Triathlon is one of the most complete and fascinating challenges in sport: swimming, cycling, and running in sequence, without breaks. Three different disciplines requiring technique, endurance, mental strength, and the ability to manage effort. It’s no coincidence that it is considered the sport of balance: it forces the athlete to confront their limits from every perspective.

Ahead of the Cervia Triathlon, we interviewed Myriam Grassi, a FITRI (Italian Triathlon Federation, partner of Cetilar®) athlete, to discover what it really means to prepare for a race that tests both body and mind.

From preparation to recovery management, including advice for those approaching triathlon for the first time: here’s her view on one of the most complete and fascinating sports out there.

Who is Myriam Grassi

An Italian athlete, born in 1994, with a degree in Sports Science, she discovered triathlon when she was just a teenager and has never left it since.

Always active, her record so far boasts 42 podiums in national competitions and 8 victories.

How did you get into triathlon and what made you fall in love with this discipline?

“I started when I was 13. At the time, I was practicing swimming and athletics, then my coach created a triathlon team. All I had to do was add a racing bike and try. It became a love-hate relationship that continues to this day: love, because I enjoy challenging myself and competing with other girls; hate, because the sacrifices required are many and, in the past, as a teenager, I sometimes felt the need to take a break to recharge.”

How do you prepare for a race like Cervia? Do you have a routine or method you follow?

“Since I’m not a professional athlete, I have to juggle training with work. My schedule includes two training sessions a day from Monday to Friday, while on weekends I train once a day but for longer. During race preparation periods I include combined sessions: swim-bike, but especially bike-run. These are fundamental to get used to running with already tired legs, just as it happens in competition.”

Which discipline is the most challenging for you, and how do you train it to turn it into a strength?

“Swimming is my Achilles’ heel, even though it’s the one I’ve practiced the longest. It’s a technical and coordination-based discipline, requiring water skills that cannot be built overnight. Personally, I feel more suited to cycling and running, but to improve in the water I swim countless laps and focus a lot on technique and feel. This has allowed me to grow, even though at high-level competitions there is always a gap between me and those who finish the swim segment among the first.”

How do you take care of recovery between training and races? Do you use particular strategies, including in terms of nutrition or supplementation?

“For me, recovery mainly means sleeping well: at night, but also during the day when possible. Along with that, I pay great attention to nutrition: never overly restrictive diets, you need to eat enough to sustain workloads, always focusing on quality. During training I regularly supplement with gels and/or sugars in my bottle to maintain constant energy. After competitions, especially when there are two races close together, I always stick to the same rule: cool down, eat, and rest a lot.”

What advice would you give to someone who wants to try triathlon but feels intimidated by the multi-discipline nature of it?

“I’d say dive in and try. At first it may seem impossible, but with the right approach it becomes an exciting journey. And I recommend finding a group to train with: even if triathlon is individual, sharing workouts and effort with others makes everything more fun and motivating. Once you try, it will be hard to stop.”

Triathlon race coming up? Prepare at your best!

Preparing for a triathlon means facing heavy training loads and learning how to best manage energy and recovery.

That’s why, until September 14, on the Cetilar® Nutrition online shop, our Triathlon Kit—designed to support athletes in the three disciplines and help them perform at their best on race day—is available with a 20% discount.

Conclusions

Triathlon is not just a sport, but a journey of personal growth: it teaches discipline, resilience, and adaptability to different contexts. From water to asphalt, passing through the bike saddle, every athlete faces their own challenges and learns to listen to their body.

The experience of Myriam Grassi shows that you don’t need to be a professional to live this passion: with consistency, care, and motivation, triathlon can become a lifelong companion that offers unique and unrepeatable satisfactions.