Crushing Iron Triathlon Podcast

Today we open the podcast to Athlete/Listener Questions from our Facebook Group. We hit on how to adjust when your race is canceled, swimming challenges and open water training, and hit on one of Coach's rants about over-dependence on Training Peak graphs and numbers. Meditation. Yoga. Critical thinking. Questions covered below.  Topics: You Know your body better than anyone Ask yourself these questions Critical thinking The most overrated graph in Training Peaks The biggest thing you need to wrap around your mind Reframe your mindset In order to peak, you have to shed Stop letting Training Peaks drive your life  Is there a swim workout that can be done in open water or is the workout to just swim. Like 500m easy 500m hard.  – Arin Christiensen Joshua - what is core work we can do? Feel for the water What’s an acceptable lake temperature for swimming?  When your next race has been postponed until the fall. How do you maintain your current gains in fitness until it’s time for the hard work to start leading

Often our biggest breakthroughs come at a time when we're about to throw in the towel. Now is a great time to learn about yourself and build experience for later. Today we talk about building little wins that pay off down the road and help you become better athletes and humans. There is opportunity in all situations. Topics: Everything is fragile More gratitude at races now? Hopeful for more connection Setting precedents When the race is stripped away? Why am I working out again?? Hard for motivation Giant shifts in motivation What would you do if there weren’t races?? Everything by effort and duration Long-Journey-Apprehension-and-Doubt Ebbs and flows of training Must feel like post-race-but without a race Seidel - sleepers show up at races What’s the opportunity when something looks bad? Testing your metal, not your medal It’s never a bad time to go back to basics When we always want a treat Your worst and best workouts can happen the same week When breakthroughs happen Are you always “searching?” The weat

So much is unpredictable right now, but as triathletes, we've been training for this. We have solved thousands of little problems through training and racing and those are valuable lessons. The human survival loop goes like this: Trigger, behavior, and reward. If that goes Fear, worry, anxiety, we need to figure out how to break the pattern. Today, we get into going from fear ----> productive/positive behaviors that are usually short term sacrifices that create long term gains.  Topics: C26 Online Hub Now Open to Public Making sacrifices We are wired for this Endurance for the moment Patience is our strength Short term sacrifice for long term gain Frustration and short fuses Now is the time to adapt The “hunker down” mindset Finding balance in the extremes Spring Cleaning time Fix what you’ve been neglecting Absorb and withstand Weathering the storm How am I gonna get through this? Psychosomatic sickness Let’s make less distractions Robbie’s 90 days without a cell phone Saving spousal units for later in seas

The best laid plans coming apart at the seams, so now what? Race cancelled? Should you ramp up or cut back? It's a stressful time, but also one for opportunity to evolve, grow and transform. Working at home, eating better, no pool, rejuvenating. Today we look at how broken routines can be a great opportunity with the right approach.  Topics: An introverts dream come true Don’t be afraid but be smart Race Cancelled - do you test it or step back? Unique times for a coach Having a coach vs. a training plan Is your instinct now to train more? Stress is higher for everyone Routines are gone What to do if pool is closed? Take it easy on Race Directors Tune your heart to the right channel You can’t have a big enough base 5 hour ride changed to two hours Best thing to do now is go back to the basics How much time do you need to get ready for IM? How to think about PEAKING It’s a good example of how to get better You want to be ready WHEN THE TIME COMES This time can and should be a stress reliever It’s a good time t

How do we respond when faced with uncertainty? There are a lot of unknowns at the moment and today we get back into the moment and focus on what we can control. Coach Robbie shares his change of plans and how he turned a negative into a positive. We look at the gut punch of cancelled races and the reality getting a better grip on our perspective.  Life changes - Race Reality Check Robbie’s 50 mile trail race Excited about the opportunity to test yourself Expressing your fitness How changes can relieve stress Reminders to what’s important The Obstacle is the Way - Ryan Holiday Don’t fail to remember wasted opportunities When a race gets moved . . . adjust Being attached to a race Races have different meanings to us We are never done Doing the things that you can do matters Expecting Races to Change Our Lives Race day is just One Day . . . A Day Check marks along the way Feel good about yourself and be healthy When we hide our feelings inside the race Looking for an awesome coach this season? Former Professio

