This is a quick review of John Parker’s book, Heart Monitor Training for the Compleat Idiot (3d ed. 2009). If the name John Parker sounds familiar to you, it should. He wrote what is perhaps the best novel book on running, Once a Runner. Turns out that Mr. Parker is a pretty good coach too. Here are the key takeaways from my quick read of this great book. Continue reading
I’m not a triathlete because I have a cat-like aversion to water. Really. If I dip my foot in water, I instantly pull it out and shake it just like my cat. So I haven’t ever been to USAT Nationals for Triathlon. BUT I have been to USAT Nationals for Duathlon a bunch of times. Here’s my advice to Nationals newbies out there– two secret items that all USAT veterans KNOW that they need to pick up.
2014 has not been a good year for hamstring tendons. So far, I’ve counted three friends (all within a few months of my age) who have gotten bitten by upper hamstring tendinitis. Mind you, I’m an old guy– I don’t have that many friends. When three of them suddenly get hamstring tendon problems, I call that an epidemic. Fortunately or unfortunately, I know something about this injury — I got hit by it hard about 5-6 years ago, figured it out, and fixed it. I’ve also figured out some ways to turn a disadvantage into a way to get faster. Although I may regret it when former victims of this problem start beating me in races, sharing my thoughts on it is probably for the greater good.
Years and year ago, Coach Tom (one of my former coaches) recommended that I pick up a copy of Philip Skiba’s Scientific Training for Triathletes. Coach Tom described the book as, “the best book on triathlete training that I have ever read.” Coach Tom is not one for hyperbole so I ordered the book immediately by express mail. Continue reading
Over the past ten years or so, there’s been a gentle tide change in the way that coaches approach training for long-distance running. While it’s most often talked about in terms of running, it has application across all endurance sports, so this change definitely affects duathletes and triathletes as well.
There, I said it. I know that there will be many people who will applaud and many others who will scowl at the idea. But it’s something that needs to be said because I think it’s an epidemic and does a real disservice to our sport.
I love YouTube videos of folks doing insane things with a portable video cameras. Base jumping into caves in Mexico, flying the Red Bull Air Race, or ripping through a downhill mountain bike run– thanks to products like GoPro cameras, we can now get an inkling of what’s it like to do some crazy stuff. I hinted earlier that I bought a Garmin Virb camera to liven up my posts, so I thought I would post a video of what it is like to ride my absolute favorite time trial workout. If you’re interested in extreme videos, read no further. But if you’re interested in my world, here’s a taste.
Back in 1998, while I was pouring over my latest issue of Owen Anderson’s Running Research News, I came across a really interesting study on recovery that fundamentally changed the way I did some workouts for years to come. Continue reading
Let me say right up front that I really like Inform Running. In fact, having regular access to their facilities and brain power in the U.K. is probably the only thing that could make me want to live in a place with weather that is even more miserable than my home of Seattle. Today, they took on the Pose (and by association, the Chi) running methods. I’m so glad that they did– someone has to dispel the myth that there is one perfect running form for everyone. But, in typical Inform Running style, they did it with some real hidden gems that might help a lot of folks gain better running form. Here are two key lessons from their excellent post earlier today.
Over the summer, I’ve been filling in as the track coach for my team’s track workouts. Every now and again, I have been adding in plyometrics, which I think are pretty essential for distance running. I usually get some skeptical looks (particularly from the Ironman crowd) so I thought I would explain my thinking and also talk about my views about how to use plyometrics to get free speed in your running.
The Athletic Time Machine 
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