Endurance Athlete Training Zones: What is Zone X and Zone Y?
Athletes bring their own definition of training zones to training plans or a coach. 80/20 Endurance explains the zones, plus Zone X and Zone Y!| 80/20 Endurance
As a coach, I have seen athletes get race prep wrong more often than they get it right. Not because they didn’t train hard, but because tapering for endurance athletes can be confusing. If you learn how to taper correctly, you can set yourself up for peak performance. Tapering for Endurance Athletes vs. Peaking…| 80/20 Endurance
Most athletes tell me something like this before they begin the ‘Ironman Marathon’ or run leg of an Ironman: “I’m going to start at 7:00/mile and hold on.” “If I feel good halfway, I’ll pick it up.” “I want to go hard from mile one to break my competition.” This kind of thinking…| 80/20 Endurance
At the Ironman, pacing isn’t just about hitting target numbers—it’s about racing smart. Recent studies highlight the real impact of how professional triathletes distribute their effort across the bike and run to achieve success. What the Research Shows for World Championship Ironman Pacing 1. Downhill speed matters when it comes to Ironman pacing I…| 80/20 Endurance
Athletes bring their own definition of training zones to training plans or a coach. 80/20 Endurance explains the zones, plus Zone X and Zone Y!| 80/20 Endurance
The big push is on. The distances are climbing. The fatigue is mounting. Consuming enough food has become a serious challenge, as has staying awake in the middle of the day. I’m getting sick of pasta. I was already sick of rice. Chicken breast? Starting to annoy me. But I’ll never be sick of […]| Michelle Barker
When it comes to developing mental toughness, these three tips will help you go farther and last longer than perhaps you ever thought possible. The post The Key to Mental Toughness: Three Tips from Madam Pele appeared first on RapidStart Leadership.| RapidStart Leadership
The training for Ironman is never linear, and this time was no different. There were many low points along the way—one shoulder got sore, then the other, then the lower back… and then three weeks before the race, despite being as careful as possible, I caught Covid. Luckily it was a mild case, though […]| Michelle Barker
When it comes to developing mental toughness, these three tips will help you go farther and last longer than perhaps you ever thought possible.| RapidStart Leadership
There was an interesting discussion recently on Strava sparked by someone who’s training for an Olympic-distance triathlon. His race date is approaching but his motivation is waning. What if it’s not fun anymore? he asked. How do I keep going? I think there are two important issues to consider here. The first is burnout. […]| Michelle Barker
Nearly every long workout offers lessons, and I’ve had some good ones over the past few days. I’m consistently surprised by how much our minds can f*ck with us. Mine is an expert at causing trouble. It routinely tries to convince me that I can’t do something and therefore shouldn’t attempt it. It can even […]| Michelle Barker
This race has become an annual tradition for me. VOWSA (the Vancouver Open Water Swim Association) always does a great job. The event runs smoothly, starts on time, and … there’s food and coffee! Plus, it’s at Sasamat Lake, one of my favorite places to swim. This year, however, I approached it with a bit […]| Michelle Barker
Doing a solo 70.3 training day for Ironman is a great way to learn what's working...and what isn't.| Michelle Barker
Sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? But it passes quickly. From where I’m standing now, it’s hard to imagine being ready. I am comfortably swimming around 3k, riding about 60k and running 12-14k. And not all in one day. Which means I have a loooong way to go. But it always seems impossible to imagine […]| Michelle Barker
Happy (very belated) New Year, everyone. January is the time to plan races and figure out what the coming year will look like—in theory, anyway. But theories are good, so here’s mine. Having made a full recovery from last year’s stupid concussion, I have thrown myself into training for Ironman Chattanooga which will happen at […]| Michelle Barker
From his brilliant debut to 2006’s Fishscale, we’ve ranked The Wallabee Champ’s best projects.| Okayplayer
Intro In August of 2013, just days after her 64th birthday, Diana Nyad became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. The picture below shows her (in the red circle) beside her support boat. The 110-mile swim was her fifth attempt at the crossing since 2011. The previous attempts […]| Joe Friel
