Search results for: lactate threshold
Ernst Van Aaken: The Pure Endurance Method
Most people attribute “jogging” or an emphasis on long slow distance running to Arthur Lydiard. While he may have popularized the idea of building a big base of steady running, others around the world were coming up with the same idea at similar times. In 1947, Dr. Ernst Van Aaken first published his ideas on…
Read MoreRecommended Books
Recommended Reads The books and articles that follow are your must reads for coaching, regardless of what sport you find yourself in. I’ve read hundreds of books, with binders full of notes from each one. I’ve condensed this list to include the foundational texts that provide the most value to a– coach beginner or expert.…
Read MoreEpisode 32- Running Mechanics and a Scientific Approach to Training
Running form is one of the hot button topics in the world of distance coaches. We debate, often with speed/power coaches, on where they fit into the program. How important are mechanics for a distance runner? How do we change them? Should we change them? These are the questions that wer tackle in this…
Read MoreA Message to Speed/Power/Conditioning Coaches about Endurance Development
This is likely to be a long rambling and disjointed rant. For this I apologize. How and when you learn something matters It seems like information should be information, after all facts are facts. It shouldn’t matter when we learn facts and theories, as it’s generally assumed they are independent, but this assumption is often…
Read MoreLosing Imagination- Why we all use the same interval sets & the dangers of classification
A while back, during one of those rare moments of inspiration, I took to my whiteboard in my home and began to scribble. The goal was to break down every single way I could manipulate a workout possibly. In the end, I came up with this mess of a picture (and yes, as anyone who…
Read MoreWhy you should change your mind: The power of letting your Ego go and cognitive dissonance
A strange phenomenon happens on our journey towards perceived expertise: we get stuck. To figure out coaching, or well anything in life, we take the complexity that is life and break it down into a practical, and usable, one. Or as Philosopher Daniel Dennett in his book Intuition Pumps states, “Oversimplifications…cut through the hideous complexity with…
Read MoreThe Sub 2hr marathon- Why Coaches and Scientists don’t understand each other.
This past week at UH I had the pleasure of sitting in on a talk by Dr. Ed Coyle on ‘how fast could we run a marathon.’ Coyle is a well-established researcher, but he’s most well known for his infamous research on Lance Armstrong that showed improved efficiency over his career. Coyle still maintains the…
Read MoreA brief rant against VO2max and vVo2max
Excuse me while I go on a brief seemingly anti-science rant. Which might be a bit surprising given the name of this blog and my background, but since the topic is VO2max, it might be expected. You see, I have a long history with VO2max, as evidenced by this article here. It’s not that I…
Read MoreWhy strength coaches don’t know endurance training- Domain Expertise, Chronic Cardio, and Confirmation Bias
Why do smart people believe dumb things? No, I’m not talking about some intelligent person believing in some crazy conspiracy theory or seemingly irrational belief, I’m talking about really smart people talking about things that are just a side step away from their area of expertise. I listen to a decent number of podcasts, try…
Read MoreThe Calm Conversation-How to deal with pain
My brother had called and texted, telling me to find a place to stay in Pennsylvania. Like any mid 20’s know it all, listening to my older brother wasn’t something that came naturally. It wasn’t even snowing at that point in the 4-hour drive from Penn State back home to the Washington DC suburbs of…
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