The Progress Theory

Maximise performance using NIRS with Jem Arnold

The Progress Theory — Mon, 11 Aug 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Welcome to another episode of The Progress Theory, where we explore the latest scientific principles to help you optimise your performance. In this episode, Dr Phil Price sits down with Jem Arnold—a physiologist, physiotherapist, and PhD candidate at the University of British Columbia with a fascinating dual focus on high-performance sport and clinical research.

Jem’s work dives deep into individual responses to training and the use of Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS), a cutting-edge wearable technology that measures muscle oxygenation both in the lab and out in the real world.

In this episode, Jem breaks down what NIRS is, how it works, and why its ability to capture local muscle oxygenation is so useful for endurance athletes, hybrid competitors, and anyone interested in interpreting the body’s signals during exercise. Drawing from both his research and personal experience with vascular conditions affecting elite cyclists, Jem shares insights on programming, individual variability, and how blending subjective feedback with objective tech can revolutionise our approach to training.

Whether you’re curious about the next frontier of monitoring tools, want to understand performance plateaus, or just love to geek out on physiology, you’ll find plenty to stimulate your thinking in this conversation. As always, don’t forget to follow The Progress Theory for more episodes and resources. Let’s dive in!

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
05:17 Iliac Artery Compression in Athletes
09:03 From Clinic to Laboratory Journey
11:28 Cyclists' Arterial Strain Issue
13:58 Rare Condition in Endurance Cyclists
18:28 Quadricep Oxygenation and Flow Limitation
22:04 Compensation and Performance in Athletes
27:01 Understanding Metabolic Demands in Exercise
30:33 Metabolic Limitations in Athletic Performance
33:10 Steep Deoxygenation: Overexertion Warning
37:05 Device-Specific Trends in Oxygen Measurement
40:04 Assessing Athletes' Functional Oxygen Range
44:04 From Data to Actionable Insight
49:04 "Assessing Power and SMO2 Balance"
52:53 Selective Use of Training Gadgets
56:04 Incremental Training Feedback Process
58:06 Inconsistent Data Interpretation Challenges
01:00:48 Blogs: Informal Idea Sharing

Takeaways

NIRS for Real-World Monitoring: Wearable NIRS devices provide invaluable real-time insight into local muscle oxygenation, allowing coaches and athletes to better understand individual physiological responses during both training and competition.

Individual Variability is Key: Jem emphasised that group-level sports science research doesn’t always translate directly to individual athletes. NIRS can help tailor interventions and programming by capturing each athlete’s unique response, especially when combined with subjective reports.

Practical Application Requires Context: Having all the gadgets is great, but Jem highlighted the importance of integrating NIRS data with athlete sensations, performance metrics, and expert guidance. It’s about turning data into tailored, actionable information—don’t let the numbers overwhelm the athlete or the process!

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

The Progress Theory newsletter. If you want the latest information and recommendations on how to optimise your physical and mental performance, then subscribe to the free Progress Theory newsletter on Substack today. Click the link in the show notes and subscribe to get the best information on human performance sent straight to your email. https://theprogresstheory.substack.com/ Sign up today.

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Before we wrap up, I want to give a shout-out and my thanks to my production partner, Kult Media. If you are thinking of launching a podcast or want to grow your audience, head to www.kult.media to get started today.

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

It was originally thought that you could not effectively train for both strength and endurance at the same time because they required different adaptations which were not compatible with each other. It was claimed that ‘an interference effect’, blunted the adaptations for strength if you simultaneously trained for endurance. However, recent developments in sports which require both strength and endurance have really challenged this idea, with hybrid athletes producing impressive performances in both strength and endurance sports together. This had led scientists, coaches, and athletes to rethink what is humanly possible and suggests the interference effect is not as influential as originally thought. But what is a hybrid athlete? What is the ‘interference effect’? And how can we maximize our training to improve at the same time our strength and endurance performance? In this book, Dr Phil Price provides insight into the misconceptions surrounding strength and endurance training by distilling the past 50 years of research and drawing on the conversations he had with great scientists, coaches, and athletes on The Progress Theory podcast. This book is essential reading for hybrid athletes and coaches who are looking to understand the key training variables and their effect on the simultaneous development of strength and endurance performance.

Book

How Can Growth Mindset Transform Your Performance? with Claire Bennett

The Progress Theory — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Hello, and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance.

In this episode, we are joined by former GB fencer and now mindset and performance coach, Claire Bennett. Now mindset is such an important part of the elite performer.

We're so focused on achieving a particular goal that we often lose sight of what's important, which can lead to resentment and sometimes poor performance. In this episode, Claire talks about her experience at the top level of fencing and how she's utilised all of that experience to start her mindset and performance coach business, Perform, be happy.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:50 - Introduction
02:48 - Transitioning from a full time athlete career
09:20 - Athlete self-care and self-appreciation
12:02 - Negative perfectionism and practise
15:41 - Overcoming negative perfectionism
17:20 - Growth Mindset and Getting outside your comfort zone
24:12 - Anxiety in different professions
28:18 - Insecurity
32:28 - Practical recommendations from a performance coach

Takeaways

🔹 Purposeful Practice Over Perfection: It's not about doing more, it's about doing it right. Focus on quality, not quantity. Perfect practice, rather than just practice, leads to top performance.

🔹 Growth Mindset is Key: In any high-performing environment, whether you're an athlete or a musician, adopting a growth mindset can turn fear and self-doubt into opportunities for growth.

🔹 Embrace Challenges as Opportunities: Reframe fears and pressures by seeing them as chances to learn and grow. Shift from "I have to" to "I get to" and watch how it transforms your outlook.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Unlock Peak Performance with Plyometrics with Matt McInnes-Watson

The Progress Theory — Mon, 28 Jul 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. In this episode, we're joined by plyometric expert Matt McInnis-Watson. Now I don't know if you've noticed, but you quite often hear of a new world record being broken in a number of different sports, say, weightlifting or quite often in running. I'm always hearing of a new world record in, say, 5k, 10k, etcetera, etcetera. But you rarely hear of a world record being broken in a jump event such as the long jump or triple jump or high jump. I mean, Jonathan Edwards' world record in the triple jump has been going since 1995.

So what needs to happen in jump training and the culture within jump training to see an improvement in jump sports? That's why I contacted Matt. And if you have any interest in improving jump performance, this episode is for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:02 - Introduction
3:35 - The importance of Plyometrics in today’s society and longevity
8:35 - Issues with plyometric research
13:44 - People get the plyometric definition wrong - still
16:12 - different types of plyometrics
20:27 - Why are jump world records rare?
25:57 - Strength specificity
30:25 - What needs to change?
35:10 - Which jump sports will see the biggest changes over the next few years?
39:08 - Power athlete vs speed athlete
44:13 - The importance of supramaximal
50:37 - Plyometric recommendations

Takeaways

🔹 Plyometrics for Health Longevity: Plyometrics aren't just for athletes. They play a crucial role in maintaining reactive strength, which is vital for reducing injury risks, especially as we age. Matt highlighted how integrating plyometrics can aid in preserving dynamic capacity, thus enhancing long-term health.

🔹 The Science and Research of Plyometrics: It was fascinating to hear about Matt's critique of current plyometric research. He underscored the need for clearer definitions and proper visual documentation in studies to better understand plyometric movements and their implications for training.

🔹 Training for Future Success: A pivotal point was the shifting focus towards speed training in events like high jump and triple jump. By restructuring training to incorporate more dynamic and reflexive elements rather than solely focusing on strength, we can push the boundaries of human performance in these fields.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Unlock Your Hybrid Athlete Potential with hybrid coach Ollie Russell

The Progress Theory — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode of The Progress Theory, host Dr Phil Price chats with hybrid athlete and S&C coach Ollie Russell about his incredible journey from being part of the Leicester Tigers rugby academy to becoming one of the top hybrid athletes in the country.

Ollie shares his passion for participating in various physical challenges, including High Rocks and Ironmans, and how these experiences have shaped his perspectives on hybrid training. They dive into Ollie's background in sports, his approach to training, and the importance of mindset in achieving peak performance.

This episode is perfect for anyone keen on understanding the balance between strength and endurance in hybrid training, as well as the value of a supportive community in reaching athletic goals. Tune in to discover Ollie's unique insights and the lessons he's learned along the way!

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
04:23 Transition from Rugby to Personal Trainer
07:47 Hybrid Training vs. Traditional Methods
12:33 Training for Highland Ultra in Scotland
15:37 Rugby Training: Longevity and Balance
17:44 Hybrid Approach to Specialisation
20:08 Raising Versatile Hybrid Athletes
23:55 "Building a Supportive Hybrid Fitness Community"
29:27 Embracing Fear to Unlock Potential
32:55 Mindset Boosts Physical Performance
37:06 Multisport Challenge and Endurance Events
39:11 "Chasing Success in Men's Pro"
41:52 Chasing Sub-Hour Race Achievement
44:38 Join a Supportive Community Network

Takeaways

Experience Shapes Opinion: Ollie's diverse athletic background, from rugby to Ironmans and High Rocks, shows the power of varied experiences in shaping our approach to training and life.
Mindset Matters: Ollie highlights the importance of mindset in training and performance, focusing on overcoming mental barriers to push physical limits. He reminds us that performance is not just about physical capability but mental resilience too. 🧠💪
Community is Key: Building a supportive environment is essential. Ollie has cultivated a community where individuals, regardless of their skill level, can train together, push each other, and achieve their best.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Is the Interference Effect a Myth? with Dr Tom Jones

The Progress Theory — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode of The Progress Theory, host Dr Phil Price invites physiologist and researcher Dr Tom Jones from Northumbria University to discuss the intricacies of concurrent training. They delve into the concept of the interference effect—a phenomenon where endurance training can attenuate strength gains—and explore how various training modalities, intensities, and volumes can be manipulated to minimize this effect.

Dr Jones shares insights from his varied research experience across different sports, including his work with the Newcastle United Academy and the Swedish Winter Sports Research Center. The conversation touches on the real-world application of concurrent training principles, crucial mistakes to avoid, and the latest scientific understanding of acute molecular signalling.

Whether you're a coach, athlete, or fitness enthusiast, this episode offers valuable knowledge on optimising concurrent training for peak performance. Join us for a deep dive into the science of training with Dr Tom Jones on The Progress Theory!

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
03:51 Sports Research Journey Across Nations
08:46 "Concurrent Training Challenge in Football"
10:49 Concurrent Training: "It Depends" Dilemma
13:00 Aerobic Volume Limits Strength Gains
16:12 Interference Effect in Concurrent Training
19:56 mTOR and AMPK in Concurrent Training
25:53 Diet Control and Cycling Research
28:23 Aerobic Training's Interference on Strength
33:04 Managing Fatigue in Training Sessions
35:58 Understanding Technical Training Challenges
38:51 Concurrent Training Strategy Overview

Takeaways

🔹 Volume Matters: The greater the volume of aerobic training, the more likely it is to interfere with strength development. Understanding and managing training volumes are crucial for avoiding this interference effect.

🔹 Fatigue Management: Concurrent training requires careful programming. Avoiding residual fatigue from aerobic workouts can help optimise strength and power training sessions.

🔹 Effective Communication: A lack of appreciation for the physical demands of technical skills sessions can lead to common programming mistakes. Ensuring technical coaches understand these demands is vital for coherent training weeks aligned with specific mesocycle goals.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Maximise Performance By Managing Fatigue with Dr Callum Brownstein

The Progress Theory — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Hello, and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. In this episode, we are joined by a physiologist from Newcastle University, Dr. Callum Brownstein. Now managing and recovering from fatigue is so important for the success of a training programme and sporting performance. So if it's that important, we really should understand the mechanisms behind fatigue. And on top of that, we need to understand how different sports, different training modalities, different training intensities, and different training volumes all influence the type of mechanisms behind fatigue.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:53 - Introduction
8:34 - The difference between central and peripheral fatigue
12:15 - Determining the type of fatigue
16:42 - Fatigue differences between running and cycling
21:29 - Recoverability from different fatigue
23:42 - Training session order based on fatigue
26:13 - Intensity and volume on fatigue
30:47 - Practical recommendations for training
33:41 - Organising a training week
35:32 - Pre-fatigue training

Takeaways

Understanding Fatigue: Central vs. Peripheral – Dr. Brownstein explains the vital differences between central fatigue (nervous system-related) and peripheral fatigue (muscle-related) and how these mechanisms influence exercise performance.
Exercise Modality Matters: Discover how cycling and running affect fatigue differently. While both sports show similar levels of muscle fatigue, cycling often results in more peripheral fatigue, whereas running tends to cause more central fatigue.
Training Intensity: Keep Easy Days Easy – Emphasising the importance of staying disciplined with your exercise intensity, Dr. Brownstein highlights that crossing certain intensity thresholds can significantly compound fatigue, urging the importance of proper recovery.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

How To Become An Astronaut! with Dr Meganne Christian

The Progress Theory — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Welcome to another inspiring episode of The Progress Theory, where host Dr Phil Price dives into the science behind human performance and achievement. In today’s episode, Phil sits down with Dr Meganne Christian, a UK astronaut and European Space Agency reserve astronaut, whose unconventional journey is as fascinating as it is motivating.

From her roots in the UK and Australia, through her career as a material scientist, to a transformative year spent in Antarctic darkness and isolation, Meganne’s story is a testament to pushing personal and professional boundaries. Together, Phil and Meganne explore the pivotal experiences and mindset that led her to conquer the notoriously challenging ESA astronaut selection process—revealing the surprising mix of technical skills, resilience, teamwork, and honest self-reflection required to thrive.

With tales of Antarctic survival, candid insights into what space agencies really look for, and practical advice for anyone dreaming of venturing into space or tackling life’s most demanding challenges, this episode offers an exclusive glimpse behind the scenes of human exploration at its most extreme. Whether you’re an aspiring astronaut, a science enthusiast, or simply someone seeking a push to go after your own “impossible” goal, there’s something here for you.

So, strap in as we journey from the Antarctic ice to the stars and uncover what it really takes to reach new heights—both on this planet and beyond.

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
05:12 Isolation's Psychological Challenge
08:50 Embracing the Learning Curve
09:55 Self-Reflection in Extreme Environments
15:30 Astronauts' Challenging Tasks in Space
19:12 Job Application Process Overview
22:25 ESA Selection Panel Interview Summary
24:19 Testing Fears: Memory Test Challenge
28:47 "Building Experience for Selection"
31:59 UK Astronauts and Space Station Fitness
34:04 Getting Involved in Space Projects
38:22 Lunar Peaceful Cooperation Proposal

Takeaways

Embrace Diverse Experience: The ESA values not just academic achievement but a proven ability to thrive in extreme and varied environments. My time in Antarctica challenged me physically and mentally and helped me develop resilience, teamwork, and adaptability—skills crucial for future astronauts.

Pursue What You Love: There’s no single path to becoming an astronaut. Success lies in excelling at what excites you—whether that’s engineering, science, or field research. Loving what you do not only builds expertise but also nurtures the enthusiasm agencies look for.

Seize Opportunities—Big and Small: From responding to unexpected emails offering unique roles to keeping an eye out for space sector projects, sometimes the most unexpected opportunities set you on the path to your goals. Be ready to put yourself forward, even when you’re unsure!

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Resources Mentioned

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

How To Reach The Elite Crossfit Level with David Shorunke

The Progress Theory — Mon, 16 Jun 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Welcome back to The Progress Theory, where we explain the science and strategies behind human performance. In this episode, Dr Phil Price sits down with one of the UK’s top CrossFit athletes, David Shorunke. Known for his impressive rise through the competitive CrossFit ranks—despite being one of the taller athletes in the sport—David shares invaluable insight into his training philosophy, the unique challenges faced by taller competitors, and the impact of recent changes to the CrossFit qualification system.

Throughout their conversation, David opens up about the disappointments and lessons from the 2024 season, the essential lifestyle changes he’s made for better sleep and overall wellbeing, and the critical role of mindset in managing setbacks. He also discusses how elite athletes differ from the chasing pack—not just in training intensity, but in their comprehensive approach to recovery, discipline, and, crucially, enjoyment of the process.

Whether you’re an aspiring athlete looking to level up or just curious about what it takes to compete at the highest levels, this episode is packed with practical advice and thought-provoking ideas. Stick around as Dr Phil and David explore the realities of elite CrossFit, the importance of adaptation, and why having fun might just be the secret to long-term success.

00:00 CrossFit Semifinal Disappointment
04:24 Athletic Persistence Despite Unfair Judging
06:37 Post-Games Training Strategy Adjustments
11:04 Optimising Training for Better Sleep
15:42 Prioritising Relaxation for Athletic Recovery
20:09 Athletes Neglecting Optimal Lifestyle Choices
24:25 Beyond Competition: Measuring Athletic Progress
29:15 Tracking Workout Progress through Reflection
31:27 Evaluating Overtraining Signs in Training
34:19 Gradual Adaptation in Running Training
38:57 Finding Your Optimal Squat Stance
41:56 Finding Joy in Training Sustainability
50:07 Unique Paths in Athletic Careers
51:38 "Behind the CrossFit Spotlight"
57:03 "Instagram's Influence on Confirmation Bias"
59:13 Follow David for Elite Insights

Takeaways

Individualised Programming is Essential: David highlights that there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. He’s learned to focus on principles rather than rigid training styles, adapting movement patterns and volume to suit his unique build and needs. This shift led to fewer injuries, more enjoyment, and consistent improvement.
Lifestyle Matters as Much as Training: Beyond the gym, David credits improved sleep, better stress management, and genuine downtime for his progress. He’s prioritised true recovery—not just physically, but mentally—emphasising that the best athletes optimise all 24 hours of the day, not just their training blocks.
Enjoyment and Curiosity Fuel Sustainability: Perhaps most refreshingly, David argues that sustainable success comes from fun and curiosity, not pure discipline. Staying enthusiastic, remaining curious, and letting enjoyment drive daily training make the grind far more manageable and productive—especially when the inevitable setbacks arise.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

What Role Does Creativity Play in Elite Sport? with Tom Farrow

The Progress Theory — Mon, 09 Jun 2025 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode, we are joined by S&C coach for Arete Performance, Tom Farrow. What does creative play mean to you? Learning is so important because we need to acquire knowledge so that we can implement that and start developing. However, learning is so much more than just memorising information. We need to ask lots of different questions so then we can get our hands dirty by lots of different types of trial and error to not only retain information but also acquire new knowledge that we can apply in our respective fields. In this episode, Tom joins me because creativity is such an important topic for both of us and we talk about how we implement this in education and strength and conditioning.

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
03:59 Creative Approaches in Sports
06:44 Street Sports Encourage True Creativity
12:09 Creativity and Process in Mindsets
13:49 Personality Dynamics in Feedback Loops
16:17 Connecting with Athletes Through "Why"
20:12 "Balancing Chaos in Coaching"
25:10 Balancing Chaos and Structure
28:42 Structuring a Department for Success
31:44 Unified Team on a Shared Journey
35:03 Understanding Frameworks and Personality Dynamics
39:51 "Solving Sports Problems: Agility Focus"
40:49 "Balancing Sports Coaching Perspectives"
44:22 Embracing Adaptive Frameworks
48:00 "Balancing Coaching Experience and Education"
53:58 "Mastery Insights from Bruce Lee"
55:20 "Embrace Reality and Openness"

Takeaways

Balancing Order and Chaos: Tom emphasises the importance of finding the right balance between order and chaos to enhance performance. Whether you're an athlete or a coach, understanding how much structure vs. flexibility you need can significantly impact your growth journey.
Personalised Coaching Approaches: Recognising different personality types and tailoring coaching methods accordingly can foster stronger athlete-coach relationships. Tom highlights how understanding an athlete's individual needs and thought processes can maximise their potential.
Continuous Learning and Adaptation: Both Tom and Dr. Phil Price underline the significance of perpetual learning. By constantly questioning and adapting our methods, we can break through limitations and enhance creativity in the realm of sports and beyond.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Resources Mentioned

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Master Your SkiErg Performance For Hyrox & Crossfit with Louisa Sondergaard

The Progress Theory — Mon, 02 Jun 2025 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode of The Progress Theory, host Dr Phil Price welcomes CrossFit coach and athlete Louise Sondergaard to dive into the world of ergometer training, focusing on the vital yet often overlooked skill development in using ergs, particularly the SkiErg and rower, to enhance athletic performance.

Having first discovered Louise through the Upside Strength podcast with Sean Seale, Dr Phil was intrigued by her passionate discourse on integrating skill learning into erg training within CrossFit and functional fitness, drawing parallels with the detailed technique analysis used in weightlifting. Louise shares insights from her journey as a CrossFit Level 3 coach and her transition from a finance career to coaching full time, with impressive accomplishments like setting world records on the SkiErg during lockdown.

Together, they explore the nuances of erg training, the cultural shift towards recognising its significance in the fitness community, and practical advice for athletes eager to optimise their erg techniques. Whether you're a novice or seasoned athlete, this episode is packed with valuable strategies to elevate your rowing and skiing skill sets and, ultimately, your overall performance.

