Data overload- When and how to use Data for effective coaching

We’re back! After a couple week summer hiatus while I took some vacation time, Jon and I are back with an exciting podcast on Data.We start off with trying to get to the essence of splits. Coming at it from a philosophical viewpoint, we look at what workout splits actually tell us and trace our journey from reliant on pace zones and exacting splits to a more abstract view of paying attention to feel and letting the splits be secondary feedback.

From there, we take a broad look at data and look at why it’s so easy to obsess over singular numbers. Whether it’s mileage per week, weight, or VO2max, it’s incredibly easy to fall in love with numbers that we can measure. Jon discusses why he doesn’t even track mileage. Instead of using mileage or workout splits as end goals, you should flip the script and use them as feedback. This culminates in a discussion on why as coaches and athletes we should get away from comparing workouts

To finish things off, we talk about how to stay away from being a lazy coach. Meaning, don’t fall into the trap of writing prescriptions and not paying attention to the athlete. Take an athlete first approach to training and you’ll be fine. With data, it’s not about fancy gadgets or statistics, instead everything you see as a coach is data. How a person walks to practice, how they look at the end of each rep, their demeanor, even how they text or email; it’s all data. Determine what provides you actionable change and go with that.

Steve and Jon