View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Dr Justin Ross is a clinical psychologist in Denver, CO specializing in athlete mental health and performance psychology.He is a recreational amateur athlete himself, completing 11 marathons, 6 Boston Marathon qualifiers, and is a recent finisher of the Leadville 100 MTB. He's also completed 2 Ironman 70.3 distance triathlons, and too many shorter running, cycling, and triathlon distance races to count.Episode highlights:(41:46) Dealing with unexpected challenge: should coaches deliberately create challenges to test mental toughness, Michael Phleps example, additional interval example(47:11) Executing when it counts: having a mental training plan, shifting from external and broad skills to internal and narrow, psychological flexibility(59:16) Mental TrainingPeaks plan: application, accessibility for athletes, Justin’s twelve-week plan, overview of skills, caveats, post-race reflection, how to adapt the program to your trainingAdditional resources:Justin’s websitePressure makes diamonds? A narrative review on the application of pressure training in high-performance sportsPerformance Mindset training plan in training peaksArticle Justin discussed on mental toughness- Mental toughness in sport: testing the goal-expectancy-self-control (GES) model among runners and cyclists using cross-sectional and experimental designsBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview: Manuel is an experienced cyclist and coach at TrainingPeaks.com with a degree in Sports Nutrition. His new book, La naturaleza del entrenamiento (The Nature of Training), discusses the nonlinear and complex nature of training.Episode highlights:(24:59) Manuel on RPE: RPE is an effective way of weighting and combining training stressors, RPE as a high capacity processor, RPE includes physical effort, motivation, and mentality, fatigue and RPE are related, external metrics are not more effective than RPE for training(32:59) Measuring improvement: using RPE, wholistic tests are better than measuring variables like VO2max in isolation, nonmeasurable parameters are just as important as measurable ones, examples, painkillers and caffeine(41:49) Performance variability: probability distribution explanation, deriving worth from performances, lots of data is needed to accurately determine a performance rangeAdditional resources:Manuel’s bookBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:The coaches review the process they go through with their athletes when planning out their seasons. Episode highlights:(12:15) Koop on weaknesses and strengths: anchor points, assessing weaknesses and strengths, when were you at your best, when were you at your worst, Abby Hall example, recap(33:08) Emphasizing anchor points: making the most important training events known to the athlete so they are less concerned when non-essential training is changed to accommodate life, be 100% consistent 80% of the time, be flexible(48:32) Life cost of racing: too much racing complicates family, employment, cost, travel, these make recovery from long races more difficult, muscle damage, emotional recoveryAdditional resources:Buy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview: Frederic Sabater Pastor is a CTS ultrarunning coach with a PH.D. in Exercise Physiology and experience coaching athletes for a variety of challenges. He is also a Postdoctoral researcher at the Inter-university Lab of Human Movement. His area of focus are  running, trail, performance, physiology and fatigue.Episode highlights:(32:02) Training differences: road runners 20 hrs/week, trail runners 10 hrs/week, road runners cross train and strength train more, overall road volume is double despite race duration being up to 10x less(37:11) Why are trail runners stronger: do runners self-select, is trail running innately better strength training, strength training is a broad term(51:38) Specificity of running economy: train for specificity, changing protocols from road training, strides over technical terrain, differences in strength trainingAdditional resources:Frederick’s paper  Trail Runner Magazine’s coverage of this paperFred’s CTS Coach BioFred’s Researchgate profileBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Renee Eastman is  a Premiere coach at CTS as well as the head of CTS’s physiology lab. She has been coaching since 1996.Episode highlights:(8:59) Koop’s takeaways from testing: assessing existing physiological and genetic traits, using your strengths and building your weaknesses, ensuring training is effective(38:46) Interpreting test data: peak VO2, lactate threshold (LT2), heart rate and pace, looking at metabolism over lower intensities, explaining why lactate is at steady-state sub-threshold, lactate is an indicator (1:17:58) Values of physiological testing: long-term training direction is the main benefit, not zone construction, zones are can be established from training but metabolic breakdown and lactate curve shape requires lab testing, value for elite and beginner athletesAdditional resources:Buy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Adam Pulford is a Pro Level Coach at CTS and is one of the most sought after mountain bike coaches in the world. He also has served ass the team director for TeamShoAir UCI Professional Factory MTB Team the Twenty16/Twenty20 UCI Professional Women’s Race Team and the Orange Seal Off-Road TeamEpisode highlights:(23:45) Zones are descriptive not prescriptive: avoiding overeager zone prescriptions, instantaneous tests, athlete adaptability(36:19) Is physiological testing worth it: marginal gains, correlating time to exhaustion between the field and lab tests, physiological testing is best for gauging improvement(1:07:39) Durability at intensity: making sure zone paces are sustainable to increase volume at intensity, the importance of durability and sustainability in trainingAdditional resources:Buy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