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Introduction
03:28 Enhancing Monostructural Conditioning Techniques
08:59 CrossFit Skill Development Challenges
11:28 Coaching Machines: Overcoming Technique Gaps
14:46 Rowing vs. Flashy Gym Techniques
19:29 Erg Training: Technique and Intervals
20:38 Optimising Aerobic Training Methods
25:39 Upper and Lower Body Training Balance
27:28 Upper Body Skiing Challenges
31:54 Transitioning Athletes Struggle in CrossFit
37:03 "Ski Erg Skills and Technique"
38:35 Microdosing Technique for Athletes
43:13 Polarised Training Routine Explained
45:50 Online and Custom Fitness Programmes

Takeaways

Technique Matters: Just like in weightlifting, enhancing your technique on ERGs can lead to better performance. It's about more than just going hard; it's about mastering the skill.
Complementary Training: Incorporating ERG workouts with other conditioning work can create a well-rounded fitness regime. Using various machines strategically can help manage fatigue and improve overall efficiency.
Continuous Learning: Coaches need to expand their knowledge base on ERG techniques to effectively incorporate them into training programs. There’s always room to grow and improve!

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Resources Mentioned

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

Elite Athletes and Psychopathy: Myths, Misconceptions, and Media Glorification

The Progress Theory — Mon, 26 May 2025 05:00:00 +0100

Hello, and welcome to the progress theory where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and in this episode, we are joined by a roundtable of researchers in forensic psychiatry. We have Jill Colangelo, Dr Alexander Smith, and Professor Michael Liebrenz, all who are researchers in forensic psychiatry from the University of Bern. Now if you take the whole population, we know that a very small subset of them probably have psychopathic traits.

Now if we took that subset not from the whole population, but from certain environments or professions such as surgeons or CEOs, we start to see that they have a higher prevalence of psychopathic traits. What about elite sport? How prevalent is psychopathy in elite sport? So that's where we brought this roundtable together so we learn a bit more around psychopathy. What are the pros and cons of psychopathy in certain environments, and how can we identify if we have psychopathic traits?

This is quite a serious discussion. So if you feel that you have been affected by any of these topics in this discussion, please check out our show notes because we have several links there which can help.

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Exploring Psychopathy in Elite Sport
04:34 Sports Psychiatry Research Journey
08:17 Distinguishing Traits from Disorders
10:16 Psychopathy: Subset of Antisocial Disorder
14:32 "Inevitable Duality of Psychopathic Traits"
18:13 Athletes' Traits and Mental Health
23:19 Research Limitations on Athlete Privacy
24:25 Ethical Issues in Mental Health Diagnosis
30:14 Media's Heroic Portrayal Critiqued
32:48 Narcissism in Amateur Athletes
35:48 Mental Health Awareness vs. Advertising
41:00 Increased Accountability in Public Life
43:28 Surprising Lack of Psychopathy Awareness
45:56 "Charisma and Its Impact"
50:32 Charismatic Traits and Social Disruption
53:20 "Recognising and Understanding Abusive Traits"

Takeaways

Psychopathic traits aren’t always what you think: While often misunderstood, these traits include charm, manipulativeness, and a lack of empathy. Importantly, possessing traits is not the same as having a clinical diagnosis. The spectrum is wide, and some traits, like fearlessness or dominance, can sometimes benefit performance—but rarely exist without downsides.

The ‘bad boy’ image may have a cost: Media and cultural narratives often glamorise ruthlessness and rule-breaking in sport. While these can lead to short-term wins or headlines, the same traits can spill over into negative behaviours—impacting both personal relationships and the integrity of sport.

Awareness and education are critical: There’s a growing need for coaches, organisations, and athletes themselves to recognise these patterns—not just to improve performance, but to create healthier sporting environments. It’s also vital not to make "armchair diagnoses" but rather understand the complexity and seek professional guidance when needed.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.

KULT Media 2023

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Podcast Produced By KULT Media

Kult Media

How To Train For Extreme Ultramarathons with Kris King

The Progress Theory — Mon, 15 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello, and welcome to the Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. I am Dr Phil Price. In this episode, we are joined by Ultra Runner and CEO of Beyond the Ultimate, Kris King.

Now, ultra marathons are gaining in popularity. More and more people are looking to push their running performance further than they've ever done before. However, have you ever considered doing an ultra marathon in some of the harshest environments in the world? Well, that's exactly what Beyond the Ultimate offer. Providing ultra marathons in places like the jungle, the desert, and the mountains. And Kris King created these races

So in this episode, Chris and I discuss exactly what you need to do to prepare for some of the harshest races in the world.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:30 - Kris King and Beyond the Ultimate
5:39 - Different ultra environments
13:15 - Ultramarathon personality
17:39 - Kris’ race and challenge history
24:26- Training specificity
28:07 - The mindset and physical qualities of successful Ultramarathon runners
34:20 - How to prepare for an extreme ultra
40:30 - Kris’ next challenge
43:50 - racing strategies
49:46 - Tips for those wanting to do Beyond the Ultimate

Key topics

Ultrarunning and Mental Health: "I think it's partly to do with that, and I don't think it's any, coincidence, or probably, you know, a topic to go too deep too soon, but you know, when you look at the mental health crisis, I don't think that is a coincidence that you have more people on things like antidepressants, more people in therapy than ever before, and there's a rise in a sport that often has a link to people with trauma."

Endurance Racing and Professional Success: "we get a lot of successful business people do our races because I think it gives them that same kind of founder, you know, that exciting bit of research, that exciting thing to kind of obsess over and stuff like that."

Advancements in Athletic Science: "So I was bringing science into my training, learning all about that, and and and trying to get those extra percentiles out of my performance."

Ultramarathon Resilience: "No matter how prepared you are to run a 100 mile is so Adam Kimball, a good mate of mine, is probably one of the best 100 mile races in the world. Like, he loves that distance, and he'll cruise for 60, 70 miles, and then at this kind of, like, final 30, which is mad to say out loud, isn't it? But this is a guy that can 6 minute mile comfortably for 70 miles, and then the race is on. And he has races, of course, where he feels shit, like, shitty at 30 and 40 and stuff, and it's just how it goes. But he is one of those guys that can kind of get into a pain cave and just he has such a positive attitude that he can kind of bring himself through it."

Mastering Ultrarunning – Energy and Mindset: "ultrarunning essentially is an energy and is a balancing of energy in the mind."

Athlete Training Philosophy: "You would just look at getting the basics right, getting the consistency in, getting all of the things that any athlete needs, good nutrition, good sleep, good support network."

Ultrarunning Training Insights: "Even if it's just a one session a week or a quick session, couple of sprints, just to get kind of prep the body for that. You know, one thing that I think all ultrarunners should be is adaptable."

Training Intensity for Athletes: "You're there to create an adaptation and and to go hard. So you know you know you've got it right when you turn up to the gym that day and you're kind of dreading it."

The Importance of Consistency in Athletic Training: "I think if I'd been consistent through the years of my training, I'd not had this gap of time out, I'd probably be a bit different at you because I'd be a different athlete."

Adapting to Extreme Physical Challenges: "By week 2 and 3 my body had just adjusted and actually doing 60 70 mile days wasn't bad it was just a thing you know, and it seems crazy, but your body kind of, so I will be approaching this where I'll be really trained."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Maximise Strength & Hypertrophy For Your Deadlift with Dr Pak

The Progress Theory — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. In this episode, we are joined again by the legendary Dr. Pak. Now, it was so good to have Dr. Pak back on the show. His last episode was amazing, but this time I wanted to move away from the minimal dose effect research that he's done before and focus more on this new research, which is more around strength and hypertrophy and how we can utilise this information to become as strong as possible and apply this to the deadlift.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:43 - Introduction
1:50 - What is Kyriakos Grizzly like?
8:33 - Minimalist training
10:50 - Common traits in super strong athletes
12:51 - Expectations on strength gains
15:21 - Strength and muscle mass periodisation
22:33 - Hypertrophy for deadlift
29:42 - Deadlift focused training
34:45 - Social media memes and training
39:20 - ‘Being Evidence-based’ need to do better
51:14 - Dr Pak’s current research and media projects
55:50 - Deadlift recommendations

Viral Topic: The Illusion of Strength Standards on Social Media Quote: "A 200 kilo deadlift if you're a lifter is not something that many will regard as impressive. But if you start thinking about your strength in percentiles compared to the average gym gore, if you're not a power lifter, right, then that's a different game."

Hypertrophy Training and One RM Specific Work: "So let's say you are far away from a competition, or you have a year where you can work on hypertrophy. I would personally still have some one RM specific work there."

The Importance of Hypertrophy for Strength Athletes: "And for strength athletes specifically, I do feel that a lot are guilty of massively mistreating hypertrophy specific work and viewing hypertrophy stuff as obviously there are accessories, but I do feel like calling them accessories sometimes leads to them being treated as like, if it's higher reps and it's a machine based exercise, or it's not like an SPD exercise for power lifters, then, okay, I've done my hypertrophy work regardless of whether it was close to failure, whether it's progressing over time, and so on and so forth."

Predicting Deadlift Progress: "But your starting point may be completely different to that of another person, if that makes sense."

The impact of body weight gain on strength training: "But when working with somebody and they want to increase their strength, which is almost everyone I work with and nobody has come to me and said, hey, man, too strong over here, I got to get weaker."

Powerlifting Progression: "Yes, I want 300, but I am at a place in my lifting career where the deadlift now needs either a lot of focus from me and a lot of dedication, which I have other things going on in my life if I want to get close to that 300."

Fitness Myth: "And the more calories would be mostly, it may be placebo to a certain extent, but like, gaining a couple of kilos over a few months means that I am in a calorie surplus, that I am giving myself a bit more, that I am improving my recovery a bit more."

Viral Topic: Social Media and Personal Branding Quote: "I am somebody who's not very serious as an individual, I'm serious about the things I do, but as a character, I like to have fun with things and I like to have fun with more, let's say complex or serious topics like scientific studies and stuff."

The Importance of Evidence-Based Practice: "But I do think that the clash between the two sides, which are not really sides, is just a result of people wanting to naturally go against something and have this enemy."

"Improving Deadlift Strength with Variations and Singles": "Doing one RM specific work in the form of singles, keeping the majority of those with a few reps in reserve, but still having some heavier singles there, and potentially working on variations of the deadlift like the Romanian deadlift, maybe other hip hinge exercises like a good morning, or even variations of the deadlift with dumbbells or different bars just so that you can get the muscles involved in the deadlift stronger."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

How To Increase Your Bench Press with Rob Palmer

The Progress Theory — Mon, 01 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance.

I am Dr. Phil Price. And on today's episode, we are joined by Powerlifter and S&C coach, Rob Palmer. Now, I've known Rob for many, many years and I know he knows a thing or two about getting as strong as possible. He's won many national titles and international titles in Powerlifting and was an S C coach in professional rugby for over 15 years. So I wanted to know a bit more around his processes on getting as strong as possible and see if we can use that to improve our bench press.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:47 - Introduction
7:20 - The importance of a strength culture
14:19 - Learning from programming for rugby and powerlifting
19:00 - Multifactorial approach to programming
22:46 - Common mistakes in strength training
25:35 - Variability in strength training & Programming
32:27 - Identifying limiters of bench press performance
34:01 - Rob’s bench press training
37:00 - Reflecting on Rob’s powerlifting career
50:07 - Common mistakes in powerlifting skill
55:35 - What is 969 strength?

Key Findings

The Challenges of Professional Sport: "The job in professional sport, you're challenged to make lots and lots and lots of decisions every single day that realistically could have a very negative outcome for the player."

"The Value of Strength Training": I still think people don't value strength training as much as they should, because things come in and out of vogue, don't they? So when I first came to the sport, strength training was massive in terms of the thought process of what strength training can do for you. And I'm talking about basic strength training, getting good at deadlifting, getting good at squatting, getting good at being able to bench press, overhead press as much weight as possible, you had this kind of culture.

Viral Topic: The Importance of Recovery in Rugby

Quote: "In rugby, it's all about the recovery. It's got nothing to do with because the guys who are obviously aerobically really well developed, they're not particularly strong, but they can come in and hit 80% plus, 90% plus. It doesn't seem to affect them the same way that it does the guys who are less fit now, if you take them out of that context, say they get injured and they come out. The guys who are less aerobically developed as soon as they start the weight training. And obviously this is a bit of what you're born with, isn't it?"

The Future of Sports Science: "My biggest learnings from rugby are more that kind of truly holistic kind of programming where you have to consider you have an appreciation and consider all the facets of what make an athlete good."

"Improving Strength in Training": "Are you applying a stimulus? And is that stimulus great enough to elicit some sort of adaptation as you come back up?"

Injury Prevention in Sports Training: "So you do lots of volume and you work on lots of different muscle groups in isolation down here, so you can deal with the amount of stress is greater, although it's not on the higher end of the intensity spectrum."

"The Importance of Variation in Strength Training": With the squat you'd use lots of variations, so you get total leg development and it's the same kind of principle. You get total development of all the muscles required to enhance your, in this case, bench press performance. On that isolated muscle side, you get this kind of every single muscle gets developed to its maximal ability or its maximal potential there in isolation. Then you start to strip away, don't you?

Periodized Training: "Yeah, it would be the longest phase of all the phases. But within that so one of the key things for me within all of this, so if you were to use some common language with sort of periodized planning, so you've got, for argument's sake, we'll say accumulation intensification realisation."

The Importance of Exercise and Failure in Strength Training: "You obviously want, on the basic level, this accumulation phase is total development, isn't it? It's total development of the skill and total development of the individual muscle groups that go into giving you a top bench press."

Bench Press Technique: "So I think the first thing starts with the position you have to get your body in to reduce the stroke of the bench press. So you want the bar to move as through a shorter distance as possible."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

How To Compete At The World’s Highest Obstacle Course Race with Becky Neal

The Progress Theory — Mon, 25 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. In this episode, we're joined by sports physiologist, Dr Becky Neal.

Have you ever done an obstacle course race such as Spartan or a Tough Mudder? Now think about doing one of those, but at Everest Base Camp. That's exactly what Dr Becky Neal has done. And not only that, she did it as part of a massive research study. So in this episode, we discussed her experiences in the Himalaya and also how her research is helping us understand how people function in high altitude.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:46 - Introduction
2:07 - The world’s highest OCR
12:28 - The freezing temperatures
15:47 - Racing and avoiding mountain sickness
26:08 - The results from the world’s highest race study
30:44 - What could warn us of potential mountain sickness
40:02 - future high altitude challenges for research
46:41 - Would you climb Mt Everest?

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

The Future of Hybrid Training with Jamie Scott

The Progress Theory — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello, and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance.

I am Dr. Phil Price, and on today's episode, we are joined by S&C coach and hybrid athlete Jamie Scott. Jamie came to me a few months ago discussing the possibility of him wanting to do a PhD in the area of hybrid training. So I thought, well, this is a perfect opportunity for you to on the show, and we can discuss all of the types of areas that we can look into. So in this episode, we discuss the misconceptions around the interference effect, what kind of factors we need to be really focused on when it comes to hybrid research, and he discusses his own experiences as a hybrid athlete and gives us three tips for our hybrid training.

In this episode, we discuss:

0.55 - Introduction
8:23 - Becoming sub-elite in many sports
13:44 - The misinterpretation of the interference effect?
27:47 - Where hybrid research needs to go?
33:44 - The importance of progressing slowly
42:02 - Jamie’s Training goals
46:31 - What’s the hardest hybrid challenge?
52:42 - Advice for hybrid training

Key Findings

Sub-Elite Performances and the Management of Time: "When we talk about hybrid approaches and being sub elite, that fascinates me because essentially you have people that are in these kind of mismatched conditions or sub-optimal conditions inherently and they're still performing exceptionally well and being able to kind of spin those plates I think is fascinating. So, yeah, I think that when you have an athlete that is maybe not as appreciated because those performances aren't kind of like world class, you're not going to have someone run like a sub ten second, 100 meters, but let's say someone's able to run like a Sub 11.5 and then it also is able to snatch 130. Then even more divergent than that is be able to run like a Sub free marathon. I think I said it in the post, you probably have one of the very select humans on Earth. And I think that's fascinating to really appreciate that actually from a genetic point of view, but also from the management of time."

The Fascinating Question of Human Potential: "I find that very interesting. That's something that we just probably don't know how high that ceiling is."

The Impact of Basic Physiological Needs on Performance: "When you look at potentially the reasons for fatigue from a peripheral perspective, from a central perspective, I think even the desire to drink might downregulate your force production, for example, because that's your primary need."

The Importance of Physiology in Performance: "And I think Jerome Dempsey spoke about physiological redundancy. So essentially, systems within systems, ultimately, you need to stay alive, and it doesn't really care about your five K time or whatever."

Training and Fatigue Management: "And I think that the idea that people in general probably just have to train a bit more, right? We just have to increase, we have to get people out training, have to get people moving. And I think that there's this idea about maybe overdoing it, pushing it or overtraining and managing fatigue."

Adaptations and Fatigue Management: "We see that the stronger signal of adaptations get sent, and hence why interval training is so powerful, right? Because by enabling rest, we're enabled to spend more time at high intensity, but the cost of that is more fatigue."

The Challenges of Improving Weightlifting and Endurance Sports: "The interesting thing that I probably would say from an anecdotal perspective is that when I have done weightlifting, so I particularly enjoy sort of the snatch stuff, I definitely feel like I have to be very sensible in where I place that session. Because if I have a little bit of fatigue or whatever, I just don't feel like I've got that kind of snap and kind of neural drive."

Iron Man Training: "He talks about how he just tried to muscle through swimming and kind of just applied the same mentality as he did for his bike and his run and just realised that he was just getting beat up because he was pushing himself so hard, because he was trying to muscle through it and not understanding, perhaps the time spent."

The Importance of Training Volumes in Swimming: "When you look at the literature in swimming, if you look at the training volumes, it's an incredibly high amount of training volumes like elite swimmers do."

The Importance of Skill Acquisition Sessions: "I definitely didn't when I was doing CrossFit years and years ago, I didn't appreciate the importance of skill acquisition sessions actually having an okay mental load, but we're going to just focus on just movement and just trying to improve efficiency of a certain task and not necessarily have to kill myself in doing that task."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

How To Become An SAS Soldier with Lindsay Bruce

The Progress Theory — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and in today's episode, we have ex SAS, and now the founder of the Modern Warrior project, Lindsay Bruce.

I’ve been desperate to know what separates those who make into the SAS compared to the rest of us. You hear on social media the importance of leadership, discipline, a fast learner, for example, all of which are important, but you can be a great disciplined leader and still fail SAS selection. Is it physical or all about having the right mindset. And also, can we learn these skills and apply them outside of the military?

As always, follow and subscribe for all of our content on Instagram and Youtube. So here is, Lindsey Bruce

In this episode, we discuss:

1:00 - Introduction
05:09 - How to apply for the SAS
09:09 - What do you need to complete SAS selection?
13:22 - Are you cut from a different cloth?
18:14 - The background of SAS soldiers vs Officers
24:05 - Developing mindset through exposure
28:37 - Is there anything where you’ve got it or you haven’t?
34:35 - The phases of selection
40:16 - The Physical determinants of SAS selection
49:27 - The Modern Warrior Project
1:05:26 - Signing up for the Modern Warrior Project

Key Findings

The Popularity of Special Forces and TV Shows: "Especially when you're linking that from TV to social media, and obviously recent years popularity with The TV shows that is just growing arms and legs, obviously, you know, which is, you know, going back to Before before all this happened, you had the odd thing that would maybe come out that would be, you know, popular in TV. But it didn't really go to that level of And I think social media has obviously helped catapult that into the, you know, another stratosphere really, which is which is got It's got positives and negatives along with that."

The Power of Grit and Determination: "But there is something about every man who gets through that if you just has an extra level of grit, Drive and determination than the next than the next guy."

The Drive to Success: "They've got a huge reason to, you know, that when you see a championship level boxer who comes from nothing and to to get to the top, he is the hungry wolf climbing the hill to get to the top."

The Importance of Health and Fitness in the Military: "There is so much you can do physically, then the rest of it is down to their mindset and how resilient they are, and what goes on upstairs."

The Evolution of Health and Fitness: "So if you look at the that that era and and how that era ended up moving on to later stages of life, a lot of them were like packs of broken biscuits physically later on in life because they don't look after themselves."

Finding Purpose in Life: "I went through this period where I just wasn't quite sure what I should be doing. So there was a lot of uncertainty as far as, you know, the question you ask yourself, am I really doing the right thing? You know, I kinda like what I'm doing. Some of the some of the things that I'm doing, I I enjoy, but really is it really serving me in my life to the point where I think that I'm in the right place, doing the right thing. And and the reality was that I wasn't."

