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 behind Running Writings and John's motivation for starting it
John's calculators and how they differ from others
John's coaching philosophy and core training principles
Using physiological models and race-goal models in training design
The value of long steady runs
Thoughts on training durability and minimising late-race performance decline
Listener questions

DETAILED EPISODE SHOWNOTES:

We have detailed shownotes for all of our episodes. The shownotes are basically the podcast episode in written form, that you can read in 5-10 minutes. They are not transcriptions, but they are also not just surface-level overviews. They provide detailed insights and timestamps for each episode, and are great especially for later review, after you've already listened to an episode. Naturally, as great as they are, they do not cover absolutely everything in as great detail as we can do in a 45-90 minute podcast episode.
The shownotes for today's episode can be found at www.scientifictriathlon.com/tts464/

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

John’s Instagram and Twitter
Running Writings - John's website
Running Writings Newsletter
All of John's calculators
The 5k to Critical Speed calculator discussed at length in the episode
Modern Training and Physiology for Middle and Long-Distance Runners - John’s book

WHAT SHOULD I LISTEN TO NEXT?

If you enjoyed this episode, I think you'll love the following episodes:

David Roche – The training and racing strategy behind his epic Leadville 100 course record | EP#444 - inspiring episode about ultra-running, with lots of interesting thought experiments for any endurance athlete
Michele Zanini (part 2) | EP#394 - a deep-dive into Renato Canova's training methods, from somebody who spent a lot of time working together with Canova
Run training talk with Jon Green | EP#315 - a great interview on run training with the coach of Molly Seidel, bronze medalist at the Tokyo Olympics

You can find our full episode archives here, where you can filter for categories such as Training, Racing, Science & Physiology, Swimming, Cycling, Running etc.

You can also find separate archives for specific series of episodes I've done, specifically Q&A episodes, TTS Thursday episodes, and Beginner Tips episodes.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON:

The Scientific Triathlon website is the home of That Triathlon Show and everything else that we do
Contact us through our contact form or email me directly (note - email/contact form messages get responded to much more quickly than Instagram DMs)
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Follow us on Instagram
Learn more about our coaching, training plans, and training camps. We have something to offer for everybody from beginners to professionals.

HOW CAN I SUPPORT THAT TRIATHLON SHOW (FOR FREE)?

I really appreciate you reading this and considering helping the show! If you love the show and want to support it to help ensure it sticks around, there are a few very simple things you can do, at no cost other than a minute of your time.

Subscribe to the podcast in your podcast app to automatically get all new episodes as they are released.
Tell your friends, internet and social media friends, acquaintances and triathlon frenemies about the podcast. Word of mouth is the best way to grow the podcast by far!
Rate and review the podcast (ideally five stars of course!) in your podcast app of choice (Spotify and Apple Podcasts are the biggest and most important ones).
Share episodes online and on social media. Share your favourite episodes in your Instagram stories, start a discussion about interesting episodes on forums, reference them in your blog or Substack.

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.

NEW BASE TRAINING PLANS - 60% LAUNCH DISCOUNT

We have just launched a set of brand new base training plans. There is a low-volume (7 hours per week average), mid-volume (10 h/wk) and high-volume (14 h/wk) version available.

For a limited time only, until the 31st of August 2025, these plans are available on a massive discount of 60%, meaning you can purchase a plan for 30$ instead of the regular price of 75$. Use the code "BASE1" at checkout to apply this discount code.

The plans are only available on TrainingPeaks. You can learn more about each of the plans (and purchase them, if you so desire) through the links below.

Google Knows Your Darkest Secrets - The Truth in Your Searches with Seth Stephens-Davidowitz