Triathlete Training Podcast: Triathlon, Ironman & Duathlon

South African Richard Murray is in the midst of a successful ITU career and in 2016 he finished 4th in the Olympics. We talk about his career in triathlon and the path that led him to where he is today.   trimurray.com

Jay Dicharry offered some fantastic knowledge in this interview.  He is an expert in many things and also an author.  His website describes him better than I could: "Originally from New Orleans LA, Jay completed the Masters of Physical Therapy degree at Louisiana State University Medical Center and is a Board- Certified Sports Clinical Specialist. Jay built his international reputation as an expert in biomechanical analysis as Director of the SPEED Clinic at the University of Virginia. Through this innovative venture, Jay was able to blend the fields of clinical practice and engineering to better understand and eliminate the cause of overuse injuries in endurance athletes. His unique approach goes outside the traditional model of therapy and aims to correct imbalances before they affect your performance. Jay literally wrote the book on running gait assessments: he is author of “Anatomy for Runners”, writes columns for numerous magazines, and has published over a dozen professional journal articles and thre

Hillary Spires returns to the show to talk about her preparation for a 100 mile/160km run she completed in Canada in September.  She gave herself a 24 hour time limit and she talks about the challenges she endured along the way and during the run.  She limited her total training and used intensity to maximize her training time.  Along the way she raised $11,000 for charity. Hillary's website is ruggedconditioning.com. After Hillary's interview I talk about how the Apple Watch changed my life for the better. Episode 97 is sponsored by Health IQ.  To see if you qualify, get your free quote today at healthiq.com/TTP or mention the promo code TTP (or Triathlon Training Podcast) when you talk to a Health IQ agent.  

Dan Linick, co-founder of South Jersey Physical Therapist, is my guest.  Dan is also my physical therapist and has helped my running significantly.   We discuss his background as a physical therapist, some common problems that he's seen, and some issues I've had.  We also talked about his previous work in brain rehab and how to help an older friend or relative who might benefit from visiting a physical therapist. Dan's clinic is located in Hainesport, New Jersey and at southjerseypt.com.

Matt Dixon has experience as a professional athlete, coach to elite and amateur athletes, an exercise physiologist, and an author. His newest book is Fast-Track Triathlete.  This book is geared toward athletes who want to maximize their success with limited time to train.  The book explains his concepts and includes a 14 week training plan for both Ironman and Half Ironman as well as a strength plan that can be completed without visiting the gym. We talk about the book in the second half of our interview.  In the first half we focus on off-season training. Matt was also a guest on episode 33. Matt can be found at purplepatchfitness.com

  Zach Boivin went to watch a friend race Ironman Lake Placid in 2015.  At the time he weighed 330 pounds and was not active.  He was inspired watching the finishers that night and the next day he decided he was going to do a triathlon.   He thought all triathlons were Ironman distance. Fortunately, he realized there were shorter races and he signed up for Ironman 70.3 Syracuse the following year.  In 2017 he attempted his first Ironman at Lake Placid. This is his life changing journey that starts with running his first step and then two years later hearing Mike Reilly say "You Are An Ironman!"  

Courtney Sergeant joins the show as she prepares for her first half ironman at Atlantic City 70.3. She did her first triathlon in 2014 and has marathon experience.  Among the topics we discuss: Nutrition Hydration Salt tablets Transition Massages Preparing for the run on limited run training Post-race recovery Pacing  

Billy Edwards returns to the show to talk about his experiences since winning Ultraman Florida in 2015.  He completed the Ultraman World Championships later that year and has since cut back on his racing since having surgery on his toe.  However, he is busy in the sport as a coach of the Naval Academy collegiate triathlon team that finished third at the 2017 Collegiate National Championships. He was one of a few coaches selected for USAT's Elite Mentorship Coaching program and he recently observed a training camp for the collegiate recruiting program. We talk about all this and a few other random triathlon topics. Billy was a guest on episode 52 talking about his Ultraman Florida experience. Billy's website is at http://billythekidtriathlete.com/

The Brave Athlete is a new book by Dr. Simon Marshall and Lesley Patterson covering cutting-edge brain training for athletes.  Lesley is a professional triathlete and mountain biker. Her resume includes a few Xterra World Championships titles. Dr. Simon Marshall is a former Professor of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of California at San Diego and Professor of Exercise Science at San Diego State University.  He has published over 100 scientific articles on the psychology of exercise.  He now provides performance psychology support for the BMC Racing Team. We talk about their new book, Lesley's experiences, and mental tricks to improve performance. You can reach them at BraveheartCoach.com    

Phil Gaimon was a pro cyclist from 2009 to 2016, including two years on the WorldTour with Garmin Sharp and Cannondale.  He’s done Paris Roubaix, won Redlands twice, and finished second at the Tour of the Gila. He just retired last year, as he put it, after Jonathan vaughters stopped returning his phone calls. Even though he's retired he’s still going after hill climb records in North America. He's also putting on Grand Fondo in Malibu in October and he is  the author of three books. We talk about his life as a pro cyclist, doping in the sport, what it's like to be in an early break at Paris Roubaix, peeing on the bike, cookies, and more.  You'll like Phil's stories. Links: PhilTheThrill.net Phil's YouTube channel  

Justin Mendoza didn't know much about triathlon until he saw Craig Alexander's 50 minute Aussies Abroad video on Youtube.  Then he knew he triathlon was what he wanted to do.  He had recently transitioned out of Motocross racing after some serious accidents and four weeks after watching the video he did an Olympic distance triathlon near his home in North California. He now lives in Colorado Springs and races primarily races Olympic and half ironman distance triathlons with the hopes of getting his pro license.  We talk about his journey.

