Elite nutritionist Nigel Mitchell on HOW to get the basics right * Nigel Mitchell

Nutrition is actually a really simple topic but many folks seem to make it way more complicated than necessary. Like with most things, it's important to have the basics in place before you start trying to get clever.

We are all guilty of this, including me, and I’m fortunate that on a regular basis I get to chat with an expert on a topic who brings me back to reality. With nutrition, what we need is an expert who can translate the scientific data and then cut through the marketing B/S to give us some simple pointers. That sounds like a job for a straight-talking Yorkshireman! Luckily we have Nigel Mitchell on hand to help. Nigel was the nutritional game changer who worked with team GB cyclists in the early 2000s and after that with Team Sky.

It's a pleasure to have another Yorkshireman on the show to discuss:

• Injecting vitamins for recovery in pro cycling
• Teaching Geraint Thomas & Luke Rowe to cook
• Even vegan food can be rubbish
• Making your own sourdough bread, and buying flour directly from the mill
• Focussing on food quality
• Real barriers to eating healthily
• Nigel's simple tips to eat better

Nigel doesn’t really do social media but he's written some really good books about nutrition for cyclists:

• Fuelling the cycling revolution 
• The plant based Cyclist
• The Cyclists Cookbook 

As for other book recommendations of course as a good Yorkshireman, he recommends 

Relentless: Secrets of the Sporting Elite by Alistair Brownlee

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

12 years, 33 events and two men left standing * Gary Goacher & Graham Yare

This weekend sees the final Outlaw event of 2022, Outlaw X.

To this date, there are only two men who have completed every single Outlaw triathlon starting with the first Outlaw full in 2010. 

During that time, Gary Goacher and Graham Yare have completed 32 Outlaw races and have become known in the Outlaw family as “The Last Men Standing”.

This is no easy task! The series has grown from one event to five and with each passing year the task of staying healthy, training for, racing, and then recovering from each race becomes that little bit harder. Prior to this weekend's event, I took the time to sit down with Gary and Graham to talk about their Outlaw journey and how it has shaped the last 12 years of their life, including:

• How it all started
• A growing friendship
• What happens when the streak is broken
• Planning family holidays around races
• Overcoming illness and injury to get to the start line

If you're interested in joining Gary and Graham at one of the Outlaw events for 2023, entries are open via www.outlawtriathlon.com. By entering before 14 November, your entry comes with a free deferral or transfer guarantee - so your entry is protected if the unexpected happens.

To find out more about our resilient Outlaw athletes please see the links below:

Gary Goacher

Chiropractor - https://livewelltherapy.co.uk/

Graham Yare 

Twitter  @UltraOutlaw

Strava UltraOutlaw

Gary and Graham also recommended some books which they have found inspirational:

Graham -Mental Training for Ultra Running by Addie Bracy

Gary - The Lost Art of Running by Shane Benzie,   The Triathlete’s Training Bible by Joe Friel.

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Is Vo2max or FTP really that important? Jacob Tipper

Did you watch any of the Phoenix Sub 7/Sub 8 coverage recently? Other than the disciplines and the distances, it bears no resemblance to an Ironman, but who cares? Whatever you think about the project, it was a fantastic exercise in teamwork, logistics, and finding out just how fast elite athletes can go over 140.6 miles.

And the documentary, 'Defy the Impossible’, is fantastic to watch!

Today’s guest is Jacob Tipper, a talented cyclist and performance coach who was instrumental in helping Joe Skipper's team formulate and execute a strategy for the Sub 7 project which resulted in the fastest bike split of the day with them only 3 minutes away from overall victory. With a Masters in Applied Sports Science, he thoroughly enjoys applying his knowledge to helping triathletes and cyclists go faster. We get properly into some rabbit holes today so I hope you enjoy the journey as we chat about:

• Consistency and why it is always the #1 factor in fitness development.
• What’s the best interval training workout?
• The value of being as aero as possible in your long-distance cycling/triathlon events
• Is Vo2 max or FTP really that important?
• Jacob's top 5 tips to incorporate into your winter training

If you’d like to follow the adventures of Jacob Tipper, please visit these social media channels:

Website - https://www.jtperformancecoaching.com/

Twitter @JacobTipper

Instagram @jacobtipper and @jtp_coaching

Click on the link to watch the Phoenix sub7/sub 8 film 'Defy the Impossible’ 

You might also be interested in Huub Design, especially the Huub Cycle Wear that Jacob is involved with and the Huub Anemoi Aero Triathlon suit.

