Duathlon: How to Ace the Second Run

Nothing brings more lead-legged discomfort in duathlon (and triathlon) than the dreaded final run.

After six years of duathlon racing, that bike-run transition hasn’t felt any easier for me. I’ve had second runs where I’ve almost threw up my drink, runs reduced to a relative shuffle and runs where — oh happy day — I ran well and passed several competitors.

With proper training, pacing and fueling, you can improve your run off the bike and cruise to a successful finish.

Image courtesy of triathlon.org

Master the brick

To run well off the bike you have to practice running off the bike. Incorporate at least one bike-run brick a week into your training. When you’re just starting out, don’t worry about pace. Just run.

As you progress, add intensity to your brick. Try a one-hour bike with the last 10 minutes at race pace, followed by a short run with the first five minutes at race pace.

Jason Digman, former head of Dig It Triathlon and Multisport Coaching, recommends what I call the “multi-brick.” After a warmup, perform three sets of one-mile run, 10-minute bike, with no recovery in between. Keep your first multi-brick at race pace plus 15 to 20 seconds. Over the course of four weeks, progress up to race pace.