Being a sport that consists of multiple disciplines, triathletes see their own fair share of strong events and weak events. The old saying goes, you are only as strong as your weakest link. It is mostly true, but there are those athletes out there who are so spectacular at one discipline they can win a race by putting all of their eggs in one basket.

This strategy works for only a select few, so for the rest of us, a healthy balance in all three disciplines is the most logical. So the best way to get this healthy balance, is a constant evaluation of your proficiency at each discipline. Familiarity with your training splits, speeds, and power are key. Is your run suffering? What can be done to get more out of the run? Is your swim weak? Get in the pool.

Most pro athletes and coaches recommend single sport focus periods during winter training. Athletes should not be afraid to try this during the season either. You won’t see the big gains you would from an entire winter of 20,000 yards a week, or 60 plus miles a week. But it can help your confidence and yield gains necessary to achieve goals.

Be careful not to ignore your strengths though. Each discipline still requires training, resting on your laurels with leave you still on your laurels, and not at your goal time. These “focus period” could be as much as adding a 20 minute easy run 3 times a week to your program, or perhaps getting an extra 500 of drills in your swim sets. A little can go a long way.

So it is time to get your singers dancing, and dancers singing. Every leg of your race contributes to your performance. Whether you trained properly or not, you will still swim bike and run. Having a strong balance allows you to become a complete athlete and perform well at any race, no matter what the course profile looks like.