The Triathlete Blueprint Newsletter #112-Can Group Training and Personal Plans Work Together?

Yan Busset
Jun 21
7 min read

Read time: 6min.

By Coach Yan Busset

Are Group Trainings Killing Your Progress?

Group training sessions are fun, motivating, and social, but are they really helping you improve, or are they silently holding you back? Many triathletes struggle to find the right balance between following a personal plan and joining group workouts. Can I train with others without compromising my own goals?

Spoiler alert: the answer is yes. In fact, I believe group training, when used wisely, is one of the biggest keys to long-term success in triathlon. But it’s not about blindly following the group. It’s about understanding how to use it well.

Let’s unpack how group sessions can fit perfectly, even powerfully, into a personal training structure.

The Potential Downsides of Group Training

Let’s be clear. Group training has its place, but it’s not without limitations. If your weekly training revolves entirely around group sessions and you don’t have a structure built around them, progress can slow down or even stall.

One of the main risks is that the volume and intensity outside of the group sessions aren’t aligned with your actual goals. If the rest of your week isn’t planned to support your objective, whether that’s completing your first race or chasing a personal best, it becomes easy to drift. Without a clear plan, you end up training hard when you should go easy, or not training enough when your body needs more work.

Another downside is the lack of focus on technique. In a group, especially during fast-paced or high-energy sessions, it's harder to concentrate on form. Sometimes the coach gives technical feedback, and that’s great, but it’s not always the case. Without specific time set aside to work on your mechanics, it becomes difficult to make meaningful improvements, especially in disciplines like swimming or running, where small details make a big difference.

There’s also the issue of pacing. In a group, you're often influenced by those around you, consciously or not. If you never train at your own rhythm, in your own zones, you're not targeting what you need. Over time, this can lead to fatigue, lack of progress, or even injury.

Lastly, there’s the question of structure. Training without a plan is like sailing without a compass. Group sessions without context can quickly turn into random efforts. And when your training is random, so are your results.

The key is not to avoid group training. It’s to make sure it fits within a larger, purposeful structure.

Why Group Training Still Matters

Despite its limitations, group training can offer something extremely powerful. One of the hardest parts in triathlon isn’t going hard, it’s showing up regularly. Motivation fades. But when you know you’ll be training alongside others, when you know your training buddies will be there, it becomes much easier to commit and stay consistent.

And in the end, it’s not one big effort that brings results. It’s the regularity. The accumulation of small, structured sessions over weeks and months. Not being a “weekend hero” who trains hard only on Saturdays and Sundays, but someone who trains smart and regularly throughout the week. Group sessions create that structure. They give rhythm to your training week and help you show up again and again.

Training with others also gives you the opportunity to push yourself. There’s often someone a bit faster to chase, or someone on your level to pace with. That group energy creates a form of healthy emulation and support. It helps you go further than you would alone.

When the coach is present on the session, you also get direct feedback, pacing guidance, and technical corrections in real time. That’s incredibly valuable. You’re not just going through the motions , you’re being coached and corrected on the spot.

Group training won’t replace a personalised program, but it builds one of the strongest foundations for improvement: consistency, effort, structure, and motivation. And that’s already a major part of the journey.

How Group Sessions Are Structured to Work for Everyone

In my coaching system, group sessions are built to adapt to all levels and still deliver value for everyone. One key method we use is time-based intervals instead of distance.

Let’s take an example from swim training or track sessions. Everyone starts at the same time, and everyone stops at the same time. What changes is the distance each athlete covers within that time. So whether you're a beginner or a veteran, you're doing the same structured effort, but at your level.

This approach respects individuality while maintaining the motivation and structure of training together. You get the best of both worlds: collective energy, personalized training.

My Role as a Coach

I often see my role as that of a conductor. Everyone in the group has their own part to play, and regardless of level, everyone contributes to the harmony of the session.

Some athletes bring speed, experience, or technical mastery. Others bring beginner energy, enthusiasm, or fresh motivation. Each one adds something to the group. My job is to connect all those pieces, to make sure everyone feels seen and supported, to keep the energy flowing, and to help the group move forward together.

