The Most Common Mistakes Tri Pros See Age Groupers Making

We’ve compiled a comprehensive list from six of the world’s leading professional triathletes (some now retired) that’s designed to help you right some common wrongs and become the best triathlete you can be.

Becoming a professional triathlete is no easy feat. Of course, it requires a healthy dose of athletic talent plus some good fortune in the genetics department, but that aside, there’s no shortage of unglamorous hard work, long hours, tough training, and unwavering commitment that’s needed to make it in triathlon. 

Pros often have a front row seat when it comes to seeing some of the major mistakes amateur athletes make in their training and racing. From not enough sleep to poor pacing or neglecting mental health, we’ve compiled a comprehensive list from six of the world’s leading professional triathletes (some now retired) that’s designed to help you right some common wrongs and become the best athlete you can be.

Fueling and Nutrition

Eight-time Ironman champion Ben Hoffman says he sees too many age groupers thinking they can eat anything, simply because they train a lot. “You are what you eat, and the better and cleaner you eat, the better you will perform in training and the better you will recover,” he says. “Sugar is essential for fueling workouts, and I never recommend being super strict or adhering so fanatically to a diet that it becomes another big stress, but almost everyone can improve the quality of the food they are eating. Zero in on better timing, and emphasize quality and purity.”

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Although Justin Metzler says too many of the age-group athletes he sees are “probably chronically under fueled and under hydrated.” These are two relatively simple things that any athlete of any ability can make sure they nail to improve their performance and recovery, he says. 

His advice? “Ensure you’re consuming plenty of carbohydrates during your workouts and immediately after. Also, figure out your fluid loss per hour and relative sodium concentration for that sweat loss as this can help performance and recovery significantly.”

Sarah Piampiano says she can’t emphasize enough how important “really feeding your body” is. “Not eating enough is a recipe for injury, burnout, adrenal fatigue, and so much more,” she says. “I think many people in the triathlon world are more focused on what they look like than how they actually perform. If you want to perform then you have to fuel your body.” She advises all age groupers to eat plenty of carbs, fats, and protein, and to fuel well after workouts.

Having a fueling plan—and sticking to it—is a common problem Angela Naeth sees with age-group triathletes. She says: “Proper fueling is a crucial aspect that many age groupers underestimate. Pros stress the importance of dialing in nutrition and hydration strategies well before race day. This means practicing your fueling plan during training sessions to ensure your body can tolerate it during high-intensity efforts.”

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Her advice? For longer events, aim to consume 30-60 grams of carbohydrates per hour, starting early in the race. She says: “Hydration needs vary based on individual sweat rates and weather conditions, but a general guideline is to drink to thirst. Electrolyte replacement becomes crucial in longer or hotter events. Don't wait until you feel hungry or thirsty—by then, it's often too late to correct deficits. Develop a fueling schedule and stick to it, even if you don't feel you need it in the moment.”

Justin Riele, who recently had a breakthrough race at Ironman 70.3 Mont Tremblant finishing fourth, says not fueling enough during races was a mistake he used to make. “In my first amateur 70.3 race in 2016, I consumed only protein bars,” he says. “I do not recommend this!” Now he’s trained his gut to consume 90-120g of carbohydrates per hour and takes on 600-1000mg of electrolytes per hour in races. [Note: this, of course, requires practice in training prior to race day!]

Sleep and Recovery

Ah yes, sleep. We all know we need more of it, but it can also be so tempting to try to squeeze in that extra workout or finish off that work project instead of winding down and aiming for 7-8 hours of shuteye instead. Not getting enough sleep is something that almost all of the pros we spoke to cited as a common mistake they see amateur athletes making. 

Naeth, a 19-time Ironman 70.3 champion, says: “Many age groupers, juggling training with work and family commitments, often shortchange their recovery time. Pros emphasize that rest and recovery are as crucial to improvement as the workouts themselves. This includes getting adequate sleep (seven to nine hours per night), incorporating rest days into your training schedule, and practicing active recovery techniques like light stretching or easy spins.”

She encourages age groupers to remember that it’s during recovery periods that your body adapts to training stress and becomes stronger. “Neglecting this aspect can lead to burnout, decreased performance, and increased injury risk,” she says. 

Hoffman says he sees too many age groupers prioritizing workouts over sleep, which simply isn’t a recipe for long-term success. 

“There are limited hours in the day, and between a job, family, and training, it's hard to get everything done,” he says. “However, if you are consistently getting less than seven hours of sleep over a long training cycle with all the stress inputs, the impacts can be pretty negative for overall performance. Consider dropping or shortening some workouts if it's unsustainable and impacting your sleep.”

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Sleep is something Piampiano encourages age groupers to invest in a long time before they spend thousands of dollars on recovery gadgets. She says: “So many people spend thousands of dollars on fancy recovery tools but don’t do the one thing that is the best form of recovery: getting enough sleep. 

“Since stopping racing professionally I have become guilty of this too—life is busy with work, kids, trying to get workouts in and trying to have some semblance of a balanced life—so I get it. But if you aren’t sleeping enough, wearing the fancy recovery boots isn’t really going to do much good. Even an extra 30 minutes of sleep per night will make a big difference.” 

It’s something Ironman champion Laura Siddall echoes, advising anyone wanting to improve to focus on getting the basics right—training, sleep, fueling—before anything else. “Follow the 80/20 rule,” she says. “Get the basics right first as your best performance enhancer.”

