How to Break Your Swim Plateau in 12 Weeks | The Triathlete Blueprint #137

Read time: 5min.

By Coach Yan Busset

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If you read last week’s article about why you feel out of breath after 100 meters, this is the natural next step.

Because once breathing is no longer the only suspect, many triathletes realise something uncomfortable:

They can finish the swim. But they don’t really get better at it.

Same pace. Same struggle. Same feeling year after year.

Quick version for busy triathletes

If you feel unsatisfied with your swim, maybe you are not even sure you will finish the swim of your first or next triathlon, or you always come out of the water exhausted, you are not alone.

A lot of triathletes can run and ride well, survive the swim somehow, but stay stuck at the same pace and the same feeling of effort for years.

Most of the time, this plateau is not a motivation problem.

It is a technique and structure problem.

Your stroke is built on weak foundations. You repeat the same habits without clear feedback. All the extra meters you add mostly reinforce what is already limiting you.

To break that plateau, you usually need three things:

A proper technical rebuild with clear priorities, not random drills. Objective video feedback to know what really needs fixing. Consistent, structured sessions, at least three swims per week, so changes actually stick.

This article is for triathletes who are done just surviving the swim and are ready to train with structure, feedback, and consistency to actually get faster.

“I’m just bad at swimming”. No, you’re not.

This is something I hear all the time.

And my answer is almost always the same.

Don’t worry. It is never too late to start working on your swim properly. Yes, you may not progress like a kid who grew up in a swim squad. But you would be surprised how much progress you can make in a short time once you focus on technique and get the right feedback.

Most adult triathletes are not bad swimmers.

They are uncoached swimmers.

And that is a very different problem.

When finishing the swim is not enough anymore

For many triathletes, the first big goal is simply to survive the swim.

Get through the distance.Get out of the water.Start the bike.

But once you have done that a few times, another reality appears.

You are out of breath after 100 to 200 meters. You need to stop every 50 to 100 meters in training. You are always last in the lane or the group. No matter how much you train, your speed does not improve.

Athletes describe it like this:

“I was out of breath after swimming 100 meters, speed was very limited, it felt that I am swimming but not moving further.” Annikki

“Going nowhere, no matter how much I trained I didn’t improve my swimming.” Harri

Others mention only having one speed, always hard, legs sinking, head too high, or feeling completely drained after even short swims.

So yes, you might finish the swim.

But you are not where you want to be.Not in terms of time.Not in terms of ease.And not in terms of confidence.

The pattern I see again and again on video

When I analyse triathletes on video, I say this all the time:

Stop wasting your energy pushing in the wrong direction.

Swimming is simple physics.

Action > Reaction.

If you want to move forward, you need to grab the water firmly and push it towards your feet.

What I see instead is a lot of effort going sideways, downwards, or simply disappearing.

From the inside, it feels like hard work. On video, it is just waisted energy.

That is why so many athletes are exhausted.

Not because they lack fitness. But because they spend energy in the wrong direction.

The biggest false hope: just swim more

One of the most common mistakes is what I call junk mileage.

More volume. Same technique. Same problems.

Often combined with always swimming at the same tempo pace.

Not really slow. Not really fast.Just hard enough to feel like training.

The issue is simple.

If you do not know how to swim slow with good technique, you will not swim fast with good technique either.If you never dare to slow down, you never rebuild.If you never dare to go fast, you never learn to apply technique under speed.

Real progress usually requires slowing things down on purpose, isolating technique, and then learning when to apply speed.

Not all the time.

Why triathlon swimming is different from swimming

Another thing that annoys me is how swimming is often explained to triathletes.

Many explanations come from a pure swimming background.

Just be faster from A to B.

But triathlon does not end after the swim.

You do not just need to be fast. You need to be efficient.

If you waste a lot of energy in the first discipline of the race, you do not get it back for the bike and the run.

That is why, when an athlete comes out of the water completely destroyed, I do not think “not fit enough”.

I think too much energy wasted for the speed produced.

And that is a solvable problem.

What changes when athletes break through

When athletes finally rebuild properly, the feedback is remarkably similar.

“I can swim long distances without feeling exhausted, speed has improved tremendously as well as technique. I feel more comfortable in the water, it is not an enemy anymore.” Annikki

“I dropped 15seconds from my CSS and for the first time reached T1 feeling fresh instead of destroyed." Harri

“Before the first win of the race was getting out of the water and being able to continue. Now the swim is just the warm up.” Katri

Different people. Same pattern.

Clearer priorities. Objective feedback. Structured frequency.

How this fits into the 12 Weeks 70.3 Swimming Breakthrough Program

Everything described above is exactly what I built into the 12 Weeks 70.3 Swimming Breakthrough Program.

Despite the name, it is not about one distance.

It is about helping triathletes who are stuck to:

Stop coming out of the water exhausted.

Break a real speed plateau.Exit the swim with confidence and energy.

The program includes:

Clear technical modules, one priority at a time. Personalized video analysis, so you know what to fix first. A structured 12-week swim plan with progressive sessions. A strong focus on frequency, typically three to four swims per week, so changes actually become natural.

The first cohort starts in January.

Before you click through

If you are looking for quick tips, occasional swimming, or motivation without changing how you train, this is probably not what you need.

If you recognise yourself in this plateau and you are ready to commit to three structured swim sessions per week, then the next step is to check whether the 12 Weeks 70.3 Swimming Breakthrough Program is a good fit for you.

All the details and the application here: https://www.tri-coaching-finland.com/70-3-swim-breakthrough

Check out my NEW Youtube VIDEO!

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Whenever you’re ready, there are 2 ways I can help you:

1. If you are in the Helsinki/ Espoo area and looking for the best training group check here

2. If you are looking for an online coaching service check here.

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