I am training for my first Tri. Doing an Oly in 8 weeks. Yesterday I went for a long ride. Plan was to do about 75 miles. Well 40 miles in, it started sprinkling rain. I cut the ride short because I hate riding in the rain. Decided I would attempt my first brick instead. So I get home at about 50 miles, do a quick change and hit the trails at the park across the street. Plan was to do about 3 1/2 miles. Well about 1/2 mile in, I get a bad cramp in my quad which brings me to a walk. Rub it out, then start up again. Jeez, this hurts. Where is the air? I end up alternating between running a walking but I did the 3 1/2 miles. It wasn’t pretty and it hurt like hell, but at least the mileage was completed.
What did I learn? I have a long way to go. I can do all 3 sports individually the required distances, but there is a huge difference when they hit back to back to back. I knew this was the case, but when you try it for the first time, the reality of it all really slaps a newbie in the face. Secondly, it gave me mega motivation to try and drop 15 - 20 lbs before the race. I have even more than that to lose overall, but figure that is a more reasonable goal considering the time frame I am working with. Finally, I learned just what studs most of you really are! Hoping to join the ranks in about 8 weeks.
Good for you for sticking it out though—I’m sure some would advocate stopping, but you were smart to stay within yourself and finish the brick. It’s good practice for the inevitable “bad day” you’ll face down the road. Just don’t be discouraged and remember that this is the first time you’ve asked that much of your body, especially your legs. One thing that helped me was to do a very small brick after every ride–the “frequency = volume” idea. Instead of one or two big bricks a week, I would do a brick after every ride. Most times the brick was only 10min long because, in a race, my legs felt normal after 10min. Longer bricks on the weekends, but not much. There are quite a few threads (one in particular which you can search) that discuss the appropriate length for a brick. Just do what works for you.