Jacob's book recommendation was 'Start at the End' by Dan Bigham

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Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here.

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Project RED-S * Pippa Woolven

Eating disorders and disordered eating have long been a thing in endurance sports. The combination of disordered eating, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis was originally referred to as the “female athlete triad”. But this is not an exclusively female issue and more recently we have started using the term RED-S or Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport.

Today my guest is Pippa Woolven, the founder of Project RED-S. This is a collaborative initiative formed by a group of athletes, parents, and partners whose lives have been impacted by the condition. They have 3 main aims - Awareness, Prevention, and Recovery. In this episode, Pippa and I will cover each of those topics to help you have a better understanding of how you might be able to help athletes you train with, coach or support.

It's a very informative chat as we cover:

• Pippa’s story and how Project RED-S started
• What is RED-S and what are the long-term mental/physical health consequences 
• Impacts on athletic performance
• What you can do if you are a coach/parent/supporter
• Chasing the perfect diet and what to do if you think your clean eating has gone too far
• Social media and sports culture
• Ending on a positive note

To find out more about Pippa and RED-S please use these social media links:

Website red-s.com

Instagram www.instagram.com/project_red_s_/

Twitter twitter.com/ProjectRED_S

Facebook facebook.com/ProjectREDS

LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/projectred-s/

Pippa also shared these useful links to other podcasts and blogs:

Nourish Balance Thrive - a good podcast about all things sports & nutrition 

Rich Roll - one focused on wellness and forward-thinking 

A brilliant simplified summary of fuelling by Chris Lowe

A brilliant website full of training and nutrition advice for women

Pippa's article in Runner's World

Elite mountain biker Evie Richards talking about RED-S 

And finally, some recommended books to add to our growing list:

The Book of Joy - Dalai Lama & Desmond Tutu

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Macksey

ROAR by Stacey Sims

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Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here.

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Being from Yorkshire makes you tough * Dominic Coy

It gives me great pleasure to observe the success of Yorkshire triathletes, especially when I've watched them from a young age, and then see them progress to the international stage. First, it was the Brownlees, then Jess Learmonth, and now this week's podcast guest Dominic Coy.

Dominic started out as a junior member of my own club Leeds Bradford Tri and progressed up to the Yorkshire Academy. After leaving school he went to University in Cardiff and is part of the triathlon squad, training there with Coach Luke Watson. Just a few short weeks ago Dom represented Wales at the Commonwealth Games in both the individual race and the team relay where he won a silver medal with his 3 teammates including Non Stanford. Dom clearly has a bright future so it’s a great pleasure to chat with him today as we cover:

• The benefits of being a triathlete in Leeds
• Moving to Wales
• Typical training schedule 
• Commonwealth Games
• Can he make it on the big stage?

If you’d like to follow the adventures of Dom Coy please go to:

Instagram - dom.c113

Twitter @DomCoy02

Dominic also recommended a couple of books:

Range : Why generalists triumph in a world of specialists by David Epstein

Around the world in 80 days - Mark Beaumont

To download your FREE 4-week mobility plan, please click here.

Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here.

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Chasing Greatness with Barrie Shepley

I've chatted to a few guests who have been in the triathlon world a long time - Dave Scott,  Mark Allen, Bob Babbitt, Sarah Springman, and Steve Trew to name a few. But none of them have been at as many seminal triathlon occasions as this week's guest. Canadian Barrie Shepley may be better known to you as the commentator of the WTS TV coverage but there is way more to him than just that. At different times he’s been President and  National Coach of Triathlon Canadian as well as a race announcer and now author. In today's show, we catch up with him about his triathlon life and talk about some of the inspirational characters who feature in his new book, ‘Chasing Greatness’.

