Build phase: twelve weeks

If the base phase was about becoming vaguely competent… the build phase was about doing that while carrying things that had absolutely no business being carried.

Up until this point, things were… reasonable.

I could run. I could bike. I could (technically) swim.

Nothing impressive. Just enough to not drown, fall over, or collapse after 5 minutes.

But more importantly:

• My tendons stopped complaining (as much)
• My joints felt less like glass
• My body didn’t panic every time I asked it to do something slightly uncomfortable

So naturally, the next logical step was:

→ Add weight and see what breaks

The First Time It Gets Real

Week 1:

10km run, 10kg

It wasn’t elegant. It wasn’t fast. But it worked.

Week 2:

10km, 15kg

Strangely… better?

Finished stronger. Less panic. Slightly more dignity.

Week 3:

10km, 20kg

I did 4km.

Not because my body gave up.

Because my brain turned it into a full Netflix series of worst-case scenarios.

So I delayed. Overthought. Started late.

And by the time I actually ran… I was already defeated.

Which is always a nice touch.

The Only Logical Response

Next week:

25kg, 10km

No overthinking. No drama.

Just:

Pick it up. Move forward. Don’t negotiate.

And it worked.

The Unexpected Villain

Going into this, I assumed:

• Legs would fail
• Knees would complain
• Ankles would rebel

They didn’t.

Instead, my traps decided to become the main character.

Because when you carry load like that, it doesn’t just sit politely on your back.

It:

• Pulls
• Compresses
• Slowly reminds you it exists… for 10km

So while my legs were doing their job…

My traps were writing resignation letters.

The Bike (A Different Kind of Problem)

Running hurt in a predictable way.

The bike… was more creative.

At first:

• Weight matched the runs
• Manageable
• Slightly uncomfortable

Then:

• Weight increased
• Time increased

And somewhere around minute 40…

Everything escalated.

Not legs.

Not lungs.

Just this constant, relentless upper body tension.

At one point I thought:

“Surely I can do strength training after this.”

I could not.

I went home. Slept. Questioned my decisions.

Training Got… Focused

Things became simpler.

Not easier. Just simpler.

• Strength → 3x/week (upper, lower, full)

• More:

  • Ankles
  • Plyometrics
  • Intervals (VO₂ work)

• Less:

  • Everything that didn’t directly matter

And one session became sacred:

→ Sunday: weighted run

Everything revolved around that.

If that improved, everything improved.

Swimming (Or Lack Thereof)

Now, ideally, a triathlon involves swimming.

In reality:

• Pool closed
• Sea was… not cooperative
• Weather had opinions

So most “swim sessions” became:

→ Running near water while occasionally acknowledging it exists

Not ideal.

But very real.

When Life Decides to Join the Program

Around this time:

• I moved places
• Sleep disappeared
• Food became… optional at times
• I was deep into AI work
• And war broke out in Lebanon

Which, unsurprisingly, is not listed in most periodization models.

Structure started slipping.

So the plan changed from:

→ “Follow program exactly”

to:

→ “Stay within direction and don’t stop moving”

Not perfect.

But effective enough.

The Mistake (A Big One)

If I could fix one thing:

→ Sleep

I treated it like a luxury.

It’s not.

It’s the foundation.

If sleep came in pill form, it would be illegal.

And I still managed to ignore it.

Which showed up as:

• Nervous system fatigue
• Inconsistent performance
• Slower recovery

Nothing dramatic.

Just everything slightly worse.

What Actually Adapted

Despite all that:

• Ankles got stronger
• Knees adapted
• Spine handled load better
• Confidence under weight increased

End of phase:

• 35kg run
• 43kg bike (no arms support)

Not pretty.

But very real progress.

What Didn’t

• Swimming → still questionable
• Shoulder → injured early, still lingering
• Upper body → slightly smaller
• Bodyweight → dropped (not intentional)

Turns out:

You can’t out-train poor recovery.

Who knew.

What This Phase Taught Me

The event is hard.

But not for the reasons I expected.

Not just:

• Distance
• Effort

But:

• Load distribution
• Equipment limitations
• Environment

Because it’s one thing to be fit.

It’s another to:

• Swim in open water you don’t trust
• Ride a bike that feels slightly too fragile
• Run with a tree on your back next to actual traffic

And do all of that… calmly.

The Real Challenge

It’s not just physical.

It’s:

• Managing uncertainty
• Solving logistics
• Staying consistent when nothing is stable

And, in my case:

Trying to train and build something meaningful at the same time.

Final Thought

This phase wasn’t clean.

It wasn’t optimized.

It wasn’t what you’d write in a textbook.

But it was honest.

And sometimes that’s more useful.

Because progress doesn’t come from perfect conditions.

It comes from:

→ Continuing anyway, and adjusting as you go