Problems with her own health led Dr. Grace Liu down a path which led to her becoming an expert in gut health.  Good health is dependent on our digestive system having good bacteria. We talk about how to achieve that and all the things that affect our gut. Check out TheGutInstitute.com for ways to test your own gut and other products Grace offers.  

Alicia Caldwell has raced for 20 years and in 2016 she won her first US National Age Group title.  She's been gradually improving through the years.  In 2017 she was 19th in her age group and the next year she was 8th.  In 2012 she made the podium with a 3rd place finish at Sprint Nationals, and in 2014 she earned bronze at the World Championships in Canada. We talk about her journey in the sport and some of her habits and training methods that have allowed for continuous improvement. 

Wes Hobson was one of the top triathletes of the 1990s.  He turned pro in 1990 and retired in 2001.  In his second year as a pro he was competing with and sometimes beating the Big Four: Mark Allen, Dave Scott, Scott Molina, and Mike Pigg.  During his career he was named Triathlete of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee, won 35 races, and was the first American to win an ITU World Cup Triathlon.   He talked about transitioning into the sport from collegiate swimming to racing with the fastest triathletes in the world.  Along the way he dealt with chronic fatigue and enduring a nine month period in 1997 in which he could barely train.  This was preceded by an 8 week period of high volume and an absurd amount of high intensity training.   In a period of 2-3  weeks he suddenly came out of it.  He got coaching from Joe Friel and was a contender to qualify for the US Olympic team in 2000 but missed out. He retired in 2001 but since then has kept busy with many different business pursuits, including

Eric reviews his running career, including his time at Indiana University, and shares a few stories from his triathlon career.  He also talks about important habits for success and what advice he would give to himself at different stages of his career. This episode is for my two-year old daughter and my three-year old son so that when they get older they will know more about their Dada.  Hopefully at least some of my listeners will also enjoy it.  

Terry Laughlin founded Total Immersion at age 29 while he was considering a change of career. He coached kids since age 21 but he had no experience coaching adults until he held his first camp in 1989. The camp was a success and also personally fulfilling for Terry.  A business was born. Total Immersion led to his first book, also titled Total Immersion, camps, ebooks, and a fleet of Total Immersion certified coaches around the world. We talk about his progression over the years, his favorite Olympic swimmer, Tim Ferris, his suggestions for new swimmers, his articles about financial risk, and a lot more. Subscribe via iTunes Links TotalImmersion.net Alexander Popov on Youtube Why You Should Stop Worrying About What Other People Think  

Subscribe via iTunes Jeff Pack is in his 40s and he just started competing in endurance events three years ago.  He recently completed an Olympic distance triathlon in the Galapagos Islands and he followed it up with a half ironman distance race in Paracas, Peru. Jeff is an American living in Ecuador and he trains at an elevation of 9,000 feet.  He was very well prepared for each of these races and hit his goal for each. Links http://www.runnersworld.com/heart/can-running-kill-you

Subscribe via iTunes Elizabeth and Nate Sylves have been racing together as a couple for over a decade.  This year she did her first Ironman (Florida) and he did his first half ironman (North Carolina).  They combine training and racing with full time jobs while raising two young kids. They started their season with the Duathlon National Championships in Bend, Oregon in June. Then Elizabeth did the Atlantic City 70.3 and in October Nate did Ironman North Carolina 70.3 and Elizabeth planned on doing Ironman North Carolina, but due to a hurricane that was changed to a shorter race.  That change was announced a few days before the race so she immediately bought a charity slot for Ironman Florida and raced that two weeks later. In addition to working full time outside the home, Elizabeth coaches triathletes and teaches fitness classes.  Nate is a cameraman and works a non-standard schedule.  Because of their differing schedules and child care they are rarely able to train together. Elizabeth once weighed 200

  Subscribe via iTunes Joe Friel returns to the show and discusses his revamped and just released Triathlete's Training Bible.  This is the best selling triathlon book of all time, with roughly 300,000 books sold, and instead of just updating it he started from scratch and rewrote it. We talk about the major revamps to the book. In addition to that we covered a wide range of topics.  Near the end of the interview we talked about his career as he went from teacher to running store owner to triathlon store owner to coach to author. Joe started his writing for the Fort Collins newspaper and his column ran every single week for 20 years from 1981 to 2001.  He did not like writing when he started and now he has a passion for it.  He wrote his first book, the Cyclist's Training Bible, and thought it might sell a few hundred copies total.  It sold 1000 copies the first month and 5000 copies the second month and now he's written 16 books. Joe is always a good listen so don't miss this episode.

Colin Pugh had a dangerous case of hyponatremia that could have resulted in death.  Hydration expert Andy Blow joins us to review his case.  In Colin's words, here is what happened: "On Aug 14th I did my first Half Ironman (Stealhead - Benton Harbor MI). I ran a pretty decent race and finished in a time of 5hrs 47 mins. After the race I was about a 3 hour drive from home in Milwaukee WI. I was over there on my own as my girlfriend was working that weekend. Based on the fact I couldn’t stand up without cramping I made the decision to hold up in a hotel for the night and make my way home on the Monday morning. I got to the hotel grabbed a shower and then started to become obsessed with the fact that I hadn't taken a pee all day and started taking on water (a lot of water!). This was quiet the mistake…….. I then remember only a few things. I remember walking across to the gas station to buy more water and being completely out of it in my mind like kind of drunk feeling. Then I went to bed and woke up at 11pm a