Sometimes that means slowing someone down a little. Other times, it means encouraging someone to go for it. The goal is always the same: to help everyone get the most out of the session so we all progress, each at our own level, but in a shared direction.

Despite all the differences in speed, goals, experience, or background, there is something that unites every athlete in the group. We all share a passion for triathlon. We all face similar challenges balancing training with work, family, and life.

Most importantly, we all respect each other. That’s one of the strongest aspects of this group. Whether you're chasing a podium or finishing your first race, you’re welcomed the same. Because in the end, we’re all here for the same reason: to become a better version of ourselves.

Respecting Pacing Inside and Outside the Group

In our system, we aim to follow a polarized training approach. Roughly 80% of the athlete weekly volume should be done at low intensity, and 20% at higher intensity. Most of our group training interval sessions sessions fall into that 20% category, where the focus is on structured efforts, intervals, and pushing your limits in a smart way.

That said, not all group sessions are hard. We also run social rides or open water swims that clearly belong in the low-intensity category.

Even during a high-intensity group session, there are always segments, the warm-up, the recovery between intervals, and the cool-down, where it’s crucial to stay relaxed and easy. That’s where discipline , but also the coach feedback comes in. Knowing when to hold back is just as important as knowing when to push. Going hard all the time isn’t a badge of honor. It’s a shortcut to burnout. The smartest athletes understand this and train accordingly.

One of the things I love seeing in our group is how naturally small subgroups form. Athletes with similar pacing start to gravitate toward one another, and over time, they begin to pace each other during intervals. It’s organic, and it’s powerful.

Because at the end of the day, one of the most performance-enhancing tools you can have in triathlon isn’t a gadget or a supplement. It’s a great training buddy. Or even better, several of them.

Why I Built My Training Group Around This Philosophy

When I moved from France to Finland, I experienced a real cultural shift. In the clubs I joined here in the Helsinki region, people came, trained, and left. It felt individual, disconnected, impersonal. That was very different from my experience growing up in southwestern France, where training was social, full of support, and woven into everyday life.

That sense of community was something I missed deeply. And when I founded Tri Coaching Finland, I made it a central pillar.

We didn’t just create sessions. We created rituals. Post-swim coffees, social rides, breakfasts after long training mornings. We built a tribe, not just a team. And over the years, that spirit remained: a truly international, open-minded, inclusive, and motivated group of people who support one another.

It’s more than training. It’s shared values, friendships, and personal growth.

Three Levels of Coaching: Finding the Right Fit

Because every athlete is different , goals, time, experience, budget, I developed a three-level coaching system that allows everyone to engage at the level that suits them best:

Level 1: Group Sessions Only

You join the group workouts and benefit from the structure, atmosphere, and collective motivation. Great if you want to stay active, improve gradually, and enjoy the social side of triathlon.
Level 2: Group Sessions + Monthly Plan + Coach Call

You follow a structured plan that includes group sessions and solo work. Each month, you have a one-on-one call with the coach to review your progress, give and get feedback, and stay on track. It’s a flexible hybrid model with personalized support.
Level 3: Fully Personalized Weekly Coaching

This is the highest level of engagement. Each week, we adapt your training based on feedback, availability, life stress, and race goals. We integrate group sessions when they make sense and modify things when they don’t. It’s a close coach-athlete relationship with a real-time responsiveness.

This system works not only for locals but also for remote athletes I coach from abroad. Whatever your situation, the idea is to find a rhythm that fits your life, your motivation, and your ambition.

Conclusion: It's Not One or the Other, It's the Mix That Wins

Group training and personal coaching don’t cancel each other out. They complement one another. With the right structure and mindset, you can enjoy the best of both: social motivation and individual progression.

You don’t need to choose between training smart and training together. When you do it right, you get both. And in the long run, that’s what keeps you consistent, happy, and improving, not just as a triathlete, but as a person.

Even professional athletes, who need the most precise and customized training possible, often choose to be part of training squads. They do it for the same reasons: motivation, structure, energy, and connection. You don’t need to be a pro to benefit from this approach. Everyone can get the best of both worlds.

If you’re looking for more than just workouts, if you want a training environment that respects who you are, where you’re at, and where you want to go, then joining the right group might just be the smartest move you can make.

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