Hi, my name is Jeremy Lovell and I am a triathlon addict. Not that admitting it is going to help curb my addiction, I just thought it would feel good to get that out in the open. Most people know that I am a triathlon addict though, and because of this, I am constantly asked what type of gear I use for my triathlon training. Over the last couple years I have accumulated quite the list of gear. To make it easier for you and easier for me I have put together a list of the gear I use on a consistent basis. I am not sponsored by any brand and I only use gear that I think works best for me, which is why you might see me in pictures sporting gear from Nike, Adidas, and brooks all at the same time. A fashion disaster I am sure, but at the end of the day I use whatever I feel takes me to the finish line with ease. I am a Team Beachbody Coach but I never recommend a product unless I have personally used it and thought it was a benefit to my training.
I have divided up the categories into Swim, bike, and run categories along with nutrition and alternative training I do to help during the year. Everything I list is gear I have personally purchased and currently use in my training and nutrition.
SWIMMING
Swimming Jammers: I don’t have a specific favorite, I just use what works I am a fan of wacky bright colors so anything that fits that description works for me. Currently I use the TYR Men’s Asteroid Jammer Swim Suit, and the TYR Men’s Team Check Jammer Swim Suit not because I am necessarily a fan of TYR but because I like the style and fit during the swim workouts.
Goggles: I go through goggles like no tomorrow, but so far I have been able to hold onto the TYR Sport Special Ops 2.0 Polarized USA Swimming Goggle‘s the longest. Again, wacky is the name of the game. Plus the wackier you look, the easier it is for family and friends to identify you on race day.
Wetsuit: I wear the Zoot Men’s Fuzion Full Sleeve Wetzoot for races. In all honesty I bought it because it was on sale. No other reason, but it seems to work well and keep me warm when I need it.
Training gear: If you are going to take a Masters Swim class, or you are just going to do drills on your own, you should have at least a kick board, and a pull buoy at the very least. I use the Speedo Adult Pull Buoy (Black), and the TYR SPORT Streamline Training Board, Black. I got black just because it seemed like it wouldn’t show dirt and grime as much as the lighter colored options. Seems to be a good strategy so far.
Swim Caps: I don’t really have a specific cap that I wear. In fact, I have a hard time remembering to bring a cap to swim practice as it is. I do have quite the selection of swim caps from previous triathlons, so when I do remember to grab a swim cap, I usually just grab one from the collection.
BIKING:
Bike: Currently I race with a Cervelo S5, which is a road bike, not a TT bike, but I have found that it has been a HUGE advantage to use this bike in races that have a lot of hills. That being said, I really would like to have a TT bike at one point but this bike is my baby for now.
Pedals: For my pedals I don’t currently use anything fancy, I just use the Shimano PD R-540, they were cheap, and worked well with all three of our road bikes. (Heidi’s road bike, my Cervelo, and the Giant Road bike I use to pull Munchkin around in.)
Bike Shoes: My bike shoes have actually been discontinued but I use Shimano clipless shoes that are compatible with the Shimano PD R-540s. It was just a cheap, comfortable shoe, emphasis on the comfortable.
Tri Suit: If you are not familiar with a Tri Suit, it is basically a suit you can wear under your wet suit and than wear on your bike and run so you don’t have to change during transition. I actually have three tri suits from just collecting them over the years I have the Skins Men’s TRI400 Compression Front Zip Suit and the Skinstri400 Men’s Compression Sleeveless Suit, but my absolute favorite so far is the Pearl Izumi Men’s Octane Tri Suit, because it has sleeves. I usually stick a bike jersey over the Skins Tri suits because it drives me crazy to run without sleeves. No reason specifically, I just like having sleeves when I bike and run.
Helmet: I had a cheap Walmart helmet that only lasted a season and it was REALLY uncomfortable. Now I use the Giro Saros Road/Racing Bike Helmet which is relatively cheap for a racing bike helmet and much more comfortable than my cheap Walmart brand helmet.
Bike Trainer: I trained for the last 2 years without a bike trainer, and I still prefer the open road to the trainer but during my Pumpkinman training last year it seemed as if it would rain every time I had to ride my bike so I missed a lot of my bike days. I usually don’t ride the bike in the winter because I HATE the cold. The bike trainer removes that excuse I got the BKool trainer.
Bike Computer/GPS: When I first started riding I used the Strava app to track my rides, but I just got the Garmin Edge 500 Cycling GPS and I am loving it!
Speed/Cadence Sensor: I just use the Garmin GSC 10 Speed/Cadence Bike Sensor, it came with the Garmin Edge kit I bought so no other reason than the fact that it is compatible with the Garmin Edge.
