That Triathlon Show

Rob Cheetham is a South African triathlon coach based in Bath in the UK. He coaches professional and age-group athletes, including his wife Susie (who also coaches for Cheetham Coaching) and Leon Chevalier, who recently finished 4th in the Ironman World Championships in Kona. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Rob's coaching methodology and key principles

-Coaching as a team with his wife Susie

-A deep dive into swim training, and Rob's swim training and swim technique principles

-How to maximise return on time investment for age-group athletes

-Tips for improving in swimming, biking and running for age-group athletes

-Overrated and underrated things and concepts in triathlon

-Detailed insights into Leon Chevalier's preparation for Kona, including volume and intensity, key sessions, and more

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts449/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Kasper Pedersen – Training talk and Magnus Ditlev’s Kona preparation | EP#448

-Nikki Bartlett and Bex Milnes – 5th in the Ironman World Championships | EP#446

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Kasper Pedersen is a Danish triathlon coach working with professional athletes, junior and developing athletes, and age-groupers. He is an important part of the team around Magnus Ditlev, and usually the man on the ground to help with the day to day coaching and support during training camps and races. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Kasper's backstory in triathlon and coaching

-His coaching methodology and key principles

-Training principles for age-group athletes

-Tips for improving in swimming, biking and running for age-group athletes

-Detailed insights into Magnus Ditlev's preparation for Kona, including volume and intensity, altitude training, and heat preparation protocols

-Detailed breakdown of Magnus' final altitude week before travelling to Kona 

-The importance of the team around a world class professional athlete

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts448/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Nikki Bartlett and Bex Milnes – 5th in the Ironman World Championships | EP#446

-Torben Rokkedal Lausch | EP#412 

-Altitude training with prof. Grégoire Millet | EP#258

-Bent Rønnestad, PhD | EP#386 

-Ben Stephenson, PhD – Heat preparation, physiology, performance planning, and the Paralympics | EP#443

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Scientific Triathlon coaches Mikael Eriksson and Tobias Haumann answer listener questions. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Is there a "round number bias" in training prescription, and what are the potential drawbacks of that? 

-The cost-benefit ratio of high-intensity intervals - are they really worth it? 

-Maintaining or developing the capacity to suffer in races

-A discussion on running power metrics and devices 

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts447/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Garmin Running Power

-Stryd white paper on running power

-Are we ready to measure running power? Repeatability and concurrent validity of five commercial technologies - Espejo et al. 2020

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Nikki Bartlett is fresh off a fantastic 5th place finish in the Ironman World Championships in Nice. She joins us together with her wife and coach Bex Milnes to talk us through the race and the training leading up to the race.

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Nikki's race strategy, and how the race played out for her

-Preparing for the specific demands of the Nice course

-How Nikki overcame injury issues and built her run fitness up again after a long time with no running

-A detailed look at Nikki's training leading into Nice, including key swim, bike and run sessions

-Benchmark 400 m swim TT, bike hour-power, and 5 km run to put Nikki's result in context

-Nikki's and Bex's advice for age-groupers going to race in Nice in 2025 or 2026

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts446/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Bex Milnes | EP#429

-Training talk with Bex Milnes | EP#353

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

In this episode we discuss everything you need to know about training zones. We also discuss the first and second lactate and ventilatory thresholds. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Training zones as a communication tool

-How I use training zones (and how I don't use them) 

-Not relying on training zones for training prescription

-Other common mistakes with training zones

-Lactate and ventilatory threshold testing and definitions

-Is one of lactate or ventilatory testing better than the other? 

-Field test, training and race data based alternative to lactate and ventilatory testing

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts445/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

David Roche is a running coach (trail, track and road) and trail runner. He recently broke the longstanding Leadville 100 course record (in his first 100-mile race no less), a record previously thought unbreakable. In this episode, he sheds light on everything that went into this phenomenal feat. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-How David set out to beat what was thought to be an unbreakable record at the Leadville 100

-David's training process: focusing on speed, low(ish) volume, using cycling and uphill treadmill

-Nutrition and fuelling: David's high-carb approach, and training tactics learnt from competitive eating

-Year-round heat training, ketones, sodium bicarbonate, and other marginal gains

-Race execution: pacing, mindset, and putting it all together

-How David has used insights from cycling and long-distance triathlon into his trail running prowess

-It took 18 years to be an overnight success: reflections on consistency over time 

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts444/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-David's website, podcast, and Instagram

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025 

-Portugal Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Ben Stephenson, PhD, is Performance Planning Lead and physiologist for the Great Britain para triathlon squad in Loughborough. He joins us off the back of the Paralympics in Paris where Team GB had a very successful games with five para triathlon medals, including two golds. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Core temperature and thermoregulatory strain in sprint distance triathlon

-Heat preparation: science and practice

-How to minimise the risk of getting ill: which factors matter the most? 

