With the West Point Triathlon coming up in two weeks, I needed to get in some solid miles on the bike this week, plus a brick workout at some point this weekend. For those that are unaware of the lingo, a "brick workout" consists of a bike ride followed directly by a run, simulating the bike/run transition in a triathlon. They are never fun. I have honestly never woken up on the morning of a planned brick workout and said, Yes, Kaitlyn, today we get to do a brick workout. That is awesome! I'm sorry, that thought just doesn't cross my mind.
What's that you say? Why do I do it? Well, that's a very good question. I guess in reality I don't have to do a brick workout. I could just do regular training - bike or swim in the morning, run in the evening, or visa versa - but then race day would come, my transition times would be awful and the first two miles off the bike would be like someone was jabbing nails into my hip flexors. I would ultimately finish the race at a slower running pace than anticipated and then yell at myself for not doing at least a couple bricks. And that, my friends, is why I do brick workouts.
Much like people who don't run long distance say things like, How can you run 13/16/20 miles? I get tired driving that far, people who are runners or bikers but who don't race in triathlons inevitably say things like, How can you do a 3000 yard swim workout and then go for an 8 mile run? That's just insane. Yes, yes it is. I won't argue that fact with you, but then again, some people find going to the opera as something enjoyable and to me, that is insanity (they don't even sing in English, people. Really, unless you know Italian or German or whatever language they are singing in, you don't even know what's going on!). It's all in your perception. While a brick workout is not necessarily "fun", I do finish up knowing that I am one step closer to achieving my race goals and although it is painful at the time, crossing the line at the end of a race after setting a PR is definitely worth it.
After a tough, windy and hilly ride out to Eaton's Neck yesterday evening, I met up with some friends - okay, you got me, it was Pops and Mary and other people more than twice my age - for happy hour down in Huntington. I'm sure I offended the noses of loads of people by rocking up to the bar in my sweaty, spandex-y bike kit, but whatever. I had earned that beer(s). Happy hour turned into happy hours and next thing we knew, it was 10:00 and we had kicked two kegs. (That makes it seem like we are raging alcoholics. In reality, the kegs were almost kicked to begin with, we just polished them off last night.)
It was a struggle waking up this morning for a workout but I finally dragged myself out of bed and got on with it. The weather was threating rain and thunderstorms, which just made me want to curl up in the fetal position and fall back asleep, but I had me some bricks to lay down damn-it! I went for an easy 20 on the bike on a mostly flat course and my legs were absolutely shot by the end. Even if I had planned for a hard ride, there's no way I would have been able to do it. The combination of a hill workout Thursday, hilly/hard ride yesterday and then not even 12 hours later another 20 on the bike had left my legs feeling like a tub of Jell-O. I threw my racing shoes on and went out for a slower-than-I-had-planned 5 miler just to get my legs used to the transition. It wasn't great, but it was done.
Is it too early for a beer? At what time is it socially acceptable to crack open a celebratory cold one? I wonder if I would get fired for drinking at work? (The answers: No. Anytime after 8:00am. Yes.)
Have a good rest of the weekend kids. Tomorrow I'm putting in an even 14 and then kicking back to relax with multiple adult beverages. SJ and I have to get two new kegs this week - any suggestions?
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