A hallmark of the triathlete is their natural affinity to everything AERO. Welcome back guys!
Today is all about the best tips on how you can be as aero as possible. Why? Because aeroiseverything. 😀
So here are 13 tips on how you can get more aero in your swim, bike and run. First off, the swim.
Swim
Excess hair is weight, but worst of all, it catches water molecules that slow you down dramatically. Swimming with hair feels like you’re swimming with weights. Shave them off as much as you can. Particularly the arm pits. Nobody wants to see your bush anyway.
Next, goggles straps in or out of your swim cap? I’d say out for training and in for racing. And when you wear your straps inside your cap, make sure the side straps are tucked in the cap as well. Newbie mistakes. Don’t worry, even I did it too. I really don’t think it’s gonna make much difference at all but marginal gains is everything.
Aero tip umber 3 is to keep your head down. You probably heard this a million times over already. But like me, I thought my head was low enough, turns out, I still have much to lower. One good drill to do to be more comfortable with your head lower is the chin down drill. You’ll just flutter kick while chin touching your chest. You should feel the water flowing over your head as you move. So that’s how to have a more aero body position.
4th tip. Fingers down as you reach out forward. You might be pointing straight forward but never point up. You’re putting the brakes on every stroke. You’re basically Hi-fiving the water when it comes towards you. Don’t do that. No Hi-fiving the water. Just reach out and point your fingers down, feel the water flowing above your hand. That will set you up for a good catch.
5th tip would be to wear colorful trunks. The jury is out whether colorful trunks actually do or do not make you more aero. As the saying goes, “It doesn’t matter how fast you are, as long as you look fast.” I bet you have heard that before too.
Bike
Number 6! Now we’re on to the bike tips. Change your cranks to shorter ones. It will not make a difference with your power output but you’ll be more comfortable. And when you’re more comfortable, you’ll be more aero. Having a shorter crank means you can sit higher on the bike, meaning your saddle to handlebar drop is lower and more aero.
7th tip is to slam the stem. Be warned that this may result in back pain. So you gotta increase your back flexibility so that you can ride around showing off that you have a slammed stem. It’s all about looking more pro right?
8th tip is to tape up excess vents. Or you can buy a aero helmet. Which ever you prefer, or can afford. Your head causes a huge amount of drag, so making your helmet slightly more aero will reap a lot more benefits.
9th tip. Don’t put a cardboard on your bike. As mark from GTN tested, it’s not aero because it’s catching those side winds and made him slower. But what has made him faster was this next tip.
Number 10. Disc wheel covers. It’s okay if you don’t have a disc wheel. A DIY disc cover made by yourself can actually make you more aero too. It’s a very cheap alternative worth trying out. But hopefully it lasts through your full race and not fall apart mid way.
Number 11. Your own seat sail. This aero tip is also another one of GTN’s experiments. You just DIY a sail onto the back of your seat post to look like the Specialized shiv bladder compartment and you’ll be faster. It saved heather around 20W at the same speed. It shows a little can go a long way.
Run
12th tip. And we’re talking about the run now. There is honestly nothing much you can do to make yourself more aero. But don’t run with baggy clothes or those weird costumes. You know what I’m talking about. But if you’re wearing a running cap, wear your cap backwards. That way the visor doesn’t catch wind. Patrick Lange is a 2x Ironman world champion and always runs with cap backwards, and now you know why.
13th and final tip is to wear your sunglasses over your cap. I mean who wears them inside their cap? Always wear your shades over so you don’t creates spaces where air can go in your cap.
That is all the aero tips I have for you guys today. Comment below what your favorite tip was and do you have anymore aero ideas? Thanks for reading and I’ll catch up with you guys soon. Stay healthy and strong and most importantly, aero.
Aaroiseverything 