and Run In England leader, and also oversees the Parachute Regiment selection process. He has sub-1:00 Ironman swims to his name and regularly competes in triathlons and challenge events.

is relatively simple compared with the butterfly, almost all beginning triathletes need feedback on their stroke from a knowledgeable observer. Find a friend who is a good swimmer, or a local swimming coach, and ask if they would look at your stroke. One or two

- and sometimes even in the pool when you're training. However, he's right: making friends with water could be the difference between loving every minute of a triathlon and metaphorically holding your breath until you exit the water.Triathletes from a non-swimming

variable current that holds you in place like an aquatic version of running on a treadmill - and of video feedback. While neither is now a unique experience in the world of triathlon, the analysis, critique and correction of my swimming that follows

by piranhas. Or if you see yourself as a seasoned veteran, they'll show you how it is possible to shave off the seconds without having to shave your legs.If you're training for your first triathlon, it's fine to opt for any stroke in the swim but the focus

It would never previously have occurred to me to seek out external help to improve my swimming or even to have a sense of introspection about it. But now, on the cusp of my first serious triathlon season, the obvious limitations of my swimming have become