Helping Men Similar to My Age: "So at the same time, I could see certain problems in the world, from a general perspective of men over a certain age. They were having these common challenges in life. And I thought there was a huge there was a huge calling for helping men similar to my age who I could really relate to and help."

Belonging to Something: "And everyone's different. There's a very diverse bunch of people come into the program, but they all have similar common challenges that can be dealt with. And not only that, it's about being part of something because people wanna belong to something, don't they? Human beings are social creatures, they want to belong to something."

The Importance of Optimizing Our Routines: "So strangely enough, everything that the guys need in the program that they come to me for, I need it I need also. Now I I'm I'm maybe a step ahead when they come on the program because I've been doing this stuff a long time, and, You know, I physically keep myself in shape, and all my habits, like, you'll be the same, you know, we come from the same sort of, yeah, thought processes, not the rest of it. You know, we look after ourselves, we eat the right foods, we we get off sleep, and we're very into our optimizing our our, Our our sort of our circadian rhythm and a lot, hence, you know, being part of the human 2014. You know, so it's we've got we've got that already, and we understand the benefits of that. So it's essentially guiding guiding men to the same process so they can optimize themselves. But when I think about everything that that I provide them with And what the rest of the community provides them with. I always see this as a you're not like like you said a minute ago. I'm not on this pedestal going, you know, I was in the special forces."

"The Power of Community: We stay for the community."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

How To Become An Elite Hyrox Athlete with Greg Williams

The Progress Theory — Mon, 04 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to the progress theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance.

In this episode, we are joined by Hyrox athlete and the host of the Roxlyfe podcast, Greg Williams. Now, Hyrox is a functional fitness event which is gaining massively in popularity. It involves running and functional fitness stations and seems to be very popular with the hybrid, crossfit and running communities. Greg on his Roxlyfe podcast has interviewed many of the elite athletes, so I wanted to speak to him to find out exactly what it takes to reach the elite level of Hyrox.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:13 - The genesis of the RoxLyfe podcast
4:20 - What is Hyrox?
11:05 - How Greg Trains for Hyrox
13:18 - How much strength do you need?
14:27 - transitioning from being a sprinter to Hyrox
17:30 - What separates the elites from the rest
24:40 - Mindset & pressure is a privilege
31:37 - Importance of structuring your year
37:50 - Where to start training for hyrox
42:58 - The future of Hyrox

Key Thoughts

Elite Athlete Performance: "I think there's some people that just don't deal with that very well. And the elites of the sport do."
Taking Risks in Sport: "You've got to take risks. And like you said, you can convince yourself you're pushing yourself hard, but not going quite as hard as you can."
Overcoming Fear in sports: "I think it can be taught or practised. And I think some of it is just like not tying yourself or your happiness to the outcome or the final time or your position."
Race data analysis: "Often it's the running, because that's essentially 50% of the race. That is a major factor."
Elite Athletes' Season Structure: "I think there's a level of maturity in someone like Hunter and some of the other experienced athletes with how they structure their season."
Elite Racing Strategies: "He knows he can probably run one race and qualify, whereas there's others that are trying to get a time in a regular race to qualify for those majors to then try and qualify for the world championships through those majors."
Quote: "But certainly running is the critical element for most people in the race. Compromise running, I should say. So getting to a point where they're comfortable with that over that sort of time domain as well, is the most important thing."
The Importance of Experience in Endurance Racing: "And there is a huge amount to be said for experience and pacing properly, all that sort of stuff. Most people vastly overestimate their ability in a race."
The Global Expansion of Functional Fitness Events: "From a business perspective, it seemingly is continuing to grow rapidly, and I think that's deliberate. I don't know how they're doing profit wise, but I think they're really trying to make an imprint in as many countries as possible."
Professionalising a Sport: "They want them to become professional, they want them to be able to get their own sponsorship, and they're facilitating that through a doing quite high quality, in theory, like broadcast and live streams of those elite races."

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

How To Train For Extreme Triathlons with Eilidh Prise

The Progress Theory — Mon, 26 Feb 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss scientific principles for optimising human performance. In this episode, we're joined by Celtman and Norseman champion Eilidh Prise. Now, extreme triathlons like the Celtman and The Norseman are getting more and more popular, so it's a real privilege to have on The Progress Theory someone that has won both. In this episode, Eilidh discusses how she's incorporated her training into a lifestyle that she absolutely loves and also discusses how she deals with that cold.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:44 - Introduction
1:57 - Getting into Extreme triathlons
08:10 - Changing sporting career
12:24 - Training for the Celtman
15:15 - Make training fun and part of your lifestyle
18:50 - Fitting training around work
21:25 - What is the celtman?
26:03 - Creativity breeds resilience
31:38 - Going for the Celtman for a 3rd time
33:30 - Qualifying for the Celtman
35:50 - What is the Norseman?
39:40 - Training for the Norsman
41:30 - Dealing with the cold
44:20 - How to qualify for the Norseman
46:51 - Make your sport your lifestyle

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Maximising Hybrid Training Using Physiological Data with Evan Peikon

The Progress Theory — Mon, 19 Feb 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price, and in today's episode, we have sports physiologist and coach Evan Peikon.

Evan is back on the podcast, and this time we're discussing his work with NNOXX, where he is a co-founder. NNOXX is a NIRS device that measures muscle oxygenation and saturation and is the first to ever measure nitric oxide non-invasively. In this episode, we discuss the physiological determinants of hybrid athlete performance and how we can use NNOXX to inform our hybrid training.

As always, follow and like The Progress Theory on Instagram and YouTube. So here is Evan Peikon

In this episode, we discuss:

0:55 - Introduction
2:55 - The importance of writing for learning and creativity
11:23 - Evan’s Book ‘Paradigm Shift’.
14:01 - What is NNOXX?
19:46 - The physical determinants of a hybrid/tactical athlete
31:15 - Physiological limiters of elite Crossfit Performance
38:02 - Using Data from NNOXX to improve training performance
45:15 - Keeping training simple.
49:29 - Using NNOXX to guide interval training
1:00:2 - The Importance of progressing slowly with Hybrid training
1:06:21 - Evan’s Training

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

How To Develop Elite Level Crossfit Conditioning with Sean Seale

The Progress Theory — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and in today's episode we have S&C coach and host of Upside Strength, Sean Seale.

I’ve always wanted to know what separates those who reach the podium of the Crossfit games vs the rest of the field or even those that only make the sanctional level. One of the areas that could be underdeveloped is their aerobic system, as this will directly influence their ability to recover and their ability to perform large volumes of training. Also, these athletes, without realising it, could be respiratoryly limited. Well, what does that mean, and how can we train our respiratory system?

As always, follow and subscribe to The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is: Sean Seale

In this episode, we discuss:

1:00 - Introduction
07:00 - Developing sports science content
12:45 - Importance of saying no for creativity
17:10 - Content creation volume
21:10 - Where interest in aerobic conditioning came from
25:31 - Zone 2 training
31:18 - Zone 2 and crossfit
41:00 - Aerobic deficient Crossfit athlete
45:33 - Testing/Training for the aerobically deficient
55:44 - Crossfit for Youth athletes
1:02:35 - Respiratory training

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mentioned in this episode:

The Science of Hybrid Training

Book

Progress Theory Newsletter

Substack

Progress Theory Updates & Series 6 Preview

The Progress Theory — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory!

I'm thrilled to announce that we're back with season six, and we have some incredible new episodes lined up for you.

Our first episode will be released on February 12, 2024, and I can't wait for you to hear it.

It's been an eventful year for me, becoming a father and experiencing lots of changes at my work at St. Mary's University. But now we're back and ready to bring you the best podcast episodes yet, featuring amazing guests, coaches, scientists, and athletes.

In season five, we focused on the theme of hybrid training, delving into some fascinating discussions and insights from our guests. This led to some fantastic opportunities, including speaking engagements and collaborations with Omnia Performance. I've also written a book, which is soon to be released, so keep an eye on our social media for updates.

One of the most rewarding moments from season five was meeting a listener at Hyrox, who expressed how much the podcast had helped with their training. Knowing that our discussions are making a positive impact is truly fulfilling.

Now, as we move into season six, we're exploring the concept of elite performance. What sets the top 1% of athletes and professionals apart from the rest? How do they push the boundaries of human performance? These are the questions we'll be exploring this season as we speak to elite individuals from various fields.

We already have ten amazing episodes recorded, covering topics such as elite CrossFit conditioning, extreme triathlons, ultramarathons, and hybrid training challenges. I'm incredibly excited to share these insightful conversations with you.

I also want to express my gratitude to our sponsors, HMN24, for their fantastic range of supplements that have personally helped me improve my sleep-wake cycle. And a big thank you to our production partner, Kult Media, for their support in making this season possible.

I can't wait for you to join us on this exciting journey of exploration and discovery. Make sure to subscribe to The Progress Theory wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube. See you in the first episode!

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Testing & Physiological Profiling For CrossFit Athletes - Sean Seale

The Progress Theory — Mon, 15 Aug 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have S&C coach Sean Seale.

Sean is the host of Upside Strength, an amazing resource which includes a podcast, educational seminars and an awesome youtube channel. Through his podcast, he has investigated different physiological concepts and their application to endurance training and CrossFit, and it has been awesome to hear his journey of learning new ideas, putting them into practice and formulating his own approach to training, testing and monitoring. In this episode, we discuss his physiological approach to testing CrossFit athletes and determining training intensity zones and the importance of low-intensity training for aerobic adaptations.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

They have created brand guides, comprehensive podcast strategies, enhanced the podcast production, developed custom workflows for me and edited & mixed all of the video, audio and social media content.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

First of all – HMN24 is not a sports supplement company. I’ve seen sport supplements be used as a method to improve performance in the gym and at a certain sport. However, these supplements, like a pre-workout, are often used on top of a lifestyle which does not provide the foundation needed for optimal performance. There’s no point taking pre-workout supplements if your sleep, hydration, and nutrition is an unstructured mess. I’m convinced that a large percentage of injuries are often caused, not because training was poor, but because a poor lifestyle foundation increased the athlete’s susceptibility to injury. Sports supplements are often used to plaster the cracks in poor lifestyle habits, which only causes more future problems.

And this is where HMN24 is different. The product range at HMN24 not only helps improve your foundation; it optimises it. The HMN24 products are designed to fit around your circadian rhythms, from the moment you wake up, to key moments in the day when you need optimal focus, to getting the best sleep at night, there’s a product to optimise each phase of the day.

I can’t recommend enough the “live on form’ pack, consisting of the products Rise, flow and pre-sleep. Rise is for the morning and is my absolute favourite. It tastes amazing. Rise contains caffeine for increased morning alertness (though not a huge amount of caffeine, which is sooo much better for avoiding gastro-intestinal distress), electrolytes from coconut and watermelon powder to increase hydration after the previous night’s sleep, and B-vitamins, to ensure you ready to win the morning. I’m not a fan of long-winded morning routines. I wake up, have my Rise with ice, and get straight to writing, and I’ve seen such an improvement in getting into deep work.

By the time 2pm comes around the effects of caffeine from Rise has worn off, but I don’t want to take more caffeine because that’s going to interrupt getting to sleep later on. This is where Flow is perfect. It’s a caffeine-free nootropic, perfect for improving alertness and concentration during that mid-afternoon slump. And finally, I take pre-sleep just before bed, which is a comprehensive night-time complex, formulated to help support well-being and fortify the body against the fatigue and stress that come with leading a performance-driven lifestyle.

I can’t recommend these products enough they are a game changer for human performance. And also, while you’re at their website hmn24.com check out there plant protein, which is incredible for smoothies post-training, and their website includes articles and an awesome podcast for those wanting to learn more about human performance. You can even check out the episode I did with them, I thoroughly enjoyed that chat I had with Phi Learney, Co-founder of HMN24, and it has led to an awesome collaboration with HMN24 supporting The Progress Theory. If you want a 10% discount on all HMN24 products either head to their website via the links in the Instagram bios of @theProgresstheory or my personal Instagram @drphilprice or use the code PHILPRICE at checkout.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:09 - Introduction
02:45 - Upside Strength & introduction to Sean Seale
12:08 - The change to a physiological focus
15:04 - Physiological testing protocols
22:36 - Physiological changes from training
25:07 - Determining intensity zones using critical power and lactate threshold
31:03 - Testing with minimal equipment
37:28 - Maintaining power output during tests
40:10 - How best to find critical power
46:14 - The importance of low-intensity training for Crossfit
50:45 - Any differences between hybrid athletes and Crossfit athletes?
55:26 - Lactate and fat oxidation in Crossfitters
58:29 - Recommendations

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@upside_strength

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Upside Strength

Upside strength academy

Upside Strength Youtube

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Coaching & Programming For The Crossfit Games - Michele Letendre

The Progress Theory — Mon, 08 Aug 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Crossfit coach and head of DekaComp, Michele Letendre.

On paper, Crossfit should be a challenging sport to programme for. You need to be efficient in so many movements across a spectrum ranging from maximal strength to long-distance endurance. Add to this the fact that you don’t know what might come up in competition, which makes programming decision-making a challenge, but also can allow you to be creative in your approach. In this episode, Michele and I discuss her coaching company Dekacomp, her Crossfit programming ideas, and her different coaching approaches for different athletes.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:06 - Introduction
5:42 - Dekacomp
12:06 - Taking lessons from being an athlete into your coaching
13:57 - Varying coaching approaches to different athletes
17:18 - Training for the stress of competition
21:49 - Dekacomp crossfit programming
25:26 - The problem with too much intensity, too often
27:36 - How much do competition tactics influence programming?
37:30 - The importance of adaptability in Crossfit
53:00 - Athlete mindset

As always, follow and subscribe to The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, and check out all of our other episodes.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Crossfit games

Dekacomp

@dekacomp

Athletes Michele has worked with

@pvellner

@freyamoosbrugger

@jamesnewbury

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

How To Maximise Hybrid Athlete Programming - Alec Blenis

The Progress Theory — Mon, 18 Jul 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Hybrid coach and athlete Alec Blenis.

It’s easier to understand programming for strength and endurance sports individually, but hybrid programming is more complex and that’s what makes it so exciting. But what are the best hybrid programming recommendations? In this episode, Alec discusses his journey into Hybrid training, his current goals and what he has learnt along the way. We also discuss key themes such as how to dissect your hybrid goals so you know what to programme and how to balance your strength and endurance training

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:00 - Introduction
2:36 - Training for Murph
9:18 - Partitioned vs unpartitioned Murph
15:03 - Getting into hybrid training
21:00 - How far can Hybrid performance go
24:58 - Common mistakes in hybrid training
28:30 - Long-term Hybrid programming
31:38 - Progressing slowly in a hybrid programme
33:29 - Use of RPE or RIR for both strength and endurance training
35:15 - Using objective and subjective data to monitor training
36:24 - Training goals after Murph
38:34 - The Crucible
39:16 - The effect of mass on running performance
44:00 - Advice for those new to Hybrid Training

As always, follow and subscribe to The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, and check out our other episodes.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@alecblenis

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Complete human performance

The crucible - Enter here

Spartan Race

Crossfit

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Importance Of Protein For Hybrid Training - Dr Tyler Churchward-Venne

The Progress Theory — Mon, 11 Jul 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Dr Tyler Churchward-Venne, Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and physical education at McGill University

There is a lot of training involved in a hybrid programme, so in order to make sure we are recovering between sessions to reduce the negative effects of residual fatigue or reduced protein synthesis, we need to make sure our nutrition is optimised. In this episode, Dr Churchward-Venne and I discuss why protein is so important for a hybrid athlete, what the difference is between myofibrillar and mitochondrial protein synthesis, and what the best protein sources are for improving recovery and aiding athletic performance.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:02 - Introduction
2:00 - Insects as a protein source
4:38 - Insect protein in the market and in our culture
9:45 - An introduction to Dr Tyler Chruchward-Venne
12:21 - Going into the field of protein metabolism and hybrid training
16:33 - What are high-quality proteins?
21:10 - What is a low-quality course of protein?
24:26 - The importance of leucine
27:34 - Can more protein reduce the molecular interference effect?
32:09 - The differences between myofibrillar and mitochondrial protein synthesis?
34:35 - Carbohydrates for hybrid athletes
37:37 - Acute studies measuring protein synthesis
46:27 - Protein Recommendations for hybrid training

As always, follow and subscribe to The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, and check out all of our other episodes.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@ChurchwardVenne

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

HMN24 plant protein - Discount at checkout

Dr Tyler Churchward-Venne research

Other researchers mentioned in the episode

Professor Luke Van Loon

Professor Stuart Phillips

Professor Keith Baar

Dr Will Apro

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Physiology Of Hybrid Performance & Crossfit Athletes - Evan Peikon

The Progress Theory — Mon, 04 Jul 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Sports Physiologist & Bioscientist, Evan Peikon.

What does the physiology of a hybrid athlete look like? We can understand the physiology of individual strength and endurance sports, and through this series of the Progress Theory, we also know how strength training can have a positive effect on, for example, running performance through improved running economy. But physiologically, can the two co-exist? In this episode, Evan and I discuss the role of the cardiovascular system for hybrid training, the effect of muscle size on endurance performance, and have a go at predicting how far hybrid performance can go.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:11 - Introduction
3:52 - Working at Crossfit Think Tank
5:20 - The Crossfit athlete, mitochondrial density and the dilation of blood vessels
9:21 - Arterial blood pressure and cardiac output
13:10 - The influence of genetics
15:30 - The difference between Crossfit athletes and Hybrid athletes
18:32 - Physiological ceilings
20:56 - VO2max in elite CrossFit athletes
23:28 - Critical metabolic rate, muscle relations and respiratory endurance
29:11 - The use of NIRS
32:57 - Body position, skeletal muscle pump and gene expression.
40:07 - The development of exercise science
43:16 - Hybrid training advice for coaches
46:28 - Understanding recovery/aerobic base training
52:49 - What’s the future potential for the hybrid athlete?
1:00:25 - Can being elite in one sport affect being a good hybrid athlete?

Follow and subscribe to The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, and check out all of our other episodes.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@evan_peikon

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Evan Peikon - Medium

Consultation with Evan - Crossfit think tank

Emergence performance substack

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Effect Of Hybrid Training On Endurance Performance - Dr Kenji Doma

The Progress Theory — Mon, 27 Jun 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Dr Kenji Doma, Senior Sport and Exercise Science Lecturer at James Cook University.

Usually, whenever people think of the interference effect during hybrid training they think about how endurance training inhibits the strength and hypertrophy adaptations from strength training. The research support for strength training enhancing endurance performance is quite clear, but are there examples of how strength training can negatively affect endurance performance? In this episode, Dr Doma and Dr Phil Price discuss the mechanisms which can inhibit endurance performance and adaptation during hybrid training, how we can programme to avoid this, and what the common mistakes people make when hybrid training.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:08 - Introduction
9:51 - Neurological factors of the interference effect
13:01 - The role of DOMS in the interference effect
21:30 - A decrease in endurance performance depends on the intensity required for that session
26:02 - What resistance training variables to manipulate
28:29 - Organising your hybrid training throughout the week
42:50 - The use of pre-fatigue
48:02 - Is sub-optimal progress not a bad thing?
52:50 - Training for weightlifting and an Iron man distance triathlon

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@kenji_doma

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Dr Kenji Doma research profile

Other researchers

Professor Kazunori Nosaka

Professor Trevor chen

Dr Dean Burt

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Molecular Physiology Of Hybrid Training - Professor Keith Baar

The Progress Theory — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode we have Dr Keith Baar, Professor of Molecular exercise physiology at the University of California.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

One of the mechanisms for the interference effect when hybrid training is molecular signalling theory. When activated by endurance exercise the AMPK pathway may inhibit the mTOR pathway, inhibiting strength and hypertrophy adaptations. But what does this all mean? In this episode, Professor Baar and Dr Phil Price discuss how these molecular pathways get activated, why endurance training might inhibit strength training adaptations, and how we can change our programming to reduce this.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:14 - Introduction
6:03 - What is mTORC1 and AMPK?
10:43 - Factors which activate mTORC1 and AMPK
14:55 - The importance of leucine
18:35 - How long mTORC1 and AMPK stay activated poster exercise
21:53 - Molecular breaks
25:08 - Difference between rats and human studies on concurrent training
31:23 - Untrained vs trained
36:48 - Practical recommendations for hybrid athletes

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@MuscleScience

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Professor Keith Baar Research

Other researchers

Professor William Apro

Professor Eva Blomstrand

Professor Dave Bishop

Professor Hickson’s first study

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Neuromuscular Physiology Of Strength & Power - Dr Matt Buckthorpe

The Progress Theory — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On this episode we have S&C and physiology lecturer, Dr Matt Buckthorpe, to discuss the physiological adaptations to muscle from strength and power training.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

To fully understand what training we need to prescribe to achieve our goals we need to understand what happens at the neuromuscular level. How does the body adapt to the stress of resistance training? This is why I’ve asked Matt to come onto the Progress Theory. In this episode we discuss muscle fibre composition, compare the different adaptations caused by strength and power training, and if we all have an adaptive strength ceiling.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:01 - Introduction
4:04 - Adaptations to strength training
7:58 - How the muscle respond to a progressive resistance training programme
11:14 - Novice lifters, and difficulty of increasing strength over time
13:37 - Our genetic ceiling for strength
16:50 - The physiology of training hypertrophy before strength
19:45 - Strength at different speeds
23:43 - Training affecting muscle fibre size and type
27:44 - Strength adaptations to tendon
31:38 - Strength genetics

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@m_buckthorpe

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Matt Buckthorpe research gate

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Using RPE For Endurance Training - Dr Shaun McLaren

The Progress Theory — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode we have Dr Shaun McLaren, S&C coach and Sport Scientist for the Newcastle Falcons, and teaching fellow in Sport and Exercise physiology at Durham University.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

We’ve covered the use of RPE in strength training in this series of the Progress Theory, but how can it be used for Endurance training? Do we use RPE as an intensity variable that athletes have to aim for during interval work, or do we use it reflectively post-session? In this episode, Shaun and I discuss how to use RPE, how using RPE can take some time to get used to, and if we could use RPE across both strength and endurance training in a hybrid programme

In this episode, we discuss:

1:15 - Introduction
6:13 - How Shaun got into RPE research
13:24 - Factors which affect the perception of effort
17:00 - Psychological factors
23:49 - Outside factors influencing training performance
29:10 - Objective vs subjective data
39:10 - What is the perception of effort?
47:35 - RPE drift and use in tempo runs
52:00 - Recommendations for using RPE for endurance
1:02:26 - Shaun’s Contact details

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@Shaun_McLaren1

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Shaun McLaren research profile

Newcastle falcons

Teeside university

Durahm university

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Mid Season Review: 3 Key Learnings For Hybrid Training

The Progress Theory — Mon, 16 May 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and in today's episode, we have the season 5 review where I will be reflecting on the last 5 episodes of the Progress Theory and pull together what key scientific principles or training ideas have really stood out to me and led me to implement them into my own training. I like these episodes as they highlight the key aim of this podcast: discussing the science and correctly implementing new ideas into your training programme or your everyday life. This season on hybrid training has been amazing and it’s made me realise just how much I enjoy podcasting. This season has allowed me to really delve deep into a training topic that I’m really passionate about and not only has it changed my ideas towards training but has identified areas that we don’t fully understand and that need further research. Hopefully, I can answer these questions through student and collaborative projects at St Mary’s University. If you have any ideas of your own please do not hesitate to contact me. You never know where these hybrid ideas may lead.

