with an upper body session followed by 16 rounds of a fast-paced triplet.
Strength:
Every 90 sec x 9 - A 8-10 DB Fly / B 8-10 Inverted row / C 8-10 strict knees to elbow
Conditioning:
16 rounds For Time
10 DB Thruster
1 Rope Climb
10 Cal Ski/Row
ENGINE
Repeatable efforts will be the name of the game this week!
GYMNASTICS
Tuesday is about handstand push-ups: strict, kipping, and everything in between. Then on Thursday, we’re walking the walk, upside down. As always, we’ll break down each movement to help you nail that first rep or step, or clean things up and go further than before.
HYROX
This week in HYROX class, we are working through a ski and row time trial to determine race paces for HYROX, followed by some lower-body endurance work.
MOBILITY
This weekend, we will focus on the ankles and feet—their mobility and strength, as well as their crucial role in supporting overall balance and stability. By targeting these often-overlooked areas, we build a stronger foundation for movement. The session will finish with full-body flow sequences to integrate that stability into more dynamic movement.
PURE STRENGTH
Monday, we start the week with some heavy bench press paused singles, doubles, and some amrap sets, followed by some push-and-pull accessory work. On Wednesday, we deadlift to some heavy doubles, followed by some Box squat doubles.
WEIGHTLIFTING
Weightlifting this week is cleans. We are working on the explosive power out of the bottom of the squat. Some technique work followed by Complex of clean pull, hang power clean, squat clean. Finishing with some clean pulls.
The Monday Ride
A cycling session at BikeDxb led by Marcus Smith.
Suitable for anyone able to ride 30kph plus on a flat course.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: The Loop Cafe, Nad al Sheeba
Track Tuesday
Our weekly on track speed session! For any level of runner looking to build their run speed, threshold and Vo2max fitness and run with the best running community in Dubai.
Time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Dubai Sports City Sports Park
Thursday - Endurance Strength
A strength class focused on key movements for endurance athletes to help avoid injury, build speed and develop strength.
Time: 06:30 am
Location: This is a paid class session at InnerFight HQ. If you're interested to join, email winning@innerfight.com
Friday -Coffee Run
Our weekly tempo run. Sessions are built on an RPE scale and accessible to all levels of runner. We start together, run hard then finish together and chat about it over a coffee and breakfast.
Brief time: 05:54 am
Start time: 05:59 am
Start Location: Common Grounds
Saturday - Long Ride
Our weekly endurance ride. This ride always begins with 18 - 20km at 30kph before a longer segment with various formats. Expect the main group to ride around 34kph, slower groups will break off and form. Anyone is welcome to join.
Time: 05:59 am
Location: Bottom of the Stick, Al Qudra.
So as races have started again, I thought I would give you some tips for racing and funny stories from my own experiences. Yes we all mess up and learn lessons the hard way, even the pros!
Never use new equipment on race day
It was my A race of the season and I was in the shape of my life looking forward to competing against a field of world-class athletes. One of my friends offered to let me borrow his race wheels, he met me the morning of the race so I didn’t test them out before hand and in the stress of race morning I didn’t even fully check them. I put them on my bike and headed into transition. I was out of the water and into the lead pack, 3 of us had a 1-minute lead on the second pack, which had Olympic medallists in it. I felt good and strong and suddenly as I took my turn on the front I heard a bang and immediately felt like my breaks were on. I had a blow out.
As pros racing an Olympic distance race there is no time to change a tyre or replace the wheel. Once you lose that pack your race is over and the walk of shame back to transition begins.
Always know where your transition rack is
Seems simple enough right? Well even when I had my name board on my transition rack I still managed to mess this one up.
Flying into T2 in a pack and wanting to be the first one out onto the run all I saw were my shoes and my white towel. Bike racked, helmet off, shoes on in a second and off I go. Something didn’t feel right and about 1km into the run I realise that the shoes I was wearing were not mine, they were a few sizes too big!
People are going to have similar shoes and towels so just make sure you know where your transition rack is, put crazy coloured elastic laces in your shoes, use a bright towel, anything to help you find your rack easily.
Wear your goggles on the inside of your hat and tuck your wetsuit zip cord into it
I have had my fair share of violent starts; pontoon starts always seem the worst as you literally dive on top of each other when the gun goes.
One race I did in France we had 60 female athletes starting on a pontoon with 20 lanes, it was carnage.
Whether it was on purpose or by accident ill never know but someone ripped my goggles from my head and completely unzipped my wetsuit. It immediately filled with water and my arms became so heavy I could barely lift them. My goggles were gone at this point but I had to stop and try to zip myself back up so that I could carry on. From that day I always kept my goggles under my hat and tucked my wetsuit cord deep into it. That way no one could grab either of them and even better I could find my wetsuit zipper easier as I was running from the water to transition.
