A triathlon is quite a feat for any athlete. So if you’re preparing for a triathlon, you have your work cut out for you to ensure that you’re ready for this major event. Many professionals can help you optimize your health and performance to ensure that you can handle the three major events including running, cycling, and swimming. Use this article as a helpful guide for the list of professionals that you should begin consulting while preparing for a triathlon.
Primary Care Doctor
It’s always a good idea to consult with your primary care doctor before attempting any extreme athletic program or weight loss. Needless to say, as you’re preparing for a triathlon, you should take that same advice as this is an extremely intense event for anyone to handle.
Your general practitioner will assess your overall health and fitness level, and provide you with a treatment plan for athletes that suits your needs and goals.
Your doctor may ask you to come in for more regular visits as you go throughout your training. They’ll run a series of tests to check your blood pressure, EKG, and your respiratory health. During your training, they’ll check for any signs of injury or illness, and prescribe any medications or supplements you may need. Before you decide to take any supplements on your own, run them past your doctor to ensure they don’t interact with anything else you may be taking.
If you can’t always make it into the doctor’s office, you can also utilize telemedicine. These days, more and more physicians are available for online consultation. After the COVID-19 virus hit, telemedicine took off in ways that had never been done before. If you go away to a different location to run your triathlon, you may want to keep in touch with your doctor by way of your telemedicine portal.
Physical Therapist
When preparing for a triathlon, a physical therapist can help you prevent and treat any injuries that may occur during your training or the event. They can teach you exercises and stretches that can improve your flexibility, mobility, and stability. Regardless of the type of shape you may be in, your muscles and ligaments can tense up. Luckily, a physical therapist has various techniques to help you improve your range of motion and ensure that any muscle tension or ligament issues are resolved. Physical therapist. Develop individual plans for each person based on your situation.
You may want to seek your physical therapist a few times a week or once a week, depending on the extent of care that you need. They can also give you a series of exercises that you can do from the comfort of your home, in addition to what they may monitor at their office. They understand the best types of posture, alignment, and technique that you can use for each sport. After all, swimming, cycling, and running may use similar muscles, but they’ll use them in different ways. Once the triathlon is over, you may want to continue using your physical therapy services to further help your body unwind after such an intense activity.
Hormone Specialist
While preparing for a triathlon, you may develop hormone issues. This is something that can happen in any type of intense athletic situation, especially if you’re making drastic changes to your diet, sleep, in general activity. That’s why natural hormone replacement therapy can help you, as such specialists are responsible for ensuring you can balance your hormones and optimize your metabolism. The better your metabolism is, the more energy you can burn and stay in top shape to run, cycle, or swim several miles.
Hormones are chemical messengers that regulate many functions in your body, such as mood, energy, appetite, sleep, and reproduction. Hormone imbalances can affect your performance and health in various ways, such as causing fatigue, weight gain, depression, anxiety, low libido, and infertility. As you’re preparing for a triathlon, you need to ensure that you can get proper sleep and metabolize food correctly. According to the Sleep Foundation, you need at least 7 to 9 hours of restful sleep at night. With the right hormonal therapy, your hormones will be balanced enough so that your brain can deliver enough serotonin and dopamine to help you relax.
You want to make sure that you have a sense of well-being that regulated hormones can provide. If you get moody or depressed, it may be hard for you to push yourself out of bed and do all of the intense training necessary to get ready for our triathlon. Once you begin exercising, your brain will release happy hormones known as endorphins, which produce a sense of well-being. So make sure nothing gets in the way of those endorphins, and seek a hormone specialist if you’re feeling that your mood or physical energy is out of whack.
Cardio Specialist
Can you imagine the pressure that will be on your heart as you’re preparing for a triathlon? That’s why you need to ensure that your heart is strong enough to take all the endurance necessary. So don’t hesitate to enlist the services of a heart physician who can ensure your cardiovascular health and fitness are at the level that it needs to be. Cardiovascular health refers to the health of your heart and blood vessels, which are responsible for delivering oxygen and nutrients to your muscles and organs.
Preparing for a triathlon means being able to perform hours of continuous aerobic exercise by cycling, swimming, and running. The last thing you want is to pass out or have a heart attack when you’re in the middle of this event. That’s why a cardio specialist will test your blood pressure, heart function, and cholesterol levels. A cardio specialist can also prescribe you an exercise program that can improve your endurance, stamina, and efficiency.
