The TriaThleTe’s Guide To

PerformancePeak

By the Editors of Magazine

Cover2.indd 1 8/15/12 5:41 PM The TriaThleTe’s Guide To

PerformancePeak

By the Editors of Magazine

Peak Performance

Intro.TOC.indd 2 8/17/12 11:35 AM Peak Performance

riathlon has inspired thousands to take control of their the couch. T.J. Tollakson is the pro triathlon community’s Tlives and get active. Participation is the lifeblood of the version of a mad scientist, and he shares his recovery routine, sport. But for a select few athletes, triathlon isn’t about simply which ranges from the mundane to the obsessive. Translating fi nishing a race; it’s about getting to the fi nish line faster than your physical preparation into results on race day is just as ever before. important as training, so ITU Long Distance world champion Torbjørn Sindballe shares the minutia that helped him thrive Multisport mastery is no small task, and this book is not an in the Kona heat and the mental techniques he and Craig instruction manual to guide you from registration through Alexander use to squeeze every drop of speed out of their earning your fi rst fi nisher’s medal. It does not include a race-day bodies. To inspire your own personal best, Mirinda Carfrae checklist. There are no swim technique tips, run workouts or gave an unprecedented look inside her new cycling-focused other helpful yet basic tidbits in this book. Instead, The Triathlete’s training strategy and how you can do the same to improve Guide to Peak Performance delves into the fi ner points that your own performance on the bike. Pull out your training log separate fourth place from the podium as only Inside Triathlon and prepare to absorb the details that can help you reach that magazine can. We selected some of the most informative feature next all-important milestone. stories published in the magazine to bring you training guidance from the sport’s most knowledgeable and accomplished sources.

Coaches of Ironman champions and Olympians—Brett Sutton, Darren Smith and Mat Steinmetz among others— share the principles and strategies they use to guide some of the world’s best to their most impressive results. Their Aaron Hersh suggestions can help you do the same. These coaches have Inside Triathlon senior editor found success with different methods, but all agree on the importance of recovery. And recovering from the intense training they prescribe is more involved than sitting on

Aaron swims to the fl oating coffee boat in Kailua Bay days before Ironman Hawaii in 2011.

PEAK PERFORMANCE

Intro.TOC.indd 5 8/15/12 5:46 PM GREAT MINDS (DON’T ALWAYS) THINK ALIKE We picked the brains of the greatest minds in the sport of triathlon—fi ve coaches of top pro triathletes. They shared their thoughts on injury prevention, nutrition, life balance and COMPILED BY BETHANY LEACH MAVIS everything in between. ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT COLLINS