Know the course – following others isn’t good enough
Make sure you are familiar with the course. Study the map and go for a small recce ride the day before to familiarise yourself with where you will be going.
One year in the London Triathlon I was following what I thought was the lead vehicle, but it was actually just a cameraman on a motorbike. I noticed that the usual barriers that line the streets had gone and before I fully realised we were off course we hit a dead end! There was a group of about 6 of us that came to a full stop. We had to turn around and head back until we found other cyclists that were on the right route.
It is easy to blame race officials, to just follow other athletes, to blame bad signage, no barriers, no lead vehicle etc but at the end of the day you are responsible for knowing and executing the correct route. Do not rely on others and just blindly follow other athletes.
Nutrition and hydration is key no matter the distance
It doesn’t matter if you aren’t hungry or thirsty, you must eat and hydrate well for a triathlon regardless of the distance. One summer in an Olympic distance race I had taped a gel to the cross bar of my bike. In the rush of draft legal races I accidently dropped it before I could eat it. I didn’t have a back up and I only had water in my bottles. Moral of the story: always be over prepared! It’s better to finish a race with an extra gel than to be suffering without one.
In the same race I didn’t drink on the run because I was desperately trying to hold onto a podium position. I thought if I grabbed water I might lose my rhythm or lose a few seconds and I just didn’t want to risk it. 1km left to go and I didn’t even know my own name, I was suffering from heat stroke and running in zigzags. The next thing I remember was waking up in fully naked in a bath of ice and an IV in my arm. Funny part to this story is the first thing I said when I woke up was “please tell me you didn’t cut off my Tri suit”
It was my GB Tri suit, my pride and joy the thing I had worked so hard to get. You had to earn those by racing at either European or World level. Since that day I have made sure to never have a nutritional or hydration issue racing again.
Practise mounting and dismounting – a lot!
In my opinion you cant practise this enough. I recently stood at the dismount line at a local triathlon in Dubai and it was very entertaining albeit quite dangerous.
I saw people brining their leg over the cross bar rather than behind. People completely stopping and others fly into the back of them and some athletes with their feet still inside shoes toppling over.
We used to do series of super super sprint races that were extremely fast. Imagine 20 riders coming to that narrow dismount line at very high speeds all wanting to be the first out onto the run. Believe it or not it’s not as bad as you imagine. Pros practise and practise this until it becomes second nature. They are so smooth and fast and safe around others. Of all the triathlons I have ever done I only ever had one issue here, my bike somehow got interlocked with another triathletes and we couldn’t separate them, we were both pulling our bikes and getting nowhere in the end we racked them still stuck together and were just very lucky we didn’t get penalised.
Don’t follow everyone else on the swim – sight your buoys.
Its easy to get caught up following someone else’s feet in the swim, its good to sit on someone’s feet but make sure you also know where your buoy is and keep sighting it.
A race I did in Australia that had a very long triangular shaped swim, the men set off an hour before the females so the sea was clear of any swimmers. I lead from the start, sighting the buoy very far out. The closer I got to it the more I realised how far to the left I has swum when it was supposed to be a straight line. I stopped, took off my goggles and could see the actual buoy about 400m to the right!! I panicked; I was so far off course surely that would be the end of my race. I turned around and noticed that every single other triathlete had followed me, like a line of sheep. Not one person had gone the correct way. So I headed in the right direction, still at the front and with everyone following.
As a former professional triathlete I have seen and done (nearly) every mistake. Thankfully this gives me an extra edge as a coach! So please reach out if you have any questions or want to discuss coaching options.
So as races have started again, I thought I would give you some tips for racing and funny stories from my own experiences. Yes we all mess up and learn lessons the hard way, even the pros!
Never use new equipment on race day
It was my A race of the season and I was in the shape of my life looking forward to competing against a field of world-class athletes. One of my friends offered to let me borrow his race wheels, he met me the morning of the race so I didn’t test them out before hand and in the stress of race morning I didn’t even fully check them. I put them on my bike and headed into transition. I was out of the water and into the lead pack, 3 of us had a 1-minute lead on the second pack, which had Olympic medallists in it. I felt good and strong and suddenly as I took my turn on the front I heard a bang and immediately felt like my breaks were on. I had a blow out.
As pros racing an Olympic distance race there is no time to change a tyre or replace the wheel. Once you lose that pack your race is over and the walk of shame back to transition begins.
Always know where your transition rack is
Seems simple enough right? Well even when I had my name board on my transition rack I still managed to mess this one up.