Which of the season episodes has been your favourite so far? We started off with a group of episodes focusing on hybrid training with great athletes such as Daryl Green and Fergus Crawley, and looked into the concurrent training research with Dr Matt Lee. Then we focused on strength with Dr Pak, Coach Mike Tuscherer and GB weightlifter Sarah Davies. Then we went for endurance with Professor Louis Passfield, Mindset with Dr Carla Meijen, training intensity distribution with The Conditioning Consultant Nathan Heaney, and finally S&C for swimmers with Andy Elkins. All amazing episodes, each one giving practical advice while explaining the science behind their methods. I’m going to cheat and say I don’t have a favourite episode as each episode has played a significant role in my development as a scientist, athlete and coach, and they’ve all provided info on the book I’m writing (more on that later). However, I’m still going to pose the question to you, which has been your favourite episode? Let us know on instagram @theprogresstheory

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

Right, for my reflection. First of all, I really enjoyed discussing hybrid programming with Fergus Crawley. A great guy, athlete, all-round top bloke. I really agreed with how he incorporates his hybrid challenges into his overall programming. Lots of athletes will train up to a challenge and then recover the following week, usually in some form of deload. Now, this is a fine approach but do we need to do this for every big challenge? Can’t these challenges be viewed as part of a long-term training programme? Fergus talks about consolidating stressors, working to develop specific adaptations which transfer to hybrid performance rather than working specifically to a sport. This, to me, makes quite a lot of sense for a hybrid athlete, especially as the hybrid challenge often changes. For example, one year you may be training for a functional fitness competition, and the next you're working to improve your powerlifting total while training for a half iron man distance triathlon. You can either view this as training for two separate sports in two separate years, or you’re training to get both stronger and fitter over the 2 years and you're just displaying this strength and fitness in two different ways. Your training may end up slightly more generic, only becoming more sports-specific nearer the challenge or competition as you learn to apply your strength and fitness in different training modalities. This stops us training for a challenge and then thinking…what’s next. The challenges just become a part of your main long-term goals i.e to get as strong and fit as possible. It stops the weeks of misguided and directionless training after these events, which you label a deload. If you’re a good athlete you should be able to recover pretty quickly, so the hybrid challenge or event you choose to do should form part of a larger training programme, not act as a peak.

OK, second reflection. I enjoyed discussing collecting data and understanding our athletes with powerlifting coach Mike Tuchscherer. In our episode, we discussed how long you’d programme a training block for and how different athletes react to training differently. For example, I may programme a double in the back squat at an RPE of 8 for 8 weeks in one of the sessions. Each week is the same but the loads may be different as the athlete progresses. Athlete 1 may increase their load each week quite linearly, reaching a plateau of sorts around weeks 7 & 8. Athlete 2 may plateau at week 2, and continue the programme until suddenly around week 6 or 7 see a sudden surge in loads lifted. These two athletes had the same programme but clearly progressed very differently. Should we know how athletes progress like this to help inform future programming decisions? This is where Mike and I discussed the importance of tracking data and monitoring training loads as much as possible. Most of it may seem unnecessary and doesn’t lead you to make any immediate decisions as a coach, but having all this data tells a story of how your athlete reacts to different training programmes and stimuli. Say you had an athlete that responds differently to the bench press compared to the back squat? How are you going to know this? You can only know this by monitoring their training and allowing data collected to tell this story about the athlete. Their training past should give clues on what their training future should look like.

Finally, for all those interested in mindset out there, I wanted to discuss motivation and my episode with Sports Psychologist Dr Carla Meijen. In the episode, we discussed the factors which can influence psychological endurance performance: motivation, duration, pain and pacing. All of these offer a different dimension to reflect on your mindset towards endurance performance, but motivation stuck out to me. I think this is because, to me, motivation seems to come and go. At times you can be super motivated and everything is going well, and then something happens in everyday life and motivation is completely rocked. I also think this is why people like listening to podcasts on mindset because it gives them motivation. So how can we maintain motivation? Well, Carla discussed the difference between quality over quantity. If motivation can be so easy to come by but doesn’t last very long, maybe we should be more reflective and understand where our true motivations come from. Motivation should be focused on what satisfies you most and what you believe is going to make you a better person. More internally focused motivations seem to be more sustainable. Enjoying the process of self-development is a more sustainable motivation than wanting to train because you saw someone on social media train and you feel you need to compete with them. Internal over external. Now, this may seem obvious and nothing you haven’t heard before, but Carla describes how we need to be more aware and reflective to ensure we are fueled by good, sustainable motivations and not poor unsustainable motivations. We need to be better at being aware of when poor motivations might be driving us forward as that could have negative consequences long-term.

So I end my reflection on the first half of season 5 of the Progress theory by highlighting the importance of reflection. I really hope these episodes have helped inform your ideas for your own hybrid training. Please keep a lookout over the coming months for information I shall be releasing about the book I am writing on Hybrid training. I’m currently getting as many ideas down on paper as possible and I hope to be completing some hybrid challenges of my own which I’ll also be documenting in the book. I'm just waiting for a confirmation and then I’ll be able to reveal much more. Let’s just say I hope to do something that I’ve never been able to do before and the last time I tried it I ended up needing ACL surgery. The aim is to release the book for Christmas as it’ll be the perfect gift for anyone who’s into hybrid training and human performance.

Before I go a huge thank you to our Sponsors HMN24 and the Strength Coach Nause. If you’re serious about Hybrid training check the links in our Instagram account for money off supplements and training programmes. And also, our producers Kult Media, this podcast wouldn’t be possible without them. If you want to start your own podcast and need help head to @kult.media and send them a message.

That’s it, go and train and we’ll see you in the next episode

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Strength & Conditioning for Swimming Performance - Andy Elkins

The Progress Theory — Mon, 09 May 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have the English Institute of Sport S&C coach for the GB swimming team, Andy Elkins.

In sports such as running and rowing, you’re always pushing away from something, such as the ground or the rowing machine in those examples, and therefore the movement patterns are quite similar. Swimming, however, is completely different as you’re suspended in water and you’re kicking and pulling to move through the water. So how do you physically prepare for this? What training can you do? In this episode, Andy and I discuss the importance of hitting the right positions of your stroke before loading through those positions, the land-based determinants of swimming performance, and tips on what S&C training you can do to improve your swimming.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:06 - Introduction and GB swimming and the Tokyo Olympics
04:59 - Andy’s role at the EIS and his S&C career
12:00 - A typical day/week for an elite swimming athlete
14:20 - weekly swimming volume of a GB swimmer
17:50 - Key performances indicators for swimming performance
20:26 - Auto-regulating S&C sessions throughout the week
23:00 - general vs localised fatigue
26:11 - Gym exercises and transfer to training
31:39 - Local muscle tissue conditioning sessions
35:53 - Research in land-based metrics for swimming
47:00 - Shoulder screening
50:35 - Contact details

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@Viktus_perform

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

GB swimming

EIS

Gloucester rugby

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Endurance Training Intensity Distribution For Hybrid Athlete Performance - Nathan Heaney

The Progress Theory — Mon, 02 May 2022 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode, we have the S&C coach and the Head of Athlete Performance and Development at Xavier College, Nathan Heaney, also known as the Conditioning Consultant.

More athletes are becoming familiar with training programmes based on training zones. You may have heard of 80/20 running where the aim is to do 80% of your running training in the easy zone, and 20% in the intense zone. But is it as simple as making your easy runs easy and your hard runs hard? What defines these training zones? In this episode, Nathan and I discuss how to use heart rate data to guide your training zones, what the difference is between a 3 zone and a 5 zone training model, and is it possible to use ratings of perceived exertion to help guide training these zones, too.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:10 - Introduction to Nathan Heaney and the start of his work in training intensity domains
9:00 - Training intensity during defined
11:09 - What happens when runners' unintentionally run in the wrong intensity zone
17:24 - External factors influencing athlete’s training intensity
23:23 - The different intensity distribution models and why is polarised training so popular
29:34 - The Threshold model
30:22 - Programme flexibility between models due to training goals
35:58 - defining your intensity zones
38:36 - tips and tests for determining training zones
43:49 - Creating interval sessions
47:56 - The use of RPE for endurance training

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@theconditioningconsultant

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

The Conditioning Consultant website

Online lecture on Training Intensity Distribution

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

How To Optimise Your Mindset For Endurance Performance - Dr Carla Meijen

The Progress Theory — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode, we have Dr Carla Meijen, lecturer and researcher in sports psychology at St Mary’s University.

One thing that has always stood out to me about elite performers, the best of the best, is their psychological resilience. Whatever happens during a race or their approach during their training and preparation, they have the ability to remain focused on the main goal and not talk themselves out of winning. In this episode, Carla and I discuss the main psychological determinants of endurance performance, different self-talk strategies during races, and how developing a clear variety of goals can help you move between racing strategies when the unexpected occurs.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:07 - The psychological factors which make up endurance performance
6:00 - The importance of motivation
14:20 - Self-talk
20:14 - Goal setting and goal flexibility
22:20 - The RESIST programme
25:40 - Strategies for improving self-talk
28:44 - Programming difficult sessions to test the self-talk strategies.
32:03 - The ability to stay present and re-focus
38:02 - How endurance psychology is multifactorial
41:55 - Race anxiety from past poor performances
48:15 - Tips to improve psychological endurance performance

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@CarlaMeijen

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Carla’s Personal website:

Carla’s Book - Endurance performance in sport

RESIST website

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

How To Improve Your Cycling Performance - Professor Louis Passfield

The Progress Theory — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode, we have Professor Louis Passfield, sports scientist and physiologist from the University of Calgary.

Cycling, despite being a huge sport in itself, has gained popularity within the hybrid training community. Many are choosing cycling as the endurance sport they want to develop in while aiming to increase strength simultaneously. So, what are the determinants of cycling performance? Well, in this episode Professor Passfield and I discuss the use of different metrics, such as heart rate and power, for tracking cycling performance, what is cycling efficiency, and tips on how to improve your cycling performance.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Professor Louis Passfield.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:05 - Introduction
7:12 - The Physiological determinants of elite cyclists
9:05 - The role of genetics on the ceiling of cycling performance
14:05 - What determines efficiency on a bike
17:57 - Training zones for cycling training
22:26 - Why use power as a metric for progression
32:35 - The differences between cycling indoors and outdoors
37:34 - What are power metres?
40:04 - Training to improve maintaining higher power outputs
44:24 - Training for long-distance cycling events
51:52 - Where to find Prof Passfield on social media

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@trainalytics

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Prof Louis Passfield research profile

Prof Louis Passfield Uni. of Calgary

Training with Power meters - book

Watt bike

Dr Sarah Coackley

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

How To Master Weightlifting - Sarah Davies

The Progress Theory — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode we have British Olympic weightlifter and World and European silver medalist, Sarah Davies.

Weightlifting is a technical sport which requires years of dedication to master the skill of the lifts and develop the necessary strength to move heavy loads quickly. In this episode, Sarah Davies takes us through her weightlifting journey which has culminated in her competing at the Tokyo Olympics, and achieving silver medals at both the 2021 European and World championships. And she is just getting started. She details what training has led to her success, how to break down weightlifting skill learning, and how going to a max lift every-time you train may be negatively affecting your development.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Sarah Davies

In this episode, we discuss:

1:06 - Introduction to Sarah Davies and competing at Tokyo and the World Champs
4:40 - What it’s like competing on the world stage
5:55 - Getting into Weightlifting
9:34 - Starting out in weightlifting
15:50 - Reaching the International level in Weightlifting
18:40 - Training for the Olympics
24:32 - What is a rolling start?
27:14 - Can focus and intent affect different aspects of training?
29:21 - Sarah’s approach when needing to work on new skills
31:53 - Sarah’s current focus
35:33 - Common mistakes in weightlifting
39:44 - Issues with going to max lifts too often
42:20 - How to contact Sarah

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@sarahd_gb

@wisdom4weightlifting

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Wisdom 4 weightlifting

The Barbell queen

BWL

Crossfit

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Auto-regulating Strength Training With RPE - Mike Tuchscherer

The Progress Theory — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode we have Powerlifting coach, Mike Tuchscherer.

When training for strength and endurance simultaneously, the body is put under so much stress from different types of stimuli that it is hard to plan programming so far in advance. Training has to be autoregulated to account for variations in how we respond to these different stimuli. In this episode, Mike and I discuss the use of a subjective measure like a rating of perceived exertion (RPE) for programming strength training, and how it can be utilized to account for the different ways athletes respond to strength training.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Mike Tuchscherer

In this episode, we discuss:

1:00 - Introduction and the importance of autoregulation
4:30 - Working with Hybrid athletes
7:44 - What is RPE and introducing it to Powerlifting
11:50 - Getting used to using RPE for strength
15:53 - Coaching decisions with RPE based on lifter personality
18:35 - Using barbell velocity to aid with RPE programming
26:43 - RPE progression for programming
30:16 - Individual response patterns to RPE programming
38:04 - Frequency of training exposures
40:30 - RPE programming for different types of responders
48:55 - Recommendations for starting programming strength with RPE
51:13 - Mike’s contact information, website, and social media outlets

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Equipment

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Minimum Dose Effect For Strength - Dr Pak

The Progress Theory — Mon, 28 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode, we have the Gains Fairy himself, Dr Pak, Strength coach, researcher, and university lecturer at Southampton Solent.

When training for both strength and endurance simultaneously we need to make sure that we are not training too much to cause an unrecoverable amount of fatigue. We don’t need those junk running miles or those unnecessary work sets. We want to do just enough that will increase performance without affecting our other training. But how do we know if we’re doing too much? This is where Dr Pak comes in as in this episode we discuss the minimum dose effect for strength training.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Dr Pak.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:05 - Introduction to Dr Pak
4:20 - Where his research ideas around the minimum dose came from
10:59 - The first pilot study on the minimum dose
14:32 - What is considered a meaningful strength increase? A detailed history of scientific inquiry into the minimum dose
19:38 - The effectiveness of different minimum dose protocols
25:30 - Should a hypertrophy block precede a minimum dose block of training
27:32 - The problem with too much volume at high intensities?
30:00 - Minimum dose for hybrid training
36:44 - The 2/3/1 powerlifting split programme
39:16 - Aerobic training for Powerlifters and strongmen
45:50 - Where to find Dr Pak online

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Concurrent Training And The Interference Effect - Dr Matt Lee

The Progress Theory — Mon, 21 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode we have Dr Matt Lee, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute for Health and Sport, at Victoria University in Melbourne.

It was originally thought that you couldn't develop strength and endurance simultaneously due to something called the interference effect. Certain molecular, hormonal and neuromuscular adaptations occur which may limit your strength training progress if you also do a large amount of endurance work, for example. However, it’s not as simple as that, and there are many factors, like training intensity and recovery time between sessions, which we can manipulate to minimise the interference effect. Dr Matt Lee specialises in concurrent training research and in this episode we discuss how the interference effect was discovered, what training factors can blunt adaptations, and what you can do to train strength and endurance simultaneously.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Dr Matt Lee ...

In this episode, we discuss:

1:30 - Introduction
9:18 - What is concurrent training and the interference effect? The work of Robert Hickson
15:32 - The interference effect on different strength parameters
19:44 - Neuromuscular and molecular effects
27:57 - How the research supports the amazing feats of hybrid training seen today
33:54 - The effect of previous training on the interference effect
42:34 - Effect of volume and frequency on the interference effect
49:32 - minimum dose to minimise the interference effect

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Matt for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his research on concurrent training and the interference effect. It was awesome to get an understanding around where the misconceptions of the interference effect have come from and dive into the literature to show that this effect may not be as prominent as history tells us.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, Matt’s discussion around the molecular responses to specific training and our training history really made me think. If the molecular response to training decreases as we become more familiar with that training, surely training regularly at both strength and endurance disciplines would reduce the molecular responses and reduce the severity of the interference effect? Does this mean that with an appropriate hybrid training programme the interference effect, if there is one, should decrease over time?

And secondly, Matt highlighted that a training frequency of 3 sessions a week is enough to create improvement but doesn’t increase the volume to such an extent that it could increase the chance of the interference effect? So, as an example, If we trained strength 3 times a week and endurance 3 times a week, all on separate days, the interference effect should barely exist. You’re training enough and getting sufficient rest in between sessions for the interference effect to not affect training at all.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it allowed you to start thinking about your hybrid programming. If you want further information on this topic I definitely recommend checking out Matt’s research, we’ve created a link for it in the show notes. If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@matt_lee1

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Matt Lee Google scholar profile

Jonny Pain episode

Professor Hickson paper

Dr Vernon Coffey study

Dr Tom Jones study

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

The Training Of A Hybrid Athlete - Fergus Crawley

The Progress Theory — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I’m Dr Phil Price and on today’s episode we have Hybrid athlete and coach at Omnia Performance, Fergus Crawley.

I’ve been watching Fergus’ youtube channel over the past year and have really enjoyed how he has pushed the boundaries of human performance. Despite previous misconceptions around training for strength and endurance simultaneously, he has shown you can hit impressive numbers in the weight room while still being able to run ultramarathons. Enjoy this episode as Fergus discusses his accomplishments, how performing huge physical challenges has allowed him to redefine what is hard, and how he organizes his hybrid training. And If you’re interested in performing in multiple sports, then this is the episode for you.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. So here is, Fergus Crawley.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:07 - Catch-up, Introduction and Fergus’ accomplishments.
09:14 - Is Hybrid training its own specific sport?
11:35 - The hardest Challenge Fergus has done.
15:00 - The most psychologically hard challenges so far….
22:37 - Using past challenges to influence the next challenge
28:20 - Feelings during the 60km in 6-hour challenge
30:40 - Authenticity, and the aim of the youtube channel
38:45 - Breaking down the demands of hybrid programming
42:33 - Hybrid training weekly planning
46:00 - The role of Pre-fatigue
56:36 - Hybrid programming and recovery
1:00:33 - Hybrid programming for gradual, linear increases in performance.
1:04:13 - Training when you have a high work capacity
1:06:10 - Where to find Fergus online

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Fergus for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his amazing hybrid achievements and his ideas around hybrid programming, which you can find more about at Omnia Performance, so check out their website and instagram, it is all in the show notes. Because of Fergus, Hybrid training is growing in popularity, especially hybrid training for a strength sport such as powerlifting, and an endurance sport like triathlon, and I honestly think it could develop into a recognised sport. You’ve heard it here first.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, I completely agree that the best recovery is a well-organised training programme. This is particularly essential for hybrid training as you’re having to consolidate two sports into one programme; you’re not adding two training programmes together. How Fergus described the progression of high-intensity and interval work, into threshold work, into long, low-intensity work, over the training week, really fascinated me as it made sense. You're working on physical qualities, and each section gives the body stress to adapt to while providing physiological processes which help recover from the previous training.