PEAK PERFORMANCE

GreatMindsDon'tAlwaysThinkAlike.indd 60 8/17/12 11:59 AM would say even more than a professional cause they’re so desperate to do well. Mary athlete because their livelihood doesn’t Beth Ellis is a good example—I spent all year depend on it. So you’ve also got the social trying to settle her down because she wants aspect of going to a group and doing a train- to be good so much that it destroyed her for ing swim. Swimming a 4K by yourself is not the past two years. … You try to establish the The a fun thing, unless you’re an ex-swimmer psychological profi le of some athletes, and Authoritarian or something. … The way I try to deal with most people think I run around with a big age groupers, again exactly the same as I do stick trying to stir everybody up. I actually with my professionals, is I say to them, “It’s walk around with a pacifi er trying to settle about you and improving you. It’s not about half these people down because they’re all ustralian Brett Sutton is not and never what the bloke next door to you is doing.” So too wound up to do well. And so to have the Ahas been a triathlete, yet he’s consid- if you can get them to start to realize, “OK, right mental approach to some people might ered by many to be the best coach in the my job is to improve me, my job is to use the be, “Take it easy and relax; don’t push.” I sport. His background includes being a na- group to improve me, not to destroy me,” have one girl whom I won’t mention because tional swim coach for Australia for 10 years, then you’ve gone a long way to making some she might get embarrassed, but I told her to being a professional boxer and squash player good, positive steps forward and being able not go faster than 95 percent. “What about and training greyhounds and racehorses, to improve rather rapidly within a group for- even if it’s a sprint fi nish?” “Don’t go harder all of which now infl uence his coaching mation now. If you go there and you’ve got than 95 percent.” What I’ve done is control style. He coached Chrissie Wellington to a big ego, and every day you want to go head her from over-trying because she’s a chronic her fi rst two Ironman World Championship to head with the next guy, you’ll make some, over-trier. She’ll train, she’ll run, she’ll race victories, coached Siri Lindley and Loretta what I call, artifi cial improvements in a till the blood comes out of her, and some- Harrop to ITU World Championship titles short period of time because you’re pushing times nothing happens. And it doesn’t hap- and now trains top Ironman athletes, such as yourself over your limit. And your body for pen because she’s trying so hard—her tech- Caroline Ste en, James Cunnama and Mary six to nine weeks, sometimes three months, niques are destabilized. She swims slower Beth Ellis, out of his TeamTBB training base sometimes half a season or a season, you can when she tries to go harder; she bikes slower in Leysin, Switzerland. do that. And then all of a sudden it catches when she tries to go harder. But whereas if up with you, and that’s when the injuries she just takes that edge o , her techniques Training philosophy I’m an authoritar- come and the lethargy comes in and the take over and she does fantastic. ian—I think coaches should make decisions tiredness, and “Oh I might be overtrained” and so with all our athletes, we discuss what or whatever. It takes a little while to catch On Ironman racing Over an Ironman, we’re going to do and when we’re going up, so my idea is to catch it early and try to it’s not “I’m going to race the guy next to to do it and how we’re going to do it. And educate them. And every day we want to do me.” It’s what your body’s capable of do- then we make a decision on what path we’re something that’s going to be benefi cial to ing—the amount of power your body can going to take. I’m very proactive in making them, not something that tears you down. put out over a nine-hour period. Those