Two-A-Days

A staple of the triathlon diet is the BRICK workout. Anecdotally described as "bike, run, ick," it's the workout that trains the body to get off of the bike and start running -- something easier said than done, frankly, considering many of the muscles used in running have spent hours atrophying while on the bike.

For me, the brick workout is not part of the current plan. In fact, my body is quite enjoying not doing any running at all at the moment as I prepare for a swim/bike ironman length event this year before the full ironman in 2010. Nonetheless, it is important for me to tackle the getting out of the water and onto a bike dynamic, which is why I took Saturday off this week and scheduled a swim/bike dual workout for Sunday morning.

Sunday

It started with a pool swim of 1500 yards -- not coincidentally, the distances I was going to cover (1500 yd swim/25 mi bike) are the swim and bike distances for the Olympic level triathlon, a race significantly shorter than the Ironman but still long enough to test yourself six weeks into a 24-week program.

I felt good in the pool -- pacing myself in a steady, almost methodical fashion, I was pleased with my pace. Coming out of the pool in around 35 minutes (a time any real swimmer or triathlete would scoff at) was, for me, a sign that the training had been going well. At approximately seven minutes for every 3:00, that puts me at about a 1:40 pace for the 4224 yard ironman length swim. When put in the context of the 2:30 that one is required to complete it in, I give myself lots of time to spare. To be fair, that is what the swim is about for me -- get in, get out, have something left in my legs and endure the coming several hours on the bike.

With that bit of confidence in tow, I jogged into the locker room and put on my bike gear. This particular bike was going to be done inside due to the questionable spring weather outside (rainy in the 50's, which actually served me quite well in the pool). And so it went... you may recall that a few weeks ago I swam and biked and found myself unable to muster real quality minutes on the bike due to complete and utter leg fatigue. On this day, my better pacing in the pool and my intentional overreliance on my arm pulls saved me something in my legs. Whereas I had budgeted 1:40 for the bike, which would be slow, I beat that by a full seven minutes, accomplishing the 25 mile equivalent in 93 minutes. Yes, it was on a stationary bike and didn't have the elemental factors that a ride outside would, but it was a serious improvement on just a few weeks prior.

The best part was how I felt afterward. All the soreness was the kind of good soreness I spoke about earlier -- there was no "pain" to speak of and I felt duly fatigued as if I had accomplished something.... and accomplished something I had. While the conditions were pristine compared to what exists swimming out and back on the Russian River and cycling through Sonoma wine country, I had finished at a pace that would bring me home in 8:25, WELL clear of the 10:30 deadline. We'll see if I can hold the same pace for 112 miles, but having two hours of time to play with can only bring a smile to your face.

Monday

I felt so good, in fact, that it was with a huge smile on my face that I walked into my chiropractic appointment on Monday morning. With a half-hour massage focused primarily on my tight lower back and lactic acid drowned hamstrings (I told her I had cycled hard!) followed by some ultrasound treatment on my shoulder that had been giving me trouble in the swim but didn't bother me on Sunday, I was ready to hit the gym for my standard Monday workout of hills on the bike. On this day, the plan was for 1:15 with a series of ten short hills -- with the equipment available at the gym, I decided to push myself and try to do three loops of a seven mile stretch full of rolling hills. 21 miles in 1:15 is generally a bit ambitious (16.8mph), but I wanted to give it a shot.

As I closed in on one loop finished, I was in good shape... crossing the finish line at 24:38, I had averaged 16.9mph and had a 22 second cushion to work with. Then I hit the sweet spot. If you have never cycled, you may not know the phenomenon I am referring to, but suffice to say that it is a good thing. Scientists and physiologists have described it as some release of hormones or pheremones which are released in repetetive motion exercises such as cycling or running which permit you to continue to "hammer" forward and increase your rate, all the while feeling wonderful from a mental standpoint. Needless to say, my pace quickened, I added a gear or two, literally and figuratively, and I was closing in on a 23 minute(!) seven mile cycle on the second leg. I just missed it, coming in a 47:59, but still I had averaged well over 17mph for the section and was a full two minutes up on the required pace.

Now I was motivated. My legs were starting to feel it, albeit more fatigue from the 40+ miles over two days rather than anything more sinister, but my heart and brain were most definitely in it. I pushed, pushed, and pushed some more and managed a 17.9mph final leg, coming in nearly four full minutes ahead of schedule. I was absolutely drenched with sweat, had consumed about a quart of water, but man, oh man, did I feel good.

How good? Well, I'm glad you asked. So good that when the Princess and the Pea refused to nap later that afternoon, I decided to hit the pool for one of the fartlek workouts I would probably miss due to a business trip scheduled for Thursday through Sunday. 1150 yards later, having accomplished my second double workout in as many days and at a high intensity all throughout, I was well and truly feeling my oats -- the race is some 18 or 19 weeks off, but I am really up for it now... time to keep it going.