TLog: Bike-Run Brick training

Today's session is a 2-hour bike ride alternating between fast pace and recovery; followed by a quick transition and a fast 3 km run.

Tried out two new items - the Lake tri shoes and 2XU tri-suit. The tri shoes felt less comfortable than the Shimano R300, a little too loose. Had to tighten the velcro to minimize foot movement, but then the feet felt a little numb. So had to readjust. The problem was that the left cleat came loose and I couldn't find the right screwdriver in my handy dandy pouch. :(

The tri-suit worked out well. Could feel the compression on lower body - just like the 2XU running tights. The difference was the support on the upper body, in particular the stomach and lower chest area. Because the arms and shoulders were not covered, the tightness/compression was only on the lower chest. Yet, I didn't feel that breathing was compromised. Felt smoother off the saddle. Even though the padding was thinner than that on my biking shorts, I didn't feel any discomfort down there. So that's good.


Because I couldn't get to ride in the morning due to other commitments and had to wait till the late afternoon due to rain, the PCN was rather crowded. Bikers, runners, walkers, children, etc. That made it difficult to do the 15 min fast rides. Almost ran into a small dog! Anyway, managed to get in two good stretches, ave 26 - 28 kph, max speed 34 kph. Most of the ride was in race gear (large front gear and third largest rear).

The transition was pretty smooth. Just slipped into the Saucony Type A2 (the elastic laces worked fine) and out in 1.34. Longer than I thought ...

The first 500m felt strange. Even though this wasn't my first experience (the first was last year's duathlon), it still felt weird, as if my legs were still spinning, and my feet weren't really on the ground. I went out too fast (5.15 pace) and whoa! What am I doing!?! So slowed down some, clocking 5.22 for the first km and 5.33 for the second km. Then it was 5.33 (500m) and 6.47 (last 500m up slope). Should go slower for the actual race.

Overall, a good brick session.