that decision—I don’t let athletes make that numbers are going to win you the race. So decision for themselves. In saying that, I On mental preparation I think the big- we try to concentrate on our own personal would suggest that we aim more to tailor to gest mistake age groupers do in triathlon numbers, and the only time we ever think the individual rather than the group. … We is they set times. Every course changes so about being in a race is when we get down have certain subgroups, so within the male dramatically. And professionals do it too— the 35K mark on the run, and then we put group, there’s a certain amount of people it’s “Oh I did this time, I did that time.” It’s strategies into place when we’re racing. that will do more, shall we say, anaerobic ridiculous. You could go on a 40K loop that But up until then, we’re about checking training and there are other groups that doesn’t change every day, and the wind our body clock, running on what we believe don’t need to do as much anaerobic train- changes direction 10 percent, and the times is our pace minutes, and let the cards fall ing. So they basically fi t into a category that are going to be 2 minutes di erent, whether where they may. At the end of the day, I sort of instinctively put them in. And it’s they be faster or slower. Say you run an we have a look at their performance, and the same with girls—some people need a lot Ironman one year, and you go 9:11, and the then we have a look at the scoreboard and of long work and some people don’t deserve guys want to go back next year and run nine see where we are. And I see far too many much at all, even though they’re Ironmen. hours. The wind and the water is changing athletes and far too many age groupers got So it’s a very variable situation. And I think directions, so that’s going to slow your swim their head down two hours or three hours triathlon needs to do that because—well, down; maybe there’s a cross-wind on the into a race, and have changed their plan I just told you about physical structures, bike, which you didn’t have the year before, because the guy they want to beat has just but we’re talking about mental structures so it’s going to slow your bike down; it might gone past them on the bike. So straight as well—di erent people need to be moti- be 10 degrees hotter, so it’s going to slow away, they’re, “Oh, I can get faster, I’ll go vated in di erent ways. Some people like the your run down. I’ve seen so many athletes with him.” And they leave their race right overbearing coach; other people detest it. that I’ve dealt with that had fantastic races there. And as they walk for the last two So you’ve got to be knowing your athletes— and go, “Oh, I can’t believe it, I had a terrible hours, they’re thinking about what they which one to play while you’re dealing with race.” And they had a fantastic race! did in training wrong or “my nutrition was which particular athlete. wrong.” Or run training—“What’s wrong On going hard And I don’t stop people with my run? I can’t run. It must be my run On group training Just because you’re from going hard—I encourage it. You have to training.” But it was the rush of blood to an age grouper doesn’t mean the philosophy enjoy going hard—when the body wants to the head six hours ago that actually killed of how you train should change just because go hard, go hard. When the body doesn’t feel them. That to me is the most pertinent somebody’s a professional. Profession- great, we don’t push hard when our body’s point of age-group racing that’s not looked als train like age groupers—they’re just a telling us not to. And that’s the key—that’s after. They see the pros get out there and lot faster. … For an age grouper, training in the mental key in helping some athletes. I’ve basically just give it to themselves every a group mentality really does help them. I got some athletes who are so wound up be- minute of the race, and they’re going head

