Training science, coaching, and the 80/20 method — from Matt Fitzgerald and the 80/20 Endurance coaching team.
For almost every endurance athlete, training is a hobby. For a small fraction, it’s a livelihood. Pros race to pay the bills. Their performance determines contracts, sponsorships, and income. Because of that, they approach training and racing with a no-stone-unturned mentality. Every detail matters. Every advantage is pursued. I call this the livelihood mindset. Most…
Jim Vance ·
I was wrong in the 1980s. I’m (probably) right now. In the late 1980s, I sat in a high school auditorium and watched Alan Ashton, the co-founder of WordPerfect, demonstrate something called “electronic mail.” In what looked like pure magic, Alan sent and received messages in real-time with a colleague on the other side of…
David Warden ·
Stuck in Your Own Head? Here’s How to Fix It By Carrie Jackson, CMPC https://carriejackson.com/ Your body might be race-ready—but if your mind is working against you, you’ll never perform at your best. I once worked with an athlete who was physically strong, incredibly disciplined, and following his training plan to the letter. On paper,…
Carrie Jackson ·
The Norwegian Wave appears to be here to stay. Are you riding it? Imagine what would happen if three men from Wisconsin finished first, second, and third at the Ironman World Championship. A massive hoopla would erupt in the mainstream and social media. The memes would practically write themselves—“It must be the cheese!” . .…
Matt Fitzgerald ·
Endurance athletes are constantly warned about the dangers of the “grey zone” or “grey days” in training. The idea is simple: avoid workouts that are too hard to recover from but too easy to stimulate real adaptation. “Stay out of the middle,” we’re told. At 80/20 Endurance, we agree with the intent behind this…
Jim Vance ·
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” — George Santayana Going By Feel I once sat down with a very high-level elite triathlete to talk goals, training direction, and performance review. When I asked about their power and pace data, they replied: “I just go by feel. I…
Jim Vance ·
The short version. A taper is the last 10 to 14 days before a race, when you cut training stress enough to shed fatigue but not so much that you go flat. Keep some intensity, drop volume, and aim to arrive with a Training Stress Balance of plus 10 to plus 20. Half marathoners and…
Jim Vance ·
“We tend to want to do the exceptional things, exceptionally well, but the basic things only basically well.” – Bill Sweetenham Master the Basics To Unlock the Exceptional as an Athlete If you’re chasing big goals—Kona, Boston, a sub-5 70.3—you probably don’t lack ambition. But high performance isn’t built on exceptional workouts…
Jim Vance ·
Most athletes tell me something like this before they begin the ‘Ironman Marathon’ or run leg of an Ironman: “I’m going to start at 7:00/mile and hold on.” “If I feel good halfway, I’ll pick it up.” “I want to go hard from mile one to break my competition.” This kind of thinking…
Jim Vance ·
At the Ironman, pacing isn’t just about hitting target numbers—it’s about racing smart. Recent studies highlight the real impact of how professional triathletes distribute their effort across the bike and run to achieve success. What the Research Shows for World Championship Ironman Pacing 1. Downhill speed matters when it comes to Ironman pacing I…
Jim Vance ·
