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Chargement…
Chargement…
We explain why brick training is essential, how to fit it into your week, and how to find partners for your brick sessions on TriMates.
A brick session — or brick training — is a workout that combines two triathlon disciplines back-to-back, with no break in between. The most classic is bike → run: you get off the bike, slip on your running shoes, and start running immediately.
The term 'brick' comes from the very specific sensation of the first few strides off the bike: the legs feel heavy, like bricks. This is exactly the sensation you need to train if you want to perform on race day, because that's precisely when (in T2, bike-to-run transition) many triathletes lose time or blow up.
The specific benefits you can't get from regular single-sport training.
+ After 1-2h on the bike, your muscles are wired in cycling posture (quad-dominant, shortened hamstrings). The first strides of the run are mechanically tough. Brick training rehearses this transition specifically and makes it automatic.
− If you never do bricks, you'll discover this sensation for the first time on race day — at the worst possible moment.
+ In a triathlon, you run with an energy and muscular deficit. Holding your target pace under these conditions is a skill in itself, distinct from regular running.
− An easy jog on fresh legs doesn't reproduce at all the sensations of running after the bike.
+ Brick training forces you to automate the transition: rack the bike, slip on shoes, grab cap/gel, go. With regular practice, you save 30-60 seconds on race day.
− Without training, T2 looks like an improvised puzzle under fatigue — wasted time, forgotten kit.
+ The first 2-3 km off the bike are psychologically tough. Practising to push through this sensation makes all the difference at the end of the race.
− An unprepared mind can lead to dropping out or significantly slowing on the run leg.
On TriMates, choose 'Multisport' mode when creating a session. You can chain bike + run in the same proposal (for example 90 min bike + 30 min run).
The start point is also the transition point. Choose a practical location (park, parking lot, club) where you can safely rack the bike and start running immediately.
Nearby triathletes who configured their zone and availability automatically receive a notification. As brick sessions are rare, the tri community responds well.
The session chat lets you fine-tune the details: bike/run duration, target paces, run pace after bike. On the day, transitioning as a group = maximum motivation.
Start small: 30 min bike + 10 min run is enough for your first bricks. Build progressively each week.
On the bike, finish with effort close to your target run pace — don't drop into 'recovery' mode just before transition, it's too easy.
Prepare your kit in advance: running shoes ready, elastic laces, cap, energy gel laid out. Reproduce race-day conditions.
One brick per week is enough during the prep phase (8-12 weeks before the race). More is risky for recovery.
Don't do your brick the day before a hard session — it's an expensive session muscularly. Put it on Saturday with an easy Sunday or long-easy run.
Find a triathlon partner
The head page: find triathletes near you by target format.
Find a cycling partner
For the bike part of your brick — long rides and intervals.
Find a running partner
For the run part — intervals, long runs, recovery.
The TriMates concept
How the free French triathlon community works.
Create your free TriMates account and propose your first multisport session.