PEAK PERFORMANCE

GreatMindsDon'tAlwaysThinkAlike.indd 61 8/17/12 11:59 AM to head with everybody. But that’s not the I said, things can go wrong if you’re pushing case at all. And you’ve seen Caroline Stef- a bit too much to try to be better than you’ve fen [in 2011] have an absolutely fantastic ever been before, but what you really want to failure because she tried to win [Kona]. And be able to do and need to be able to do is have she went away when Chrissie and Rinny a consistent, reliable and predictable perfor- were having a bad bike day, she decided, Mr. mance—and that’s going to give you your best “My only chance to win Hawaii is to blast chances of having the kind of day you want the bike now and try to hang on.” And while Consistent in your goal races. And what the practical that was an honorable and a wonderful, piece for that is is having a consistent lead-in shall we say, competitive spirit, it might to your races. I use the same basic lead into not have been the best way to try to win almost every race that my athletes do, and the the race. And it’s easy for us to sit there and anadian Joel Filliol has built quite a main di erence between a major priority race lounge around and discuss it. But at that Creputation as an elite coach. For one, he and just another race is what happens from particular time, when she saw the other coached Canada’s Simon Whitfi eld to silver seven or eight days, from 13 to 14 days prior. girls weren’t riding well, it motivated her at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But beyond So the week before is always the same; it’s to lose her game plan. And I know we’ve that he’s served as head coach for the national the second week before that we vary depend- had discussions about it already, and the federations British Triathlon and Triathlon ing on the level of the race and the workload discussions were if maybe we stuck to our Canada, and has worked with top names such that they’ve carried in. The right amount of game plan, the race might have unfolded as Alistair Brownlee, Jonathan Brownlee, Tim rest, the right amount of taper—having a real and we might not have walked the last two Don, Helen Jenkins and Jordan Rapp. He’s consistent pattern for that into races—one, it kilometers. So, you know, it’s the same for currently based in Victoria and working with takes a bit of the thinking away from, “What age groupers as it is for pros—she left noth- ITU athletes Lauren Campbell, Kyle Jones am I going to do race week?” but also sets up ing on the course. That girl did everything and Kerry Lang, as well as Ironman athlete that predictability and that pattern that we possible she could to unseat the queen— Chris McDonald. know what to expect race week; we always do she’s racing the greatest ever athlete in the same sessions and that predictability, that triathlon. So it was a wonderful testament Training philosophy What we’re really reliability is there. I think it makes it easier to people like you to look at somebody who trying to do is the maximum sustainable to produce that consistent performance. So was not overruled by Chrissie Wellington training load for any given athlete, and the it’s slightly di erent thinking than trying to and was going to go out there and give it ev- key word is “sustainable.” That’s a word get a peak and more about, “How do we make erything she had. And that was wonderful. coaches talk about—consistency. And what sure that we’re able to express the fi tness that So on one hand, I applaud her and tell her does that really mean? It means that the level we’ve built through training?” … What we what a wonderful competitor she was, and of training, the level of work you can back up want to avoid is that sensation of heavy legs on the other, I have to tell her the truth. You day to day and week to week for a long period or sluggishness, and usually that’s from re- should have stuck to your game plan, and it of time, and the idea is that we progress that covering or doing too little. You can