Feisty Triathlon

This week, we have some news: This will be the last Feisty Tri episode for awhile and the last one from Kelly, Katie, and Joanne.

To mark the occasion, the hosts all pick what they're most looking forward to this season and then catch up on the news: Paula Findlay's dominating debut at Ironman Lake Placid, the latest Kona qualification updates, and what it means to be two years out from the L.A. Games.

And then we hear from Catherine Breed, who is now in the middle of a four-month swim along the entire California coast. We talked with her back before she headed out on the boat, and she answers all of our logistical questions — plus offers some long-distance swimming advice for triathletes.

You can follow along with Catherine's swim on Allez! Sports.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

The last time Kelly caught up with world championship podium-finisher Heather Jackson was in the hotel just past the finish line of Kona three years ago. What has she been up to since? Becoming a professional gravel racer and ultra-runner!

Today we catch up with the fan favorite, Heather Jackson, before she heads out on her big Tour Divide bike ride from Canada to Mexico. But first, Joanne and Kelly catch up on the news from the last two weeks: What's to be done about all these heat cancellations.

Then, Heather tells us:

• How she ended up with a second pro athlete career
• What her training looks like now with just biking and running
• The hardest parts of gravel racing and ultra-trail running
• Can she survive this mega-summer schedule?!

Follow along with Heather's Tour Divide FKT attempt.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

This week we're replaying an episode with Feisty's resident sports psychologist Dr. Erin Ayala, who joins the pod to answer all of our questions about mental performance, mental training, and tips for dealing with the mental stress of the world right now.

First, the team tackles the latest news and the question: How do we keep the booming 20- to 29-year-old age group in the sport?

Then:

• What mental skills you can practice on the treadmill or trainer
• Why a race isn't a test — and staying curious will actually help you perform better
• Ditching the comparison game
• And is the correlation between mental health issues and endurance sports a coincidence?

Dr. Ayala is also the host of the re-launched Feisty Women's Performance podcast, where she talks to experts each week on health and performance questions about women and for women.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

To continue our theme of giving you coaching advice for your own racing, we sit down with renowned strength and mobility coach Erin Carson to talk about how strength training and mobility should support your triathlon performance, not hurt it!

And first she helps us dissect the news around heat race cancellations, why she loved being on the ground at Ironman Texas, and her predictions for Challenge Roth.

Erin shares:

• How she got started working with endurance athletes,
• The importance of sports-specific strength training and mobility
• Why you should periodize your strength work, too, and how to balance it with the rest of your training
• Practical exercises for triathletes: deadlifts, goblet squats, and upper back mobility drills
• The most common mobility and strength issues triathletes deal with — and how everything can get locked up from all that biking

Check out Erin's Monday Mobility on Youtube.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

Kelly brings listener questions to two expert Feisty coaches, with different types of athletes and perspectives: Katie Zaferes and her Auxo Collective development squad, and Alison Freeman, a Level III USAT coach and co-owner of NYX Endurance. They bring their expertise and answers to a wide range of listener questions:

• How to choose the right coach — and when to leave your coach
• What data and metrics to look at, and which ones to ignore
• Moving sessions around and knowing when to cut a workout
• Carb guidelines and GI distress
• Training through pregnancy
• Open water skills
• Race day advice for rolling starts

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

First, Joanne and Kelly recap this week's races — including a voicemail from Lydia Russell after her podium finish at the N. American 70.3 champs in Happy Valley. And then we hear from the young Daisy Davies after her Ironman S. Africa win earlier year. Daisy's only done two full-distance races and won both of them. What else can we expect from her?

• Why she moved from the short-course British system into long-course — and what she prefers about racing on her own
• How she's already been racing triathlon for a decade, even though she's only 24!
• Being on the Bianchi Pro Triathlon Team and having support behind her
• And what her training looks like right now (volume!) as she gets ready for Challenge Roth and then Kona

What out for the next British star!

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

Two-time Ironman champ and current Feisty CEO Sara Gross joins the squad this week to talk about the epic results and how she's now trying new things at gymnastics and CrossFit.

