Should I get a personal trainer for a triathlon?

If you've got the money to spend, you should spend it on a tri coach. Someone with sport-specific knowledge will be better able to help you.

1
A Personal Trainer offered to coach me at a discount rate to 'break into' tri coaching. :umno: Mmmm, no thanks. I don't want to be a guinny pig.
You may want to read Triathlon 101. It will cover the basics of putting everything together.

Are you getting a personal trainer to improve your running & cycling
or
are you getting a personal trainer for weight training?

Def. be careful with coaches. A "tri" coach who advertises AS a Tri coach is probably the way to go, however, I've found there are a variety of people out there who will coach on running and/or swim and/or bike and/or weights and/or nutrition and/or massage and/or stretching and it is certainly nicer, and cheaper, to go with someone who understands issues regarding TRIs.

the run coaches, for example, seem to have a totally different focus.

I agree--I found that with the swim coaches too. Competitive swim training and tri swim training are quite different, so if you're going to get coached by someone, make sure they know you're mainly concerned with tri swimming--you kick WAY less in tris because the swim is your first event and you don't want to blow all your energy by kicking like a madperson, whereas in competitive swimming, your kick is a big part of your speed. I had a trainer at the gym work with me when I was first thinking of training for a tri and all we did was argue about my kick. Not very productive.

Definitely look for a tri coach if you're going to get coached at all. I think a couple people here have them and Bob, aren't there some good people online that you can tap into as well?

Swim, Bike, Run is another good beginners' tri book that will explain a lot and trinewbies.com is a great site for all sorts of info. But we've got some pretty knowledgable people here too, so tap away.......and good luck!

Edited to take the part out about swim lessons, sorry, I must have been speed reading and didn't see the part about you swimming on a team. But even still, the kick thing is a big difference in tris, and having been on the swim team in high school it was tough to get used to not kicking.

I am more of a reader myself. Find several good books.

I, for once, will be the voice of dissent. For something that small, I say no. If you like it, and then commit to a standard sprint or oly distance, it makes sense. In my opinion, see if you like it before you make the investment. You already have the swim portion down, which for most is the most difficult portion. Anyone can go out and ride 9M on a bike on no training, so if you ride a little you'll be fine. I assume you run, so a 1M would be a cakewalk. Also be sure you get a coach that truly understands your goals, your physiology, and your abilities. Definitely skip the personal trainer, though. I work out with several at my gym for lifting and yoga/pilates at the gym but would never think to use them for tri training. Different skill set, different certification.