also feel might have put more pressure on you than over time—that athletes can progress to like that from being too fatigued, but many you thought. be able to tolerate and absorb a higher and athletes I think do too little race week or the higher level of work. And of course you adapt two weeks before—they almost over-rest, On avoiding overtraining The thing is as you go. That contrasts to an approach and they get that sluggishness from that. an age grouper, to speculate, there’s a fam- that’s more varied or uses more traditional ily behind some of these guys and they’ve cycles, like build 1, 2, 3 and then have a week The right workload at the right time got work. So, for instance, if I’ve got an o , a down week. It varies from that—where What we’re trying to do is have the right age grouper that’s down to do a fast run we’re looking at longer periods of time where workloads for each athlete—the right work- or whatever on a Wednesday night, and the goal is to have a really consistent period load at the right time for the athletes. I think they’ve had a rough day at work, I’d tell of work. … Of course, you need the right level that’s sort of a broad principle, but there are them don’t do it. Don’t do it. It’s only going of intensity to stimulate improvement, and some di erent stories for how I can illustrate to make it worse. “I’ve had a really tough that can come in di erent ways. That can that. “Philosophy” is kind of a big word— day. I’ve had a shocker. I had two business come from intervals at various paces or from what does that mean? What does that apply? meetings.” Go outside, and go for a run, and using natural terrain like hills or from higher My lessons working with Simon [Whitfi eld] then if you start to feel good, pick the pace frequency or varying the volume. So there post-Beijing—we were lucky to have success, up. And then if you start to feel real good, are lots of ways we can adjust that workload, so you look back and ask, “What contrib- pick the pace up more. And if you can, go but we’re trying to have basically the highest uted to that?” And I said there were three out at night. Why? Because psychologi- average workload for a longer period of time, things that were really important for Beijing, cally when you’re running at night you feel and that’s what gets athletes fi t, and then and they were conditioning, conditioning better. The darkness seems to galvanize some specifi city into the kind of races they’re and conditioning. Just having a really high, you a little bit better, the wind goes a little preparing for, and then the right amount of robust level of fi tness, of conditioning. And bit more in the hair, and then you’re going rest based on all of that. that really takes you a long way, and I think faster. So that’s how I’d arrange it. But if I it’s easy to get distracted with, in our sport, go out and give them fi ve 800s on the track How to peak for a race I think it’s less either the technology of it or the many dif- after they’re stressed, you’re giving them about trying to achieve that big peak on those ferent ways which we can go about training more stress. Just because it wasn’t physi- days than it is to have a performance that’s and convolute the big picture—that it’s about cal stress—it was mental stress all day— predictable—that you know that if you line up getting our athletes as fi t as they can be and doesn’t mean it’s not stress. And then we’re your training in this planned way that you’re ready to race and express that. But getting as going to give them physical stress—that’s going to have the best level of your season fi t as you can be isn’t that complicated of a when they’re going to get tired, they’re on those days. That it’s predictable and process. … Having seen and worked with so going to get irritable and that’s when things consistent is probably what I would apply to many di erent champion athletes, I can tell break down. anyone—less so than chasing after a peak. As you that they’re not all training at the same

