Five Things This Week
1⃣From Lemon To Legend
I have an electronic copy of the final draft of the eBook.
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DM me if you want the link to download the PDF.
If you discover type-os then let me know so we can correct before we go to print.
2⃣Then What
A friend has been thinking through next year. He shared that he was going to do A and B. I urged him to look deeper.
➡️If you are able to do A and B then what?
➡️Why does it make sense to do A and B and not something else?
I had a coach ask me similar questions. At the time, I had just won Ultraman and was training towards my goal of winning an Ironman.
My answer ➡️this path is what I was born to do.
Pure motivation
...that stayed with me until my kids arrived, then it changed, then it returned.
3⃣The Talk Test is Bogus
This summer I've done sessions with old friends. A couple of these sessions involved long climbs.
➡️Their HRs were 30-40 bpm above mine when I was sitting above LT1.
➡️Both of us were talking, comfortably.
If you are generating unusual fatigue, or hunger, from your "endurance" training then you are training more intensely than you realize.
You will use all kinds of rationalizations to avoid the reality that you need to slow down your Green Zone training.
4⃣The Way It Feels vs The Way It Is
Had two sessions with Coach Monsy this week. We did video analysis and found three areas for improvement.
I’ve be trying to figure out why my right pull was weaker than my left. Turns out I had my fingers splayed, yet my fingers felt like they were touching.
A mind-blowing illusion.
The illusion was so strong... I was able to see the shadow of my splayed fingers on the bottom of the pool. I still couldn't close my fingers (!) because my brain did not believe my eyes.
Source of the stroke flaw was excessive paddle swimming, with splayed fingers.
5⃣Greta Syndrome
One of the worst things we can do for a young person is give them our attention when they are filled with anger, disgust and grievance.
It's also one of the worst things we can do for ourselves. More thoughts on Thursday.
Pool swimming and open water swimming are two different beasts. Here are some tips to help you master open water swimming! #ironman #swimming #openwaterswimming #openwaterswim #sport #fitness #jdcrew #feelthebarn
Had an incredible weekend celebrating my big 50 w friends, adventure and bluebird days in the Colorado mountains. Couldn’t have asked for any more! Thanks to everyone who made it a birthday to remember and to @mikedibens of course ❤️
An oldie but a goodie swim set: 4 x 1500m. Long swim sets often get overlooked, but they’re just as crucial as your long rides and runs. With an IRONMAN swim at 3.8km, it’s essential to log those longer sessions to be fully prepared for race day. If 6km feels like a stretch, aim for 2 or 3 sets of 1500m instead. #jdcrew #ironman #sport #fitness #swim #bike #run #feelthebarn #workoutwednesday
Another coaching chat is live. Julie Dibens @dibbo4 on how being the swim puzzle piece of the @taylorknibb team and how that collaboration has helped her learn. Listen to this and more in a great conversation with this impressive Olympian and World Champion turned mastermind of the @jd_crew_ wherever you get podcasts
Ever stare down a workout in Training Peaks and think, “There’s just NO WAY!”
Maybe you’re tired. Maybe you had a hard day at work and you’re just not focused. Maybe your coach is just throwing a new challenge at you that you aren’t certain you can tackle......
Often times, the inclination might be to just punt. “Sorry, coach. Not today.”
As coaches, we cringe when we see the “Quit before you start” session. Here’s a couple strategies to try when you look at a workout and think “Just no.”
1) Be courageous and just dive in! Give it a try. You may well surprise yourself and while you felt dreadful, you were still able to perform! What great confidence to put in your back pocket for race day when you might not be feeling the way you want!
2) If you try and fail to hit the targets? Modify before quitting. Maybe your coach is asking you to hit FTP powers on the bike. Set a new benchmark - shave 10w off and aim for that instead. You’ll feel better for making the effort and will still get good work done on the day!
3) Do SOMETHING. Maybe 10w isn’t enough and maybe today is a day where you just have to go easy. Better to take the structure out and do something rather than do nothing at all. Something is better than nothing!
So be brave, friends! When the session looks daunting and you think NO, change your mindset and turn it into YES. Of course if you are sick or injured? That’s another story. But don’t let yourself walk away from a session before you start because you THINK it might be too hard. Try it!! Modify if you must!! Do SOMETHING before quitting! You’ll feel better for it!
#workoutwednesday #jdc #bebrave
It’s once again, Workout Wednesday!!
As many athletes begin their 2025 season journey, laying a foundation for the season to come and building fitness, it’s a great idea to incorporate some sport specific strength work!
This can mean big gear work on the bike. Or aerobic hill running. In the pool?? Band only swimming can be a great tool to help build swim specific strength !!
We love it because it comes with the added bonus in that it forces the swimmer to focus on good body positioning as well!
It’s super demanding to keep those legs from sinking, but if you keep that head neutral, chest pressed forward (aka, pressing the T), and engage those glutes, you’ll find success!!
Try a simple set like ;
3 rounds of:
8 x 25 band only @10 -15” rest followed by a 200 easy swim with perfect form
You’ll take that band off and swim like a champ for the 200 with better body positioning.
So give band only a try!! A great way to build sswim specific strength? And work on body positioning in the water all at the same time!!
#workoutwednesday #swimtraining #ironman #jdc
Make sure you’re on the nice list and the big man could deliver some exciting presents for the triathlete in your family!! #jdcrew #ironman #triathlon #sport #fitness #fit #training #christmas #tistheseason #santa #northpole #feelthebarn
Today on Endurance Essentials, Julie shares her experience with alternatives to traditional running. The article closes with two case studies to help you apply her experience within your own training.
Access via my profile links or directly here : /p/alternative-approaches-to-running