Today we look at the coaching philosophy from Dan Lorang who helped make Jan Frodeno and Anne Haug BOTH Ironman Champions in 2019. We don’t always talk about pros, but amateurs can take a LOT away from these approaches to training and racing. The discussion was ignited by this article in from 220 Triathlon. We’ve been talking about a lot of this along the way, but today take a deeper dive into each of the elements both Frodeno and Haug said helped them become champions in Kona. “His biggest ability is to slow me down, something no one before has ever done. This enabled me to get consistency, and not just amazing training days but actually okay days and good weeks that make very good months and great years.” – Jan Frodeno CONSISTENCY IS THE KEYWorking for long-term results … identifying their physiology and what workouts they can handle, and build up from there.“The well being of his athletes is always top priority” - Anne HaugSlow, very healthy progressions… that peak and hold as long as you can… but never g

Molly Seidel qualified for the Olympics in her first marathon. She's since talked about how she was training for the long term and "added" the Olympic trials. We talk about this lesson as it relates to being healthy, energized, and relaxed. We also get deep into how to taper, understanding how Garmin interprets your fitness, and how to use Best Bike Split. There's also bike handling, training with positive stress, and recovery. Topics: Navigating that ship East Nashville Tornado Recap from Mike Positive stress Taper Construction Happy Birthday to BOTH of our Moms! Understanding your Garmin Commands Does Garmin really know? Breaking down Best Bike Split You’re not “riding the course” on your trainer Molly Seidel’s focus on the long game Chasing a date on the calendar Feeling your BEST on race day It’s better to be undertrained than overtrained Fit AND Super Fresh The danger of tempting fate The TRUTH about how to taper Taper doesn’t mean lazy It’s not resting, it’s recovering Keeping intensity while lowering

We've always been big on the mind/body connection and showing yourself grace in training and life. Today we look at what it takes to combine the physical and mental aspects of triathlon with a spiritual approach. This is about having faith in the process, giving right effort, paying attention, staying focused and learning through experience to gain wisdom. Faith – When most people talk about faith, it's tends to be of a blind faith in something. But in this case, he referred to it as "buy in." As in, actually "knowing." If, for example, a friend tells you something that is right several times, you have strong faith in that friend's advice. In the case of training, it means faith in your plan and your direction. Faith here is an open mind and a heart filled with trust so that we can reach levels of the unknown. FAITH ARISES OUT OF SEEING AND KNOWING FOR YOURSELF. INSPIRES AN OUTPOURING OF ENERGY. Effort – Obviously effort is the one thing we control and putting yourself into something without doubt (having fa

Are you pushing your body beyond its adaptive threshold? It's a fine line and often the difference between burnout/flatline and real, sustainable improvement. Today is about "simple" but often neglected daily reasons you may not be improving. So, how do we break the cycle of little habits that are holding us back?  Sleep Make the time It’s the littlest big thing This is where recovery happens How You Eat From wake up to bedtime Sleep sets your diet Do you think less is more? Is your fuel watered down? How you start sets the tone Breaking the cycle Going Too Hard Too Often Tapping into reserve vs. expanding it It’s a gap between consistency and frequency Respect your body Going over the adaptation threshold Minimal effective dose Load management Not Listening to Your Body If not it will not listen to you “It’s not that bad” Pay attention Always work on imbalance Not addressing niggles and pain Your body will do things to protect itself Inflammation Life is saying take a day off Stay ahead with prevent

We just hit the 1 Million download number and today we use our "Just Show Up" analogy and translate it to training. We dive into questions like, "Why do we constantly face the challenge of getting over the hump to train today?" We also talk about the trouble of setting hard goals and learning to have fun in the process. It's not about the end game as much as it is about doing something now that is moving you in the right direction.  Topics: The power of two The hardest part of swim, bike, run Mindset as we inch closer to races How to free up your training How to enjoy the process Attaching success to performance The problem with comparison How outcome based goals can run our lives Taking conditions into account What it takes to Qualify or podium Fury Wilder analogy Why time goals can feel like drowning Does it feel like “you” Intention and effort are what matters Attraction not promotion The Quick fix tendency Addicted to perfection Pick one journey and process Why we keep starting over Suffering is craving

