That Triathlon Show

Luca Zenti is a coach and data analyst for the UCI Women's WorldTour team UAE Team ADQ, and a triathlon coach working with Kate Waugh, Gregory Barnaby, Seth Rider and Max Stapley. In this interview, we discuss the training and the (ever-increasing) race demands in women's cycling, as well as bike training for triathletes, with examples from Kate Waugh's and Gregory Barnaby's preparation for T100 London. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

Joe Warne, PhD, is a researcher at the Technological University Dublin. Joe is a main driver behind the Sports Science Replication Centre, that aims to replicate studies in the field of sports science to critically evaluate the quality and validity of the research. Joe and his team recently published a large-scale study showing that only 28% of randomly selected studies could be replicated, which has led to great concerns regarding...

In part 4 of the Beginner Series, we discuss training structure and key principles. After listening to this episode, you'll already be able to write a basic training plan for yourself.

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• Eight key training principles for beginner triathletes
• How to structure your training week
• Frequency, duration and intensity
• Distributing time between swimming, biking and running
• Micro-, meso-, and macrocycles
• How do you kno...

Russ Cox is the man with the data when it comes to Kona and 70.3 Worlds qualification. In this episode we discuss the new qualification system announced by Ironman in July 2025, and the implications for athletes wanting to qualify. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• A detailed view on the inner workings of the new qualification system work
• How do the "Kona standard" and "70.3 standard" (coefficients for normalised age-graded times) work...

In part 3 of the Beginner Series, we discuss all things gear and equipment. What gear do you need early on, what is nice to have but not essential, and what gear should you delay getting until you have a acquired some more triathlon experience? 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• Essential swim, bike, run and race day gear for beginner triathletes 
• Nice-to-have but non-essential gear in the aforementioned categories
• Upgrades for later on:...

Solveig Løvseth is a professional triathlete from Norway. She's an Olympian from Paris 2024, double European Games champion from 2023 (individual and mixed team relay), and has the fastest Ironman debut in history with her 8:12:28 in Hamburg. In this interview, we discuss Solveig's career to date, her Olympic experience, her current focus on the Ironman Pro Series, and of course we cover her training in detail. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY T...

John Wakefield is a cycling coach and bike fitter. He is a coach and Director of Development at Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, and coaches riders at the World Tour level, as well as working directly with and managing the U23 and younger development teams. In this interview, we dive deep into John's thoughts training and coaching, as well as his approach to bike fitting in detail. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• John's training philoso...

In part 2 of the Beginner Series, we discuss what you should think about and take into consideration when selecting and signing up for your first ever triathlon. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• Why the choice of your first triathlon matters
• Picking the right distance (the most important variable)
• Swim format, course type, local vs. destination races, timing and season, and other important considerations
• How and where to find a good fir...

In part 1 of the Beginner Series, we discuss the ins and outs of what you need to know if you're just starting out in triathlon, or considering doing so. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• What is triathlon?
• Standard and non-standard triathlon distances
• Who can do a triathlon?
• Gear and equipment to get started
• Basic terminology
• Mikael's first triathlon story
• Common questions and misconceptions
• Next steps

DETAILED EPISODE SHOWNOTES: 

• We...

John Davis is a running coach, researcher, and the author of the blog Running Writings. He combines scientific thinking and computational skills with practical coaching, and has developed popular tools and calculators for distance runners. In this episode, John discusses his run training principles, and we discuss his calculators and why they could be a great tool in any runner's toolbox. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• The story be...

In this Q&A episode, Mikael answers listener questions on training, physiology, long-term athlete development, and more. There are lots of practical tips and takeaways relevant to a wide range of athletes and contexts. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• How to get as fast as possible at middle-distance triathlon as a 19-year-old
• How to quantify training load and monitor response to load
• Key metrics to monitor for overtraining risk
• How to ...

Coach Glenn Poleunis leads a Girona-based squad home to elite triathletes such as T100 World Champion Marten van Riel and Olympic and World Champion Cassandre Beaugrand (who joined the squad more recently, after her standout 2024 season). We talk about coaching at the highest level, the demands of WTCS, T100 and Ironman racing, and how Glenn's coaching is evolving with the demands of the sport. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• How Gl...

Craig Alexander is a three-time Ironman World Champion and two-time Ironman 70.3 World Champion. In this episode we discuss the training and racing strategies Craig used during his career in detail. Craig also shares learnings from his post-racing coaching career on training considerations for age-group triathletes. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• An overview of Craig's training approach during his most successful years
• Key principle...

Dr. Guido Vroemen is a sports medicine physician, medical biologist, exercise physiologist and endurance coach. He works with age-group and professional athletes in triathlon and cycling, and in this interview we go in-depth into his coaching philosophy and training principles. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• Guido's overarching coaching philosophy
• Specific training principles within swimming, cycling and running
• Lab testing and metab...

Matt Silver is a physical therapist, runner and author of the book Built to Run. In this interview, Matt peels back the layers of the underlying causes of typical running injuries, and discusses how to prevent and overcome injuries by identifying and tackling the root causes of the issue. 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• Running form - how is it connected to injury risk, common mistakes and how to identify development areas, and how ...

Arild Tveiten is most well-known as the head coach and sport director of Team Norway, and has overseen countless triathlon successes with Kristian Blummenfelt's Olympic Gold in Tokyo 2021 being the jewel in the crown. Arild is now the High Performance Director of the Norwegian Swimming Federation, and joins us to share insights into what he's bringing to swimming from his triathlon experience, and what he's learning about swimming ...

Michellie Jones is an Australian triathlon legend with a resume including two ITU World Championships, an Olympic silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Games, a victory at the 2006 Ironman World Championship, and a Paralympic gold medal as a guide to Katie Kelly in the PT5 (PTVI in today's classification system) in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. Michellie has a wealth of experience in coaching, and in this interview we discuss what she's learnt...

Malindi Elmore is a Canadian runner and three-time Olympian. She raced the 1500 in Athens 2004, and the Marathon in Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024, finishing in the top-ten (ninth) in Tokyo. In between her middle-distance and marathon careers, she also raced as a professional triathlete from 2015 to 2017, including six podiums in IM70.3 and Ironman races. We discuss her marathon training, how she manages to perform and continue to impro...

François Modave, PhD, is Professor of Artificial Intelligence, Digital Health at Wake Forest University (North Carolina). He is also a triathlete with over 30 years in the sport. In this episode, François discusses key concepts of artificial intelligence and how it could be applied (and to what level of success) in a triathlon context.
 

HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS: 

• What is artificial intelligence?
• What are the different types of sy...