To follow Barrie you can find him on most of the social media channels:

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

LinkedIn

If you’d like to get hold of a copy of Barrie’s book, ‘Chasing Greatness’ then please go HERE

CLICK HERE To watch a short video of the Triathlon event at the Sydney Olympics in 2002 won by Simon Whitfield of Canada.

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Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here.

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If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

The Urban Challenger takes on Outlaw X * Michael Adeniran

The first triathlon book I read was by 6-time Ironman World Champion Dave ’The Man’ Scott. I was inspired by his stories but he was superhuman, right, so I could never really be like him. I tried some of his workouts and they either left me defeated, broken, or worse still injured. If I could have just found a triathlon book by some regular guy or girl.

What I've really enjoyed in 5 years of recording this podcast is getting to talk to people just like you and me. Recreational athletes, weekend warriors if you like, who have similar day-to-day challenges.

Planning training around children and work or learning to swim. Basically adjusting to the demands of life.

Today's guest is one such person, Michael Adeniran a.k.a. The Urban Challenger who will be racing at Outlaw X in late September. Michael is one of 4 Outlaw ambassadors we have in 2022 and as he prepares for the event he's sharing his training journey with his 10,000+ followers on Instagram. Michael is joined on the call by his young daughter Amaia, his biggest fan, so you might hear her in the background as we chat about:

• Becoming the Urban Challenger
• Keeping fit during the pandemic
• Being an ‘influencer'
• Learning to swim
• Training for Outlaw X

To find out more about Michael please use these links:

Instagram: @theurbanchallenger - this is where he hangs out most

Twitter: @urbn_challenger

Also his website - Theurbanchallenger.com

You might like this blog post by Michael about 'Preparing for your first triathlon’

Michael also recommended the following books by Robert Greene

Mastery 

48 Laws of Power

To download your FREE case study on how to excel at your first Ironman, please CLICK HERE

Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here

Purchase a copy of my High Performance Human e-book featuring more than 30 top tips on how to upgrade your life.

If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

How a stable environment influences our success and performance * Jodie Swallow, Legend of British Triathlon

Some time ago, I made an executive decision that as well as celebrating the current state of the British Triathlon elite performances we should also celebrate those athletes who came before. They are the foundation of the sport in this country and so I decided to have a sub-section of the Podcast called Legends of British Triathlon

One of those legends is this week's guest, Jodie Swallow. Jodie is an Olympian and a former world champion at both ITU Long distance and 70.3. Jodie retired from the sport in 2017 and has since become a full-time coach (you can find details of her coaching business in the show notes). She is also a mother of 3, including twins. It was really nice to catch up and reminisce and I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.

As usual, we get into a lot of subjects including:

• The winning mentality
• How a stable environment has a positive influence on our performance and life
• Eating disorders in endurance athletes 
• The lack of female coaches in any sport and at the highest level

To find out more about Jodie, please visit:

Website CunnamaCoaching.co.uk

Instagram @jodieswallowcoaching 

Email cunnamaj@gmail.com for coaching enquiries with Jodie or squad coaches 

Jodie is an exceptional swimmer. CLICK HERE to watch a SwimSmooth video outlining Jodie’s awesome technique.

This is a link to the blog post that Jodie wrote in 2012 about Elite female athletes and eating disorders.

Jodie also recommended these 3 books:

The School for Good Mothers - Jessamine Chan - A horrifying yet funny novel about society's current views on women

Three Women - Lisa Taddeo 

Healthy Intelligent training - Keith Livingstone 

To download your FREE case study on how to excel at your first Ironman, please CLICK HERE

Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here

Purchase a copy of my High Performance Human e-book featuring more than 30 top tips on how to upgrade your life.