Secondly, I like the aim of developing work capacity slowly, so the progression is quite linear. The idea around developing efficiency by increasing tolerance to stress by building volume up slowly makes sense to me. You need to give your body time to adapt to these stresses, so programming a very slow and linear progression not only gives your body that time to adapt but also reduces any unnecessary spikes in volume which could lead to injury.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has sparked some ideas on what physical challenges you can take on. If you could train for a huge challenge, what would it be? Use the principles Fergus outlined in this episode to find the best way to train for it. I’d definitely recommend heading to his youtube channel for some inspiration.

If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review, subscribe and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@ferguscrawley

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Fergus Crawley Youtube channel

Harlequins Foundation

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

What Is Hybrid Training? Featuring Daryl Green

The Progress Theory — Mon, 07 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

I’m Dr Phil Price and It’s the start of season 5. In this season, we’re focusing on how you can develop strength and endurance simultaneously, so we’ll be talking to expert scientists, coaches and athletes in the worlds of strength, endurance and hybrid training.

So let’s get season 5 off to a start. In today’s episode we are joined by S&C coach, hybrid athlete and co-host of season 2 of The Progress Theory, who also took part in the concurrent training challenge in 2020, Daryl Green. Here we will go over what we learned from training for strength and a marathon simultaneously, our 2022 hybrid goals, and Daryl’s programming tips for making 2022 your year of the hybrid athlete.

But before we get to the show I want to thank our sponsors, who the show would not be possible without.

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to my production partner, KULT Media.

KULT Media has been instrumental in the development & success of the progress theory.

Their simple Coach, Create & Collaborate process has saved me 100’s hours in podcast production, resolved countless technical issues and consistently help me to improve my podcasting game.

So if you want to establish and engage your audience, or are ready to launch your own podcast head to www.kult.media to learn more.

Thank you to HMN24 – fuelling human potential and optimising everyday human performance and well-being.

As always, follow The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:18 - Introduction
3:40 - Reflection of the 2020 concurrent training challenge
5:57 - Programming decisions for the 2020 challenge
8:59 - Prioritising either strength or endurance based on previous training
11:10 - Managing fatigue during hybrid training
15:55 - Hybrid goals for 2022
21:40 - Common mistakes in hybrid training
32:10 - How to reach Daryl

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@dg.performance.coaching

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

The Progress Theory Season 2

DG Coaching

Ironman Ireland

For all our other episodes and to get in touch, please visit www.theprogresstheory.com.

Thanks for listening!

Training To Be A Hybrid Athlete - Jonny Pain

The Progress Theory — Mon, 27 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode we have S&C coach and performance nutritionist at Omnia Performance, Jonny Pain.

Training as a generalist or hybrid training has become very popular in recent years. More people don’t want to just train for a specific sport; they want to be good at multiple sports, to be really strong yet also have the ability to run a marathon. Jonny has been coaching athletes training multiple disciplines for the last 15 years and has recently set up Omnia Performance where he provides coaching and programming for the concurrent development of strength and endurance. In this episode, we discuss the true meaning of hybrid training, how training for strength and endurance can co-exist, and how to structure your training week to ensure peak performance and maximum recovery.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:22 - An introduction to Jonny Pain and Omnia Performance
6:40 - The History of Omnia Performance
10:41 - Working with Alex Viada
12:48 - The growth of Hybrid Training
23:16 - Hybrid training for big challenges like the Celtman
26:40 - consolidation of stressors over a microcycle
32:13 - understand non-training stressors for programming
36:28- How Omnia Performance Auto-regulate their programming
40:42 - How to contact Omnia Performance
42:16 - Jonny’s experience with Project Vertical

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Jonny for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his work with Omnia Performance and his ideas around hybrid training. Hybrid training is getting more popular as people are starting to see that with an appropriate training programme we don’t necessarily have to be excellent in only one training domain.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, I enjoyed hearing his ideas around what a hybrid athlete is. To me, it seemed like his definition of a hybrid athlete wasn’t necessarily someone that was great at everything. It’s borne out of an understanding that developing multiple qualities is essential to enhance the training you're trying to specialise in. IT seems counterintuitive to only train in one domain as having a base layer of multiple physical qualities actually improves performance in your speciality.

Secondly, I like his auto-regulated microcycle approach to programming. When juggling so many variables it is essential to know how the athlete is feeling very regularly. This type of training needs a very close working relationship between coach and athlete as it is hard to predict in advance how the athlete is going to react to so many stressors. So how can you programme that far ahead? You need a rough guide in your head of the direction you want to go and the training needed to get there, but how you get there has to be heavily auto-regulated based on the athlete

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has sparked some ideas on what challenge you will take on. Could you train strength and ultra endurance concurrently? I think, with the right coaching and programming, you’ll be surprised what you can achieve. But first, check out Omnia Performance, all the links from the show are below.

If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Omnia Performance

Fergus Crawley

Fergus Crawley Youtube

Alex Viada

Complete Human Performance

Jonny’s Articles on Complete Human performance

Training peaks

Project vertical

Project vertical documentary

TalismanTriathlon

The Celtman

Training for Sprint Performance - David Sadkin

The Progress Theory — Mon, 20 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On this episode, we have S&C and sprint coach, David Sadkin.

There’s a reason why the 100m sprint final at the Olympics is one of the highlights of every Olympic games. Seeing the fastest athletes in the world reach speeds only a handful of people can reach is awesome. However, Sprinting is more than just running as fast as possible. It takes the right blend of physical qualities, technique and competitive drive to reach our sprint potential. So how do you train to achieve this? In this episode, David and I discuss variations in sprint technique, David’s training philosophy for coaching sprinters, and common mistakes athletes make when training to get faster.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:22 - An introduction to David Sadkin and how he uses social media
5:21 - How David got into Sprint coaching
11:47 - Sprint mechanics and what to look for
14:43 - Examples of coaching based on a technical issue
17:13 - Misconceptions with ‘high knees’
18:53 - The use of wickets versus coaching cues
22:14 - Testing Stride Frequency and stride length
26:51 - David’s S&C philosophy
30:04 - common mistakes in S&C for sprinters
35:48 - Are we focusing too much on lifting heavy?
37:30 - David’s future plans/goals
38:10 - Recommendations for aspiring sprint coaches

Final Thoughts

Thank you to David for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his experience within the S&C community and his work with his sprint athletes. He has a great story of an injured athlete who fell in love with a new sport and wanted to know everything about it, and it has led him to become an incredibly successful sprint coach.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, I really enjoyed hearing how open his approach to both coaching sprinting and S&C was. He isn’t constricted to a certain way of doing things. He knows every sprinter requires different training to ensure they progress, so he tries to understand them as an athlete before making a decision on what training they require. He doesn’t try to fit them into his way of doing things, he fits his own ideas based on the athlete themselves.

And secondly, he clearly works well within a system for his athletes. His training and coaching decisions come from discussions with the osteopath and physio he works with, his understanding of the science around the determinants of sprint performance, and his own ideas. Again, it is this openness and adaptability to his coaching that allows him to utilise all of the information available and ultimately make the right training programme.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it sparked your interest in sprinting. I truly believe learning about sprinting transfers so well into other areas of human performance so this really created some ideas for me to reflect on. If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@davidsadkin

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Testing software

Resources

David’s guest choices

Jurgen klopp

Alex Ferguson

Exercise in the heat - Dr Becky Neal

The Progress Theory — Mon, 13 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode, we have environmental physiologist and lecturer at Bournemouth University, Dr Becky Neal.

Environmental physiology is fascinating as it's so interesting what happens to the human body when competing in extreme environments. Exercise in the heat is particularly interesting as it is a common factor that can greatly influence performance, particularly those who competed at the Tokyo Olympics, where it was reported to be very hot and humid. In this episode, Becky and I discuss the body’s physiological responses to heat, what can lead to heat injury or illness, and what strategies you can use to acclimate to the heat and improve sporting performance.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:44 - An introduction to Dr Becky Neal
5:20 - How the Body physiologically responds to heat
8:27 - Factors influencing how the body reacts to heat
10:43 - The difference between hot and humid
14:02 - Strategies to acclimate and acclimatise to the heat
17:13 - acclimatisation strategies for different events
19:32 - The use of heat chambers in preparation for an event
24:26 - Is the heat often underestimated?
30:30 - Heat injury and illness
34:01 - Thermal tolerance
37:24 - Differences between men and women
42:40 - Becky’s choice of guest for the Progress Theory

Final Thoughts

Thank you Becky for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about her ideas and research on how the heat affects us during exercise and what training we can do to improve our thermoregulation. I think we’ve all seen videos where the heat has greatly affected athletes to the point of injury and you see them reduced to a crawl, so it was great to get insight into all the factors which can influence how heat and humidity affect us during exercise.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, it was amazing to see just how many different factors influence the effect of the heat, particularly that the heat influences different sports in different ways. In cycling, the wind resistance will directly help your body cool, whereas, during running, this is greatly reduced. We need to understand all the factors which will affect athletes during their sport and then understand how environmental conditions such as heat may influence the specifics of the sport.

Secondly, I thought it was interesting that the effect of many cooling strategies can influence the body in negative ways if used inappropriately. For example, an ice vest will be great to cool the body during a run, but also covering the body in this way will hamper the skin’s ability to evaporate sweat. There must be an appropriate length of time to use an ice vest before it becomes counterproductive.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it allowed you to reflect on your next race or challenge. What environmental factors will you face? Will heat be one of them. If so, I hope this episode provided you with plenty of information to help develop your own acclimatisation strategies. If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@therunnerbeanuk

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Research

Dr Becky Neal

Dr Jessica Mee

Professor Mike Tipton

Kona Triathlon - The Crawl - Sian Welch & Wendy Ingraham

Becky’s choice of guest for the Progress Theory - Crissy Wellington

Royal Marine Mindset: Becoming the 0.1% - Gareth Timmins

The Progress Theory — Mon, 06 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have Former Marine Commando and published author, Gareth Timmins.

I saw Gareth’s new book, ‘Becoming the 0.1%’ on the Amazon pre-order list and I instantly knew I had to have him on the Progress Theory. To make it through all the training to prepare you to fight in the harshest environments in the world, you need the highest level of discipline, resilience and determination. In this episode, Gareth describes how keeping a diary during his military training and career has enabled him to reflect and pass on the greatest lessons he learned during this time. These lessons aren’t just for the military; these are skills you can apply to your everyday life to help you reach your full potential.

In this episode, we discuss:

3:19 - An introduction to Gareth Timmins and becoming the 0.1%
6:50 - Relationship with the MOD
9:36 - Pushing out of your comfort zone to develop an elite mindset
14:05 - The biggest lessons from becoming a royal marine commando
16:50 - Reframing what stress is
22:36 - Military Mindset for the general population
27:10 - Developing self-awareness and mindset through the chapters of the book
42:23 - How you can buy the book ‘Becoming the 0.1%
42:43 - Gareth's 3 favourite lessons from the book
46:20 - Gareth’s choice of guest for the Progress Theory

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Gareth for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his experience in the Royal Marine Commandos and his new book, Becoming the 0.1%. He really only scratched the surface of the stories he shares in his book and I can’t wait to read it. We recorded this podcast just before its release so my copy is on its way.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, the concept of ‘out of comfort zone’ must be completely different to Gareth when compared to the general population. The extremes the royal marines go to fully prepare their soldiers is insane. 12 hours sleep in 2 weeks, seriously sounds so uncomfortable. But he reflects on these experiences with a type of fondness. He realised that being pushed so far outside anyone's comfort zone made him truly see who he is as a person. I think that’s fascinating and makes me wonder what I need to do to push myself that far outside my comfort zone.

Secondly, I like how Gareth’s opinion has changed on mindset. At first, he thought being fearless was having no emotion. Now, to him fearless means taking on any challenge despite any fear or anxiety you might be experiencing. You can’t eliminate emotional responses to adverse situations, but you can change your perception of how they affect you and how you will persevere through it.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it allowed you to reflect on your own mindset. Please, everyone, go and buy the book now, you won’t regret it. If you enjoyed the show It would be awesome if you could leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story. Feed that algorithm to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@becomingthe0.1percent

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Becoming the 0.1%

Buy the book on amazon

Royal marine commandos

Ministry of Defence

Mindset

Behavioural/Cognitive Science

Leeds Rhinos

Elon Musk

David Attenborough

Programming And Coaching For Weightlifting Performance - Shaun Joffe

The Progress Theory — Mon, 30 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have S&C and weightlifting coach, and University lecturer and researcher, Shaun Joffe.

Shaun is without a doubt one of the most knowledgeable coaches on weightlifting in the country. His research has provided substance and direction to his coaching and programming decisions, and because of this, he has an amazing approach to weightlifting, which he shares in this episode. If you’re a fan of programming to lift heavy barbells fast, this is the episode for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:30 - Shaun’s Background and where his passion for weightlifting came from
6:18 - Shaun’s S&C experience
10:54 - How a wide variety of experiences can help develop you as a coach
15:52 - An introduction to weightlifting as a sport
19:44 - Determinants of weightlifting performance
25:17 - Weightlifting programming
32:30 - Weightlifting programme philosophy
37:05 - Technical differences between weightlifters and coaching weightlifting
48:31 - How to get involved with Weightlifting and Woking weightlifting club

Final Thoughts

Thank you Shaun for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his research and his ideas on weightlifting performance. What a great episode. It really showed how coaches can use research to guide programming decisions, and how overall philosophy is one of the clearest of any weightlifting coach I’ve ever heard.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, I enjoyed hearing how Shaun uses clear objectives to influence when he is developing certain qualities in his weightlifting programming. For example, he talks about how max strength is a key determining factor for weightlifting performance, so he wants his lifters to hit certain strength targets before progressing on to focus programming on other qualities. This makes complete sense. Why move onto a new training block with a new focus if you haven’t reached certain targets?

And secondly, I love how he tailor his coaching deliberately to allow the athlete to find the appropriate weightlifting technique for themselves. Yes, there are key positions you want to hit, but how every lifter will achieve them will be different due to varying anthropometric and physical qualities. Forcing a certain technical weightlifting style onto someone could hinder their progression. Guide the athlete, don’t tell them what to do all the time.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it gave you plenty of information and ideas on how to improve your weightlifting programming. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@woking_weightlifting_club

@shaunjoffe

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Woking weightlifting club

British weightlifting

School of champions - weightlifting documentary

Education and experience

Shaun’s research

St Mary’s University

Buckinghamshire new university

Training for the Marathon Des Sables and the Atlantic solo row - Jamie Carr

The Progress Theory — Mon, 23 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have football coach and adventure athlete, Jamie Carr.

Jamie has started the Nothing Ventured campaign where he looks to complete the Marathon Des Sables, a 6-day ultramarathon across the Sahara desert, and row solo across the Atlantic, all to raise £50,000 for children’s charities. In this episode, Jamie and I discuss the reason why he’s taking on these challenges, the logistics of the challenges, and how big physical challenges like these really help you grow outside your comfort zone. I have included the Nothing Ventured website in our show notes so you can donate to this amazing cause if you wish.

http://nothingventuredcampaign.com/

In this episode, we discuss:

1:30 - An introduction to Jamie Carr
2:24 - The Nothing Ventured campaign
6:07 - The Charities involved with the Nothing Ventured Campaign
9:25 - Why the Marathon des Sables and Atlantic Row
14:39 - The logistics and dangers of the challenge
15:05 - Safety during the Atlantic row
21:03 - Logistics of Marathon Des Sables
22:50 - Foot care for MDS
25:48 - What you carry during MDS
28:04 - Training for the challenge
32:10 - Mindset
34:53 - Advice for getting out of your comfort zone and doing your bucket list
37:17 - Future challenges?
42:00 - How to follow the Nothing Ventured Campaign

Final Thoughts

It is incredible what he is doing to raise money for charities and it will have such an impact on people’s lives. It was an inspirational episode and one which I hope encouraged everyone listening to complete their own bucket list.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, it was such a shock to me to learn about so many additional dangers associated with these challenges. I understand the dangers of dehydration and heatstroke during the Marathon des Sables, but it just didn’t cross my mind that scorpions could also play a huge factor. Similarly in the row, being attacked by marlins? I would have never have thought of that. These are dangers you only find out by experiencing it first hand, so like Jamie says, when looking to take on a new challenge, find many people who have done similar challenges and ask as many questions as possible.

And secondly, I enjoyed hearing about Jamie’s drive and determination. As he learns more about these challenges and the difficulties you face when taking them on, it seems to spur him on even more. It’s like the more pain he may experience, or the greater the chance of him not succeeding, the more he wants to do it. The most important part of his mindset was acceptance. He accepts it’s going to suck, which reduces his anxiety. You can’t worry about something you’ve already accepted.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it gave you plenty of inspiration to take on your own bucket list. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@nothingventuredcampaign

@jamiie00

Nothing Ventured Campaign

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Marathon des sables

Cancer fund for children

City in the community

Manchester City FC

Talisker Atlantic row

James Cracknell

Atlantic row amazon prime

Guest picks

Do Compression Garments Work? - Dr Jess Hill

The Progress Theory — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Associate Professor Jess Hill who is an exercise physiologist and researcher into compression garments.

Compression garments are used readily in sport, particularly in endurance sports such as running and cycling, and field-based sports like football and rugby. However, like most sports equipment on the market, not only do you wonder if compression garments are worth the money, but do they actually work? Can they actually enhance sports performance by improving the rate of recovery? In this episode, Jess Hill explains which types of garments you should wear, when you should use them, and if using them too much can actually decrease the physiological adaptations you were trying to achieve through training.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:18 - An introduction to Dr Jess Hill
3:21 - What are compression garments and how they work
5:48 - When to wear compression garments
7:53 - Which compression garments to use
11:41 - Compression garment effectiveness and the level of the athlete
13:00 - Can compression garments create a placebo effect?
16:05 - Made-to-measure compression garments
20:15 - Level of inflammation may determine how much compression you need
23:25 - Compression garments improving performance
28:40 - Recommendations for using compression garments

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Dr Jess Hill for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about her research on compression garments. It was great to get an understanding of what we currently know about compression garments. They’ve been purchased and used by athletes for years yet how they improve recovery is less well known. I definitely think we should be more aware of how these interventions work to help sports performance before we start using them, especially as so many factors always seem to influence their effectiveness.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, it was the importance of made to measure compression garments. The thought of spending £50 on some generic compression leggings only to find they don’t apply the right level of compression really annoys me. Compression works, but it appears only if you buy the right garments. Made to measure garments are designed so that the garment is specific to your body shape and size. They may be more expensive, however, it is more likely that they will have a positive effect on your recovery, so it would be worth spending the extra pennies on them.

And secondly, when you wear compression garments is vital to how effective they will be to your programme. If you need to recover quickly, like during a Rugby 7’s tournament wearing them between matches, or after a big event which you have been training for several weeks, then compression garments should be used to enhance your recovery. However, the inflammatory response is vital for the adaptation from training. If you wear compression garments after regular training, even if it is a hard session, it could blunt the adaptive response and reduce the effectiveness of your programme. As a rule of thumb, compression garments are good to use during a tournament or after a big competition, but may not be the best idea during training when adaptation is key.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it gave you enough information on compression garments that it allows you to make your own decision on when and how to use them in your own training. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@JessHill84

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Dr Jess Hill Research

Compression leggings

Runner’s world review of compression leggings

Coaching Paralympic Powerlifting Champions - Ben Richens

The Progress Theory — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On this episode, we have GB ParaPowerlifting High-Performance Coach, Ben Richens.

Paralympic powerlifting is different to traditional powerlifting as it focuses on one lift: The bench press. Paralympic powerlifting is a sport that is growing quickly in the UK and we’ve got a strong contingent heading to the Tokyo Paralympic games, all of which are coached by Ben Richens. Yet despite its growing popularity, there are many who are unfamiliar with the sport. In this episode, Ben describes the training and coaching differences between traditional powerlifting and paralympic powerlifting, where common programming mistakes are made, and how you can get into the sport.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:00 - Why Ben did this podcast while in isolation (his recent competition in Dubai)
2:45 - An introduction to Ben Richens
6:58 - How Ben got into Powerlifting and Para-Powerlifting
11:12 - The difference between powerlifting and para-powerlifting
15:56 - Ben’s fulfilment and accomplishments in coaching and coaching Para-powerlifting
20:44 - The Invictus Games
23:40 - The team for the Paralympic games
24:46 - Getting involved in para-powerlifting
27:09 - Programming for para-powerlifting
28:56 - Training for performance and quality of life
34:22 - Longevity and progress in para-powerlifting
40:43 - creating small wins to avoid the repetitiveness of training
41:42 - common mistakes when training the bench press
48:06 - Advice for getting into para-powerlifting coaching

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Ben Richens for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about his work with the GB para-powerlifting team. For a sport that is quite simple in nature, it is truly fascinating, and Ben did an amazing job discussing his ideas around training and the differences between the bench press and para-powerlifting bench press.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, it was the importance of variables outside of the training programme which will have such a profound effect on the athlete. As coaches, we spend hours thinking of how to create the most beneficial programme that is specific to the athlete. However, if poor lifestyle factors such as lack of sleep, poor food choices and a lack of water are being followed by an athlete, then the effectiveness of the programme will never be realised. Often it is these lifestyle factors that are more important for an athletes progress than the programme itself. We should be aware of this as coaches and educate our athletes appropriately.

