Coaching & planning · Coaching
Why weeks are structured
Easy vs controlled threshold, double-threshold clustering, and how to execute the week.
A good training week is not "as hard as you can every day." It is a deliberate mix of controlled quality, easy aerobic work, and recovery so the hard days actually land.
Quality vs easy
Most of your week should feel genuinely comfortable — roughly 75–85% easy volume. Easy days build the aerobic engine with low recovery cost. Quality is primarily controlled threshold (LT2) — repeatable hard, not maximal — with a smaller dose of VO2 for ceiling work when the phase calls for it.
Going "kind of hard" every day (the gray zone) is the most common self-coached mistake. Brick keeps easy days easy and clusters quality on purpose. What's on your calendar.
Double-threshold days
When your volume band supports two-a-days, Brick may schedule a double-threshold day: an AM bike threshold and a PM run threshold, with easy days around it. That clusters stress so the rest of the week can stay truly easy — a Norwegian-inspired pattern scaled for age-group life, not elite 30-hour weeks.
Why spacing matters
Hard sessions need recovery beside them. Accidental back-to-back quality days get softened when the week would otherwise stack stress. Intentional double-threshold pairs are protected; the day after still prefers easy work so the next stimulus can stick.
If an easy day looks too easy, that is often the point: it protects tomorrow's work and keeps the week sustainable.
Priority on the calendar
Lower priority numbers are more important. If life forces a miss, protect the key sessions first. Brick may propose a reprioritize so the week still serves the season instead of crumbling into random leftovers.
Bricks and special days
In triathlon build and peak, a long ride and the brick run are an atomic pair — one training unit for fatigue and logistics. Treat them that way. Race weeks, recovery weeks, and fitness tests also reshape the skeleton for a reason, not as random variety.
How to execute the week
- On easy days, stay conversational. If unsure, go slower.
- On threshold days, stay controlled and finishable — especially on double-threshold days.
- Do not "make up" a missed hard day by stacking two hard days tomorrow.
- Trust recovery weeks when volume drops; deload is often intentional.