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GreatMindsDon'tAlwaysThinkAlike.indd 62 8/17/12 12:00 PM level, and what they are doing is training at that more often. Even short runs—20 or 30 On mental preparation I think the big- the level that’s right for them. And for some minutes—are much better than not doing gest thing that everybody can do is if you’re of the men or some of the women, that may those, and spread those throughout the week logging your training and you know you’ve be running eight or nine or 10 hours a week, and you can achieve a good level of frequency. been training consistently, doing a great job, and they’re at the top. And there’s others Because part of learning how to move well— working hard every day, and if you’re logging who are only running four or fi ve, and they’re and we might talk technique, or biomechan- that, it’s important to go back—whether it’s equally as fast. And it’s not about a coach be- ics in swimming and running—the frequency weekly or monthly or before a race—and look ing right or wrong, but it’s the right approach and neuromuscular coordination and fl ow at all that work that you’ve done and look for the right athlete at the right time—fi gur- is important. … It’s fi guring out within their at the progress that you’ve made and really ing that out for the individual is really what own schedule, their life schedule, what is a get a true confi dence boost from that. A lot the task is. program or a layout for the week, a schedule of people just kind of train every day, but for the week that they can repeat consistently they don’t keep track of how they’re going, On injury prevention Part of it is get- because again if you’re too ambitious or you and I think that that’s such an invaluable ting the training load right because a lot of don’t anticipate what level is sustainable for tool—to be able to look back and say, “Wow! injuries are caused by or are precipitated by you, then you’re going to end up less consis- Look at this! I worked hard, and look at the training load that is too high and they can’t tent over time if you’re constantly missing improvement I’ve made.” … It’s a matter of cope with it and structurally bad things start sessions, or some sessions are too much and really taking each athlete and knowing what to happen—they start to move in less than you just can’t recover and then that a ects fear is most coming into their minds on race optimal ways or compensate—compensa- your consistency the rest of the week. week and being able to make sure they’re not tion patterns in their movement, which focusing on those but focusing on the things lead to injury. So that is very important. On mistakes age groupers make I sup- they need to—which really, if they’ve done Very well-skilled coaches seem to have pose just making it more complicated than it the work, all you have to do is go out there lower injury rates from that perspective of needs to be at times. … I think you can easily and give 110 percent to the race, and it should knowing the right load for the athletes so all make things too complicated, try to be too be a great day for you, as long as you’ve done their stabilizer muscles and form is able to sophisticated. And it really is that endurance that work. So it’s really just keeping perspec- hold together, so there’s the right progres- training is really simple. … It’s easy to overdo tive and keeping them out of their heads and sion. But I look at an athlete’s injury history, single sessions but then sacrifi ce consis- just focusing on the great work that they’ve their biomechanics, what we know about tency as opposed to knowing what the right done and treating race day more as a cel- their sport history also as indicators of what level is for any given athlete at the time and ebration of all the hard work they’ve done they need to do. The athletes that I’m able then being able to back that up. … How I see rather than this test that they’ve got to be all to see and work with more closely or more improvement in an athlete is not necessarily stressed about. intensely might have a physio screening, how good any one training session is. It’s how they might have areas where they need to much they’re able to back it up and be consis- On balancing all three sports I would develop be identifi ed and we can address tent throughout the week. recommend to every age grouper that each those in a sport-specifi c way, which is week they try to get in one speed session in using various exercises or ways of train- every sport, one long, endurance session in ing to develop strength or conditioning or every sport and one strength session in every ability to hold form—there’s ways we can do sport. And if they can do that, they’re going that within sport-specifi c training. Then to be covering the bases. And [I would also there’s also looking at what we can do in recommend] not being too hard on them- terms of other exercises that might address selves because if they get stressed about limiters or predisposition to injury. So that The Team missing a session, that can have negative might be spending time doing gym work or Builder & consequences on the rest of their day and on drill work or isolating particular areas that Mentalist their family and on their work. It’s really just we know are weak and then—I wouldn’t doing the best that they can with the time necessarily say “isolate” areas, but empha- that they have, but defi nitely planning their sizing development in areas that are weak time wisely and making sure they’re getting or predispose an athlete to injury or where s an athlete, American Siri Lindley in the sessions that are really benefi cial. they’ve identifi ed a movement pattern from Aused her balls-to-the-wall approach before. … I really encourage athletes to have to win an ITU World Championship. She On training camps When you’re faced a good self-maintenance-type program, retired in 2002, at her athletic peak, but with yourself and a little bit of boredom, which basically includes foam rollers and feels like she still held on to her credibil- and there’s nowhere to go and nothing to those types of activities that can keep the ity. “I got a lot of hell from people saying, do, a training camp ends up being a very body moving. I don’t mean stretching as it ‘Why are you retiring now? You’re winning powerful experience because it does give were, but it’s about how those muscles are races!’” she said. “But I just felt like I knew you time to get to know yourself and to working together and that can help a lot. I there was something bigger out there, as be more in touch with what you’re feel- don’t like athletes to have to rely on medical far as something that I’m even more pas- ing inside of yourself and all those things. support or physios or chiros. I’d prefer them sionate about.” When her former competi- I know it sounds cheesy, but the more you to be able to do a lot of that maintenance tors started asking for coaching help, she can be connected with yourself and what themselves. found her calling. She’s coached athletes motivates you and know yourself and know to Olympic medals (Susan Williams), what your fears are and know what makes On balancing all three sports If I give World Cup wins (Samantha Warriner and you uncomfortable, it just gives you more people advice, frequency is important in such Jill Savege) and Ironman and 70.3 World power to put into the goals you’re trying to that even short workouts are still really use- Championship crowns (Mirinda Carfrae). achieve. It gives you more time for recov- ful. If you only have time to swim 20 min- Her current squad includes Leanda Cave, ery, more time to appreciate what you’re utes, that’s better than nothing. And doing Luke McKenzie and Magali Tisseyre. doing and where you’re at. I think it’s really