Today, we open the podcast to listener questions from our Facebook Group (search Crushing Iron Group). They range from bike periodization, to maintaining fitness without a race scheduled, to benefits of training for time vs. mileage, handling missed time due to illness, short course vs. long course training, pilates, how each discipline helps the others, 70.3 nutrition and marathon training, strength training . . . and more. Questions are bolded below. YA Man! Can you talk about bike workout periodization and what structures build overall strength that increase the ability to translate into faster bike splits? Allergies or Sick? Base, build, race specifics, intensities, Athletes response to specific stimulus If something’s working, why change it? Attention to detail vs. lazy For those not racing but want to keep in some reasonable shape/fitness to where they could build back toward racing in the future, what are some tips to navigate that time? What fits your schedule? Have fun and do variety? Be grateful

Is your happiness connected to contingency events? “If I get this, then I will be that?” The key to getting the results you want is building the little habits and not looking back with the idea that you “should have” done this or that. “If I get this, then I will be that” is a dicey way to live. We are all in the process of life and training. Success doesn’t equal safety, because there’s never gonna be a time when we say, “Yep, I’m done.” Today, the art of creating your own reality to face triathlon with a positive and fun attitude that adds purpose to your training and ultimately leads to ongoing success. Topics: Things are things until we give them meaning What’s next, what’s next, what’s next? Let go of your mistakes We think success means safety About the Process Is today what you dreamed of 3 years ago? There’s never going to be a time when you say, “yep, I’m done.” It’s time to create new habits, not results Look back on what you’ve overcome Appreciating the process What are you doing right? What are t

Most of us aren't in our 20's anymore, but we tend to think like that when it comes to speed work. Today, we look at the Aerobic Base Phase of training and explain how it is the key to getting faster in triathlon. We hit on the 80/20 rule, track workouts, what happens when you skip progressions. When is going hard actually worth it? Topics: Base phase conversation starts at 12:00 Is Robbie going Vegan? How we eat Aerobic base importance You can never be in base phase too long Building endurance and skills What athletes tend to bypass Reverse periodization? Training for Sprints and Olympics When going hard is actually worth it Not anti track, but build so it matters Going slow to get fast It’s all relative 80/20 or 90/10? There’s no such thing as “bad” aerobic work Slow cooking your fitness The margin of error base vs. fitness You can’t keep pushing the boundaries Is your approach injury prone? Training availability is the key Better safe than sorry Don’t sacrifice the day for the week What if you’re behind a

It’s not about who’s fastest, it’s about who slows down the least. You need energy to be motivated and self-imposed stress sucks the life out of you. Today we talk about trending vs. tracking your training, banking sleep, and remembering to play like a kid. Also, the anxiety from attachment, looking at data from the wrong perspective and why getting slower isn't really a thing.  Topics: One Common Vision Getting out of yourself Lost in our own thoughts How do we get from THERE to HERE? Remembering what it’s like to be a kid Being in the moment with so many distractions Don’t forget to have fun 15:00 Thinking and energy Scratching that itch Data in the wrong perspective Trending vs. tracking Anxiety and attachment Being compelled to compare Labeling as pass or fail Give yourself credit for doing it It’s hard … 99% of people don’t do this…… accumulated fatigue…. Aerobics? Getting slower isn’t a thing How good can you be for the long haul How do you get over being kicked in the face? Stress masks fitness Ego an

It's hard to always stay motivated yet easy to slip off the rails. And one of the biggest traps is comparing ourselves to others. Today, Mike talks about how this has happened to him since his father passed, but also how it's help remind him that we shouldn't take health and fitness for granted. The guys open up about intention and struggles in an effort to find the best ways to appreciate training as a process. You can never be "the old you" so embrace where you're going.  Topics: Tough time of year Mike’s training struggles That’s why intention was so important Don’t compare yourself to others Afraid we won’t be able to dig deep How quickly we can lose it The power of honesty and openness Fast and slow are relative It’s enough to know we’re heading in the right direction Thrive to be in a process Drowning yourself in expectations Building on yesterday When accolades lead to complacency Do you really want to be a new you? So much pressure on a day or race Thoreau - Be a new man in the same old clothes Wisd

