Surviving the "KILLER Brick"!

In late-March I told you about the "CRAZY Brick", interval workout that the coaches over at TriAttic (http://www.TriAttic.com) hosted for area triathletes. You can read all about that workout and the lessons learned in my "Oh no, Let's Go... Crazy Brick!" post.


Last Sunday, my journey to my first IRONMAN at IRONMAN Florida went through a workout my coach calls a "KILLER Brick"! The "KILLER Brick" is done as:

• Bike 40-miles / Run 4-miles.
• Bike 30-miles / Run 3-miles.
• Bike 20-miles / Run 2-miles.
• Bike 10-miles / Run 1-mile.

Total mileage for the workout is 100-miles on the bike and 10-miles on the run!

This workout is great for helping you lock in your hydration/nutrition and especially for getting your body used to that transition from bike to run! If you think a standard brick will help you get in touch with how your legs feel when you run right off the bike, imagine what doing it four times in one workout will do!

Other than the logistical issues and longer "transitions", as you lock up your bike and occasionally refill your bottles from your cooler between sets, there are really no downsides compared to the many great things to learn from this workout.

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My "KILLER Brick" workout started with temperatures in the upper-60s. The workout ended a little under 8-hours later with temperatures in the lower-90s.

The "step-down" nature of the sets are a real psychological benefit to this particular workout. After the first set, you're "Nearly halfway done!" Well, 40% done, to be exact, but I trick my brain into thinking "nearly halfway". Then, as you're doing the second set, you realize that the second set is the combined distance of the third and fourth set. And, when you're done with the second set, you're "Nearly three-fourths of the way done!"

Yes, these little mind-games really helped me get through this one. Naturally, the challenge grew as the day progressed and the temperature rose. However, I managed to stay completely tuned in to my effort, my hydration, and my nutrition.

Assessing the overall workout afterwards, it really struck me that, even if I kept the excessive transition times in my total workout time, I'd still have over 9 hours to complete a 2.4-mile swim, an additional 12-mile bike, and an additional 16-mile run. So, if I even took 2 hours to do the swim, rode the last 12-miles at a 12 mph pace for 1 hour, and then walked the 16-miles at a 20:00 min/mi, I'd still finish well under the 17-hour cutoff. I'd have 40 minutes to spare, in fact!


While a 16-hour IRONMAN isn't what I'm planning, the confidence I gained, that I can do this, from the KILLER Brick was huge!

So, get out there and tackle a KILLER Brick to build your confidence! And if you're successful, feel free to grab a little bite to eat after, as a reward!