Hi Gretchen
I had planned to compete in a half-ironman last November and was hoping to move up to ironman distance this year, but fate had other plans for me. I had knee surgery back in 2000 and had hoped to be running by summer of 2001, but at this point, my knees will never tolerate the level of training for any kind of running. That is, until they design a triathlon that has the run portion in the deep end of a pool. I've changed my focus to bicycling only, which is my strong sport, and I'm planning on an ambitious year of centuries and double centuries with the intent of doing some ultramarathon racing in 2003.
The best training for multisport events is to train in those events. You may gain some general fitness doing step and hi-lo, but in order to improve and excel at swimming, bicycling and running, you need to spend time in the pool, on the saddle and in your running shoes.
There are a multitude of resources. Debra refers to "Friel's" book meaning, no doubt, The Triathlete's Training Bible. That is an excellent book, but seems to address triathletes that have some experience that want to improve their performance. Search amazon.com for "triathlon" and you'll find a numbe of books out there. Another good resource is a subscription to Triathlete or Inside Triathlon magazine. They have training articles and frequently have multi-week training plans for sprint, olympic, half-ironman and ironman distances. They also have lots of articles about all the gear you're going to want to collect. Also, see if your local YMCA has any women's triathlon programs, or at the very least, a masters swim program. Swimming and bicycling with a group may push you to work harder than you might otherwise, and that will make you stronger.
Because sprint distances are so short, transitioning from one stage to the next is very important, and you should plan to spend a lot of time working on going from the swim to the bike, and from the bike to the run. If you're planning to wear a wetsuit, you should probably get one and practice swimming in it ahead of time so you don't find out on the day of your event that you can't easily get your arms over your head.
Nutrition is important, too. Sprint triathlon distance is short enough that you won't need to worry about finding food to keep you going for several hours, but you will need to eat to keep your energy going at a high level. Find out in advance what food they will have at each of your events and try it out on your practice rides and runs.
Strength training is important, and that's where Cathe's tapes can help you. You can continue to use the PS and S&H tapes, MIS and Power Hour. As you increase the intensity and duration of your swimming, bicycling and running, you will need to cut back on the amount of time you spend lifting weights, but don't cut it out all together. Joe Friel, himself, has expresed the need for women to keep up strength training all year long. Cut back on the amount of weight you use for lower body training, though. You may find that your own body weight is sufficient for squats and lunges. Don't worry--your lower body will be getting plenty of work on the bike and on your runs. Pilates and yoga are also excellent (as Debra pointed out) to assist with core strength, which helps you maintain strong posture on the bike and in the pool.
In designing your training plans, take a calendar and put your four events on it. Of those four, decide which one or two is the most important for you, and which are of lesser importance which could serve as a "training" race. Your training periods will need to include a base period (where you log in swimming, bicycling and running miles to build a solid aerobic base), an intensity period (where you build speed in the three events), a peak period (where you build power) and finally, a taper period leading up to your race. After your race, you should build in a recovery period before you start the next intensity cycle to prepare for your next race. Be sure you have enough time between races, or turn one of your races into a training event to prepare for one that is more important.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, Gretchen. I envy you and wish I could be running with you. Keep us posted!
You know, I still worked out in the morning before the painter got here for those 3 weeks this summer. I have to admit that I did not really "hardcore" train for my event. In fact, I had not swam or biked at all! But, you have to remember that the event I was in was a short sprint type one consisting of .5 km swim, 20 km bike and 6 km run. Being able to do Bodymax on an 8" step pretty much got me through the triathlon here. I am sure my time would have been way better if I had had the time to really train hard and properly.