Bike Jersey: For those rare occasions that I actually do wear a bike jersey, I like to go as wacky as possible so that Heidi and the Munchkin can easily identify me out on the race course. Some jerseys I like are Baleaf Short Sleeve Cycling Jersey Spider Men’s Style Red M, (I even got the SpiderMan Deluxe Mask to go with it on a race and it was a lot of fun throwing some high fives as Spiderman at the finish line.) The Primal Wear Crash Test Dummy Cycling Jersey Men’s Short Sleeve is also a favorite that gets a lot of shout outs on the race course.
Heart Rate Monitor: The Garmin Premium Heart Rate Monitor (Soft Strap) heart rate monitor also came with the Garmin 500 kit but I also use it for the Garmin 620 as well as with the Bkool trainer.
RUNNING
Shirts: For races I am usually wearing either the above mentioned Pearl Izumi Tri suit or a combination of the Skins suit and a bike jersey. For every day training though, I like to have variety and I really like the Men’s Under Armour® Alter Ego Compression Shirt series. These shirts are fun and I do use them for foot races, 5ks, 10k, 1/2 marathons etc.
Running watch: Earlier this year I was using the TomTom Multi-Sport GPS Watch, it works well for what it is, and for most people it will probably be sufficient, but it didn’t do everything I wanted it to do (i.e. track open water swims) so I ended up giving it to Heidi. I was going to get the Garmin Forerunner 910XT but chatter around the web is that Garmin might be releasing a Garmin 920XT, and Polar is coming out with the Polar V800 which may be a direct competitor with the 910XT. So all that being said, currently I am using the Garmin Forerunner 620 which is awesome so far! I love it because it allows my family to track me on my run and I can see my heart rate on the screen on my watch so I make sure I stay in the right zone.
Running Shoes: I used to use the best Nike shoes that provided all the support in the world and no matter how much support I had my knees would start feeling funky after about mile 4, by mile 11 my knee was in agony. I was convinced at one point that my body could only handle 4 mile runs until I read Born to Run where they talk about bare foot running. Suddenly I removed ALL the support in my shoes and the irritation in my knee slowly went away. For running only events I like to use Vibram Fivefingers Komodosport Shoes but during triathlon races I use Merrell Barefoot Running Shoes since it takes too long to transition into the 5 fingers. Barefoot running is not for everyone, a very small percentage of the worlds population actually does need supportive running shoes. If you do decide to make the switch to barefoot running it is a transition, so make sure you give your self a few months before you dive right into racing again.
Running Pants: Las Vegas does not get too cold during the winter, but it still get cold enough that you should bundle up during outdoor workouts. For those terrible days I like the Nike Pro Core Combat 2.0 Compression Tights. They are not too restrictive but keep me feeling pretty warm during the run.
Running Shorts: I usually use compression shorts or pants under my shorts. My favorites are usually the Skins A200 Men’s Compression Half Tights or the Nike Pro Combat Core Compression Short. I usually throw on a really light pair of running shorts on top of those because, well, lets face it, these are tights we are talking about here and nobody needs to see that.
iPhone Case: The Garmin 620 tracking only works when paired with the iPhone so I also carry my iPhone with me. Currently I use the Belkin EaseFit Plus Armband for iPhone 5. It’s not the best, because the Velcro is already giving out, but it has a place to keep a car key for those runs that I have to drive to the trail and have nowhere to place my key.
Nutrition/Supplemental Workouts/Reference Material:
Supplemental workouts: There isn’t a professional triathlete on this planet that’s only workouts include just swimming, biking and running. Just like professional football teams include upper body, stretching, and cardio workouts into their training regimen, if you want to be a lean, mean racing machine you need to work in a variety of workouts into your routine. Since I am NOT a professional athlete, time is in short supply so I do not have time to go to the gym, or to do a long drawn out workout. For this reason I try and keep my supplemental workouts down to 30 minutes or less. Currently I am doing P90X3 in the mornings, which is a combination of only 30 minute routines. I do P90X3 in the mornings or afternoons, depending on what triathlon workout I am doing.
Nutrition: Again, time is of the essence having a family, a full time job, and trying to train for different triathlons throughout the year. I can’t play around with my nutrition and I can’t afford an expensive chef to prep all my meals for me. So, for my dense dose of daily nutrition I drink Shakeology everyday. It doesn’t have wacky chemicals in it and I it is all natural. It comes to about $4.00 per meal and you buy it in bulk. I love it because I know that at least one meal per day is planned and SUPER healthy.
For recipes I use the P90X 3 nutrition guide as the basis for my entire meal planning strategy. To get ideas I use the The Runner’s World Cookbook and the Racing Weight Cookbook to get ideas and then adjust them to match the P90X3 nutrition guidelines.
Reference Material: For triathlon training I like to have a coach of my own, but I also read and re-read the following books throughout my training:
the5krunner says
yep I think it might now be wise to wait until oct2014 to see if the 920xt is coming out. still not sure the polar has all the required functionality in there. ambit3 due in sept 2014. so plenty of choices including tomtom for the price conscious amongst us