If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Why shorter crank lengths on your TT bike might be the answer for a better triathlon run leg * Phil Burt

I’ve ridden bikes since I was 4 which means I've owned a lot of bikes. I started cycling a bit more seriously when I was 18 and I can honestly say that until I was in my early 50’s I rode the bike that I purchased from the shop. I never changed crank lengths, handlebar width, or even the saddle. Apparently, that makes me a macro adjuster, just like Geraint Thomas, although that and the fact that we both ride bikes regularly is where the similarity stops.

Cycle training typically occupies 45-50% of a triathlete's weekly programme. The longer your chosen race distance, the more time you need in the saddle so bike fit is a crucial element. Today I'm joined by Phil Burt, a physiotherapist by training. After a long career supporting the world’s best at three Olympic Games and seven Tour de Frances, Burt is now concentrating on using his expertise to help cyclists at all levels to improve their health, comfort, and performance. I learned a lot from this call, as I hope you do, including why I should probably have a bike fit after 58 years. I also learned about:

• 3 pillars of bike fit
• Why you should have a bike fit before you buy your new bike
• How a bike fitter can make a difference in performance
• Why the saddle is the most important part of a TT bike
• Why shorter crank lengths on your TT bike might lead to a better run
• Are you a macro adjuster, or a micro adjuster?
• 3 simple fixes you can make immediately for a better bike fit
• Strength training for triathletes

To find out more about Phil and the services he offers, please visit him at:

Website PhilBurtInnovation

Facebook - Philburtinnov

Twitter @PhilBurtInnov

Instagram PhilBurtInnov

YouTube Phil Burt Innovation

Linked In PhilBurtInnov

In this video, Phil explains his new approach to bike fit, performance, and comfort

Phil also recommended these books:

Start with Why by Simon Sinek 

Breath by James’s Nestor 

To download your FREE case study on how to excel at your first Ironman, please CLICK HERE

Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here

Purchase a copy of my High Performance Human e-book featuring more than 30 top tips on how to upgrade your life.

If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.

Guiding a visually impaired triathlete at the Commonwealth Games * Duncan Shea Simmonds and Iain Dawson

Here's a challenge for you. Put on a blindfold and then ask a friend to run with you. I guarantee that you’ll find it incredibly stressful!

Now imagine swimming, biking, and running not just the two of you but with other competitors around you. Finally, imagine doing this at a pace that will allow you to break a world record or win a world championship medal. 

Guiding a visually impaired triathlete doesn’t just mean having great fitness. It also requires great communication skills and the ability to build trust with your partner. Today's guest is Duncan Shea Simmonds. Duncan has been guiding for several years firstly with Haseeb Ahmed, and more recently with Iain Dawson who also joins us on today's show. Iain is a B3 visually impaired athlete and Duncan is his guide. In a few days' time they will be racing for Team England at the Para Commonwealth Games in the PTVI category. It’s super exciting for both as it's their first time competing at the Commonwealth Games. I’ve known Duncan for a long time so firstly we catch up about his triathlon career to date and some of our shared experiences, and then how he got into the guiding role. In the second half, Iain joins us for a 3-way discussion on how it all works. There’s more to it than you might think.

We talk about:

• Average age grouper to Commonwealth Games
• Skills and tactics required for guiding
• Trust and communication

If you’d like to follow Duncan on social media he tends to hang out at the following places:

Instagram @dss123

Twitter @dss123

Duncan also recommended this book by one of the triathlon legends:

Scott Tinley - "Racing the Sunset”  - An athlete’s quest for life after sport

Please CLICK HERE to watch a video of Duncan and Iain swimming. You can see exactly how synchronised they are. 

To download your FREE case study on how to excel at your first Ironman, please CLICK HERE

Join our SWAT/High Performance Human tribe now, with a happiness guarantee! Join SWAT/High Performance Human tribe here

Purchase a copy of my High Performance Human e-book featuring more than 30 top tips on how to upgrade your life.

If you would like to help offset the cost of our podcast production, we would be so grateful.  Please click here to support the HPH podcast.  Thank you!

Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes.  Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here.  For any questions please email Beth@TheTriathlonCoach.com.