And she wants to know: Is it normal for the pro women to all run sub-three-hour Ironman marathons now? What has led us to this point of massive speed and depth in the women's field?

• The epic race in Ironman Hamburg: Solveig Lovseth has now won four Ironmans in 11 months!
• Dumb comments about weight and performance, and why we're happy the pros are moving away from under-fueling
• The sabotage on the Hamburg bike course and if we need to get local communities more invested
• How many sprint triathlons could you do in a weekend?
• And what's changed in the triathlon landscape in Sara's career — has the sport gotten better or worse...

Plus, don't forget to join us for FeistyFest — try something new (not gymnastics, maybe handstands) or learn more about what you already love!

And submit your training and racing questions for our upcoming Coaches Corner episode.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

In this bonus episode, Selene welcomes longtime friend, cyclist, and women’s sports powerhouse Kate Veronneau to the show for a preview of the first-ever FeistyFest in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania.

For Kate, the location is personal. The Valley Preferred Cycling Center is where she first fell in love with bike racing, found her cycling community, and eventually launched a career in the sport. She shares how a casual Friday night trip to watch track racing turned into an entry-level “try the track” class, a relocation to the Lehigh Valley, and years immersed in one of the most magical cycling communities around.

Selene and Kate talk about what makes the Lehigh Valley so special: quiet roads, covered bridges, gravel before gravel was “gravel,” beautiful trails, and a deep community of people who love to ride, run, explore, and support one another.

They also dig into what attendees can expect at FeistyFest: track riding, gravel, trail running, lifting, swimming, pickleball, community, laughter, and the kind of grown-up summer camp energy that reminds women how good it feels to try new things.

Kate also shares why women-only spaces can be so powerful, especially when women feel safe, supported, and encouraged to step outside their comfort zones. Whether you’re a seasoned athlete or brand new to an activity, there is something magical that happens when women come together, lift each other up, and give each other permission to live a little bigger.

Learn more and register for FeistyFest

With all the pro athletes busy at races (!), Kelly, Joanne, and Katie dive into the latest results and dissect the drama of the week. Then it's time for a speed round: watch or no watch in the pool, socks or no socks in transition, mass start or time trial?

They cover:

• Mud and triathletes at Unbound — and if they'd do it
• What exactly happened at the WTCS Alghero finish line, and Katie gives us her real life insight into how she'd handle the situation
• IM Hamburg and Alcatraz this week (and the Alcatraz lawsuit)
• And then it's time for rapid fire speed round of hot topic, gear picks, and their favorite pieces of advice

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com

Fresh off her wins at Gulf Coast 70.3 and Chattanooga 70.3 — just one week apart! — Grace Alexander joins the show to tell us how she went from a 1:59 half-marathon to being a professional triathlete.

But first, the news of the week: a hot day at T100 Spain (Are the dramatic finish line collapses over-dramatic? The squad says no.), Lucy Charles-Barclay is back, and could we see the first sub-8 at Ironman Hamburg?

And then Grace shares:

• The effect the new 20-meter draft rule has had in her races so far
• Why her post-college triathlon journey started with Orangetheory Fitness classes
• Being the first woman to ever win an age-group 70.3 outright, and the steady progress she's made over the years
• The most common questions (and mistakes) from the athletes she coaches

Plus, she breaks down what a pro triathlete's week really looks like and how much volume she actually does.

Courses and Coaching: https://livefeisty.com/courses/

Follow us on Instagram:

@feistytriathlon

Feisty Media Website:

Feisty Media Website: https://livefeisty.com/

Support Feisty Triathlon Partners:

Momentous: Use the code FEISTYTRI for up to 35% off your first order at livemomentous.com.

Wahoo: Learn more about Wahoo bike computers at this link https://wahoofitness.pxf.io/OYz79W

Orca: Use the code FEISTYTRI15 for 15% off at https://orca.avln.me/c/HzUkzIfxsmYo

Hettas: Use code STAYFEISTY for 20% off at hettas.com