Secondly, the importance of training for quality of life. We sometimes get over-focussed on programming to improve performance that we forget how that might affect the athlete outside of the gym/sport. If we drastically reduce an athlete’s quality of life through the training and our programming, it may lead to a situation where the reduced quality of life now negatively affects the training. It can be a vicious circle. This highlights the need for us to be athlete-focused with our programming. Always think ‘How is your programming going to improve this athlete at their sport and as a person?’

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode. As Ben says, we need more lifting clubs so get busy and start one. What better way to become better at training is by immersing yourself in the right environment that you’ve created for yourself. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@sfbtraining

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

@bwlparapowerlifting

@britishwl

British Weightlifting

British Para-Powerlifting

Climbing Everest & Life As A Mountaineer - Adri Brownlee

The Progress Theory — Mon, 02 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On this episode, we have Adventure athlete and mountaineer, Adri Brownlee.

Adri has just returned to the UK after successfully summiting Mt Everest, and she has now set her sights on summiting all 14 8000m mountains in the world. If she completes this in her predicted time frame, she will be the youngest person to ever achieve this by 7 years. In this episode, Adri and Dr Phil Price chat about her experiences on Mt Everest, the dangers of mountaineering, and how to start your own mountaineering journey.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:55 - Adri’s most recent expedition
4:50 - Adri’s Mountaineering challenge - Climb all 14 8000m mountain peaks
7:20 - The dangers of climbing K2 and Annapurna
10:33 - K2 winter training for Everest summit bid
11:02 - How the 4 8000m mountain peaks challenge is currently going
11:48 - The Lhotse face
12:41 - The Khumbu Icefall
14:17 - What factors make a mountain dangerous?
15:57 - Mindset on the mountain
18:36 - Adri’s work with Nimsdai Purja
22:50 - Mountaineering without oxygen
26:04 - Training for mountaineering
30:50 - How to get into mountaineering
32:14 - Sponsorship for mountaineering
36:48 - How you can help Adri with her challenge
37:40 - Listener questions
(37:45-38:45) - Is mountaineering more mentally or physically challenging?
(39:00-40:28) - How has being young helped or hindered your mountaineering aspirations?
(40:40-42:04) - Is all your equipment/clothing synthetic?

Final Thoughts

Thank you to Adri Brownlee for coming onto The Progress Theory and talking about her mountaineering experiences and her upcoming world record-breaking challenge. Even though she has just started the challenge you can clearly tell she’s gained a lot of experience, especially during her time with the group led by Nimsdai Purga, who climbed K2 in winter. If someone, as experienced as Nimsdai, thinks you have the potential to break mountaineering world records you clearly have some talent.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, as this is a sports science show, was Adri’s training for mountaineering. I loved the simplicity of it. The majority of the training focused on aerobic conditioning, usually running, hill work, or even running up and downstairs, which makes sense as the body needs to be efficient in utilizing oxygen. With less O2 available up high in the mountains, the body needs to be effective in utilising the O2 it can get. While there is no direct link between a high VO2 max and your ability to handle the high altitude, a high functioning respiratory system is still needed to tolerate submaximal exercise over very long periods.

And secondly, Adri appears to have a really strong mindset. 5 top climbers died during her time on K2 during winter. She witnessed this first hand as a relative novice, yet it has not deterred her at all, and it led to a very comfortable Mt Everest ascent only months later. It must take such a strong mindset to ignore past negative experiences when you’re tired, still climbing after 9 hours. Yet this seems to come easy to her. Clearly, she is both mentally and physically well equipped for a career in mountaineering.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it gave you enough information on how to start your own mountaineering journey if it is something that has been on your bucket list for years. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

North face Female empowerment

Save the duck

Altitude mask

Cause of a kind interview

Season Review - Podcast Season 3

The Progress Theory — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Season 3 is complete. In this episode, Dr Phil Price and Matt Cheney (Kult Media founder and producer) reflect on the making of the podcast, their favourite bits from season 3, and what listeners can expect to come from season 4.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:20 - The reflection of The progress Theory Season 3

3:48 - What I’ve learned about podcasting

7:30 - How to interview guests

9:50 - Biggest podcasting mistake

11:08 - How I structure a podcast

14:00 - A reflection of some key episodes

14:00 - Ben Lonergan - (Episode 1). When coaches discuss what is needed in a high-performance environment, especially from a coach, and then you speak to the players and they give a different account to what the coach says i.e the coach perceives him/herself as great at developing relationships but in reality, this may not be achieved.

19:25 - Dr Bernie Dancy - (Episode 2). High achievers and their relationship with stress. It’s often ok until it really isn’t ok. It’s also something I feel we’ll never stop trying to figure

25:24 - Dr Luke Hughes - (Episode 8). BFR training can create the same adaptations without the high levels of damage/fatigue. This means people (for performance, healthy individuals) could increase the frequency of training, or reduce the training they’re doing so they’re not fatigued for their sport

31:55 - Steve Griffiths - (Episode 9). Beliefs -> thoughts -> emotions. Constantly re-centre yourself and reflect as the way you perceive your beliefs might be holding you back. Beliefs are not facts, they are your perception of what you believe to be true

36:26 - Adam Mattiussi - (Episode 10). Hearing how much elite ballet dancers train. Do people appreciate how taxing ballet is? Training/performing 6-8 hours per day, all of which consist of a high number of jumps, so how essential physical support is to help reduce the potential risk of injury

40:55 - What to expect in Season 4

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@drphilprice

@kult.media

Physical Preparation of MMA Fighters - Chris Miah

The Progress Theory — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have Pro MMA fighter and S&C coach Chris Miah. Chris has fought professionally throughout Europe in promotions including Cage Warriors, Akhmat, BAMMA and ACB, and if you want to watch his fights I have included online links below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lw5rnCCQkc

In this episode, Chris shares his experiences in MMA and how he’s used these experiences to form his coaching of the next generation of fighters. There are a lot of factors to consider when preparing a fighter from the grassroots level to the professional level, and Chris really shows his experience when rationalising his approach to coaching. This includes the importance of communication, how consistency is key, and how fighters should spend more time developing their skill set. If you want to compete in MMA or want to coach MMA, this is the episode for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:20 - An introduction to Chris Miah

6:04 - Is Chris Looking to fight again? Choosing fights to help develop coaching skills

13:13 - How Chris started MMA and how it changed him as a person

16:45 - Biggest lesson from his MMA career

22:22 - Developing skills in MMA

26:45 - The 4 key areas of MMA

28:03 - How Chris started his MMA club as a response to fighters rushing their technical development

29:50 - Training differences between the off-season and preparing for a fight.

34:45 - do S&C MMA coaches make the mistake of going too specific too soon?

38:10 - Do some pro fighters make similar mistakes as amateur athletes?

45:11 - Communication between coaches and athletes the most essential factor in the success of a fighter

49:16 - How MMA will change as the sport becomes more global and professional

51:57 - How to contact Chris

Final Thoughts

I loved hearing about Chris' background and how he got into the sport. It’s one of those stories you love to hear where someone has used sport to shape them as a person and has led them to great successes. After this episode I watched the youtube links Chris sent me of his fights and the guy is a machine, so check them out too.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas of the chat with Chris which really resonated with me.

Firstly, his message of mastering the basics. People in many different areas of life try to get ahead by trying to copy the professionals or accelerating their development too quickly without putting in the time to master the basics. In fact, many of the stories I read from professionals all say that mastering the basics is the key to success. Chris really emphasises how important this is in MMA as whatever happens in a fight you’ll always have your mastered skill set to fall back on. If this isn’t developed and you fatigue heavily during a fight, you can be in serious trouble. This message seems even more important when ignoring this could result in your getting knocked out.

And secondly, what I think makes Chris stand out is his ability to learn what is missing throughout his fighting career and try to solve this during his coaching career. Fighters accelerating their development too quickly? He started Combat Sports Centre which has a philosophy of working on the basics. Communication between coaches is poor? Chris has enhanced his coaching in overseeing the skill and physical development of the athlete while bringing in experts in other areas. He’s the coordinator, which will help make sure all coaches are working in unison towards the same goal. He’s providing the expertise, culture and management skills that are essential for success in MMA. I'm looking forward to what Chris does next. Check out his Instagram to see if he does fight in the near future.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode. To find more of our episodes please head to our website theprogresstheory.com where you can download our podcasts or watch the full episode via our youtube link. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@chrismiahcoaching

https://www.chrismiah.com/

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

St Mary’s S&C MSc

Combat Sports Centre, Solihull

Performance Review: Castle Series Triathlon 70.3 Half-Ironman Race - Part 3

The Progress Theory — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 09:45:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory where we discuss scientific principles to optimise human performance.

It did it, I completed my first half iron. It was certainly an experience as it is still a new sport to me and I am unaccustomed to the high volumes of training associated with this length of event, but I felt I held my own, learned so much about myself and am looking forward to what the future brings on this new path to hybrid style training.

So I thought it best to do another performance review episode to reflect on the event, the training that preceded it, and briefly touch where my goals will be set next.

Anyways, let’s give a recap of the event. It was the gauntlet race held by Castle Triathlon, which was a half iron distance (1.9km swim, 90km bike, and a half marathon run, so 21.1km). I was particularly nervous about the bike as I feel that is my weakest section and takes up the most time. However, I surprised myself in that section, and managed to complete the whole race in 7 hours, 29 minutes and 15s. To be honest, as this was my first ever half iron I was happy with anything under 8 hours, so beating that expectation by roughly 30 minutes is a great personal result and certainly something to build on.

In this episode, I cover:

The swim – 47:09

2:02 pace, did over 400m extra
Googles, poor at spotting. Open water skills needs work.
Swimming has improved. Focused on 2-3 cues from my wife
Going forward – work on drills (legs)

The bike – 4:11:03

21.8kph pace – wanted 22.5 but still happy
Position is still a problem. Becoming more tolerant of the bike position but 90km is still a lot.
Gear change, hill work
Going forward – work on position, work on hip

The run – 2:18:45

No expectations as it was a boggy hilly trail run. Hadn’t really prepared for that
Felt ok for 12km, post 16km my hips really started to hurt. Back was seizing up on the hills post bike.
Strategy could have been better – walk hill, faster on flats and downhills
Depends on length of distances in the future.

What went well with the training and event?

· Nutrition – Did not feel like I lacked energy from lack of fuel. Bike nutrition was fine (sweets, gels in water), the event did a good job of providing food/water so there was no excuse.

· Swim – only focusing on 2-3 cues meant I had time to practise and work on them

· Bike – doing the racecourse the week before. Selecting training runs that were worse than the actual event

· Reaching a period of overreaching at the end of week 6 then beginning the deload

· Making compromises on the training runs to ensure my calf did not get injured prior to the event.

What could have been improved?

· The ITERA walk

· More time outside on the bike.

Other than that, to be honest, I wouldn’t have changed anything. My weight training supported my strength and was more specific to running (in my case trying to be springy). By the final 4 weeks I was only doing what was necessary, no additional fluff that could fatigue me and affect my swim, cycle and run sessions. So that worked well as I felt good going into the event. And using RPE to track the majority of my progression week to week allowed me to see how I was progressing. For example, certain speeds by the end of the programme had a reduced rpe associated with them i.e I found them easier, (5m/km pace example).

It was the optimal beginner’s programme. It was uber easy and particularly pushed me to ensure I adapted and improved, but it was also easy to auto-regulate when necessary, as a lot of what was governing the session was subjective i.e the use of rating of perceived exertion. Check my Instagram posts on the @drphilrpice account so you can see what training I did each week. Hopefully, this will give you some ideas for when planning your own training programme for a similar event.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the performance review for the Progress Theory. My next challenge will be a little heavier, so make sure you follow us on Instagram and subscribe to The Progress Theory on youtube or your podcast app of choice. It would be amazing if you could also leave us a review. We’re always looking to improve the podcast and make sure our listeners are getting content they can use to help with their own training.

We’ll see you in the next episode

Hamstring Injury and Return to Sport - Steph Lazarczuk

The Progress Theory — Mon, 05 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

In today’s episode, we have Steph Lazarczuk, Researcher and lecturer in sports rehab, with her area of expertise being hamstring injury and return to sport. Hamstrings injuries are one of the most frustrating injuries for athletes because if they are not treated with the appropriate exercise protocols and progressions they’re likely to reoccur. This is particularly relevant for athletes whose sports require high levels of hamstring strength and contraction velocities, such as sprinting. In this episode, Steph discusses the role of the hamstring muscle, determines how it can be susceptible to injury, and how strength, range and high speed running are all components of an effective hamstring rehab protocol. In short, if you work with or compete in a sport that involves running you need to listen to this episode.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:08 - An introduction to Steph Lazarzcuk

3:22 - What lead Steph towards Hamstring research

5:19 - What is the function of the Hamstrings and why are they susceptible to injury

8:14 - The most common hamstring injuries and where they occur

15:05 - The hamstring in a lengthened state is when it is most susceptible to injury

16:07 - Determining if someone is at risk of a hamstring injury

24:55 - Long-term programming for hamstrings post-injury

32:57 - Common mistakes coaches make during hamstring RTP programming

37:22 - 3 key points for improving your hamstring training

40:37 - How to contact Steph

Final Thoughts

It was great to have the role of the hamstring fully described so you could understand how they can be susceptible to injury when exposed to sudden high forces when in a lengthened position. Hamstring strength is important, but the hamstrings are involved with so many human functions that rehabbing the hamstrings or preparing them for peak sporting performance is not as simple as just ‘do a load of nordic curls’.

Here are some final thoughts I had on the episode:

Firstly, it was really interesting to hear where hamstring injuries occur. Sprinting related hamstring injuries generally occur around the knee, whereas the hamstring injuries which occur more towards the hip are caused by a sudden slip or reach. Understanding how the hamstrings tend to get injured is vital when planning training programmes for the hamstrings as then it can focus on developing the physical qualities needed to ensure that when the hamstring is exposed to a situation that could injure it, it has the capacity to deal with the forces and the situation.

Secondly, I loved hearing her ideas around working on many physical qualities simultaneously post hamstring injury, and making training decisions based on how the athlete is tolerating the discomfort. Only focusing on one physical quality in training, such as isometric strength, before moving onto the next physical quality might mean the athlete misses an opportunity for development, or at least certainly delayed. More of a conjugate approach, so working on multiple physical qualities simultaneously, is really growing in popularity in the S&C and rehab space.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode. Follow The Progress Theory on Instagram, Youtube, and your podcast app. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

The Physical Preparation Of Elite Ballet Dancers - Adam Mattiussi

The Progress Theory — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

On today’s episode, we have Adam Mattiussi, S&C coach and researcher for the Royal Ballet where we find out just how the greatest ballet dancers in the world physically prepare for their performances.

People don’t normally associate strength and conditioning and ballet. However, elite ballet dancers have an intense rehearsal and performance schedule, which can consist of 6-8 hours per day of training and practising. That is a serious number of jumps and landings, and if the dancers are not physically prepared, the risk of injury or poor performance increases. In this episode, Adam gives us an insight into how elite ballet dancers train, what the common injuries are, and how he physically prepares all the dancers to ensure peak performance.

1:08 - Introduction to the podcast

2:20 - An introduction to Adam Mattiussi and his journey to delivering S&C to the Royal Ballet

12:30 - A typical week of training and rehearsing for a ballet dancer (all depending on their role)

19:22 - How S&C support is structured at the royal ballet

24:23 - An individualised approach to Ballet S&C delivery

26:31 - Types of S&C training used at the Royal Ballet

32:34 - Common injuries in Ballet

35:17 - Does the artistic nature of jumping and landing in ballet derive specific injuries?

37:40 - Changing S&C support due to injury

40:22 - Career advice to those wishing to get into S&C delivery for Ballet

42:50 - Questions from the listeners.

(42:59- 46:09) - How do you optimise recovery when you have so little time for recovery?

(47:11 - 48:55) - Is there any targeted additional conditioning alongside performing?

Final Thoughts

It was great to truly understand the commitment and how much training an elite Ballet Dancer does for their art, and even more interesting to see how the set-up at the Royal Ballet works in order to provide them with the support they need to ensure peak performance.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, just how much training the elite ballet dancers do, especially if they are a principal dancer, often doing multiple rehearsals for multiple shows throughout the week. On top of that, the principal dancers may have performances that consist of sequences involving an intense number of technical jumps in a short space of time. This just makes you appreciate how elite these athletes are and how robust they need to be to tolerate that volume of jumping and landing.

Secondly, because of differences in the schedule between dancer rank, every dancer needs their own individualized approach to support coming from the staff. This seems like a difficult balancing act but I love how Adam has categorised the different approaches each dancer takes for S&C support. He clearly knows his athletes, knows when to provide support and when to try and help work with the team to change a dancer’s schedule to ensure they get enough recovery.

And finally, Adam’s research into an injury at the Royal Ballet has been incredible and I highly recommend checking out his research which I have linked in the show notes. I find it fascinating how certain injuries appear to be more common and can be influenced by the role of the performer and possibly due to the technical demand of the artistic style of jumping. This highlights how important it is to understand your sport and its culture if you provide rehab or S&C support as this knowledge is essential for bringing dancers back to full fitness after injury.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and if ballet performance is a career you wish to pursue, there is plenty of information here to help you head in that direction and achieve your goals. As always, please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube and. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you at the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Organisations

Academics and academic work

Performance Review: Training for Triathlon 70.3 - Part 2

The Progress Theory — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and here is another episode of the performance review.

I wanted to go over a few more aspects of my training which I feel need to be discussed and which I feel has greatly helped me over the last 7 weeks. Just to re-cap, I will be attempting my first half iron triathlon at Hever castle at the festival of endurance hosted by Castle triathlon. That’s a 1.9km swim, 90km bike and a half marathon run. I am relatively new to the sport of Triathlon and don’t have a huge endurance background, but this is a great start into what will be learning the science behind being a hybrid athlete i.e developing strength and endurance simultaneously.

So for this performance review episode I wanted to focus on a few programming decisions. This isn’t just the rationale behind why I have included something, but why I didn’t do a certain test but intend to in the future. Ultimately, this isn’t an 8 week training programme and then i’m finished. I want to continue to push and develop as a hybrid athlete for years to come so decisions I make here early on are really quite important.

So, the 3 topics I will cover in the performance review are:

The 3-minute all out test and why I’m saving that for later
Porgramming volume and intensity for 8 weeks
And why performing is a skill and should be included in your programme.

Why I didn’t do the 3-minute all-out test

On one of our recent Progress Theory podcasts, we chatted with S&C coach Christian Vassallo and his work and research on the 3-minute all-out test and its use in programming. It’s an awesome episode and I’d recommend all of our listeners to check it out as the 3-minute all-out test is horrible to do, but it is easy to implement and gain information about your current physical capabilities. As a short overview, the 3-minute all-out test provides you with your critical speed (if running), or critical power if cycling or rowing etc. This is the speed or power you theoretically can maintain for a long duration based on your aerobic and anaerobic capacity. You can train above this speed, however, you have a limited resource to be able to maintain that speed. Think of it as the battery life on your phone. The higher you venture above this speed, the more limited your capacity is to maintain that speed. With this knowledge, you can programme training at different intensities because you know how much battery life you have at certain speeds and power outputs. You can also use this information to predict race performance.

So if this test provides you with so much valuable information, why haven’t I done it for my training leading up to the half iron. Put simply, I'm working my way up to it. The 3-minute all-out test is still a maximal intensity effort, and due to entering a new sport, I felt I was not ready and in the right physical condition to do it. Firstly, this is from an injury perspective. After injuring my soleus during the marathon just before Christmas in 2020, the muscle tissue does have a tendency to restrain itself (the biggest predictor of injury being previous injury and all that). I still have work to do on this issue, and appropriately increasing the volume running along with an appropriate strength programme will help. However, doing a test where I have to maximally sprint when the muscle tissue isn’t ready to handle that load is not smart. Think about it this way - if someone was new in the weight room would you get them doing a 1RM squat? If you’re smart, you wouldn’t. If they’re new to training or are coming back from injury they’re likely going to improve in the squat if the programme is appropriate, regardless of what their 1RM squat is. This is the same situation with my running.

