In this week’s episode, we’re diving into a bunch of different thought-provoking topics: how to think about training when you’re dealing with grief or other high LSS events, how to modify bike workouts during indoor/outdoor shoulder season, when and how to use super shoes, adapting workouts, persevering through workouts, push vs. pull forces in working towards your goals, low cadence cycling, the coach/athlete relationship, tapping into different swim speeds, and more. This episode was also all about gratitude for what we have and for the podcast when life feels extra tough. Stay well peeps!
Grief and Training
Wish I didn’t have to bring this back, but: grief/ other majorly high LSS events and their physiological effects.
Observations on what high LSS does to you physiologically
Resting HR
HRV
In-workout HR
Sleep
Fueling
Reality check for me: you need to earn the right to do big hard workouts. If your sleep and/or your fueling are not dialed, you *must* modify to avoid injury/illness/burnout.
Immediate mindset shift for training:
What kinds of workouts are going to make me feel better?
Shut anything down that isn’t making you feel better
Outside/nature usually better if you can
No ‘right’ approach
Long term goal re-evaluation depending on how long the period of high LSS is. Sometimes it can help to just take the pressure off or have a coach tell you it is OK to take the pressure off.
Being kind to yourself. A work in progress! Screaming ‘what would I say to one of my athletes’ into the void (and ask yourself what you would tell a friend, partner, etc.)
Supershoes - the triathlete’s new best friend and force multiplier
I’ve been holding this one back from the last couple of episodes while I’ve had a chance to see for myself what the hype is on super shoes. Turns out, the hype is real! A few reasons they are game changers:
They make running fun!
You learn to toe off better and enhance overall run technique.
You can do more speed and more volume with less strain on the body. Win/win.
Running typically saps your bike power by ~10%. My theory is that I’ll see less of a drop this year in bike power because the strain is less. Will report on that as we move through the spring.
The first versions of super shoes were only good for ~100 miles. The new versions are reported to last 300/400 miles or more. Given that you can’t break down a carbon plate and the foam is so robust, you can wear these shoes for a long time. I suspect you’ll just want to get another pair because you’ll just want a new pair and not because the shoe has actually lost too much of its effectiveness.
My base pace is easily 30” faster and pickups are 1’ faster. If you are not racing in them, you are giving away a lot of time / places.
One athlete just ran his fastest 400m/800m/1KM/1 mile in the last 90 days in their first Zone 2 run in super shoes. (He’s not been doing a lot of speed work due to Achilles and a gentle ramp into his season.)
Three workout varieties; adding the Perseverance Workouts (PWs)
There tend to be three buckets that most workouts fall into:
The normal, every day workout that just gets done - Normal Workouts (NWs). Not much to talk about or report. It's to show up, get the work done and move on. Punch in, punch out. The day is done. We want most workouts to fall into this category as these workouts are low stress, low friction, consistent and form our fitness foundation.
The Adaptive Workout (AWs). We talked a lot about this in Episode 69: Season Prep with Physical Therapist Neil MacKenzie. We discussed when to modify the workout and when to just skip the workout. Life is dynamic, LSS gets high and you are not a robot. We are quite proud when our athletes take charge of their health and modify it based on what is happening now and not some theoretical reality that is the training plan.
And I think there is a third workout bucket which I’m calling the Perseverance Workout (PWs). Maybe you are coming off an illness, travel, harsh winter conditions or life stress is just a bit high (but not too high). In other words, working out is not ideal and the workout itself is a grind. If you weren’t on a plan with a long term goal or if it was off season, you would probably skip it.
With the tough winter conditions this year in many parts of the country, it’s added a lot of friction into the fitness routine. There are some days that are just going to kind of suck getting out there. And here’s the point: that’s OK. Call it out. Acknowledge that it’s not ideal and/or your motivation is lagging.
We all feel that and sometimes, especially coming off an illness, there will be a number of workouts in a row that just kind of suck. Because that feeling may cluster for a week or even more, they tend to gain an outsized effect on our mental game. Again, call it out with yourself, your coach and/or support system.
Sometimes it can be really HARD to get back into a normal, low stress workout routine. That cluster of tough workouts can feel like a wall that you won’t break through.
The good news is it’s temporary and you will come out the other side. This is a mental and physical test and a chance to improve your resilience/grit. (See Resilience Data Points). Endurance training is very challenging, requiring you to stack brick after brick. Ideally stacking most bricks will feel just like another day on the job site. Other days, you need to skip stacking bricks or stack just a couple. And some days, those bricks will feel twice as heavy. On those days, persevere!
Charlie training comment on modifying and persevering
Showed up to the pool, executed programming to the best of my ability. Victory. All we can ask of ourselves. I have been so critical of myself and my training this cycle. A lot of red boxes since we started in 2025. I did a lot of reflection while swimming easy and I couldn’t really identify weeks or days where I could have done any better.