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GreatMindsDon'tAlwaysThinkAlike.indd 63 8/17/12 12:01 PM important, as uncomfortable as it can be the technical refi nement, and quite high on to a very slippery medium, water, so that for some of my athletes. I know we always teaching people specifi cs about racing. the body can go past and go forward. It’s leave those camps in a much more powerful not about pulling the water, it’s not about space, which I fi nd is really helpful as far as On how to compete The “rah, rah” coach anything other than putting your hand in, starting the season o on a high note. at the start of the race, before the start of the holding tension and then pulling your body race says, “I want you to win this,” and da, past that hand or forearm. ... We change the On injury prevention The biggest thing da, da. Well, I never talk to my athletes about range of motion at the shoulders to allow is I have a strength and fl exibility coach winning—never. I would never go, “All right, athletes to get into a stroke that’s even close who works twice a week with them laying we need a top fi ve or a top 10” or anything to reasonable. So if somebody with poor down a foundation of strength that they like that. I’ll tell you what I do instead: We technique is not prepared to change their need to stay strong as the training gets work hard at all the things that make them range of motion, I wouldn’t even work with tougher, and fl exibility in order to keep you good before the race. We have a plan. … them—that’s how important it is. loose and have your body working prop- What makes somebody go slower in a race? erly. When things get really tight, you start Thinking about the other athletes. What On injury prevention We have a full- compensating, so we really try to get to a happens if you know you should run with time massage therapist. We also have a point where they aren’t compensating in your arms at a certain height or run at a cer- world-class physio, and I have a system of any way. Ice baths after hard runs, mas- tain cadence or take a drink at a certain time, looking for overtraining markers. So we’re sages, self-massage and getting plenty of what happens if you forget all that and you looking for nervous system fatigue, things recovery. And most importantly, our big- dream about or you think about other things like mood state or anxiety. … When you get gest rule of thumb is if you feel something that are distracting? You slow down. … So really fatigued, really tired, your sleep qual- coming on, you stop right away and maybe you’ve got to focus on the things that make ity goes o and your anxiety goes up, and it’s take a day or two o , and then it’s gone you run fast, which is, what are your arms normally related to the nervous system. Not and you’re ready to start training again. doing? Are you breathing well? What are you just “I’m dead tired”—essentially something Whereas most people, they feel something thinking or what are you saying to yourself? that’s not good. Heart rate numbers change, coming on, they say, “Oh, I’ll just get this You know, are you running heel-toe, or are mood state changes. So we’re looking for session done and then I’ll take care of it.” you running mid-foot or whatever technical things like that. So every morning when I see And next thing you know, they’re out for thing the coach has said in training? Are you the athletes, I’ll ask them some questions, a three weeks. drinking appropriately? So, my point is, we bit like Gennadi Touretski used to, quietly go don’t think about things like winning, we up and talk to them one at a time. don’t think about things like coming in at a certain place. We think about the things that On taking rest days I don’t care about make us go fast. … If fi ve people beat you [in giving them a day o or two days o or a a race], then you come sixth, right? Now, week o if needed—it doesn’t really matter did you have a chance to a ect how they to me. What’s most important is that we performed? No. Of course not. That’s the train them optimally. So we train them hard The answer. So we get people to focus on what and then when they’re starting to show Master of they can do. Don’t focus on what you can’t signs of overtraining or fatigue—extra fa- Technique do or can’t control, which is other people. tigue, not just normal fatigue—then we give … And even if you got fi fth in a race or sixth them whatever rest they need. So I don’t in a race, and you performed all the things have a hard and a fast rule that I must train you’d been training to do, do you think them for four weeks and then I give them ustralian coach Darren Smith’s you’d be proud? Yes, you would because you one week rest. I look at them as an individ- Abackground in sports science naturally performed well, which is doing things well ual. And some people can go for six weeks led him to coaching when a friend asked for in training and then doing exactly what you maybe, or some people need a break after help. “In the end, I enjoyed coaching more were taught to do in the racing environment. three weeks. They’re all a bit di erent, so I than I did competing,” Smith said. His So that’s basically my philosophy on teach- don’t have a one-size-fi ts-all approach. biggest coaching infl uences are Gennadi ing people how to compete. Touretski, who coached Alexander Popov to On balancing swim, bike, run Well, multiple Olympic swimming gold medals in On improving your swim We’ve all seen normally they’ll come from one background. the ’90s, and well-known triathlon coach the ex-swimmer who’s out of shape jump So if they’re a swimming background, you Brett Sutton, whom he worked with in the into the swim lane next to you and they go might work what is the minimum require- late ’90s. He started out coaching Iron- up and down their lane faster even though ment at some phases of the year, and only man athletes, such as Kate Allen and Sarah they’re not fi t. And I’m sure a lot of age- the most time-e cient method. So it might Gross, but has built much of his reputa- group triathletes who are very fi t and work be two to three sessions [per week] and you tion by coaching ITU athletes, especially very hard get totally pissed o when they see might do no drills, but you might do a 3–4K women. On his current Canberra, Austra- these out-of-shape ex-swimmers go up and main set and plenty of strength work, so you lia-based squad are some of the biggest down. So it’s not about fi tness, right? That’s get the most bang for your buck. And that’s names in ITU racing: Lisa Norden (the 2012 pretty clear. Now, some of the things that we swimming ticked o . You won’t improve, Olympic silver medalist) and Sarah Gro . see is that measures of internal rotation at but you won’t go backward. Same with a the shoulders or fl exibility at the shoulders runner—if you’re a runner and you need Training philosophy I don’t know what in general, and perhaps some skill compo- to learn how to swim and all these things, too many others do because I don’t spend nents are missing, totally missing. And so how much running do you think per week my days trying to work out what every- one of the fi rst things I do is to improve the will be enough just to keep you nice and fi t? one else does. But I think I’m somewhere range of motion and shoulder control of the I’d probably say if you’re from a running in between everything. I’m certainly less athletes because I’m wasting my time if I background, you’d need one run over an volume than, say, Sutton, I’m quite high on don’t. Swimming is about applying force hour, or just about an hour, and then one run

PEAK PERFORMANCE

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