-The performance planning process behind Great Britain's Paralympic success

-Training to performance demands or to the individual physiology? 

-Balancing the art of coaching and sports science

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts443/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Ben's Twitter and Research Gate 

-High Thermoregulatory Strain During Competitive Paratriathlon Racing in the Heat - Stephenson et al. 2019

-Mixed Active and Passive, Heart Rate-Controlled Heat Acclimation Is Effective for Paralympic and Able-Bodied Triathletes - Stephenson et al. 2019

-Training Load, Salivary Immunoglobulin A and Illness Incidence in Elite Paratriathletes - Stephenson et al. 2019

-Bent Rønnestad, PhD | EP#386 

-Training talk with Bex Milnes | EP#353

-Failure is not an optioon: Mission Control From Mercury to Apollo 13 - book by Gene Kranz

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Jeff Sankoff is the TriDoc, an emergency physician, triathlete, and triathlon coach. In this episode, Jeff sheds some light on the most important and topical health and medicine related questions for triathletes and endurance athletes. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-The impact of endurance sports on longevity and life expectancy

-Heart health in endurance sports

-Blood tests, deficiencies, diets and supplements

-Dental health

-Myths and misconceptions about health and medical aspects of endurance sports

-Anti-doping considerations 

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts442/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Jeff's website and Instagram

-The TriDoc Podcast

-Mortality (all-cause, cardiovascular disease, and cancer) and longevity in former elite athletes with prof. Melitta Mcnarry | EP#302

-Blood tests and biomarkers for triathletes with Dr. Kush Joshi and Dr. Joel McCay | EP#249

-Serious Training for Endurance Athletes - book by Rob Sleamaker and Ray Browning

-Mallorca Training Camp 2025

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

Gabriele Gallo, PhD, is a researcher at the University of Genoa with a particular focus on the science of cycling performance. In addition to his academic pursuits, he is also the founder of Knowledgeiswatt, a platform through which he summarises cycling and sports science research into infographics and practical, medium-form articles. 

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-Insights into the training of top GC-riders in Grand Tours (Tour de France and Giro d'Italia)

-How to apply research findings into real-world training and racing (and how not to do it)

-The spectrum of "art" and "science" in training, and how to balance the two

-The balance of controlling for as many variables as possible, and ecological validity in research

-How to consume synthesized forms of research 

-The future of sports science

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts441/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-Gabriele's Research Gate

-Knowledgeiswatt on Instagram and Substack

-The Day-by-Day Periodization Strategies of a Giro d’Italia Podium Finisher - Gallo et al. 2024

-The Weekly Periodization of Top 5 Tour de France General Classification Finishers: A Multiple Case Study - Gallo et al. 2023

-How do world class top 5 Giro d’Italia finishers train? A qualitative multiple case study - Gallo et al. 2022

-Power profiling, critical power, and U23 cycling research with Peter Leo | EP#319

-Durability in endurance sports with Ed Maunder, PhD and Stephen Seiler, Phd | EP#295

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

A discussion of 15 factors, including training methods, gear and equipment, metrics, and even thought processes that are generally underrated by the triathlon community as a whole or in certain triathlete subgroups. Do you agree with this list? Be sure to also check out the previous episode (EP#439), where we discussed overrated factors for triathlon performance.       

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:

-"The big picture"

-Consistency

-Stress

-Sleep

-Coaching and expert help

-Pacing workouts well

-Using heart rate (and having a good heart rate monitor)

-W/CdA

-Bike adjustability

-Riding a course well

-Race experience

-Nutrition and hydration in training

-Heat preparation

-Addition by subtraction

SHOWNOTES:

https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts440/

SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON AND THAT TRIATHLON SHOW WEBPAGE:

www.scientifictriathlon.com/podcast/

SPONSORS:

Precision Fuel & Hydration help athletes personalise their hydration and fueling strategies for training and racing. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event. That Triathlon Show listeners get 15% off their first order of fuel and electrolyte products. Simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied at the checkout.

ZEN8 - The ZEN8 Indoor Swim Trainer allows you to improve technique, power, and swim training consistency. You can target specific aspects of your stroke, like catch and pull-through, work on core activation and body position, and make sure you stay consistent in your swim training even when you don't have time to go to the pool. Try the Zen8 risk-free for 30 days, and get 20% off your first order on zen8swimtrainer.com/tts.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

-The Super Shoe study with Dustin Joubert, PhD | EP#322

-Q&A on racing and testing | EP#399

-Bent Rønnestad, PhD | EP#386

RATE AND REVIEW:

If you enjoy the show, please help me out by subscribing, rating and reviewing: www.scientifictriathlon.com/rate/

CONTACT:

Want to send feedback, questions or just chat? Email me at [email protected] or connect on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.