Flying into T2 in a pack and wanting to be the first one out onto the run all I saw were my shoes and my white towel. Bike racked, helmet off, shoes on in a second and off I go. Something didn’t feel right and about 1km into the run I realise that the shoes I was wearing were not mine, they were a few sizes too big!
People are going to have similar shoes and towels so just make sure you know where your transition rack is, put crazy coloured elastic laces in your shoes, use a bright towel, anything to help you find your rack easily.
Wear your goggles on the inside of your hat and tuck your wetsuit zip cord into it
I have had my fair share of violent starts; pontoon starts always seem the worst as you literally dive on top of each other when the gun goes.
One race I did in France we had 60 female athletes starting on a pontoon with 20 lanes, it was carnage.
Whether it was on purpose or by accident ill never know but someone ripped my goggles from my head and completely unzipped my wetsuit. It immediately filled with water and my arms became so heavy I could barely lift them. My goggles were gone at this point but I had to stop and try to zip myself back up so that I could carry on. From that day I always kept my goggles under my hat and tucked my wetsuit cord deep into it. That way no one could grab either of them and even better I could find my wetsuit zipper easier as I was running from the water to transition.
Know the course – following others isn’t good enough
Make sure you are familiar with the course. Study the map and go for a small recce ride the day before to familiarise yourself with where you will be going.
One year in the London Triathlon I was following what I thought was the lead vehicle, but it was actually just a cameraman on a motorbike. I noticed that the usual barriers that line the streets had gone and before I fully realised we were off course we hit a dead end! There was a group of about 6 of us that came to a full stop. We had to turn around and head back until we found other cyclists that were on the right route.
It is easy to blame race officials, to just follow other athletes, to blame bad signage, no barriers, no lead vehicle etc but at the end of the day you are responsible for knowing and executing the correct route. Do not rely on others and just blindly follow other athletes.
Nutrition and hydration is key no matter the distance
It doesn’t matter if you aren’t hungry or thirsty, you must eat and hydrate well for a triathlon regardless of the distance. One summer in an Olympic distance race I had taped a gel to the cross bar of my bike. In the rush of draft legal races I accidently dropped it before I could eat it. I didn’t have a back up and I only had water in my bottles. Moral of the story: always be over prepared! It’s better to finish a race with an extra gel than to be suffering without one.
In the same race I didn’t drink on the run because I was desperately trying to hold onto a podium position. I thought if I grabbed water I might lose my rhythm or lose a few seconds and I just didn’t want to risk it. 1km left to go and I didn’t even know my own name, I was suffering from heat stroke and running in zigzags. The next thing I remember was waking up in fully naked in a bath of ice and an IV in my arm. Funny part to this story is the first thing I said when I woke up was “please tell me you didn’t cut off my Tri suit”
It was my GB Tri suit, my pride and joy the thing I had worked so hard to get. You had to earn those by racing at either European or World level. Since that day I have made sure to never have a nutritional or hydration issue racing again.
Practise mounting and dismounting – a lot!
In my opinion you cant practise this enough. I recently stood at the dismount line at a local triathlon in Dubai and it was very entertaining albeit quite dangerous.
I saw people brining their leg over the cross bar rather than behind. People completely stopping and others fly into the back of them and some athletes with their feet still inside shoes toppling over.
We used to do series of super super sprint races that were extremely fast. Imagine 20 riders coming to that narrow dismount line at very high speeds all wanting to be the first out onto the run. Believe it or not it’s not as bad as you imagine. Pros practise and practise this until it becomes second nature. They are so smooth and fast and safe around others. Of all the triathlons I have ever done I only ever had one issue here, my bike somehow got interlocked with another triathletes and we couldn’t separate them, we were both pulling our bikes and getting nowhere in the end we racked them still stuck together and were just very lucky we didn’t get penalised.
Don’t follow everyone else on the swim – sight your buoys.
Its easy to get caught up following someone else’s feet in the swim, its good to sit on someone’s feet but make sure you also know where your buoy is and keep sighting it.
A race I did in Australia that had a very long triangular shaped swim, the men set off an hour before the females so the sea was clear of any swimmers. I lead from the start, sighting the buoy very far out. The closer I got to it the more I realised how far to the left I has swum when it was supposed to be a straight line. I stopped, took off my goggles and could see the actual buoy about 400m to the right!! I panicked; I was so far off course surely that would be the end of my race. I turned around and noticed that every single other triathlete had followed me, like a line of sheep. Not one person had gone the correct way. So I headed in the right direction, still at the front and with everyone following.
As a former professional triathlete I have seen and done (nearly) every mistake. Thankfully this gives me an extra edge as a coach! So please reach out if you have any questions or want to discuss coaching options.
One-Hour Workout: Revving Your Swim Engine
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