Training

I’m still getting caught up with work and life in general having just returned from 2 weeks in Switzerland and the UK. So this is just going to be a quicky. It has to do with a study I came across … [Read more...] about Max Heart Rate and Fitness

The above title is the key question that must be asked before starting to train for a specific A-priority race. Many don’t and simply train randomly. That’s works alright in the first year or so after … [Read more...] about What’s Important to Your Success?

I’m at a camp in Switzerland this week with a group of first-time Ironman triathletes. When I do these with Tridynamic,  who manages the camps, we bring in local experts to add depth what may … [Read more...] about Recovery On Demand for the Advanced Athlete

In block periodization, according to Vladimir Issurin in his book, Block Periodization,  there are three mesocycles which are actually quite similar to what is used in linear periodization. They … [Read more...] about Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 5

Block periodization is relatively new. I started toying with it about a year ago. As with all such training experimentation I tried it on myself first. I was pleased with the results. I do a few road … [Read more...] about Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 4

In part 1 I wrote about a topic I’ve addressed here many times before: The limited value of training volume for the advanced athlete and the necessity of emphasizing event-specific intensity, … [Read more...] about Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 3

This post is a clarification of my earlier post on the same topic. I’ll get back to describing advanced-athlete training once I’ve cleared up an obvious matter I overlooked earlier. After part 1 of … [Read more...] about Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 2

Should all athletes training for a given event prepare in the same way? I expect most readers of this blog to answer that with a resounding “no.” It’s fairly obvious that if your intent is to win the … [Read more...] about Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 1

One of the best measures of fitness change is your output-input ratio. That may sound quite technical but you use this a lot when talking about your car. You call it “miles per gallon” or “kilometers … [Read more...] about Speed, Power, Heart Rate and Fitness

So you’re a triathlete who occasionally does 2 hard workouts in a day, or you’re a cyclist doing a stage race with 2 races in a single day. What should you do after the first workout or race to make … [Read more...] about Short-Term Recovery

There are 7 basic training assumptions that keep me on the right path with the athletes I coach. These certainly aren’t earth-shaking thoughts but they lead in a direction that perhaps you hadn’t … [Read more...] about 7 Basic Training Assumptions

I knew someone would ask. I don't know why this whole matter of the 30-minute test is so difficult for folks to understand. So here's the latest question, the one which I mentioned in a … [Read more...] about Would You Believe It? Another 30-Minute Test Question!

In the Build period, weeks 3 to 12 before your race, you should be focused only on workouts – and making them racelike. What your weekly volume (hours, miles, kilometers) is has little importance. … [Read more...] about The Build Period and Racelike Workouts

I love working with athletes. I really do.  For the most part thay are healthy, happy, motivated and driven to succeed. Helping athletes learn more about training and racing is great fun. But on … [Read more...] about The 30-Minute Test Is Easy. Really.

I am asked yet again how to find one's lactate threshold heart rate (LTHR) by doing a 30-minute time trial. I really don't understand what seems to be so difficult about this. All that's … [Read more...] about Determining your LTHR

A German reader asked me today how fast fitness is lost if you miss a day or, heaven forbid, several days of training. There are lots of confounding factors here but I’ll take a shot at it. This is a … [Read more...] about Never Miss a Workout

I got an email yesterday regarding my most recent post on training with z3 to boost FTP. The writer wanted to know what I meant by zone 3. That's a good question because there are all sorts of … [Read more...] about What Is Zone 3?

This is just a quick comment in regards to the post I did a few days ago on measuring aerobic endurance progress. In that post I suggested that for experienced and generally fit athletes that training … [Read more...] about Zone 3 and FTP

The following is another question sent my way by a somewhat discouraged-sounding athlete who must be in his early Base period. In fact, this is an extension of the same question I answered in my last … [Read more...] about Q&A: Easy Workouts too Easy?

I get questions from athletes daily. Unfortunately, I have to pay the bills (just like you, I expect) so can’t devote my time to answering them all. Consequently, our team of TrainingBible coaches and … [Read more...] about Q&A: Measuring Aerobic Endurance Progress

I’m somewhat of a technology geek. I like things that hold out the promise of doing something more effectively and efficiently, especially in sport. I can only recall one time when I was totally wrong … [Read more...] about Reflections on Technology and Endurance Sport

I'm in Calella, Spain, near Barcelona, for my Women's-Only Triathlon Camp over the next week. So I'm working on my Spanish a bit. Hence, the "dos" in the title. I took 4 … [Read more...] about What’s Wrong With Periodization: Part Dos

The most basic element of race preparation is the workout. Each workout should have a purpose related to your performance goals. The purpose should be clearly defined. If in the Base period the … [Read more...] about Workout Analysis

About two weeks ago I posted here showing that cyclists may experience a loss of bone minerals possibly resulting in brittle bones and an increased likelihood of breaks. I mentioned then that I would … [Read more...] about More on Bone Health