Foot Care
Can you imagine preparing for a triathlon if you have bad feet? After all, your feet will be subjected to a great deal of stress during this event. That’s why good foot care is a vital aspect of preparing for a triathlon. Podiatrist foot doctors diagnose and treat any foot conditions that you may have. When feet need any type of extra support for these events, these podiatrists can provide various braces, splints, or specialized shoes that can support your feet as well as correct any issues. They help prevent and treat common foot problems such as blisters, calluses, corns, bunions, plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendinitis, and stress fractures.
Foot care isn’t just going to the podiatrist for official medical care. You should also invest in foot massages and pedicures. After all, pedicures aren’t just about painting and clipping your toenails. Foot estheticians can ensure you don’t have ingrown toenails that can cause pain, especially when you’re using running shoes. They can massage the feet and lower legs to aid in proper circulation.
As you take care of your feet, make sure you have the best walking and running shoes for your events. If running or walking shoes feel too tight when you’re doing various activities, it’s time to change them up. You don’t want any type of footwear that will feel restrictive and can hinder blood circulation in that area.
Hair Consultant
A hair consultant is a professional who can help you deal with any hair issues you may have while preparing for a triathlon. Hair issues may include thinning hair, hair loss, dryness, breakage, split ends, frizz, or color fading. If you notice sudden changes in hair, it can also indicate an underlying health issue. Hair issues may be caused by various factors such as stress, hormones, nutrition, sun exposure, or chlorine exposure.
If you’re worried about these changes, your hair consultant can run the right test on your hair and follicles to try to trace what the issue is. They’ll analyze your hair type and condition and provide the solutions needed to increase hair growth and volume. They’ll let you know if you’re dealing with a temporary solution that can be fixed with nutrition or supplements. It may be a topical issue where you simply need to change your shampoo and conditioner and learn how to protect your hair more, especially when you’re sleeping or swimming in a chlorine-filled pool.
Nutritionist
Of course, proper nutrition should be a top priority when preparing for a triathlon. If you’re a very active person, you probably already have a very healthy diet. However, a triathlon involves even more endurance than your typical athletic event. So you may have to restrict your diet more and drink even more water daily. If you’re unsure where you might be lacking in terms of your nutrition, get nutrition consulting for a plan you can follow.
Nutritional specialists understand that diet isn’t one-size-fits-all. After all, some people have different allergies and restrictions to consider. They can assess your nutritional status,
calorie needs, and macronutrient ratios. As a result, you’ll receive a personalized plan that can help fuel your body for your triathlon needs.
When you are under such a nutrition plan, you’ll learn more about the best food supplements and drinks to consume at this time. They can also guide you on the best times of day to consume these items. You’ll get help with proper meal planning and learn what foods go well together. They can also help you keep track of your weight and muscle tone to ensure you make the right adjustments necessary to either lose or gain weight as needed.
Recreational Therapy
While preparing for a triathlon, don’t forget to put your mind at ease and do some things for fun. After all, dealing with such prep can be very intense, but don’t forget you need to have a life around that. With the right recreational therapy, you’ll be able to help manage the stress and anxiety that comes with preparing for such an event. Ward off boredom by participating in fun or relaxing activities such as golfing, painting, gardening, reading, musical lessons, and so on. Look into golf memberships or see if you have friends or family who want to do some gardening. Try an online painting class or go out with a few friends for a sip-and-paint event.
Vision Care
Your vision can affect your performance and safety in each sport. Make an appointment with your local optometrist if you haven’t already done so. Between the ages of 18 and 62, you should see an optometrist at least once every two years, according to the American Association of Optomics. Your local vision specialist can check for eye infections, and allergies and help with problems such as dry eyes or vision issues. Optometrists will examine your eyes, prescribe glasses or contact lenses, and treat any eye diseases or disorders you may have.
Swimming Pool Contractors
A swimming pool can be a great asset for preparing for a triathlon, as it can allow you to practice swimming anytime you want, without having to travel to a public pool or a natural body of water. Plus, having your own pool is healthier since you won’t be at risk for other people’s germs. Access to a regular swimming pool allows you to relax and enjoy provide fun entertainment. While you’ll be doing intense swimming for a triathlon, regular swimming is a low-impact activity that can help ease your muscles and ligaments. A swimming pool company can help you choose the best type, size, shape, design, and features of a swimming pool that can suit your budget, space, and needs.
As you can see, getting ready for a triathlon is an exciting time for any active person or athlete. Such an event allows you to test your physical and mental limits. When you take the time to prepare for a triathlon. You may surprise yourself at what you can accomplish and how much discipline you have. Just don’t make the mistake of trying to deal with this event on your own. Take the time to consult with professionals who can help ensure your mind and body are right to handle this event.