Now you could also argue why I didn't do the 3-minute all-out test for my cycling. That decision was based on knowing what the main focus of the training was - the efficiency of the skill. I am new to road bikes and I am still learning how to perform the skill, especially on the hills. It is so easy for me to revert back to just pushing on the pedal rather than producing force throughout the whole cycle. Therefore, if I had done a 3-minute all-out test at the beginning of the 8 weeks I would have done it with shoddy technique. How valuable do you think that data would be for me? If my skill improves a lot in 3 weeks, all of a sudden I'm programming training based on numbers achieved during a test when my technique was considerably worse.

These are all decisions a lot of coaches have to make when working with a new client or working with someone that is working with a new goal. Testing is great when applied appropriately, and this time for me I thought it was better to work with RPE’s (rating of perceived exertions), as I can subjectively judge intensity for sessions and give me time to perfect the skills I’m working on. It would be harder for me to eliminate junk miles if I’m so focused on hitting certain speeds and power outputs.

However, once I’m more proficient at the skill of cycling and running, which I am hoping is after this half iron man, then I will definitely be doing the 3-minute all-out test. With a more proficient skill base, I’ll be able to push myself to hit certain intensities based on my current physiological capabilities and hopefully use more precise training to improve physiologically.

Managing volume and intensity. 8 weeks vs longer

I wanted to discuss the how volume and intensity of training changes over the 8-week programme. 8 weeks is an interesting length of time because it is short enough to have it as 1 mesocycle if programmed slowly and appropriately. People often see a mesocycle as a block of training usually with the training load or intensity increasing, followed by a deload. The bog-standard approach to this when displayed in textbooks is 3 weeks of increasing intensity followed by 1 week of deload. This approach is fine if you have a good duration of time because you can structure many of these mesocycles one after the other, which is common in the off-season for rugby. However, mesocycles don’t have to be 4 weeks long, and 8 weeks is short enough to maintain an increase in volume or intensity over 5-7 weeks before tapering off. Any longer, like 12 weeks, you run the risk of injury because you’ve pushed for too long with deloading and allowing the body to recover.

This was shown quite well by the work of Professor Robert Hickson, whose seminal work on concurrent training showed both strength and endurance could be improved together. However, at the 7-week mark, participants reached a peak of performance and then started to decrease in subsequent weeks. This is clearly the time when you add in a deload week to aid recovery and avoid this dip in performance, or your start tapering off with the aim to peak at around 8 weeks. It is this strategy that I have taken with my programming for this half iron man. If I had longer, 12 weeks or 16 weeks, I would have definitely deloaded earlier.

To conclude this section on programming I just want to highlight the importance of knowing how long you’re programming for. You’ll be able to push and programme for certain adaptations differently depends on the length of the programme. An 8-week programme or a 12-week programme may have the same goal, but how you get there will be different, and a common error is pushing too much for too long. You can get away with it with an 8-week programme. A 12-week programme? Not so much.

So, with this in mind, volume and intensity are structured as follows. Let's start with volume. The volume of training increased slowly, with its peak reached at the weekend of week 5. On this particular weekend, the swim, cycle and run distances covered are similar to the event itself (except we covered them over the entire weekend rather than one after the other). From here, the volume started to go down but slowly, and this was to accommodate more of the brick sessions being performed at and around ‘Race pace’ i.e the amount of higher intensity work was increasing.

The intensity slowly increased from the start all the way to around week 7, a very linear progression. This is mostly because running, cycling and swimming were becoming easier as I was becoming more efficient, so by week 7, I was performing at higher speeds at similar RPE’s to week 1 (and for a recap on RPE - please see performance review 1). The weekend of week 7 includes a recce of the racecourse and a brick session. The bike and run legs of the half iron will consist of 2 laps each, so for the bike, it’s 45km loop and the run is a 10.6km loop. The aim of the end of week 7 is to perform 1 loop of each as a brick session at our estimated race pace, so we can get a proper feel of the course and see where we are at before we taper for the week leading up to the event.

Performing is a skill. Practise it.

This neatly segues into my final point which discusses performance practise as a skill. For someone that is new to a sport, there are a lot of new skills which need practising. It isn’t all about how cardiovascularly fit and efficient you can get at all 3 disciplines. Sure, they’re likely the most important components, but competing consists of a number of logistical and mental skills which you need to get more comfortable with. Because of this, the following was included in the 8-week programme:

A competitive Olympic distance triathlon on the weekend of week 4. A perfect opportunity to be more comfortable competing alongside others, finding your food and water strategies, making sure everything is set up correctly to ensure a quick transition
A brick session on the weekend of week 7 using the actual course. It gives you a chance to practice and become familiar with the course, determine your RPE for race pace on the actual course, and just see how far you’ve come along during the past 7 weeks.

People often only want to compete if they’re in their best shape or have trained for it, but competing can be used as part of the training programme. Use competitions effectively by specifically outlining which goals you personally want to achieve or what you want to find out about yourself. During the Olympic distance triathlon, my focus was on getting used to the new bike set up (it was all wrong - best I find that out early), determine an RPE for the run at a specific pace post swim and bike, and plan out my transition strategy (which, again, needed a lot of work). Without competition, I would not be able to find this information out. It made me a better athlete. I learnt more than if I had just gone through the miles out of competition over the weekend. So stop comparing yourself to others, list what you need to know about yourself and see if you can utilise a competition effectively to find the information to help you train and become a better athlete.

Just to summarise: I will be doing the 3 minute all-out test in the near future and using it to make programming decisions. However, as I’m new to the sport and coming back from a calf injury, it is best to leave more intense forms of testing for when I am ready. An 8 weeks training programme can be seen as its own mesocycle. You can push the volume and intensity for longer than 3 weeks before deloading. However, if you're programming for longer than 8 weeks, this may not be appropriate. The length of the programme will hugely determine how you structure your programme. And finally, practise competing. Structure it into your training. Make specific goals so you can learn about yourself. Training competitions are a great opportunity for this.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and found this information helpful for your own training. I plan on doing many more of these so please subscribe to the Progress theory so you get all our episodes downloaded straight to your phone when they’re released. Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, leave a comment or share us on your story. We really appreciate the help as we grow the channel. You can also find me on Instagram @drphilprice as I document all my training. Also, head to our website www.theprogresstheory.com where you can find all of our content.

We’ll see you ln the next episode

Mindset in Sport: Lessons From A Career In Banking - Steve Griffiths

The Progress Theory — Mon, 21 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

In this episode, we have Steve Griffiths who has taken his experiences from a career in banking and trading and applied them to his ideas on developing mindset, which he now teaches to developing and elite level athletes. Steve has a 10+ year career working on the trading desks at international Investment Banks and has a degree in Maths with Economics from Royal Holloway, University of London and a Masters from Imperial Business School.

Steve comes highly recommended to me by close personal friends, all of which have said working with Steve has completely changed their ideas around self-belief, intentions, trust and worthiness. In this episode, we touch upon how our beliefs determine our intentions, and we have the ability and free will and choose what our beliefs are and how to act on them. I loved this episode as it allowed me to realise just how much control we have in shaping our future. If you enjoy learning about mindset this is the perfect episode for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:46 - An introduction to Steve Griffiths

4:36 - How Steve’s background has led to his career as a mindset coach

7:40 - The importance of setting your intentions early

11:32 - Is going off-track from the direction of your goals a good or bad thing?

15:25 - constructive vs destructive beliefs

19:19 - Should we view our beliefs regularly and objectively?

23:20 - Using perceived ‘negative’ emotions may not be such a bad idea: Tennis example

28:41 - Sport is chaotic. Practise harnessing your emotions in training to improve how you react to your emotions in competition

30:31 - Trust and worthiness

34:06 - Do you need to feel worthy in order to trust yourself?

37:06 - How to distinguish between facts and beliefs

40:33 - Allowing deconstructive beliefs to limit your potential

44:03 - 3 pieces of advice for anyone struggling with deconstructive beliefs

49:03 - Steve’s choice of progress theory guest

Mindset is a topic that is incredibly popular at the moment and can often feel diluted. However, when Steve talks about his ideas around beliefs, worthiness and self-reflection, everything becomes clear and just feels so simple.

I love the idea of having a reference point. It is the perfect opportunity to self-reflect on your beliefs and provide clarity around what your beliefs are and how you have the choice to impose your beliefs onto your experience.

I also liked how Steve provided clarity around how we have a tendency to see deconstructive beliefs as facts, which stops us from acting on them appropriately. It’s crazy to think of all the untapped potential in the world just because people saw deconstructive beliefs as fact when in reality it is just their perception. And perceptions can change, but it is up to you.

And finally, how asking and telling are the same thing. I’ve never heard it framed that way before, and when you do it just highlights just how much free will you have. So use it wisely.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has sparked some creativity around your own ideas on mindset.

We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@s.x.griff

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

The nature of your personal Environment

How Does Blood Flow Restriction Training Work? - Dr Luke Hughes

The Progress Theory — Mon, 14 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Dr Luke Hughes, a Post-Doctoral research fellow in applied Exercise Physiology at St Mary’s University, and an expert on blood flow restriction training.

I’ve noticed blood flow restriction training is getting more popular in the training space and on social media. More blood flow restriction products are available to buy and people are starting to utilise this method to enhance their training. But is it worth the hype? What are the mechanisms behind blood flow restriction training, how does it work? Can anyone use it and is it possible for it to be dangerous if used inappropriately? Well, Luke provides all the answers to these questions so every listener will have information to help decide whether blood flow restriction training is right for them and how to use it.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:10 - An introduction to Dr Luke Hughes

6:27 - What is blood flow restriction training?

8:24 - The mechanisms behind blood flow restriction training

10:28 - Low loads used during BRF training = quicker recovery?

12:21 - Which populations can use BRF training?

14:13 - Using BRF training to help laid and fatigue management for sports performance

17:23 - Using BRF training to stop muscle wastage for astronauts in space

23:06 - How do we programme BRF training?

26:45 - BFR training after ACL reconstructive surgery

29:00 - Common mistakes using BFR

32:36 - The right pressure to use with your BFR cuffs

36:28 - What to look for when buying a BFR cuff

39:55 - Questions from viewers

40:04 - Question 1 - BFR training and pain reduction? By @cmvincentandi

44:03 - Question 2 - Can BFR training increase capillarization in muscles with a big cross-sectional area? By @kemperman_human_movement

47:32 - Question 3 - What are your thoughts on cuffs that autoregulate occlusion pressure such as the air bands by Vald and Suji? By @adammattiussi

50:29 - How to contact Luke and learn about the courses he’s leading in BFR training

An amazing episode, which really answered my original questions around whether blood flow restriction training is worth the hype. The benefits of using blood flow restriction training can’t be denied as it's been heavily supported by the research, and it seems like its benefits would be huge if used appropriately with the right patient or athlete at the right time.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, just how useful blood flow restriction training can be during early rehab. We know after serious surgery we go through a phase of muscle weakness and a reduction in size. However, BFR training can be used almost immediately after surgery (3 days post) during bed exercises and walking and has been effective at reducing this muscle loss and aid recovery.
Secondly, I was amazed by the potential BFR training can have for athletes. As low loads are used the recovery is much quicker, meaning we could reduce the fatigue from strength training but still get similar adaptations. This could lead to an increase in other training, or the reduction in fatigue will mean the athlete is more fresh for sports training and competition.
And finally, the pressure created by the cuff should be specific to the individual and consistent over multiple training sessions. We currently don’t know enough about the cuffs you can buy which don’t measure pressure. Do they work or is their effect limited? More research over the coming years will hopefully explain this

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and have enough information to allow yourself to make the decision if blood flow restriction training is right for your goals. Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and Youtube and share this episode on your insta stories. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest
@theprogresstheory
@thepricep

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Misconceptions Surrounding Youth Strength Training - Rob Anderson

The Progress Theory — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Rob Anderson, Strength & Conditioning coach for the Scottish Rugby Academy and director of Athletic Evolution, a podcast that focuses on youth athlete development.

Rob and I discuss the current misconceptions surrounding strength training for youth development, including why strength training does not stunt your growth, and why we shouldn’t just focus on aerobic conditioning at young ages. We also hear how Rob’s wealth of experience has developed his approach to coaching youth athletes. So if you coach youth athletes, work in schools, or are currently a developing athlete yourself, this episode gives plenty of take-home messages for you to implement into your own coaching and training.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:13 - An introduction to Rob Anderson

5:34 - Where Rob’s Interest in youth strength coaching came from

9:53 - Is there a culture change happening for youth coaching?

12:54 - Misconceptions surrounding youth strength training

18:52 - Why bone needs strength training

23:42 - Misconceptions around aerobic conditioning for youth athletes

26:51 - Is past research on youth strength training out of date?

30:54 - The aim behind the Athletic Evolution podcast

36:18 - What key performance indicators to focus on during talent ID to avoid the ‘early maturer trap’.

50:05 - Rob’s philosophy for youth coaching and training

1:00:15 - The LTAD Network

1:06:22 - How to get in contact with Rob

Final Thoughts

So many take away messages from this episode, and it is amazing to see just how far the area of youth training has come in the last 10 years. Not only do I think this is great, but I think it is so necessary that youth coaching is seen as a specialist area. That way it can attract the best coaches for the job who have the right training, experience and skill set.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, just how much of a minefield youth talent ID is, and it is crazy that some still fall into the trap of selecting athletes based on their current performance, rather than actually looking deeper into how much potential that athlete has.
It was great to have the relative age effect explained in detail to fully understand how it may influence the selection process. It’s great to hear of strategies such as bio-banding, getting players to compete against those of a similar biological age, are being employed to allow both early and late maturers to develop the skills that they need. An early maturer getting selected when they shouldn’t and a late maturer getting overlooked are definitely outcomes that will be less common if we provide better environments for youth athletes to develop.
And finally, how ‘windows of opportunity have been so prevalent on youth athlete development models, despite scarce support from the research, and that using a more concurrent approach to training may be necessary for optimal youth development.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has piqued your interest in getting involved with youth coaching. For more youth development content check out Rob’s work with the LTAD Network. However, for now, please follow and share @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

If you would like to give us a review on Podchaser, please click HERE.

It can really help others discover the podcast.

Maximise Your Training Decisions With The 3 Minute All-Out Test - Christian Vassallo

The Progress Theory — Mon, 31 May 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Progress Theory. In today’s episode, we’ve brought on Christian Vassallo, S&C coach and researcher, to discuss the 3 minute all-out test.

The use of the 3 minute all-out test is becoming more popular as coaches are finding it is easy to use and provides them with the perfect information about their athletes to aid their programming. But what is this information? How can it be so easily obtained and then used to make training programming decisions? In this episode, Christian breaks down how you perform the 3 minute all-out test, the physiology behind the information it gives you, and how it can be used in a training programme.

As always, please follow and share The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. But now, here is Christian Vassallo

In this episode, we discuss:

1:38 - An introduction to Christian Vassallo

3:50 - His work setting up Traainer

5:54 - What is the 3-minute all-out test

9:31 - Can you use the 3-minute test on other equipment, such as a bike or rower?

13:12 - The shuttle run version of the 3 minute all-out test

14:33 - Variables of interest from the 3-minute all-out test

18:10 - What is critical speed?

23:42 - How can you predict your battery (D’)

26:05 - How to use D’ and critical speed to make programming decisions:

32:57 - Eliud Kipchoge and his critical speed

35:52 - Using power for running programming

36:31 - Can the 3-minute all-out test predict the performance of both short and long-distance races?

42:50 - How you can Use D’ and critical speed to determine race strategies

45:43 - Questions from Instagram

46:11-50:04 - How to use the 3-Minute test for improving field-based sports

51:00 - How to contact Christian

Final Thoughts

This was a great episode, it provided some great information about a test that seems so simple but can give you so much valuable information for your training. I love that you can use it for pretty much any sport. Whether you’re a runner, rower, cyclist, or play an intermittent sport like rugby or netball, the 3-minute all-out test can be easily implemented into your training.

I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.

Firstly, that the critical speed is faster than you think. I can imagine most people new to this test must think that everyone slows down almost to a crawl during the final minute of the 3-minute all-out test, just because it’s so hard to maintain that all-out intensity for that long. However, you’d be surprised how fast the default speed you resort to is. It just feels slow because of how fast you were going at the start.
And finally, I thought it was just incredible that Eliud Kipchoge maintained 97% of critical speed throughout his 2-hour marathon, which means his critical speed is greater than 21 kilometres per hour. I don’t even know if I can sprint that speed. His physiology is incredible.

Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and have learnt a lot from it because I certainly did. All of Christian’s details can be found in the show notes. For now, please follow and share @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Traainer

Garmin

Myzone

Performance Review: Training for Triathlon 70.3 - Part 1

The Progress Theory — Thu, 27 May 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

We’ve started a new series of episodes. These Progress Theory episodes aim to discuss how I (@thepricep) am putting Science into practice into my own physical challenges, as the best way to learn about human performance and sport science is to put it into practice, see what works and what didn’t work, reflect on the results, review and repeat the process.

What is important about these Progress theory Episodes is how they’re going to focus on how I am making my programming decisions. What information am I using? How am I determining what is important for me and my training for a particular event at that given time? It is these decision-making skills that I hope will help our listeners make their own programming decisions. Making a training programme that is both specific to you as an athlete and your goal is difficult and requires a lot of thought as to what to include in your programme, what not to include in your programme, and decide where the right level of training is for you. For example, working on too many things at once may appear specific to your goals, but may accumulate too much fatigue which actually decreases performance or even increases the risk of injury.

It is these types of issues that this podcast will discuss. I won’t just list through my programme as that would be dull. However, I will go through key decisions and scientific principles that I think make up the important components of my programming, explaining my rationale behind them.

So, the first challenge is The Gauntlet at the festival of endurance at Hever Castle hosted by Castle Triathlon. 1.9km swim, 90km bike, finished with a half marathon run. Only 8 weeks to prepare, which isn’t much considering the poor training state at the beginning of the year.

In this episode, we discuss:

0:00 - Introduction

2:30 - The Gauntlet

4:10 - My training history

6:00 - The specific components of the programme covered in this episode

7:14 - Efficiency is key and the driver of decision making in this programme

10:07 - Rate of Perceived exertion

15:01 - Exercise focus

16:38 - Poor motion around the C7/T1 junction

22:00 - Left hip impingement

25:28 - Left foot being a poor shock absorber

28:52 - Contrast sets

34:25 - Episode summary

There are plenty more things to talk about, including the programming over the 8 weeks, which I will definitely cover in the next few episodes. I hope you enjoyed the episode and that it sparked some ideas in your own training.

Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, leave a comment or share us on your story. We really appreciate the help as we grow the channel. Also, head to our website www.theprogresstheory.com where you can find all of our content.

We’ll see you in the next episode

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

Castle Triathlon

Rich Blagrove The Progress Theory episode

DG coaching

WattHealth

Google Scholar

Ratings of Perceived exertion

How To Balance Being An Elite Crossfit Athlete While Working In ITU - Dr Carys Webster

The Progress Theory — Mon, 24 May 2021 06:00:00 +0100

The Progress Theory is back with more legends. This time we catch up with medical Dr and elite CrossFit athlete Dr Carys Webster. I’ve been following Carys on Instagram for a while and I’ve always been so curious how she manages to balance 12 hour shifts at the hospital and training at the elite level in Crossfit, all the while studying for a Masters in Sports and Exercise Medicine. I had to get her on The Progress Theory to find how she does it, particularly as she’s continually improving as an athlete and challenging the podium against other athletes who train full time.

In this episode we discuss:

· Carys’s background in sport and how she got into Crossfit

· Her goals as a competitive CrossFit athlete

· How she has managed to balance training while working long shifts in ITU? How she manages her week.

· What changes have been made to her training during the global pandemic

· Her training and how she’s developed with her coaching team @redpill_training

· Her interest in Exercise Physiology, which led her to start her own blog. And how she uses the blog to further her passion for exercise physiology and provide some clarity on the misinformation of training content that is out on social media

· Why she started an MSc in Sports and Exercise Medicine and how she is using further education and her experiences to further her medical career.

Carys is a sponsored athlete, being supported by @officialcnp supplements. If you wish to contact Carys she can be found on Instagram @caryswebster

#progresstheory

How Strength Training Improves Distance Running Performance - Dr Rich Blagrove

The Progress Theory — Mon, 17 May 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have Dr Rich Blagrove, Lecturer in Physiology and Strength & Conditioning at Loughborough University and researcher on strength training for middle and long-distance runners.

Rich has a wealth of knowledge from over 10 years of coaching and researching how strength training can improve running performance. Here we discuss important topics such as what factors separate the elite and amateur runners, what types of strength training you should be doing to improve your running performance, and how strength training may reduce the chance of you experiencing an injury. Whether you’re an experienced runner or someone that is new to the sport there are plenty of take away messages you can implement into your own training.