Today’s podcast is all about how workouts link together and why life outside of training is an important factor in the decision process. Your mind and body aren’t always telling the same story, so it’s important to truly understand effort and its relationship to the big picture. When you trust the purpose of today’s workout, that sets you up for more consistency tomorrow and the week, which leads to more success in both training and racing. Managing stress (good and bad) is at the core of happy and healthy training. Topics: Topic starts around 8:00 mark Today's Impact on Tomorrow Quick Super Bowl talk Mike’s meditation Today’s Session’s Impact on Tomorrow Gauging effort as you go Decisions are connected Not negatively impacting the next session Digging a hole and recovering Decision making First, Understand the purpose Looking at your week as a meal What to do if you’re fatigued Understanding why a workout was good or bad Decision making in training is the most exhaustive part Consistent training means longe

How do you prioritize Endurance, Strength and Speed training for different courses and races? It should be a balance, but not always in even proportions. We look at priority and periodization based on goals. Why big gears aren't just strength work. Overusing muscles. Return on your swim stroke investment. Why you get sore arms while swimming and sore legs on transition runs. Connecting endurance, strength and speed training.  Topics: Mike says, “Yeah, man” Do you prefer a race on the calendar? Getting consistent What sparked Mike to get going? Prioritizing and periodizing based on goal Big Gear work - not just strength work Building pathways of better communication Balancing strength work Hamstrings on bike and run Overuse of muscles Stretching and discomfort Where to look if you have pain Cycle stroke compared to swim stroke Swimming with the water vs. through it Why you need to finish your swim stroke Getting return on your stroke investment Why your arms hurt in the beginning of swims Why legs hurt on tra

Many of us get into triathlon to figure out who we really are and that process is more effective and enjoyable if we love the sport. And loving the sport is a process. Today, we reflect on Kobe Bryant’s life and his passion for, not only the game, but everything he did, and tie it into our daily approach with triathlon. Kobe’s death is a painful reminder that life is fragile and triathlon is much more than just the numbers – it’s about community, connection and helping others. Today is about finding your sweet spots in training and appreciating the little things to make net gains. Topics: The power of a little break Goaded by peer pressure Kobe Bryant’s impact on us Painful reminders of how fragile life is Overcomplicating what matters Life is hard enough without complicating it Combining love for the sport with wanting to be the best we can be Burnout rate Type-A Celebration Becoming your best, not “the” best Is Triathlon a “net gain” for you? Slowing down the least Chasing PRs Figuring out who you are as a

We get into the sport to grow and become more confident, but . . . what do we do in those weak moments? The best athletes (and people) are always learning. Today, we look at a lot of examples we experience in coaching and how we approach insecurities that pop up in training. The stress of missing workouts, injuries, worry about not being ready, judging ourselves too harshly, etc. Training should be a way to become more whole and not judge ourselves by comparison. Learn your limits and how to approach them in a positive way. Topics: Do you think you’ll be ready? The obsession with wanting to know and predict Adding “judgements to our plate” Do you need to do MORE? Making up missed workouts Does not getting a PR mean you’re slower? Was this session good enough? Who are you letting down? Do you think that race is a good idea? The endless puzzle You just don’t know Are you where you thought you’d be? Over-judging yourself Sitting with yourself You shouldn’t be stressed about something that gives you joy The abil

We are by no means experts, but today we take an open look at the never ending debate over weight loss and proper race weight. Everything is on the table including body image, guilt, shame, binge eating, strength vs. optimum weight, and power per kilo. Triathlon is often a road to weight loss, but changing a lifestyle comes with a lot of stress and cutting calories is a slippery slope. We talk about finding your race weight and when to be at it. So many diets, so many choices, but what works best for you? Topics:  Go too hard too soon Proving yourself in practice  Weight Control Body image Strength vs Weight Power per kilos Comparing to other people Binge eating Hydration and diet Stress and pounding and weight Periodizing your training “Perfect” Race Weight Giving the body time to adjust Changing too much at once Societal categories Intuitive eating What’s best for you? If you're looking for a great custom coaching plan, please check out the new C26 Systems Plan for 2020 at the new c26triathlon.com. Coach