Siddall says she also sees a lot of age groupers getting pulled into the world of gadgets and data to the detriment of everything else. “Don’t get obsessed with the data,” she says.

All the Gear and Big Ideas

Yet in a kit-heavy sport like triathlon it’s hard not to get lured into the world of gear and gadgets, and it’s this overemphasis on gear that many pros see as being problematic. 

Naeth says: “While having proper equipment is important, pros often see age groupers placing too much emphasis on gear at the expense of fundamentals. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking the latest high-tech gadget or expensive upgrade will significantly improve performance. However, pros stress that the basics—consistent training, proper technique, and smart race strategies—far outweigh marginal gains from equipment.”

Instead of chasing the newest gear, Naeth instead advises focusing on mastering your current setup. “Ensure your equipment fits properly and is well-maintained,” she says. “If you do invest in new gear, allow plenty of time to adapt to it before race day. Remember, the engine (you) matters more than the vehicle (your gear) in endurance sports.”

It’s advice Metzler has too, saying: “I see a lot of athletes spending thousands of dollars on disc wheels, new frames, the newest wetsuit on the market or a bunch of recovery gadgets.” 

If you are looking to invest in triathlon, he views the biggest “bang for buck” items as high-quality coaching, high-quality bike fit, and a good nutrition plan crafted by someone experienced (either a nutritionist or sport scientist). He adds: “These are more service-oriented so you can’t show them off, but they often return many times over simply buying speed.” 

Get Your Training Right 

Consistent training and patient pacing are the cornerstones of any successful training block and race season, but sometimes they simply aren’t glamorous and many pros see age groupers failing to bank consistent weeks of training and smart pacing. 

Hoffman advises training your weakness, even though it’s more fun to do what you’re good at. “If you want to become a better athlete, make honest assessments of weaknesses and then prioritize them in training and build a plan to improve them,” he says. “Sometimes you have to start small and slow, but improving technique will always pay dividends long-term. Avoid the velvet rut.”

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Going too hard when you are supposed to go easy is another mistake Piampiano says age groupers can be prone to. “Often people with limited time to train feel like they need to justify their training and fitness at all costs,” she says. “That can include going way too hard on easy days. Slow it down! There is a lot to be said for Zone 2 in terms of training the body to burn fat as fuel as well as mitochondrial development.”

“Blurring” your training so that too much time is spent in the “gray” zone (Zone 3) is a mistake Siddall says she often sees. “There’s often not enough intensity and not enough slow/easy so training becomes a blur of all the zones and is much less effective,” she says. 

And while it might be fun to see what your favorite pros are doing on Strava or Instagram, it’s highly unlikely the same workout will be of benefit to you, so Siddall warns against trying to copy workouts from pros. 

It’s something Metzler says he sees too: “I often see age-group athletes doing swim workouts with other athletes on intervals that are way too fast for them. I often see them putting on paddles, fins or other equipment simply to keep up. My recommendation is to modify the workout so it’s best for you.” 

If you’re preparing for an Ironman or 70.3 distance race then Riele says there are workouts that should be non-negotiables every week. He says he sees too many amateurs skipping their long ride, but for him there simply is no substitute for it. 

“If you want to build bike strength, there is no substitute in training for a long day in the saddle,” he says. “Making sure that long four- to five-hour Saturday ride with friends is part of your weekly routine every single week will really take your bike strength to the next level."

Pace It Right

Yet workouts also need to involve proper pacing if you’re to reach the start line—and the finish line—in your best shape. Overbiking and/or poor pacing is a problem many pros cited as being a common mistake they see age-group athletes struggling with. 

Naeth says: “Many age groupers start too fast, get caught up in race-day adrenaline or try to stick with faster competitors. This often leads to burning out before the finish line.”

She encourages amateurs to develop and adhere to a well thought-out pacing strategy that needs to be practiced in training. “This involves knowing your sustainable effort levels and having the discipline to maintain them, even when you feel great at the start,” she says. 

“Practice pacing in training, using tools like heart-rate monitors or power meters to gauge effort. In longer events, consider breaking the race into segments with specific pacing goals for each. Remember, a well-executed, steady pace often results in a faster overall time than starting too hard and fading.”

And while we all love to dream—and magic days sometimes do happen—more often than not the race pace you’ve trained is the race pace your body is prepared for come race day. It’s racing above your actual race pace that Hoffman says he often sees, sometimes with catastrophic results. 

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He says: “While you should be able to reach a higher level on race day, I see far too many people that believe they can magically hit and sustain big jumps in pace or power, far above what they have seen in training. 

“I don't love placing limits on athletes, and sometimes the best way to learn and grow is to overdo it and blow up, but when you pace way faster on race day than your interval training, and you underfuel (which is also a common mistake), the result is usually an epic implosion.”

A Happy Athlete Is a Fast Athlete

While it can undoubtedly be hard to get it all right—after all, that’s often the beauty of the sport and why so many of us get hooked on it—perhaps the greatest mistake of all can be not knowing why you’re doing what you’re doing. 

If, as Hoffman puts it, you spend all of your time focusing on “virtually everything but your mental health” then it can quickly catch up with you.

He says: “Gear, nutrition, training, recovery….All of these are important pieces of the puzzle, and components of creating a healthy and happy athlete. But one of the most important is to really address whether you are enjoying the process and experience.”

He encourages cultivating a mindset of curiosity, growth, progress, gratitude, and adaptability. He says: “A happy athlete is a fast athlete, so I suggest creating an environment that enriches your day-to-day process and helps you tap into your best.”