Posts by stevemagness
On Coaching #71: Does Science Constrain Coaching?
In this weeks episode, Jon and Steve go on a rant. How do we utilize science in coaching? Inspired by a twitter rant, we start off taking on the bioenergetic or metabolic view of coaching. As endurance coaches, we almost always start with “How aerobic or anaerobic is your event?” Go to any conference or…
Read MoreEpisode 70: The Anatomy of a Medal- An Interview with Danny Mackey
A silver medal at the world championships and a 30-year old athlete who makes theirfirst world team and then places in the top 8. In this episode of On Coaching we bring in friend and coach Danny Mackey. Danny is the coach for the Brooks Beasts and guided Drew Windle to a medal and Katie Mackey…
Read MoreShould We Predict Development and Performance?
Should we predict development? “Did you know the average age of medalist is 26 in running events, but in the throwing events it’s much older?” That’s how the conversation started, before progressing towards how we needed to center our development and funding models on this data. The underlying message was a simple one, we can…
Read MoreEpisode 69- The Long Run: How far, how fast, and do you need it?
This weeks episode is all about the long run! How far should it be for each event? Should it be slow or fast? Should you include pickups, surges, intervals, or other ‘stuff’ in it or not? We break down the details of what is often called “the church of the Sunday long run.” In the…
Read MoreRunning Mechanics: Are you optimizing for efficiency or power?
Sprinters are Inefficient: If you want to know what an inefficient runner looks like, watch a sprinter run at 5-minute mile pace. If you are used to watching the smoothness of a runner like Nick Willis, the sprinter’s mechanics don’t look pretty. There’s a stiffness about them as they run slow. Their arms are awkwardly…
Read MoreEnhancing Coaches Education: The Scholar Program
If you’ve been a reader of this blog or a listener to the podcast for a while, you know that my passion lies in coaching and running. This blog began as a way to explore coaching at a deeper level. Over the past few months, my podcast co-host (Jon Marcus) and I have wracked our…
Read MoreEpisode 68- Threshold Training: Good or Bad? And what in the world is it?
Lactate, Anaerobic, Aerobic Threshold? What do any of them mean and are they useful training zones? In this episode Jon and Steve break down what in the world threshold actually means for coaches. In addition, we debate whether or not we should sped much time training at marathon pace or if it is a “grey”…
Read MoreSignatures of Fatigue: Why Fatigue Is Your Best Feedback
Why Fatigue is our best feedback I was casually walking past the track, and as seems to happen, I can’t help but notice whoever is running around it. Some days it’s an older gentleman jogging around, others youthful kids experiencing the sport for the first time, but today there were three team sport players. How…
Read MoreEpisode 67- Winning: The Art and Science of Competing
This week, we are all about winning! When it comes to racing, there are two kinds of racers: The active participants and the passive ones. 75% of the people in any track meet are simply role players. Even if they are fit enough to compete, they defer control of the race to the active…
Read MoreThe Rise of the Experts of Everything: A Deep Dive or Superficial Learning
We’re in the age of gurus and experts. Create a platform large enough and you have a built-in calling card that screams listen to me, I know what I’m talking about. Not only are we inundated with gurus, the way in which we consume, learn, and understand has shifted. Until recently, there had always been…
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