Two-A-Day Training: Morning Pool Swim and Afternoon Brick Session

Session Overview

A structured two-a-day combining a morning pool swim with an afternoon brick session. This format is used in the final 8-10 weeks before an A-race by advanced triathletes who need to build fatigue resistance and transition efficiency without exceeding sustainable weekly training stress. Total duration: approximately 90-100 minutes across both sessions.

What You’ll Need

• 25m or 50m pool access
• Road or TT bike (outdoor or turbo)
• Running shoes and race kit
• HR monitor or power meter
• Nutrition for both sessions

Morning Session: Threshold Swim (45 min)

Warm-Up — 400m

• 200m easy freestyle, focus on long strokes
• 4×50m as 25m drill / 25m swim, 15s rest

Main Set — 1,800m

• 3×600m at CSS (Critical Swim Speed) pace, 30s rest between
• Target: 5-8s/100m faster than your 1,500m race pace
• Focus: consistent splits, high elbow catch, bilateral breathing

Cool-Down — 200m

• Easy backstroke or choice, no structure

Afternoon Session: Brick (45 min)

Warm-Up

• 10 min easy spin at Z2, cadence 85-95rpm

Main Set

• 20 min at Olympic race power (90-95% FTP) or Zone 3-4 HR
• Immediately rack bike, change shoes
• 10 min run at Olympic race pace or slightly faster — focus on quick turnover, don’t let pace slip in final 3km

Cool-Down

• 5 min easy jog + 5 min walk and stretch

Coaching Notes

• Allow 4-6 hours between morning and afternoon sessions — do not compress to 2 hours
• Eat a proper meal after the morning swim (protein + carbs); have a gel 30 min before the afternoon brick
• If the afternoon run feels terrible from the first 500m, the morning session was too hard — dial back CSS pace next week
• Use this session a maximum of twice per week; follow each two-a-day with a lighter single-discipline day
• Not suitable for athletes in base phase — requires a solid aerobic foundation (12+ months consistent training)