In this episode, we discuss:

1:14 - Congratulations on Rich’s new book
2:18 - Rich’s Background
3:31 - The aim of Rich’s new book
6:47 - The main skills and/or qualities to develop to improve endurance running performance
9:22 - What physical qualities do elite marathon runners have which are lacking in amateur marathoners?
15:01 - Why strength training essential for running economy and long-distance running performance
18:21 - What types of strength training a runner should include in their training
20:19 - How to incorporate plyometric training into a runners program when running is already a plyometric activity
25:16 - Can long-distance runners do too much strength training?
29:38 - Does strength training reduce injury risk?
36:26 - How different would strength training look like when comparing a 5km runner to a marathon runner?
42:41 - Where is the line drawn between the roles of an S&C coach and a running coach? What is the role of an S&C coach within a running coaching team?
51:05 - How to get in contact with Rich

This was a great episode with so many take away messages, which whether you are an experienced runner and amateur runner, or someone looking to start running, there is something in this episode to help you improve your running training.

Here are some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.

How using strength training to improve the running economy is really important for all levels of runners
How a runner’s strength programme for all different distances will generally look the same (consist of strength, ballistic and plyometric training). How we structure these training modalities around running training which is the main difference
Take advantage of the warm-up. A great opportunity to regularly incorporate strength training. A warm-up if used appropriately is a form of strength training.
One of Rich’s surveys that he did on runners for his PhD work showed that most runners mainly did strength training to reduce the risk of injury. However, it's proven that strength training improves performance, not reduces the risk of injury. Theoretically, strength training should decrease the risk of injury and it is definitely a reason why we all do it. Fewer injuries = better consistent running = increased performance. However, reducing injury risk is harder to prove and the quality of science on this isn’t great.

FOLLOW OUR PODCAST

Follow our Host / Guest

@theprogresstheory

@thepricep

@rich_blagrove

Work profile: https://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/richard-blagrove/

Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the Show

The Progress Theory Trailer

The Progress Theory — Thu, 13 May 2021 16:43:00 +0100

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory, where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance.

My Name s Dr Phil Price Senior Lecturer in Strength and Conditioning Science at St Mary’s University and researcher in human performance.

I’ll be chatting with scientists, coaches, and athletes to discuss the latest ideas in performance science and how you can apply them to your training and everyday life.

These skills can be applied towards improving sporting performance and conquering physical challenges or developing a better quality of life.

We aim to do this with honesty and impartiality.

With the wealth of misinformation often portrayed by the media and unqualified social media influencers, it is important we understand the science behind human performance.

To test the ideas discussed on the show I will be implementing them into my own training for my own physical challenges; giving an honest insight into my training successes, programming decisions, and opinions on how to optimise human performance.

Subscribe for free to The Progress Theory and you’ll have a new episode with top quality guests downloaded every Monday morning ready for your morning walk or commute to work.

Additional episodes where I discuss my training for my upcoming challenges will be released on a Thursday. So check them out!

Make sure you follow us on Instagram @theprogresstheory where we’ll keep you updated on all upcoming news about the show, and head to our website theprogresstheory.com where you can find all our show notes and information on all our guests.

Come join the journey, and we’ll see you in the next episode.

------

Hosted by Capitvate.fm

Can Social Media Be Used To Develop Positive Nutritional Behaviours? - David Dunne

The Progress Theory — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 06:15:00 +0100

The Progress Theory is back with another legend’s episode. This time we’re discussing behaviours around food with Performance nutritionist, researcher and co-founder of the Hexis-performance app, David Dunne.

In this episode, we discuss how David’s ideas around nutritional behaviour and habits and how Nutritionists were starting to embrace technology and social media more for the delivery of nutritional services led him to pursue research in Behavioral Science and nutrition. It was very clear that nutritional knowledge is not enough to improve the nutritional behaviours of athletes, and a more personal and context-specific approach is needed to influence behaviour and improving nutritional practices. Topics include:

• The rationale and direction of David’s research in nutrition and behavioural Science

• How nutritionists are open to new technologies when delivering nutritional services, but our understanding of how effective they can be is limited

• How behavioural approaches need to be person-specific, making group sessions challenging. In these scenarios, focus on what behaviours you can change.

• The negatives of social media for nutrition. How social media can provide a false narrative of what is normal and appropriate nutrition.

• How the Hexis performance app is an evidence-based app that aims to tailor your nutritional strategy to your characteristics and positive behaviours (check them out at @hexis_performance due out later this year).

• How getting practical experience is key for developing your skills as a nutritionist.

You can also contact David through his Instagram @thenutritionisr

#progresstheory

The Impact Of Stress Management On Living A Better Life - Dr Bernie Dancy

The Progress Theory — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 06:10:00 +0100

The Legend Series is back for Round 2. This time we're joined by health coach and running coach Dr Bernie Dancy. This episode gets quite personal as Bernie and @thepricep talk about their past experiences with stress and how that has led them to perceive and manage stress today. We're all looking to improve our training and physical health through our programming, but if our lifestyle, (and therefore our stress) isn't managed, we don't have the foundation to allow training to improve performance. In this episode we cover:

- Our past experiences, particularly events which happened during our PhD study, which led stressful factors become too overwhelming

- Stress and academia. How driven and ambitious people may be more susceptible to situations where stress become hard to manage.

- How training is great for improving health, but it is still a stress that needs to be managed appropriately with all the other stressors.

- What you can do if you feel it's all becoming too overwhelming

If you feel like you could benefit from a health coach and want to learn more about stress management, check out Bernie's website: www.bernadettedancy.co.uk , follow her on Instagram (@bernadettedancy_healthcoach) and her brand new podcast 'Movement and Mind' https://www.bernadettedancy.co.uk/podcast

As always, like, leave a comment and subscribe to our channel and follow us on Instagram @progress_theory_ and join the journey.

#progresstheory

Working In Strength & Conditioning From Grassroots To The Elite Level - Ben Lonergan

The Progress Theory — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Huge new series!!

Progress Theory has now started the Legends series, where we catch up with high performers in the fields of Sport, Science, and Sport Science.

In episode 001 @thepricep chats with S&C coach Ben Lonergan (@loners7), who has an impressive CV, delivering S&C to both the England Women's and Men's Rugby 7's team and on the Rugby 10's circuit. Check-in as we catch up on these topics:

- Where Ben's career and passion for S&C all started

- Stories from the International 7's circuit

- The difference in approach when delivering S&C to Elite male and female rugby players

- The importance of networking if you wish to succeed in S&C

- The mentors who have helped his development over the years

- The lessons learned from teaching S&C at the university level and Coaching at the International level.

Love S&C and rugby? This is the episode for you. Download now and Joint the Journey

#ProgressTheory

The Progress Theory Podcast: Roundtable 006: Is your comfort zone bigger than you think?

The Progress Theory — Wed, 20 Jan 2021 06:27:00 +0100

Welcome back everyone, the Progress Theory podcast returns in 2021. Today we start off the year with a roundtable episode where @thepricep @dgcoaching and @m.tyler_pt discuss the comfort zone, every influencer’s favourite buzzword. Let’s be honest, do we often say we’re outside our comfort zone when in reality we’re not? The comfort zone boundary is going to be different for everyone so what can we do to understand where it is. Surely our own understanding of our comfort zone is what is going to help us continuously challenge ourselves?

In this episode we cover (Comfort zone talk starts at 13:00):

· What activities we feel are outside of our comfort zone

· Do people misinterpret hard work for being outside of their comfort zone?

· How we define outside of the comfort zone?

· Is there such thing as being too far out of your comfort zone?

· Advice for managing moving inside and outside of your comfort zone?

As always, like and subscribe to our YouTube channel, download all of our previous podcast episodes, follow us on Instagram @theprogresstheory, and join the journey.

#progresstheory

The Progress Theory Roundtable 005: 2020 Reflections and 2021 Goals

The Progress Theory — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 09:22:00 +0100

2020 is coming to an end. It's been an interesting year, but certainly a great learning experience. In the final episode of 2020 Progress Theory sets up a Roundtable where @thepricep @daryl_green_ and @m.tyler_pt reflect on the past year discussing what they've learned and how it has formed their goals for 2021

What are your goals for 2021? Join the journey

#progresstheory

The Concurrent Training Challenge - Our Reflections

The Progress Theory — Mon, 21 Dec 2020 13:41:00 +0100

The Concurrent Training Challenge: Completed it, mate.

On December 19th @thepricep and @daryl_green_ put their 11 weeks of concurrent training to the test where they looked to if they had increased strength while still training for a 4 hour marathon. It was an eventful day where new PB's were made and pain barriers were pushed. Check out Episode 2.6 for our reflections on the challenge:

- The results of the Concurrent Training challenge

- Our reflections with how the day went. Were we happy with the results?

- If we were to do the challenge again, what changes to the training would we make?

This is the last episode of Season 2. be sure to check out all of the season 2 episode and join the journey. What challenge will you set for yourself in 2021?

#progresstheory

The Final Preparations For The Concurrent Training Challenge

The Progress Theory — Fri, 18 Dec 2020 07:04:00 +0100

The challenge is nearly here. On Dec 19th, @thepricep and @daryl_green_ put their ideas around concurrent training to the test as they look to see if their attempts to increase strength while training for a 4-hour marathon have worked. In this episode, the boys detail the final week leading up to the challenge. They discuss:

How they have tapered their training during the final week
How they have structured the challenge day to maximise performance
How they’re feeling about the challenge and their early predictions

If anyone is near Hayling Island and wants to join us on the run, please don’t hesitate and come join us. As much support as possible is welcome.

#progresstheory

The Progress Theory Roundtable 004: Reflective Practise

The Progress Theory — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 07:19:00 +0100

When a topic keeps coming up, you know you need to do a roundtable episode on it.

After the last Roundtable episode on mental resilience it was clear that to become more resilient you need to constantly self-reflect on your experiences. Reflection is something we subconsciously do, but how can we maximise this process? In episode 004 of the Progress Theory Roundtable @thepricep, @daryl_green_ and @m.tyler_pt discuss their opinions on reflective practise and what strategies they use to get the most out of reflection. They cover topics such as:

- The differences between acute and long-term reflection

- Writing reflection practises - How journal isn't the only way to maximise your reflective practise

- How not trying to be so structured with your reflection could help maximise reflective practise

As always, like, follow @progress_theory_ , share and leave a comment, and Join the Journey

#progresstheory

Determinants of Marathon Performance

The Progress Theory — Sun, 06 Dec 2020 20:55:00 +0100

The concurrent training challenge is edging ever closer so the Progress Theory Podcast is back with another episode. This time, Phil and Daryl recap the training component which they are finding the most challenging: marathon training. In this episode, the boys discuss what makes an elite marathon runner by discussing the determinants of marathon performance:

- Key physiological factors determinants of marathon performance: VO2max, Lactate Threshold, and running economy

- Why VO2max may be lower for marathon runners in comparison to 5km runners

- How training intensity around 80-95% of VO2max is essential for raising VO2max in amateur runners

- How mechanical efficiency needs to be given time to develop

- How your most efficient running stride tends to be at the speed you run the most.

- How running culture is key for the initial development of elite runners

Follow @progress_theory_ on insta and Join the Journey.

#progresstheory

The Progress Theory Roundtable 003: What is Mental Resilience? Can you train it?

The Progress Theory — Wed, 25 Nov 2020 06:26:00 +0100

The boys are back for 003 of the Progress Theory Roundtable.

In this episode, @thepricep, @daryl_green_ and m.tyler_pt chat about the quality they admired the most out of those they selected for their Greatest of all Time Mt Rushmore in Roundtable Episode 001 - Mental Resilience. It's a characteristic we all admire and one that many of us wish to train and improve on, but can mental resilience in sports transfer to everyday life? We cover such questions as:

- What is mental resilience? Is there a difference between resilience and toughness?

- What personality trait or psychological characteristics do we need or have which makes use resilient?

- Is our resilience a product of our environment and our experiences?

- Can gym culture indirectly train our mental resilience?

Are you mentally resilient? Want to find out more? Hope you enjoy the episode and join the journey.

#progresstheory

The Progress Theory Roundtable 002: The rise of functional fitness/Crossfit

The Progress Theory — Wed, 11 Nov 2020 06:37:00 +0100

The boys are back with round 2 of the Progress Theory Roundtable where they discuss the rise in popularity of Crossfit and Functional Fitness. Over the past 15 years Functional Fitness, predominantly lead by Crossfit, has created a cultural shift where they have popularised the combination of health, competitive fitness and community in their training methodology. Along with the dominance of social media use in today's world, it appears the growth of Functional Fitness is only getting started. In this episode we discuss:

- Is 'Functional' Fitness the right term to use?

- What has been the catalyst for the huge rise in popularity of Functional Fitness?

- The difference between coaching and supervising

- How far can Functional fitness go? Can the Fitness Racing Federation get competitive fitness into the Olympics?

- A review of the 2020 Crossfit games

- How good is Mat Fraser? Why is he so good and will anyone else reach his level?

This episode is perfect for anyone involved in coaching clients who all have different goals. Download now and join the journey

#progresstheory

How to programme training going into a National Lockdown

The Progress Theory — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 16:51:00 +0100

It's happened again. The UK is going into its second National Lockdown. Training is going to have to change as gyms close and access to certain equipment becomes limited. However, this doesn't mean training needs to take a step back in order to achieve our goals.

In Episode 2.3 of the Progress Theory Podcast @thepricep and @daryl_green_ discuss the lockdown changes being made to their training programmes as they approach the second half of their training leading up to the increased strength + 4 hour marathon challenge. They covered the following topics:

- The changes Daryl is making to his weightlifting training now that the gyms are closed

- Common mistakes people made with training from the first lockdown

- Their top 3 tips on how to maximise your training during lockdown

With or without gyms you can still achieve your goals. Download this episode now so you can achieve yours, too.

Join the journey

#progresstheory

Programming for increased strength & a 4 hour marathon

The Progress Theory — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 15:29:00 +0100

How do you programme your training to improve strength and endurance concurrently?

Welcome to episode 2.2 of the Progress Theory Podcast where @thepricep and @daryl_green_ discuss their training programmes for this season's challenge. In this episode the boys cover:

- The details of their training programme for their respective challenges

- How fatigue management and structuring your week is vital for concurrent training success

- Patience is key when increasing intensity

- Do the minimal amount which you believe is necessary to improve performance. Everything else is filler which may unnecessarily increase fatigue and effect future training sessions.

- Running at a 4 hour marathon pace is a skill. Spend time there to practise and increase efficiency

- How your previous training should influence your programming decision making

How do these programmes compare to your training? Let us know in the comments and join the journey

#progresstheory

The Progress Theory Roundtable 001: Which sports man/woman is the Greatest Of All Time?

The Progress Theory — Fri, 23 Oct 2020 05:14:00 +0100

Introducing the new Progress Theory Roundtable series!!

Each Progress Theory Roundtable will discuss a brand new topic set out at the start of the episode. These topics are meant to be subjective and challenging, allowing for different opinions to be shared. These topics can range from sport event reviews, contrasting styles of training, different sporting philosophies, and approaches to training & coaching.

In 001, @thepricep @daryl_green_ and @m.tyler_pt discuss who is the greatest sportsman or women of all time, and form their own Mt Rushmore of G.O.A.T's. Here they discuss the following:

- What qualities, both physical and mental, create the GOAT

- What separates the GOAT's selected for their respective Mt Rushmore and those that did not make the cut?

- What is a sporting Icon?

- Are we aware of our own bias when selecting who is the GOAT?

- Which GOAT got selected more than all the others?

Who would be on your Mt Rushmore of the G.O.A.T?

Join the journey

#progresstheory

The new challenge: What is the interference effect?

The Progress Theory — Mon, 12 Oct 2020 13:05:00 +0100

The Progress Theory Podcast is back for season 2 with a new challenge!!!

Want a good engine, lift heavy and not suck at both? With the rise in functional fitness and many athletes taking on their own challenges after Coronavirus got most of the events cancelled, we decided to cover how it is possible to train for both strength and endurance.

In Episode 2.1 follow @thepricep and @dg.coaching as they detail the next challenge: Increase strength in their chosen lifts while training for a 4 hour marathon. All in 11 weeks.

The cover the following topics:

- What is concurrent training? Is concurrent training more common than we think?

- Why has it been previously perceived that you couldn't train for strength and endurance at the same time?

- Who is Professor Robert Hickson and how did his seminal research in 1980 start the idea that strength and endurance shouldn't be trained together?

- After critiquing his research what answers do we find?

- What is the interference effect? Does an understanding of the molecular pathways which regulate strength and endurance adaptations help explain why endurance training may inhibit protein synthesis after resistance training?

- Which factors affect how powerful the interference effect is? can we structure training so we can reduce the interference effect and maximise Endurance and strength training simultaneously?

Hope you enjoy the episode. Like and subscribe to our podcast and join the journey. What are your experiences with concurrent training?

The 5/10km Re-Test

The Progress Theory — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 09:42:00 +0100

Welcome to Episode 1.4 - The 5/10km Re-Test - of the Progress Theory Podcast. It's here, check in to see how the 5/10km sub20/40 minute challenge went.

In this episode @freddiereadhead and @thepricep discuss their 5/10km re-test results and reflect on how training for the challenge went. Topics include:

- Recapping the training strategy for this challenge (The 6 day cycle, polarised training)

- How constant changes due to covid restrictions effected training

- The choice of training plan and maintaining a work/training balance

- If we had longer than 8 weeks how much more do we think we could improve?

- What we've learnt from this experience

- How reflection is the key to making better future training decisions

- How we want everyone to join in with this journey. Let us know your challenge

That's season 1 done. Check in next time for season 2 where Progress Theory goes up a notch. Big plans ahead.

S&C and running performance

The Progress Theory — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 12:30:00 +0100

Check out episode 1.3 where Freddie and Phil discuss their S&C training leading up to the 5/10km in sub 20/40 minute challenge.

The boys could have discussed so many points in this episode. Instead, they focused on key areas which formed the principles they followed when programming S&C. Topics include:

- How important is S&C in running?

- How S&C training was structured around a 6 day running training microcycle

- How strong do you need to be to be a good runner?

- What is the difference between ballistic and plyometric exercises?

- Is running a plyometric exercise?

As always, like & subscribe to our channel. Please leave a review and send us a message about your training journey.

#progresstheory

Running programming for 5km/10km

The Progress Theory — Tue, 04 Aug 2020 17:10:00 +0100

Check out Episode 1.2 of the Progress Theory podcast as @freddiereadhead and @thepricep discuss how they developed their running programme for their 5km/10km sub 20/40 challenge. The episode starts with the boys reflecting on the first 2 weeks of training, how they have found the programme so far. Then they get stuck into how the programme was developed.

This episode covers:

- Phil guides us through why he chose a 6 day training cycle over a typical 7 day training week

- How Pareto's law provides the basis of balancing a programme made up of slow, long runs, intervals and tempo runs.

- Polarised training, a structure involving a balance of shorter, faster sessions and longer, slower sessions, is discussed.

- How running volume and intensity changes over the 8 weeks leading up to the re-test.

- How having an understanding of your programme and the scientific principles behind it helps training with intent.

Check it out. Like and subscribe to the Progress Theory Podcast.

5km/10km the determinants of endurance performance

The Progress Theory — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 10:27:00 +0100

Check the latest Progress Theory podcast as @freddiereadhead and @thepricep set out their first challenge. In this episode: . • Freddie and Phil lay down the rules for the challenge. • Discuss the determinants of endurance performance. What makes some endurance runners better than others? • Introduce potential training zones based on understanding how the body utilises different energy systems. . Follow their journey as they train for this challenge. Want to improve your 5km and 10km? Get involved and join in.

Ep 1 Pilot - Stairway to the Stratosphere

TheProgressTheory — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 08:39:10 +0100

Welcome to episode 1 of the Progress Theory Podcast.

In this episode, Freddie Readhead and Dr Phil Price reflect on Freddie's 'Stairway to the Stratosphere' challenge, where Freddie ascended and descended his staircase 3,846 times, the equivalent height of sea level to Earth's the stratosphere (10 vertical kilometres). Freddie and Phil discuss how this challenge came about and how it eventually lead them to start up the 'Progress Theory Podcast'. We believe that with the right knowledge, preparation and mindset, you are able to take on any challenge, regardless of what discipline, format, distance, time or prior experience. Fundamentally, it's about creating a culture of small wins, marginal gains and consistent progress towards a specific goal.

In our first episode we discuss Freddie's training programme and cover topics such as:

* Strategy - How Freddie broke down the number of flights of stairs needed per hour to reach The Stratosphere in a 48 hour window.

*Problem Solving - How Freddie used the training climbs for the challenge to identify areas which could potential cause problems.

*Training Methods - How Freddie used a gradual approach to his training, hoping to expose his body to the stresses and physical demands of climbing stairs for long periods of time.

* Strength and Conditioning - How Phil programmed Freddie's strength training to focus on developing key physical qualities necessary for the climb.

* Reflection - What would Freddie change about his preparation for the climb and overall thoughts about the climb itself.

Check it out, like and subscribe.

Progress Theory.