The Commitment Continuum: Where Do You Fall?...

“It’s not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes the difference.” — Paul William “Bear” Bryant (1913-1983), former Univ. of Alabama football coach with 6 national & 13 conference championships As an athlete, I ask myself directly, and as a coach, I ask my athletes indirectly: “What is your level of commitment?” It’s easy to say, “I’d like to try an...

Triathlon Training Camp in the Canary Islands...

Today is day 11 of my trip to Fuerteventura, an island in the Spanish Canary Islands off the coast of northwest Africa, to help at German pro triathlete Olaf Sabatschus' triathlon training camp.  As you can see from the picture, it's quite nice here and the cool ocean feels wonderful after a long ride and run. I came to Olaf's triathlon training camp for two weeks in March for two reasons: First, I wanted...

Have a Coach. Be a Coach....

My client and friend, Peter O'Dunne (picture at right from Ironman Lake Placid), wants to qualify for Hawaii and, as his triathlon coach, I'm going to help him get there.  Like Peter, I also have a coach - pro German triathlete Olaf Sabatschus who coaches me for triathlon.  From Olaf's guidance and 20+ years of experience including Ironman wins at Brazil and China, I've learned a tremendous...

Lactate Threshold and Blood Lactate Testing...

Last Friday, I was fill in for one of Krista Schultz's blood lactate tests after her client canceled because he was sick.  She needed a test subject and I was curious what my power output at Lactate Threshold (LT) was. What is lactate? First, let's start with pyruvate. Pyruvate is a byproduct of anaerobic glycolysis, which is the breakdown of glycogen (or carbohydrate) for energy by the muscles without requiring...