Saturday, April 19, 2008

Awesome Brick!

For those not familiar with multisport - we use the term "brick" workout for a dual workout session, most typically a bike followed by a run. Some think the term comes from how your legs feel when you try to run off the bike! But the latest thing I've read is that the type of workout was created by a guy with the last name Brick. Either way, they are great workouts, and when you're training for a triathlon/dualthlon where you have to run straight off the bike, it's important to get this kind of training in.

Today's brick was a 2 x (14mi bike, 2mi run). It was a great day for such a workout - we finally had warmer temps. We set up our transition area in our cars in a shopping center parking lot and then headed out on a super bike ride. The wind was strong and cool enough we needed long sleeves for the bike, but stayed plenty warm on the run. Here's an idea of the route, except we didn't ride on hwy 115, but went behind the country club instead. Got to see some fantastic views of the city from the south side!

View Interactive Map on MapMyRide.com

The run was hilly, with ~100ft elevation gain in 0.5mi! But just think how strong our legs are getting! As the coach, I watched the bikes while the team did the first 2mi run. When the last runner returned to start the second ride/run combo, I went to ride out with her and noticed I had a flat. Wish I would have noticed that while I was just sitting around watching those bikes! So I took a couple minutes, found the glass chip in the tire, and got a new tube going. I was able to catch up with the group when they started their second loop. I think that's my 3rd flat tire since February - might be time for new tires with a little more puncture resistance! When we returned for the second run, everyone put their bikes in their cars so I did the run. Yowie! My legs did feel like bricks, but I did manage to pound out a 9:16 pace. (the downhills helped bring the avg pace down for sure!)

The long course team was out for a 3 hour ride, and managed to return to the parking lot as the "short coursers" finished their workout. Great timing for sure! A super workout for the Team in Training folks!

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