"No pain, no gain" is the motto of many athletes who train to take part in endurance sports such as triathlons. While persistence and determination to succeed is an essential component to such events, this mindset can lead to injuries which might otherwise be avoided.

The nature of a standard triathlon – 1.5km of swimming, 40km of biking and 10 km of running – requires an extended training program that builds up the athlete's stamina and speed safely. However, some weekend athletes try to compress their training regimen into a much shorter period, resulting in greater risk of injury.

Drastic increases in intensity and mileage are the main contributors to injury, said Dr Kelvin Chew, a consultant at Changi Sports Medicine. "Many injuries which could have been avoided are caused by the person's impatience, as well as the dogma of 'no pain no gain' in athletic training," he told AsiaOne Health in an e-mail interview.

"Pain is like an alarm system that gives you hints that something may not be right," explained Dr Chew. "Try not to ignore pain - it is better to deal with it earlier, rather than later or too near competition, when there may not be enough time for intervention."

Common injuries sustained during training for a triathlon are lower limb injuries, such as those that affect the ankle, foot, shin, knee and thigh, said Dr Chew. The good news is that "the majority of these injuries are due to overuse, and thus can be avoided," he noted. "For majority of overuse injuries, the symptoms and signs are gradual and can therefore be dealt with at an earlier stage."

Train, but don't overtrain

People training for a triathlon should also watch out for overtraining syndrome, which is characterised by symptoms such as chronic fatigue, exercise staleness, chronic aches (which could be delayed onset muscle soreness), and a rise in one's heart rate in the early morning. Not only can it affect your performance, it can also result in much more severe injuries - such as stress fractures - which would require long periods of downtime, said Dr Chew.

There should be a balance between training and recovery while preparing for a triathlon, said Dr Chew. He gives AsiaOne Health readers some pointers to take note of when preparing for a triathlon:

Medical status – Before you start training, you may want to do a pre-participation medical assessment and know your medical status.

Training schedules – There are many starter training schedules, many of which involve a lot of time commitment. In a triathlon, which involves three disciplines (swimming, biking and running), enough attention should be paid to each component.

Training Programme – Build distance before speed. In this way, your emphasis is in building endurance and cardiovascular fitness. Your training programme should be progressive in terms of mileage and intensity. In general, do not increase your training intensity and distance by more than 10 per cent per week.

Nutrition – As triathlon training involves long hours of endurance work, there should be enough calories to sustain the effort.

Swim leg – You can't escape needing to do open water swim training. Conditions in the swimming pool are entirely different from open water with currents and salt water. In race conditions, you will have also other participants to contend with and there will be invariably a lot of contact.

Bike leg – It is wise to get your bike fitted for you. Everyone will have different biomechanical make up, so getting your bike set-up to suit you will assist in preventing problems.

Run leg – Appropriate shoes for your foot type. The shoe should have adequate support and cushioning.

Transitions – A lot of time can be shaved off your race timing if you train the transitions between each discipline.

Dr Kelvin Chew is a consultant at Changi Sports Medicine, the official sports medicine partner for the OSIM International Triathlon 2011.