Sprint Triathlon Swim-to-Bike Brick: Pool to Turbo Session

Session Overview

This indoor brick simulates the first two legs of a sprint triathlon without leaving the building — ideal for race-specific training when outdoor conditions or time are against you. You’ll swim 750m at threshold effort in the pool, then transition straight to 20km on a turbo trainer to feel that unique bike-after-swim fatigue.

What You’ll Need

• Access to a 25m or 50m pool
• Turbo trainer set up in an adjacent gym or at home nearby
• Trisuit or quick-drying kit for the transition
• Towel, bike shoes and helmet ready near the trainer

Warm-Up (10 minutes)

200m easy front crawl in the pool, building from Zone 1 to Zone 2. Include 4 × 25m drill lengths: catch-up, fingertip drag, bilateral breathing and freestyle. Finish with 2 × 50m at steady pace.

Main Set

Record your combined time for the swim and transition to benchmark future attempts.

• 750m continuous front crawl at Zone 3–4 effort — hold race-day pace throughout
• Transition: exit pool, towel off, change into bike shoes (clock your transition time)
• 20km turbo ride: 5km Zone 2 warm-in → 10km Zone 3–4 race effort → 5km Zone 2 spin-down

Cool-Down (5 minutes)

5-minute easy Zone 1 spin on the trainer after completing the 20km. Follow with hip flexor and quadriceps stretching before stepping off the bike.

Coaching Notes

• Heavy legs in the first 5km of the bike is completely normal — you’re switching from horizontal swimming muscles to cycling posture
• Keep your transition brisk but unhurried: fumbling in T1 is where race time disappears
• Note combined swim + transition + bike time so you can track improvement over the season
• Advanced athletes: extend swim to 1000m and bike to 25km