Episode overview:Coach Jason Koop monologues on what 2023 will bring for the podcast. Episode highlights:(2:16) Scientific and coaching content: Dylan Bowman’s Freetrail is great for media coverage and commentary, the niche of the KoopCast is research and coaching (5:11) What to expect: research deep-dives and coaching roundtables, timing relevant content around the running season, longer format episodes(12:55) What you can expect from Research Essentials: Koop, Stephanie Howe, and Nick Tiller review research papers and have a roundtable that is written by Jim Rutberg and illustratedMy conversation:(0:00) Introduction: the new year and upcoming changes to the KoopCast, expressing gratitude, reaching one million downloads, the commitment to no sponsors(2:16) Scientific and coaching content: Dylan Bowman’s Freetrail is great for media coverage and commentary, the niche of the KoopCast is research and coaching (5:11) What to expect: research deep-dives and coaching roundtables, timing relevant content around the running season, longer format episodes(6:11) Commitment to no sponsorship: recognizing that the KoopCast loses money for being free, importance of integrity, putting athletes before sponsors, the role of the KoopCast(8:05) Research Essentials in Ultrarunning: new research newsletter, most training advice online is superficial clickbait, the collapse of Outside Magazine(12:55) What you can expect from Research Essentials: Koop, Stephanie Howe, and Nick Tiller review research papers and have a roundtable that is written by Jim Rutberg and illustrated(14:34) First Research Essentials topics: Vitamin D Supplementation, sleep and nutrition profiles, Vitamin C and E on muscle damage; downhill running, iron metabolism, and artificial sweeteners, stay tuned for more information(16:00) Outro: gratitude, excitement for the future of the KoopCast, giving thanksAdditional resources:Buy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Ed Maunder PhD is an exercise physiologist with expertise in metabolic responses to endurance exercise, and metabolic adaptations to endurance training. Ed is a Lecturer in the School of Sport and Recreation and part of the Sport Physiology and Nutrition Research Group at SPRINZ. His research is focused on understanding the physiological drivers of mitochondrial adaptation to endurance exercise, and the physiological profiling of endurance athletes.Episode highlights:(13:42) Lactate threshold durability: before and after 2.5 hours of cycling, average decrease of 10%, athletes saw reduced efficiency and reduced energy expenditure, decreasing efficiency is likely even more of a factor in running(35:37) Training durability: speculation, training specificity to durability, creating stress early during long runs(44:44) Takeaways: interpreting research on training interventions, arranging training structure intensity-first versus intensity-last, specificity of durability trainingAdditional resources:The Importance of ‘Durability’ in the Physiological Profiling of Endurance AthletesBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Dr. Alan McCubbin lectures and conducts research in sports nutrition at Monash University, consults to Triathlon Australia's High Performance Program, and writes for Cycling Tips. He has worked as the dietitian for the Attaque-Gusto cycling team, adventure runner Richard Bowles, several triathlon squads, the Coburg Tigers VFL football club and the Tour de Cure cycling charity amongst others. He has written for Outer Edge Magazine, Trail Run magazine and lectured for Cycling Australia coaches. He has worked with summer and winter Olympians, A-League soccer players, national Taekwondo champions, triathletes, ultra-marathon runners, road cyclists & mountain bikers, boxers and windsurfers. Alan has competed at an international level in sailing, and in endurance mountain biking. Alan recently completed a PhD in sports nutrition at Monash University, looking at the effects of sodium in endurance athletes. He is also the co-host of The Long Munch Podcast, a podcast that answers common nutrition questions asked by runners, cyclists and triathletes.Alan founded Next Level Nutrition, Australia's first ever online sports nutrition consultancy back in 2010. What was once an unheard of service model is fast becoming the norm in the sports nutrition industry, better servicing the sporting community of Australia with access to state-of-the-art sports nutrition counseling and education, delivered to clients anywhere in Australia via the web.Episode highlights:Part one — interview:(15:14) When to supplement sodium: large sweat losses, high fluid intake, high sweat sodium concentration, example(45:55) Decision chart for sodium replacement: check out Alan’s flow chart in the show notes, when to use sodium supplementation in training, season to tastePart two — coach roundtable:(1:35:28) Lower access to fluids during training: differences in resupplying, loop training, using your vehicle as an aid station(2:06:00) Duncan’s takeaways: more 4+ hours runs, emphasizing that sodium is per unit fluid, train in varied environmental conditionsAdditional resources:Next Level NutritionPaper discussedThe Long Munch PodcastBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop

View all timestamps and show notes on the KoopCast website.Episode overview:Coaches Darcie Murphy and AJW sit down with Jason Koop to discuss what they are doing differently with their athletes next year. Episode highlights:(2:06) Darcie’s takeaway: perfectionism inhibiting training, factors outside of running(28:22) AJW’s takeaway: multi-day training camps, creating your own race simulation, camps are a must-have(54:50) Subjective data before objective data: getting useful feedback, creating a practical system, preventing biasAdditional resources:The CTS blogPrevious podcast on training campsBuy Training Essentials for Ultrarunning on Amazon or AudibleInformation on coaching-www.trainright.comKoop’s Social MediaTwitter/Instagram- @jasonkoop