One, maybe 2, sessions missed in two months due to goofing off but otherwise most days I’m just fighting hard to stay employed, be present as a husband, and to make it to bed early.
When I was walking over to the pool, I was thinking about a skill that I haven’t seen talked about very much on social media, endurance science blogs, or life lesson authors: losing gracefully.
Sometimes life is the bigger, meaner motherfucker in the boxing ring and we’re not coming out on top no matter what. Maybe I would have been better off long term throwing in the towel, calling it wraps on the training cycle, and saving the fight for sunnier days. But I also think a big part of the point of endurance sports is to go down swinging and who you are when things aren’t going your way.
I have a feeling that over the years I’ll look back on these months and the times I was able to show up with immense pride. There’s a lot of daylight left in 2025 and I’m not ready to call it a loss just yet. I won’t go as far to say I have momentum going, but I’m feeling a little bit more centered and re-calibrated for the coming weeks. Onwards!!!
Push vs. Pull - Brad Cooper phD
Thanks to Audrey for sending this article along.
The push is something we might get externally from a parent, coach, teacher that might help set us off on a journey but it's not a sustainable, natural, internal force. Famous phrase: Motivation is temporary, inspiration is permanent.
There is another side to push and that is pull. Or Force vs. flow. Effort vs. alignment. Got to vs. get to. Should vs. could
An example of the pull concept:
He had a set of track 400s that his plan says run in ‘x’ time. Instead of approaching it with a, “I must hit this specific time or it’s a failure - a push attitude’, he approaches it with a pull attitude that incorporates a few qualities that invoke a greater sense of being:
Gratitude - grateful for the chance to actually get to do track intervals
Joy - the emotion that brings us into the experience of actualizing our potential self
Curiosity - "I wonder how fast I can run these?" creates an intriguing - and engaging! - personal mini-journey.
Perspective - Perspective reminds me not to take myself too seriously
He ends with, “The greatest - those who sustained high performance over extended periods to reach the utmost levels - were pulled, not pushed, to those heights. "Push harder" is a myth. If we truly desire to scale new mountains…the pull provides the key.”
Link: https://substack.com/home/post/p-157484985
Steve Magness: Performance is about holding onto contrasting forces.
Similar to the above, Steve Magness had a banger this week:
We must...
-Care deeply, but let go
-Try hard, but be relaxed
-Set big goals, but be able to let go of the outcome
-Be obsessive on the field, but able to take the jersey off.
-Identify with our pursuit, but don't attach
Performing well in anything is about nuance and messiness. It’s not cheap slogans we see on social media. The reality of reaching your potential in just about anything is navigating a world of contrasts.
The benefit of low cadence cycling:
Power = Cadence x Torque
Increase torque (TPV shows torque on main screen - fun to play with)
200 watts at 50rpm is the same as 400 watts at 90rpm? (Don’t quote me on this!)
Smooth pedal stroke, improve your pedaling efficiency
Increase climbing ability
If doing Ironman Lake Placid you need to do low cadence both seated and standing. You spend A LOT of time doing low cadence at Placid. Start to train it now.
(There are a lot of Ironman and Half Ironman courses that have a lot of climbing so low cadence is a skill you will most likely need.)
If you want to nerd out on torque training, here is a good article.
Also, low cadence is just one tool in your cycling tool box. High cadence is just as important, too.
Interviewing a coach
I had an interview this week with a potential new client and came out of that with a couple key insights:
Like a job interview, come prepared with a lot of questions and come prepared to tell your story. This is a back and forth conversation. Ultimately, we are looking for a cultural fit i.e., is this someone I can trust and I want to spend time with. Many training plans are very similar so the deciding factor should not be does this coach have good workouts, nearly everyone has good workouts as there are no secrets. The main point is can I believe in working with this person.
You are an expert on you, the coach is an expert on best practices.
Put the two together in a partnership and you will go far together. This is why communication with your coach is so key. Especially true for remote coach / athlete relationships. The more we know, the more we can work in partnership to get you to your goal(s).
Fun thought of the week: Your training should be like a kick ass mixed tape
You create for yourself, your friends and gets you pumped and inspired.
Listener Questions
What are the differences in swim speed between “aerobic”, moderate and threshold?
Challenge of the Week
Katie: If you’re going through it, ask if someone can help you take something off your plate! People almost always want to help and many of us are just too stubborn to ask. (That can be a coach taking a workout off the week, a partner taking on life/household responsibility, a co-worker helping you out with something, etc.)
Jim: Persevere through a workout. This winter is providing plenty of opportunities to work on your grit!
Gear Pick of the Week
Katie: TRIHARD shower products
Jim: Maurten 320