Trying to break into top-level triathlon
I used to compete for my country in a sport before giving it up to try running. I have run 14mins for 5k now and am close to a sub-4 mile. However, what I really want to do is get as good at triathlon as I can.
About four years ago I could swim 200m in 2:08 and 50m in 26s. The furthest I have cycled at once is 90km and the furthest I have rode in a day is 180km. I run around 75mpw. I have also done a sub 5 half-ironman for fun as my sunday long run during a break from training so my aerobic capacity is not what I need to focus for improvement.
In triathlon, I would want to focus on sprint to olympic distance events.
My questions are: what is the most efficient way to train swimming to get back to a level where I can hold 1:16/100m in a pool whilst still maintaining a focus on running 80+mpw? Right now I am swimming 1000m as 400warm up and some freestyle drills and maybe some 15m sprints. I feel quite lost with how to get back to fitness efficiently.
Cycling I don’t mind so much right now as I feel getting back to a comfortable swimming ability is more important, but I may be underestimating how hard cycling would be. I have never raced cycling so don’t know what the learning curve would be like for getting to a racing standard.
I understand the best advice would be to approach other people at the top level, but I thought coming here would be useful as well. I feel going all in on triathlon may not be smart for my running, but I love swimming and want to find a competitive use for it alongside running!